JABO: Will Billy Burns’ Speed Play In the Majors?

The first-level explanation for Billy Burns‘ impressive numbers last month? Spring-training statistics are irrelevant at best, misleading at worst. You know this part. However much there might be a little signal in the stats, it tends to be overwhelmed by noise, so it’s best to just ignore the numbers entirely. But for weeks we’re given numbers, and they’re the only numbers we have. We can’t help but look at them. Which brings us to the second-level explanation: spring-training statistics provide leads. Excuses to talk about certain players, based on something particularly positive or negative. So how about that Billy Burns?

Last I checked, Burns was tied for the big-league lead in spring-training hits. He was seventh in batting average and tenth in OBP, and while some players like Pete Kozma have also hit the ball well, other, actually good players have hit the ball well, too, so there’s that. The point is that Burns has drawn himself attention. He’s already made his big-league debut, he’s not yet old, and now Coco Crisp will be sidelined for some time. For Billy Burns, opportunity knocks. He’s an unusual player, so what can we make of him?

If there’s one thing you know about Burns — and many of you might not know anything — it’s that he’s fast. Remember Terrance Gore? Billy Burns has Terrance Gore footspeed. In scouting-speak, Billy Burns has 80 footspeed, meaning he’s as fast as anyone else. Like Gore, Burns has been used as a pinch-runner. We all got obsessed with the running game in last year’s playoffs, but we usually dismiss it somewhat casually, so, it’s worth wondering whether Burns might become something more than a novelty.

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