Colorado Rockies: Would you choose home runs or batting average?

Baseball changes. Just look back to the mid-1900s. There were basically no bullpens. The starting pitchers would typically pitch the entire game. Travel about 70 years into the future and bullpens are essential. Pitchers coming out of the bullpen are now making loads of cash. Just look at Colorado Rockies closer, Wade Davis. He is cashing in for about $17 million a year.

So let’s move from one trend to another.

We all know home runs are on the rise. That’s all everyone talks about. It’s the new trend of baseball and teams are trying to become “trendy.” Last season accounted for the most home runs ever given up in an entire season, with 6,105.

However, with the increase in home runs, there have also been an increase in strikeouts. Last season, there were 40,105 strikeouts, setting the MLB record for the most strikeouts in a season.

This year proves to be no different. In 2017, there were 1.26 home runs per game. This was the most ever, since Baseball Reference started keeping track back in 1871. As of today, the 2018 season would be the fifth most with 1.13 homers per game.

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The strikeouts are following the same pattern too. Actually, 2018 is projected to have even more strikeouts than 2017. This year, there are 8.64 strikeouts per game whereas last year there were 8.25.

The increase in strikeouts have also directly affected batting averages. The batting average last year was .255. So far, the batting average this year is .244. If this continues, the batting average for 2018 would be tied for the sixth-lowest recorded since 1871.

So should teams follow the home run trend? Or should they focus more on the batting average like they did in 1894 when the average was .309? I’m going to break down this year and the teams that are leading in the home run category versus the teams that are leading in batting average. After, you can make the call for yourself.

Editor’s Note: All numbers featured in this article were heading into Thursday’s play.

Home Runs

Here are the top five teams leading the league in home runs:

1. New York Yankees (79)
2. Boston Red Sox (70)
3. Cleveland Indians (68)
4. Toronto Blue Jays (64)
5. Los Angeles Angels (62)

In case you were wondering, the Rockies (26-24) are 10th with 60 home runs.

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Looking at this list, the first thing that grabs my attention is that four of the five teams on this list are considered very good teams. Actually, as of right now, all of the teams except Toronto are above .500. It’s also interesting all of these teams come from the American League. This is probably due to them having an extra hitter with the DH.

New York (31-15) has one of the best records in baseball but is 1.5 games behind Boston (34-15) who owns the best record in baseball at 34-15. New York is sixth in batting average with .259.

Cleveland (24-23) sits atop the AL Central, even though they are only one game over .500. They rank 15th in batting average at .247.

The Angels (28-22) are third in the most competitive league in all of baseball, the AL West, despite being six games above .500. They rank 14th in batting average at .247.

Then there is the outlier. Toronto (23-27) is fourth in the AL East and already 11.5 games out of first. They rank 25th in batting average at .231.

Conclusion and what it means for the Rockies

Clearly, the best teams in the league have a combination of a lot of home runs and a high batting average. Just look at Boston, who holds the best record in baseball. They are in the top five in both home runs and batting average. There is also the Yankees, who are high in both rankings.

Then you have teams in the top five in one of the categories that lead their divisions. For example, Cleveland leads their division as does Atlanta. While these teams are in the top five in one category, they rank in the middle in the other category.

Then you have the outliers. Teams like Tampa, Toronto, San Francisco and Pittsburgh are in the top five in either home runs or RBI but then are at the bottom of the pack in the other category.

So what about the Rockies?

The Rockies rank 10th with 60 home runs but rank 27th with a .228 batting average. This means the Rockies are lucky. If the Rockies want to continue to stay atop the NL West, they are going to have to find a way to balance out their batting average and their home runs.

Next: Is defense the priority for Colorado at catcher?

They should rely less on power and more on putting the ball in play and stringing together team at-bats. Maybe this will help bring the Rockies out of the slump they find themselves in.