Defensive tactics in baseball
Paradigm shift
May 23rd 2012, 5:32 by D.R. | NEW YORK
http://www.economist.com/blogs/gametheory/2012/05/defensive-tactics-baseball
[节录]
... Rather than simply alternating between one of two infield
alignments—normal positioning and a “Williams Shift”—Tampa Bay
has studied where each opposing batter tends to hit the ball and
concentrated their infielders in those areas, even against right-
handed hitters. ...
... From 2009-11 just 22.4% of the Rays’ opponents’ ground balls
became hits, compared with 23.6% for an average American League team.
That difference may sound small. But it amounts to an advantage of 21
hits per season—which translates into a 1.7-game improvement in the
team’s won-lost record. Signing a player on the free-agent market
who would help the club by a similar amount would cost over $8m. ...
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省钱新招？说不定过几年又可以出书了呢。