Christie: A ‘golden’ opportunity for Twins defenders
From Cody Christie at Twins Daily on August 21, 2017:
Defense has been one of the key aspects of Minnesota’s turnaround in 2017. On their way to over 100 losses last season, there were plenty of defensive flaws. However, this year’s version of the Twins has given more playing time to some younger, more athletic players while some veteran players have made strides in the right direction.
How do the Twins stack up this season? How many players could be candidates for Gold Glove Awards?
Defensive metrics have come a long way over the last decade. With organizations and other private companies tracking every batted ball, the amount of information available to fans is at an all-time high.
The Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) has developed the SABR Defensive Index (SDI). According to SABR’s website, the SDI “draws on and aggregates two types of existing defensive metrics: those derived from batted ball location-based data and those collected from play-by-play accounts.” This rankings were through games played in the first half of the season.
Read the full article here: http://twinsdaily.com/articles.html/_/minnesota-twins-news/minnesota-twins/golden-opportunity-r6000
Originally published: August 23, 2017. Last Updated: August 23, 2017.