Event Title
The Playoff Effect in Major League Baseball: Is Slugging Percentage More Valuable to Winning in the Postseason Than Is On-Base Percentage?
Faculty Sponsor
Jeff Summers
Location
Jereld R. Nicholson Library
Date
5-13-2011 3:00 PM
End Date
5-13-2011 4:30 PM
Subject Area
Economics (applied)
Description
Previous research has shown that a Major League Baseball (MLB) team’s slugging percentage was overvalued relative to on-base percentage as it relates to winning. The research presented here analyzes the significance that on-base percentage and slugging percentage, two common baseball statistics, have on a team’s winning percentage in the regular season compared to the postseason. The model includes statistics of the 30 MLB teams from 2005-2010 and the playoff statistics from the eight teams that made the playoffs over the six seasons. Using the model’s estimated parameters, the effects of slugging percentage and on-base percentage on winning is found to be opposite from the regular season to the post-season. That is, according to my observations, slugging percentage has a more significant impact on winning during the regular season compared to on-base percentage, while the opposite is true during the postseason.
Recommended Citation
Clark, Tyler, "The Playoff Effect in Major League Baseball: Is Slugging Percentage More Valuable to Winning in the Postseason Than Is On-Base Percentage?" (2011). Science and Social Sciences. Event. Submission 28.
https://digitalcommons.linfield.edu/studsymp_sci/2011/all/28
The Playoff Effect in Major League Baseball: Is Slugging Percentage More Valuable to Winning in the Postseason Than Is On-Base Percentage?
Jereld R. Nicholson Library
Previous research has shown that a Major League Baseball (MLB) team’s slugging percentage was overvalued relative to on-base percentage as it relates to winning. The research presented here analyzes the significance that on-base percentage and slugging percentage, two common baseball statistics, have on a team’s winning percentage in the regular season compared to the postseason. The model includes statistics of the 30 MLB teams from 2005-2010 and the playoff statistics from the eight teams that made the playoffs over the six seasons. Using the model’s estimated parameters, the effects of slugging percentage and on-base percentage on winning is found to be opposite from the regular season to the post-season. That is, according to my observations, slugging percentage has a more significant impact on winning during the regular season compared to on-base percentage, while the opposite is true during the postseason.