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By Chuck Wasserstrom | at
Email a copy of 'Jed Hoyer Discusses Wesleyan University: MLBTR College Series' to a friend
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Samuel
When I was growing up, I used to read stories about baseball executives that played the sport, and then began working themselves up from the lowest reaches of the minor leagues. They would talk about older mentors that had impacted them, and things they learned along the way as they were moved up the ladder until they got on the major league club. Those people knew the game in and out, and didn’t have to look at speed guns and statistical data to understand what was going on. When they finally ran a team, they’d have had at least 20 years experience.
Today we have history, business, and law majors from Ivy League schools that come out of graduate school and get jobs as “interns” in front offices. They then look at statistical data, video, etc,; and many wind up running a baseball organization less then 10 years after they left college. That’s nice. It explains the caliber of baseball being played – the micro-managing, the lack of players skills, the emphasis each year or two on whatever the fad is to capitalize on what off-season statistical analysis showed. Most of the teams are cookie-cutter, and the majority of the players can’t make plays. In the near future I look for the Ivy League guys that have invaded much of MLB to be like the Ivy League guys that become Wall Street traders – the hot hands will make a lot of money, when their hand goes cold ownership will bring in cheaper Ivy League grads that might be the next hot hand.
The Brian Sabean’s and Dayton Moore’s will continue to build successful organizations and put out winning teams. I does bother me that there may not be a place for people that worked their way up through hard work and life experiences (many people cannot afford to “intern” – they have to make enough money to support themselves…..and sometimes their families). Those people are left to do the grunt work, being passed over by the Ivy League grads. In another 20 years I fear that MLB will totally be computer baseball , where the micro-managing front offices will be talking into microphones in players ears before every pitch – telling the pitcher what to throw and where, the batter what to look for, the fielders where to stand, and the baserunners to be sure not to try to do anything out of the ordinary.
iceman35pilot
Great spleen vent. Except you’re forgetting that those Ivy League guys are winning World Series and bringing back organizations from oblivion in less than 5?years.
tim815
And putting together pipelines developing he skills of talented athletes into quality big leaguers through their team-controlled years.
petrie000
so you’re afraid that teams using modern statistics will become ‘cookie cutter’ because they don’t have enough ‘old school’ baseball people who operate under the ‘conventional wisdom’ that ruled the sport for nearly a century and lead to pretty much all teams being built the same way around the same principles until Billy Beane showed up and tried to do something unconventional?
yeah… that makes sense…. i guess…
stl_cards16 2
It is really funny to me that so many people take this stance about baseball.
Name one other job where you don’t have to change/adapt/advance your skills to be successful. It’s not the “new guys” fault that so many “baseball guys” are so unwilling to grow with their job.
petrie000
there’s also the point that professional sports is the ultimate meritocracy… if you’re not winning, you’re replaced.
And as long as people like Theo Epstein and John Mozeliak keep winning WS rings, the arguement that the ‘old schoolers’ being left behind is unfair just rings hollow because obviously you can win a lot of games with the newer way of thinking
BigGiantHead
Sam – people that you complain about have, for instance, turned the Pirates around. There are pros and cons to every approach.
hojostache
Another great article on an interesting baseball exec.; it also highlights what a great liberal arts education can provide a person. He was spot on about team sports, as it offers a great environment to bond, learn, and grow.
citizen
does sabermetrics predict schwarbers fielding gaffs?
amishthunderak
They knew what they were getting defensively. They drafted the best bat available, and it was way higher than anybody else had him slated to go. And they took Kris Bryant at #2 when the entire universe (at least the people that paid attention to the MLB draft) said Appel at 1 and Gray at 2. Their plan was to take the best hitter.
thebare
Theo and Hoyer you talk Cub history why don’t they right a wrong.The Cubs did Bill Madlock wrong trading for Bobby Mercer back in the day cause he want a raise , then pay Mercer more he was a nobody in Cub history. We’re Maddog won: 3 titles batting later help the Pirates to the World Series.Why not have a Mad dog day at Wrigley Field
bubbles3
I cannot tell if this post is typed as a caveman in a brilliant satire, or if it’s a person using an iPhone for the first time. Either way, I’m pleasantly confused.
amishthunderak
Me too.
whitemule70
Wesleyan has moved far left over the years. It is now a prime example of political correctness gone crazy. Sad to see.