SABERMETRIC BASEBALL ENCYCLOPEDIA ENDORSEMENTS
From Bill James, in an ESPN.com chat, May 14, 2002--
Chris (Cleveland): I've really enjoyed the Historical Abstract and Win
Shares. One of the main problems I see with good research going forward in
baseball, is that many of us don't have access to complete and accurate
databases -- at least not without either money or a great deal of work. Any
chance this is something you would invest some time in producing?
Bill James: (4:15 PM ET ) Yeah, its kind of ironic to see statistics guys
getting behind the curve in this area, given modern computers. I don't have any
immediate plans. There is a very good product called the Sabermetric
Encyclopedia, from a man named Lee Sinins. . .I have never met Mr. Sinins, but
enjoy his product. [The ellipses are in the original.]
From Peter Gammons's ESPN.com column, 1/1/2002--
Loose change
Three things to buy with leftover Christmas cash:
...
Lee Sinins' Sabermetric Baseball Encyclopedia. Check the Baseball Immortals Web site, order
the Encyclopedia and get on the mailing list, because your mind will be stretched daily.
From Jayson Stark's ESPN.com column, 1/11/2002--
Our favorite baseball toy of the offseason is the new Sabermetric Encyclopedia CD-rom just
published by one of our loyal readers, Lee Sinins. That 40-0 Club was just one of the many
fun computations we've manufactured with this encyclopedia, which is available at
www.baseball-encyclopedia.com.
Here come some others, beginning with the 10 hitters who have made the most outs over the
last 10 years:
1. Marquis Grissom, 4441
2. Rafael Palmeiro, 4314
3. Craig Biggio, 4277
4. Steve Finley, 4261
5. Eric Karros, 4248
6. Jay Bell, 4227
7. Omar Vizquel, 4211
8. Chuck Knoblauch, 4162
9. Brady Anderson, 4141
10. Sammy Sosa, 4129
We could have guessed that Barry Bonds had been issued more intentional walks than any player
in baseball over the last 10 seasons. But now we know he had almost twice as many as any
other player. The leaders:
1. Barry Bonds, 274
2. Ken Griffey Jr., 152
3. Frank Thomas, 140
4. Mo Vaughn, 134
5. Jeff Bagwell, 132
6. John Olerud, 123
7. Mark McGwire, 121
8. Robin Ventura, 113
T9. Sammy Sosa, 112
T9. Mike Piazza, 112
One question: Who had Robin Ventura ahead of Sosa and Piazza in this pool?
How about this vital list -- of pitchers who have committed the most balks over the last 10
years:
1. Brian Anderson, 21
2. Hideo Nomo, 17
T3. Darryl Kile, 15
T3. Kenny Rogers, 15
T3. Armando Reynoso, 15
T6. Ismael Valdes, 14
T6. Pedro Astacio, 14
T8. Bud Black, 13
T8. Randy Johnson, 13
T8. Omar Daal, 13
And here's a huge race (literally) to watch this year -- Jeff D'Amico attempting to take over
the all-time lead for most career wins by pitchers weighing 250 pounds or more, while C.C.
Sabathia tries to catch him:
PITCHER WINS WEIGHT
T1. Garland Buckeye 29 260
T1. Jeff D'Amico 29 250
3. Jumbo Brown 19 295
T4. C.C. Sabathia 17 260
T4. Rocky Coppinger 17 250
6. Johnny Hutchings 12 250
7. Steve Rain 3 250
T8. Carlos Zambrano 1 250
T8. Chad Paronto 1 255
T8. Willie Smith 1 250
T8. Chuck Malone 1 250
Sorry, we have to go by official, Baseball Encyclopedia-listed weights here. So don't go
sending in any Where's David Wells complaints.
From John Perrotto, writer, Beaver County (Pa.) Times/Baseball America--
As a baseball writer, it's an incredible tool to have so much information
at the touch of a couple of key strokes. The Sabermetric Baseball
Encyclopedia makes my life easier and is one of the greatest innovations
ever.
From Steve Lombardi, www.netshrine.com--
Lee Sinins' Sabermetric Baseball Encyclopedia is an unequivocal "must have" for
baseball fans of any level. It is the only computer application of any kind that I have on
my PC which is used everyday, without fail, subsequent to its installation. Lee's CD is an
incredible research tool which is easy to use and a source of great pleasure. In terms of a
return on investment, I doubt that you will ever experience one as great as the purchase of
the Sabermetric Encyclopedia.
From Kerry Leibowitz--
I use the encyclopedia all the time--many times a day, on average.
From Mike Fenger--
Well, I'm happy to tell you I've been very impressed with the Sabermetric
Baseball Encyclopedia -- it's great fun to run queries and have the answers
come up so quickly. (The lists that Lee sends to the discussion group are
also a great leaping-off place to dive into baseball history.) My
11-year-old daughter thinks it's cool too.
From Alan Shank, author of Al's Baseball Tidbits at www.baseballprimer.com--
I use the "Sabermetric Baseball Encyclopedia" quite often when writing
"Al's Baseball Tidbits." The most useful feature is the comparison to
the player's league and position for career totals.
From Bruce MacLeod--
I recently purchased and installed Version 2 of the Sabermetric Baseball
Encyclopedia and have been truly amazed at all the information and features
it contains. Previous products I have used always came up short in the area
of total stats available (especially for pitchers), but Lee Sinins has put
together a database which is all encompassing.
The ability to quiz this database using many different criteria is an
important capability and Lee gives the user a very effective tool.
I have used this software many times since installing it and consider it one
of my two main resources for baseball data.
From Bob Lanphere--
Outstanding! Lee continues to amaze by improving on both quality and
quantity edition after edition. It holds the number one spot in my baseball
research library.
From Joe Haardt--
The Sabermetric Baseball Encyclopedia fills a void for baseball statisticians
and historians. All the traditional batting, pitching and fielding stats, plus
the modern SABR related stats and some interesting new measurements. Want to
know the Cleveland Indians roster and what place (fourth) they finished in
1922? You got it! Want to know how many putouts Smokey Joe Wood recorded? It's
not only in here, you get how many PO he had as a pitcher, 2B or RF! Want to
know who hit the most HR in a season with less than 100 AB? Whaada ya think?
Yep, its here! Best of all, this tool is VERY reasonably priced. You won't be
disappointed. (Oh yeah, Ted Williams had 13 dingers in 91 AB in 1953.)
From Stuart Schimler, from www.baseballhistorysociety.com--
The encyclopedia is a MUST have for ANY baseball researcher or fan. With tons of statistical
information, you are bound to find what you are looking for. I give it my highest approval
rating and fully endorse the Sabermetric Baseball Encyclopedia.
From Atticus Ryan--
I absolutely hate a cluttered desktop, but the Sabermetric Baseball
Encyclopedia earned a 'shortcut' in minutes!
I used to have a stack of baseball encyclopedias a foot and a half tall
next to my PC. Now I have entire world of baseball statistics a mouse-click
away!
I participate in a number of baseball simulation leagues and the
Sabermetric Encyclopedia is now my trusted 'Director of Player Development.'
With stats found nowhere else -- and flexible ways of finding and presenting
them -- this gem of a program is an indispensable resource in evaluating
players for a draft or trade!
Well, those are just some of things I love about your program!
From Craig Tomarkin, from www.BaseballGuru.com--
Lee Sinins' Sabermetric baseball encyclopedia is a must have for anyone one who loved
baseball stats and has a computer. It's easy to use and deeply engrossing.
From Pat Namanny--
I love using the encyclopedia! It provides a plethora of information readily
available at my fingertips. It was easy to load and is simple to operate It
generates virtually any statistical baseball analysis imaginable. It's a lot
of fun to use and experiment with. I've used it to prepare for the draft of
my fantasy baseball team. I highly recommend the program for anyone
interested in baseball statistics.
Thanks, Lee!
From Scott Carter--
I run a simulation league of old-time players, and the sabermetric baseball
encyclopedia has been a god-send. There is no better searchable database
anywhere! Thank You Lee!
From Jan Finkel--
It's an invaluable research tool and very easy to use.
From Stan Watson--
I recently purchased your product for the first time after hearing about it
from a friend, and I must say, it's the best baseball reference tool I have,
both in terms of software and book references. I refer to it several times
a day on average, and would recommend it to anyone looking for an excellent
source of baseball statistics.
From Jerry Talbot--
As an avid baseball fan, I've used many baseball
encyclopedia through the years, Bill James web site, Stats All-time Major
League Handbook, Total Baseball, among others. The Sabermetric Baseball
Encyclopedia beats them all hands down. For ease in comparing players from
different eras, nothing else is close. A must have for any true baseball fan.
From Keith Hemmelman--
I have many computer products for baseball statistics and they all have one
thing in common...they have all gone away! But not to fear, the Sabermetric
Baseball Encyclopedia is not only an outstanding product with a wide range
of functionality, it is backed by someone who's passion and love for the
game show through. I highly recommend this product to anyone looking for a
definitive source of baseball statistics.
From Alan Manship--
It put my Total Baseball on the shelf forever
There is no need to buy any other sabermetric encyclopedia or reference
book, this will answer any question or solve any argument that you need.
A perfect companion to the Bill James Historical Abstract. One makes
arguments, one settles arguments.
From Tim Connelly--
The Sabermetric Baseball Encyclopedia would have to be
listed as the 8th wonder of the world were it not for
the fact that it is so good, you have to start from
scratch and call it the 1st wonder of the world! Lee's
advertisement says that it is easy to use. He's right!
But it isn't the ease of use that I like so much; it's
the absence of Hank Aaron's stats continually loading
and reloading, mixed in with it's ability to do things
that I had only previously dreamed of.
In every other CD Encyclopedia that I've seen, every
time you go home, the stats have to reload. It is time
consuming and tiresome. In Lee's, it gives me the
option between hitting, pitching, and fielding: I
click on the one I want, and it gives me a window to
type in the name of the player. I type it in, and
bingo, I get his complete hitting stats. It loads
quickly and it gives me some numbers that are very
useful. For example, if I want to look at the career
of Joe DiMaggio, I get all the traditional stats but I
also get these new numbers that allow me to see just
how good Joe was in his own time.
Just as a million dollars is not a static number that
never changes it's value, .325 and 29 home runs are
dependent upon other factors. Lee's got an abundance
of stats that factor in ball park effects, league
averages, and the offensive value of a hitter's
production! So I always know what these numbers mean
in terms of their value in just a glance.
There are so many useful, and previously impossible
things that one can do with this CD: For example, if
you want to see just how good A-Rod is as an offensive
force from the shortstop position, it will allow you
to search all the shortstops in history, who hit 30 or
more home runs, batted over.285, and stole 20 or more
bases. You can individualize your search in
practically any manner.
Another really neat feature is its ability to provide
cumulative totals and partial career totals with
hardly any effort. For example, if I want to know
whether Bonds was better with Pittsburgh or San
Francisco, it'll separate it for me in moments. Go to
Hank Aaron's cumulative stats and watch as his end of
the season totals move closer and closer to 714 until
they finally move all the way to 733 at the end of the
1974 season.
Is this for everybody? If you don't know who Sandy
Koufax is, you aren't likely to type his name in. But
it can be argued with this CD's ability to make a
thousand useful lists, there is no better way of
discovering new players who did great things! Maybe
this is the best way of finding a player like Mort
Cooper or Bobby Grich!
If anybody's been thinking of ordering this but has
been hesitating because they weren't sure how good it
was, I recommend ordering it this minute. It is that
good!
From Johnny Pratt--
I use the Sabermetric Baseball Encyclopedia to do research for my baseball
sim replays. It's much easier than getting the information from the web.
Plus, I can print out my data directly to my printer or save it to a file.