Why?

Think of other industries. Different financial firms have different formulas to figure out value. You dont discount them because they arent uniform.

Its misuse of the stat that is the problem, imo

But Im not forcing it on anyone. Use OPS and UZR is you want

It all adds up though. Imagine if someone said about that formula "It makes more sense if you ignore 50% of it".

No, it's the use of the stat as an answer. Just look at this thread. WAR was cited, without context, as an answer to a question.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

Seems like you're agreeing with me. That's incorrect use.

I draw a distinction between the way a GM necessarily has to (or at least should) look at the game and the way I look at the game as a fan.

For example, take a guy like Edwin Jackson. You look at his WAR from 2008 until the Cubs got him in 2013 and those numbers suggested that in spite of all the bad losing records, he was pitching better than it seemed and he was in what should have been his prime and likely to translate those esoteric numbers into practical results within the next few seasons. I thought that myself. That's why there was the market for him there was and that's why Epstein signed him. Alas, his W/L records were actually more predictive of his abilities than WAR.

At the time the Cubs could have had Anibal Sanchez who went to Detroit. Another loser. Detroit was able to squeeze his best season out of him before he went back to what he is- mediocrity personified.

I don't really like Jose Quintana. I heard John Smoltz talking about the White Sox last night. He said the Sox need a "1A" to go with Sale. I agree. I hope it's Rodon. I'm sure it's not Quintana. But I will point out that Quintana is averaging a higher WAR per season than Smoltz did throughout his career even if we don't count the last three (terrible) seasons for Smoltz.

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Anybody here seen my old friend Bobby?
Can you tell me where he's gone?
I thought I saw him walkin' up to The Hill
With Elon, Tulsi, and Don

If a pitcher loses, how can his war be higher than anyone? "wins above replacement".

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It's not a literal "win". It's all theoretical. And that's the entire issue. As Rick was saying, ERA isn't a theoretical. It's an actual number based on easily understood events that actually occurred. WAR is someone's interpretation of the value of specific components of the game. It's not just a willy-nilly interpretation. It's based on information and fact. But there's a lot of noise in an aggregate of that type that is attempting to boil performance down to a single number. Especially in a game as complex as baseball.

_________________
Anybody here seen my old friend Bobby?
Can you tell me where he's gone?
I thought I saw him walkin' up to The Hill
With Elon, Tulsi, and Don

say it again

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Proud to be UNVERIFIED.

You're right. They'd have to endure a lot of injuries to win 110.

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Rick Hahn is the best GM in baseball.

It's only one tree in the forest, though (albeit a retarded one). Felix Hernandez has 50 WAR over the course of his career, and he's only 29.

My first instinct is to learn why he had such a low WAR in 2015, as opposed to outright dismissing it. According to fangraphs, the pitch value of his fastball was crap last year, even though he didn't lose any velocity. His slider also received a negative rating. His HR/FB ratio went up by 50%. He allowed a career high in homers. Maybe he had an inordinate amount of long flyouts which could have been homers outside of Safeco.

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Felix pitches in one of the best pitcher's parks, and Samardzija pitched in one of the best hitter's parks. That is one part of it.

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Rick Hahn is the best GM in baseball.

I think this offseason has gone better than last year. I never liked the LaRoche signing and Melky looked like a decent signing for the immediate future, but given his age, not an especially good one. But Frazier is a player in his prime and will greatly improve the 3B position, while Lawrie probably upgrades 2B as well. Avila and Navarro certainly should improve the hitting from the C position. It hasn't been the splashy offseason some teams have had, but I think it has been a better one than last year for the Sox. I will be shocked if they don't improve their win total by 10 games. It won't be enough to get a playoff berth, but they will be better. That said, with no real chance to contend, I think the strategy the Sox have employed was foolish. They should have traded away higher priced players like Robertson and Cabrerra if possible as well as Quintana, who could have brought a good prospect or two in return and done a complete rebuild. Even Sale should have been made available, as by the time they are contending again, he will be past his prime.

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Go Cubs!!!!

10 wins is 86 games won, which made the playoffs last year.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

10 game improvement would be most welcomed.

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Elections have consequences.

Yes, and it could be good enough this season too. But the team would be a wild card and be eliminated in the wild card or ALDS should they qualify. I see the Royals and the Tigers in their division alone, as stronger teams. I doubt 86 wins will be good enough in 2016. There is a greater disparity between the haves and have-nots this season. I don't see the parity in Baseball being present like it was to a large degree last year. In any case, while the Sox should be improved, I don't see them as genuine contenders like the Royals, Cubs, and Astros.

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Go Cubs!!!!

Do you think the disparity between the AL and the shitty NL will be greater than 34 games?

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Anybody here seen my old friend Bobby?
Can you tell me where he's gone?
I thought I saw him walkin' up to The Hill
With Elon, Tulsi, and Don

Lay off the egg nog, Chief.

Whitesox in the celler. Melky and Garcia blow as corner OFs.

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Good people drink good beer - Hunter S. Thompson

<º)))><

Waiting for the time when I can finally say
That this has all been wonderful, but now I'm on my way

Bryant and Kyle DH are sure to be defensive juggernauts in the corner outfield positions for your team.

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I don't see Bryant having any problems in @ any outfield position, hesva better outfielder than 3rd base..and he's average @ 3rd.

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O judgment! Thou art fled to brutish beasts,
And men have lost their reason.

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Rick Hahn is the best GM in baseball.

Bryant is a 3rd baseman. He was surprisingly good after shaking off his early ball patting habit.

I don't know where he ends up, but he wasn't brutal at 3B.

http://www.fangraphs.com/leaders.aspx?p ... &players=0

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Rick Hahn is the best GM in baseball.

Good dolphin should be banned from the mlb section until after the all-star break.

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Soon to be 3-0.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

Ian Happ homered again tonight, how is AAA Fullmer doing? #PoorMan'sTheoAtBest

The title of this thread should be 0-3, more fake news in the Sox section.

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I think I would even rate Ryan Pace's drafting ability over Dick Hahn's at this point. #HeyItsKennysFault

^^^Cub fan jealousy rearing its ugly head again.

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Fare you well, fare you well
I love you more than words can tell
Listen to the river sing sweet songs
To rock my soul