--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The statistics were not merely…" description: "\"“The statistics were not merely inadequate; they lied. And the lies they told led the people who ran major league baseball teams to misjudge their play..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93c/michael-lewis-705_baseball_the-statistics-were-not-merely-inadequat_612913.jpg" --- # The statistics were not merely inadequate; they lied. And… ![“The statistics were not merely inadequate; they lied. And the lies they told led the people who ran major league baseball teams to misjudge their players, and mismanage their games.” quote by Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93c/michael-lewis-705_baseball_the-statistics-were-not-merely-inadequat_612913.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93c/michael-lewis-705_baseball_the-statistics-were-not-merely-inadequat_612913.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93c/michael-lewis-705_baseball_the-statistics-were-not-merely-inadequat_612913.jpg) > ““The statistics were not merely inadequate; they lied. And the lies they told led the people who ran major league baseball teams to misjudge their players, and mismanage their games.”” [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Statistical data can be misleading, causing poor decisions in baseball management. **In simple terms:** Bad stats lead to bad choices. Key Takeaway Question data critically. Themes statistics decisionmaking baseball misinformation Mood skeptical analytical Type analytical critical When to use this quote - team scouting - player evaluation - game strategy Key Concepts cognitive bias data integrity Questions to Reflect On - How can teams verify data accuracy? - What safeguards prevent misinterpretation? A Different Perspective Stats may be incomplete or biased. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Baseball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/baseball/) [Baseball team](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/baseball-team/) [Major league](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/major-league/) [Major league baseball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/major-league-baseball/) ## Related quotes > [“The statistics were not merely inadequate; they lied. And the lies they told led the people who ran major league baseball teams to misjudge…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/the-statistics-were-not-merely-inadequate-they-lied-and-the-lies-they-2/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [If the Cincinnati Reds were really the first major league baseball team, who did they play?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-carlin/if-the-cincinnati-reds-were-really-the-first-major-league-baseball/) [George Carlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-carlin/) > [I think I'd like to be an owner of a Major League Baseball team.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-mcconnell/i-think-i-d-like-to-be-an-owner-of-a-major-league-baseball-team/) [Mitch McConnell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-mcconnell/) > [I grew up a big baseball fan. I thought I knew a lot about the game, but I didn't realise that all these American…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-fleck/i-grew-up-a-big-baseball-fan-i-thought-i-knew-a-lot-about-the-game/) [Ryan Fleck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-fleck/) > [There are several insights at the heart of the A's system that I think are wonderful for baseball. One, that it's a team game.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/there-are-several-insights-at-the-heart-of-the-a-s-system-that-i/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [“As early as 1999, Major League Baseball Commissioner Allan H. (“Bud”) Selig had taken to calling the Oakland A’s success “an aberration,” but that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/as-early-as-1999-major-league-baseball-commissioner-allan-h-bud-selig/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [“worth. A baseball team, of all things, was at the center of a story about the possibilities—and the limits—of reason in human affairs. Baseball—of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/worth-a-baseball-team-of-all-things-was-at-the-center-of-a-story/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [It is the nature of being the general manager of a baseball team that you have to remain on familiar terms with people you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/it-is-the-nature-of-being-the-general-manager-of-a-baseball-team-that/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [“All I had to do was make this guy happy. I’d take care of his cows and do manual labor for two and a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abbi-glines/all-i-had-to-do-was-make-this-guy-happy-i-d-take-care-of-his-cows-and/) [Abbi Glines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abbi-glines/) > [Starting in middle school, I would play on two or three baseball teams at the same time, because that's just how things worked in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-martinez/starting-in-middle-school-i-would-play-on-two-or-three-baseball-teams/) [J. D. Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-martinez/) > [I just want to play well, have the people in Chicago enjoy watching soccer. You have a very good baseball team, a very good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bastian-schweinsteiger/i-just-want-to-play-well-have-the-people-in-chicago-enjoy-watching/) [Bastian Schweinsteiger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bastian-schweinsteiger/) > [“Soon he was picturing little girls with mischievous green eyes and pigtails asking him to play tea. Of course he'd bring real food to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-l-mathewson/soon-he-was-picturing-little-girls-with-mischievous-green-eyes-and/) [R.L. Mathewson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-l-mathewson/) > [I went to college to be a jock and to play on the baseball team. And then, I got cut and realized that that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-day/i-went-to-college-to-be-a-jock-and-to-play-on-the-baseball-team-and/) [Charlie Day](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-day/) > [Ive got a fantasy-baseball team with my brother. But I have to admit, he does all the work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-einhorn/ive-got-a-fantasy-baseball-team-with-my-brother-but-i-have-to-admit/) [David Einhorn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-einhorn/) > [Baseball is a team sport played by individuals for themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-torre/baseball-is-a-team-sport-played-by-individuals-for-themselves/) [Joe Torre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-torre/) ## More by Michael Lewis > [“Crucial decisions are made, today as thousands of years ago, in terms of the intuitive guesses and preferences of a few men in positions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/crucial-decisions-are-made-today-as-thousands-of-years-ago-in-terms/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [“You saw someone who reminded you of you, and then you looked for the reasons why you liked him. The”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/you-saw-someone-who-reminded-you-of-you-and-then-you-looked-for-the/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [“At other places management says, ‘Well, gee, fellas, do we really want to bet the ranch on this deal?’ Lewie was not only willing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/at-other-places-management-says-well-gee-fellas-do-we-really-want-to/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [“BILLY WOULD SAY later that his wife left him because she was unnerved by his intensity—that she could even see it in his hands…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/billy-would-say-later-that-his-wife-left-him-because-she-was-unnerved/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [“The great thing about baseball players, from the point of view of personal hygiene, is how seldom they break a sweat.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/the-great-thing-about-baseball-players-from-the-point-of-view-of/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [There was but one question he left unasked, and it vibrated between his lines: if gross miscalculations of a person's value could occur on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/there-was-but-one-question-he-left-unasked-and-it-vibrated-between/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [“The author refers to a player's affected nonchalance and comments he is, "too young to realize you are what you pretend to be.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/the-author-refers-to-a-player-s-affected-nonchalance-and-comments-he/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [A banking system is an act of faith: it survives only for as long as people believe it will.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/a-banking-system-is-an-act-of-faith-it-survives-only-for-as-long-as/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [Some coaches believed they could judge a player's performance simply by watching it. In this they were deeply mistaken. The naked eye was an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/some-coaches-believed-they-could-judge-a-player-s-performance-simply/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [“No longer were the prices of ordinary mortgage bonds allowed to roam inefficiently, for they were now linked to the CMO market, in much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/no-longer-were-the-prices-of-ordinary-mortgage-bonds-allowed-to-roam/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [“The difference between Strauss and Ranieri?” says one trader still at Salomon. “That’s easy. Strauss wouldn’t stoop to use the men’s room on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/the-difference-between-strauss-and-ranieri-says-one-trader-still-at/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [“The only inexplicable aspect of the process was that economic theory (which is, after all, what economics students were supposed to know) served almost…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/the-only-inexplicable-aspect-of-the-process-was-that-economic-theory/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [“It's not easy to stand apart from mass hysteria - to believe that most of what's in the financial news is wrong, to believe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/it-s-not-easy-to-stand-apart-from-mass-hysteria-to-believe-that-most/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [“Dont worry about where i am , i'll let you know when i get there .”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/dont-worry-about-where-i-am-i-ll-let-you-know-when-i-get-there/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [“Someone out there was using the fact that stock market orders arrived at different times at different exchanges to front-run orders from one market…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/someone-out-there-was-using-the-fact-that-stock-market-orders-arrived/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) [Explore all 398 Michael Lewis quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) ## More Baseball quotes > [I'd always have grease in at least two places, in case the umpires would ask me to wipe one off. I never wanted to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gaylord-perry/i-d-always-have-grease-in-at-least-two-places-in-case-the-umpires/) [Gaylord Perry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gaylord-perry/) > [When you're in the middle of a pennant race, you can't go up there thinking about home runs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sammy-sosa/when-you-re-in-the-middle-of-a-pennant-race-you-can-t-go-up-there/) [Sammy Sosa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sammy-sosa/) > [Thinking about the things that happened, I don't know any other ball player would could have done what he (Jackie Robinson) did. To be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pee-wee-reese/thinking-about-the-things-that-happened-i-don-t-know-any-other-ball/) [Pee Wee Reese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pee-wee-reese/) > [Spring training means flowers, people coming outdoors, sunshine, optimism and baseball. Spring training is a time to think about being young again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernie-banks/spring-training-means-flowers-people-coming-outdoors-sunshine/) [Ernie Banks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernie-banks/) > [Pitchers pitch differently. Hitters, hardly anyone has the same stance. That's just how it is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-zimmerman/pitchers-pitch-differently-hitters-hardly-anyone-has-the-same-stance/) [Ryan Zimmerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-zimmerman/) > [Five World Series rings, 3000-plus hits, the fame, the fortune and playing for the second most historic franchise in baseball... These are just some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mookie-betts/five-world-series-rings-3000-plus-hits-the-fame-the-fortune-and/) [Mookie Betts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mookie-betts/) > [I don't want the electronic strike zone. I like the element of sometimes pitches don't get called. Guys don't receive it well or whatever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kyle-schwarber/i-don-t-want-the-electronic-strike-zone-i-like-the-element-of/) [Kyle Schwarber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kyle-schwarber/) > [I sang the National Anthem at Dodger Stadium - at a baseball game - which was crazy; there was, like, 60,000 people there, which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-devine/i-sang-the-national-anthem-at-dodger-stadium-at-a-baseball-game-which/) [Adam DeVine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-devine/) > [If I was going to make one rule change, I would bring the DH to the National League.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-brett/if-i-was-going-to-make-one-rule-change-i-would-bring-the-dh-to-the/) [George Brett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-brett/) > [In all honesty, once you become a professional, number one, you're no longer a fan. I don't root for the Dodgers, really. I just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vin-scully/in-all-honesty-once-you-become-a-professional-number-one-you-re-no/) [Vin Scully](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vin-scully/) > [I'll tell you what's helped me my entire life. I look at baseball as a game. It's something where people can go out, enjoy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-caray/i-ll-tell-you-what-s-helped-me-my-entire-life-i-look-at-baseball-as-a/) [Harry Caray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-caray/) > [When I step into the batters box. The fans, the noise, the cheers, they all disappear. For that moment, the world is just a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-wollstonecraft-shelley/when-i-step-into-the-batters-box-the-fans-the-noise-the-cheers-they/) [Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-wollstonecraft-shelley/) > [What we should have done is kept the same team that played in the '95 World Series. Those trades (Eddie Murray & Carlos Baerga)…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-belle/what-we-should-have-done-is-kept-the-same-team-that-played-in-the-95/) [Albert Belle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-belle/) > [“I can buy baseball cards to view an entire career on the back of a little square of cardboard. But nobody sells major league…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ortberg-jr/i-can-buy-baseball-cards-to-view-an-entire-career-on-the-back-of-a/) [John Ortberg Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ortberg-jr/) > [The wind always seems to blow against catchers when they are running.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-garagiola/the-wind-always-seems-to-blow-against-catchers-when-they-are-running/) [Joe Garagiola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-garagiola/) [Browse all 7,461 Baseball quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/baseball/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“The statistics were not merely inadequate; they lied. And the lies they told led the people who ran major league baseball teams to misjudge their players, and mismanage their games.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Michael Lewis" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/the-statistics-were-not-merely-inadequate-they-lied-and-the-lies-they/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Baseball" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/the-statistics-were-not-merely-inadequate-they-lied-and-the-lies-they/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93c/michael-lewis-705_baseball_the-statistics-were-not-merely-inadequat_612913.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93c/michael-lewis-705_baseball_the-statistics-were-not-merely-inadequat_612913.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93c/michael-lewis-705_baseball_the-statistics-were-not-merely-inadequat_612913.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The statistics were not merely inadequate; they lied. And the lies they told led the people who ran major…” — Michael Lewis", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Michael Lewis", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“The statistics were not merely inadequate;...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/the-statistics-were-not-merely-inadequate-they-lied-and-the-lies-they/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/the-statistics-were-not-merely-inadequate-they-lied-and-the-lies-they/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```