Linear Weights - Or, Did Kendrys Morales Help the Twins?
On 24 July the Twins sent Kendrys Morales to the Seattle Mariners in trade. Rhett Bollinger, the MLB.com reporter for the Twins, reported Twins GM Terry Ryan saying this about Morales: "It's disappointing, because he was a good fit." Ron Gardenhire said Morales "was a run producer." I think he was a waste of time and money. Morales produced 12 runs, 18 RBI, and left 70 on base in 39 games. That is not run production. I'm a fan of linear weights, and think they do a great job showing a player's offensive contribution. If you aren't familiar with linear weights, here's a little primer . Linear weights is a simple stat, and I like those. There are a lot of other stats I feel are over-complicated and don't really add that much insight. C'mon, does it really matter how a player bats wearing a colored jersey in day games in outdoor parks with the relative humidity at 84% and an ebb tide? Here's a chart showing Morales...