The Fun in Making Predictions

Over the last couple of weeks, I’ve written two pretty similar pieces on third basemen. One of which has made me look like a genius — the other has made me look like a total idiot. That’s one of the main issues with making predictions here on RotoGraphs. You try to come to the best conclusions based on stats, player history, etc. — but sometimes you still end up with egg on your face. Hindsight being what it is, I would like to look back at my methods in each instance and try to determine where I went wrong and what aspects of the process I had correct. I think this exercise will help the readers understand my methods and will let me know the areas where I can improve in the future.

Aramis Ramirez is ruining my life. Ok, he’s not really ruining my life, but since writing my Bearish on Aramis Ramirez article he’s been on absolute fire. There were a few issues I ran into when researching this piece. First off, this was part of a series we were running in which two writers took opposite sides. Since I took the negative side of Ramirez, I had to find any and all potential holes in his game. Problem was, there wasn’t all that much in his stat profile — besides his complete lack of power — that convinced me he was completely ready for a downfall.

Once I looked at his age and recent injury history, I knew I could create an argument against Ramirez. By the time I had finished the article, I had convinced myself that I had done it. Ramirez is getting old, he’s going to get hurt — no need to worry. Since I wrote the article Ramirez has hit .321/.345/.641 with seven home runs.

My main problem here was ignoring Ramirez’s current stat line. There was little reason to be worried about his performance this season with the exception of his power — which I should have expected to bounce back. I relied too much on player history and other factors when I wrote this piece and it came back to bite me.

On the other hand, it looks like I may have nailed my recent Mark Reynolds piece. Since writing that article, Reynolds has hit .303/.467/.697 with four home runs in just eleven games. Not the largest sample, but Reynolds has really been on fire the entire month of June.

The interesting thing about this piece was that I did the exact opposite of the Ramirez article. Instead of focusing on the Reynolds’ history, and the stigma that comes with owning him — I focused on the stats. The stats told me there was nothing to be worried about with Reynolds. Actually, they seemed to indicate that Reynolds had improved quite a bit this season, and could be on his way to a nice second half.

At the same time, Reynolds does come with a stigma of sorts. He’s burned many owners in the past, and some owners quiver just hearing his name. Hell, I own Reynolds this season — I’ve lived through the frustrations. In this case, however, you have to ignore the that baggage and focus on the stats. Thankfully, Reynolds’ numbers were so strong that I couldn’t ignore them. Even though it was tough to endorse him, it looks like this was the right choice.

Two separate articles, two completely different results. Sometimes, even using the same predictive methods can lead to laughably conclusions. It just goes to show that making fantasy predictions will always be an incomplete science. But by learning from our mistakes, and altering our methods, we can always try to get better. I may not always come to the proper conclusion, but I will always look to improve my methods.