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The word "home" generally has a positive connotation attached to it. People enjoy coming home. They feel safe, happy, relaxed. So far this season, Rays hitters have felt just the opposite inside the Tropicana Field
|
Home |
Away |
|
|
|
||
Damon |
0.204 |
0.347 |
|
|
0.195 |
0.444 |
|
Zobrist |
0.244 |
0.373 |
|
BABIP can fluctuate wildly from year to year, so a 19 game sample isn’t indicative of anything other than poor luck. For example, Rays pitchers have a .281 BABIP against at home, but just .238 on the road. Despite having a much higher BABIP, opposing hitters have an OPS of just .633 at the Trop, compared to .728 on the road. Things will eventually even out.
After having a .317 home BABIP in 2008 and 2009, that number dipped to .286 last season. That drop coincided with Tropicana Field’s sudden transformation into the best pitcher’s park in baseball. Here are ESPN’s Park Factors* from 2008-2011 and where the Trop ranked in terms of difficulty to score:
Those unfamiliar with Park Factors, a rate higher than 1.000 favors the hitter. Below 1.000 favors the pitcher.
|
Runs |
Rank |
|
|
|
|
|
2011 |
0.666 |
1st |
|
2010 |
0.8 |
1st |
|
2009 |
0.996 |
14th |
|
2008 |
0.955 |
12th |
|
|
|
|
|
It’s obviously early into 2011, but the Trop is picking up where it left off last season. It never gets mentioned with the likes of SafeCo Field and
I’m not going to start any conspiracy theories, but it’s known that teams have tried to find any edge they could in their home parks. From leaving the infield grass a little high to slow down ground balls, to adjusting the air vents inside the Metrodome depending on which team is at bat, teams will always try to get that edge.
Not that I think anything like that is going on at the Trop, but for a team that prides itself on pitching and defense, as well as getting every advantage it can over its opponents, would you put it past them? Maybe air conditioning is the new extra 2%.