Baseball DIY

I came upon a little-known passage in Voltaire's Candide last week, and I thought this was the place to share it with you.

From Chapter 30

"'But surely, Reverend Father,' said Candide, 'there is a dreadful amount of pseudo-intellectualism in baseball broadcasts.' - 'And what does it matter,' said the dervish, 'if there is pseudo-intellectualism or genuine baseball wisdom?'... - 'So what must we do?' said Pangloss. - 'Keep your mouth shut,' said the dervish. - 'I flattered myself,' said Pangloss, 'that you and I might have a little discussion about OPS and batting average, about who is the best player of all time, the origin of runs, the nature of defensive statistics, pre-established harmony of baserunning strategies...' - At which the dervish slammed the door in their faces."

and later....

"'Let us set to work and stop proving things,' said Martin, 'for that is the only way to make baseball bearable.'"

That is well said, but I'm still going to read Curve Ball and anything else about baseball theory. The questions raised might not have any answers, but cultivating my garden requires at least a little frivolous thought on the underlying mechanisms of baseball.