Most roto leagues use for scoring the following ten categories:
Hitting: AVG, HR, RBI, SB, R
Pitching: W, K, ERA , WHIP, SV
I will use the following lines to propose a variation replacing a few of the above categories based on the way we play and understand the game today. The goal is to make roto leagues fairer and remove common loopholes like simply stockpiling starters to pile up W and K artificially. Also, this new format would force managers to draft for more complete hitters rather than merely stockpiling power hitters as is commonly done. First let me present what I had in mind:
Hitting: OPS, HR, RC, SB, wOBA
Pitching: BB%, K%, SIERA, WHIP, SV+HLD
Now a quick overview of what these stats are:
OPS: on-base + slugging (players with high OPS will be those who can hit well enough, and with enough authority, to have a high SLG and disciplined enough at the plate to have a high OBP)
HR: Self-explanatory and while yes, there are many other ways to score runs, home runs are still important especially in today’s game.
RC: RBI + R (rather than have two separate categories why not combine them)
SB: We might as well keep to account for the role speed plays in the game
wOBA: A variation on OBP that also weighs how a player reached base weighing home runs significantly more than walks for example.
BB%: Great pitchers simply don’t issue lots of walks so I see value in having a category that reflects who allows the lowest walk rate.
K%: Rather than simply tally K’s, account for how regularly pitchers get K’s to avoid managers simply stockpiling starters to pile up K’s.
SIERA: A variant on ERA that accounts for factors that a pitcher cannot control including balls put in play, which FIP does not.
WHIP: I like WHIP and think it matters to examine how many baserunners a pitcher tends to allow.
SV+HLD: Rather than only count saves, tally both saves and holds to reflect the way relievers are used in the modern game and the importance of getting the ball to the closer in the first place.
I know the above won't be perfect and there is much to be said about over intellectualizing the game here but I feel that this system is more in tune with the way modern baseball works. It is also more in tune with what those around the game value in today's players. By no means is this the only way to revamp roto leagues but I hope it will at least start a useful conversation on the future of roto leagues and how they can be modernized.
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