It happens every spring, as the stats from these games that don't really count help to spawn a delightful debate. We say "throw 'em all out" with one breath and then cite selected numbers with our next. So which is it, then? Do these spring stats matter to fantasy baseball managers or not?
Well, it depends. Spring training -- the exhibition-game portion of it, which is the source of the stats in question -- includes a wide array of players at varying ages, experience levels and skill sets, influencing the level of competition from at-bat to at-bat. It's also another of the small sample sizes we frequently critique. If you think 2020's 60-game schedule was tough to parse, please take note that spring training is usually a mere 32 games or so per team.
