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Friday, July 27, 2007
Babe Ruth was a strikeout king
Here we go. People with no knowledge of history commenting on how few strikeouts Ruth had for a power hitter.
Here’s the reality:
1. Start with everyone who hit at least 400 HR
2. Figure out the league SO per out rate (that is, what percentage of outs were strikeouts)
3. Do the same for the player
4. Compare
Babe Ruth, of his batting outs, 24% of them were strikeouts. The average batter of his time made a strikeout in 12% of their outs. Ruth’s K per out rate was twice that of the league average. And the all-time leader is? Babe Ruth.
Jimmie Foxx was next at 1.82.
Where does ARod rank? 30% of his outs are strikeouts, compared to the league average of 26%. He’s smack in the middle of the 400HR club.
If you prefer differentials instead, Jim Thome is your leader (16% points higher than league average). Dave Kingman is second. Ruth is 6th, and ARod is again right in the middle.
By the differential method, HR hitters who K far less than the league average: Ripken, Sheffield, Musial. By the rate method, same players, different order: Musial is the best by far, followed by Ripken, Sheffield.
Any notion that Babe Ruth somehow got a ton of HR without getting a ton of K must be understood in context.