Sunday, March 21, 2010
C. Trent Rosecrans interviews Bill James
Posted by Mike FastEveryone loves a new Bill James interview, and I am no exception. C. Trent Rosecrans has posted an two-part interview as part of Bill James making the Cactus League circuit promoting his new book.
Here's one part that caught my eye. I'm in complete agreement.
CTR: There's going to be a new system with cameras and computers that is supposed to revolutionize our understanding of defense, what kind of effect do you see that having?
BJ: I think the new system with cameras is that for several years it will create so much information that nobody will have any idea what to do with it. It's the first generation, I started this stuff I do before anyone had computers, I was literally adding stuff up in notebooks. When we all got computers it created so much information that for 10 years we were just bewildered by it and nobody had any idea what to do with it. The Pitch F/X stuff has done the same thing in the last five, six years, it's created so much data that nobody's been able to analyze it yet, in my view, and make much of it. I think the same thing will happen. Eventually something good will come of it, but it will take a while.
Mike Fast is a Royals fan who enjoys investigating baseball questions using data of many sorts. He is a member of Complete Game Consulting. He welcomes comments via e-mail.