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Does the Baseball Labor Market Properly Value Pitchers?

Author

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  • John Charles Bradbury

    (Kennesaw State University)

Abstract

Defense in baseball is a product of team production in which pitchers and fielders jointly prevent runs. This means that raw run-prevention statistics that economists often use to gauge the value of pitchers, such as earned run average, may not properly assign credit for their performances. Therefore, marginal revenue product derivations based on such statistics contain some erroneous information that may bias the estimates. In this article, the author examines a method for isolating pitcher contributions to the team production of defense. Evidence from the labor market suggests that pitchers are paid according to their individual contributions, consistent with the areas in which pitchers possess skill.

Suggested Citation

  • John Charles Bradbury, 2007. "Does the Baseball Labor Market Properly Value Pitchers?," Journal of Sports Economics, , vol. 8(6), pages 616-632, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:jospec:v:8:y:2007:i:6:p:616-632
    DOI: 10.1177/1527002506296366
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Krautmann, Anthony C, 1999. "What's Wrong with Scully-Estimates of a Player's Marginal Revenue Product," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 37(2), pages 369-381, April.
    2. Anthony C. Krautmann & Elizabeth Gustafson & Lawrence Hadley, 2003. "A Note on the Structural Stability of Salary Equations," Journal of Sports Economics, , vol. 4(1), pages 56-63, February.
    3. Scully, Gerald W, 1974. "Pay and Performance in Major League Baseball," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 64(6), pages 915-930, December.
    4. Blass, Asher A, 1992. "Does the Baseball Labor Market Contradict the Human Capital Model of Investment?," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 74(2), pages 261-268, May.
    5. Jahn K. Hakes & Raymond D. Sauer, 2006. "An Economic Evaluation of the Moneyball Hypothesis," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 20(3), pages 173-186, Summer.
    6. Kahn, Lawrence M, 1993. "Free Agency, Long-Term Contracts and Compensation in Major League Baseball: Estimates from Panel Data," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 75(1), pages 157-164, February.
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    Cited by:

    1. Jin Lee & Young Hoon Lee, 2021. "Development of a Win Production Function and Evaluation of Cross-Sectional Dependence," Journal of Sports Economics, , vol. 22(4), pages 412-431, May.
    2. David J. Berri & John Charles Bradbury, 2010. "Working in the Land of the Metricians," Journal of Sports Economics, , vol. 11(1), pages 29-47, February.
    3. Jennifer K. Ashcraft & Craig A. Depken, 2020. "The introduction of the reserve clause in Major League Baseball: evidence of its impact on select player salaries during the 1880s," Cliometrica, Journal of Historical Economics and Econometric History, Association Française de Cliométrie (AFC), vol. 14(1), pages 105-128, January.
    4. Pavitt Charles, 2011. "An Estimate of How Hitting, Pitching, Fielding, and Basestealing Impact Team Winning Percentages in Baseball," Journal of Quantitative Analysis in Sports, De Gruyter, vol. 7(4), pages 1-20, October.
    5. John Charles Bradbury, 2013. "What Is Right With Scully Estimates of a Player’s Marginal Revenue Product," Journal of Sports Economics, , vol. 14(1), pages 87-96, February.
    6. James Alm & William H. Kaempfer & Edward Batte Sennoga, 2012. "Baseball Salaries and Income Taxes," Journal of Sports Economics, , vol. 13(6), pages 619-634, December.
    7. James Alm & William H. Kaempfer & Edward Batte Sennoga, 2012. "Baseball Salaries and Income Taxes: The "Home Field Advantage" of Income Taxes on Free Agent Salaries," Working Papers 1209, Tulane University, Department of Economics.
    8. Kelly M. Hastings & Frank Stephenson, 2015. "The NBA’s Maximum Player Salary and the Distribution of Player Rents," IJFS, MDPI, vol. 3(2), pages 1-9, March.
    9. Rockerbie, Duane & Easton, Stephen, 2019. "A Real Options Approach to Multi-Year Contracts in Professional Sports," MPRA Paper 93062, University Library of Munich, Germany.

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