Add new comment

Even if I completely accept your position, Matt ... my first question would be ... exactly how many players typically inhabit the super-marginal realm? 
If I use a competing stat, like FIP, Felix ends up ranked only 9th among starters in 2009, with a 3.09 FIP.  Comparing him to the elite competition, only two guys fanned 10+ per 9, (Lincecum and Verlander), while Felix was barely above 8.  There were a trio who had walk/9 below 3, (Vazquez, Carpenter and Halladay).  And a quartet of guys had HR/9 better than 0.50, (Greinke, Lincecum, Carpenter and Kershaw).
Fangraphs provides the ERA-FIP comp, (which should tend to capture the fielding aspect of a player's stats).  Well, Felix was #1, burying everyone except Carpenter), with a -0.60 E-F. 
Me?  I believe the Seattle TEAM defense was likely super-marginal in 2009, but I wouldn't be comfortable assigning super-marginal performance to ANY individual defender, (even using PCA).