The #1 pitching stat to track at every level: Early and Ahead (E+A%) It is the STRONGEST predictor of walks. So what is early and ahead? It is essentially 2 stats in one. Early: Anytime the ball is put in play on 3 pitches or less (except 2-0), regardless of the result. It can be a home run and it counts as an early. There can be an error and it still counts. The result does not matter for this. Ahead: Anytime an 0-2 or 1-2 count is achieved. Once again it doesn't matter what happens after that. You could end up walking the batter or giving up a hit, it would still count as an ahead. Every at bat results in an early, ahead, or nothing. There can only be one result per AB. For example, if you strike a batter out on 3 pitches, that counts as an ahead, not an early. Also, if you get to 0-2 and then throw a ball, you don’t get credit for 2 aheads in the same AB. To find your E+A% add up all the early and aheads and divide by batters faced. Average E+A% by level: D1 - 68.9% MiLB - 69.1% MLB - 72.7% You can also split them into individual stats. Guys that have high ahead% are likely striking out a lot of batters. MLB averages: Early - 33.2% Ahead - 39.5% The E+A% goal for most players is 70%, but the best of the best are 75%+. 2023 E+A% Leaders (100 innings min.): 1. George Kirby 84% (2.5% BB) 2. Logan Gilbert 80.9% (4.7% BB) 3. Joe Ryan 80.8% (5.1% BB) 2023 E+A% Bottom Tier (100 innings min.): 1. Tylor Megill 66% (10.2% BB) 2. Blake Snell 65% (13.3% BB) 3. Michael Kopech 63.6% (15.4% BB) MLB average BB% is 8.6%. This stat can be used at the amateur level and all the way up to the big leagues. Increase your E+A% and watch your walks go down. Tonight's NLCS starter, Aaron Nola had an E+A% of 77.3% and a walk rate of 5.7% this season. During the playoffs he has an E+A% of 81.2% and a walk rate of 2.9%! @FlatgroundApp