SABR 51: Listen to highlights from featured presentations by Adam Darowski, Katie Krall
At SABR 51 in Chicago, attendees had an opportunity to listen to special presentations from Adam Darowski of Sports Reference on “The Negro Leagues Are Major Leagues: Two Years Post-Launch” on Thursday, July 6, 2023, and Katie Krall of Hawk-Eye Innovations on “Analytics and Coaching in Baseball” on Saturday, July 8, 2023, at the Palmer House Hilton.
Learn more and listen to highlights from these sessions below.
The Negro Leagues are Major Leagues: Two Years Post-Launch
Adam Darowski
In June 2021, Baseball Reference dramatically expanded coverage of the Negro Leagues and historical Black major league players through a partnership with Agate Type Research and the Seamheads Negro Leagues Database. Darowski’s presentation discussed the project’s launch, presentation of the data, input from dozens of contributors and reviewers, the impact of the project in its first two years, what is coming next, and how the research community can help.
Darowski is the Product Director for Sports Reference, makers of Baseball Reference and Stathead. He has been a SABR member since 2013 and serves as co-chair of the 19th Century Overlooked Legends Committee. He created the Hall of Stats in 2012 and is the host of two podcasts: Building the Ballot (about the Baseball Hall of Fame’s Era Committees) and The Outsider Baseball Notebook (about baseball outside of the major leagues before integration).
- Audio: Click here to listen to Adam Darowski’s “The Negro Leagues Are Major Leagues: Two Years Post-Launch” presentation at SABR 51 (MP3; 56:18)
Analytics and Coaching in Baseball
Katie Krall
The use of data in MLB front offices for roster construction and player evaluation has been widely documented in recent years, but the next revolution and disruptors are those who can integrate quantitative analysis between the lines. Through outlining her experiences as an in-uniform coach for the Boston Red Sox, Krall shares what she believes are the key attributes of building trust and communicating concepts to players for pitch design and advance scouting.
Krall is Senior Product Manager, Baseball Strategy, at Hawk-Eye Innovations, where she spearheads development and identifies solutions for building new products that leverage biomechanics, player tracking, bat, and ball flight data. Previously, she worked for the Boston Red Sox and Cincinnati Reds front offices, at the Office of the Commissioner of Major League Baseball, and as an Assistant General Manager in the Cape Cod Baseball League. In 2016, she planned the World Series Trophy Tour for the Chicago Cubs. She graduated from Northwestern University and is pursuing her MBA from the University of Chicago.
- Audio: Click here to listen to Katie Krall’s “Analytics and Coaching in Baseball” presentation at SABR 51 (MP3; 27:34)
Originally published: July 17, 2023. Last Updated: July 17, 2023.