Number-crunching has revolutionized baseball. Through its new dependence on advanced statistics, known as sabermetrics, the game has taken on a new language that sometimes is difficult to understand. This book is an introduction to the basics of analytical terms, and to the people, websites, and organizations, who are creating and discussing these new tools of measurement. We have attempted to explain these novel concepts as simply as possible and to discuss their various applications in today’s game. By starting to understand this process, fans like you can become more astute at critiquing the decision-makers who put teams together, assess the game-time strategies made by field managers, and discuss the overall performance by everyday players.
In writing this book, we contacted minor league managers, broadcasters, and administrators and those professionals who were developing these new statistical terms, in addition to, of course, exploring the internet. And what surprises awaited us!
We realized that many people were basically in our shoes; that is, trying to make sense of the new language, abbreviations, and numbers. Even though many who we contacted were more advanced in understanding the language of sabermetrics, we learned that their opinions still varied about its value. Certainly, the measures were a different and exciting way to view the action on the field. These numbers have become a newer way to view player production, both currently and across generations. What we learned is that some of the new statistics really do provide a better way to argue about how players in the 1920s or 1960s compare to today’s greats. These measures also provide a foundation of knowledge pertaining to decision-making on the field (the reasons for increased uses of defensive shifts, for example), or why a certain pitcher or hitter has suddenly improved (such as increased use of spin velocity or being able to increase bat speed).
Throughout the book, we have tried to give the reader many examples of why these values have become so important to the game. For baseball fans of all persuasions, this guidebook describes how these numbers are being used to construct winning teams, put more effective players on the field, and ultimately, how they are employed to gain advantages in adding wins.
This revolution in numbers remains controversial. There are endless arguments about their usage and the writings that appear on baseball websites and blogs are excellent. We take you on a journey through these conversations and hope that you will discover more through your own reading. We provide listings for these sites in our index and recommend other books that we hope you find interesting.
It really is time to sit up from that couch and take notice of this strange, but exciting new world of baseball statistics! The enclosed chapters cover every aspect of the game. We even added a basic chapter on fantasy baseball, so that you can apply this knowledge to construct your own teams. Today really is the time to enjoy baseball from every angle. And now that cameras are available to actually measure every bit of information occurring on the field, baseball has become an even more amazing game.
In writing this book, we contacted minor league managers, broadcasters, and administrators and those professionals who were developing these new statistical terms, in addition to, of course, exploring the internet. And what surprises awaited us!
We realized that many people were basically in our shoes; that is, trying to make sense of the new language, abbreviations, and numbers. Even though many who we contacted were more advanced in understanding the language of sabermetrics, we learned that their opinions still varied about its value. Certainly, the measures were a different and exciting way to view the action on the field. These numbers have become a newer way to view player production, both currently and across generations. What we learned is that some of the new statistics really do provide a better way to argue about how players in the 1920s or 1960s compare to today’s greats. These measures also provide a foundation of knowledge pertaining to decision-making on the field (the reasons for increased uses of defensive shifts, for example), or why a certain pitcher or hitter has suddenly improved (such as increased use of spin velocity or being able to increase bat speed).
Throughout the book, we have tried to give the reader many examples of why these values have become so important to the game. For baseball fans of all persuasions, this guidebook describes how these numbers are being used to construct winning teams, put more effective players on the field, and ultimately, how they are employed to gain advantages in adding wins.
This revolution in numbers remains controversial. There are endless arguments about their usage and the writings that appear on baseball websites and blogs are excellent. We take you on a journey through these conversations and hope that you will discover more through your own reading. We provide listings for these sites in our index and recommend other books that we hope you find interesting.
It really is time to sit up from that couch and take notice of this strange, but exciting new world of baseball statistics! The enclosed chapters cover every aspect of the game. We even added a basic chapter on fantasy baseball, so that you can apply this knowledge to construct your own teams. Today really is the time to enjoy baseball from every angle. And now that cameras are available to actually measure every bit of information occurring on the field, baseball has become an even more amazing game.
