The Astros are on the "cutting edge of baseball data, both on the field and on their broadcasts," according to David Barron of the HOUSTON CHRONICLE. Advanced metrics such as FIP, BABIP, WHIP, DRS and wRC+, "not to mention their more widely accepted cousins" OPS and WAR, "aren't exactly the things that kids grew up memorizing on the back of baseball cards." But in the "era of Big Data, when young fans learn about the game via computers rather than cardboard, they tell a lot about the game, players, teams and about how announcers are trying to describe the game to their audience." The "new emphasis on advanced metrics on Astros broadcasts is driven in part" by Root Sports Southwest Coordinating Producer for Baseball Carl Patterson and announcers Todd Kalas and Geoff Blum. Kalas, who is in his first year in the Astros' TV booth, worked for "many years in Tampa Bay, where the Rays were among the first teams to encourage announcers to use new data points in telecasts." Kalas said, "We're not trying to reinvent the wheel. The advanced analytics is more of an appetizer. The main course is still the stats you know." On-screen graphics on Root Sports SW prior to each Astros game "include BABIP and FIP along with ERA and win-loss records plus pitch percentages." Kalas believes the Astros are "near what he described as the 'cutting edge' for use of advanced analytics on local telecasts." Kalas said that he was "pleased with the degree" to which Blum, whose career lasted from '99-'12, has "accepted the new order of things." Blum: "When I realized I might have a career (on TV), I started paying more attention to the numbers" (HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 6/2).
