1. 100 Best Books of the Decade - I'm a sucker for these lists, in part because they just give you more ideas of good books to read. I've read 14 of the books on the list, and have several more already on my to-read list. Of the ones I read, the books I would most recommend, in no particular order - Station Eleven by Emily St. John; The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt; All The Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr; The Immortal Life of Henrietta Sacks by Rebecca Skloot; and Flash Boys by Michael Lewis. Oddly enough, at least to me, the two books I've read that are in their Top 10 (A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan and The Unnamed by Joshua Ferris), while I enjoyed them both, I would have had in my bottom half of the 14 I have read. Anyway, good list with some interesting titles.
2. Don't Let Statistics Ruin Baseball - The title of the editorial sums up the author's position well; chiefly, that people can let statistics ruin baseball. For anyone who reads and follows a lot of baseball coverage, this is almost a boilerplate editorial these days, with some writer claiming that the increased use of saber-metrics, or analytics, or advanced stats (such as WAR, wOBA, FIP, ERA+, OPS+) is ruining baseball. I always find such arguments odd and misplaced. Baseball is a game that thrives with whatever statistics are used. It is a game meant for statistics, as every single action in the game has a quantifiable outcome that can be measured. Due to this, the individuals that have spent the time to figure out new ways to analyze the game and develop new statistical ways to measure player performance, often have more passion for the game than anyone. That's inherent in part of the reason they love the game. So I share this article to express how much I disagree with its underlying premise. I love the use of advance stats in baseball today, and it has helped my love and passion for the game, as well as my understanding, grow immensely.
3. Stodgy, Slow, Sacred: Fathers and Sons and Baseball - Second baseball themed link this week (it was opening week, after all). Just loved the reflection the author shared about how baseball helps his relationship with his son. In particular, the discussion of baseball's charm -
But for me, this continuity is the game’s charm, a source of its enduring attraction. We live in a forward-looking culture that prizes newness above all else. Every technology must be disruptive. Every pop star must shock us. Every novel must seek to somehow reinvent literature. We’re so busy chasing the new, we can forget the purpose of tradition, which is to provide a safe, circumscribed space for people of different ages and cultures to find connection.
The connection of the present to the past I think is the great beauty of baseball. The game played today is primarily the same game played 20, 40, 60 years ago. Yes, there have been slight rule changes, but nothing drastic. Even players still look the same in physical stature (as compared to the evolution of football and basketball players, for example). And, with the help of advanced stats, its easier than ever to compare players from different eras, which inevitably happens when discussions pop between fans of different generations. Baseball connects to its past better than any other sport. As a result, it provides that common ground of relationship between different generations that the author speaks of in this piece.
No comments:
Post a Comment