Urías's truly Gold Glove

[Sports Guy]

2 hours ago, Frobby said:

This is one of those times that OAA doesn’t square with other defensive metrics, or with the eye test.  At 3B, he’s at +3.8 UZR, and 0 Rdrs and 0 Rtot.  He’s made 2 errors there in 500+ innings.  

Last night he made two outstanding plays.  To me, maybe he’s a tick below last year (understandable since he’s been shuttling between 2B and 3B more), but no way he’s played a below average 3B this year.   

https://www.mlb.com/orioles/video/dean-kremer-in-play-out-s-to-bo-bichette-iwutqb?t=play-your-way

They talked last night about how his knee injury effected him early on. I wonder what his OAA splits are like?

[Frobby]

3 hours ago, Sports Guy said:

They talked last night about how his knee injury effected him early on. I wonder what his OAA splits are like?

Good question and I don’t think that info is available.  However, I can give you Rdrs and UZR splits (combined for 2B/3B) for 18-game segments, and last night happened to mark the end of the 7th 18-game segment.  

UZR: 0.6, 1.3, -0.6, 0.5, 1.5, [2.6 for the 6th and 7th segments combined; I forgot to record this at the end of the 6th segment]
Rdrs: 0, 0, 0, 1, 1, 2, 0

So, by both these measures, his overall defense has been better over the last 72 games than it was in the first 54.  Wish I’d be tracking OAA too, and splitting it by position, but there’s only so many hours in a day!

Edited August 24, 2023 by Frobby

[Sports Guy]

35 minutes ago, Frobby said:

Good question and I don’t think that info is available.  However, I can give you Rdrs and UZR splits (combined for 2B/3B) for 18-game segments, and last night happened to mark the end of the 7th 18-game segment.  

UZR: 0.6, 1.3, -0.6, 0.5, 1.5, [2.6 for the 6th and 7th segments combined; I forgot to record this at the end of the 6th segment]
Rdrs: 0, 0, 0, 1, 1, 2, 0

So, by both these measures, his overall defense has been better over the last 72 games than it was in the first 54.  Wish I’d be tracking OAA too, and splitting it by position, but there’s only so many hours in a day!

Interestingly enough, his third baseman OAA has gone to -7.  So, that has gotten worse. Basically, they are saying he’s not turning as many balls into outs this year.

That’s not an issue I have noticed but I also trust the stat. 

[Sports Guy]

You can go month to month for OAA.

March/April saw him have a -4. That goes with the idea of the bad knee.

He was -1 in May.

June and July he combined for +1. But he is -3 in August. He did have a heel injury a few weeks ago and maybe that has effected him?

Seems to me that nagging/lingering injuries have effected him his defense this year and when he is healthy/feeling better, his defense is what we saw last year, or at least close to it.

[fernandodfcosta]

How do you compare Urias's and Gunnar's defence at 3B? And Urias x Westburg at 2B?

[Sports Guy]

2 minutes ago, fernandodfcosta said:

How do you compare Urias's and Gunnar's defence at 3B? And Urias x Westburg at 2B?

I think Urias is behind both, which is more about them than it is him.

[Frobby]

4 minutes ago, fernandodfcosta said:

How do you compare Urias's and Gunnar's defence at 3B? And Urias x Westburg at 2B?

Personally, I’d say both Urias and Westburg are very good at 2B.  At 3B, all three are good but I think Westburg’s arm is a little weaker.  

Gunnar’s defense has just gotten better and better this year, as he’s gained confidence and stopped overthinking things.  
 

[Frobby]

28 minutes ago, Sports Guy said:

You can go month to month for OAA.

March/April saw him have a -4. That goes with the idea of the bad knee.

He was -1 in May.

June and July he combined for +1. But he is -3 in August. He did have a heel injury a few weeks ago and maybe that has effected him?

Seems to me that nagging/lingering injuries have effected him his defense this year and when he is healthy/feeling better, his defense is what we saw last year, or at least close to it.

How do you do this?  On Fangraphs, or Savant?  And how?

[Sports Guy]

8 minutes ago, Frobby said:

How do you do this?  On Fangraphs, or Savant?  And how?

Baseball Savant. When you go into the third base OAA player leaderboard. you can choose what month to look up.

Edited August 24, 2023 by Sports Guy

[mall-O-cup]

To me he has such a steadying presence when on the field. His bat is adequate with occasional pop. I always feel comfortable when he is in the lineup. I will miss him if/when he is gone.

[OriolesMagic83]

On 8/11/2023 at 6:27 PM, jdwilde1 said:

He’s offense is down this year, but he’s still exactly league average, with a 100 OPS+.  Homers are down too, but he has 21 doubles in 82 games, so he’s still getting extra base hits.  And his career OPS+ is 107, so it’s not like he doesn’t have a track record of hitting better.  
 

 

It's awesome that the O's have a guy with a league average bat and elite glove when someone needs a day off or someone is hurt.

[Frobby]

1 hour ago, Sports Guy said:

Baseball Savant. When you go into the third base OAA player leaderboard. you can choose what month to look up.

Was just looking at Gunnar by month.

At 3B: -4, +1, +2, +1, 0

At SS: -1, —, +1, -1, +1

[Sports Guy]

5 minutes ago, Frobby said:

Was just looking at Gunnar by month.

At 3B: -4, +1, +2, +1, 0

At SS: -1, —, +1, -1, +1

And Gunnar struggling early on probably has to do with a young player taking his struggles at the plate into the field..that and his throws weren’t good.

Btw, drop the qualifying innings down and you can get their totals for a month.

[NashLumber]

On 8/11/2023 at 1:53 PM, LA2 said:

I searched for the Defensive gems and Ramón Urías threads, but for some reason couldn't find them--moderators shd please feel free to move this note to either one. I merely wanted to mention this one impressive aspect of the play by Ramón that robbed Altuve of a double yesterday that Dave Johnson missed in his description.

In the highlight vid, the clip from the outfield camera begins a bit earlier. This makes it possible to see--at approximately 00:13--that not only was the ball past Urías when he dove & gloved it (as Johnson describes), but that his rhythmic anticipation step a split-second before Altuve's smash was sidewards to Ramón's left. So it's all the more amazing that he instantaneously fought against his own momentum to make a fantastic play to his right, toward the foul line (and then, as DJ notes, reversed again to make a perfect throw from his knees as if it were totally routine). 

https://www.mlb.com/video/dean-kremer-in-play-out-s-to-jose-altuve-b169x5?q=ContentTags == ["defense","gamepk-717053"] Order By Timestamp DESC&pt=Defensive Highlights&p=0

Mateo's heralded defense may have weakened this year, but not Urías's. Along with the decent bat with tactical oppo power, he provides wonderful depth and versatility to the Orioles infield.

I've been to only one game thus far due to family schedule, but I am so thankful I got to see this one with my own eyes. First out of the game, right?