The SIS Baseball Podcast

On this episode of the SIS Baseball podcast, senior research analyst Mark Simon is joined by former major leaguer Eduardo Perez (@PerezEd) and NY Times national baseball writer Tyler Kepner (@TylerKepner) for an NCAA Tournament-style bracket selection show – to pick the best defensive player of the 21st century. Top seeds Adrian Beltre, Yadier Molina, Andrelton Simmons and Jason Heyward lead a 32-player group of the best gloves in the game. We’ve got the stats, the stories, and much more. Cast your vote on Twitter (@SportsInfo_SIS) throughout the week and follow along as we go all the way through to pick one champion.

SIS Tournament of Defensive Excellence Bracket

This special edition of the SIS Baseball Podcast features a conversation with 3 of the smartest minds in baseball writing today. Eno Sarris (@enosarris) of The Athletic explained how current players are learning how defensive metrics work (0:56). Rob Arthur (@No_Little_Plans) shared the details of an article he wrote for Baseball Prospectus on how teams are valuing defense (5:18). Jay Jaffe (@jay_jaffe) of the Athletic and Eno then looked at which teams are valuing defense most and least (8:30). The panel weighed in on how defense is taken into consideration for Hall of Fame voting and discussed specific candidacies as relates to defense (Scott Rolen, Yadier Molina, Brian McCann, Chase Utley, even back to Bill Freehan) (16:09). The show ended with each member of the panel picking a player whose defensive skills they wish they had (25:09).

Give the podcast a try – it’s a chance to hear some well-informed baseball talk coming from a different angle.

On this edition of the Sports Info Solutions Baseball Podcast, Mark Simon (@MarkASimonSays) welcomes baseball back. Hooray! He’s then joined by Wake Forest baseball coach Tom Walter, who explains how the school’s state-of-the-art pitching lab came to be (2:18), how information gets translated from the language of a PhD to the language of baseball (5:44), the difference between performance science and analytics now versus when Coach Walter first began coaching (8:31), how the school applies the lab to studying hitters too (10:52), how his program uses shifting and how their shifts adjust based on count (12:06), future developments in performance science (15:03), expectations for this season (16:36), and what the team does in the local community (17:36).

On this month’s edition of the SIS Baseball Podcast, senior research analyst Mark Simon (@MarkASimonSays) shares interesting things he's learned about Matt Chapman, Fernando Tatis Jr., and Didi Gregorius from the new Defensive Runs Saved (1:06).

Mark is then joined by Kansas City Royals general manager Dayton Moore. They discuss the state of the Royals rebuild (3:05), what an MLB manager should be expected to know about analytics and performance science (6:53), how the Royals shift and how they evaluate whether their defensive shifts are working (9:52), the importance of chase rate in evaluating draft prospects (12:33), Dayton’s interest in learning about leadership (16:18), and his advice for those who want to work in baseball (listen before you speak!) (19:37).

Andrew Kyne (@Andrew_Kyne) also joins Mark to talk about The Fielding Bible Volume V, which will be out March 1 (23:12). Andrew also answers a listener question about how different aspects of defensive performance factor into a pitcher’s value (27:18).

For more information, check out FieldingBible.com and SportsInfoSolutionsBlog.com. Thanks for listening!

On this week’s edition of the Sports Info Solutions Baseball podcast, senior research analyst Mark Simon (@MarkASimonSays) opens the show by talking about the defensive analytics concepts he hopes a manager would know (1:16). Mark then talks with Nationals assistant general manager for baseball research and development, Samuel Mondry-Cohen.

They discuss Sam’s path from batboy to front office executive (4:19), how the Nationals analytics department is structured (7:57), what it’s like to work with the coaching staff and with ace pitcher Max Scherzer (9:53), what his group was working on when the team was 19-31 (12:54), what role the analytics group played in the team’s acquisition of Daniel Hudson (14:12), and tips for pursuing a job in sports analytics (spoiler: Learn to code!) (15:59).

Afterwards Mark is joined by SIS research associate Andrew Kyne (@Andrew_Kyne). They review the White Sox signing of Yasmani Grandal and look at three other free agents of note (20:16). They also offer their own version of 8 MLB Awards ranging from “Hall of Framer” to “Flat Bat.” (25:20)

Next podcast episode will be in December. See you then!

Supplemental links

Mark’s article in The Athletic on how free agents will impact a team on Defense

https://theathletic.com/1357020/2019/11/07/eighteen-free-agents-who-can-have-an-impact-with-their-defense/

Tyler Kepner on Samuel Mondry-Cohen

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/25/sports/baseball/washington-nationals-data-world-series.html

On the final episode of the 2019 season, senior research analyst Mark Simon (@MarkASimonSays) explains why the Nationals defense was an important part of an epic championship story (1:00). Mark and research associate Andrew Kyne (@Andrew_Kyne) run through the winners of the 2019 Fielding Bible Awards, our honor for defensive excellence (2:58). Mark and Andrew also preview the 2020 Bill James Handbook (13:53) (available now!) and discuss some significant improvements to the company’s flagship stat, Defensive Runs Saved (17:45).

On this week’s episode, Sports Info Solutions senior research analyst Mark Simon (@MarkASimonSays) talks with writer, SABRcast podcast host and baseball historian Rob Neyer (@robneyer). They discuss 2019’s home run explosion (1:14), where defensive shifting is heading (3:45) and how relief pitchers are being used (8:18). They also talk about Rob’s observations on the value of defense (13:30) and the challenge of filling out a Fielding Bible Awards ballot (15:09). With everyone hard at work on The Bill James Handbook, Mark closes the show by running through the season’s leaders in Defensive Runs Saved (17:10) which includes Roberto Perez, Matt Chapman and Kolten Wong, among others.

On this episode of the Sports Info Solutions baseball podcast, senior research analyst Mark Simon (@MarkASimonSays) begins the show by praising those who played extraordinary defense for sub-.500 teams this season. (0:57)

Mark is then joined by Padres catcher Austin Hedges, who rates as the No. 1 pitch-framer in baseball. Hedges talks about the value of pitch-framing and explains where he learned to frame so well (2:27). He then explains the drills he uses to improve (4:54), how he gets low pitches called strikes and what it’s like to catch Craig Stammen’s heavy sinker and Chris Paddack’s fastball (5:56). Hedges also talks about his relationship with umpires and why he strongly supports the human element of an umpire rather than the potential robot umpires of the future (8:00) and which catchers he watches most closely (12:17).

Mark is then joined by research associate Andrew Kyne (@Andrew_Kyne). They discuss the Hedges interview (15:24), go through the leaderboards for Strike Zone Runs Saved, HR robberies, and Hard-Hit Rates (17:32), answer listener questions on pickoffs and the Mets defense behind Jacob deGrom (21:56) and Andrew gives job-hunting tips to aspiring research analysts (23:23). The show closes with ridiculous numbers about defensive support, the tie-in of Khris and Chris Davis, the leader in bunt hits this season, as well as a final pick of their favorite underappreciated players (27:26).

On this episode of the SIS Baseball Podcast, senior research analyst Mark Simon (@MarkASimonSays) opens the show by praising the Cardinals infield’s defensive excellence (0:52) and is then joined by Arizona Diamondbacks Gold Glove-winning shortstop Nick Ahmed (@NickAhmed13).

Ahmed talks about the kinds of things he has improved upon from one year to the next (2:04), the challenge of turning double plays in shifts (3:15), what goes into making a diving play (6:20), changing positioning based on which pitcher is on the mound (7:25), the most underrated Diamondbacks defender (9:20), his impressions of defensive metrics (11:33) and advice he would give to those who want to play defense like him (13:12).

Mark is also joined by senior research analyst Alex Vigderman (@VigManOnCampus). They discuss some of Ahmed’s observations (15:07), salute Javier Baez as the top defender in August (17:25), run through a list of the Defensive Runs Saved leaders in the minor leagues (18:51) and talk about an unusual defensive alignment against Eric Hosmer (21:47). Alex also gives tips on job hunting in the baseball analytics world (23:51).

Lastly, the show closes with ridiculous numbers on Minor League Runs Saved leaders of the past (a predictive stat!) and low pitcher BABIP (29:09). Tune in!

On this episode, Sports Info Solutions senior research analyst Mark Simon (@MarkASimonSays) details the story of the success of Yankees outfielder Mike Tauchman, who has had an unexpectedly impressive season in the field (0:59). Mark is also joined by minor league third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes (@KeBryanHayes), who is ranked among the top infield prospects in the minor leagues. Ke’Bryan explains where he learned to play defense (3:15), the challenge of not taking a hitting slump into the field (8:03), how minor league teams provide scouting information on where players should position themselves (9:19) and the famous catches made by his father, former major league third baseman Charlie Hayes (12:24). Eric Longenhagen (@longenhagen) of FanGraphs.com adds a brief scouting report on Hayes (15:29).

Mark then welcomes senior research analyst Alex Vigderman (@VigManOnCampus) and Andrew Kyne (@Andrew_Kyne), who share what they learned from the Saberseminar Conference in Boston. They share information about a biomechanic study at Wake Forest university (17:54), women working in MLB front offices (19:40), how the Red Sox hitting coaches work with their hitters (20:30), re-imagining the strike zone (22:02), C-Flap helmets (23:29), and the importance of outfielder jumps (24:16).

The three then answer listener mail on umpires (25:44), stats to measure pitch effectiveness (27:41), and the best stats for predicting “Beat the Streak” success (30:34) and try to stump listeners with Ridiculous Numbers of the Day trivia (32:44).