04 Baseball / Betfair Education / 18 March 2008 / Leave a comment

• Pitchers - Each team needs as a minimum five good starting pitchers for the season. The starting pitcher doesn't usually throw every inning during a game, relieving pitchers are used. The collective name for the reserve pitchers is the 'bull-pen', the area where reserve pitchers warm up before a game. A strong bull-pen is essential for team to have a successful campaign, relief pitchers are important as when the starting pitcher tires and is replaced they may need to rescue the situation the starter left them in.

• Batting - Depending on the team's tactics and stadium the batting line-ups can vary. A team who wants to play 'small ball' will want a lot of fast players who are good at making contact with the ball. A team who plays in an 'easier' home run hitting park might want more sluggers.
• Fielding - An often under-rated factor. The infielders generally need to be very good at diving, catching, throwing fast etc... Also need to have good team work. Most of the action happens in the infield.
• Coaching - Decision making in the big games is the most important. Knowing when to replace a tiring pitcher, managing batters, when to steal bases etc.

The MLB site, www.mlb.com, has many stats on players and teams; your job is to work out which stats are the most important. As with most American sports, the list of statistics available is virtually endless.