Learning sabermetrics: a beginning

First of all, apologies for the slow weekend. I've had some other things going on, not the least of which is my ongoing attempt to find a paying job. Posting may be slower than it's been (like, down to two or three posts a day instead of four or five a day), but I'll try to keep up.

So now on to what I actually want to talk about. I have decided that I'm tired of just making stuff up, so I'm going to learn about sabermetrics. I know very little about statistics, so I asked my friend Nate, a noted sabermetrician, for some guidance as to what sources I should explore. I've decided to share my journey of self-improvement with you.

This one's going to be pretty short, because other smarter people have already done most of the work for me. Right now, since I'm at the beginning of this project, I'm looking for the most basic information available. I found a really cool source at Sabermetrics Library. Basically they have created a short online class on sabermetrics, including sections on why they're necessary, on the principles of the statistical process, and on individual stats.

I recommend the course for the uninitiated. If you prefer a more piecemeal approach, though, I'm planning on doing a continuing series on sabermetrics. So expect more to come, as I figure this whole thing out. It should be fun, and maybe at the end I'll be able to tell why Derek Jeter is so overrated defensively.