Playing Moneyball

Dr. Manhattan has just posted a solid review of Michael Lewis's, Moneyball -- an insider's look at how Oakland A's General Manager Billy Beane has managed to overcome his team's revenue disadvantage and field one of the most competitive teams in all of baseball. I just completed the book myself, and will have some comments later. In the meantime, just sit back and enjoy the good doctor's review.

UPDATE: Just a few thoughts here before bed. First of all, if there's any team in the majors that's going to be affected most directly by the baseball management techniques that Lewis describes in Moneyball, it's the New York Yankees. Why? Because two other teams in the AL East, the Boston Red Sox and the Toronto Blue Jays, have already beun to remake themselves along the lines that Beane has with the A's. In fact, in Toronto, the rebuilding is being done by J.P. Ricciardi, one of Beane's former assistants in Oakland.

Second, over the longer term, I think the use of objective analysis in baseball may create a real gap between the American and National League. Again, why is this? Because after the introduction of the DH in 1973, and the removal of the pitcher from the day-to-day lineup, the traditional method of "manufacturing runs" began to disappear from the AL in favor of Earl Weaver's plan to wait for the three-run homer.

Without a pitcher in the lineup to disrupt a rally, the sacrifice bunt, the stolen base, and having a bench full of solid fielders began to fade in significance in the AL. If anything, the AL is tailor-made for Beane's sort of baseball, and it's all because of the DH. Conversely, I'd expect the old thinking to hold sway for that much longer in the NL for just the opposite reason.

Eric 09:24 AM

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