Featured Speakers
The SABR Virtual Analytics Conference will be held over four days in online sessions from March 17-20, 2022, as we brought together the top minds in the baseball analytics community to discuss, debate, and share insightful ways to analyze and examine the great game of baseball.
- Research Presentations: Click here for presenter bios and abstracts
Learn more about our featured speakers and panelists on this page.
Dan Aucoin is the Chief Research Officer at Driveline Baseball, where he manages the company’s research initiatives and oversees its software stack for third-party consumers. Previously, he was a Senior Research & Development Analyst with the Cincinnati Reds and an R&D consultant with the Philadelphia Phillies. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Sports Management from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst.
Will Carroll has been writing regular Under the Knife columns and newsletters about sports science, sports medicine, and sports for two decades. He is the author of The Science of Baseball: The Math, Technology, and Data Behind the Great American Pastime and two other award-winning sports books, Saving The Pitcher and The Juice. He also consults with several professional teams and players on sports science. His work can be found at ESPN, Sports Illustrated, Baseball Prospectus, and the New York Times. He lives in Indianapolis, Indiana.
Ryan L. Crotin, Ph.D, is a Research Associate and Adjunct Thesis Advisor in the Department of Kinesiology at Louisiana Tech University. He is the Vice President of ArmCare.com and he previously worked as the Director of Performance Integration with the Los Angeles Angels from 2017 to 2021.
Seth Daniels is the Director of Product for Rapsodo, where he focuses on building data-driven technologies to provide players and coaches with real-time tracking solutions and helps develop market strategies for the North American market. He holds a bachelor’s degree in marketing communications and an MBA from Anderson University.
Joel Feinberg is a Senior Product Manager at Major League Baseball. Previously, he spent more than eight years at Google, most recently as a Product Manager in advertising measurement roles. He graduated from George Washington University with a bachelor’s degree in International Business.
Jonah Gardner is the Product Marketing Manager at Sports Reference, where he’s responsible for coordinating marketing campaigns for Stathead, Sports Reference’s suite of advanced research tools. Before that, he worked as Social Media Manager for Sports Reference, providing live coverage and up to the minute statistical research for the biggest games of the season from Baseball Reference’s social media accounts. Jonah lives in Philadelphia with his dog, Berman, and roots for the World Champion Atlanta Braves.
Georgia Giblin is currently the Director, Performance Science with the Detroit Tigers, where she oversees the department and is responsible for researching, planning, and implementing performance science solutions. Previously, she spent one year at the University of Michigan as a post-doctoral fellow. Before moving to the US, she spent four years as a biomechanist at the Queensland Academy of Sport, supporting Australia’s Olympic athletes across track and field, softball, triathlon, and archery. She completed her Ph.D. in Biomechanics and Motor Learning at Victoria University in Melbourne, in partnership with Tennis Australia.
Jacob Howenstein is a Biomechanical Engineer at BlastMotion, where he serves as the lead technical expert for sports science applications and algorithm development and works closely with MLB clients. Before joining BlastMotion in 2018, he worked in the medical field as a systems and software engineer. He holds a master’s degree in Biomedical Engineering from St. Louis University.
Ben Jedlovec is Senior Director, Baseball Data Platform Product, at Major League Baseball, where he has worked since 2018. Previously, he served as President of Baseball Info Solutions, managing the company’s day-to-day operations and data collection efforts. After his graduation from Rice University with degrees in kinesiology and statistics, he was hired as the first employee in the BIS Research and Development department. He is the co-author (with John Dewan) of Volumes III and IV of The Fielding Bible.
Karim Kassam is Director of Product and Strategy at Zelus Analytics. Previously, he founded the research group at the Pittsburgh Steelers, leading data science for football operations. He has also led data science efforts at the Minnesota Twins, Jacksonville Jaguars, Legendary Entertainment, and education startup Duolingo. Prior to his work as a data scientist, Karim was a professor at Carnegie Mellon University. He earned his Ph.D from Harvard University in 2010.
Josh Keen is a Baseball Operations Analyst with Major League Baseball. He focuses on the design and coordination of on-field rules experimentation, and leads the development, monitoring, and dissemination of analyses and visualizations relevant to on-field trends. He previously worked with TrackMan Baseball as a Data Analyst. He completed his B.A. in Mathematics and Economics from Rhodes College, where he also played on the baseball team.
Brian Kenny is a host at MLB Network, where he appears across the network’s studio programming, including “MLB Now” and “MLB Tonight.” He is also the author of Ahead of the Curve: Inside the Baseball Revolution. A 25-year national TV and radio veteran, Brian joined MLB Network from ESPN, where he was a “SportsCenter” anchor, host of the “Brian Kenny Show” on ESPN Radio and an Emmy Award-winning anchor for “Baseball Tonight.”
Sean Lahman is SABR’s Data Projects Manager and the creator of the Lahman Baseball Database, an open-source collection of baseball statistics. He has edited or contributed to more than a dozen sports reference books, including Total Baseball and the ESPN Baseball Encyclopedia. He is an award-winning investigative journalist for the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle in New York.
Sarah Langs is a reporter and researcher for MLB.com and appears on MLB Network. She has been with MLB since 2019. Previously, she was a Senior Researcher at ESPN, researching Baseball Tonight and contributing research-driven content to ESPN.com. She attended the University of Chicago.
Keenan Long is the founder of LongBall Labs. He earned a mechanical engineering degree from Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology after leading the baseball team to three consecutive NCAA D-III Tournaments and receiving an NCAA All-American Honorable Mention. His professional baseball experience includes stops in the Golden League and the Frontier League. Long went on to research collision physics as a bat engineer for Easton where he authored a portfolio of patents on bat technology. His subsequent research with the Analytics Dept at Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management uncovered the performance advantages that LongBall Labs provides its MLB clients.
Bryson Nakamura is the Director and Head Sport Scientist for the Stanford Baseball Science Core. Previously, he spent six seasons with the Milwaukee Brewers, helping to establish the Integrative Sports Performance department and overseeing minor league strength and conditioning in his role as the Director of Player Performance. He was a sport science intern with the Tampa Bay Rays while completing his doctorate at the University of Oregon in the Bowerman Sports Science Clinic. He also graduated with a master’s degree from Oregon and a bachelor’s degree from the University of Puget Sound in Exercise Science, where he also played on the baseball team.
Kristen Nicholson is an assistant professor of orthopedic surgery and director of the Biomechanics and Pitching Laboratory at Wake Forest School of Medicine. She earned her undergraduate in Mathematical Science from Clemson University and her M.S. and Ph.D in Biomechanics and Movement Science from the University of Delaware. Dr. Nicholson uses the pitching laboratory to enhance player development and conduct biomechanics research. Her research focus is defining pitching efficiency, reducing injury risk while promoting ball velocity.
Clay Nunnally is a Baseball Scientist at Major League Baseball. Between 2008 and 2018, he served as the Chief Operating Officer at Applied Physical Electronics. He holds a bachelor’s degree in physics from Abilene Christian University, a master’s degree in engineering physics from the University of Virginia, and a Ph.D. in electrical engineering from the University of Missouri.
Maggie O’Hara is a Senior Analyst in Baseball Operations for the Detroit Tigers. She holds a bachelor’s degree in economics with a statistics minor from the University of Chicago, where she was a four-year starter and a two-year captain on the softball team.
Eno Sarris is a staff writer for The Athletic, where he specializes in pitching analytics. He takes the best public analytics findings to the players in the clubhouse to get their reactions. He has also been a contributor to FanGraphs, ESPN, MLB.com, Fox Sports, SB Nation, The Hardball Times, and others.
Sid Sethupathi is a Software Engineer at Major League Baseball. He previously worked at Comprehend Systems, where he developed backend services and high chart visualization to analyze data. He holds a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering and computer science from the University of Illinois.
Ethan Stewart is entering his first full season as the Applied Biomechanist for the Cincinnati Reds, where he oversees biomechanics initiatives for the organization. Previously, he was the Player Performance Facilitator for the Baltimore Orioles for two years and spent two seasons as a Performance Science Intern for the Tampa Bay Rays. He is a founding member and board member for the American Baseball Biomechanics Society. He completed both his B.S. and M.S. degrees from the University of Kentucky in Kinesiology and Biomechanics, and is currently a Ph.D. candidate at Mississippi State University studying Biomechanics/Neuromechanics.
Megan Stewart is in her second season as an analyst with the Milwaukee Brewers Performance Science Department. Previously, she was a Sports Biomechanist at the American Sports Medicine Institute. She was elected as the International Society of Biomechanics student representative from 2019 to 2021 and also serves on committees for the International Society of Biomechanics in Sports and Advancing Women in Biomechanics. She holds a Ph.D in Health & Human Performance with an emphasis in Sports Biomechanics from the University of Kentucky.
Zoe Surma is a web developer at Sports Reference. She is a recent graduate of the University of Notre Dame with a degree in Computer Engineering. She is a Cubs, Fighting Irish and Formula One fan.
Jason Themanson is a Professor in the Department of Psychology and the Neuroscience Program at Illinois Wesleyan University. He received his B.S. in Psychology from the University of Illinois, his M.A. in Social Psychology from the University of Connecticut, and his Ph.D. in Kinesiology (with an emphasis in exercise psychology) from the University of Illinois. Dr. Themanson’s research utilizes both neural and behavioral measures to examine cognitive processes related to learning, decision-making, and control during task performance.
Nick Wan is the Director of Analytics for the Cincinnati Reds, where he has worked for four seasons. In this role, he oversees the day-to-day analytics operations for the Major League team, Player Development, Health & Performance, Professional Scouting, and Amateur Scouting. He previously spent three years as a Data Scientist with the Reds. He earned his Ph.D in Psychology from Utah State University and earned his B.S. in Psychology from Saint Mary’s College of California. He is also the game show host for SLICED, a competitive data science competition which is streamed on his Twitch channel.
For more information, or to register for the 2022 SABR Virtual Analytics Conference, visit SABR.org/analytics/2022.