As analytics have rapidly spread across all sports, Major League Baseball has emerged as one of the most analytically driven leagues. Batting average, on-base percentage, total hits, and many other metrics have always been calculated to measure player performance. However, advancements in technology have allowed for more sophisticated statistics to be measured.

With game changing technology like Google Cloud, Statcast, Trackman, Rapsodo, etc., organizations and players of all levels have utilized these advanced statistics to gain a competitive advantage.

In partnership with Samford’s Center for Sports Analytics, I was able to identify some of the most important metrics in the new era of baseball. The following metrics examine various hitting, defensive, and pitching statistics.

• Some of the most important metrics in baseball
• MLB’s partnership with Google Cloud
• wOBA
• Launch angle
• Exit velocity
• Barrels
• Defensive shift
• Defensive runs saved
• Catch probability
• Catcher framing leaderboard
• Spin rate
• Spin axis
• Pitch movement
• All data for the 2020 season

About the Author

Will David is a third-year student pursuing a finance and marketing double major with a concentration in sports marketing and analytics. He also plays baseball at Samford University.

Twitter: @will_david3
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/will-david