FanPost

2007 UZRs out: The WORST AL center fielder is.....

Ichiro Suzuki.

Hmm.   If you want some independent confirmation that Ichiro does not in fact suck, check the Hardball Times' Revized Zone Ratings, or go here for some work based on those ratings that show Ichiro as +30 runs on the year (hat tip: tangotiger).

The varying play-by-play metrics used to disagree on Andruw Jones, but there, the lower bound was that he was average or a little above (instead of historically great).   Here, the two advanced PBP metrics (NOT win shares, NOT BP stuff) think Ichiro's exceptional, just one thinks he's exceptionally awful, and the other exceptionally great.  

Same thing (though to a slightly different degree) with Ian Kinsler of the Rangers.   And, at least in 2005 and 2006, with Richie Sexson (in RZR, he was average to slightly above average).  

What the hell is going on?   Weren't these proprietary PBP systems supposed to eliminate the noise in defensive data?   Is it just me, or has this year resulted in even less correlation between BIS and Stats numbers?   HOW?