A friend asked me to comment on this article, which was published by Michael Lewis in the New York Times. It is related to this article, published on by Howard Bryant on ESPN.com. The first article discusses how teams use statistics to assess performances. There are definitely methods to evaluate effectiveness beyond points, rebounds, steals, blocks, and assists. Plus/Minus, Player Efficiency Ratings, Points-Created, and Win-Shares all offer a more balanced approach. Billy Beane decided to eschew batting average in favour of on-base plus slugging percentage and other statistics, which was catalogued in Michael Lewis’ book Moneyball. Given the success that …