2008 All-Star Game A Mathematical Marvel?

Do you remember your favorite high school Algebra class some odd years back? If so, you may remember using algebra to figure out the distance between home plate and second base, given the information that home to first is 90 feet. Simple enough! Now imagine taking mathematics and baseball a step further and then some!

According to a Gettysburg University professor,  the events that took place during the 2008 All-Star Game were an extremely rare occurrence and a mathematical phenomenon. By using his knowledge of mathematical equations and formulas Darren Glass proved that there was a 0.2% chance of a 15-inning game occurring, and that a game similar to the 2008 Mid-Summer Classic is expected to occur only once out of every 500 games.

Glass and a professor from the City University of New York, Phil Lowry, began to research : “What is the probability that a given baseball game will last a given number of innings?” Sounds simple right?

Wrong. To create an accurate scenario many factors had to be taken into consideration. According to Glass, an All-Star game should last fewer innings because the batters are better than average. But he admits that other factors such as different game strategies used or the talent level of the pitchers changes his predictions. A game between two below average teams has a probability of lasting longer.

Or does it? What about a defensive battle with both teams showing no offensive attack?

Because the 2008 All-Star game lasted 290 minutes and 15 innings, Glass is calling the game a mathematical marvel. RBI Magazine is calling Glass a mathematical knucklehead with too much time.

You can read the details of his experiment here…

 

Sources:Gettysburg College (2008, July 17). Baseball: 2008 All-star Game Was Mathematical Marvel. Science Daily. Retrieved July 18, 2008, from http://www.sciencedaily.com­ /releases/2008/07/080717221609.htm