Guess what I found? An opportunity for OTM to become one of the most saber-friendly Sox blogs out there!
The International Currency of Baseball - Intro to Sabermetrics 101
Time to start studying up - in fact, here's a whole bunch of other material:
The Value of Walks and Baseball’s "Clock" - Intro to Sabermetrics 101
Intro to Sabermetrics 101: Glossary Sect. 1 - Intro to Sabermetrics 101
Pythag and expectancies
Intro to Sabermetrics 101: Glossary Sect. 2 - Intro to Sabermetrics 101
wOBA, defense, and DIPS (Defense Independent Pitching Statistics)
Intro to Sabermetrics 101: Glossary Sect. 3 - Intro to Sabermetrics 101
Replacement level and WAR
The author of that blog also writes for the SB Nation sabermetric site, Beyond the Boxscore. His work, along with the rest of a small army of writers', are HIGHLY recommended, and I'm not just saying that because we're connected to them (it's not like I get anything of tangible value out of it).
From another site, a link that isn't necessarily sabermetric, but still a good read:
Overreaction Comes in Many Forms - Yawkey Way Academy
Yeah, I'm probably going to be linking to some sites every day - they're just too good to ignore. Besides, some of this stuff needs to be spread; this time it's a reminder not to throw stones while living in glass houses.
That should hold y'all over for a while. If you have a particularly voracious appetite for links, there's some interesting hot stove ideas after the jump.
Jorge Cantu May Be Viable Option For Red Sox Infield Corners Rotation - NESN.com
Fresh idea. Any thoughts?
Trade Market: First Basemen - MLBTradeRumors.com
Bad Contract Swap Meet - MLBTradeRumors.com
Not quite sure I'd lump Papi in with the rest of those, but sure, why not?
Trades Of The Decade: Kazmir For Zambrano - MLBTradeRumors.com
Well, that would have saved us some annoying games. I mean, it's not Kaz would have beaten us in a WS game, right?
The 2009-2010 Offseason: A Critical Juncture for the Boston Red Sox - Bleacher Report
1. Work on an extension with C Victor Martinez and pick up his 2010 option.
2. While he might be the shortstop of the future, Jed Lowrie is not the shortstop of the immediate future.
3. I'm not ready to trade RP Jonathon Papelbon, yet.
4. First base; time for a fresh face?
5. I don't think the Sox need to go nuts in the free-agent market, but one spot where it would be nice to see them spend some cash is right field.
6. Who's the No. 5 starter?
I swear, some of these BR articles - the author forgot Wake for #6, calls JD "servicable", etc. Try not to get in trouble for snickering if you are reading this at work or in school.
Jacoby Ellsbury to left field? Lunacy - Red Sox Monster
Love that people immediately assume something's wrong if it doesn't pass the sniff test. If anyone wants to discuss this again, I'd recommend checking Randy's post about this subject from a few days ago first, so that we're not going in circles.
Root, root, root for New York - Tony Massarotti
Be honest with yourselves, folks. The fire is not burning quite as hot as it once did.
Umm... Pretty sure it still is. Maybe I'm just young and naive, but there's no way I'm rooting for the MFY to win any baseball game against a human team [had to avoid the mistake Surviving Grady made].
Red Sox's Kelly gets in more than at-bats - redsox.com: News
Casey Kelly put together his best AFL performance Wednesday, plating four runs and scoring another in Mesa's 12-5 win over Scottsdale.
DAMMIT
'Team of the Decade' debate heating up - redsox.com: News
I'm going to have to say it's a tie between all three, unless the MFY destroy the Phillies for the rest of the series. No way the Sox win this one though - the MFY have been better for most of the decade, and the Phillies could win because their repeat would still be fresh in the minds of the voters.
Have fun studying the stats side of life; don't worry, they aren't that hard to understand at all. If I manage to get through it with a severe hatred for math, it can't be that bad. Comments, more links, suggestions, questions can all be left here for everyone else to discuss.