SABR Analytics Conference Research Awards
The SABR Analytics Conference Research Awards recognize baseball researchers who have completed the best work of original analysis or commentary during the preceding calendar year in the following categories:
- Contemporary Baseball Analysis: Honoring the best analysis focusing on a subject related to the modern game(s), team(s) or player(s).
- Contemporary Baseball Commentary: Honoring the best commentary focusing on a subject related to the modern game(s), team(s) or player(s).
- Historical Baseball Analysis/Commentary: Honoring the best original analysis or commentary focusing on a subject related to a game(s), team(s) or player(s) throughout baseball history.
- John Dewan Defensive Analytics Award: Honoring the best defensive or fielding analysis published or presented in the last year.
Works of “Analysis” will be judged on the following criteria: thorough examination of the subject matter; originality of research; factual accuracy; significance in advancing our understanding of baseball.
Works of “Commentary” will be judged on the following criteria: distinguished writing; profound insight; factual accuracy; significance in advancing our understanding of baseball.
A work can be in any format except books, including but not limited to articles, columns, blog posts, television, film, websites, spreadsheets or databases, but it must have been first published in the preceding calendar year. Individual articles published as part of a book or journal compilation are eligible. No unpublished work will be considered. No work published, in part or in whole, prior to the preceding calendar year will be considered.
No work will be considered in more than one category. Multiple nominations can be submitted, but only one work per author will be considered as a finalist.
Nominations are solicited by representatives from SABR, Baseball Prospectus, FanGraphs, the Internet Baseball Writers Association of America, and Sports Info Solutions, and sent to Jacob Pomrenke at the SABR office. SABR chooses the final 3-5 nominees in each category, from the list submitted by each group. Voting for the winners is conducted online at SABR.org, BaseballProspectus.com, FanGraphs.com, and IBWAA.com, with results weighted equally at 25%.
Results are announced and presented at the annual SABR Analytics Conference. Learn more at SABR.org/analytics.
2025 nominations
We’re seeking nominations for the 2025 SABR Analytics Conference Research Awards, which recognize baseball researchers who have completed the best work of original analysis or commentary during the preceding calendar year.
Please send all nominations via e-mail to this address: analytics-awards@sabr.org no later than December 31, 2024. Include author, title, date of publication and a URL link (if applicable).
Past winners
- Contemporary Baseball Analysis: Robert Orr, “Quantifying the Corey Seager Approach,” Baseball Prospectus, November 8, 2023.
- Contemporary Baseball Commentary: Ginny Searle, “The Wrong Lessons Learned,” Baseball Prospectus, June 16, 2023.
- Historical Baseball Analysis/Commentary: Patrick Dubuque, “The Other Aging Curve,” Baseball Prospectus, January 31, 2023.
- John Dewan Defensive Analytics: Rob Mains, “Fielding, It Turns Out, Does Slump,” Baseball Prospectus, August 29, 2023.
- Contemporary Baseball Analysis: Ben Clemens, “How Good Are Those Probabilities on the Apple TV+ Broadcasts?” FanGraphs, May 26, 2022.
- Contemporary Baseball Commentary: Michael Baumann, “The Playoffs Aren’t Too Big. The League Is Way Too Small,” FanGraphs, October 4, 2022.
- Historical Analysis/Commentary: Mike Petriello, “How many games would Springfield’s ringers win?” MLB.com, February 19, 2022.
- John Dewan Defensive Analytics: Russell A. Carleton, “So You’ve Decided to Ban the Shift,” Baseball Prospectus, March 9, 2022.
- Contemporary Baseball Analysis: Eno Sarris, “What is ‘seam-shifted wake’ and which pitchers benefit most from it?,” The Athletic.
- Contemporary Baseball Commentary: Brittany Ghiroli, “Cockroaches, car camping, poverty wages: Why are minor-leaguers living in squalor?,” The Athletic.
- Historical Analysis/Commentary: Emma Baccellieri, “Deadening the Baseball? MLB’s Done It Before,” Sports Illustrated.
- Contemporary Baseball Analysis: Tony Adams, for his research and analysis at SignStealingScandal.com.
- Contemporary Baseball Commentary: Bradford William Davis, “Baseball Let Unity Stand in the Way of Protest,” New York Daily News.
- Historical Analysis/Commentary: Shakeia Taylor, “Effa Manley’s Hidden Life,” SB Nation.
- Contemporary Baseball Analysis: Meredith Wills, “Yes, the Baseball is Different — Again. An Astrophysicist Examines This Year’s Baseballs and Breaks Down the Changes,” The Athletic.
- Contemporary Baseball Commentary: Emily Waldon, “I Can’t Afford to Play This Game: Minor Leaguers Open Up About the Realities of Their Pay and the Impact on Their Lives,” The Athletic.
- Historical Analysis/Commentary: Rachael McDaniel, “The Meaning of Ichiro,” FanGraphs.
- Contemporary Baseball Analysis: Wayne Boyle, Sean O’Rourke, Jeff Long, and Harry Pavlidis, “Robo Strike Zone: It’s Not as Simple as You Think,” Baseball Prospectus.
- Contemporary Baseball Commentary: Sheryl Ring, “The Human Side of the Cubs’ Addison Russell Decision,” FanGraphs.
- Historical Analysis/Commentary: Ben Lindbergh, “The Sabermetric Movement’s Forgotten Foremother,” The Ringer.
- Contemporary Baseball Analysis: Stephanie Springer, “Get a Grip,” The Hardball Times.
- Contemporary Baseball Commentary: Emma Baccellieri, “Major League Baseball’s Statcast Can Break Sabermetrics,” Deadspin.
- Historical Analysis/Commentary: Grant Brisbee, “Why Baseball Games Are So Damned Long,” SB Nation.
- Contemporary Baseball Analysis: August Fagerstrom, “The Game Plan: How the Indians Almost Won It All,” FanGraphs.
- Contemporary Baseball Commentary: Meg Rowley, “Let Ballparks Get Old,” Baseball Prospectus.
- Historical Analysis/Commentary: Mina Kimes, “The Art of Letting Go,” ESPN The Magazine.
- Contemporary Baseball Analysis: Benjamin S. Baumer, Shane T. Jensen, Gregory J. Matthews, “OpenWAR: An Open Source System for Evaluating Overall Player Performance in Major League Baseball,” Journal of Quantitative Analysis.
- Contemporary Baseball Commentary: Alexis Brudnicki, “I’m Different. I’m the Same.” The Hardball Times.
- Historical Analysis/Commentary: John McMurray, “Examining Stolen Base Trends by Decade from the Deadball Era through the 1970s,” SABR Baseball Research Journal.
2015
- Contemporary Analysis: Jeff Sullivan, “Alex Gordon Barely Had a Chance,” FanGraphs.
- Contemporary Commentary: Grant Brisbee, “Rumors, Rumors, Every Where, Nor Any Drop to Drink,” SB Nation.
- Historical Analysis/Commentary: Sam Miller, “Baseball’s Seven Wonders: Kerry Wood’s 20-K Game,” Baseball Prospectus.
2014
- Contemporary Analysis: James Santelli, “Pirates Defensive Shifts: The Hidden Secret Behind Baseball’s Best Team,” PiratesProspects.com.
- Contemporary Commentary: Jonah Keri, “Grand Theft Baseball,” Grantland.com.
- Historical Analysis/Commentary: Max Marchi, “Catcher Framing Before PITCHf/x,” Baseball Prospectus.
2013
- Contemporary Analysis: Bill Petti and Jeff Zimmerman, “Pitcher Aging Curves: An Introduction,” FanGraphs.
- Contemporary Commentary: Lewie Pollis, “Did Hall of Fame’s Founders Want Voters to Judge With Their Eyes?” Beyond the Box Score.
- Historical Analysis/Commentary: Dave Studeman, “The Most Critical At-Bat of All Time,” The Hardball Times.