FSR

The Fan Scouting Report is a yearly project conducted by Tom Tango that rates players on their defensive ability based on fan observations and voting. Fans are asked to rate players on a 0-100 scale (with 100 being the best and 0 being the worst) in a number of different categories: Instinct, Speed, Hands, Arm Strength and Accuracy, First Step, etc. These raw ratings are presented on the FanGraphs leaderboards and on player pages.

These ratings are also compiled and converted into one overall stat, FSR, that measures a player’s total defensive ability in runs above or below average. This statistic is presented in the same scale as UZR and DRS, meaning it can be compared directly with these two statistics to provide more context on a player’s defense.

Obviously, the Fan Scouting Report is based on subjective ratings, but the idea is that fans watch their team on a daily basis and are quite knowledgeable about their team’s players. When taken in a large enough group, fans can theoretically provide an accurate measure of a player’s overall defensive ability and ranking.

Context:

Just like with UZR and DRS, the Fan Scouting Report rates players on a runs scale:

Defensive Ability	FSR
Gold Glove Caliber	+15
Great	+10
Above Average	+5
Average	0
Below Average	-5
Poor	-10
Awful	-15

Things to Remember:

● The accuracy of the Fan Scouting Report is debatable, as fans are not professional scouts, have their own inherent biases, and are limited to what they can see on television. However, as long as you realize these limitations and do not use FSR as the be-all-end-all defensive statistic (always use it in conjunction with UZR and DRS), it works fine.

Links for Further Reading:

Fan Scouting Report Voting And Results – Tom Tango

Fans Scouting Report – FanGraphs

Fans Scouting Report, Part 2 – FanGraphs