> > > Me again: > Bob, first, many of the insights from statistics have begun to "leak out" > into the mainstream public, second, I've only described a very small > fraction of what sabermetricians have learned about baseball, and third, > they clearly are that novel if a team as distinguished as the Braves hasn't > figured them out yet. > > Bob: > So you mean to say that baseball people did not know in a general way that > if you get caught stealing too much you hurt your team? > > Me: > I'm sure they knew that, but that's a valueless piece of information.
How often is too often? That's the important thing to know. Obviously if you get caught 100% of the time you're hurting yoru team, and 0% of the time > you're helping. There is a range between those, however, and don't you > think it might affect team strategies to know what that number is? > Yes of course it will affect strategies. But it will not dictate stategies. There will be times when attempting to steal may be appropriate even if the stats say that for your team or a particular player it is a bad idea. I think this stuff is very situational. Does Jeter run on Piazza in the 8th inning of a tie game in which you know you can't use Rivera for two innings because he pitched last night?
