If Imagine Sports had managed to keep its strategic partnership with Baseball Prospectus alive, perhaps DMB would be using stats and metrics provided by BP, and Andrus would then likely have a better running rating.  The problem is -- if indeed it is a problem -- is that DMB relies on stats and metrics done by BIS, and the BIS metric for running severely penalizes bad base running decisions (or at least ones that result in getting thrown out).  Under that system, Andrus suffers, because he ran into a lot of outs. 

That's not to say that DMB's Running ratings capture all the dynamics of good base running.  It's just that DMB has chosen to rely on the output of one particular metric (BIS's) in assigning running ratings.  One thing, I think, that may get distorted in a system that severely penalizes baserunning outs is the fact that your fast runners are called upon more often to try for the extra base, and therefore place themselves at risk of being thrown out more often than your lumbering catcher or first basemen.

I don't think it's a perfect system, but DMB has chosen one kind of "objectivity" here.

Last Edited By: TedRoethke 02/02/10 01:39 PM. Edited 1 times.