Customer Reviews

The Bill James Handbook 2007

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

If you know about Bill James, I don't have to explain. If not aware of him, I can only say that he has created a wide variety of statistics to assess players in a novel way.

What are the odds that Tom Glavine will win 300 games? 74% The odds that Kenny Rogers will? 8%. The odds of other luminaries making it to 300 wins: Randy Johnson, 70%; Mike Mussina, 18%; Curt Schilling, 9%; Derek Lowe, 1%.

The odds that Barry Bonds beats Hank Aaron's record? 97%. The odds that Ryan Howard will? 2%. Also note that A-Rod (Alex Rodriguez) is projected to finish his career with 772 home runs. What about the projected homer figure for Albert Pujols? 867. Frank Thomas? 574. All thse projections, of course, assume that players remain healthy.

The odds of Craig Biggio getting 3,000 hits? 99%. The odds of Paul Konerko getting 3,000 hits? 9%. Others: Derek Jeter, 71%; A-Rod, 63%; Albert Pujols, 31%; Alfonso Soriano, 5%.

What about the range of third basemen (Number of successful chances--putouts plus assists--times nine, divided by the number of defensive innings played): The top 3 for 2006 are Brandon Inge, Freddy Sanchez, and Joe Crede. What about Alex Rodriguez? 4th from last. . . .

This volume provides projections for players in 2007; it assesses pitchers, baserunners, managers, baseball parks, etc.

For baseball fans who like statistical analyses, Bill James is a guru. This volume is a must read during Hot Stove League discussions.

In the final analysis, a worthy addition to the Bill James Library. . . .

This thing didn't offer nearly as much writing and analysis as I expected. Sure the stats are nice, but I couldnt find a chart telling me what the hell all these things were. Some were found in the back of the book, others are defined at the beginning of each section. Would be nicer if they were all in one place.

Also, I think the preseason update being sold for $10 is stupid. Anyone who bought this book should get that free in pdf format. This book is released at the end of the season before any moves are made. How can I believe any of these predictions for next year?? This is mostly a book of stats. Look elsewhere for real analysis of the stats.

The Handbook is great and comes out before the holidays which makes it available for gifting so also great. There is plenty of terrific stuff here: All the player's career records, excellent fielding evaluations thanks to Info Solutions which monitors every play. (-- that's right every play. These diligent and pale people sacrifice their lives so you don't have to.) There are also James' innovative Win Shares (although I wish they would include them with the career records) and his speculations on final career numbers--3000 hits, 500 homeruns etc. There is a ton of information on 2006 batting and pitching leaders , career data on the managers, evaluations of each ballpark and much more. There are hours of enjoyable perusing for those of us who find this stuff fascinating.
The but, and it is a considerable one, is that because the book comes out at such an early date that it does not include playoff or World Series records. Nor does it include these stats in the career records of the players. This is a pretty major omission for such an inclusive book. To have this information you must get The Sporting News version of the same book. I prefer the James book because of the James stuff but The Sporting News version also has trade and free agent histories as well as complete minor league records. For this reason I alternate season to season purchasing one of the books. This year I purchased the James and I'm loving it.

If you are a baseball fan this is essential. The bible of any baseball argument. Every GM gets this book the moment is comes out. So in depth and accurate it is amazing. The basis of GM's offseason contract deals and trades. Puts value on a player on a even playing field. Through very interesting non-standard types of statistics, true comparisons can be made of players like Derek Jeter vs. Jose Reyes. Who is a best baserunner? Who is the most clutch? order the book already.

A useful reference tool which never leaves my side when watching baseball games. Don't know what Bill James gets paid to contribute his name to the book , but it would be nice if he'd consider at least one essay on the state of the game or his current statistical question and answer.

This is the second year in a row that I purchased the Bill James Handbook (which should say something about what I thought of the 2006 edition). If you're looking for some interesting baseball stats, the Bill James Baseball Handbook offers a number of them. From career statistics to performance vs left/right pitchers to ballpark factors to managerial tendencies, the handbook has a lot to offer. And there is much. much more included in the book.

If baseball is your game, and statistics are something you enjoy, I highly recommend the Bill James Handbook 2007.

Keep this handbook next to you while you're watching baseball games. These statistics will get you ready for the season.

This book should be entitled "The Bill James Steroid-Era Handbook." The projections he makes are meaningless, because they are for players whose careers are steroid-driven and enhanced by jackrabbit baseballs. The baseball encyclopedias of the future should separate the Steroid Era from regular, normal baseball; thus, two separate historical record books:(1)19th century to circa 1990, and (2)a separate book that chronicles players post-1990. Consequently, in the pre-1990 book you'll see under "Career Home Run Leaders" the name "Henry Aaron" and the number 755 atop the list, whereas under the same heading in the "Great Steroid Era Encyclopedia" you'll see the name "Joe Blow" and 3,481, or whatever it will eventually be.
Another problem with Bill James (often seen in his all-time player ratings) is that he is too subjective and continually demeans the performances of those he dislikes - Ty Cobb, Joe Dimaggio, Rogers Hornsby, Joe Jackson - while overrating his personal favorites. A more realistic ranking, in order, of the all-time greatest position players would be as follows:
!) Ty Cobb
2) Babe Ruth
3) Willie Mays
4) Ted Williams
5) Joe Dimaggio
6) Honus Wagner
7) Rogers Hornsby
8) Lou Gehrig
9) Henry Aaron
10) Stan Musial
11) Mickey Mantle
12) George Sisler
13) Jimmy Foxx
14) Frank Robinson
15) Tris Speaker
16) Roberto Clemente
17) Nap Lajoie
18) Joe Jackson
I stop at eighteen simply because these players are the best - the very best - of the Pre-Steroid Era, and anyone else is a slight step down from these men. Thus, great as were Yaz, Al Simmons, Mel Ott, Pete Rose, Ernie Banks, Hank Greenberg, Jackie Robinson, Charlie Gehringer, Willie McCovey, Al Kaline, and Johnny Bench, they are not quite at the same level as the first eighteen.
It would be difficult to so assess the greatest players of the Great Steroid Era simply because they've not finished their careers, but whatever their final legacy, it should be circumscribed by the new age of enhancers in which they played and their records segregated from those of the Pre-Steroid Era.