Quinn and Anderson, by the Numbers

QUINN AND ANDERSON, BY THE NUMBERS

The following are the preseason data for Brady Quinn and Derek Anderson, who are competing for the starting QB spot for the Cleveland Browns.

DRIVE SUMMARIES Anderson has led 9 drives, consisting of 45 plays, covering 262 yards, and accounting for 16 points. His drives have averaged 5.8 yards per play. Quinn has also led 10 drives, consisting of 58 plays, covering 305 yards, and accounting for 13 points. His drives have averaged 5.3 yards per play. The commonsense view on the two QBs is that Anderson is a big play guy who will make plays with higher risk and higher reward. This has amounted to shorter drives (4.5 plays, 29.1 yards per drive), but a slightly higher average per play. Quinn’s West Coast attack has led to slightly longer drives (5.8 plays per drive, 30.5 yards per drive), and slightly fewer yards per play (5.3). The only difference in points is a missed field goal at the end of a Quinn drive.

BAD DRIVES Anderson led a 3-and-out and a two-play drive resulting in an interception in the first preseason game. He played well in game 2, including just one three-play drive where he failed to secure a first down as well as a four-play drive that netted just 11 yards (and ended in an INT). Quinn’s first drive in game 2 was one play, a third down on which he was sacked. His third drive was an 8-play drive, but covered just 16 yards and ended in a punt. In game three, Quinn’s first drive was a 3-and-out.

FORTUITOUS DRIVES Anderson led three scoring drives in game 2. One of them covered just 5 yards on 3 plays and resulted in a field goal. Quinn’s TD drive was just two plays and 34 yards thanks to a fumble on the kickoff return.

GOOD DRIVES Call any drive that covers at least 40 yards, spans 7 plays or more, and does not end in a TO a “good drive.” Quinn has led three good drives, in addition to his TD drive. Anderson has led two, in addition to a 56-yard drive that resulted in a FG.

UNDER CENTER Both QBs have had at least one good game and at least one questionable game. Anderson’s best game was his start, where he hit on 8 of 13 passes, covered 130 yards, and was not sacked. Quinn’s start in game three was the best either QB has had. He hit on 11 of 15 passes for 128 yards, tossed a TD, and did not turn the ball over. Anderson’s poor outing was a very brief one. He threw two passes, one of which was an INT and neither of which were completed. Quinn’s bad game came in limited time as well, but there he hit on 3 of 5 passes for 29 yards (although he lost 7 yards on a sack).

ACCURACY Anderson hit on at least 60% of his passes in two games and sits at 57.7% (15/26) through three games. His best numbers were 7 for 11 (63.6%) in game three. Quinn has hit on at least 60% of his passes in each of the three games, including 11 for 15 (73.3%) in game three. His completion percent is currently 67.7% (21/31).

YARDAGE Anderson has thrown for 207 yards on 26 attempts, including 130 on 13 attempts in game 2. He has averaged 8 yards per attempt and 13.8 per completion. Quinn has thrown for 225 yards on 31 attempts, including 128 on 15 attempts in game 3. He has averaged 7.3 yards per attempt and 10.7 per completion.

TDs to INTs Quinn and Anderson have combined for three INTs in 57 pass attempts, an INT% of 5.3, which is poor. Anderon is responsible for 2 in 26 attempts (7.7 INTs per 100 passes), while Quinn has 1 in 31 attempts (3.2 INTs per 100 passes). While Anderson has not yet hit on a TD pass, Quinn has a TD ratio identical to his INT ratio. Overall, the QBs have a TD ratio of just 1.7 per 100, which is terrible.

PASSER RATING Anderson’s rating sits at 51.3, while Quinn’s is 86.1. Anderson has been slightly uneven from game to game, thanks in large part to his 0.0 rating in the first game in limited time. He followed that up with a 63 and an 84. Of those, only the third game is a respectable number. Quinn opened the season with a 43, a very poor number, but bounced back to record a slightly subpar 76.3 and finish game three with a rating of 121.0.

Your Philadelphia Phillies’ Closer, Bad Lidge (sic)

Your Philadelphia Phillies’ Closer, Bad Lidge

The Overall Numbers
25 saves, 9 blown saves (74%), 7.33 ERA, 1.80 WHIP, .299 BAA. With the league wide average at around 70% of saves converted, Lidge’s save conversion rate is about the only thing that looks good in his line. He is not striking out as many hitters as he has in the past, is walking a ton, and is serving up home runs regularly.

Consistently Bad
A month-by-month look reveals that Lidge has never really come close to getting things together. And while things were bad in the past, they may be about as dire as they have been. There seems little reason to think he will snap out of this funk any time soon.

April: Lidge was 4/5 (80%) in save opportunities. That is about where the good news stopped. He allowed 3 HR in 8.2 innings, yielded a 7.27 ERA, a 1.85 WHIP, and opposing batters hit .297. Phillies fans gave him a pass because he had been utterly dominant the previous season. It seemed this dark cloud would pass. It did not.

May: Lidge converted 8 of 11 save opportunities (73%), which was solid. He failed to whiff a batter per inning with 14 in 16 IP. His ERA and BAA crept up to 7.98 and .317, respectively. His WHIP dipped by 1/100th of a point to 1.84. Even with that conversion rate, Lidge tossed one of his worst months with the Phillies. It turns out he was dealing with an injury. So June crept around and it appeared things would be sorted out.

June: Lidge pitched just 4 innings in the month, but was rocked to the tune of 10 base runners (2.50 WHIP), a .353 BAA, and a pathetic 2:4 K:BB ratio. He saved 2 games and blew 2 others (50%). His ERA was somehow the best of the season at 6.75. He was bad before going on the DL (1/3 on save chances, took a Loss) and bad when he came back (2 ER in 1.1 IP, 0 Ks, 3 BB). Fans began seriously to fret. It looked as if the time on the DL did not solve the problem.

July: Lidge posted what was without a doubt his best month of the season. He converted all 6 save opportunities, held hitters to a .222 BAA, and struck out 13 in 10.2 innings. Unfortunately, his WHIP (while his best monthly number) was 1.41 and his ERA (again, his best) was 5.91. These are just terrible numbers. Still, it is difficult to complain when a guy converts all of his save chances. Lidge purchased himself some time.

August: Things have been disastrous. Lidge has converted 5 of 8 opportunities (63%), has seen his worst ERA in a month (8.31) and his WHIP (1.85) and BAA (.324) are both pathetic.

Another Closer?
The Phillies do not have any great options on hand. Ryan Madson, Clay Condrey, Chad Durbin, and Jack Taschner have combined to save 7 games, but they have blown 7 saves. That’s a 50% conversion rate. A playoff team simply must hold games when they have the chance to hold them.

Madson, who would seem a good bet to assume closing duties, is deadly as a setup man (2.95 ERA, 1.18 WHIP, and .232 BAA). He is shaky in closing (4/8 in save opportunities).

J.C. Romero has pitched well (2.87 ERA, .208 BAA), but has been on the DL most of the year since serving an early season suspension. He has not pitched since mid-July. He has converted just 4 of 27 save opportunities in his career.

Brett Myers is currently on the DL, but he has pitched well in a recent rehab start (hitting 93-94 MPH in a shutout inning). He was a very good starter in the early going on this season, but it is thought unlikely that he will be able to build the stamina to reclaim a starting spot. As a reliever in 2007, he went 5-5, posted a 2.87 ERA, and converted 21 of 24 opportunities (88%). Myers may be the Phillies’ best bet to find a replacement at the major league level and within the organization.