The question on your mind is probably: how does one actually evaluate middle relievers? It’s an excellent question, and one that I haven’t quite figured out yet. Part of the reason for starting this blog is to get a better handle on appropriate standards for evaluating talent. Currently, I evaluate middle relievers on a scale from “sucks” (Jeff Ridgway of the 189.00 ERA in 2007) to “gamer” (Hideki Okajima, Rock Star). I’m sure that will evolve somewhat in the next year.
In the meantime, check out U.S. Patent No. 7092847, a method for “evaluating the performance of a relief pitcher in the late innings of a baseball game.” Yeah, the man who brought you the self-stablizing training wheels for a bicycle and the kick-ass water conservation delivery system using temperature-controlled by-pass circuit has turned his engineering prowess to baseball.
Here’s a summary of his baseball patent:
A method of evaluating the performance of a relief pitcher in the late innings of a baseball game in which the pitcher inherits at least one player on base, the method comprising the steps of establishing the number of runs Ri scored by such inherited runners; establishing the number of batters B faced in such innings; evaluating the Relief Quotient “RQ”, where:
RQ = k ( Ri + E B ) n
where k is first a predetermined constant selected to scale the RQ to a desired range of magnitudes, n is a second predetermined constant that may be positive or negative and E is a parameter that may be an integer or equal to 0 ; and storing RQ in a tangible medium for subsequent use.
He had me until the “predetermined constant selected to scale the RQ to a desired range of magnitudes.” I welcome anyone who took the GRE math section to explain it to me in the comment. My whole reason for posting this though was to highlight a few of Mr. Storch’s sweet diagram of his patented process (remember, this patent was filed in 2004):
Apparently you need a computer from 1993 to complete the computation. It looks like clip art. Regardless, kudos to Mr. Storch for thinking about the subject more than we have.
Update 1/17/08: Corrected the spelling of Jeff Ridgway’s name. Yeah, he’s so bad that he doesn’t even deserve the “e.”
6 responses so far ↓
johnstevens // November 15, 2007 at 8:46 pm |
I’m not smart enough to understand Paul Storch’s patent, but I’d be willing to bet it’s a better representation of relief pitcher effectiveness than the hold. The hold is the worst statistic in baseball. This blog should only reference the hold when making fun of people who attempt to use it in a serious manner.
gnopple // November 16, 2007 at 5:09 pm |
johnstevens, I would love to see a sarcastic post dissecting the hold.
Bullpenternet: His Heart Is In The Right Place… « The Loogy Lounge // December 18, 2007 at 2:29 am |
[...] don’t know either, guy. But it’s kind of a fun to make up new shit. And no, Bill James had nothing to do with it. John Dewan and Mike O’Donnell got [...]
189.00 Jeff Ridgeway to the Braves « The Loogy Lounge // January 17, 2008 at 10:12 pm |
[...] 2007 major league ERA of the new middle reliever for the Braves. To be fair, Jeff Ridgeway (who I had earlier scientifically classified as “sucks”) didn’t have much of a chance to prove himself at the major league level last year. The [...]
Joshua Storch // February 18, 2008 at 9:46 pm |
Josh Storch here… Paul and I have since updated this formula and filed for a new patent. We’d really like to see more discussion out there about how to evaluate relief pitchers when inherited runners are involved. We created a website which simplifies the formula and has some relief quotient data for actual pitchers. We want people check it out and share their thoughts: http://www.reliefstat.com
We’ll continue populating the data section; in the meantime, enjoy.
Storch Speaks; Patent Updated « The Loogy Lounge // February 22, 2008 at 2:50 pm |
[...] to highlight a note we got from Josh Storch, the man who is probably related to Paul Storch who patented a method for “evaluating the performance of a relief pitcher in the late innings of a baseball game.” [...]