Offensive environments in Triple-A and Double-A by Alex Pedicini September 18, 2009 When evaluating prospects it is crucial to consider the offensive environment they play in. Today we’ll take a look at the offensive levels at the Triple-A and Double-A levels. Note that all statistics are per game and the triple slash notes the league averages. Triple-A International League -.262/.328/.395 Runs- 4.297 2B- 1.826 3B- .184 HR- .751 BB- 3.069 K- 6.664 SB- .737 Pacific Coast league– .272/.341/.418 Runs- 4.879 2B- 1.863 3B- .258 HR- .865 BB- 3.355 K- 6.664 SB- .705 Double-A Eastern League– .258/.332/.385 Runs- 4.292 2B- 1.770 3B- .212 HR- .661 BB- 3.386 K- 6.776 SB- .642 Southern League– .256/.332/.380 Runs- 4.294 2B- 1.745 3B- .209 HR- .638 BB- 3.508 K- 6.788 SB- .762 Texas League– .266/.340/.391 Runs- 4.787 2B- 1.701 3B- .229 HR- .697 BB- 3.554 K- 6.309 SB- .804 The results pretty much speak for themselves. The Pacific Coast League is well known as a hitters paradise and the offensive measures are significantly higher than the International League. The Texas League’s numbers are slightly inflated from the other Double-A leagues as well. Consider this example. This season Allen Craig hit .322/.374/.547 with 26 home runs for the Memphis Redbirds of the Pacific League. Matt LaPorta batted .299/.388/.530 for the Columbus Clippers of the International League. Who had the better season? Well by comparing their OBPs and SLG percentages to their respective league averages we find that LaPorta was .06 points above the league mark in on-base percentage and .135 points ahead in slugging. Craig meanwhile was just .033 points above the league norm in on-base percentage and .129 points ahead in slugging. It would appear LaPorta had a slight edge when comparing the two players using this method. These differences may not seem like much, and perhaps they aren’t, but it is at least worth noting. Tomorrow I will take a look at the lower levels of the minors.