MLB Playoffs: Ranking the current AL playoff teams with runners in scoring position
There are only five postseason spots for the fifteen teams in the American League. Although it takes a well-rounded team to reach the MLB playoffs, the ability for teams to take advantage with runners in scoring position is very important for success.
As there are five American League MLB playoffs teams, let’s keep with the theme of five by taking a look back at the previous five AL Championship Series matchups. Specifically, let’s take look back at where the teams within these five ALCS matchups ranked during the regular season with runners in scoring position (RISP).
In the 2013 ALCS, the Detroit Tigers matched up with the Boston Red Sox. The Tigers were first in the AL that season with a .282 batting average (AVG) with RISP. The Red Sox were second with a .278 AVG with RISP. The Tigers (.806) and Red Sox (.794) were also first and second in the AL in on-base plus slugging percentage (OPS) with RISP.
Following the 2014 AL Division Series matchups, the Kansas City Royals and Baltimore Orioles faced off in the ALCS. The Royals were second in the AL that season with a .271 AVG with RISP. The Orioles were third with a .268 AVG with RISP.
In 2015, the Royals returned to the ALCS to face off with the Toronto Blue Jays. During the regular season, the Blue Jays were first in the AL with a .286 AVG with RISP while the Royals were second with a .281 AVG with RISP.
The Blue Jays returned to the ALCS in 2016 to match up with the Cleveland Indians. This is where the well-rounded teams come into play the most as neither of these teams ranked in the top of the league with RISP. The Blue Jays ranked twelfth that season with a .249 AVG with RISP while the Indians ranked eighth with a .260 AVG with RISP.
In 2017, the Houston Astros matched up with the New York Yankees in the ALCS. The Astros ranked first in the AL with a .294 AVG with RISP while the Yankees ranked eighth with a .261 AVG with RISP. The Astros also ranked first with an .841 OPS with RISP while the Yankees ranked third with an .804 OPS with RISP.
Although taking advantage of RISP is not the only factor in reaching the ALCS, it does make a large impact on a teams chances of playing deep into October during the MLB playoffs. Due to this, lets now take a look at where each of the current MLB playoffs bound team ranks in the AL with RISP.
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees made it all the way to game seven of the ALCS in 2017 before they were ousted by the eventual World Series Champion Houston Astros.
The New York Yankees entered last season with their sights set on rebuilding and definitely outperformed their initial expectations. Nonetheless, they entered the 2018 season with much higher expectations from both the front office and the fans.
With a rookie manager in Aaron Boone, the Yankees have compiled a 91-57 record to this point in the season. Although that is a great record, they find themselves 10.5 games behind the Boston Red Sox in the AL East division.
As both teams rank closely in many pitching stats such as ERA and WHIP, the disparity between these two teams mostly comes from taking advantage of the situations with RISP.
Out of the current AL playoff-bound teams, the Yankees are last with a .247 AVG with runners on base in general. They also rank last with a .249 AVG with RISP.
The Yankees currently rank fourth out of the five current playoff-bound teams with a .776 OPS with runners on base. However, they rank last with a .767 OPS with RISP.
The 2016 ALCS matchup, as well as the Yankees from last season, prove that teams do not need to be near the top of the league in these statistics to make it to this point in the MLB playoffs. However, seven of the ten teams from the 2013-2017 ALCS matchups were top RISP performers, so it definitely helps the chances of a team playing deep into October.
One bright note for the Yankees is the possible return of Aaron Judge to the lineup. This season, he holds a .282 AVG and an .866 OPS with RISP. As he has not had an at-bat since the end of June, Judge would definitely help boost the team’s numbers with RISP. The only question mark on Judge is if he will be able to get back to his All-Star level of hitting prior to the start of the MLB playoffs.
However, if the Yankees plan on making another long playoff run this season, they need to quickly improve their overall team performance with RISP.
Cleveland Indians
The Cleveland Indians recently clinched first place in the AL Central Division for the third straight season. Although they were eliminated from the ALDS last year by the Yankees after holding a 2-0 lead in the series, they are ready for another deep run in the 2018 MLB playoffs.
As a team, the Cleveland Indians rank fourth out of the current AL playoff-bound teams with a .256 AVG with RISP. With two outs and RISP in an inning, the Indians are fifth with a .225 AVG.
The team performs well with runners on base in general as they rank third with a .268 AVG in this situation. However, when those runners find themselves in scoring position, the Indians have struggled overall as a team.
Their top performer with RISP is Jose Ramirez, which is probably not a surprise. He hits well above the Indians team average with a .302 AVG and a .985 OPS with RISP. He has 19 extra-base hits (XBH) and 29 walks in these situations as well.
Although the team as a whole does not perform well with RISP, they do have other solid performers outside of Ramirez. Edwin Encarnacion holds a .289 AVG with 15 XBHs and 28 walks in 135 at-bats with RISP. Jason Kipnis holds a .292 AVG with 14 XBHs and 13 walks in 113 at-bats with RISP.
Honorable mention to Francisco Lindor, who holds a .276 AVG with 13 XBHs and 24 walks with RISP on the season.
Although Josh Donaldson has only compiled 4 hitless at-bats with RISP in his short time thus far with the Indians, he has performed very well in this situation throughout his career. In 706 career at-bats with RISP, Donaldson holds a .316 AVG with a .969 OPS. If he can get back to this form through the last two weeks of the season, the Indians will have a much more dangerous lineup to face in the postseason.
Oakland Athletics
In 2017, the Oakland Athletics finished last in the AL West for the third straight season. However, with twelve games remaining in 2018, the A’s are only 4.5 games back of the Houston Astros for first place in the AL West and they are on their way to at least securing a Wild Card spot.
As the New York Yankees are continuing to struggle with runners on base and RISP, the Oakland Athletics have been able to make up ground on the Bronx Bombers. Currently, the A’s are only 1.5 games behind them for the top Wild Card spot.
Although Oakland recently lost two in a row to the Tampa Bay Rays, they still hold a comfortable lead for a Wild Card spot. The A’s are currently 7.0 games ahead of the Rays and 7.5 games ahead of the Seattle Mariners for the second Wild Card spot.
Oakland currently ranks third out of the AL playoff bound teams with a .262 AVG with RISP. With two outs in the inning and RISP, Oakland is second with a .246 AVG.
As this team knows how to take advantage with RISP, this A’s team could be dangerous to face in a one-game playoff. If the Yankees end up matching up with them in the Wild Card, they will need to watch out for Jed Lowrie, Matt Chapman, and Khris Davis.
Lowrie currently has 132 at-bats with RISP and holds a .326 AVG with a .924 OPS in these situations. Chapman currently has 95 at-bats with RISP and holds a .284 AVG with a .917 OPS. Davis currently has 144 at-bats with RISP and holds a .278 AVG with a .935 OPS.
The only Yankees player with at least a .278 AVG and a .917 OPS with RISP is the rookie Gleyber Torres. Fellow rookie Miguel Andujar is close to those numbers, however, as he holds a .293 AVG and a .911 OPS with RISP.
Houston Astros
The Houston Astros were the 2017 World Series Champions and they are looking to go back to the World Series again in 2018.
Although the Houston Astros have not clinched the AL West Division, they are 4.5 games ahead of the Oakland Athletics with only thirteen games remaining. A lot can happen in thirteen games, but it is likely that the Astros will win the AL West for the 2nd straight season.
Despite the fact that the Astros are a very good team, they also play the Seattle Mariners, Los Angeles Angels, Toronto Blue Jays, and Baltimore Orioles to close the season. This will make it tough for the A’s to make up ground even though they play the Angels, Minnesota Twins, Mariners, and Angels again down the stretch.
Another factor to the Astros clinching their division is their performance with RISP. After finishing first in the AL last year in team AVG with RISP, they are second this season with a .283 AVG. They also rank second with an .860 OPS with RISP.
Yuli Gurriel and Alex Bregman are terrifying opponents with RISP. Gurriel holds a .392 AVG in these situations with a 1.003 OPS. Bregman holds a .389 AVG with a whopping 1.216 OPS in these situations. Gurriel has 130 at-bats with RISP while Bregman has 126 at-bats with RISP, so these numbers are not obtained from a small sample size.
Honorable mention goes to Jose Altuve, who is being overshadowed by two of his teammates with RISP depsite his own great numbers. In these situations, Altuve has a .333 AVG with a .902 OPS through 108 at-bats.
As there are numerous players on this Astros team that pose a threat with RISP, it will be difficult for opposing teams to pitch around any of them in the MLB playoffs. The ability for Houston to hit with RISP coupled with their solid pitching makes this team a serious ALCS contender once again.
Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are currently 102-47 and they are well on their way to their 2nd straight year atop the AL East.
Due to their phenomenal record, it is no surprise that they take advantage with RISP. Although the Houston Astros .283 AVG with RISP is very impressive, the Boston Red Sox top it with a .292 AVG with RISP.
The Red Sox hold an .877 OPS with RISP, which is also good for first place in the AL. To no surprise, Boston is first with a .272 AVG with RISP and two outs in the inning. They also hold an .841 OPS in these situations.
Much like the Astros, the Red Sox have a terrifying group of players to face in key spots. These players for Boston include J.D. Martinez, Mookie Betts, Xander Bogaerts, and Andrew Benintendi.
Martinez holds a .393 AVG and a 1.146 OPS through 145 at-bats with RISP. Betts holds a .311 AVG and a 1.167 OPS through 74 at-bats with RISP. Bogaerts holds a .356 AVG with a 1.158 OPS through 135 at-bats with RISP. Benintendi holds a .326 AVG and a .986 OPS through 129 at-bats with RISP.
Honorable mention goes to newcomers Ian Kinsler and Steve Pearce, despite their smaller sample sizes. The two sluggers each only have 30 at-bats as members of the Red Sox this season with RISP, but they have performed very well. Kinsler holds a .367 AVG and an .827 OPS in these spots while Pearce holds a .333 AVG and a 1.072 OPS in these spots.
Even the light hitting Jackie Bradley Jr. holds a .280 AVG with a .905 OPS with RISP through his 107 at-bats. Due to this complete team effort with RISP, the Red Sox should be considered the most dangerous team in the American League within these spots.
Next. Best non-playoff teams in Wild Card era. dark
So, when the runners are on in the MLB playoffs in the American League, now you know which teams have the best shot to bring those runners home!