This... is my Boomstick! Comparing Offensive Stats from 2012 to 2013

		Your Junk my Happy Zone
		by Brandon Corbett

Feliz Dia de Los Muertos! Let us talk about things that have come and gone. A lot was made of the bat switch this past season, and a lot of fun was had with the bat switch this past season. But what exactly did the bat switch mean when all was said and done?

The trick to comparing 2012 and 2013 stats from WSEM is that you cannot take the numbers at face value. Since, the two seasons featured a different number of teams playing, and thus a different number of games played, you must first account for that by dividing the "counting" stat categories by the number of teams involved: 8 for 2013, 10 for 2012. After doing that you will see that the number of hits per team saw a modest increase of 15.6% this season. That is just about exactly what we were looking for with the switch. It led to a league-wide batting average of .263, which falls just north of the MLB average of .253. For comparison: the WSEM average in 2012 was .226.

Stat	% change from 2012-2013
H/team	115.6
2B/team	142.0
3B/team	62.5
HR/team	171.4
TB/team	132.5
BB/team	178.0
R/team	196.7
AVG	116.4
SLG	133.5
OBP	128.7

Stat	WSEM '12	WSEM '13	MLB '13
AVG	.226	.263	.253
SLG	.360	.481	.396
OBP	.355	.457	.318
R/G	2.43	4.78	4.17
PA/R	8.61	4.92	9.13

The power numbers are where things really took off. The .037 (16.4%) increase in league batting average led to more than triple that for slugging percentage, with a league-wide jump of .121 in that stat: an increase of 33.5%. Bolstering that inflation were the number of doubles per team increasing by 42%, while the number of home runs per team saw a staggering 71.4% increase. Obviously, the bigger barreled bats account for part of the boom, but can we really find them solely responsible for the power surge? After all: "band boxes" and "tail winds" were things evidently. The fact that triples per team decreased by 37.5% this past season seems to back up the shared role that smaller fields other factors also played in the slugging increase. Now for a related, but irrelevant, fun fact: there were only 7 triples hit in the 2013 season, and each came from a different player.

One more place the bat switch was hugely successful, and my favorite stat boom to see from 2012 to 2013, is how runs per team nearly doubled this season! That 96.7% increase moved home plate from the desert littered with 15+ inning 1-0 affairs to much more fertile tracks of land. Another way to look at the run production boost is how many plate appearances came between there were per run scored. In 2012 this number was 8.61, and it dropped sharply to just 57.1% of that in 2013: 4.92. Bringing a run around to score every fifth batter instead of every eighth or ninth certainly makes for much more exciting action for the 75% of the league who are not pitchers. Plus, when you look at the minimum number of plate appearances in a game (15 for WSEM, 27 for MLB), having our PA/R be a little over half the MLB makes it much more analogous.

One thing here that does not make the game more exciting, unless you are the Mayor or Billy Beane, is the big 78% jump in walks per team. Much like the HR/team numbers and overall slugging percentage, though, the big change in this one stat only corresponds to a league-wide on-base percentage increase of 28.7%, slightly less than double the increase in league batting average. In the spirit of full disclosure, I find myself quite responsible for the large increase in walks: in 2013 I had 46 walks, which perfectly matched my number of career walks from the previous two seasons combined.

The inflated walk total seems to be something that is already remedying itself. Pushing the mound back three feet was something we knew would make pitchers adjust, and those adjustments seemed to be made as the season went on: i.e. pitchers found the zone with more practice from 48'. Figuring I needed some facts to back that statement up for this article, I ran the numbers for five random pitchers. I took their walk totals over their first five games in 2013, then compared that to the rest of their season. All but one of those five pitchers saw a decrease in walks per inning as the season went on. These four all saw double-digit percentage decreases in their walks: 13%, 17%, 25%, and a Jim Price "wow!" worthy 67%. In addition, two of them were giving up less than one walk per inning over the second half of their season. The takeaway here? Pitchers are only continuing to get better from 48', and walks will settle down.

That is essentially what we expect heading forward: the offense had an up year last year with the changes, now - with no sweeping rule changes - pitching will start to counter. Managing the quality of competition in a Wiffleball league is a balancing act. Pitching will always be the centerpiece of Wiffleball; pitching prowess is the reason the ball exists, after all. But with the majority of players in the league never toeing the rubber, it is nice to see the pitchers take a slap across the face once in awhile.

Individual Awards Races: Offense

		Your Junk my Happy Zone
		by Brandon Corbett

Country Strong HR King Player HR GR Avg HR/G at fields Pearson 15 10 2.6 Hewlett 12 8 2.5 Castle 10 6 1.6 Tomlinson 10 4 1.1 LaDouceur 9 4 1.1 If Pearson does not win 2013 Country Strong Home-Run King, then something will have gone seriously sideways. He has every major advantage: a significant lead, the most games left to play, and the most home-run friendly set of fields on which to hit. Both the Reservation and Field of Make-Believe give up around 4 HR per game, and Pearson has two games at each. Hewlett also has four games left at Make-Believe, but he will have to do serious work to edge out Pearson. The same goes for Castle, whose best chances to stockpile late home-runs come at the Wiff-Hill Grounds and Island. Los dos Diablos are listed, but must have huge multi home-run games at the Island and Poolside to really be in the conversation.

Batting Champion Player AVG GR Avg WHIP of opp. Nagorski .500 10 2.11 Lollio .483 4 2.53 Bortmas .433 10 2.47 Tomlinson .437 4 2.53 Pearson .385 10 2.11 Unlike with HR King, more games remaining actually hurts batters when chasing average; each week the leaders seem to slip further down. Still, Nagorski might need every one of those to even be eligible to win. He is at 38 PA - so, not represented on the current league leaders - and will need 50 by season's end. If he gets the plate appearances in, he still has to outlast the rest of the pack while facing the stingiest gauntlet of pitchers. Lollio and Tomlinson have the benefit of playing out this race between themselves at their games, although, their final four games are a story of yin and yang at the Island and Poolside. Bortmas' biggest luxury is being able to enjoy home cooking for all ten of his remaining games; a couple of those should present a great opportunity to tee off.

Great Lakes Stealer Player SB GR Opp. CS% Castle 17 6 .04 Alexia 14 4 .21 Two horse race for the newest year-end award, one of whom is my preseason prediction. Alexia needs to make up ground, though, without many strides left to do so: 8 attempts at most. Can also add "while on bad footing" there, as his final series come against staffs with the two best caught-stealing percentages in WSEM. Castle is in good shape: a head start, 150% of the opportunities to pull away, and those come against staffs who only catch base thieves 1 out of 25 times. Belgian and the Balls play in week 14, so we may get the chance to see these two run wild for the steals title in a fun finish.

Walker Texas Ranger Player BB GR Avg WHIP of opp. Alexia 46 4 1.71 Sessions 44 6 1.67 Tomlinson 41 4 2.53 A race that can even make watching walks fun! Sessions and Alexia have been back and forth all season at the top of this board. Now, the Mayor finds himself two back, but with two games in hand. Both ranger-hopefuls have some stiff pitching staffs to face down the home stretch: Aces and Balls for both, and Sessions also gets El Diablos. Tomlinson is not far behind with games coming up against the Islanders and Aces, but you have to think Kyle is more focused on the two hitting awards he is in contention for than getting the badge.

The Offensive Resurrection

		Your Junk my Happy Zone
		by Brandon Corbett

With yesterday being Easter Sunday and the season finale of The Walking Dead you would think those would have a duopoly on resurrections. However, you would be wrong. The biggest news in resurrections this weekend is the bats in WSEM!

One of the greatest things about Wiffle is the challenge it presents to the hitter and the creativity it lends to pitchers. That said, those hitters and how much they enjoy playing is every bit as integral to the game. Pitchers dominated in 2012, so we made a few rule adjustments to improve the experience from the hitters' perspective: correcting the pitching distance (which was always supposed to be 45' from the plate) and bringing in the Easton Pro Stix and Louisville C271 bats.

2012 Season RPG
All teams:	2.7
Winning Teams:	4.6
Losing Teams:	0.7

2013 Sat. #1 RPG
All teams:	6.1
Winning Teams:	9.2
Losing Teams:	3.0

The average runs scored by teams at the first Satellite Tournament on Saturday was 6.1 per game. Breaking that down further we get 9.2 runs scored per game by winning teams and 3 by losing teams. During the rough 2012 season teams averaged just 2.7 runs per game; winning teams averaged 4.6 and losing teams averaged a bone chilling 0.7 runs per game.

In slightly less analytical terms for those just observing the games: of the eleven games played on Saturday there were only two in which a team was held scoreless, while ten games saw a team score seven runs or more. Furthermore, five games saw both teams score three runs or more. While a niche group exists that loves pitchers' duels, for most people more scoring chances, more runs, and more action mean better excitement.

Sure, this was one day in March and not a full season. Sure, this was the first opportunity for many teams to play together and try things out. Sure, batters may be a bit ahead of pitchers at this early point. But if we look at the small sample of numbers from 2012 "spring training" we see that they are very pitcher friendly: 0.7 runs per game per team, 2 runs per game for the winning teams, and 0 scored by losing teams. Those pretty much held up to tell the story of the 2012 season.

Popular opinion is that the bats are going to see a resurgence this year, and the early numbers support that assertion. Hopefully so, because when the people are having fun this game gets better and better!

Top 5 Hitters

		Coffee Time
		by Carl Coffee

After reading my first two "Coffee Time" articles, you probably think I only care about the pitchers and the defense. Yes, it's easier to rank the Top 5 pitchers. Yes, our rules do favor the defense. However, I still haven't forgotten about the hitters. As exciting as dominant pitching or a diving catch can be, a home run still takes the cake. As someone who only pitches during batting practice, or if we have a dominant lead in the 5th inning, I can only get my glory from a big at bat. Through the years I have played against a number of great hitters, and just like with the Top 5 Pitchers Rankings, I will use past stats, future potential, and personal experience to rank my Top 5 Hitters. A lot of teams and players are new, so if you get left off now, don't feel bad. You still have a chance to get on them later, because once the season starts, I will adjust these rankings.

#5 Nick Woods [Westside Warriors]

Just like his teammate Maclin Malloy did with the Pitching List, a member from the Warriors cracked this Top 5 list. Although Woods only played in one tournament, it would be very hard to leave him off the list. Woods not only showed patience at the plate, (7 BB's in 29 plate appearances) he also showed great power and timely hitting (2 HR's, 4 RBI's). His 11 hits propelled him to a very impressive .500 Batting Average, but Nick's two most impressive stats were his .621 On Base Percentage (OBP), and his .818 Slugging Percentage (SLG).

#4 Brandon Corbett [Flying Squirrels]

Teammate Brandon Corbett comes in at #4. Along with his #2 Pitching Ranking, it sure makes him a dual threat player. Before I get into his stats, my favorite wiffle memory of him was during round robin play at last year's Flag-a-Palooza tournament. Corbett and Chad Hoppe were having a pitching dual, and with the score 0-0 in the bottom of the 5th, Corbett hit a solo HR to win the game. It's good to have a guy like that on your team. In the three tournaments Corbett has played in, he has a lifetime .345 Batting Average, .637 SLG%, 6 HR's, and 14 RBI's. Also in every tournament, he's been over .500 in OBP. So as you see, he can hit for both power and average.

#3 Dennis Pearson [Git r Done]

Dennis just missed getting ranked for top pitchers, but he cracks the list at #3 for Best Hitters. When Git r Done first burst onto the wiffle scene in the August of 2009 tournament, Dennis was the lone bright spot in a team that went 0-2. Although he didn't show his power then, everyone knew this kid could hit. The following year at the Flag-a-Palooza, Dennis along with a surprise offensive showing from Dylan Braden, shocked everyone and reached the finals. Dennis continued to pound the ball at the Hoppe’s Fall Tournament, and was once again the lone bright spot for them. Dennis is one of the most dangerous hitters in the league, because at any time he can send one over the fence. Although his stats won't blow you away just yet, (.279 career BA, 6 HR's, 11 RBI's) I have a good feeling they will after this year. Dennis is easily my prediction for Home Run King.

#2 Brian Constanti [Newport Ass Kickers]

Along with Corbett, Brian Constanti also made both the Top Pitchers and Batters Lists. I really didn't want to rank Brian this high knowing he only played in one tournament, but I just can't ignore his stats. We already know they won the only tournament they played in led by Brian's pitching. Well, they had to score some runs too, and Brian did just that. Brian led his team in every single offensive category. He went 19 for 38, (.500 BA) had 6 walks, 4 HR's, and 8 RBI's. It doesn't stop there, he also scored 7 runs, had a .568 OBP, and an incredible .921 SLG%. It is hard to believe that these stats are from one tournament!

#1 Joey DeLano [Wiffling DeLoppes]

For the veterans out there, this may shock you: a Wiffling DeLoppe as the top hitter in the league?!?! I've played against and watched Joey play, and no batter in the league is a tougher out than him. The most dangerous part of Joey's game is his speed. I would bet that he is the fastest guy in the league. You better be on top of your game when you're playing defense against him, because any ball he hits on the ground he will most likely leg out for a base hit. In the August of 2009 tournament, Joey went an astounding 11 for 19 (.579 BA) and also hit 1 HR and had 7 RBI's. He also only struck out twice and had one walk, which shows that this guy loves to swing the bat. Did Joey carry the DeLoppes on offense that day? Well he did have 7 of his team 9 RBI's, so the answer is easy. In last year's Flag-A-Paloozas he cooled off a little bit, but not by much. He still finished the day with 10 hits and another HR. Joey's .466 career BA, along with his killer speed made him an easy choice to be #1.

That concludes the rankings of the Preseason Top 5 Hitters. Once the season is about a 1/4 of the way through I will take a look at everyone's stats and redo them to see how this stacks up. But for now, the guys who I just mentioned, enjoy the bragging rights!

-
Carl Coffee
Flying Squirrels, 18, SS
Chief Wiffling Officer

Team Tuesdays: Git r' Done

Git r' Done is one of Wiffle in Southeast Michigan’s youngest teams by age, but are also one of the teams that has been competing with us the longest. First appearing on the wiffle scene in Downriver Wiffle’s August 15th, 2009 Fast Pitch Tournament, they have since played in both 2010 Downriver Wiffle tournaments with different lineups on each occasion. The core of the team, Dennis Pearson, Dylan Braden, and Nick Braden, however, has been in the lineup at each tournament and has made great strides toward being strong contenders. On the field Git r' Done has developed strong rivalries with both the Ass Kickers and Westside Warriors, and off the field their search for a visual identity has resulted in the first behind the scenes controversy between teams in the upstart WSEM.

After a disappointing 0-2 showing in the double elimination tournament in 2009 Git r' Done came back and put on a showcase of offensive power that catapulted them into the Rally Around the Flag-a-Palooza championship in June [stats: batting, pitching]. Coming out of the losers’ bracket they defeated the Kickass Team (now Newport Ass Kickers), who had beaten them in the first round, in game one forcing a final showdown between the two teams. Kickass and Git r' Done had faced three times prior with Git r' Done having won a round-robin game and now holding a 2-1 series lead. Kickass would come back, however, quiet the now tired Git r' Done’s bats, and win the championship in the final low-scoring game.

Still, they showed tremendous progress as a team and came away with something to brag about: going from 0-2 to 5 wins and playing for a championship – a championship that was lost only on the timing of the wins in a 2-2 series tie. So, going into the September tournament expectations were high and pitchers were looking for ways to limit Git r' Done’s newfound offensive prowess. Perhaps  they were bitten by a familiar gremlin, though, as Git r' Done followed up their 5-2 runner-up finish with a 1-4 showing after playing in an extra-inning slugfest that lasted over an hour and fifteen minutes in round-robin play against the Westside Warriors. They seemed to again run out of gas after this effort the same way they had after forcing the final game in the Flag-a-Palooza championship. Possibly the more critical thing to come out of the marathon game, though, is the heating up of a rivalry between the two young teams.

Git r' Done has become a lightning rod for rivalry and controversy both on the field and off. Recently while trying to create a visual identity in anticipation of WSEM’s inaugural season, Git r' Done’s selection of the Confederate Flag as their logo made many around the league uncomfortable, including in the league’s front office. Apprehensively a compromise was reached, and a modified flag with wiffleballs substituted for the stars was uploaded to the website. The front page blurb announcing the logo included this statement, “(Git r' Done has chosen) a logo that might make them WSEM's team people love to hate, like the Yankees, though not at all like Yankees.” The expectation was that players would use their disdain for the divisive symbol as extra determination to beat Git r' Done on the field. However, the WSEM Facebook immediately started buzzing with ranging levels of dissatisfaction with the use of politically charged emblem: from lighthearted, sarcastic jabs to discussion of why use the flag and whether it should be allowed, and even some players expressing their desire not to play in games that would associate them with the Confederate symbol.

Controversial logo used from 1/30/2011-1/31/2011

The controversy peaked less than twenty-four hours after the posting of the logo, and Captain Dennis Pearson chose to have the logo removed and begin a search for a new team identity. Pearson expressed that something such as a logo or symbol isn’t nearly as important as playing the game and having fun. “I don’t want people not playin’ against us just because of our logo … I want everybody to play and be fair,” he calmly stated. The WSEM front office responded to the incident by giving Git r' Done a temporary red, white, and blue retro “GRD wiffleball” logo (seen above), and instituting a “standards and common sense” mentality to govern over team names and logos, since image is important for the league’s standing in the community and with future sponsors. It is unclear whether Git r' Done will play as Git r' Done in 2011, now, or if they will select a new moniker for their third year.

Back where every team decision plays a more important role, on the field, Git r' Done heats things up just as much. All three of the core members will take the mound and are solid, competent, and capable pitchers. They won’t light up the world with records, but they don’t need to; they have their offense to do that. They can put up 5 runs or more runs and with error-free defense and solid pitching that is enough to win frequently, if not consistently. Gaige Braden played in 2009 and will return to the lineup full time this 2011 season. Joining him on the roster are Josh Roberts, who played in a limited role at the September 2010 tournament, and Chris Barta. In the sea of potential, progress, and power Git r' Done has, consistency is the one big question mark. No matter what the 2011 season holds for the young, talented team of Git r' Done, they have already made a terrific mark on Wiffle in Southeast Michigan, both on and off the field.

Team Page: http://wiffleinsemiteams.blogspot.com/p/thunder-ducks.html

-
Brandon M. Corbett
Flying Squirrels, 17, P
Co-Commissioner,
Secretary of Defense