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When I heard Aaron Sorkin signed on to write the screenplay and they cast Jonah Hill as Paul DePodesta I thought, "Wow, Seth from 'Superbad' is going to be explaining :censored: Adjusted OPS+ to Donna Moss during an animated walk-and-talk." Sign me up!

 

I guess the character that Hill plays is a composite since DePodesta wouldn't allow his name to be used due to his problems with the script. I think he just didn't want to be portrayed as chubby.

 

Michael Lewis always said that he wrote Moneyball so that he could write a follow-up to it about how the experiment turned out. Finding value in the market was novel, but the value in OBP has been over-valued and everyone is scrambling to come up with the new-new thing [see what I did there Lewis fans?]: fielding. And since fielding stats don't account for which guy makes an error because he can actually get to the ball (looking at you Derek Jeter), that brings scouting back into play. How that evolves over the next 10 years will be interesting.

 

Anyway, I'll probably go see this one in the theater. :thumbsup:

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When I heard Aaron Sorkin signed on to write the screenplay and they cast Jonah Hill as Paul DePodesta I thought, "Wow, Seth from 'Superbad' is going to be explaining :censored: Adjusted OPS+ to Donna Moss during an animated walk-and-talk." Sign me up!

 

I guess the character that Hill plays is a composite since DePodesta wouldn't allow his name to be used due to his problems with the script. I think he just didn't want to be portrayed as chubby.

 

Michael Lewis always said that he wrote Moneyball so that he could write a follow-up to it about how the experiment turned out. Finding value in the market was novel, but the value in OBP has been over-valued and everyone is scrambling to come up with the new-new thing [see what I did there Lewis fans?]: fielding. And since fielding stats don't account for which guy makes an error because he can actually get to the ball (looking at you Derek Jeter), that brings scouting back into play. How that evolves over the next 10 years will be interesting.

 

Anyway, I'll probably go see this one in the theater. :thumbsup:

 

Me too!! Would you advise reading the book first?

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The more I hear about this film, the more I can't wait to see it. I had never even heard of the book, but Colin Cowherd was discussing it on the air during my drive into work today. I've always had a fascination with scouting, drafting, team building, etc, and the background he was giving during the show really piqued my interest. I also love films based on true events, so this will be one I see in the theater for sure :thumbsup:

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Me too!! Would you advise reading the book first?

 

I'm probably the worst person to ask. The book is a narrative about market (in)efficiencies and how a small market team with a very limited budget was able to compete on an uneven playing field. Being a baseball fan and a market technician, this book was written for me. If you've ever read Lewis' other books (Liar's Poker, The New New Thing, The Blind Side, or The Big Short) and liked them, then I would encourage you to read it. Like "The Blind Side", I don't think you'd need to read the book to enjoy the movie.

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When I heard Aaron Sorkin signed on to write the screenplay and they cast Jonah Hill as Paul DePodesta I thought, "Wow, Seth from 'Superbad' is going to be explaining :censored: Adjusted OPS+ to Donna Moss during an animated walk-and-talk." Sign me up!

 

I guess the character that Hill plays is a composite since DePodesta wouldn't allow his name to be used due to his problems with the script. I think he just didn't want to be portrayed as chubby.

 

Michael Lewis always said that he wrote Moneyball so that he could write a follow-up to it about how the experiment turned out. Finding value in the market was novel, but the value in OBP has been over-valued and everyone is scrambling to come up with the new-new thing [see what I did there Lewis fans?]: fielding. And since fielding stats don't account for which guy makes an error because he can actually get to the ball (looking at you Derek Jeter), that brings scouting back into play. How that evolves over the next 10 years will be interesting.

 

Anyway, I'll probably go see this one in the theater. :thumbsup:

 

I'll definitely go see it too, especially being a huge A's fan. As you said, OBP is now highly overrated by everyone. But he did manage to win with it, because no one paid any attention with lower "regular" stats and high OBP. Now if someone has a high OBP, everyone is looking at him. Defense isn't the next big "undiscovered" thing to win. Going by defense gets you a team like the Mariners. Beane has shown he can change with the times, but sooner or later he's simply gotta go get some guys that can hit .300 and/or be a 40 HR threat. He's wasting great pitching.

 

The funniest past was that in the famed "Moneyball draft" of 2002, none of those guys have gone on to do anything. Swisher is decent, but there were a ton of flops in that draft.

 

Me too!! Would you advise reading the book first?

 

As Hops guy said, the book was more of a narrative than a true story. Its a good book if you are a big baseball fan, but if not, then it wont be a huge deal to see the movie first. But the book isn't about Beane. Its about how Beane challenged/changed a 100 year old thought process when it came to player evaluation.

Edited by Ramius
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I'll definitely go see it too, especially being a huge A's fan. As you said, OBP is now highly overrated by everyone. But he did manage to win with it, because no one paid any attention with lower "regular" stats and high OBP. Now if someone has a high OBP, everyone is looking at him. Defense isn't the next big "undiscovered" thing to win. Going by defense gets you a team like the Mariners. Beane has shown he can change with the times, but sooner or later he's simply gotta go get some guys that can hit .300 and/or be a 40 HR threat. He's wasting great pitching.

 

The funniest past was that in the famed "Moneyball draft" of 2002, none of those guys have gone on to do anything. Swisher is decent, but there were a ton of flops in that draft.

 

 

 

As Hops guy said, the book was more of a narrative than a true story. Its a good book if you are a big baseball fan, but if not, then it wont be a huge deal to see the movie first. But the book isn't about Beane. Its about how Beane challenged/changed a 100 year old thought process when it came to player evaluation.

 

 

Thanks!! I am a baseball fan. My team is the Texas Rangers. Reading the book

and seeing the movie will help me understand the A's better.

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If you've ever read Lewis' other books (Liar's Poker, The New New Thing, The Blind Side, or The Big Short) and liked them, then I would encourage you to read it. Like "The Blind Side", I don't think you'd need to read the book to enjoy the movie.

 

I'd read the book first; phenomenal book--and I think it's Lewis' best. Big Short is a close second.

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