GUIDES · BETSLIP DOCTOR
Can a high fielding percentage coexist with limited defensive range?
Yes. Fielding percentage is putouts plus assists divided by recorded chances, which include putouts, assists and errors. It does not count balls outside those recorded chances or adjust for how difficult they were. A range metric such as Outs Above Average uses play difficulty and position-specific inputs, so the two measures can describe different parts of defense.
For Baseball readers comparing traditional and modeled fielding statistics · Updated
Fielding percentage uses scored chances
MLB's formula is (putouts + assists) divided by (putouts + assists + errors). It summarizes how often a fielder records an out without an error among the chances credited in the scorekeeping record.
Because the denominator is made from recorded putouts, assists and errors, a ball that a fielder never reaches is not an error in that formula. A high percentage therefore cannot, on its own, show whether the fielder reached difficult balls.
Outs Above Average evaluates play difficulty
Statcast's Outs Above Average is a range-based metric. For outfielders, it accumulates credit or debit from each play's catch probability. For infielders, its inputs include distance to the intercept point, time available, distance to the target base and, on force plays, the batter's average running speed.
MLB calculates the outfield and infield versions differently. Compare the position and the opportunities behind a range figure; do not treat it as a conversion of fielding percentage.
A fictional scorekeeping line
Hypothetical comparison: Fielder A records 98 putouts or assists and 1 error in 99 chances, about .990, with a separate OAA figure of −2. Fielder B records 49 putouts or assists and 1 error in 50 chances, .980, with OAA of +3. A high fielding percentage can coexist with a lower range-model result. A ball that never becomes a recorded chance is not automatically an error.
Related questions
What is the fielding-percentage denominator?
Putouts plus assists plus errors, which MLB calls total chances.
Is Outs Above Average calculated the same way for every position?
No. MLB describes different calculations for outfielders and infielders, with different play inputs.