Over my summer I was fortunate enough to be an analytics intern for the Orleans Firebirds and spend my days taking in Cape Cod League baseball. During my time with Orleans I assisted in advanced scouting reports for opposing teams, created pitcher development visuals using Trackman data, and led the development of new ways to evaluate player performance. At the conclusion of the summer, Brandon Smith and I created an in-depth top 24 Orleans Firebirds prospects report where we showcased our writeups, player performance visuals, and our own player evaluation tools. One of the evaluation tools we engineered to evaluate a hitter’s performance was Plate Approach Efficiency Profile.
Evaluation Tool Description:
The Plate Appearance Efficiency Profile Plot measures how efficient and productive a player is with their plate appearances. The relationship measured is between their TB/AB (total based / at bats) and BB/K (walk /strikeout) ratio. The base three outcomes of being productive with plate appearances would be:
1. Getting a hit
2. Working a BB
3. Not striking out
Depending on the relationship between TB/AB and BB/K, we can generally assume what kind of offensive profile a player has. The five profiles shown in the key of the graph are: -AVG, AVG, ELITE, EYE, and HIT.
-AVG indicates the player has a low BB/K, and low amount of TB/AB.
AVG indicates the player doesn’t have a clear offensive profile.
ELITE indicates the player has a high BB/K and high amount of TB/AB.
EYE indicates the player has a high BB/K and low amount of TB/AB.
HIT indicates the player has a low BB/K and a high amount of TB/AB
* The Plate Appearance Efficiency Profile plot includes all players in the 2021 CCBL regular season with at least 28 ABs. TB/AB and BB/K are on a standardized scale.
While the distribution of hitter classifications isn’t equal through the plot, it is clear to see that there were different profiled hitters in the CCBL. Moreover, only a select handful were classified as distinct “ELITE”, “HIT”, or “EYE” as the highest density of players is in the “AVG” to “-AVG” area. This shows that we can distinguish players with clearer offensive profiles based upon their competition and therefore can generally assume what kind of hitter they would be in pro ball. Additionally, it is possible to see a player in “AVG” and see which profile they lean towards; therefore giving an idea on what kind of offensive profile a player can develop or regress into.
The players with the 25 highest profile scores are mapped out below on the plot. A majority of the players are classified with the ELITE profile while those with standout EYE or HIT made the cut in the top 25 profile scores. The profile score is just the sum of a player’s z-scored TB/AB and BB/K values. The highest scores form a curve shape starting from the upper second quadrant to the far right of the fourth quadrant.
In the plot below all of the ELITE players in the top 25 of profile scores are labeled.
Within the ELITE classification Rhylan Thomas (Southern California), Christian Knapczyk (Louisville), Tatem Levins (Pittsburgh), and Tres Gonzales (Georgia Tech) fall into the ELITE section of guys who have plus bat to ball skills, below average juice, and an above average feel for the strike zone. While Anthony Hall (Oregon), Dalton Rushing (Louisville), Eric Brown (Coastal Carolina), Brock Wilken (Wake Forest), Jace Grady (Dallas Baptist), and Jim Jarvis (Alabama) showed ELITE overall profiles that are carried by the juice in their bat.
Within the ELITE profile, Chad Castillo (Cal Baptist), Clark Elliott (Michigan), Jake Thompson (Oklahoma State), Colin Davis (Wofford), and Dylan Phillips (Kansas State) showed more balanced ELITE profiles while being within the 36% percent of both TB/AB and BB/K.
Nathan Matorella (University of California) was an outlier with his profile while demonstrating an ability to have a plus-plus feel for the strike zone and juice in his bat.
Lastly the two players with the top overall profile balance were Zachary Neto (Campbell) and Chase DeLauter (James Madison). Both players came into the CCBL with small-school performance doubters but both players were arguably the two best overall offensive performers with their consistency to make an impact with their bat while being selective in the strike zone.
In the plot below all of the HIT players in the top 25 of profile scores are labeled.
Brooks Lee (Cal Poly) is one of the most lethal bats in the 2022 MLB Draft as shown by his TB/AB ranking in the 99th percentile in the CCBL. Dominic Keegan (Vanderbilt) also raked his way into the 99th percentile of TB/AB while demonstrating an average feel for the strike zone. Finally, Kris Armstrong (Florida) raked all summer but showed too much swing and miss in his game to get him into the ELITE classification.
In the plot below all of the EYE players in the top 25 of profile scores are labeled.
RJ Schreck (Duke), Kevin Parada (Georgia Tech), Justin Miknis (Kent State), and Brendan Tinsman (Wake Forest) all showed such an elite feel for the strike zone that it nullified a below-average performance with the bat at the plate in order to get them in the top 25 of profile scores. All of the above players had at least a 1.25 BB/K that placed them in the top 1% of the 2021 CCBL season.
All in all, the Plate Approach Efficiency Profile plot is just another way to give insight on what kind of role and profile a player can fulfill or become at the plate. With scouting nowadays transitioning to finding tools and abilities within players that can be further developed, the Plate Approach Efficiency Profile plot can bring a little more light to a player’s potential offensive profile aside from the use of AVG, OBP, and SLG.