Inspiration.

On 19 August, in the warm glow of winning a one-run game, Torey Lovullo said, “…prior to that we had stubborn at-bats.” My mind wandered and left me asking, “What exactly is a stubborn at-bat?”

How can stubborn be measured?

My initial thoughts separated a general skill into three distinct batting attributes: Stubborn, Patient, and Good Eye at the Plate. I defined at least two measurable criteria (there may be more than two) to measure each batting attribute. Baseball Savant had the data to measure these criteria. The criteria follow.

Stubborn: Two criteria and a bonus point.

On Base Percent (OBP) AFTER a count of two strikes. Through 19 August, league average was .246. This includes hits, walks, and hit-by-pitches.

Pitches AFTER two strikes divided by plate appearances.

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