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Theo EpsteinTheo Epstein

The biggest competitive advantage in baseball today is understanding players as human beings rather than just data

The ironic thing about that is it's kind of swung the pendulum back where I think the biggest competitive advantage now is actually understanding players as human beings, what makes them tick, getting the right kind of guys, building the right kind of chemistry, and then treating them the right way so that the team can take off.

This is a management philosophy that has gained significant traction in the 'post-Moneyball' era of MLB front offices.

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Apr 5, 2017
#14945
PFT CommenterPFT Commenter

Tony Romo is the most fun quarterback to watch fail in NFL history

And I'll give you right now Tony Romo's legacy. You don't have to read anything else. He is the most fun quarterback to hate of all time. That's his legacy. ... But for everybody else, so if you're not a Duke, Yankees, Lakers fan, I'm not talking to you, but everyone else, he was the most fun quarterback to watch fail.

This is a subjective assessment of a player's cultural legacy.
Loss
Apr 5, 2017
#26796
Big CatBig Cat

Tony Romo will return to the NFL and play another snap despite retiring to the broadcast booth

Tony Romo retiring, I'm using air quotes right now, retiring to go into the broadcast booth is kind of the biggest news story this week. I think he's going to play another snap.

Tony Romo never played another snap in the NFL, successfully transitioning to a full-time broadcasting career with CBS.
Loss
Apr 5, 2017
#14946
Big CatBig Cat

Tony Romo will not be a good broadcaster

Tony... he's not going to be – I don't think he's going to be very good in the broadcast booth. Hot take, Tony Romo is not – this is the classic media loving the guy who smiled a lot, who had his backwards hat... who answered questions, and was generally likable.

Romo was an immediate sensation at CBS, praised for his ability to predict plays and his enthusiasm, though some criticism emerged in later years.

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Theo EpsteinTheo Epstein

The Cubs would not have won the World Series without the Game 7 rain delay

Do you think the Cubs win the World Series if that rain delay doesn't happen? No. I did not look like the most confident... i doubt we win without first of all if you blow a lead late in any game it's hard to then come back and win... the guys were shell-shocked as we all were and that rain delay... catching a little glimpse of our players meeting and it was awesome... I don't think we win the World Series without that, but you can't prove it.

A counterfactual that can never be proven, but carries weight coming from Epstein.
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Theo EpsteinTheo Epstein

Position players are significantly better first-round draft bets than pitchers

The best bets in the first round are position players. They return, on average, about twice as much value as pitchers. If we were going to put our resources... we wanted to do it with position players.

Historical draft data generally supports the idea that first-round position players have a higher success rate and lower injury risk than high school or college pitchers.
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Theo EpsteinTheo Epstein

Media attention on Moneyball changed how baseball front offices operate by forcing owners to ask more questions

When Moneyball came out, it hit the New York Times bestseller list. And who reads bestsellers like rich dudes on their yachts who are the same guys who own baseball teams? So they all read the book. Then they started looking at their GMs. I was like, what the hell are we doing? ... It was an example of the media kind of changed in the way the game operates because they started asking questions.

Epstein is reflecting on his firsthand experience during the 'Moneyball' era of the early 2000s.

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