2013 SABR Analytics Player Conference Podcast

[dougdirt]

http://sabr.org/latest/2013-sabr-analytics-player-panel

Brandon McCarthy and Javier Lopez spoke at a recent SABR conference about the player side of analytics. This quote from McCarthy is kind of disheartening, when asked about Stats in the Clubhouse:

McCarthy: "If it's not cut-and-dried, and here's the answer, it's hard … to take that out into a team atmosphere. We know that on-base percentage is a better measure of a hitter than batting average, but you still talk with players and try explain that concept to them, and they still think it's batting average. So it's especially hard to tell someone this is why this defender isn't as good because these numbers are saying so. It's very hard to describe and break down. So until those numbers are … more easily explained, more practical, something you could show somebody, it's pretty hard to take this discussion much further than some kind of a cute side thing."

You can download the entire presentation at the link above. It is just over an hour long.

[TOBTTReds]

Originally Posted by dougdirt

http://sabr.org/latest/2013-sabr-analytics-player-panel

Brandon McCarthy and Javier Lopez spoke at a recent SABR conference about the player side of analytics. This quote from McCarthy is kind of disheartening, when asked about Stats in the Clubhouse:



You can download the entire presentation at the link above. It is just over an hour long.

Did this surprise you? I'd be shocked if more than 2 players a team understood anything beyond the newspaper box score. IQ in clubhouses isn't exactly too high, and many times even the smart ones don't want to know some of that stuff because it may"get in their head."

[dougdirt]

Originally Posted by TOBTTReds

Did this surprise you? I'd be shocked if more than 2 players a team understood anything beyond the newspaper box score. IQ in clubhouses isn't exactly too high, and many times even the smart ones don't want to know some of that stuff because it may"get in their head."

It didn't surprise me, but it still disappoints me that despite the front office having so much information at their fingertips, they can't begin to share it with the players.

[RANDY IN INDY]

I don't find it surprising at all.

[TOBTTReds]

Originally Posted by dougdirt

It didn't surprise me, but it still disappoints me that despite the front office having so much information at their fingertips, they can't begin to share it with the players.

Yea, the scene from Moneyball where Jonah Hill is showing players the pitches they are swinging at and teaching them the importance of reaching base any way possible isn't exactly happening every where.

[westofyou]

http://www.baseballprospectus.com/ar...rticleid=19886

Lopez said something interesting: he doesn’t think that teams are really even trying to persuade players to alter their approaches with stats, or find players who’d be receptive to statistical persuasion. Instead, they’re just targeting players who already do things that the stats say are good. Eventually, he believes that players will realize what approaches teams prefer in their players, and they’ll try to do those things of their own accord, without any nudging from numbers guys.

On the GM panel, Rich Hahn emphasized how easy it is to lose a player’s trust when citing statistics. Even if a statistical approach is sound 99 times out of 100, if it happens to backfire for a player the one time he tries it, he’ll be much less inclined to listen the next time. So when you cite a stat, you have to be sure.

One other tidbit that I’ll add here because it doesn’t fit anywhere else in the article: McCarthy mentioned that he hates facing hitters who confuse him by doing things he doesn’t expect. Among the most confusing hitters to face: Jeff Francoeur, because he swings when no one else would.

[westofyou]

Originally Posted by TOBTTReds

Yea, the scene from Moneyball where Jonah Hill is showing players the pitches they are swinging at and teaching them the importance of reaching base any way possible isn't exactly happening every where.

http://www.baseballprospectus.com/ar...rticleid=19886

Should front offices play a larger role in dictating in-game moves?

Brian Kenny thinks we’re getting to the point at which teams will have a stat-savvy assistant GM in the clubhouse or the dugout, where he’ll feed the manager information and offer advice on in-game moves. But Jed Hoyer says it’s the front office’s job to filter information for the manager, not to meddle with his moves: if players perceive that the front office is pulling the strings, it undermines the manager. On a separate panel, James echoed Hoyer’s concern, saying, “You don’t put a front office man in a suit in daily contact with the players.” One potential solution: more analytically inclined bench coaches, something James thinks we’re already seeing.

[marcshoe]

I think this is the key phrase:

So until those numbers are … more easily explained, more practical, something you could show somebody,

The discussion needs to be more narrative and less expository. Players need to be shown the results in practical ways. Don't just explain; give real-life examples.