Offense rose in week 18 off the post All-Star Break lows as the majors scored 9.02 runs per game in the week. That’s very much in line with the 9.20 runs per game scored during week 18 of 2015. For the season through 18 weeks, 2016 continues to lead 2015 by about 0.6 runs per game, 8.90 for 2016, 8.29 for the same period in 2016. A large increase in walks and home runs accounts for the difference.
If you look at the chart at the link, I’m now wondering if instead of the ball being juiced after the 2015 All-Star break, if a dead ball didn’t work it’s way into the game during the early part of the season. The difference between 2015 and 2016 can be explained by an eight week slump from week seven to week fourteen. Otherwise, the two seasons are very much alike in terms of runs per game. The home run increase early in 2016 was offset by an increase in strikeouts, reducing other types of hits. Offense should increase as the weather gets warmer, but in 2015 it dropped for two months. That stretch seems like the outlier.
from baseballmusings.com http://ift.tt/2aTYzPN
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