Vol. II, Issue #1 - January 2014
  

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** Review of the book: "Bill James Handbook 2014"  **
      (submitted by Wolfman Shapiro with an interview of the authoring company,
Baseball Info Solutions {BIS}, Ben Jedlovec published by ACTA Sports, Nov. 2013)

Notes from the Wolfman: - Bill James is the mastermind who has been the inspiration for this book for its 25th year which is supported now by BIS (of which John Dewan is the president, see our interview in the August 2013 issue) has revolutionized the way to look at Baseball Statistics. So if you are the GM of a team in any SOM baseball league using the new card set coming out in February, this is a MUST HAVE book. Within this review will be detailed information why most baseball fans have this book on their shelf further supported by some indepth questions I was able to ask the authoring company via one of their Vice Presidents, Mr. Jedlovec.

I first heard about this handbook when I was having a conversation with Marc Wasserman (the co-founder of this newsletter), who mentioned it to me. Now because what I do for a living is not directly linked to baseball or strat-o-matic, I am learning a great deal more about these subjects and what baseball resources exist due to being the editor of this newsletter. There are actually some tremendous sources of information that is available on-line via various baseball related websites.

So last year, after I made a deal with ACTA Sports that allowing us to provide some of their best baseball books which they publish for our our members at a discount, I also learned they are the publisher of the "BILL JAMES HANDBOOK". Therefore, I innocently asked if I could get a review copy which they agreed (the 2013 version).  I was floored by the great amount of information contained within this handbook so I asked ACTA again for a review copy of the "2014 Handbook" which arrived here within days. And then, Mr. Jedlovec quickly accommodated me to do an email interview to find out more about how this book is created.

Thus, if you find this book could benefit your franchise in your league (as people in professional baseball buy this book) at the end of this review is a link with explanation how to get your own copy. You can count on it that I will be pouring through this book to prepare for the upcoming draft in the CBA in early March. You might also want to view my article in this issue where I share exactly what I do to prepare to draft and build my team for 2014 as it works hand in hand with this book review.
 

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PLAYERS STATS: 263 pages of every individual ball player who played at all during the 2013 season. They are listed alphabetically with all the main stats you would expect for the hitters and pitchers and a few extra categories which if you don't know what they mean, there is a Baseball Glossary in the back that defines them. He shows all the major league seasons each player had but only shows their stats for 2013 in the minors if they played in the minors.

Bill James has a habit of coming up with new perspectives on how to look at a player's performance and I remember when I watched the video presentation on the MLB.com website where they were discussing who should get the Cy Young Award for Pitching they used some of these new stat views that Mr. James has created.  So this is part of the magic you also get within this book, these other statistical views which help you evaluate the truth worth of the player. The times are changing as we get much more sophisticated.

2014 PLAYER PROJECTIONS: This is a key section because if you are going to keep your players from year to year, you want to know how will they do in the baseball season in this next season coming up. One of the questions I asked Mr. Jedlovec was how is Mr. James able to do this which is answered later in this review.  Again, you may want to consult my article on team building in this issue as I found five other sources of predicting how players will perform on-line (especially some of the new prospects and rookies coming up). Also on the BIS website (shown at the end of Mr. Jedlovec's interview), you can order in a spreadsheet form these projections for a small price.  Then a revised version of this update is offered at the end of February to take into account the signings and trades by the Major League teams.

INDIVIDUAL FIELDING STATISTICS: -- We all know in SOM Baseball how important fielding is, especially if you have in the field all "1"s - that would certainly help your pitching. But not only in this book do they give stats about the fielding of any major leaguers but they also provide a completely detailed look with new stats of the efficiency of the player's fielding that I have never heard of. It would take a good week to just study these new stats and try to figure out what it all means. This might be overkill for us in SOM as a fielding rating and e-rating gives us enough but for Major League teams, but it could give you an edge too.  I understand that this is a key area which Mr. Dewan is very involved with and helps.

HITTER'S AND PITCHER'S ANALYSIS: -- These two sections are showing how affect each MLB Hitter and Pitcher were during the season but again, Mr. James is looking at many other factors that you and I would never consider.  But this is why this book is so unique, is there is no other organization on the planet that does such an indepth analysis of the MLB players. Again a careful study of this section will reveals secrets about the players that could guide you in future drafts.

Of course this book shares all the normal stats we are use to via the newspapers or even what we see in the SOM Computer Baseball game such as league leaders, how the teams stacked up against each other in hitting and pitching.  But then you have other sections which go beyond this such as (using the names from the book):

Team Efficiency Summary -- Base Running -- Relief Pitching -- Pitcher's Fielding and Holding

Pinch Hitting -- Manufactured Rounds with Productive & Un-Productive Outs -- Home Run Robberies

Of course the handbook also comes with the Lefty - Righty Stats of each player as well which if you do buy the Strat-o-matic Rating guide you see this as well with the chances of each stat given.  If you love what Bill James offers there is a website he has with even more information and articles.  Also BIS discusses in this book what they call the 2013 Fielding Bible Awards where they vote on the best fielding player at each position but BIS also does a whole other book they publish which goes into great depth just about fielding. 

The only slight problem I had with the book is because they pack in so much information, squeezing it into less pages so ACTA wouldn't complain, the size of the data and statistic is very small and compressed. I am sure that if a person wanted they could get any of this information from BIS as data file though.

Anyway, in conclusion, if you love Baseball and you want to fully understand from a statistical perspective of what happened in the the 2013 MLB season, which then is indirectly related to know about all the players who will be available to us next month in the 2014 SOM Baseball card set, this is the book you must have.  It comes out in November of the season it reports so you have 3-4 months to study it before you SOM League will begin.

For those who can't wait, here is how as a member of the "Ultimate Strat Baseball Newsletter" you can receive a 10% discount on this book (and any other baseball book ACTA Sports sells).

To get your copy of the "Bill James Handbook 2014" go to:

http://www.actasports.com/billjameshandbook2014/
(type in when you order, the promotion code: SOMB for your 10% discount)

 

 

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** Interview with Ben Jedlovec about the Handbook  **
      (inteview conducted by Wolfman Shapiro, Ben Jedlovec is the Vice President of Product Development
and Sales with Baseball Info Solutions, he answers background questions about this handbook)

Wolfman:  Mr. Jedlovec, I want to thank you for taking time out of your busy schedule to answer the additional questions I have about Mr. James latest Handbook so our members have a better idea what is contained in this book and the time and effort it took to make the book. Can your first describe a bit more about the role you play for BIS?

Ben Jedlovec:  I oversee our research and sales efforts, and I have been a part of the Handbook production process in one way or another for the five plus years I have been with the company.

Wolfman:  Now when I look at the 2014 edition, I see Bill James' name highlighted but inside I see John Dewan is also involved in the creation of this book. Can you tell us then, what exact role did each of these special gentlemen play exactly linked to the handbook?

Ben Jedlovec:  Bill and John both play vital and significant roles in the production of the annual Bill James Handbook. Bill, John, and a team from BIS meet in-person each summer to discuss changes and additions to the upcoming edition of the Handbook.  Bill and John have leading roles in the design of any new sections or changes we elect to pursue. The team from BIS, which is led by John, will implement the changes and additions to the production process, which John has a hand in as well. When the season is over, both Bill and John contribute in several ways during the Handbook production, including writing introductions, proofreading, and providing input on player projections. Both John and Bill review the entire book before it goes to print.

Wolfman:  Why do you have to take just two weeks to put the book together and thus place yourselves under a great pressure to get the handbook completed so quickly?

Ben Jedlovec:  Our goal is to get the book on the shelves by November 1st of each year. The winter is long and hard for baseball fans, and we feel your pain. We want this book on the shelves the minute the World Series is over. Obviously, we can't finalize the numbers until the regular season is actually finished at the end of September/beginning of October. Our publisher at ACTA Sports is fantastic; they make the whole thing possible because they can turn our book around and have it in stores in two weeks. That leaves us with the two weeks between the end of the season and the middle of the month to assemble the entire book, cover to cover, and have the proofread/stat-checked version to ACTA and the printer. Our latest version has nearly 600 pages filled to the brim with baseball statistics, and we double and triple-check every last one of them. As you can imagine, that takes a lot of hard work from a lot of passionate people.

Wolfman:  How did the idea for this yearly book begin? When was its first year?

Ben Jedlovec:  Bill's introduction to this year's book gives an excellent account of the origins of the Handbook. In his words:

"Our notion was to do the things that [The Sporting News] chose not to do. In July or August of 1988 I wrote a memo to John Dewan and Don Zminda of STATS, Inc., (editor's note: as you can recall from John Dewan's interview he gave us last year, first he created STATS, Inc. and then sold it to build their current company) proposing that we do a book which summarized each player’s record, but which would come out in the fall and would have a more modern composition of statistical categories.

I went to Chicago a few weeks later, and was astonished to discover that John, Don, Sue Dewan and the rest of the staff had taken my memo, and had actually produced the book in draft form. Astonished may be an understatement. I had worked with New York publishers for about ten years by then, and my experience with publishing companies of the 1980s was that they were not quick on their feet. It was a revelation to me that somebody could, by determination, hard work and modern technology, take something from a concept to a product in the space of a few weeks."

Wolfman:  In recent years, it seems as one explores the internet, there is some organization who is in charge of collecting and organizing the stats related to every ballplayer and every single event which takes place in each game not only in the Major Leagues but the Minor Leagues as well. Now in order to do a book like the "Bill James Handbook", either BIS is this organization or you have access to this wealth of very detailed information. I mean, even 20 years ago, this level of detail of statistics for Baseball didn't exist. 

So my question then is: is it BIS who is collecting and tracking all of this data and then when it is finalized and available, Bill and John put a portion of it into the handbook?  Is all of this information then 
computerized - so you just link into the various databases, sort it in the order you want it to appear and magically you create the handbook and this is why you are able to do it in two weeks?

Ben Jedlovec:  Yes, I think you've got it right. The BIS Operations staff and Video Scouts do a tremendous job tracking all of the detailed information for every single major league game. We tap into the massive BIS database for all of the data required to produce the tables and charts that appear in the Handbook. Believe it or not, only a small portion of the information we record actually makes it into the Handbook. The publishers won't let us produce 1,000+ page books, however, so we cram as much information as possible into the pages we're allotted.

Wolfman:  Wow that is amazing and thus it must be a big job to store and keep track of all this information. You know Mr. Jedlovec, these days there are so many new baseball stats being kept and calculated, so many different views to see how the players and teams are performing. So would it be correct to say that Bill and John are the originators of these alternative views of baseball statistics that contain all kinds of new percentages and ratings and unheard calculations!!  Did John come up with the idea of On-base Percentage for example which we all, even in our play of our baseball teams in Strat-o-matic, pay close attention to as we watch the teams who have hitters with the best OBP win games?

Ben Jedlovec:  From Runs Created to Win Shares to Defensive Runs Saved, a large number of the statistics in the Handbook and in use throughout the industry were invented by Bill or John. We often add new sections based on data that BIS is collecting, and John and Bill have a large role in analyzing the data and deciding how to present it to the public.

On-base percentage predates both of them, though. I believe Allan Roth used OBP in the 1940's and 50's when working for Branch Rickey and the Dodgers though.

Wolfman:  How does Bill James calculate the future predictions of the players performance for the 2014 Major League Season?

Ben Jedlovec:  The projections are a product of John's and Bill's collective experience over the years. They developed projection systems for hitters (and later, for pitchers) which have been updated and tweaked regularly. The current projections are a series of algorithms based on both John's and Bill's work, among many others. We're always finding aspects we're not fully satisfied with, and we try to improve them. Each year, the projections require manual intervention, particularly with regard to playing time, which John and Bill are both heavily involved in.

Wolfman:  Why is Bill James quoted within the Handbook as "the genius who initiated this book"?, What role does he play now in the creation of the book, does he just say how to organize the book and what to put into it and the team at BIS comes up with the results?

Ben Jedlovec:  As described in some detail in response to other questions, Bill remains a vital member of the Handbook production process. While he might not be physically producing the book page by page, the book would be a far inferior product without his creative and editorial efforts.

Wolfman:  I am curious, if you can share, how many copies of the Handbook do you normally sell? Are there any well known individuals within Professional Baseball who buy the handbook? Do any of the major league teams use this information in some way to help them with their teams?

Ben Jedlovec:  While the publication numbers are not generally released, the Handbook continues to have a tremendous following among baseball fans as well as those inside the industry. The Handbook is a widely used reference in the player arbitration process, for example. Observant fans will notice the occasional Handbook reference from general managers, such as Dan Duquette, and legendary media members, such as Peter Gammons.

Wolfman:  Who is in charge of the Fielding Stats presented?

Ben Jedlovec:  While a number of people contributed to the current design of the Fielding Stats section, it all comes back to John Dewan. John has done more to advance the development of defensive metrics than anyone. In addition to developing Plus/Minus and Defensive Runs Saved, he continues to lead the charge for collecting better, more-detailed data. Without better data, advances in defensive metrics would be impossible. Our Fielding Stats section includes the latest defensive data from John and the BIS team.

Wolfman:  If someone asked you why this is a must book for either a  fantasy baseball player or a strat-o-matic baseball game player, especially someone who will be utilizing the players for their fantasy team that is based upon their performance in 2013 or wish to acquire young talent for their team .... how would you answer such a question?

Ben Jedlovec:  In addition to the basic stats and historical record, the Handbook offers a level of insight and analysis that isn't available elsewhere. From park factors to defensive analysis to projections for the upcoming season, the Handbook has the information you need to know when managing your fantasy or Strat-O-Matic team for the long haul.

Wolfman:  It seems (and maybe you could answer this as you personally know Mr. James) that Bill James
is a creative baseball genius who is able to view this game in ways most of us would never see it. But what is there about Bill James that allows him to perform such feats -- what type of person is he?

Ben Jedlovec:  Bill has many remarkable aspects, but there are three ways in which he stands out most often, in my opinion.

First is his pure intelligence. The fact that Bill can contribute so influentially in one field (sabermetrics) and still author a noteworthy book about in a completely separate field (true crime) in his "spare" time, that astounds me.

Second, his historical knowledge of baseball is almost unmatched. This helps him bring a wise perspective to any baseball conversation. Someone should put Bill, Craig Wright, and John Thorn in the same room and have them go round for round on historical baseball trivia. It would probably be quite funny, too.

Third is his ability to communicate through writing. There are many other people who have had great ideas for sabermetrics over the years. No one impacted the game the way Bill has because he has been able to communicate his ideas to a wide audience in an engaging manner.

Wolfman:  Is there any other information about the handbook you think our readers should know about - some special parts of the book that make it different, unique and very valuable?

Ben Jedlovec:  One of the best things about the Handbook is that it gets better every year. We're always adding new sections, new data, and new analysis for our readers. Much of it is based on ideas from readers or the mountains of data BIS collects. In recent years, we've added sections on pitcher repertoires and instant replay, just to name two. We've kept a log of every usage of instant replay since its inception, which isn't available anywhere else to my knowledge.

Wolfman:  Thanks Mr. Jedlovec for answering these addition questions and giving to our readers a look behind the scenes of how this great handbook is done. If any of our readers are not familiar with Baseball Info Solutions you can learn more about this company by visiting their website at:

http://www2.baseballinfosolutions.com/

(Final Comments from the Wolfman:  It is amazing in this modernized world, how our technology is able to record the minutest detail about any single event in a baseball game, record all this information into a computer and then with the genius of Bill James and others at BIS provide a great wealth of new insights that can assist the Major League teams to perform at a high level of excellence.  In any case, we are grateful to BIS for once again working with us
to offer some new information that can benefit our members in their game play.  We really all have to work at a similar level as the GMs of any professional club looking at many factors to have success with our league, replay or tournament teams!!)

Again, if you want a chance to order this excellent book at the discount price head over to:

"Bill James Handbook 2014"

http://www.actasports.com/billjameshandbook2014/
(type in when you order, the promotion code: SOMB for your 10% discount)

 

 

 

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Check out the new e-book by the Wolfman
his first SOM Baseball e-book sharing his
secrets for creating a successful team

(for your draft league or tournament,
click on the cover to read more and
be one of the first to get a copy!)

In Celebration of our
first year of existence
Wolfman is offering his e-book
by donation through February!!

 

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Support the Cause If you are enjoying the content and information our newsletter shares with you, why not support us with your helpful donation for our minor expenses and time?

Contained inside this exciting issue of Ultimate Strat Baseball Newsletter:
(to view the various interviews, articles, columns and special sections click on the links {underlined} and
this will take you to the appropriate webpage)
 

♦  RETURN TO NEWSLETTER MAIN PAGE

♦  INTERVIEW with DEL NEWELL, retired Editor of the "Strat-o-matic Review"

♦  SOM BASEBALL WORLD NEWS, a new page to share interesting news related to
Strat-o-matic Baseball.

♦  STRAT THOUGHTS with BRUCE BUNDY, SOM Gamer, Creator of Baseball Card Formulas, Baseball Strategy Advisor, Beta Tester for the Game Company
(Continuation of his column of "Strat Thoughts", one of our members has some great questions for Bruce about how the baseball cards are created to show realism.)

♦  ARTICLE with MIKE SANCLEMENTE, founder of Stratogists.com
(Mike takes us on a delightful journey with his article "Koji vs. Bill Gates" and then discusses how
 using Excel spreadsheets can take you far with your league's team strategy)

♦  EARLY SOM CONVENTIONS COLUMN with WOLFMAN SHAPIRO -- editor of
"The Ultimate Strat Newsletter" and 2012 CBA Champion. Wolfman takes us back in
this article to the seventh national Strat-o-matic Convention in 1979 held in Champaign-Urbana, IL, at the University of Illinois as the Wolfman and his buddies organize their sixth convention. Wolfman will be our guide through the first nine conventions happening through 1980 of which he was present at each one. This particular column now moves into the 1974-1980 era when the conventions moved to Illinois. We will continue to share one new convention in each future issue till all of these early conventions are published. Also we hope this column will inspire our readers to help us create a SOM On-line Baseball Convention in the near future.

♦  COMMISSIONER's CORNER with MARC WASSERMAN -- commissioner of the Cyber Baseball Association (CBA) continues his column about what it is like to be a League Commissioner. In this article he turns his focus to how things wok in the CBA and via the Strat Alliance introduces us to another baseball league that has existed for 43 years.

♦  ARTICLE with WOLFMAN SHAPIRO -- Wolfman discusses his strategies how to build a very successful team in a draft SOM baseball league where you keep your players form year to year.

♦  RECOMMEND ON-LINE SOM RESOURCES -- On-line Strat-o-matic and Baseball related websites that offer amazing information, special tools and products to improve your game play that we strongly recommend. In most cases, we have had personal contact with these sources who agree with the principle to work together and help promote each other.

♦  BOOKS TO DIE FOR and Become a BASEBALL GURU -- This page is specifically about special books we are finding that either will expand your insights about the game of Baseball, help you in the creation of your current league teams or with your replays and learn more about the Strat-o-matic Base Game and Game Company's history.  We have a special arrangement with Acta Sports, who is a publisher of a number of great baseball books (including Bill James Handbooks) to offer for our members a 10% discount. We will continue to add more books to this page in the future as we uncover other gems our members should know about.

 

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