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WAR in PIECES: A guide to baseball's superstat Wins above Replacement
If you follow baseball, you've probably heard about WAR, or Wins above Replacement. But how do you calculate it? Sean Smith walks through the methods used to calculate all of the components of WAR. Wins above Replacement has its roots in the early Baseball Abstracts of Bill James and the Hidden Game of Baseball by John Thorn and Pete Palmer.
This book explains how the pieces - batting, baserunning, fielding, and pitching - are calculated, why they are calculated that way, and explores ways that the calculations can be approved. Also included are many examples using great players of the past and present. See how Ray Schalk, one of the few clean White Sox of 1919, rates among the greatest defensive catchers of all time. Todd Helton is now in the Hall of Fame, but just how good were his batting statistics, and how much help did he get from Coors field? How much extra value did a workhorse starting pitcher like Jack Morris have by keeping his bullpens well rested? Should WAR be used to decide who wins the MVP award? Does WAR undervalue the catching position?
Sean Smith has been involved in baseball analytics for over 40 years. He is the proprietor of Baseballprojection.com, and creator of the CHONE projection system. He designed the WAR calculations now available on Baseball-Reference.com. His writing has been featured in publications such as the Hardball Times. From 2010 to 2023 he worked as a consultant for a major league team. He is a federal civil servant by day and lives in Maryland with his family. In addition to baseball, Sean possesses a wide variety of skills and abilities. He once performed physical labor in the service of the Incredible Hulk. In 2006, Time Magazine named him Person of the Year.
This book explains how the pieces - batting, baserunning, fielding, and pitching - are calculated, why they are calculated that way, and explores ways that the calculations can be approved. Also included are many examples using great players of the past and present. See how Ray Schalk, one of the few clean White Sox of 1919, rates among the greatest defensive catchers of all time. Todd Helton is now in the Hall of Fame, but just how good were his batting statistics, and how much help did he get from Coors field? How much extra value did a workhorse starting pitcher like Jack Morris have by keeping his bullpens well rested? Should WAR be used to decide who wins the MVP award? Does WAR undervalue the catching position?
Sean Smith has been involved in baseball analytics for over 40 years. He is the proprietor of Baseballprojection.com, and creator of the CHONE projection system. He designed the WAR calculations now available on Baseball-Reference.com. His writing has been featured in publications such as the Hardball Times. From 2010 to 2023 he worked as a consultant for a major league team. He is a federal civil servant by day and lives in Maryland with his family. In addition to baseball, Sean possesses a wide variety of skills and abilities. He once performed physical labor in the service of the Incredible Hulk. In 2006, Time Magazine named him Person of the Year.
414 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 7, 2024
9 people are currently reading
9 people want to read
About the author
Sean Smith
98 books58 followersSean Smith is the UK’s leading celebrity biographer and the author of the number one bestseller Cheryl, as well as bestselling books about Tom Jones, Robbie Williams and Kate Middleton.
His books about the most famous people of our times has been translated throughout the world. His subjects include Adele, Kim Kardashian, Gary Barlow, Kylie Minogue, Justin Timberlake, Britney Spears, Victoria Beckham, Jennifer Aniston and J.K. Rowling. The film Magic Beyond Words: The J.K. Rowling Story was based on his biography of the Harry Potter author.
Described by the Independent as a ‘fearless chronicler’, he specialises in meticulous research, going ‘on the road’ to find the real person behind the star image.
His books about the most famous people of our times has been translated throughout the world. His subjects include Adele, Kim Kardashian, Gary Barlow, Kylie Minogue, Justin Timberlake, Britney Spears, Victoria Beckham, Jennifer Aniston and J.K. Rowling. The film Magic Beyond Words: The J.K. Rowling Story was based on his biography of the Harry Potter author.
Described by the Independent as a ‘fearless chronicler’, he specialises in meticulous research, going ‘on the road’ to find the real person behind the star image.
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
October 16, 2024
If you want to know more about WAR and what it is good for, this is your book.
Excellent read, highly recommend for a student of baseball or even a front office.
Tastes great? Less filling? It is bold? Either way, the writer presents complex baseball statistics and the framework and logic behind them. But what makes the book thoroughly enjoyable, is the application to perennial and classic debates and case studies.
Excellent read, highly recommend for a student of baseball or even a front office.
Tastes great? Less filling? It is bold? Either way, the writer presents complex baseball statistics and the framework and logic behind them. But what makes the book thoroughly enjoyable, is the application to perennial and classic debates and case studies.
Displaying 1 of 1 review