Anatomy of a Quality At Bat

Why keep track of quality at bats? 

We keep track of quality at bats because they are a better predictor of performance than batting average.  Quality at bats are at bats that do not always result in hits, but instead are at bats that will result in positive outcomes for the team and the individual in the long run.

What do quality at bats mean?

Quality at bats mean when you go to the plate you had a plan, you believed in that plan, and you executed that plan.  It does not mean you got a hit or even got on base but rather you battled the pitcher in such a way that it will reap benefits in the future as long as you stick to the process.

What is a quality at bat?

A line drive out, a walk, a two strike hit by pitch (assuming you followed our hitting rules), an at bat that makes the pitcher throw 8 pitches or more (even if it results in a strike out), any two strike hit, sac bunt, squeeze bunt, moving a runner over with a ground ball to the right side, sac fly, or scoring a runner from third with a ground ball when the infield is back is considered a quality at bat.

All of these are examples of hitters executing their plan, or executing a fundamental that is important to our team philosophy which is about putting runs on the board anyway we can, whenever we can.

Does any hit count as a quality at bat?

No, if the hitter goes up and swings at a first pitch curve ball and hits it off the end of the bat and it results in a bloop hit or infield single, that is not a quality at bat.  The reason it is not a quality at bat is because the hitter did not have a plan, and if they did, they did not stick to it.  Why? Because a hitter who was looking for a first pitch curve ball would not have looked so bad when they decided to swing at it, but instead would have hit it hard or at least had proper timing for the pitch.

What do quality at bats prove?

Quality at bats prove the hitter executed their plan.  It means if they continue to execute their plan they will get rewarded with hits, although this does not happen every time, a quality at bat will produce more positive results then a non-quality at bat

How do you know quality at bats actually produce results?

I have kept track of quality at bats for the last two years, and the hitters with the most quality at bats consistently have higher production numbers, including batting average, on base percentage, and RBI totals.  Although there are outliers, they are the exception and not the rule.  Plain and simple, quality at bats are the most important stat for a hitter in our offense.