Bill James blasts current day baseball statisticians

[Old Red]

Right. They need to stop being so efficient and scoring and stuff. Why score runs when you can irritate the opposing pitcher…

🙈🤭🤮.

[notin]

C'mon man, nobody said irritating over scoring, because nobody would. You injected that into the discussion yourself. jung was clearly suggesting irritating and scoring.

Posts 5 and 8?


He suggested irritating pitchers over hitting home runs. And made it sound like they were only hitting solo home runs.

Hitting home runs is scoring 100% of the time. Irritating pitchers is a good strategy, but it simply didn’t lead to scoring that often.

I get their home run volume is low and they’d be thorns to pitchers more often. But you look at OBP for that. Not home runs. Is hitting 8-10 home runs really taking down their OBP that much?

And with Duran, he has 23 doubles and 10 triples hitting like he is. But he doesn’t bother the pitcher as much with those extra bases. So are those also a bad thing?

[Old Red]

posts 5 and 8?


He suggested irritating pitchers over hitting home runs. And made it sound like they were only hitting solo home runs.

Hitting home runs is scoring 100% of the time. Irritating pitchers is a good strategy, but it simply didn’t lead to scoring that often.

I get their home run volume is low and they’d be thorns to pitchers more often. But you look at obp for that. Not home runs. Is hitting 8-10 home runs really taking down their obp that much?

And with duran, he has 23 doubles and 10 triples hitting like he is. But he doesn’t bother the pitcher as much with those extra bases. So are those also a bad thing?

nnn🤭🙈.

[notin]

nnn����.

Right. Good call. Duran needs to change his approach and stop being a top ten player in the AL. Ditto Wong with his batting average among league best…

[Old Red]

Right. Good call. Duran needs to change his approach and stop being a top ten player in the AL. Ditto Wong with his batting average among league best…

You go off on your own tangents. Going, going, gone.

[Bellhorn04]

He suggested irritating pitchers over hitting home runs.

You know what he meant. And oddly enough, I can't find the word "irritating" in his posts.

[notin]

You know what he meant. And oddly enough, I can't find the word "irritating" in his posts.

Yes I do know what he meant. He was specific about how the Sox would be better if Duran/Hamilton/Wong hit fewer extra base hits and instead just got to first base and used their speed to get into the pitchers’ heads.

While I get the importance of the runner on first causing problems for the pitcher, how is that more important than the overall vast improvements we have seen in those small speedy guys he says have no business hitting “one run home runs”? (And how did you possibly not attack that?)

Duran is one of the best offensive players in the league. Wong leads all AL catchers in batting average (150 PA min). These are players using the metrics and their lessons to become significant offensive contributors and potential All Stars. But Jung is suggesting they dial it back and instead one third of the lineup fall back into a role where their job is to instead support the remaining hitters.

[Old Red]

Again using the Sox as an example....Ted Willians had actual power like Rafi and like O'Neal. Duran does not, Yoshida does not, Rafaela is a Joke in this regard as is Wong.

Our speedsters would do much more good for this team getting on base and disrupting the other team's pitcher than hitting one run home runs.

This Red Sox edition is mightily helped by the reality that MLB is chock full of crap teams.

Right on regarding the number of crap teams.

[Old Red]

Yes I do know what he meant. He was specific about how the Sox would be better if Duran/Hamilton/Wong hit fewer extra base hits and instead just got to first base and used their speed to get into the pitchers’ heads.

While I get the importance of the runner on first causing problems for the pitcher, how is that more important than the overall vast improvements we have seen in those small speedy guys he says have no business hitting “one run home runs”? (And how did you possibly not attack that?)

Duran is one of the best offensive players in the league. Wong leads all AL catchers in batting average (150 PA min). These are players using the metrics and their lessons to become significant offensive contributors and potential All Stars. But Jung is suggesting they dial it back and instead one third of the lineup fall back into a role where their job is to instead support the remaining hitters.

I didn’t know metrics could hit a baseball. Interesting. Very interesting.

[dgalehouse]

Stealing bases is easier that it has been in the past. I think some pitchers have become more or less resigned to it and just mainly try to focus on the batter. Makes it very difficult for the catcher to throw out the faster runners.

[Bellhorn04]

Yes I do know what he meant. He was specific about how the Sox would be better if Duran/Hamilton/Wong hit fewer extra base hits and instead just got to first base and used their speed to get into the pitchers’ heads.

While I get the importance of the runner on first causing problems for the pitcher, how is that more important than the overall vast improvements we have seen in those small speedy guys he says have no business hitting “one run home runs”? (And how did you possibly not attack that?)

Duran is one of the best offensive players in the league. Wong leads all AL catchers in batting average (150 PA min). These are players using the metrics and their lessons to become significant offensive contributors and potential All Stars. But Jung is suggesting they dial it back and instead one third of the lineup fall back into a role where their job is to instead support the remaining hitters.

I actually agree with you. Just tryin' to keep things fair.

[notin]

Stealing bases is easier that it has been in the past. I think some pitchers have become more or less resigned to it and just mainly try to focus on the batter. Makes it very difficult for the catcher to throw out the faster runners.

I think the rule changes do help. Pitch clock can occasionally tell the runner an idea when the windup can start, giving him an extra step or two before the pitcher even starts.

The rule minimizing pickoff attempts helps, too. Once the pitcher has thrown over twice, that runner can go take a much, much larger lead…

[notin]

I didn’t know metrics could hit a baseball. Interesting. Very interesting.

So Bellhorn, do you limit your critiques solely to my posts? We gotta live one here…

[Old Red]

so bellhorn, do you limit your critiques solely to my posts? We gotta live one here…

😭😭😭! Nnn

[notin]

������! Nnn

Every time you type that, I picture you as the cranky, grizzled, flannel-wearing greybeard forcibly squeezing monosyllabic grunts to express your frustration with those gosh darn changes in the world. It’s very Neanderthal.

It brings a smile to my face every time