State of Play: The Old School Guide to New School Baseball

by Bill Ripken

Overview

Advanced statistics and new terminology have taken hold of baseball today, but do they accurately reflect the reality of the game? A baseball lifer states his case.

America’s favorite pastime is enduring an assault of new thoughts and ideas. In recent years, the sabermetrics and analytics craze has infiltrated Major League Baseball—from its front offices to dugouts to clubhouses to media covering both, inciting a baseball culture war. New phrases like “launch angle,” “spin rate,” and “pitch framing” have entered the vocabulary, often with little real meaning when it comes to how the game is actually played on the field. No more.

In State of Play, twelve-year Major League veteran, Emmy Award–winning MLB Network analyst, and bestselling author Bill Ripken breaks down these modern statistical methods to explain which ones make sense in the game’s historical context, bringing them together with proven old-school strategies. He simplifies those sabermetric terms hastily added to the baseball lexicon without being fully realized, taking new-school confusion out of old-school baseball’s tried-and-true common sense. In the end, he unites the teachings of each school to show fans of both how to listen to and understand the game as it’s played today and how it should be played moving forward.

From a true baseball lifer and member of baseball’s first family, State of Play offers a fascinating insider’s look at how to reconcile years of historical tradition with the rules and trends of the new millennium. As Ripken sees it: the game inside the game cannot be measured by a spreadsheet—but it can be measured by a qualified, crusty baseball man. Play ball.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781635766592
Publisher:	Diversion Books
Publication date:	02/11/2020
Pages:	240
Sales rank:	1,031,498
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.10(h) x 1.10(d)

About the Author

Bill Ripken is an MLB Network studio analyst, appearing on MLB Tonight and other programs. A twelve-year Major League veteran, he began his career in 1987 with the Baltimore Orioles and later played for the Texas Rangers, Cleveland Indians, and Detroit Tigers. Ripken and his brother, Cal Jr., run Ripken Baseball, which owns or operates four youth baseball complexes as well as The Aberdeen IronBirds, the Class A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles. They also co-founded the Cal Ripken, Sr. Foundation, which brings baseball to underprivileged communities. Ripken lives in Maryland.

Table of Contents

Foreword Ken Rosenthal xi

Introduction xv

1 Cal Ripken Sr. 1

2 The Ripken Way 11

3 Pitch Framing 21

4 Launch Angle 29

5 Spin Rate 39

6 Pitching Wins 47

7 Tunneling 55

8 Batting Average Versus On-Base Percentage 61

9 Wins Above Replacement (WAR) 67

10 Defensive Runs Saved (DRS) 79

11 Overshifts and Defensive Positioning 87

12 Errors 101

13 Automated Strike Zone and Ball-Strike Umpires 109

14 Runs Batted In (RBI) 117

15 On-Base Plus Slugging (OPS) 121

16 The Designated Hitter 127

17 The Game Being Played 135

18 The Control Group 141

19 Positional Versatility, Bench Players, and Platooning 147

20 Unwritten Rules 153

21 Run Differential 159

22 Lineup Construction 163

23 Weather and Baseball 177

24 Phrases of the Game 181

25 The Future 189

Acknowledgments 195

About the Author 197

Photo Credits 199

Index 201

Editorial Reviews

"For twelve major league seasons Bill Ripken was a very good baseball player. Since then he has been a brilliant teacher of the game’s nuances. With this book, readers who have not yet seen him, and especially his ‘Bill’s Blackboard’ segments on the MLB Network, can share the fun that the rest of us have been having thanks to him." —George F. Will

“I have known Bill Ripken for 25 years, dating back to when we were briefly teammates in Cleveland. And in those 25 years I have seen Bill prove, time after time, why he is thought to possess one of the best minds in baseball. State of Play continues that trend. It’s the literary equivalent of a three-run homer.” —Jim Thome, 2018 Baseball Hall of Fame inductee

"I encountered very few people over the thirty-plus years I spent working in professional baseball who possessed the fundamental knowledge of the game that Bill Ripken communicates so effortlessly on MLB Network broadcasts. A true baseball lifer, Ripken knows that there are aspects of the game that simply can't be explained through statistics or fancy buzzwords. And in this fascinating book, he makes a great case for a return to fundamentals in a way that everyone can understand. This is a book everyone should read if they truly want to understand the game from the inside out.” —Dan O’Dowd, former General Manager, Colorado Rockies

"Bill Ripken is not only one of the greatest teachers the game has ever seen but also one of the most intelligent baseball people I’ve ever been around. He has a unique ability to see the game at full speed, slow it down, dissect it, and then spit it out in simple terms that a ten-year-old or a ten-year major league veteran can grasp. State of Play is a perfect reflection of his unique talents and a heck of a fun read." —Harold Reynolds, 2-Time American League All-Star & MLB Network analyst

"The knowledge and insight gained in a lifetime in and around baseball jumps off every page of State of Play, as does the author’s passion for the game he knows so well. Baseball’s New Age analytics are important and in many cases indispensable, but Bill Ripken makes the case that a blend of old and new school perspectives is the way to go." —Bob Costas

"The highest compliment I can pay Bill Ripken is that he's a guy I would have loved to have played with. His knowledge and understanding of the game of baseball is unsurpassed. State of Play is a natural extension of the outstanding work he does for MLB Network and an essential read for anyone who cares about baseball. I recommend it without qualification."—Sean Casey, Three-time National League All-Star

“From a true baseball lifer and member of baseball's first family, State of Play offers a fascinating insider’s look at how to reconcile years of historical tradition with the rules and trends of the new millennium. As Ripken sees it: the game inside the game cannot be measured by a spreadsheet—but it can be measured by a qualified, crusty baseball man. Play ball.” —Business Insider

"State of Play can spark a lot of fun arguments among baseball fans and should definitely be given a read." —Patricia Beninato, Bucs Dugout Review

From the Publisher

02/28/2020

Baseball is a sport that measures a plethora of statistics. In today's version of the game, analytics and sabermetrics remain a significant portion of its analysis. This exhaustive collection of data from former major league ballplayer Ripken (MLB Tonight) ranges from pitching spinrates to wins above replacement (WAR) to on-base plus slugging (OPS). Ripken talks about the significance of these sabermetrics and the importance of just playing the game, and analyzes and interprets the stats in a way that is refreshing and accessible. He also touches on ways in which "old school baseball" and "new school baseball" can coexist, and is an extremely knowledgeable baseball insider, whose expertise succeeds in showing how fascinating the game is, and always has been. VERDICT A well-written account by one of baseball's most influential players. Fans of America's pastime and die-hard sabermetrics devotees will savor this informed perspective.—Gus Palas, Ela Area P.L., Lake Zurich, IL

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