Redleg Nation · Oct 2, 2015
Mythbusters: ‘SABR-teams’ don’t steal bases
On average, how many games do you need to attend before you see a stolen base? It seems like Billy Hamilton steals a few every night, so for Reds fans, the stolen base is about as sure of a bet as Pete Rose. Yet if you look closely, the stolen base is slowly fading from the game: this year there will be the fewest stolen bases per game since 2005. In 2015, if you randomly attended a game, there is about a one in twenty five chance you will see a successful stolen base. What is driving this decline in thievery? Are players getting slower? A newfound morality regarding the sanctity of the base progression? Tighter pants?