Now that my nieces high school season is over, I wanted to take a little bit of time and reflect back on her performance over the past several months. I reached out to hear last night to offer my condolences for the loss they suffered. I think they all kind of figured that was going to happen, but you still have to have a little bit of hope no matter how insurmountable the odds seem.
As I was talking to her I asked if she had her stats for the season yet and if she could share them with me when she got them. Thanks to the marvels of modern technology, she already had them. It seems like it wasn't that long ago that someone had to keep track of the books and then tally everything up at the end of the season.
Now, as long as someone is keeping track, everything is input into an app called Game Changer created by Dick's Sporting Goods, and if you pay for the premium service you can see anyone on the teams stats.
It's rather impressive.
Anyway, I don't pay for the premium version. I only have the free version, so I needed my niece to pass along her statistics to me. To which she graciously did and now I am going to share them with you!
Whether you like it or not.
She finished the season with a .352 batting average, .761 slugging, 25 hits, 7 Home Runs, 19 walks, and 13 stolen bases.
I'm not sure if I have said this before, but my niece is fast. I mean scary fast. Okay, probably not compete in the 100 yard dash fast, but it's just crazy how fast she can get around the bases when she needs to. The fact that she has 13 steals is no surprise to me.
Her speed also plays into another stat which I will cover in second here.
I've mentioned this in the past, but a decent battering average for most players is .300. Of course, 1.000 is the best, but it would be nearly impossible to do that. You might be able to bat 1.000 in a single game, but doing it through the whole season would be mind blowing.
Even getting on base half the times you swing the bat is a bit of a stretch which is why .300 seems to be the average number for most players. If you are hitting at or near .300 you are doing pretty good. Anything on top of that is gravy. Which is why that .352 batting average is pretty impressive.
Slugging on the other hand is a bit of a new stat for me. I don't remember ever covering it in the past. Slugging refers to the number of bases a player records per at bat. Obviously, a home run earns you the most points, but getting a double or a triple also earns you a higher score than getting a single. Which is why her speed is a factor. If she can turn a single into a double or a triple due to her speed, it's going to give her a higher score.
Unlike batting average, slugging percentage doesn't have a cap of 1.000. For example, according to high school stats across the country, the top ranked softball player in the nation has a slugging percentage of 2.049. Just for comparison, the #500 player in the nation has a slugging percentage of 1.163. Given those numbers, her .761 might not seem that great, but you have to remember these are the top softball players in the country.
For her small corner of Ohio and in my mind, I still think she is a superstar. Plus, by all rights, this high school season wasn't one of her better outings. Travel ball is where she really shines and it's what most university coaches look at anyway. Most of them don't care too much about high school ball stats.
Anyway, that's a wrap on the high school season. I'm looking forward to seeing what the summer brings for her.
Sports Talk Social - @bozz.sports
Having such an app would be a relief, I always need stats but don't get them.
Your niece is actually fast.
It's pretty cool. I am surprised more companies haven't tried to make their own. Game Changer has kind of cornered the market.