One More Lewisism

A GREAT point in the book in Moneyball is that the difference between a .300 hitter and a .260 one is:

.300 * say, 550 ab = 165

.260 * 550 = 143

165-143 = 22

22 / 25 week season = 0.88 hits per week.

And that a difference of less than 1 hit per week is impossible for a human to reliably observe.

Anecdotal evidence is not to be trusted.

Of course, this entire point is made much more eloquently by your friend and mine, Crash Davis:

"Know what the difference between hitting .250 and .300 is? It's 25 hits. 25 hits in 500 at bats is 50 points, okay? There's 6 months in a season, that's about 25 weeks. That means if you get just one extra flare a week - just one - a gorp... you get a groundball, you get a groundball with eyes... you get a dying quail, just one more dying quail a week... and you're in Yankee Stadium."