wRC+ (Weighted Runs Created Plus) measures a hitter's total offensive value in a single number, adjusted for ballpark and league context, and scaled so that 100 is always league average. A wRC+ of 120 means the hitter is 20% more productive than the average MLB hitter. A wRC+ of 80 means 20% worse.
What the "Plus" Means
The plus sign in wRC+ follows the same convention as OPS+ and ERA+. It signals two things happened to the raw number: it was park-adjusted (accounting for hitter-friendly or pitcher-friendly environments) and scaled to 100 as the league-average baseline.
That scaling is what makes wRC+ useful across eras. A wRC+ of 130 means the same thing in 2026 as it did in 1996: the hitter was 30% better than their peers. No mental math required. No era adjustments to manually apply.
What wRC+ Actually Measures
The foundation is wOBA (Weighted On-Base Average), which assigns each offensive outcome a run value based on historical play-by-play data. A home run is worth more than a triple, a triple more than a double, and so on down to the walk, each weighted by how many runs that event actually produces on average.
wRC takes that wOBA value, converts it into runs using a park-adjusted scaling factor, and produces a raw runs-created total. The "plus" version then divides that by the league average and multiplies by 100, giving you the final normalized score.
Where wRC = ( wOBA / wOBA Scale + (lgR/PA - BPF × lgR/PA) ) × PA
BPF = Ballpark Factor | lgR/PA = League Runs per Plate Appearance
The exact math lives at FanGraphs. What matters for everyday use: the output is always centered on 100, always park-corrected, and always era-neutral.
What Is a Good wRC+ in Baseball?
Because 100 is always league average by definition, the scale is intuitive. Here's how analysts generally tier it:
| wRC+ | Grade | What it looks like |
|---|---|---|
| 160+ | MVP-caliber | Judge, Trout peak seasons |
| 140–159 | All-Star, elite | Top 10–15 hitters in MLB |
| 120–139 | Above average, quality starter | Solid middle-of-order bat |
| 110–119 | Above average | Productive everyday player |
| 95–109 | Average | League median range |
| 80–94 | Below average | Acceptable with elite defense |
| <80 | Poor | Bench/platoon territory |
Context matters. A 95 wRC+ from a catcher or shortstop is very different from a 95 wRC+ from a corner outfielder. The stat doesn't account for defensive position, which is why it's used alongside positional adjustments in WAR calculations.
"The best offensive players aren't the ones with the highest batting averages. They're the ones who create the most runs, and wRC+ is the cleanest way to see that."
The Baseball NerdwRC+ vs. OPS+: What's the Difference?
Both stats are park-adjusted and scaled to 100. The difference is methodology, and it matters.
OPS+ combines on-base percentage and slugging percentage, treating them as equal halves. This overweights slugging, because a single percentage point of slugging is not worth as much as a single percentage point of OBP in run-creation terms.
wRC+ uses linear weights derived from actual run values, so each event is calibrated to what it actually produces. The result is a more accurate measure of offensive contribution. In most analytical contexts, wRC+ is the preferred stat.
wRC+ vs. Batting Average: Why This Matters More
Batting average ignores walks, ignores extra-base hits beyond their binary hit/out value, and gives no credit for how hard a ball was hit. Two players can hit .280 and have wildly different offensive values. wRC+ captures all of it.
A player hitting .240 with a .370 OBP and 25 home runs might carry a wRC+ of 135. A player hitting .290 with a .320 OBP and 8 home runs might sit at 105. Batting average inverts that picture. wRC+ gets it right.
How wRC+ Is Used in Prospect Evaluation
At the minor league level, wRC+ requires extra caution. The same formula applies, but MiLB run environments vary more dramatically than the majors, and park factors are less reliable with smaller sample sizes. A Double-A wRC+ of 140 is meaningful, but it needs to be contextualized against the league, the park, and the age of the hitter.
Age-relative wRC+ is particularly useful in prospect work. A 22-year-old posting a 130 wRC+ in Triple-A is a very different signal than a 27-year-old doing the same thing.
One Number. The Full Picture.
wRC+ doesn't do everything. It doesn't tell you about defense, baserunning, or clutch performance. But for evaluating offensive production in a single, portable number that works across any era and any ballpark, nothing is cleaner. It's the first stat to check when you want to know how a hitter is actually performing.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does wRC stand for in baseball?
wRC stands for Weighted Runs Created. It's a modernized version of Bill James' Runs Created formula, updated to use linear weights from play-by-play data rather than component estimates.
What is an average wRC+ in baseball?
By definition, 100 is always league average. The stat is scaled each season so that the league average wRC+ equals exactly 100, regardless of the overall run environment.
Who has the highest career wRC+ in MLB history?
Babe Ruth holds the all-time career wRC+ record at approximately 197 or higher, depending on the source and era adjustments applied. Among active players, Mike Trout consistently ranks at the top of the all-time leaderboards.
Is wRC+ the same as wOBA?
No. wOBA is the raw input to wRC+. wOBA is expressed as an on-base-style decimal (like .370), while wRC+ converts that into a run total, adjusts for park and league context, and scales the result so 100 is always average. wRC+ is the more complete and comparable number.
Where can I find wRC+ leaderboards?
FanGraphs is the primary source for wRC+ data and maintains full leaderboards for MLB and MiLB. The stat is calculated by FanGraphs and is their proprietary implementation of the Weighted Runs Created framework.