Gold Glove?
January 12, 2009, 9:26 pm
Mark Teixeira’s UZR last year was 11.7. That’s better than Albert Pujols (10.2) and Lance Berkman (11.2) and was the best in all of baseball. This is not a surprise to anyone. Teixeira is widely recognized for his defensive work at 1B, and he has won 2 Gold Gloves (2005-2006).
However, let’s see Tex’s UZR figures from years past. In 2007, Mark Teixeira had an UZR of -3.5. He was actually 15th on the leaderboard at his position (under Carlos Delgado). In 2006, Teixeira’s UZR was -1.8 and he was 12th on the leaderboard (Ryan Howard beat him with a 0.2). In 2005, Tex’s UZR was -2.5 and he was 11th on the list. Hmmm, I’m not the biggest UZR user but it appears as though Tex’s defense may be overrated a bit. In fact, it appears as though Teixeira is, based on his history, an average to below average first baseman (although slightly below average). At least that’s the case in terms of his more recent seasons. In ‘04 he had an UZR of 8.8 and in ‘03 an UZR of 7.7.
Right now I feel like a kid who just found out Santa Claus isn’t real. Is Tex’s defensive value being understated by me or overstated by reputation? I’m not sure, really, but the numbers don’t lie, right? As long as he can provide a defensive season similar to 2008, that’s all that matters, I guess (he’s better than Giambi, Betemit, Sexson, etc.).
If any UZR experts out there can restore Tex’s defensive reputation (am I failing to notice something regarding Tex or UZR in general because I’m not an expert in the use of this particular metric), please feel free to do so in the comments section.
I hate it that people agonize over obscure stats like UZR…
I’ve seen Teix play; he’s always looked great in the field to me. I’m not too worried about it.
UZR (and many defensive metrics) tend to have large discrepancies year to year. These measures are still so new that no one knows if it is an indication that the player actually performed that different from one year to the next or if there is some sort of fundamental flaw in the system can lead to the numbers varying greatly.
That’s probably why its best to look at several defensive metrics, and if they all say one thing, there is a good chance it is true. If all the metrics say something, and it is also the common perception is the same, chances are even greater its true.
Defensive metrics just aren’t as refined as offensive statistics yet, and its harder to remove external factors. For example, UZR is zone based, but I believe they only categorize batted balls hit into a certain zone into 3 categories (flyball, line drive, ground ball) but obviously balls travel at more than three different speeds or types of balls that come off a hitters bat.
Either way, no matter what measure is used (metrics or perception) its a pretty safe bet to say that Teix is a big defensive improvement over Giambi (whose range was described as “falldown” range)
Clearly, Tex is a talented first baseman with both offensive and defensive ability (as seen by his play last year). Giambi was garbage at first on a number of levels (he was scared to throw, had no range), so it’s definitely safe to say that Tex will be better. If all goes well, hopefully he’ll continue being one of the better defensive players at his position.
This is the last thing I’m worried about. Tex is the best we’ve had since Tino and Donnie. What we need is a #5 pitcher.
Agreed, Jane.
[...] notion goes beyond 2009, though. Here’s what I wrote in January about Tex’s defense. In 2007, Mark Teixeira had an UZR of -3.5. He was actually 15th on the [...]