Measurables show Cubs’ defense at elite level

LOS ANGELES — The Cubs’ march toward 103 regular-season wins and into this National League Championship Series against the Dodgers has been the product of a remarkably well-built and balanced roster. That seems best evidenced by the team’s plus-282 run differential, a figure topped only once (1907) in franchise history.

The franchise surpassed 800 runs scored for only the fourth time since 1938. Its pitching staff was baseball’s best. And then there’s the defense, which, by some measurements, was the best this game has seen in years.

• NLCS Game 3: Tuesday at 8 p.m. ET/7 CT on FS1

Digging into Statcast™ data and more advanced defensive statistics paint a more complete picture of just how superb the Cubs’ fielding has been — and perhaps what it may need to be through the rest of this postseason run should Chicago continue to get limited production from several core position players.

Game Date Time Matchup TV/Highlights Gm 1 Oct. 15   CHC 8, LAD 4 Gm 2 Oct. 16   LAD 1, CHC 0 Gm 3 Oct. 18 8 p.m. CHC @ LAD FS1 Gm 4 Oct. 19 8 p.m. CHC @ LAD FS1 Gm 5 Oct. 20 8 p.m. CHC @ LAD FS1 *Gm 6 Oct. 22 TBD LAD @ CHC FS1 *Gm 7 Oct. 23 TBD LAD @ CHC FS1 * If necessary | All times listed ET  • NLCS coverageShop for postseason gear: Cubs | Dodgers

In its most simplistic definition, the task of a defense is to convert balls in play into outs. The Defensive Efficiency Ratio calculates how frequently that’s done, and the Cubs topped the Majors with a figure of .745. That was more than three percentage points better than second-ranked Toronto, and it represented the best DER value since the 1982 Padres.

Calculating the DER while also accounting for the park-adjustment factor puts the Cubs all alone. Under those parameters, there hasn’t been a defensive unit as good as this 2016 Cubs team since at least 1950.

“I think that our youth has helped some of that,” veteran starter John Lackey surmised. “We have got probably more …

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