David Dagostino 
In a day where measuring a pitcher’s ability to induce misses is vital to assembling a rotation, identifying a gauge for the alternative outcome (what happens when they don’t swing and miss) has become just as necessary in order to accurately predict and depict the success of any rotation. It seems quite logical, on the … Read more
Let be clear … I hate saves. Whether it’s fantasy or reality, saves don’t often indicate a successful pitching performance. Most fantasy leagues require at least two relief pitchers in the starting lineup. With a 20 team league, that most often will be a bonafide closer, someone whose main agenda is to get a save … Read more
Spring training is underway. Sign stealing is behind us … I hope. And Giancarlo Stanton is injured. All of that being said, the fantasy baseball world is hovering over every lineup, call up, and pitch. Mock drafts happen by the minute, as every stat geek (including me) tries out new weighted analytics to link the … Read more
The last two articles have hinted how Moneyball’s heavy emphasis on analytics may actually bring baseball back to an old school style. The pendulum has swung so far in one direction that the inefficiency in the market in the two previous cases has been on an old school approach that we thought may be long … Read more
In 2003, Michael Lewis published his deep dive into what became an analytics revolution. “Moneyball” popularized Bill James theories on analytics and thrust Billy Beane reluctantly into the baseball spotlight. Take away Brad Pitt, an A’s historic win streak, and the total abandonment of the ‘old school’ style of baseball and Michael Lewis accomplished one … Read more
Bill James, the father of Sabermetrics, called bunting “usually a waste of time.” Super Agent Scott Boras referred to the defensive shift as “discriminatory”, in part because his client Bryce Harper was struggling against the tactic. How do these extreme comments, embedded in data driven decisions, give us an indication that bunting could be on … Read more
Base Running Run is the sum of several baserunning components. GAR (Ground Advancment Runs, SBR (Stolen Base Runs), AAR (Air Advancement Runs), HAR (Hit Advancement Runs, and Other Advancement Runs (OAR). BRR represents the number of runs contributed by a player’s advancement on the bases above what would be expected based on the number … Read more
Conceivably, the greatest leadoff man of all-time, Rickey Henderson’s most glaring attribute was his knack for disrupting a game with a stolen base. Maury Wills was the first player to reach the century mark (104) in 1962 for the Dodgers. It took another 12 years before Lou Brock, of the Cardinals, was able to eclipse the feat with 118 thefts. The 80’s saw … Read more
Steve Carlton, otherwise known as “Lefty”, will turn 74 this December. In today’s age of specialization and analytics driven pitching decisions, it seems a lifetime ago since we saw a pitcher amass 280 innings. Carlton managed to do it 5 times, eclipsing 300 innings in 1972 and 1980. 4136 strikeouts in 5217.2 innings seems unattainable … Read more
