2016 by the numbers: A look at the new set’s defense

Best C fielding rating and best throw rating

The APBA disk is out!  With it comes the numbers, grades and info we have all been waiting for.  Each year for the last ten years, I have done a series of articles which breaks down the season data.  It will be a general breakdown of hitting numbers, pitching grades, defensive ratings, you name it.  It’s a lot of fun and I hope you get some useful info from it.

This first article of 2016 will focus on the tamest of the topics:  DEFENSE.  To be sure, defense is important and I’ll focus a little on those who got the high ratings.  Also, I will break down the distribution of each rating to give you an idea how APBA doles them out.

Defensively for APBA, the key word for 2016 is moderation.  The especially high fielding ratings that we always look for weren’t always given out.  But then again, the lowest rating was doled out sparingly as well.

Let’s start with catcher. Four catchers did receive the highest defensive rating given out by APBA.  I can’t say I argue with any of the choices.

While only four catchers were given the C-9 rating, only six were rated C-6 and none were rated C-5.  Is the new 30-man card roster a factor in this?  In other words, no middle infielder was rated at catcher just to give a team a backup catcher?

Here is the full distribution for catchers in the 2016 set.

While the distribution of ratings for firstbasemen might seem to lean towards the low side, we need to take in consideration the DH factor.  Some of those 1B-2s are American League designated hitters that APBA needed to give a position.  Others are secondary positions on players’ cards as well.

While there weren’t many fielding stars according to APBA, second base was the exception.  Five players were rated 2B-9.

…there were also five players rated 2B-5 as well.

No, there were not any SS-10 in the 2016 set.

I mention this every year this time but it’s amazing that there are so many more 3B-3 thirdbasemen than any other.  It is pretty normal that there are twice as many 3B-3 than the rest combined.  I get that many are secondary positions held by utility players but this pattern really holds up every year.

And while there were ten 3B-5 thirdbasemen, nobody received the coveted 3B-6 rating.  Manny Machado received it a couple years ago and before that, you would have to go back to Scotty Rolen’s golden days (somebody correct me if I’m wrong!).

Outfield doesn’t suffer from the DH factor like first base does. Not quite a bell curve but pretty close.

And just for kicks, here is the fielding distribution for pitchers.  Almost 50-50.

These are the best Master Game arms for all players.  Tulo and Puig get top honors with a MG arm of 38.

Here are the best catcher’s MG throw ratings in the 2017 set.  I have to admit Gattis’ +5 rating threw me for a bit.

For good measure, I’m ending this article with J-ratings.  I don’t know if I have ever looked at this before.  Definitely a sloped curve here with J-4 having a good portion of the set.

For my next article, I will be banging out some pitching grades.  Who were the best starters?  Who were the best relievers?  How were the grades and ratings distributed?

I’m just getting started and it is going to get even more fun!  Stay tuned!

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