Plate Discipline Versus Strike-Zone Judgment

by Eric Simon on Jan 16, 2010 5:00 AM EST

"Strike-zone judgment" and "plate discipline" are often used interchangeably, but there's a subtle-yet-important distinction between the two and it has to do with the whiff. Here's how I define the two similar batting traits.

Plate discipline: patience at the plate, especially the patience to take strikes while waiting for your pitch.
Strike-zone judgment: mastery of the strike zone to the point where you know whether any given pitch will result in a ball or a strike (simplification).

Essentially, strike-zone judgment is plate discipline without all of the free-swinginess. In statistical terms, a player with good plate discipline will walk a lot but may also strike out a lot. A player with good strike-zone judgment may walk a lot but will necessarily strike out only a little. Ted Williams had terrific strike-zone judgment, walking in 20.6% of his career plate appearances and drawing 2.85 walks for every time he struck out. Mark McGwire had terrific plate discipline -- he walked in 18.2% of his plate appearances -- but meh strike-zone judgment -- walking .83 times for each strikeout. So while Williams and McGwire coaxed walks with comparable frequency, the former struck out less than one-third as often as the latter.

In his only season with the Mets in 1962, Richie Ashburn walked 81 times and struck out just 39 (2.08 BB/K), which is the best Mets career mark for anyone with at least 400 plate appearances. In 2,965 plate appearances as a Met, Rusty Staub walked 333 times -- a nothing-special 11.2% walk rate -- but struck out just 204 times -- a terrific 1.63 BB/K.

If you thought Williams's 2.85 career BB/K mark was good, Eddie Collins walked 1,499 times to just 286 strikeouts, a walk-to-strikeout rate of 5.24. Tris Speaker was even better than Collins, posting a career BB/K of 6.27 (1,381 walks, 220 strikeouts).

Last year, Albert Pujols led baseball in strike-zone judgment at 1.80. Dustin Pedroia was second at 1.64, followed by Yadier Molina at 1.28.

The worst strike-zone judgment in 2009? That'd be future Met Bengie Molina, who walked just .19 times for each strikeout.

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Rusty Staub

I loved this man as a pinch hitter late in his career. He had such a disciplined approach in his 1 AB per game. I always thought he would have been a great hitting coach, but I am sure he is way too old to do that now. I was also always surpirsed he wasn’t brought into spring training ever to help certain players with their paitience at the plate.

He would probably be a great one for david Wright to talk to, if David got a little better at pitch selection early in his AB, he could really cut down on his K and increase his BB, which would eventually lead to better picthes to hit

by Rickfansince76 on Jan 16, 2010 7:56 AM EST reply actions

I agree 100%

Even in his last years, Rusty always got his money’s worth in every AB. Great eye, great situational hitter, and great pinch hitter.

by Mex_17 on Jan 16, 2010 8:19 PM EST up reply actions

wow 0.19 BB/K is horrible

cant wait for that in the middle of our lineup

by KeithsMoustache on Jan 16, 2010 9:50 AM EST reply actions

Can we do a discipline transplant?

Transfer 60% of Staubs plate discipline into Molina and the other 40% into Franceour?

Asking a General Manager to slim down his budget is like asking an alcoholic to blow up a distillery.

by scott from peekskill on Jan 16, 2010 9:59 AM EST reply actions

for tris speaker

i think you mean 1381 walks and 220 strikeouts?

by clip on Jan 16, 2010 10:05 AM EST reply actions

I had a nightmare we signed Bengie for 5 years $50 mil.

It was horrible.

John Olerud, Hall of Famer. Got a nice ring to it.

by squid92 on Jan 16, 2010 11:23 AM EST reply actions

lol..

i had this horrible nightmare where somehow my front teeth were being pushed forward to the point where they were about break, when I woke up in a sweat. It was weird and awful. Your dream sounds far worse.

"Relax, all right? Don't try to strike everybody out. Strikeouts are boring; besides that, they're fascist. Throw some ground balls. It's more democratic."
- CRASH DAVIS

by nrmax88 on Jan 16, 2010 11:57 AM EST up reply actions

That was more premonition than dream.

The Mets lobby Omar for a plan, and his plan, he likes his plan. The problem is that he didn't write his plan down 'cause that makes it paperwork, and that’s false hustle... Know what I’m sayin’?

by Evan_S on Jan 16, 2010 12:38 PM EST up reply actions

that must be a dream

I don’t see a vesting option anywhere in there. The Mets dont give straight contracts like that.

by KeithsMoustache on Jan 16, 2010 12:41 PM EST up reply actions

Every time I learn something new about Molina, a little piece of me dies

And when Sheets and Felipe Lopez sign for less money combined than we’ll be giving Molina, a big piece of me will die

by Bieser's Balk on Jan 16, 2010 11:43 AM EST reply actions

I know a good life insurance agent, if you want to leave something for the family and all...

"Blinding ignorance does mislead us. O! Wretched mortals, open your eyes!"
Gil Hodges IS a Hall of Famer.

by Brooklyn Dodgers Mets Fan on Jan 17, 2010 10:45 PM EST up reply actions

there's now a perfectly good reason to acquire Molina

cull his knees (they must be strong) for transplant to Beltran’s body. Problem solved.

I.M. Forme
"When you get yourself into trouble is when you feel you have to do something, and then you get yourself in trouble." --Omar Minaya

by itsmetsforme on Jan 16, 2010 1:52 PM EST reply actions 1 recs

couldn't we just get livans?

"We have a plan, and our plan, I like our plan'

it's Omar's world, we're just livin in it.

by Gina on Jan 16, 2010 1:59 PM EST up reply actions

Wouldn't poor contact be coming into play?

I’d think caught looking Ks would matter more for this analysis, because a swinging K could just indicate a batter missing a pitch in the strike zone, rather than poor strike zone judgment.

by yellomellojello on Jan 16, 2010 3:20 PM EST reply actions

I thought the same thing when i read

then went back and re-read and I think thats what he means by knowing when to wait for your pitch, guys like Adam Dunn have excellent eyes but usually swing at most things in the zone even if with their skillset, in Dunns case his long swing, he’s not going to be able to catch up to it.Where as a guy like Castillo will take pitches even in the zone since he knows he can’t hit anything out of the infield.

"We have a plan, and our plan, I like our plan'

it's Omar's world, we're just livin in it.

by Gina on Jan 16, 2010 3:33 PM EST up reply actions

Other fun Bengie Molina facts:

Second lowest OBP among qualified batters, only behind Yuniesky Betancourt.
Has finished 4th, 3rd, and 1st in lowest walk rate each of the past 3 years (2.9%, 3.5%, 2.6%).
Has finished 2nd, 1st and 5th in lowest speed score each of the past 3 years.
In 2009, he swung at 43.9% of all pitches that were thrown outside the strikezone. This figure led all of baseball.
He also had the highest swing percentage on pitches overall (59.5%), edging out none other than Frenchy for the “top” spot.
He was 6th in first pitch strike percentage.

John Olerud, Hall of Famer. Got a nice ring to it.

by squid92 on Jan 16, 2010 7:07 PM EST reply actions