It’s baseball season and once again the non-stat minded are up in arms about using stats–especially advanced stats like UZR, VORP, FIP, etc. Joe Posnanski explains how UZR (ultimate zone rating) is a useful statistic by interview her:

Q: I thought so. So, you’ve heard what people say about how imprecise you are … what do you say those people.

UZR: I’d agree with that wholeheartedly. I’m a defensive statistic. There are all sorts of quirks and blips involved with measuring defense. I always tell people never to use just a year of me. You have to use at least three years to get real value out of my numbers.

Q: Three years?

UZR: Oh yes. AT LEAST three years. Defense is a complicated matter you know. If I may, I heard what Jim Fregosi said about me, and let me say that I’m a big fan of his. We met once, years ago, but he wouldn’t remember … anyway, I don’t doubt that he could watch a player for three days and determine if the player has range. I bet he could watch a player for two days or one day and say if he has range. I could never do that.

But that’s not what I’m trying to do. I’m trying to tell you how much a defensive player is helping his team. And I’m doing it with numbers. The managers look at Derek Jeter and tell you he’s a great defensive player, right? They give him the Gold Glove every year. Well, he might be a great defensive player by the eyes. He might be the smartest player in the world. He might have a sense that no other player on earth has. But I rank him 42 runs below average since 2002 because that’s how the numbers add up. I don’t judge based on how good or bad he looks. I mean, he looks good, he’s Derek Jeter, come on. I don’t care if he dives or doesn’t dive. I don’t care about any of that stuff. Does he make the play? Does he get to the ball? Does he turn two? These are the data points in my statistic.