Baseball's Next Top Models

When asked how much further defensive metrics can go, Lichtman says the analysts are "90 percent there." The other 10% will be reached when teams and companies such as Baseball Info Solutions and STATS Inc. start tracking the hang time of a ball and the exact positioning of a defender, as well as the player's route to the ball.

When that day comes, teams and statistical analysts alike will have a nearly complete picture of the value of a player. "After [the 2003 Michael Lewis best-seller] Moneyball, people stopped undervaluing on-base percentage, and now they've moved on to defense," says an American League G.M. "As teams are getting smarter and smarter, there will be no more secrets, nothing undervalued in the market."

There will be a day when metrics like UZR will be as accepted by the mainstream as they are in the sabermetrics community; a day when a player's plus/minus carries as much weight in a Rotisserie league as his offensive statistics; a day when a 33-year-old centerfielder who has lost a step won't be considered one of the best defensive outfielders in the game; a day when the eye and the brain will no longer be able to deceive.

Until then, the revolution continues.