It's getting rather difficult to say something new about the latest of the Baseball Prospectus series, which arrives with a thud on the doorstep with version 31 this year.
For the serious fan who wants to know something about every single important player in professional baseball, this is still the place to go. With knowledgeable comments about more than 2,000 players, it's rare for the writers to miss anyone. I'm happy to report that the latest version has no layout problems, which have popped up occasionally in the past and have caused some readability issues.
There are a couple of points worth noting here. The amount of information that is now out there is truly amazing. We have all sorts of data on a player's performance - things that would have been unimaginable to track only a few years ago. Each players has a few lines of statistical information that are something of an introduction. I'm not going to tell you that I have any idea what ZSw% stands for, but that's all right. I don't think I need it. The writers of the players' capsules actually are pretty good at getting down to business and defining a player's situation.
Like most readers I would guess, I do some skimming when the book first arrives. I recognize that I probably don't need to know much about some of the Texas Rangers' minor league pitching prospects right now, but that others might. I'm happy that the information is out there for those who prefer a deep dive on a particular team. I will say that it seems like most of the pitchers in the book spent some time in the minors in 2025, and were flipped up and down like trading cards for whatever reason. It's simply tough to find pitchers with 150 major league innings these days.
I've commented before that the player comments aren't quite as funny and snarky as they were in the old days, although there are exceptions that are worth a search. Happily, the team comments are almost always original and interesting. They remain a highlight.
"Baseball Prospectus 2026" is another solid entry in the series. It's useful to read upon arrival, and it comes in handy while watching games or seeing some transactions. Buy it and keep it close by during the current season.
Four stars
Learn more about this book from Amazon.com.
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