Nevertheless, Moneyball changed the way many major league front offices do business. Baseball traditionalists, in particular some scouts and media members, decry the sabermetric revolution and have disparaged Moneyball for emphasizing sabermetrics over more traditional methods of player evaluation. Lewis explores how James’s seminal Baseball Abstract, published annually from the late 1970s through the late 1980s, influenced many of the young, up-and-coming baseball experts that joined the ranks of baseball management in the 1990s. Moneyball traces the history of the sabermetric movement back to such people as Bill James (then a member of the Boston Red Sox front office) and Craig R. Wright.
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Customers find the book highly readable, describing it as a wonderful and fascinating read, particularly for baseball fans who enjoy the movie adaptation. Customers find this book to be a wonderful and engaging read, particularly for baseball fans, with thorough research that goes beyond just statistics. The book is parodied in the 2010 Simpsons episode „MoneyBART”, in which Lisa manages Bart’s Little League baseball team using sabermetric principles. They argued that the book ignores the pitching trio of Tim Hudson, Mark Mulder, and Barry Zito, and position players such as Eric Chavez and Miguel Tejada, all of whom were discovered via traditional scouting methodology and were key contributors to the success of the 2002 Athletics. Lewis explores the A’s approach to the 2002 MLB draft, when the team had a run of early picks. Lewis cites A’s minor leaguer Jeremy Bonderman, drafted out of high school in 2001 over Beane’s objections, as an example of the type of draft pick Beane would avoid.
Sabermetricians argue that a college baseball player’s chance of MLB success is much higher than the more traditional high school draft pick. Beane knows which players are likely to be traded by other teams, and he manages to involve himself even when the trade is unconnected to the A’s. Lewis (Liar’s Poker; The New New Thing) examines how in 2002 the Oakland Athletics achieved a spectacular winning record while having the smallest player payroll of any major league baseball team. Moneyball follows the fortunes of charismatic A’s executive Billy Beane, whose number-crunching approach changed the face of baseball, emphasizing team dynamics over superstar salaries.
Customer reviews
- Lewis explored several themes in the book, such as insiders vs. outsiders (established traditionalists vs. upstart proponents of sabermetrics), the democratization of information causing a flattening of hierarchies, and „the ruthless drive for efficiency that capitalism demands”.
- In the June player draft, Beane acquired nearly every prospect he coveted (few of whom were coveted by other teams) and at the July trading deadline he engaged in a tense battle of nerves to acquire a lefty reliever.
- „I really liked it. Michael Lewis is an excellent writer and it was a good story. I read one chapter weeping with laughter and it wasn’t a comedy….” Read more
- Lewis has acknowledged that the book’s success may have hurt the Athletics’ fortunes as other teams accepted sabermetrics, reducing Oakland’s edge.
- Lewis explores how James’s seminal Baseball Abstract, published annually from the late 1970s through the late 1980s, influenced many of the young, up-and-coming baseball experts that joined the ranks of baseball management in the 1990s.
- This background prepared him for Moneyball, a book about how statistics is applied to baseball in a method known as sabermetrics.
„This delightfully written, lesson-laden book deserves a place of its own in the Baseball Hall of Fame.” ―Forbes Actor Brad Pitt stars as Billy Beane, while Jonah Hill plays fictional character Peter Brand, based on Paul DePodesta; Philip Seymour Hoffman plays A’s manager Art Howe. Beane has regarded Arsenal F.C.’s former manager Arsène Wenger as a personal idol. Under Alderson’s tenure, the team payroll dropped below $100 million per year from 2012 to 2014, and the Mets reached the 2015 World Series—en route defeating MLB’s highest-payroll team, the Los Angeles Dodgers. P. Ricciardi to the front office, the team was jokingly referred to as the „Moneyball Mets”.
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„True story about true people and true events and a lot of baseball! Inspiring to think differently and to not be afraid to stand out.” Read more „…Seeing as how the book is about baseball, this may be my fault, but I ultimately thought that Lewis just put way too much importance into a…” Read more „The book is an easy and very interesting read. Michael Lewis is a great writer….” Read more „…account of the paradigm shift coming to baseball in America is a fascinating story of a few individuals challenging conventional wisdom and, in an…” Read more Customers praise the book’s storytelling, appreciating its personal narrative and complexity, with one customer highlighting its engaging epilogue. „EZ to read but with a lot of jargon and numbers. FUNNY! Very informative, well written. You don’t need to be a fan to enjoy this book….” Read more
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The Oakland A’s began seeking players who were „undervalued in the market”—that is, who were receiving lower salaries relative to their ability to contribute to winning, as measured by these advanced statistics.
- In this book, the author criticizes my friend, Ms. Dani Mabry’s father, John calling him a so called „bench player”.
- Download the free Kindle app and start reading Kindle books instantly on your smartphone, tablet, or computer – no Kindle device required.
- In its wake, teams such as the New York Mets, New York Yankees, San Diego Padres, St. Louis Cardinals, Boston Red Sox, Washington Nationals, Arizona Diamondbacks, Cleveland Guardians, and Toronto Blue Jays have hired full-time sabermetric analysts.
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A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. „Michael Lewis is a great author, and this book is another solid piece by him….” Read more „…The story is interesting and well written and kept me continuously glued to the pages which is probably why Brad Pitt and Hollywood made the movie….” Read more „…Despite some places being fairly dry, overall its a compelling story. Interesting to note that the A’s again made the post-season this year….” Read more „…Truly inspirational and educational as it dares you to look at things with a different approach than the norm.” Read more „A great account of exploiting market inefficiencies for gain. Very inspiring and engaging, even for someone like me who is not a baseball fan.” Read more
He calls this method sabermetrics. In Chapter 4, Lewis details the work of the baseball writer and analyst Bill James. Despite his promising start—and the conviction of the baseball insiders that he had the right stuff—his career was rather disappointing. Chapter 1 describes Beane as a sports star in high school and his road to signing with the New York Mets right after graduation.
„Interesting and detailed, but unlike what I heard from some people before reading it, it is largely the same as the movie…so if you have seen the…” Read more Customer Reviews, including Product Star Ratings help customers to learn more about the product and decide whether it is the right product for them. They are all in search of new baseball knowledge―insights that will give the little guy who is willing to discard old wisdom the edge over big money.
Beane maintains that high draft picks spent on high school prospects, regardless of talent or physical potential as evaluated by traditional scouting, are riskier than those spent on more experienced college players. It describes the team’s sabermetric approach to assembling a competitive baseball team on a small budget. „His constant chatter was a way of keeping tabs on the body of information critical to his trading success.” Lewis chronicles Beane’s life, focusing on his uncanny ability to find and sign the right players.
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„This was a great book. It has been a long time since I read a book that was hard to put down but this definitely qualifies as being in that category….” Read more Additionally, customers appreciate the sports content, noting it’s about more than just baseball, and consider it worth the price. Moreover, the book offers great life lessons and teaches about both business and baseball, while being well-written with excitement. Download the free Kindle app and start reading Kindle books instantly on your smartphone, tablet, or computer – no Kindle device required. Representatives Barbara Lee and Mark DeSaulnier with the intended purpose of having MLB teams that move 25 miles from their former home cities, including the Athletics, to compensate them.citation needed
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Very thought provoking not only about baseball but about how it is possible to rethink concepts and views that have long been deemed to be definitive and valid beyond question. In this book, the author criticizes my friend, Ms. Dani Mabry’s father, John calling him a so called „bench player”. I will use the book as a reference as this year’s playoffs are played. His descriptive writing allows Beane and the others in the lively cast of baseball characters to come alive.
Customers find the book very insightful, describing it as a compelling dissertation that provides great life lessons. „…book that Michael Lewis writes seems to be more fascinating and well researched than the previous ones….” Read more Customers find the book informative and thoroughly researched, appreciating its good data-driven insights and depth.
Editorial Reviews
„…Lewis is a great read and enhanced both my enjoyment and appreciation of baseball. I was interested in reading the book after seeing the movie….” Read more „I really liked it. Michael Lewis is an excellent writer and it was a good story. I read one chapter weeping with laughter and it wasn’t a comedy….” Read more „Great writing. Makes the book an easy and good read. I’m not a crazed fan of baseball, or its stats, but I did really like the „Moneyball” movie….” Read more „Excellent book. Michael Lewis’ approach to the subject was interesting. Making data crunching an interesting read, can be a challenge.” Read more „…This has been a great read to learn how to understand the fundamentals of a game and it’s success and how to obtain it with limited resources.” Read more
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Customers find the book fantastic, great, and fascinating. Readers also mention that Michael Lewis did a good job balancing the main storyline with flashbacks. They also appreciate the story, saying the author has a way to tell moneyball the art of winning an unfair game it that makes every subject interesting. A speedy athletic can’t-miss prospect who somehow missed, Beane reinvents himself as a front-office guru, relying on players completely unlike, say, Billy Beane. Besides being one of the most insider accounts ever written about baseball, Moneyball is populated with fascinating characters.
