Decision Making in BaseballBaseball is a great game to analyze from a game theory perspective because of the scope of strategic decisions that are continually made on the fields and in every game . In each game, there are various players (baseball players, managers, team managers, and owners) with different goals and bottom lines, and thousands of step-by-step decisions are made over the course of an at-bat, an inning, a game, and a season . . Major League Baseball, one of the four major professional sports leagues in North America, is the most suitable platform for analytics because statistical information is tracked for almost every single aspect of the game. In the following article, we choose to examine in detail a single-game at-bat decision as a microcosm of the strategies that occur in everyday baseball. BackgroundMajor League Baseball is the highest level of play in North American professional baseball. The regular season includes 162 games for each team and concludes by advancing five teams from each league (American League and National League) to the "postseason", or play-off, where the winner is awarded after the World Series. The Tigers/Red Sox game (American League Champion Series Game 2) on October 13, 2013 is chosen to be analyzed in detail by applying game theory. The winner of the ALCS (win 4 out of 7 games) will go to the World Series. The Tigers have been to the World Series 12 times and the Red Sox 11 times since 1901. Because participating in the World Series is one of the most honorable events for players, managers, and even fans, every decision on every play in every playoff game would be much more important than in the regular season. October 18, 2013: #2Tigers ALCS pitcher didn't allow a hit until the sixth and left after the seven with......half the card......and I can see the importance to minimize predictability and use mixed strategies, especially for the pitcher. Batters and pitchers must use mixed strategies to prevent the opponent from anticipating their moves and exploiting their tendencies. References. Sports Reference LLC, Baseball Reference.com, http://www.baseball-reference.com/ii. Jim Caple, 2013, ESPN.com, Retrieved from http://espn.go.com/mlb/playoffs/2013/story/_/id/9822450/jim-leyland-curious-decisions-opened-door-red-sox -return-mlbiii. Prospectus Entertainment Ventures, LLC, Baseball Prospectus, http://www.baseballprospectus.com/glossary/index.php?search=RAAiv. FanGraphs, http://www.fangraphs.comv. Jerry Crasnick, 2013, ESPN.com, Retrieved from http://espn.go.com/mlb/playoffs/2013/story/_/id/9822513/detroit-tigers-figure -how-regroup-game-3-mlb