The more I read about the methods used to calculate WAR (Wins Above Replacement), the more I shake my head. Even the sites that explain it admit that the calculation is very subjective (which means suspicious). I imagine the people who come up with calculation sit in front of a spreadsheet on their computer and fiddle with their formulas until they are happy with the results. But even so, the fielding part of WAR is not at all dependable. Most of us are not mathematically savvy enough to pick up on this. We all like the concept of a single number that compares pitchers and hitters, but I believe we are a long way from a dependable measure.
Photo by Joshua Peacock on Unsplash
The numbers that we can all depend on are measurable (like batting average or RBIs). The sabermetricians (fans of advanced statistical measures) howl every fall when voters use tried and true stats to choose award winners (wins and ERA for pitchers, batting average, home runs and RBIs for hitters), but those are numbers we can believe in. And if we EVER get to the point where umpires are replaced with a pitch calling machine, we should all rush the MLB office and protest long and loud.
Today’s classic rock song is “Jesus Left Chicago” by ZZ Top.