For true baseball fans, the 2011 World Series offers a breath of fresh air

I have to admit that this World Series offers a bit of optimism for those fans who realize the talent disparity between the American and National Leagues. If you were to take an overall view of the talent level, the American League has been significantly more “stacked” with talent for many years now. Sometimes you’ll run across the occasional joke that the NL West is the new version of the 4-A ballplayer. However, we are starting to notice a bit of a swing as NL clubs are moving towards building their teams similar to AL teams. For some time the pitching and defense ONLY model was what you most often saw in NL clubs, especially those who have limited payroll flexibility. Now there is less and less room for error in front offices, and clubs are finding value in players that they previously overlooked. Teams are finding an even more “true” value for all the analytical metrics out there. Stats like WAR (Wins Above Replacement) are a way for the less stati...