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The Hardball Times
found this 3/27/2008
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JinAZ While I know this is probably a minority opinion, I really dislike--almost despise--the term "sabermetrics." Maybe it's just because I didn't grow up with Bill James. But that term has always sounded both pompous and half-baked to me--like we're trying to claim some kind of grand authority or officiality by coming up with an official-sounding name for what we do.
I think at least part of the backlash against "sabermetrics" has as much to do with that name as anything else. I've occasionally interacted with a local reporter in Cincinnati for some stat-inspired articles on the Reds over the past year, and one thing I've tried to stress (as have the other folks like me who have contributed to these articles) is to try to avoid calling us sabermetricians. I don't want to give people that as a reason for ignoring some of the ideas we advocate.
I'd much prefer it if everyone just called what we do what it is--baseball research. There's nothing really special about it...we're just searching for better understanding of how the game works. -j
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studes Yeah, I agree, J. I don't like to call myself a sabermetrician either cause, as I said, I don't really know what that means these days.
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ger8ry " "0 Days" means he started on consecutive days, "1 Day" means he had one day of rest between starts, etc."
So I guess when one of those oldtimers pitched both ends of a doubleheader, that should show up as "-1 Days"?
"The spreadsheet is great fun to pour over. "
OK, but be careful just what you pour over it.
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studes Yeah, should I have used "pore?" I wasn't sure, and my editor didn't change it.
If you look in the original data, there is a column for "DH" before days. I didn't bother to include it.
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MGL Very nice article, with a lot of really good stuff!-
studes Thanks, MGL! I had all winter to store things up.-
johnbeamer You are like a little chipmunk, Studes
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GB The spike in 3 day starts in the 70's = Wilbur Wood, the White Sox knuckleballer who started 49 games in 72 and 73. As for that huge percentge drop in 3 day starts between 75 and 76, Wood went from 43 to 7 starts that year due to the injury which effectively ended his career.
Having said that, I have to agree with your analysis of the rise in 5th day starters.
Criss-cross applesauce
THE BOOK--Playing The Percentages In Baseball —
... Studes, maybe you can add a new chart that shows just those three lines, the “3 and fewer”, “four”, and “5 and more”? ...
SABR Minor Leagues Database
WasWatching.com —
I am having too much fun with the SABR Minor Leagues Database. (Hat tip to Dave Studeman.)
Did you know that Babe Ruth and Freddy Parent were teammates on the 1914 International League Baltimore Orioles? Go figure.
Awesome job by SABR to put this together and make it available to the public. They even included Indy Leagues as well. Man, two thumbs up for you SABR.
THT: Studeman: Ten Things I Didn’t Know a while ago
BBTF's Baseball Primer Newsblog —
THT: Studeman: Ten Things I Didn’t Know a while ago Studes is back with one of my fave bits… Even though they come from different places, I think John Brattain and Bill James share some of the same concerns. It seems that some folks use “traditional” sabermetrics to make their point about stolen bases or sacrifice bunts. But there is no such thing as traditional sabermetrics. There is only the pursuit of truth. So who are the truth-seekers out there? Well, I know Tangotiger and MGL are. Greg Rybarczyk is. Most of us at THT are—even the ones who don’t dabble in math. We’re ...
Notes From the Opener
FanGraphs Baseball —
... And don’t forget to check out Studes’ latest “Ten Things” column over at The Hardball Times where he delves into the merits of WPA/LI among other things. ...
Ten things I learn each week
Friar Forecast —
... , by the way). To me, it pays for the BP subscription by itself (although I may have different thoughts on that if I actually paid for that BP subscription with my own money …). Well, another one that I enjoy quite a bit is Dave Studeman’s “Ten Things I Learned Last Week” column at the Hardball Times. I mention it specifically today because it’s full of good stuff … some of which I’ve talked about here before. ...
Ten Things we didn’t know, one about bunts
Mojo Blog —
... 80.7% to 81.6%. So intentional passes seem to make sense when the next batter hits less well.
By the way, I wondered for a while why putting the hitter on does increase the chance of winning at all. After all, only the lead runner counts in a tie game. I guess it is because there is the small chance that the defense gets the lead runner, but nothing more, leaving the offense with a runner in scoring position (and on first) instead of just a man on first.
Link: Ten things I didn’t know a while ago
P.S.: I wonder if there are other situations ...
Links The Man Wants You To See
Rumors and Rants —
I don't know who Kenneth Page is, but I bet he's good at sports - Brahsome God I love The Hardball Times. Yeah, I have a girlfriend. Go figure - The Hardball Times Kwame Brown is an entrepreneur - You Been Blinded Oh Zab Judah, you're so wacky - Deuce of Davenport You know what I like about Paula Creamer? She dresses in a very understated manner - Busted Coverage Finally, a fellow gambler that understands my desire to bet on everything - on205th Get those Penny Hardaway jerseys back out. ...
I despise "sabermetrics"
Basement Dwellers —
Dave Studeman posted his first column of the season today. Let's all take a moment to do a happy dance. :) Tom Tango has called his Studeman's "10 Things I Didn't Know Last Week" column the "Best Column in Sports," and I think he's right. Studeman always has insightful comments on baseball news and research from around the web, and does some excellent work in his own right. He's a fantastic communicator and a tremendous asset to our community. ...
Baseball on the Moon
Redleg Nation —
... I find this utterly fascinating. It’s the Apollo 11 landing site, and the moon-walk activity of Armstrong and Aldrin, superimposed on a baseball diamond. (Hat tip to Dave Studeman at THT). ...
Why Our Metrics Are Saber
Baseball Playoffs Now —
... , I don't want to be stuck up about stats; designing algorithms makes it perfectly clear that interpreting math can be just as subjective as interpreting while sitting at a ballgame eating bratwurst. Instead, thinking about and writing about stats is a pursuit of truth that is not immediately obvious. This is why Baseball Playoffs Now writes about ...
