Analysis of the 2020 Fairfax Baseball Team

Elisa Luckabaugh

May 19, 2020

Background

Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, this year's baseball season for the Fairfax Rebels and many other teams was cut short. Because of this, data was only collected from the two scrimmages Fairfax played on March 2 and 12.

The intention was to demonstrate what the data analysis was supposed to look like, but on a much smaller scale based on the sample of data collected.

This was my fourth year as Varsity Head Manager of the Baseball team. I wanted to create an efficient and effective tool to analyze the player's performance over the period of an entire season based on an accumulation of their hits on a map. This is so that the coaches could easily view the player's spatial trends and performance against specific teams, pitchers, or overall instead of just numerical statistics.

Data Collection

Survey123 was used to collect information about the circumstances of each hit as well as place a point onto the map. A series of questions were answered remotely and in real time as the hits were happening in each game. Below is a collage of some screenshots of the survey created and used.

Each question was determined by information coaches requested and attributes that seemed to be useful for analysis and future preparation for games. The survey was filled out from the dugout of each scrimmage, and the completed surveys were all submitted after the games. With this method, data was efficiently collected and populated onto a map.

Overview of Fairfax High School

Slide around the spyglass below to view the campus of Fairfax High School. The Baseball field is located to the left of the Football field. Fairfax High School is located between Fairfax Boulevard and Old Lee Highway in Fairfax City, Virginia.

Story Map Swipe and Spyglass

Comparing The Scrimmages

Comparing Spray Charts and Results of Each Scrimmage

Fairfax won both scrimmages played, proving to be a good sign for the regular season. The athletes hit an equal number of balls into play for each game, but struggled more against Flint Hill High School on March 12.Since the hits on March 2 resulted in more outs, it can be concluded that Flint Hill was more competitive with fielding than Mount Vernon was. Mount Vernon seemed to have a harder time making plays, as there was 1 error and a few different base hits.

This information can give coaches ways to prepare for future games against these teams or to help players improve their fielding based on points that other teams hit that Fairfax could not field.

Comparing Hits per Bin of Each Scrimmage

Because of the variety of places the balls were hit into play, it may have been more difficult for the teams to field the ball. This was proven correct when Mount Vernon struggled to make plays, resulting in Fairfax reaching base on an error and multiple base hits.

One reason Flint Hill may have appeared to be more competitive with fielding is due to all the infield hits, especially around the pitcher's mound (where the ball would have less motion and speed). So, the plays would be more simple to carry out, making their fielding overall appear better.

Comparing Field Regions of Each Scrimmage

This map highlights the spatial trends based on region of the field for balls hit into play. It is clear that the players tended to favor the infield and the left portions of the field as a whole. This is possibly due to the fact that our batters are mainly right-handed.

One interesting fact to note is that a player hit a home run on March 2, clearly visibly by the colored region outside of right field.

Maps After Both Scrimmages

Below is a series of maps that represent data collected from both scrimmages. This gives a glimpse of what the maps may look like with more data as the season progressed. After only two games, spatial trends were revealed.

Expand the map for the legend

Cumulative Fairfax Hits

This is what the map looked like after 2 games. The original idea was to accumulate more points as the season progressed. Each point is collected remotely at games through Survey123 and automatically placed onto the map. Since points are collected through a survey, each one holds specific attributes about the situation including:

Player name
Opposing Pitcher
Result (out, single, etc.)
Type of hit (line drive, ground ball)
opposing team, and more

Expand for legend

Cumulative Hits per Bin

This is what the hits per sub-region of the field look like after two scrimmages. The original idea was to reveal trends about hit locations. This is best seen around the shortstop/third base region of the field, where more bins are filled in around an even darker bin.

Expand the map for the legend

Cumulative Hits per Region

This map gives a better idea of how the field would have looked as hits accumulate. It appears most hits would have populated in the infield, especially by the shortstop and third base areas (as most players are right-handed batters). This same trend is seen in the outfield as more hits ended up in left field rather than right field.

Analytical Use Based on Attributes

Below is a series of examples of ways to pull attributes out of the data to analyze performance. This is a great way for coaches to directly view how the team plays against certain teams and pitchers. It can also give the coaches a way to view a single player's spray chart (with any attribute symbolized) or how well the team plays in different innings.

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Spray Charts Symbolized By LHP or RHP

Through the use of symbology, coaches can determine how well Fairfax bats against pitchers based on which hand they throw with. Points can also be symbolized by result to give more analysis.

Spray Charts Symbolized by Type of Hit

Spray charts can also be symbolized by the type of hit to give the coaches an idea of how well the players perform against certain teams or pitchers. More infield hits most likely indicate more difficult teams being played.

Spray Chart Symbolized by Inning

With being able to see which innings had the most hits throughout the season, coaches can predict how future games may go or when in the game Fairfax performs best.

Individual Player Spray Chart

The intention was to be able to filter out the points for specific players if the coaches wanted to evaluate someone's hits. Mapped to the right is an example of a player with variety in their hits and who routinely gets on base.

Analyzing Team Performance Against One Pitcher

Points from the survey can be filtered to only hits against a specific pitcher for coaches to be able to assess team performance as well as plan for future moments against the same pitcher.

Comparing Teams from the March 12 Scrimmage

Comparing Results of Hits

While Fairfax had less contact with the ball, it is important to note that Mount Vernon had 4 extra outs, so their performances were almost equal.

Fairfax allowed 1 extra error on Mount Vernon, so their fielding may have been a little less organized than MVHS'. Additionally, most of Mount Vernon's hits were either within the infield or nearby it, while Fairfax was able to reach into the outfield with their hits a bit more. More infield hits means more routine plays, so it is likely that Mount Vernon had a harder time scoring runs and getting on base.

Comparing Hits per Bin

Both Fairfax and Mount Vernon's hits favored the areas nearby shortstop. A majority of Mount Vernon's hits were located within the infield, with only a few balls going farther out by the outfield wall. This means that Fairfax's infielders may have had to be more alert for incoming hits while fielding. This information can help coaches prepare their fielders for future games with Mount Vernon by providing visual trends of the locations of their hits.

Comparing Spatial Trends by Region

Mount Vernon was able to cover every common region of the field (this means excluding foul territory and regions past the outfield fence). Since they were able to reach every region, it is likely that they would be able to do this again. So, coaches would use this information to prepare the team for a future game with Mount Vernon by going over where to expect the ball or where to shift fielders according to which player is at bat.

Fairfax's hits remained towards the left portions of the field, so Coaches could use this information to work with players on hitting balls into gaps or areas where Mount Vernon is less prepared to reach the ball.

Viewing Points and Regions

Below is an application that highlights what the map source of summarizing field regions looks like. This is important because points near the infield may count as outfield points. Knowing where the original points are can be helpful to coaches and players in understanding the spacial trends of the field.