Secondary average, or SecA, is a
baseball statistic that measures the sum of extra bases gained on hits, walks, and stolen bases (less times caught stealing) depicted per at bat.
[James, Bill. ''The Bill James Historical Baseball Abstract''. New York: Villard Books, 1988.] Created by
Bill James
George William James (born October 5, 1949) is an American baseball writer, historian, and statistician whose work has been widely influential. Since 1977, James has written more than two dozen books devoted to baseball history and statistics. ...
, it is a
sabermetric measurement of hitting performance that seeks to evaluate the number of bases a player gained independent of
batting average. Unlike batting average, which is a simple ratio of base
hits to
at bats, secondary average accounts for power (
extra base hits), plate discipline (
walks), and speed (
stolen base
In baseball, a stolen base occurs when a runner advances to a base to which they are not entitled and the official scorer rules that the advance should be credited to the action of the runner. The umpires determine whether the runner is safe or ...
s minus times caught stealing).
["Career Leaders for Secondary Average.]
''Baseball Almanac''
Baseball-Almanac. 2013. Web. 11 Nov. 2013. Secondary averages have a higher
variance than batting averages.
Formula
The formula to calculate secondary average is:
:
where
*''BB'' =
bases on balls
A base on balls (BB), also known as a walk, occurs in baseball when a batter receives four pitches that the umpire calls '' balls'', and is in turn awarded first base without the possibility of being called out. The base on balls is defined in Se ...
*''TB'' =
Total bases
*''H'' =
Hits
Hits or H.I.T.S. may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Music
* ''H.I.T.S.'', 1991 album by New Kids on the Block
* ''...Hits'' (Phil Collins album), 1998
* ''Hits'' (compilation series), 1984–2006; 2014 - a British compilation album se ...
*''SB'' =
Stolen base
In baseball, a stolen base occurs when a runner advances to a base to which they are not entitled and the official scorer rules that the advance should be credited to the action of the runner. The umpires determine whether the runner is safe or ...
s
*''CS'' =
Caught stealing
In baseball, a runner is charged, and the fielders involved are credited, with a time caught stealing when the runner attempts to advance or lead off from one base to another without the ball being batted and then is tagged out by a fielder whil ...
*''AB'' =
At bats
The resulting number rounded to the thousandth place is a player's secondary average. Variations to the formula exist, with some statisticians not counting caught stealing while others multiply caught stealing to increase its significance/negative effects.
Relation to batting average
Although they share a limited
correlation
In statistics, correlation or dependence is any statistical relationship, whether causal or not, between two random variables or bivariate data. Although in the broadest sense, "correlation" may indicate any type of association, in statistics ...
, overall league averages for secondary average are inclined to correspond with league batting averages, which allows for a viable reference point for secondary average in comparison to batting average.
A player can possess a low batting average yet still be a valuable offensive contributor if he has a high secondary average.
[James, Bill. ''The Baseball Book 1990''. New York: Villard Books, 1990.] However, a low secondary average is not necessarily an indicator of a poor hitter.
Ichiro Suzuki
, also known mononymously as , is a Japanese former professional baseball outfielder who played professionally for 28 seasons. He played nine years of his career with the Orix BlueWave of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB), where he began his ...
is an example of a hitter who relies on batting average for most of his offensive production.
[Grochowski, John]
"Baseball by the Numbers: Adam Dunn Shows His Value in Secondary Average."
''Chicago Sun-Times''. Sun-Times Media, LLC, 20 Aug. 2012. Web. 11 Nov. 2013. Furthermore, batting average and secondary average are not mutually exclusive; a player can have a high batting average as well as a high secondary average. The table below shows the leaders in both batting average and secondary average for the 2013 season (bold indicates leader in both categories).
Benefits for player evaluation
Secondary average operates under the principle that batting average is an incomplete indicator of a hitter's ability since batting average does not account for power, plate discipline, and speed. According to Scott Gray (working with Bill James), "Secondary average is a much better indicator of offensive ability than batting average".
Since secondary average evaluates a player's offensive contribution independent of batting average, it can identify players who have low batting averages yet are still productive offensively. For example, in 1990, Bill James identified
Eric Davis
The given name Eric, Erich, Erikk, Erik, Erick, or Eirik is derived from the Old Norse name ''Eiríkr'' (or ''Eríkr'' in Old East Norse due to monophthongization).
The first element, ''ei-'' may be derived from the older Proto-Norse ''* ain ...
as the most productive batter with a career average below .275; in spite of his low batting average, Davis had a career secondary average of .504, which was the highest of any active player at the time.
Batting average was not a great indicator of his true offensive value; secondary average was able to demonstrate his value more effectively.
Adam Dunn
Adam Troy Dunn (born November 9, 1979), nicknamed "Big Donkey", is an American former professional baseball left fielder and first baseman. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Cincinnati Reds, Arizona Diamondbacks, Washington Nation ...
is an example of a recent player who has a low batting average but an excellent secondary average, resulting from his high walk totals and power numbers.
Notably, during each season in a 5-year stretch in which he hit 40+ home runs, he hit more homers than doubles. Although Adam Dunn only has a career .238 batting average,'
"Adam Dunn"
''Baseball-Reference.com''. Sports Reference LLC, n.d. Web. 11 Nov. 2013. he has a career .456 secondary average, ranking him 12th all-time.
References
{{Baseball statistics
Batting statistics
Bill James