The Math Behind a Challenge

How the ABS challenge system adds to the never-ending mathematical calculations in Major League Baseball.

Baseball is here! Here’s your daily splash of joy:

Why do you love baseball?

Brilliant Reader Joe: Our daily Immaculate Grid thread of “5 Guys Who Meet in New Haven for Pizza every year has been tracking a “Player of the Game” since May 2024.

Brilliant Reader David: “Frank White in his prime, eight gold gloves with style and grace at second base.”

Brilliant Reader Michael: “Five of us starting a ‘Yankees Suck’ cheer at Fenway Park when the Detroit Tigers were playing the Red Sox. The cheer went viral, and soon the entire stadium was chanting it.”

Brilliant Reader Terence: Oct. 27, 2011. Busch Stadium. Bottom of the 9th.

My 14-year-old daughter seconds before and after David Frese slid head first into third.

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Fridays are Clubhouse days around here. The Clubhouse is where the conversation opens up — when we go a little deeper, wander down a few side roads, have friendly arguments, chat over the weekend, and share some joy.

If you’re a Clubhouse member, come on down — the door’s open below.

If you’re a free reader, thank you for being here. If you ever feel like joining us on Fridays — not for more, exactly, but to be a bigger part of our world — we’d love to have you.