I'm about a third of the way through Moneyball, and I'm absolutely enthralled with it! The brilliance with which Lewis intertwines Billy Beane's own status as a scout's dream as an up-and-coming player, with the trailblazing scouting mechanism that Beane himself is implementing that ironically identifies prospects that are his own antithesis, is mesmerizing. What's even more dumbfounding is the realization that baseball insiders simply refuse to view the game like many of us outsiders have for years; through the eyes of empirical data. Arguably, baseball is more a game of highly developed skills than highly developed athletic ability (case in point - Michael Jordan), and after 150 years of existence, professional baseball is finally taking notice of the "Moneyball" philosophy.
I'm so inspired that the inner-geek in me is contemplating settling and age-old argument regarding video game baseball through sabremetric glasses: which video game is the most realistic, and the best simulator of the game? There might be more to come on this topic... For now, let me just highly encourage any baseball fan, especially baseball video game players and fantasy players, to read Moneyball. You'll find it well worth your time.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
1 comment:
LOL, Jason... What don't NYC sports talk radio shows rip? Seriously, if you like baseball, and especially if you're interested in what goes on in the front office, you'll like this book. I highly recommend it to any knowledgable baseball fan. I got the paperback version for $13 at Barnes & Noble, and it's well worth the money...
Post a Comment