Some Modest Goals

One of the things I will look at doing over the next few months is building up my database and spreadsheets of soccer specific statistics so that we can fairly judge the performance of players within MLS, and get some rough estimates of performance in other leagues to supplement anecdotal data from scouting and media reports.

This will include first some massaging of the payroll data to look at trends in payrate based on a players last league prior to MLS, their age in relation to their peak athletic ability, and where some of the ineffeciencies of the MLS system exist.

Some of the measures I will look at implementing, hopefully someday on a live basis, or player effectiveness (Pts won by team * % time played), shot defense (shots against for defenders/defensive midfielders), scoring effectiveness (a relationship between goals, assissts and shots on goal for forwards/attacking mids) and lastly I will hope to supplement these numbers with the anecdotal ratings supplied where available. Seattle Soccershow has been doing this for each of the USL Sounder games for the last month and a half.

Hopefully MLSnet will realise that allowing the common man to manipulate statistics is part of what has given Major League Baseball the extraordinary online following that has enabled MLB to make a surge in revenues over the last five years. This would help enable bloggers around the world to more fully support the league and is particularly in line with Sounders FC's goals for Democracy in Sports, because when the fans themselves can accurately ascertain the talents of the players brought on from Gambia, or China, or the Norwegian second league it only helps drive interest in the game.