The others in the top five are Yankee Stadium (9.6 percent), Great American Ball Park (9.5 percent), Guaranteed Rate Field (8.8 percent) and Fenway Park (8.1 percent). Baltimore Orioles and the Cleveland Guardians, Friday, June 3, 2022, in Baltimore. . When it's not flooding with sewage, O.co Coliseum is home to the most expansive foul territory in all of baseballa quirk that lends itself to limiting offense, as current Athletics third base coach and former infielder Mike Gallego explained to USA Today's Seth Livingstone in 2010: You kind of look forward to it (the foul territory) defensively. Additionally, using partial-season data in addition to full-season numbers would only skew the results. Don Mattingly sure as hell wouldnt se stupid enough to hit into a shift. So, it's easy to see how a good tailwind can beat high altitude for home-run hitting any day. Yesterday and today in this space, Im summarizing my 2022 batted ball-based park factors. You don't currently have any notifications. CINCINNATI, OH - AUGUST 19: General view as the sun sets after a strike out by Trevor Bauer #27 of [+] the Cincinnati Reds in the fifth inning against the San Diego Padres at Great American Ball Park on August 19, 2019 in Cincinnati, Ohio. It should come as no surprise, then, that Oakland's ERA (3.19) and WHIP (1.17) at home in 2012 and 2013 were significantly lower than they were on the road (3.95 and 1.30, respectively)or that the Coliseum is playing as even more of a pitcher's park than usual this season. Everything You Want to Know About this Unique Irish Tradition - Info, Business Certifications: Small Business Guide, DISH Anywhere | Stream DISH Network Online & On The Go, How Much Does It Cost to Sue Someone & Is It Worth It | Fiscal Tiger, How do I know if my tap water is safe to drink? But there's plenty of movement on the list, with Marlins Park making the biggest jump, moving up nine spots to become the fourth-most pitcher-friendly venue in baseball. 8 mo. In fact, San Francisco was home to one of only two ballparks (the other being Marlins Stadium in Miami) that didn't bear witness to at least 200 home runs over the past two seasons. Without question, the biggest surprise on this list is the inclusion of Yankee Stadium. Beyond our fantasy baseball content, be sure to check out our award-winning slate ofFantasy Baseball Toolsas you navigate your season. If were comparing 2019 to 21 data, that change would explain the large positive difference in home run rate there. It is also interesting that Oracle Park in San Francisco has seen a 15.5-point bump in home run rate, likely due to the Giants moving their fences in for the 2020 season. 1 As is the case with some of the other parks on this list, Busch Stadium is a pitcher's park that is playing like a hitter's paradise in 2014. 24 and going from a pitcher-friendly park to a place that hitters love to play, which is more in line with the general consensus among baseball fans. Generally, Progressive is a relatively neutral park that performed in about as pitcher-friendly a manner as possible in 2022. We tackled the more pitcher-friendly half of the 30 MLB parks yesterday, today, its to the more hitter-friendly ones. In addition, the winds that blow in off Lake Michigan, while unpredictable, tend to carry balls over the outstretched gloves of leaping outfielders more often than they hold balls up. as well as any changes to these (such as Anaheim lowering their RF fences or Arizona adding a humidor in 2018). Exit velocity is not the only way to mitigate player-specific effects, but it is an important factor to keep in mind when thinking about park-specific home run rates. 390 to Center (Tennessee) is going to be VERY hitter friendly. by Retrosheet. All three are analyzed. Dylan Covey (12) It typically would rate as a bit more hitter-friendly, but 2022 was the first time since 2015 that PNC posted a sub-100 doubles park factor (at 99). By Kevin Reichard on September 9, 2021 in Major-League Baseball, News. On the other hand, its posted below average singles park factors in 9 of the last 10 seasons. MLB. On the other hand, it is one of the biggest triples generators in the game, and has averaged a 112.0 grounder park factor since 2017. OK, that's notreallya spoiler if you checked out our rankings ofMLB's most hitter-friendly ballparkslast week, but for those who missed it, take my word for it. Statcast park effects show the observed effect of each displayed stat based on the events in the selected park. You may opt-out by. Globe Life Field and Target Field stand out from the pack, too, due to bumping up runs with park factors of 1.013 and 1.007 for runs. Despite playing like an extreme pitcher's park in 2014 and having deep corners, only the ballpark at No. Moving forward, I consider this park as slightly pitcher-friendly. (That is why I am comparing 2019 to 21.). Generally speaking, Coors Field is far and away the best park for hitters while places like Guaranteed Rate Field . It took us until #10 to get to our first park factor above 100. All data is courtesy of The Bill James Handbook. Before that, however, is the 2021 MLB Home Run Derby, which takes place Monday, June 12. Minute Maid has operated in this range for three years now after functioning as a pretty strong hitters park beforehand. #29 - Petco Park (Padres) - 89.3 Overall Park Factor, 77.3 Fly Ball (30th), 99 Home Run (17th). The dry, thin desert air in Phoenix doesn't hinder power hitters in their efforts to put the ball on the other side of the outfield walls, regardless of whether the roof is open. Oracle Park (Giants) The Orioles got way, way better pitchers; the Mets thumpers have all been injured; the Brewers both lost all their thumpers and their pitching got way better. #30 - Comerica Park (Tigers) - 88.2 Overall Park Factor, 79.7 Fly Ball (28th), 79 Home Run (29th). From 2012 to 2013, Angel Stadium ranked 15th in runs scored (1,380), 16th in slugging percentage (.402) and 17th in home runs (318). 24 Cellular/Guaranteed Rate Field in 132,110 plate appearances, or 3.36 HR per 100 PA. Because there's no perfect method of figuring out whether a park is hitter-friendly or pitcher-friendly, and it's interesting to compare the results. Yup. In order to access this exclusive content you must have a Baseball America Account. Fly ball park factors correlated even more closely (0.73). at Santa Cruz City Schools, Sin City: 15 Dark Facts You Didn't Know About Las Vegas, Why Kiss the Blarney Stone? In 2019, these events were the wall scrapers that barely went out of the yard. Less obvious is its propensity to eliminate doubles; it hasnt had an above average doubles park factor in the last decade. At the end of the day, this is still a fluky high seasonal mark - even its 105.7 grounder park factor (first time above 100 since 2016) was an outlier. How far, in feet, a runner is ranging off the bag at the Josh Shepardson is a featured writer at FantasyPros. It actually was even more hitter-friendly in the shortened 2020 season after 7 straight pitcher-friendly seasons. Pretty neutral park, except for two factors - its posted a lower than average triples park factor for 9 of the last 10 seasons, and an average or above singles park factor for 8 straight seasons. However, with Miami moving into new digs in 2012, that simply wasn't possible. As my eyes and ears continue to fool, its hard not to presume more external forces are at play. There's been an increase in home runs, with Safeco coming in with the ninth-lowest total in baseball over the past two seasons (286), but even that power surge hasn't resulted in a dramatic increase in runs scored (1,203, fourth-lowest) or slugging percentage (.366, third-lowest). What they got was a park that, while more hitter-friendly than it had been since its opening in 2009, still plays as one of the most pitcher-friendly venues in baseball. Without getting too deep into the mathematical details, some parks like Oakland Coliseum and Busch Stadium still had significantly large residuals, meaning that even after accounting for any exit velocity changes, the difference in home run rate was notable. What it gives in homers, it typically takes in singles - its now posted lower than average singles park factors in each of the last 9 seasons, though its 2022 mark was just below at 99. Typically, the Brewers home park is going to finish in the top half of this list. A batted ball with that combination of exit velocity and launch angle had a hit probability of 7 percent, and had never before gone for a home run since Statcast was introduced. Only three other parks in baseballCoors Field, Great American Ballpark and Miller Parkhave been as friendly to power hitters as the bandbox known as Citizens Bank Ballpark. It's a trend that's unlikely to continue, as the "The Big A" has traditionally favored pitchers. Yankee Stadium continues to buck its public image as a big-time hitter's park by posting pitcher-friendly numbers for the third consecutive season. A new, albeit abbreviated, season of data provides reason to check in on our updated. Park Factors. Let's take a look at what the numbers tell us as we rank the 15 most hitter-friendly ballparks in baseball. Daniel Malin. There is nothing exciting about strikeouts and home runs. American Family functioned as an extreme hitters park in the mid-2010s, but has settled in as one of those more homer-than-run-friendly parks of which we have now spoken multiple times. Park Factors isolate the impact of the ballpark on in-game events, which can better help us predict the outcomes for players, teams, and games. Dont want to ignore the categories with lower correlation coefficients; liner (0.13) and grounder (0.12) park factors didnt correlate well this time around. I feel this way about Dodger Stadium, too (and the data! Escape Velocity takes the average of a player's batted ball velocities subtracted from 88. However, it's important to note that the wind can easily play a much greater role than altitude in turning fly balls into home runs. As the season wears on, that number figures to fall back in line with its previously established norms. Its 2022 homer park factor was the lowest in a decade, so this would be on the lower end of its typical finish. The same 400-foot shot, with a 10-mph wind at the hitter's back, can turn into a 430-foot blast. That required looking at various dimensions and coming up with something that, based on home run rates and park factors and so forth, was more or less neutral as between pitching and hitting. After a relatively neutral period in the mid-2010s, this park has re-emerged as hitter-friendly of late, with seven straight overall park factors, and eight straight fly ball and homer park factors above 100. attempt. When breaking down Mancini's expected home runs by ballpark in both . Before we get to the ballparks that pitchers (should) love to pitch in, let's take a look at those that they should try and avoid at all costs: That Citizens Bank Park, Coors Field and Great American Ballpark rank among the most hostile venues for pitchers comes as no surprise, but there's a glaring omission from this list that should jump out at you. It has consistently suffocated doubles, posting below average doubles park factors in 9 of the last 10 seasons. It crushes both doubles and triples - no 100+ park factors in either of those categories have been posted in the last decade. This article will discuss various known ballparks to truly understand the effects of this . Marlins Park remains an offensive wasteland, despite the renovations. Originally, I wanted to incorporate three years worth of park-factor data into these rankings, as three years would give us a better idea as to whether a number in a particular category was an aberration or a trend for the park in question. of his glove and to the base on a stolen base or pickoff For more from Josh, check out hisarchiveand follow him@BChad50. One of baseball's most storied and celebrated ballparks, the subterranean ballpark (fans enter in the middle of the stands, not at ground level) has been home to the sixth-fewest home runs. Both Truist and its predecessor, Turner Field, have been tough home run parks - neither has posted an average or higher homer park factor in the last decade. One of baseball's most storied and celebrated ballparks, the subterranean ballpark (fans enter in the middle of the stands, not at ground level) has been home to the sixth-fewest home runs (256) and fifth-lowest slugging percentage (.368) in the game over the past two years. When we think of "hitter-friendly" ballparks, Coors Field and Yankee Stadium are often the first two that come to mind due to the tendency for fly balls to travel beyond the outfield walls and into the hands of a lucky fan. #30 - Comerica Park (Tigers) - 88.2 Overall Park Factor, 79.7 Fly Ball. In the opposite direction, this marked the 9th time in 10 years that Target posted a higher than average singles park factor. Or, if they only need a base hit to win, or a sacrifice fly or slow ground ball. When you suppress both homers (8 straight years below 100 HR park factor) and singles (10 straight years), there simply arent many avenues to behaving as a hitters park. This was the lowest overall park factor posted by Progressive over the last decade, with its lowest single-season fly ball park factor since 2015. Park factors are not affected by the quality of a team's hitters or pitchers. Still, its 91 homer park factor matched its high mark over the last decade, and its 93.3 fly ball park factor is the highest over that span. And, as always, theres definitely randomness in here as well. So, fasten your shoulder harnesses, keep both hands on the bar in front you at all times, and enjoy the ride. These are St. Louis, Seattle, and Cincinnati. Dylan Cease (11) Another park that isnt as hitter-friendly as most believe. The Rockies, Diamondbacks, Mariners, Mets, and Red Sox already had humidors in their stadiums pre-2021, but which five teams are new to that list has yet to be disclosed. The chart is sortable, so you are able to examine any changes in fly ball quality within this broader 95109 mph exit velocity, less-than-30 degree launch angle group as you wish. Lucas Giolito (11) Through games of April 12, no team in baseball has hit more home runs than the Chicago White Sox, with 62.5 percent (10 of 16) of the team's blasts coming at U.S. Cellular Field. It shows you how tiny Great American Ballpark actually plays. (A 10-mph wind is close to the average prevailing wind in the United States.) It is estimated that a home run hit 400 feet in sea-level Yankee Stadium would travel about 408 feet in Atlanta and as far as 440 feet in the Mile High City. When the Mets decided to reconfigure Citi Field's outfield dimensions after the 2011 season, the goal was to create a ballpark that was fair to both hitters and pitchers, as GM Sandy Alderson explained to MLB.com's Anthony DiComo: We didn't want to completely alter the ballpark and make it a proverbial bandbox. Ultimately, the answer to why certain parks might have been more impacted by the new run environment than others is difficult to unpack. #10 - loanDepot Park (Marlins) - 101.2 Overall Park Factor, 99.3 Fly Ball (16th), 92 Home Run (21st). Whether the roof is open or not, wind plays less of a factor at Rogers Centre than it does elsewhere thanks to the high walls that encircle the playing field. A team striking out 15 times in a game is not a rare occasion when they ran up against great pitching. #24 - Chase Field (Diamondbacks) - 95.2 Overall Park Factor, 89.2 Fly Ball (22nd), 91 Home Run (23rd). and too often in 2-1 games or 1-0 games, it is not pitchers painting the black and keeping the batters off balance. Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own. Arkansas Razorbacks. This park has now been slightly hitter-friendly in 2021-22 after 8 straight pitcher-friendly seasons. Its consistently pitcher-friendly, but not as pitcher-friendly as one might think, for some weird reasons. Dont want to ignore the categories with lower correlation coefficients; liner (0.13) and grounder (0.12) park factors didnt correlate well this time around. It barely nudged scoring up with a park factor of 1.013 for runs, and it has the sixth-lowest park factor for homers (0.871). It is something that happens to almost every team once a week. A major limiting factor this time around was an odd MLB-low 77.3 grounder park factor that really looks like a one-off aberration. This is a BETA experience. Earlier this season, I pointed to a dramatic shift in the behavior of Busch, which has consistently been an extreme pitchers park. Its tough to be a significantly pitcher-friendly park in light of the latter, even with such an unusually low 2022 fly ball park factor. Enjoy the high-octane offense while you can, for the park is likely to regress back toward its norms the deeper we get into the season. But with incredibly inviting short porches down the lines and reasonable power alleyscoupled with the difficulty that center fielders have when it comes to fielding balls on Tal's HillMinute Maid Park has proved itself to be slightly more favorable to hitters than pitchers. While "The House that George Built" grades out as a hitter's park in home runs (1.135), runs scored (1.036) and walks (1.045), it falls well short of the mark elsewhere. #22 - Yankee Stadium III (Yankees) - 95.5 Overall Park Factor, 100.7 Fly Ball (14th), 110 Home Run (7th). Stream exclusive games on ESPN+ and play Fantasy Baseball. 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