I started this project nine and a half years ago. I’ve gone through multiple outside developers, cleared countless hurdles over an unknowable number of hours, taught myself a ton about coding and modeling, and studied thousands of variables. But finally, six years after the introduction of THE BAT X for hitters, THE BAT X for pitchers is finally here!

Similar to THE BAT X for hitters, the pitcher version starts with the classic version of THE BAT (which was built long before Statcast and all the advanced metrics we have now, and mostly just makes use of surface stats) and blends in my brand new pitcher “stuff” model, which I’m calling THE BATcast. (Get it, because it’s THE BAT using Statcast data?) Read the rest of this entry »

Today, we are proud to announce a new site feature: The FanGraphs Lab. The Lab is a collaboration between the editorial team and the engineering team here at the site, a joint effort to create more ways to sort through and visualize the huge crush of data that pervades baseball these days.

The FanGraphs Lab is a space for experimental data visualization and exploration tools that we believe might one day have a permanent place on the site. The key word there is experimental: One of the reasons we’re so excited about the Lab is that it’s never been easier to go from an idea for a new tool or visual to a functioning version of it. It’s not quite “if you can dream it, you can do it,” but it’s closer than you might think, which means that there’s a lot of room for innovation. The Lab will have a permanent home at www.fangraphs.com/lab. It will also be accessible from the main page of the site on the right navigation bar:

This project grew out of a discussion between the two of us. Actually, “discussion” might be the wrong way to put it: Ben just kept sending Sean links to new apps he had built in rickety programming languages, fun graphing tools without any immediate use case. Instead of politely telling Ben to shove off, Sean came up with a process for turning those concepts into functioning FanGraphs tools. First, with development assistance from Claude Code, Ben rebuilt his initial ideas in the FanGraphs code base. Next, Sean integrated these new pages into the site’s data and infrastructure. From there, we bounced ideas off of each other and iterated until we were happy with the output. After taking a few months to jump-start the process, the first prototypes are coming off the assembly line now. Read the rest of this entry »

We now have all the 2026 projections available on the site. Frequently, we get asked about the differences between the projection systems and how often they’re updated, so here’s a quick primer on what’s what.

Primary Projections

Primary projection systems are generated independently and do not aggregate any of the others.

ZiPS: ZiPS projections are run by Dan Szymborski and have been available on FanGraphs since 2010. ZiPS are updated as needed leading up to the season and updated daily throughout the season. You can read more about ZiPS here.

ZiPS DC: ZiPS DC is exactly the same as ZiPS, except it’s prorated for our RosterResource playing time projections. ZiPS DC playing time is updated daily both leading up to the season and during the season, and the underlying performance projections are updated the same as ZiPS (as needed prior to the season and daily during the season).

Steamer: Steamer projections are run by Jared Cross, Peter Rosenbloom, and Dash Davidson and have been on FanGraphs since 2012. For Members, we also have platoon projections, context neutral projections, and percentile projections. They are all updated daily leading up to the season and during the season.

Steamer600: These are exactly the same as Steamer projections except every position player is prorated to 600 plate appearances (450 for catchers). Starting pitchers are prorated for 200 innings pitched, while relievers are prorated for 65 innings pitched. It’s updated daily leading up to the season and during the season.

THE BAT: Run by Derek Carty, THE BAT projections have been on FanGraphs since 2018. They are updated daily leading up to the season and during the season.

THE BAT X: Also run by Derek Carty, THE BAT X projections are currently for hitters only and are differentiated from THE BAT by including Statcast data. They are updated daily leading up to the season and during the season. You can read more about THE BAT X here.

OOPSY: Run by Jordan Rosenblum, OOPSY debuted on FanGraphs in 2025. Playing time for OOPSY is updated daily leading up to the season and during the season utilizing RosterResource. The underlying performance projections are updated as needed leading up to the season and daily during the season. You can read more about OOPSY here.

Composite Projections

Composite projection systems are an aggregate of primary projection systems. These types of systems tend to do better when tested against actual player performance.

FanGraphs Depth Charts: FanGraphs Depth Charts projections are a 50/50 blend of Steamer and ZiPS prorated to our RosterResource playing time projections. They are updated daily leading up to the season and during the season.

ATC: Compiled by Ariel Cohen and available on FanGraphs since 2017, ATC is a weighted composite of a number of projection systems based on their past performance. ATC is updated weekly leading up to the season. During the season, it’s labeled as ATC DC and uses our RosterResource playing time projections. ATC DC playing time is updated daily, while the underlying performance projections are updated as needed during the season. You can read more about ATC here.

Here’s your chance to vote for the 2026 SABR Analytics Conference Research Awards winners.

The SABR Analytics Conference Research Awards will recognize baseball researchers who have completed the best work of original analysis or commentary during the preceding calendar year. Nominations were solicited by representatives from SABR, Baseball Prospectus, FanGraphs, the Internet Baseball Writers Association of America, and Sports Info Solutions.

To read any of the finalists, click on the link below. Scroll down to cast your vote.

Contemporary Analysis

• Ryan Blake, “The Batter’s Eye at T-Mobile Park: A New Perspective,” Lookout Landing, May 8, 2025
• Hannah Keyser, “How Fast Should Your 12-Year-Old Throw?” New York Times, August 21, 2025
• Maddie Landis, “Baseball’s Gatekept Pitching Metric: Inside Vertical Approach Angle,” Talk Sox, September 7, 2025
• Michael Rosen, “How Much Do Trail Runners Matter? An Investigation,” FanGraphs, September 8, 2025
• Stephen Sutton-Brown, “Understanding Swing Processes Through Bat and Pitch Tracking,” Baseball Prospectus, September 22, 2025

Contemporary Commentary

• Davy Andrews, “Unfuzzing the Strike Zone,” FanGraphs, January 3, 2025
• Michael Baumann, “Jhoan Duran and the One True Split-Finger Fastball,” FanGraphs, September 17, 2025
• Ben Lindbergh, ”If Pitches Are Fixed, Baseball Is Broken,” The Ringer, November 10, 2025
• RJ McDaniel, “Wearing the Hat,” Baseball Prospectus, September 17, 2025
• Richard Staff, “The Secret Brotherhood of the Phantom Ballplayers,” Defector, July 21, 2025

Historical Analysis/Commentary

• Benjamin Alter, “Josh Gibson’s Place in History: A Statistical Analysis,” SABR Baseball Research Journal, Spring 2025
• R.J. Anderson, “What MLB’s salary cap history can tell us about the upcoming CBA negotiations,” CBS Sports, December 1, 2025
• Steven Goldman, “Every Day They Burn the Book,” Baseball Prospectus, April 3, 2025
• Jay Jaffe, “Never is a Long, Long Time: Permanent Ineligibility and the Hall of Fame,” FanGraphs, March 10, 2025
• David Roth, “Octavio Dotel Made a Life in Baseball,” Defector, April 10, 2025

John Dewan Defensive Analysis

• Zach Crizer, “Evolution in the Outfield: Is Center Field Morphing Into a Defensive Specialist Position?” Opta Analyst, March 24, 2025
• Daniel R. Epstein, “Stand in the Place Where You Are,” Baseball Prospectus, May 5, 2025
• Dan M. Kahan, “Fielding Before and After Baseball’s Great Transformation,” Journal of Sports Analytics, Volume 11, 2025

Voting will be open through 11:59 p.m. MST on Friday, February 6, 2026.

Mobile or Safari users, click here to access the survey

Results will be announced and presented at the SABR Analytics Conference, February 27-March 1, 2026, in Phoenix, Arizona. Learn more or register for the conference at SABR.org/analytics.

As part of our constant, unwavering (some might say neurotic) efforts to make RosterResource the clearinghouse for everything baseball related, we’ve added contract incentive data to our Team Payroll pages and created a separate Payroll Incentives table.

Let’s walk through the new features, using Matt Strahm’s current contract as an example. In March of 2024, Strahm signed a one-year, $7.5 million extension with the Phillies covering the 2025 season. The contract also included a $4.5 million vesting option for 2026, which could increase by as much as $3 million for reaching 40, 50, and 60 innings pitched in 2025; Strahm exceeded all of those thresholds, throwing 62.1 innings. After the option vested, Strahm was traded to the Royals. Read the rest of this entry »

It’s been quite a while since we produced new FanGraphs apparel, and this time, we decided to try something completely different.

We partnered with clothing brand Ellsworth & Ivy to make The Retro FanGraphs Sweatshirt and The Women’s FanGraphs Quarterzip Sweater. The first (and possibly last) run of these is quite limited, with about 50 sweatshirts and 30 sweaters available. We had no budget for models, either, so you’re stuck with the Appelmans to get a sense of what these look like.

The Retro FanGraphs Sweatshirt has fully stitched chenille lettering and a stitched logo near the bottom hem:

The Women’s FanGraphs Quarterzip Sweater also has fully stitched chenille lettering and a stitched logo on the sleeve:

We think they look pretty sharp, and provide a slightly more dressed up look than our standard hoodie.

The Retro Sweatshirt is $90 and the Women’s Quarterzip Sweater is $120. They’re both available for sale now and ready to ship!

This holiday season, hit a home run with the baseball fan in your life and give the gift of FanGraphs! Gift Memberships are available for purchase, and come with all the perks. Read the rest of this entry »

Hello, my name is Brendan Gawlowski. I could do the Troy McClure thing and list all of my previous bylines, but I’d prefer to just say that it’s a pleasure returning to FanGraphs after nearly four years away. Back in early 2022, I took a job as a pro scout for the Pittsburgh Pirates and I’ve been scouting minor leaguers ever since. In a few cases, I had a role in bringing players to Pittsburgh. It was a blast and I am grateful for the experience.

But for as much fun as I had, the job wore on those around me. I spent more than 80 nights on the road last year, a grueling schedule that’s rough on families in any situation and was increasingly unreasonable in mine. When I joined the Pirates, I was 30, childless, and ready to stretch my legs after two years of lying low and masking up. In the intervening years, a series of significant events made it hard to balance my passion for scouting with my responsibilities at home. My wife and I had a baby. A year later, we found ourselves facing a cancer diagnosis and long-term treatment. Our parents started battling their own medical problems. Through it all, I tried to be around as much as I could, but the realities of my schedule led to stressful compromises. The logistics of doing the job while being more than a replacement-level family member were hard to manage. This past July, I pulled an all nighter and drove from Corpus Christi to Houston to catch a 6 AM flight back home to Seattle, stepped inside for a quick shower, and then bolted two hours north to Bellingham for a birthday party. During that last stretch, my wife made her annual gentle suggestion that another path was possible.

And what a path this is. FanGraphs’s reputation as a leader in baseball analysis is well earned, particularly in the prospect space. For as long as he’s been at it, Eric has done an incredible job of covering the landscape. From my perspective, the breadth, depth, and nuance of his analysis is worth the price of a Membership all by itself. I learned plenty from him before, during, and after our time working together in my first stint here. The listing for this position came at the perfect time and I applied with gusto: I loved working as a scout, but the opportunity to join Eric in a full-time capacity, to continue evaluating baseball players while also getting another couple of months at home, was too enticing to pass up. Read the rest of this entry »

We’ve got the very latest version of the FanGraphs Mug now available for sale.

Drink your coffee every morning knowing that you have the newest and possibly best mug that we’ve ever sold, and that your purchase helped support FanGraphs!

The 2026 Free Agent Tracker is now live! There are currently over 170 players on the list, and more will be added following the postseason as teams begin to clear space on their 40-man rosters and decisions are made about 2026 options. The Tracker will be updated regularly throughout the offseason as qualifying offers are made (and then accepted or rejected), and as free agents find their new homes.

You can filter by status (signed/unsigned), previous team, and signing team, and export the data for your own analysis. You can also sort by a player’s handedness, age, and 2025 WAR. Shortly after the postseason ends, projected 2026 WAR will be added to the Tracker, as will the results of our annual contract crowdsourcing project, which include median contract total, years, and average annual value estimates.

Read the rest of this entry »