Home Run To Fly Ball Rate (HR/FB)

Definition

Home-run-to-fly-ball (HR/FB) rate is the rate at which home runs are hit against a pitcher for every fly ball he allows. It's as simple as the name makes it sound. The league average HR/FB rate is usually slightly below 10 percent.

For example, if a pitcher faces 25 batters -- 10 of whom hit fly balls -- and he surrenders one home run, his HR/FB rate is 10 percent.

The formula:

Home runs / total fly balls, including home runs.

Why it's useful:

Research shows that the HR/FB rate of individual pitchers can vary greatly from year to year. That means pitchers with high HR/FB rate have generally -- but not always -- experienced some bad luck.