Smart Baseball: The Story Behind the Old Stats That Are Ruining the Game, the New Ones That Are Running It, and the Right Way to Think About Baseball
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | 4.33 (740 Votes) |
| Asin | : | B01JFYVW5I |
| Format Type | : | |
| Number of Pages | : | 222 Pages |
| Publish Date | : | 2016-01-16 |
| Language | : | English |
DESCRIPTION:
He also considers the game’s future, examining how teams are using Data—from PhDs to sophisticated statistical databases—to build future rosters; changes that will transform baseball and all of professional sports.. While Law gores sacred cows, from clutch performers to RBIs to the infamous save rule, he also demystifies sabermetrics, explaining what these "new" numbers really are and why they’re vital. But while sabermetrics is recognized as being smarter and more accurate, traditionalists, including journalists, fans, and managers, stubbornly believe that the "old" way—a combination of outdated numbers and "gut" instinct—is still the best way. Predictably Irrational meets Moneyball in ESPN veteran writer and statistical analyst Keith Law’s iconoclastic look at the numbers game of baseball, proving why some of the most trusted stats are surprisingly wrong, explaining what numbers actually work, and exploring what the rise of Big Data means for the future of the sport.For decades, statistics such as batting average, saves recorded, and pitching won-lost records have been used to measure individual players’ and teams’ potential and success. But in the past fifteen years, a revolutionary new
He graduated magna cum laude from Harvard University and holds an MBA from the Tepper School of Business at Carnegie Mellon, where he earned Beta Gamma Sigma honors. Law lives in Delaware.. Keith Law is a senior baseball writer for ESPN Insider and an analyst for ESPN's Baseball Tonight. Prior to joining ESPN in 2006, Law was a Special Assistant to the General Manager for the Toronto Blue Jays, and wrote for Baseball Prospectus
A must-read for everyone who brings a curious head as well as an impassioned heart to the ballpark.” (Booklist)“Law’s background as an analyst gives him the knowledge and experience to put these different statistics in perspective…If you’re unsure of the way the new statistics operate, or wonder why the old approaches are being disparaged, this book is for you.” (Library Journal)“Keith Law is one of the best baseball minds on the planet.” (-- Will Leitch, Sports on Earth)“Law is as cocky-confident in his analysis as the title suggests. ” (--Sean Doolittle, pitcher, Oakland A's)“No flawed stati
Tom Bradley said Very good read. Interesting and fun book, like much of what is emphasized, including the value of w/OBA and w/RC+, which are much too slowly becoming stats of focus and perhaps the best offensive metrics. If only MLB would move more rapidly in utilizing. Enjoyable reading and highly recommended. Just one incorrect item of note. The author asserts several times that hitting in 1968 was impaired by a raising of the mound to 15 inches that year. That did not happen in 1968 and is possibly confused with its lowering to 10 inches in 1969. The impact to hitting in 1968 had actually evolved over time since. Bill S said A great primer for the 'new' stats. A great primer for the 'new' stats that add greater numerical description to the performance of a baseball player and team. Wonderful discussions around the old standbys (BA, ERA, etc.) and a quick look at new tools for performance analysis. A pleasant read for this retired math educator.. Jacob Lampert said A great primer on the ways that baseball front offices analyze today's game. I'm an avid fan of baseball, and particularly baseball from a sabermetric angle. This book challenged me to think about the game in new and different ways, and the author did a superb job of explaining some of the current concepts in the game (such as ways to analyze defense) in an easily accessible manner.I can't recommend it enough for anyone interested in reading about how today's game isn't like the game we grew up with, and how that's a good thing.