This was inspired by the recent post in the D-backs’ grid series, where we had to pick an average player well-regarded by fans. There was some initial confusion over the difference between WAR and WAA. WAR compares a player against a replacement level one. To quote Fangraphs: “Replacement level is simply the level of production you could get from a player that would cost you nothing but the league minimum salary to acquire. Minor league free agents, quad-A players.” That is considerably worse than average. The same article explains there is about 570 WAR available each year for position players: with 30 teams at 13 position players each, that means an average, full-time player is worth 1.
The Arizona Averagebacks
