"Abstracts from the Abstracts" synopsis and review by Rich Lederer at baseballanalysts.com

1984 Bill James Baseball Abstract

273 pages

Divided into five parts:
Section I: Introduction
Section II: The Teams
Section III: Player Ratings
Section IV: Essays and Articles
Section V: Not of Any General Interest

Introduction, p 1

Section I : Introduction, 1

Welcome, 3
Inside-Out Perespective, 5
Logic and Methods in Baseball Analysis, 9
Victory Important RBI, 25
RBI Importance, 28
Where Does Talent Come From, 31

Section II : The Teams, 37

For Divisions: For all teams in the division: W-L before and after All-Star break, vs RHP & LHP, Day & Night, and total. Number of come from behind victories, for each amount, 1-7 runs. Blown leads of same magnitude. Chart for all teams, listing opponent stolen bases and caught stealing(AL only), DP, outfield assists/sacrifice flies, fielding average, DER and opposition runs. And a chart of opposition errors by position. The record of each team when ahead, behind or tied after 7, and net change.

For each team: Pitcher data in the box: W-L, Run support, DP support, Opponents stolen bases. Home/Road, grass/turf Hitter data in the box: RC, Before and after All-Star game stats home/road splits, platoon splits, grass/turf. Career record in seasonal notation.

A box for the manager:

Managers who he played for
Characteristics as a player
What he brings to the ballclub
How he uses his personnel
Game managing and use of strategies
Handling the pitching staff

Section III : Player Ratings, 187

Section IV : Essays and Articles, 243

The World Series Prediction System, Revisited, 245 What the System Is, 245 How the System Was Developed, 246 Why the System Works, 246 Why Did the System Have a Bad Year in 1982?, 247 For Your Convenience, 248
Career Records for Outfielders Assists, 248
Project Scoresheet, 250
A Few Words About the Home-Field Advantage, 252
3,000 Hit Candidates, 254: Players of Promise, 254; Players in Their Prime, 255; The Survivors, 255
What Makes, a Season?, 257
Drumbeats, 258
Power Pitchers and Night Games, 260 A Reaction from Craig Wright, 263
Birthday Study, 264
On Being a Dick Smith, 264
Specialist Awards, 265
On SABR and Sabermetrics, 265
Leading Hitters Against Righthanded Pitching, 266
Leading Hitters Against Lefthanded Pitching, 266
Leading Hitters on Artificial Turf, 266
Leading Hitters on Natural Grass, 266
Starting Pitchers Receiving Best Offensive Support, 266
Starting Pitchers Receiving Worst Offensive Support, 267
Toughest Starting Pitchers to Run On, 267
Easiest Starting Pitchers to Run On, 267
Best Double-Play Support, 267
Least Double-Play Support, 267

Section V: Not of Any General Interest, 269

Basic Runs Created Formula, 271
Isolated Power, 271
Defensive Efficiency Record, 271
The Favorite Toy, 271
Value Approximation Method, 271
Park Adjustment Factors, 272
Cheap Victory, 272
How the Defensive Ratings Are Derived, 272