2008 Bill James Handbook
With the preponderance of baseball statistics on the internet, you might question the need for an annual statistics book. Certainly, baseball-reference.com provides a plethora of statistics along with sorting options and statistical splits that a printed version simply can not match. In this environment, a publisher needs to add a few bells and whistles to entice paying customers.
First off, if you feel the need for a print stat book of any kind, stop now and buy the book. That said, here are a few other features. The book offers a look at the first version of the "Fielding Bible" awards. The publishers chose a panel of ten voters, ranging from Bill James and Rob Neyer to the Tangotiger online fan poll. Honestly, this strikes me a bit elitist. It is one thing to say you can improve the process. It is another to assume you are a better voting group because you disagree with the results. The awards are improved by the nature of the process, each voter submits a weighted ballot rather than choosing a single player. If they selected candidates the same way the actual gold glove awards do, three of the picks would change.
You get the usual chapters you expect. Park factors, managers' records, platoon splits, etc. The manager index demonstrates how many lineups a manager used, how many pinch-hitters and runners used, and more than a dozen other categories. Some other records are compiled. Particularly useful are baserunning statistics, chronicling how often a player went from first to third on a single, or scored from second on a single, or scored from first on a double. The best baserunner in 2007 of course was Jose Reyes. The best baserunning team suprisingly was the Kansas City Royals.
Much has been made of the Young Talent Inventory. That James produced a list based solely on 2007 statistics seems quite sloppy. I believe it is an example of the commerce aspect of the book, needing to attach names and essays to the book in the interest of sales. The player comments however are interesting. Player projections are covered (only for established players), as well as win shares. I wish the publishers would simply list the win shares in the career register.
Amazon currently lists this book around $15. For that price, it's a solid purchase.
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