Skip to main content

I went through the PG 2009 rankings and compared the ages of the players ranked 1-20 and the players ranked 491-510. Rather than telling you right off what, if any, the age difference was between the two groups I'd like to get some guesses. Anybody brave enough to make a guess as to the difference in average age between the two groups is? Once I get 10 or more guesses I'll let you know what the results were.

Please feel free to explain the rationale behind your guess.
Last edited {1}
Original Post

Replies sorted oldest to newest

The poll results will just reflect people's opinions and the biases the people who vote bring with them. That result is interesting but doesn't "prove" anything.

The result of comparing the ages of the two groups does have real value and although it would be possible for it to be way off target it is quite unlikely. I will say the result was different from what I anticipated, given that I know a bit about distributions and probability.

The most interesting thing in this case would be to hear why people voted the way they did. I've admitted I guessed wrong before I saw the results.
Last edited by CADad
15 answers, that's enough. You can all look at the poll to see what people thought.

I anticipated about a 1 month difference. The age advantage would have to be pretty significant for it to be more than that. I also didn't figure given the small sample size the 1 month was enough to be significant so I figured it would have to be at least 2 months to be meaningful. The difference was 3 months. 3 months difference in the average ages indicates a very strong bias.

If I had been making the poll up without knowing the answer I wouldn't have even bothered putting in the 4 month or 5 months answers as that's so much difference when you're talking average ages that it almost isn't possible.

Bum,
Top and bottom 40 would probably smear the results a bit but there's very little chance the basic results would change. Probably the only way to get a really good feel would be to take the whole database and then draw a trendline through it or show a distribution. As far as the people talking about a few months difference the difference between youngest and oldest among these 40 players was over a year and a half. Is it important? Only for scouts and pro scouts already take it into account in their own fashion.
Last edited by CADad

Add Reply

Post
Perfect Game PerfectGame.org BaseballWebTV.com
×
×
×
×
Link copied to your clipboard.
×