Following are graphs and commentary regarding the 2003 season of the Detroit Tigers. Questions or comments can be sent to me at dave@baseballgraphs.com.
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| Move your mouse over this graph to view the status of each team at the season's midpoint (July 1st). |
![]() Fielding Independent Pitching is based on the following formula: (13*HR+3*BB-2*K)/IP. Defense Efficiency Ratio is (Non-catcher putouts/Batted Balls in Play), adjusted for ballpark. Circle sizes in this graph are proportional to the percent of fieldable balls successfully converted into outs by the fielders. |
The Tigers' Pitching and Fielding
The good news is that the Tigers' did not have the worst fielding in the league. A friend of my brother's (Donald Adams) read the book "On a Clear Day They Could See Seventh Place" and was inspired to play an entire 162-game APBA season between the ten worst teams in baseball. The 1962 Mets came in first, and the Spiders were last. He might want to think about re-playing the season, replacing the Mets with the 2003 Tigers. How to Read this Graph |
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The Tigers Day-by-Day
The Tigers' offense actually got better during the year (except for that slump in September), while the pitching got worse. At one point, the Spiders lost 24 games in a row. You can view their complete game log here. |
Detroit Tigers' Win SharesPlayer Team Pos Hit Field Pitch Sum WS -------- ----- ---- ---- ---- ----- ----- --- D Young DET DH 17.76 0.87 0.00 18.63 19 C Monroe DET OF 8.66 1.08 0.00 9.74 10 C Pena DET 1B 7.98 0.66 0.00 8.64 9 N Cornejo DET P 0.00 0.00 8.00 8.00 8 E Munson DET 3B 6.26 1.06 0.00 7.32 7 W Morris DET 2B 4.78 2.46 0.00 7.24 7 J Walker DET P 0.00 0.00 6.70 6.70 7 B Higginson DET OF 5.11 1.19 0.00 6.30 6 A Sanchez DET OF 3.96 1.81 0.00 5.77 6 R Santiago DET SS 1.05 4.16 0.00 5.21 5 B Inge DET C 0.00 4.77 0.00 4.77 5 C Spurling DET P 0.00 0.00 4.25 4.25 4 M Maroth DET P 0.00 0.00 3.59 3.59 4 S Sparks DET P 0.00 0.00 2.91 2.91 3 O Infante DET SS 0.00 2.67 0.00 2.67 3 S Halter DET 3B 0.00 2.30 0.00 2.30 2 D Patterson DET P 0.00 0.00 2.16 2.16 2 J Bonderman DET P 0.00 0.00 1.99 1.99 2 M Roney DET P 0.00 0.00 1.81 1.81 2 W Ledezma DET P 0.00 0.00 1.69 1.69 2 K Witt DET DH 1.39 0.27 0.00 1.66 2 E Eckenstahler DET P 0.00 0.00 1.57 1.57 1 D Klassen DET 3B 1.01 0.53 0.00 1.54 1 C Mears DET P 0.00 0.00 1.44 1.44 1 N Robertson DET P 0.00 0.00 1.32 1.32 1 B Schmack DET P 0.00 0.00 1.18 1.18 1 B Petrick DET OF 0.60 0.46 0.00 1.06 1 S Avery DET P 0.27 0.00 0.68 0.95 1 A Hinch DET C 0.30 0.56 0.00 0.86 1 F Rodney DET P 0.00 0.00 0.76 0.76 1 M Anderson DET P 0.00 0.00 0.74 0.74 1 C Ross DET OF 0.68 0.04 0.00 0.72 1 G Knotts DET P 0.00 0.00 0.66 0.66 1 A Torres DET OF 0.00 0.59 0.00 0.59 1 G Kingsale DET OF 0.28 0.30 0.00 0.59 1 M Walbeck DET C 0.00 0.56 0.00 0.56 0 A Bernero DET P 0.00 0.00 0.51 0.51 0 F German DET P 0.00 0.00 0.40 0.40 0 H Bocachica DET OF 0.00 0.07 0.00 0.07 0 C Paquette DET OF 0.00 0.07 0.00 0.07 0 D Palmer DET DH 0.00 0.05 0.00 0.05 0 S Loux DET P 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0 E Young DET DH 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0 |
The Tigers' Individual Players
Dmitri Young had a fine year, with an OPS of .907 and 104 runs created. According to Win Shares, the Tigers would have had about six less wins without him. Louis Sockalexis was a member of the 1899 Spiders. Another player, Howard "Highball" Wilson, pitched in one game for the Spiders and three games for another of the worst teams of all time, the 1904 Washington Nationals. The Tigers did not have an owner who purposely sold away his best players, nor were they a first-year expansion team. They may have been the worst team of all time without a good excuse. You can view all American League Win Shares data via the following links:All Players, Top to Bottom Players Ranked by Position Players Fielding WS by Position |
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