Just found this on Wikipedia. I'd heard of Bill James, the baseball statistician, before this, just didn't know he'd come up with my stat. Right down to the name:
Quote:
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Originally Posted by Bill James via Wikipedia
• Secondary Average. A statistic that attempts to measure a player's contribution to an offense in ways not reflected in batting average. The formula is (Extra bases on hits+Walks+Stolen Bases)/At bats. Secondary averages tend to be similar to batting averages, but can vary widely, from less than .100 to more than .500 in extreme cases. Extra bases on hits is calculated with the formula (Doubles)+(Triplesx2)+(Homerunsx3).
• Power/Speed Number. A statistic that attempts to consolidate the various "clubs" of players with impressive numbers of both home runs and stolen bases (e.g., the "30/30" club (Bobby Bonds was well known for being a member), the "40/40" club (Jose Canseco was the first to perform this feat), and even the "25/65" club (Joe Morgan in the '70s)). The formula: (2x(Home Runs)x(Stolen Bases))/(Home Runs + Stolen Bases).
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I used the second formula with Barry Bonds' and Alfonso Soriano's 40/40 seasons:
Soriano:
(2x(46)x(41))/(46 + 41)
92*41/87
43.35
Bonds:
(2x(42)x(40))/(42 + 40)
84*40/82
40.97
I didn't do anyone else, or even try with the first formula there cause it's not so much related to what I was looking for specifically when I came up with this stat. I think the problem with "ratings" like this is that it's hard really say how a player with that rating effects the outcome of a game, whereas my stat reflects the average number of bases generated.
That way, if you have enough players generating enough bases, you'll guarantee yourself some runs. That's where I'm coming from with my idea, the same way Moneyball stresses OBP.
Also, you'll notice there's multiplication by numbers (x2, x3 and so on). I like to stay away from that and let the stats speak for themselves, or at least use numbers that have meaning, like say 3.4 because (I'm not saying it is) that's the number of times more a double happens than a triple.