By Paresh Gupta
Guest Contributor
October is here and it’s the best time of the year for baseball. As teams make a run for a championship, a byproduct for some players is to further build their Hall of Fame case based on their postseason performance. Next year, Curt Schilling and Andy Pettitte will remain on the Hall of Fame ballot and a good part of their cases ride on their October successes. And in the coming years, we will have David Ortiz and Carlos Beltran who also had stellar postseason careers.
When it comes to Hall of Fame voting, every voter has different criteria, but for the most part, we hear that a player’s postseason play is considered either extra credit or his resume gets a "bump".
For instance, Kirby Puckett and Catfish Hunter have seven World Series rings between them, and that certainly helped them to get over the top for enshrinement. In the meantime, similar statistically Don Mattingly and Luis Tiant are still on the outside looking in.
Back then, the evaluation for the Hall of Fame vote was different. Aside from statistics, much of it was also based on awards, "magic" numbers, and frankly, just overall feel. Nowadays, just like the rest of the game, analytics are coming more and more into play whereas the sabermetric darlings like Bert Blyleven and Tim Raines are justifiable in.
Metrics like WAR, WAR7, and JAWS are now used to evaluate a player’s Hall of Fame candidacy but WAR and JAWS do not account for postseason play. We don’t have similar objective statistics to evaluate postseason performance. The extra credit for postseason play has never really been defined or quantified.
Compared to the regular season, the postseason is a small sample size (SSS), but the games still count- they actually count the most! Ultimately, the sport’s champion is determined on SSS. Even though the data pool is smaller, the data can still be quantified. And just like any other statistic, we need to be aware of the context.
Currently a nice objective stat to evaluate postseason value is WPA (Win Probability Added). WPA is a cumulative story telling statistic where you can also accumulate negative value and takes into account all aspects of a given game’s situation (inning of play, number of outs, men on base, etc). The problem with evaluating just WPA in itself is it doesn’t quite tell the entire story. We are unable to evaluate if a player has had an extensive playoff career or not. We’re also unable to decipher their peak playoff performance. Take for instance Eric Hosmer and David Freese. They both have the same exact postseason WPA (2.2) but they got there in very different fashion (Eric Homer 138 PAs versus David Freese 222 PAs).
So as a fun tool and general barometer to calculate and further assess playoff performance, we can play around with the WPA stat. And whether or not you subscribe to the notion of the postseason bump for Hall of Fame evaluation, it is still an interesting and entertaining analysis.
To calculate performance on a per plate appearance, we can take WPA divided by Plate Appearances (PAs) and then multiply by 100 (as an adjustment factor). We’ll call this statistic Postseason Impact (PSI). PSI will provide a relative gauge on how much a player contributed per at bat.
WPA/PAs x 100 = PSI
To calculate an overall career post season performance, we can multiply WPA by Plate Appearances, and then divide by 100 (as an adjustment constant). We’ll call this statistic Career Postseason Impact (CPSI).
WPA x PAs / 100 = CPSI
CPSI is purposely weighting and rewarding playing time, as it is a career volume statistic. WPA is a cumulative stat but in terms of playing time it can work against a player. VPSI is offsetting that aspect and representinga player’s career postseason playing time. Overall, CPSI focuses on quality and quantity.
Now with that in mind and taking our Hosmer and Freese example, their PSI and CPSI numbers are as follows:
Player
|
WPA
(Postseason)
|
PSI
(Per PA Factor)
|
CPSI
(PA Weighted Factor)
|
Eric Hosmer
|
2.2
|
1.6
|
3.0
|
David Freese
|
2.2
|
0.99
|
5.8
|
Obviously, this can be viewed in two different ways. One can be "pro-Hosmer" in that he was able to accumulate just as much WPA in less plate appearances (portrayed by his higher PSI). Another can be viewed as "pro-Freese" in that he was able to sustain his excellence (portrayed by his higher CPSI).
These numbers aren’t intended to sway you one way or the other. It’s just allowing you to understand the context where the numbers came from.
Listed here are some of the top players in career postseason WPA along with some other notable Hall of Fame candidates and recent Hall of Fame inductees from the wildcard era:
Postseason WPA Batting
|
David Ortiz
|
3.2
|
Albert Pujols
|
2.9
|
Lance Berkman
|
2.7
|
Justin Turner
|
2.6
|
Carlos Beltran
|
2.3
|
Eric Hosmer
|
2.2
|
David Freese
|
2.2
|
Miguel Cabrera
|
1.9
|
Larry Walker
|
0.93
|
Fred McGriff
|
0.9
|
Bernie Williams
|
0.88
|
Chipper Jones
|
0.41
|
Vladmir Guerrero
|
0.37
|
Edgar Martinez
|
0.34
|
Derek Jeter
|
0.02
|
Jeff Kent
|
-0.13
|
Scott Rolen
|
-0.43
|
Jim Thome
|
-0.46
|
Andruw Jones
|
-0.77
|
*Italics denotes Hall of Famer
The negative WPAs listed above are not listed to disparage the player but to put into context and appreciation for those with positive WPAs. Listed are the same players (minus the players with negative WPA) with their PSI and CPSI numbers:
Player
|
WPA
(Postseason)
|
PSI
(Per PA Factor)
|
CPSI
(PA Weighted Factor)
|
David Ortiz
|
3.2
|
0.86
|
11.7
|
Albert Pujols
|
2.9
|
0.88
|
9.7
|
Lance Berkman
|
2.7
|
1.2
|
6.0
|
Justin Turner
|
2.6
|
1.2
|
5.4
|
Carlos Beltran
|
2.3
|
0.88
|
5.9
|
Eric Hosmer
|
2.2
|
1.6
|
3.0
|
David Freese
|
2.2
|
0.99
|
5.8
|
Miguel Cabrera
|
1.9
|
0.82
|
4.5
|
Larry Walker
|
0.93
|
0.77
|
1.1
|
Fred McGriff
|
0.90
|
0.41
|
2.0
|
Bernie Williams
|
0.88
|
0.16
|
4.8
|
Chipper Jones
|
0.41
|
0.12
|
1.4
|
Vladmir Guerrero
|
0.37
|
0.20
|
0.70
|
Edgar Martinez
|
0.34
|
0.23
|
0.50
|
Derek Jeter
|
0.02
|
0.0027
|
0.15
|
*Italics denotes Hall of Famer
With keeping WPA in mind, some interesting takeaways from the PSI and CPSI batting numbers:
· Bernie Williams has a lower WPA than Eric Hosmer and Miguel Cabrera and significantly lower PSI. But if you factor in total plate appearances, Bernie has a higher CPSI than both of them and has the four rings to show for it.
· David Freese’s and Justin Turner’s high postseason WPAs are not just due to a 2 or 3 series hot streak. In addition to their relatively high PSI, they have a high CPSI due to their significant number of postseason plate appearances (200 plus for both).
· Both Chipper Jones and Derek Jeter will rightfully be first ballot Hall of Famers. But it’s interesting that their teammates Fred McGriff and Bernie Williams, who played less postseason series, have a higher CPSI than their Hall of Fame teammates due to their higher PSIs.
· Of all of these players, Eric Hosmer has the highest PSI, but is on the lower end of CPSI. This indicates Hosmer has made the most of his limited opportunities, but his overall postseason career (in terms of volume) is still a little light compared to the others.
· Border-line Hall of Fame candidate Carlos Beltran and Lance Berkman had won "only" one championship each (and Beltran was not really a huge part of the 2017 Astros championship run from a playing perspective) but they both had significant postseason successes with a higher per plate appearance PSI than Ortiz and higher CPSI than Bernie Williams and future HOF Miguel Cabrera.
· Speaking of Ortiz, as we all know Big Papi had monster postseasons, and it’s not overrated- it is duly rated and especially conveyed in his CPSI. Same for Albert Pujols.
As mentioned previously, with WPA players can tend to rack up negative value which will affect their overall PSI and CPSI. And with WPA alone, we cannot evaluate peak performance. Thus, just like we have WAR7 which accounts for a player’s career regular season peak, we can also evaluate a player’s playoff peak by calculating the player’s best 5 postseasons’ series (utilizing the best 5 WPAs). PSI5 will evaluate a player’s performance on a plate appearance basis while CPSI5 will evaluate a player’s performance by weighting PAs (volume based).
Player
|
WPA
(Postseason)
|
PSI5
(Per PA Factor)
|
CPSI5
(PA Weighted Factor)
|
David Ortiz
|
3.2
|
2.8
|
4.0
|
Albert Pujols
|
2.9
|
2.1
|
3.7
|
Lance Berkman
|
2.7
|
2.6
|
2.5
|
Justin Turner
|
2.6
|
2.3
|
2.2
|
Carlos Beltran
|
2.3
|
2.1
|
3.2
|
Eric Hosmer
|
2.2
|
2.4
|
1.8
|
David Freese
|
2.2
|
2.4
|
2.5
|
Miguel Cabrera
|
1.9
|
2.1
|
2.0
|
Fred McGriff
|
0.93
|
1.8
|
1.5
|
Larry Walker
|
0.90
|
0.94
|
1.1
|
Bernie Williams
|
0.88
|
2.2
|
2.8
|
Chipper Jones
|
0.41
|
1.8
|
1.8
|
Vlad Guerrero
|
0.37
|
1.4
|
1.4
|
Edgar Martinez
|
0.34
|
1.3
|
1.3
|
Derek Jeter
|
0.02
|
1.2
|
1.7
|
Jeff Kent
|
-0.13
|
1.1
|
0.97
|
Scott Rolen
|
-0.43
|
0.76
|
0.68
|
Jim Thome
|
-0.46
|
1.4
|
0.66
|
Andruw Jones
|
-0.77
|
1.2
|
0.62
|
Once more, these peak numbers for each player are based on the same number of series from the wildcard era (5 series). Some takeaways from these numbers:
· Again, David Ortiz is on the top of this list of peak values for both per plate appearance and overall performance. Big Papi is the gold standard for postseason performance, which should give him extra credit on his Hall of Fame resume. He is currently on the top of the list and other player’s potential October extra credit should not necessarily need to equal or exceed his numbers.
· After Ortiz and Pujols, the next tier for CPSI5 are Carlos Beltran, Bernie Williams, Lance Berkman, and David Freese, indicating they all had stellar October peaks. On a per plate appearance (PSI5), Berkman actually has the second highest on this list.
· Compared to McGriff, Chipper has a higher CPSI5 while their PSI5s are similar. Bernie Williams has significantly higher peak numbers than Jeter.
· Hosmer and Thome have significantly higher PSI5s than CPSI5s which conveys they had low amount of plate appearances in their peak series’ and were able to take advantage of their high leverage situations. In one series, Hosmer had a WPA of 0.59 in just 6 plate appearances. Thome had a WPA of 0.20 in just 2.
· Jeff Kent, Scott Rolen, and Andruw Jones all had negative overall WPA but did have positive peak numbers. Expectedly they are lower on this list as well. They appear not to have enough playoff numbers to warrant a bump in their Hall of Fame resume.
This very same evaluation can be done for pitching. To calculate postseason impact for pitchers, we can replace plate appearances with innings pitched.
To calculate performance on a per inning basis, we can take WPA divide by Innings Pitched (IPs) and then multiply by 100 (as an adjustment factor).
WPA/IPs x 100 = PSI
To calculate an overall career postseason performance, we can multiply WPA by Innings Pitched, and then divide by 100 (as an adjustment constant).
WPA x IPs / 100 = CPSI
Listed here are some of the top starting pitchers in career postseason WPA along with some other notable Hall of Fame candidates and recent Hall of Fame inductees from the wildcard era:
Postseason WPA Pitching
|
Curt Schilling
|
4.1
|
John Smoltz
|
3.6
|
Andy Pettitte
|
3.5
|
Jon Lester
|
3.4
|
Orel Hershiser
|
2.8
|
Madison Bumgarner
|
2.7
|
Orlando Hernandez
|
2.6
|
Tom Glavine
|
2.4
|
Justin Verlander
|
2.3
|
Mike Mussina
|
1.8
|
Cliff Lee
|
1.8
|
Josh Beckett
|
1.6
|
Randy Johnson
|
1.4
|
Greg Maddux
|
1.3
|
Pedro Martinez
|
1.2
|
Kevin Brown
|
0.7
|
David Cone
|
0.52
|
*Italics denotes Hall of Famer
The pitching PSI and CPSI calculations are just as intriguing:
Player
|
WPA
(Postseason)
|
PSI
(Per IP Factor)
|
CPSI
(IP Weighted Factor)
|
Curt Schilling
|
4.1
|
3.1
|
5.4
|
John Smoltz
|
3.6
|
1.7
|
7.5
|
Andy Pettitte
|
3.5
|
1.3
|
9.7
|
Jon Lester
|
3.4
|
2.2
|
5.2
|
Orel Hershiser
|
2.8
|
2.1
|
3.7
|
Madison Bumgarner
|
2.7
|
2.7
|
2.8
|
Orlando Hernandez
|
2.6
|
2.4
|
2.7
|
Tom Glavine
|
2.4
|
1.1
|
5.2
|
Justin Verlander
|
2.3
|
1.5
|
3.5
|
Mike Mussina
|
1.8
|
1.3
|
2.4
|
Cliff Lee
|
1.8
|
2.2
|
1.5
|
Josh Beckett
|
1.6
|
1.8
|
1.5
|
Randy Johnson
|
1.4
|
1.2
|
1.7
|
Greg Maddux
|
1.3
|
0.66
|
2.6
|
Pedro Martinez
|
1.2
|
1.3
|
1.2
|
Kevin Brown
|
0.70
|
0.86
|
0.57
|
David Cone
|
0.52
|
0.47
|
0.58
|
Some takeaways from this list:
· Andy Pettitte has a smaller WPA than Curt Schilling and John Smoltz, but he's pitched almost twice as much as Schilling and much more than Smoltz. Pettitte’s volume CPSI (highest on this list, by far) conveys the point that he has pitched well for a longer period of time. Unfortunately, his per inning pitched PSI is on the lower half of this list. Similar with John Smoltz, who has the second highest CSPI but a middle of the road PSI.
· Jon Lester CPSI is amongst Curt Schilling and Tom Glavine (two of the all-time greats) and his PSI is in the Top 5 on this list. However, he is someone we don’t always think of as a postseason star and is another future borderline Hall of Fame candidate. In 2013, his performance was overshadowed by Ortiz’s incredible performance and in 2016 the Cubs broke a 108 year-old curse.
· Mike Mussina and Cliff Lee have the very same WPA but they both got there on different paths. Moose has the longer playoff career and higher CPSI, while Lee has the better per inning pitched performance and higher PSI.
· Madison Bumgarner has the second highest PSI (after Curt Schilling) but his CPSI is closer to the middle. Like Hosmer in batting, this indicates Bumgarner has made the most of his opportunities but his overall postseason volume is less than the others.
· Speaking of Schilling, his CPSI is in the very next tier down from Pettitte and Smoltz, and his PSI is the highest on the entire list- by far. Schilling has high postseason volume and has the best performance on a per inning basis as well.
And then if we take it a step further, their peak PSI5 and CPSI5 numbers:
Player
|
WPA
(Postseason)
|
PSI5
(Per IP Factor)
|
CPSI5
(IP Weighted Factor)
|
Curt Schilling
|
4.1
|
4.8
|
2.2
|
Jon Smoltz
|
3.6
|
4.9
|
1.3
|
Andy Pettitte
|
3.5
|
5.1
|
0.91
|
Jon Lester
|
3.4
|
4.8
|
1.7
|
Orel Hershiser
|
2.8
|
3.7
|
1.8
|
Madison Bumgarner
|
2.7
|
5.0
|
1.8
|
Orlando Hernandez
|
2.6
|
4.6
|
1.0
|
Tom Glavine
|
2.4
|
5.3
|
1.4
|
Justin Verlander
|
2.3
|
5.1
|
2.0
|
Mike Mussina
|
1.8
|
4.3
|
1.3
|
Cliff Lee
|
1.8
|
4.1
|
1.7
|
Josh Beckett
|
1.63
|
3.6
|
1.5
|
Randy Johnson
|
1.4
|
3.5
|
1.8
|
Greg Maddux
|
1.3
|
4.8
|
1.4
|
Pedro Martinez
|
1.2
|
4.9
|
0.71
|
Kevin Brown
|
0.7
|
2.9
|
0.81
|
David Cone
|
0.52
|
3.4
|
0.47
|
· Justin Verlander has the second highest CPSI5 (after Schilling), and the highest PSI5, making a strong case that he is one of the best October peak pitchers in the wildcard era.
· Orel Hershiser has a lower postseason WPA, PSI, and CPSI than Andy Pettitte and John Smoltz but has a higher peak CPSI5 than both of them, and Top 5 overall. During his peak, Hershiser pitched extremely well with more IPs, while both Smoltz and Pettitte pitched at a high level for a longer period of time.
· Amongst the Braves Big 3, Smoltz is often regarded as the best postseason pitcher. But when it comes to peak, Glavine has the best numbers and Maddux’s CPSI5 is actually slightly better than Smoltz.
· As mentioned earlier, Jon Lester has solid career playoff numbers, and also has very respectable peak numbers as well, higher than Cliff Lee, former teammate Josh Beckett, and Hall of Famers Mike Mussina and Greg Maddux.
· Pedro Martinez, Smoltz, and Pettitte all have relatively high PSI5s while they have lower CSPI5s. This is due to their high WPA series coming from a lower number of innings pitched. For Pettitte and Pedro, they only pitched about 7 innings in 4 of the 5 series. For Smoltz, he had three series with less than 10 innings.
· In contrast, Hershiser has a low PSI5 with a relatively higher CSPI5. This is due to Hershiser’s high number of innings pitched during his peak (average 14.1 IP per series).
So, now what? What does of all of this mean and how can it be used for Hall of Fame evaluation? Let’s start with the batters, and look further into these players:
Player
|
PSI
(Per PA Factor)
|
CPSI
(PA Weighted Factor)
|
PSI5
(Per PA Factor)
|
CPSI5
(PA Weighted Factor)
|
David Ortiz
|
0.86
|
11.7
|
2.8
|
4.0
|
Albert Pujols
|
0.88
|
9.7
|
2.1
|
3.7
|
Lance Berkman
|
1.2
|
6.0
|
2.6
|
2.5
|
Carlos Beltran
|
0.88
|
5.9
|
2.1
|
3.2
|
Bernie Williams
|
0.16
|
4.8
|
2.2
|
2.8
|
Pujols is already an automatic first ballot Hall of Famer and he is listed here for comparison purposes only. And as mentioned previously, David Ortiz is the gold standard for Hall of Fame extra credit. Other players do not necessarily have to eclipse their numbers to merit "the bump".
Lance Berkman and Carlos Beltran have also had tremendous Octobers and have very high playoff impact statistic numbers across the board (peak and career). But unlike Beltran, Lance Berkman didn’t do quite enough with his regular season career for the postseason extra credit to really come into play. As a rough gauge, Berkman’s career WAR is 52.1 while the average HOF left fielder is 65.5. This past election, Berkman did not reach the 5% threshold on his first year and will no longer appear on the BBWAA ballot.
On the other hand, Carlos Beltran’s candidacy will be coming up in 2023 and he has a very strong case on regular season numbers alone (career WAR 69.6). Based on his overall stellar PSIs and CPSIs stats, a voter can justifiably use these numbers to bump up his resume and put him over the top for election.
As for Bernie Williams, there are some that have indicated that his extensive October career is so strong that in and of itself warrants his election. Bernie did have a great postseason career and his peak postseason impact numbers (PSI5 and CPSI5) are amongst Beltran and Berkman. But Bernie’s overall postseason impact numbers are not as high and his PSI is one of the lowest on the list. Objectively speaking, if you look at his total resume (career WAR 49.6), it does not warrant him completely leapfrogging his way into Cooperstown. If Bernie were to do so, there would be a justifiable reason to do the same for Berkman, who actually has better overall postseason impact numbers.
For pitching, let’s take a look into these players:
Player
|
PSI
(Per IP Factor)
|
CPSI
(IP Weighted Factor)
|
PSI5
(Per IP Factor)
|
CPSI5
(IP Weighted Factor)
|
Curt Schilling
|
3.1
|
5.4
|
4.8
|
2.2
|
Andy Pettitte
|
1.3
|
9.7
|
5.1
|
0.91
|
Jon Lester
|
2.2
|
5.2
|
4.8
|
1.7
|
Orel Hersheiser
|
2.1
|
3.7
|
3.7
|
1.8
|
Madison Bumgarner
|
2.7
|
2.8
|
5.0
|
1.8
|
Justin Verlander
|
1.5
|
3.5
|
5.1
|
2.0
|
Based on these numbers (peak and overall), Curt Schilling has distinguished himself as October’s finest. In comparison, Andy Pettitte has double the CPSI but a much lower PSI and CPSI5. On this list, Pettitte has the lowest PSI and peak numbers. Like Berkman, Pettitte was a fantastic player (career WAR 60.2, average HOF starting pitcher 73.2) and has incredible postseason volume but based on his regular season numbers it may be difficult to justify a considerable bump in his resume to get him into The Hall.
Jon Lester, Madison Bumgarner, and Justin Verlander are still active, so the books on them are not yet officially closed. Verlander seems to have done enough to be elected and his peak October performance will be the cherry on top. Lester has nice peak and career postseason impact numbers, but will his regular season stats get him to that point? Only time will tell. Bumgarner is still young and is listed here more for comparison purposes.
Orel Hershiser is a tough case. He has been on the Modern Day Committee ballot and amongst the larger group of pitchers investigated, his career PSI and CSPI numbers rank in the upper third. His peak CPSI5 is in the Top 5 but his PSI5 is relatively one of the lowest (as mentioned previously, due to the larger number of inning pitched). His prime years were before the wildcard era, so his CPSI and potentially his other postseason impact numbers could be even higher. Furthermore, it would be worth comparing Hershiser’s numbers to others from the divisional era. Overall for Orel, his total regular season statistics are on the lighter side (career WAR 56.0) and adding a postseason bump to get him over the top may be a stretch. But at the very least these relative postseason numbers give us a fair objective starting point and gives Hershiser his due for his stellar peak October performance.
Lastly, getting back to the Kirby Puckett example, here are some Hall of Fame candidates (for the Modern Day Committee) from the divisional era. For this era, since there were less chances to qualify for the playoffs and less rounds, we will utilize the player’s best four postseasons for the peak stats instead of their best five.
Player
|
WPA
|
PSI
|
CPSI
|
PSI4
|
CPSI4
|
Pete Rose
|
2.64
|
0.88
|
7.95
|
2.11
|
1.90
|
Thurman Munson
|
1.48
|
1.10
|
2.00
|
1.46
|
1.34
|
Reggie Jackson
|
1.18
|
0.37
|
3.75
|
1.97
|
1.02
|
Kirby Puckett
|
1.11
|
1.02
|
1.21
|
1.06
|
1.17
|
Steve Garvey
|
1.05
|
0.45
|
2.4
|
2.03
|
1.26
|
Dwight Evans
|
0.64
|
0.49
|
0.80
|
0.86
|
0.93
|
Keith Hernandez
|
0.48
|
0.35
|
0.66
|
0.62
|
0.74
|
Dave Parker
|
-0.30
|
-0.25
|
-0.37
|
1.04
|
0.55
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Italics denotes Hall of Famer
For this era, Pete Rose is the gold standard and had an absolutely amazing October career. The next tier of listed players Thurman Munson, Reggie Jackson, Kirby Puckett, and Steve Garvey all seem comparable with each having their own claim. Munson has the highest PSI on this list, even higher than the Hit King. Garvey has a higher PSI and peak numbers than Mr. October himself. Based on these postseason impact stats, both Munson and Garvey deserve an in depth look with their October numbers playing a part of their resume.
And just a side note on Garvey, he doesn’t have the WAR numbers that everyone loves, but back in his day (right or wrong) getting base hits were greatly emphasized as opposed to walks and just getting on base. Again, context matters, and for a decade Garvey was amongst the leaders in base hits. Therefore with context in mind and his October numbers, Garvey along with Munson warrants a closer look.
In respect to analysis, you can draw your own conclusions based on the data and whether or not a player deserves that postseason extra credit. Again, we realize we’re working with smaller sample sizes, and these numbers should be viewed in that context and used as a comparative analysis. When it comes to Hall of Fame voting, we shouldn’t necessarily use low or even negative PSIs against a player, but rather use postseason impact numbers as a relative gauge to reflect how much a player actually contributed to their team’s success during the postseason. Also we are not advocating the inclusion of a David Freese-type as a viable Hall of Fame candidate, as postseasons should continue to be viewed as extra credit. Generally, it is helpful to have objective numbers like PSI and CPSI to refer to as a starting point and determine if extra credit may be warranted or not. And just like using a player’s career WAR solely doesn’t explain the full story, the same goes for these postseason impact numbers.
The playoff careers of recent October heroes (like Carlos Beltran, Andy Pettitte, Curt Schilling, and Bernie Williams) and also current heroes (like Madison Bumgarner, Justin Turner, and Justin Verlander) are a little nuanced and not as easy to quantify as yesteryear. PSI and CPSI can provide a different perspective and be beneficial to the overall analysis.
Special thanks to JJ O’Connor, James Horne, and Dave Fleming. All source data obtained from Baseball-Reference.com. Twitter: @pgups6