How to judge a player's 'intangibles'

If you've ever watched a baseball game or heard analysis of one after the fact, you're familiar with reporters and the like commenting on a player's "Intangibles." Usually, this is a player with, at best, average power and speed and who has played on at least three different teams. But the people who follow the game for a living speak so often and so well of these players and their "intangibles," it begs the question: Just what the hell are they?

Thus, as a service to fans everywhere, I present possible answers to this query so the better to understand why certain guys kick around the league, year after year.

Thanks, and enjoy.

What Sports Reporters May Mean When They Laud a Player's 'Intangibles'



• He happened to be there when the team won its championships.


• The steps to this guy’s ceiling just stop.


• He comes cheap, and you could do worse.


• You put Mickey Mantle in there, they’re still losing.


• Or: They can‘t figure out why the team is on a win streak either, but it is.


• If he’s got a stripper problem, you‘d never know it.


• What other people mean when they say a person is 'well-spoken.'


• ‘Works Well With Others’ is not just quantitative, it's the new OBP.


• He plays on an East Coast team.


• He's incredibly short for a person playing his position.


• He’s got a weak arm but a big heart.


• He‘s the link between fans and the really good players.


• His agent is smarter than management.


• He's been too average and for too long to not have intangibles.


• He's approaching 40.


• He'll make an excellent broadcaster one day.


• He‘s good with a quote.

Today’s lesson: In corporate league softball, the term generally means he's the team's best drinker.