I got the baseball stats bug reading Bill James' first Historical Baseball Abstract in the late 1980's. Since then I've seen the "metrics" ruin much of the sport. Watching them ruin Strasburg's career by 'protecting' him has been awful.
Games averaged 2 1/2 hours in the 1970s versus more than 3 hours in the past decade. The new rules seem radical but they're really a return to what baseball used to be.
I got the baseball stats bug reading Bill James' first Historical Baseball Abstract in the late 1980's. Since then I've seen the "metrics" ruin much of the sport. Watching them ruin Strasburg's career by 'protecting' him has been awful.
Great essay. Extremely enjoyable.
I'm all for the new rules too. I always point people to this chart: https://www.baseball-reference.com/leagues/majors/misc.shtml
Games averaged 2 1/2 hours in the 1970s versus more than 3 hours in the past decade. The new rules seem radical but they're really a return to what baseball used to be.
Very nice