4 Statistics to Keep in Mind When Building Your Fantasy Baseball Team

Baseball has always been a game that is all about the numbers, to a certain extent. While managers and coaches look at the talent, attitude, and other winning characteristics that a player possesses, the game as a whole has evolved into a contest for who can play the numbers the best. There is some hot debate surrounding the statistics that will translate into the most wins for a team, but generally speaking, the team that can play the numbers the best will come out on top.

This concept rings even truer for those who play fantasy baseball, a game that is truly all about the numbers. The winner of a fantasy sports game will have successfully researched individual players across the league to compile a team that puts the highest number of points on the board. Aside from focusing primarily on wins and losses, everything from runs to strikeouts is taken into account to provide a final score for a matchup.

With this in mind, if you are in the process of preparing for your fantasy baseball league draft, you will need to pay special attention to the stats in order to choose the right players. Here are four statistics that you should take into account when you are preparing for your fantasy baseball draft.

1. K:BB

With online simulation games, there is a bit of wiggle-room when it comes to the projected stats that a player is assigned. Ultimately, you want to do your research and take into account past performance more than anything. One such stat that can help you when it comes to selecting your batters and pitchers is the K:BB (strikeout-to-walk) ratio. This stat can give you a good sense of how well a pitcher controls their pitches. Look for batters with a low K:BB and pitchers with a high K:BB.

2. WHIP

Walks plus hits per innings pitched (WHIP) is the next stat that you will want to look into. The lower a WHIP that a pitcher has, the less likely it is that he will allow a batter to get on base. With that in mind, when you are looking for your pitchers, you should choose some that have a lower WHIP.

3. SB

Stolen bases (SB) is an important stat that will help you to select some solid hitters for your fantasy team. This stat is more or less what it sounds like, with some particulars taken into account as to whether or not a base that a player isn’t entitled to counts as a steal. This stat can give some insight into how a player’s base stealing practices either help or hurt the team. Generally speaking, the higher the SB percentage, the better.

4. AVG

A player’s batting average (AVG) is going to, naturally, be one of your best indicators about how a hitter can be expected to perform. One of the oldest stats in baseball, you want to be aiming for players with a higher AVG.