This Week in SABR: December 14, 2012

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Welcome to “This Week in SABR”! Here’s what we’ve been up to as of December 14, 2012:

It’s time to renew your SABR membership!

Thanks to all of you who have already renewed your SABR membership for 2013; we’re glad to have you aboard for another year (or three!), and we’ve got a lot of new books and projects coming up that we think you’re going to love.

Please take a minute to renew your membership for 1 year or 3 years online at the SABR Store; by phone at (602) 343-6450; or by mailing this downloadable PDF form and your payment to the SABR office at 4455 E. Camelback Road, Ste. D-140, Phoenix, AZ 85018.

Dues start at $45 annually and are the same as they have been in recent years. For that bargain price, you get three high-quality research publications (two issues of the Baseball Research Journal and one issue of The National Pastime, our convention journal); deep discounts to all publications in the SABR Digital Library; access to research resources such as Paper of Record (with complete archives of The Sporting News); discounts to SABR conferences such as the national convention (Philadelphia 2013), the SABR Analytics Conference, the Jerry Malloy Negro League Conference, and the Arizona Fall League Conference; access to a growing network of SABR baseball community, including our 27 research committees and 60+ regional chapters.

We believe SABR has something for everyone, from the active researcher to someone passionate about baseball. We hope you’ll invite your friends, colleagues and family members to join at http://store.sabr.org.

Give the gift of SABR this holiday season

Do you know a baseball-loving friend or family member who talks and reads about his or her favorite sport all the time? Give the gift of a SABR membership this holiday season, and help foster a lifelong love of baseball research.

SABR gift memberships are also available at the SABR Store starting at $45 annually for 1 or 3 years. Just click here to sign them up:

http://profile.sabr.org/general/register_member_type.asp

(Please note: If you are already logged in to the SABR website, you’ll have to log out first in order to purchase a gift membership.) If you have any questions, call Membership Director Deb Jayne at (602) 343-6455.

All new SABR members receive three high-quality research publications (two issues of the Baseball Research Journal and one issue of The National Pastime); deep discounts to all publications in the SABR Digital Library; access to research resources such as Paper of Record (with complete archives of The Sporting News); discounts to SABR conferences such as the national convention (Philadelphia 2013), the SABR Analytics Conference, the Jerry Malloy Negro League Conference, and the Arizona Fall League Conference; access to a growing network of SABR baseball community, including our 27 research committees and 60+ regional chapters.

Donate to SABR and support the future of baseball research

This has probably been SABR’s most active year since our founding in 1971. We held our first Analytics Conference in March and are busily planning for the next one in March of 2013. Our deal with Major League Baseball Advanced Media provides a far-reaching outlet for our research. SABR 42 in Minneapolis was a tremendous success, and we are looking forward to SABR 43 in Philadelphia. On top of that we published three research journals, the Emerald Guide, and several e-books, continued to build our digital content, and held conferences covering the Negro Leagues, the Arizona Fall League, and 19th Century Baseball.

In the coming year we plan to do all of the above, plus publish a major book on the history of baseball broadcasting, continue to expand the BioProject, and create more team biography books. All of this is made possible by our strong professional staff in Phoenix and our all-star team of volunteer members around the world.

Of course, accomplishing all of this requires funding beyond the annual dues we all pay. The dues allow SABR to survive; it is donations from people like you that help us thrive. Since 2004 we have asked for, and have been fortunate to receive, additional funding from members who believe in what SABR does and can afford to give something extra. Also since 2004, we continue to say thank you to our donors by offering them small gifts to show the appreciation felt by all of our members who care about what we do in support of the greatest game on earth.

SABR is a 501(c)3 organization, which means your donation is tax deductible in the U.S. to the fullest extent of the law.

THE DONOR PROGRAM*

  • $25-$99: receive a “Donor” convention badge ribbon entitling early entry into the SABR Convention Awards Banquet
  • $100-$249: receive the above benefit plus a ticket to the SABR Convention Donor Breakfast that features a “State of SABR” presentation by our executive leadership
  • $250-$499: receive all of the above benefits plus the new SABR Lapel Pin
  • $500-$1,499: receive all of the above benefits plus a SABR MVP Polo Shirt
  • $1,500-$2,499: receive all of the above benefits plus a junior suite upgrade at the SABR Convention hotel
  • $2,500 and up: receive all of the above plus an executive level room upgrade at the SABR Convention hotel.

*convention-related premiums assume payment of registration fees and attendance

Please join me in supporting SABR and send your donation to the address above, or by visiting SABR.org and pressing the convenient DONATE button. By doing so you help SABR fulfill its mission and increase the impact of our baseball analysis and historical study.

— Paul Hirsch

Rob Edelman: New York Mets in the movies

In April 2012, SABR member Rob Edelman, an expert on baseball and the film industry, presented his paper on New York Mets and the movies at the 50th anniversary New York Mets conference at Hofstra University. As Edelman writes:

When it comes to Big Apple baseball teams and the movies, I must regretfully report that the New York Mets come in a distant fourth place. Across the decades, baseball films (as opposed to films with baseball-related sequences) spotlight the other New York nines — but never the Mets. There have been biopics of Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig, Jackie Robinson and Roy Campanella, but never Tom Seaver, Darryl Strawberry, or Mike Piazza.

Meanwhile, quite a few New York ballplayers have appeared onscreen. Babe Ruth acted in those silent features; played himself in The Pride of the Yankees (1942), the Lou Gehrig biopic; and appeared in various short subjects. Gehrig starred in Rawhide (1938), a B-Western. Jackie Robinson played himself in The Jackie Robinson Story. And so on … But if you want to find a Met in the movies, the first name that pops into mind is Greg Goossen, the 1960s catcher-first sacker — he of the .202 batting average in his four Mets seasons. Starting in the late 1980s, Goossen worked as Gene Hackman’s stand-in and also appeared onscreen.

There is good news, however: When it comes to baseball on celluloid, the Mets have not been completely shut out. Far from it.

We are pleased to publish his article at SABR.org this week. You can read the full article by clicking here: http://sabr.org/latest/edelman-new-york-mets-movies.

Apply by December 31 for Yoseloff Scholarship to attend 2013 SABR Analytics Conference

With generous funding from The Anthony A. Yoseloff Foundation, Inc., SABR will award up to four scholarships to college students who wish to attend the 2013 SABR Analytics Conference in Phoenix, Arizona, on March 7-9, 2013. This scholarship will pay for registration, transportation and lodging up to a total value of $1,250.

The objective of this scholarship fund is to encourage student engagement with baseball analytics, and to engender an active interest in baseball research and SABR. The Yoseloff scholarship is to assist young researchers who want to attend SABR’s Analytics Conference and to introduce them to fellow SABR members and professionals within the baseball community. Through this fund, SABR hopes to inspire future baseball research, expose students to high-quality research and build the research capability of interested students.

All applications must be postmarked or e-mailed to Jeff Schatzki at jschatzki@sabr.org no later than December 31, 2012.

For details on the scholarship requirements or to download an application form, click here. 

Students must be currently enrolled in a high school, college undergraduate or graduate program, and be between 18 and 29 years of age at the time of the conference.

Register today for 2013 SABR Analytics Conference

Once again, SABR is bringing together the top minds of the baseball analytic community under one roof to discuss, debate and share insightful ways to analyze and examine the great game of baseball for the second annual:

SABR Analytics Conference
presented by Major League Baseball and Bloomberg Sports
March 7-9, 2013
Sheraton Phoenix Downtown
Phoenix, Arizona

SABR has secured a special conference rate of $149/night (plus tax) from March 6-10, 2013, at the Sheraton Phoenix Downtown, 340 North 3rd Street, Phoenix, AZ 85004 — just blocks away from Chase Field. Please note: The group rate is available until February 13, 2013, or until our room block runs out so book your reservation today! Due to the popularity of spring training in Arizona, rooms may not be available at the Sheraton prior to March 6.

The schedule will consist of a combination of Guest Speakers, Panels and Research Presentations — plus the unique Diamond Dollars Case Competition, in which undergraduate, graduate and law school students from across the country analyze and present a real baseball operations decision.

Featured speakers expected for the 2013 Analytics Conference are: Stan Kasten, President/CEO of the Los Angeles Dodgers; Derrick Hall, President/CEO of the Arizona Diamondbacks; Jed Hoyer, Executive VP/General Manager of the Chicago Cubs; Joe Posnanski, Senior Writer for Sports on Earth; and Brian Kenny, MLB Network host. More speakers will be announced soon!

The World Baseball Classic will also be held in the Phoenix area that weekend, with first-round games scheduled at Chase Field and Salt River Fields at Talking Stick. We plan to talk more about global baseball issues at the 2013 SABR Analytics Conference.

Some of the other topics we are planning to cover include:

  • General Managers Panel on how analytics shapes front-office decisions
  • Measuring Player Performance
  • New innovations in baseball analytics
  • Player Agents — their view of analytics
  • Advances in medical information and its impact on decisions
  • New applications of PITCHf/x data
  • The use of analytics in scouting
  • Player panel — the impact of data and information on performance
  • The International Game — the next hot spot for talent development

The inaugural SABR Analytics Conference in 2012 was an enormous success. For complete coverage of the 2012 SABR Analytics Conference, visit SABR.org/analytics/2012.

6 new events added to SABR Day 2013 page

The fourth annual SABR Day is coming up sooner than you think: January 26, 2013. We’re compiling details now on 2013 SABR Day chapter meetings around the country. We’ll post them as soon as we get them at SABR.org/sabrday.

So far, we have SABR Day events on the schedule in these cities:

  • Columbus, OH (Hank Gowdy Chapter)
  • Cooperstown, NY (Cliff Kachline Chapter)
  • Fort Lauderdale, FL (South Florida Chapter)
  • Houston, TX (Larry Dierker Chapter)
  • Indianapolis, IN (Oscar Charleston Chapter)
  • Kenosha, WI (co-organized by Emil Rothe and Ken Keltner Badger State chapters)
  • Little Rock, AR (Robinson-Kell Chapter) 
  • Los Angeles, CA (Allan Roth Chapter)
  • Louisville, KY (Pee Wee Reese Chapter)
  • Montreal, QC (Quebec Chapter)
  • New Orleans, LA (Schott-Pelican Chapter)
  • New York, NY (Casey Stengel Chapter)
  • Oakland, CA (Lefty O’Doul Chapter)
  • Philadelphia, PA (Connie Mack Chapter)
  • Pittsburgh, PA (Forbes Field Chapter)
  • Seattle, WA (Northwest Chapter)

In addition, these chapters will be holding their SABR Day meetings on Saturday, February 2 due to scheduling conflicts with the popular team FanFests on January 26:

  • Minneapolis, MN (Halsey Hall Chapter)
  • Washington, DC (Bob Davids Chapter)

Chapter leaders, please send your SABR Day plans to Jacob Pomrenke at jpomrenke@sabr.org so we can add them to the map ASAP!

(Having trouble viewing our map? Visit http://bit.ly/SABRday-2013-list to view all SABR Day 2013 details in a spreadsheet on the web.)

Regional SABR meetings are open to all baseball fans and are usually free to attend, so bring a friend! Guest speakers often include current and former baseball players, managers, umpires, executives, scouts, writers and authors.

To view event details for a SABR Day meeting near you, check out our SABR Day map at SABR.org/sabrday for more information.

9 new biographies published by the SABR BioProject

Nine new biographies were posted as part of the SABR Baseball Biography Project, which brings us to a total of 2,146 published biographies.

Here are the new bios:

All new biographies can be found here: http://sabr.org/bioproj/recent

You can find the SABR BioProject at SABR.org/BioProject.

Bios on more than just ballplayers: The ambitious goal of the SABR Baseball Biography Project is to publish a full-life biography of every major league player in history. But SABR members write about a lot more than just ballplayers. In addition, we have pages for Ballparks, Broadcasters, Executives, Managers, Scouts, Spouses, Umpires and a lot more on the BioProject website. You can browse all of these categories at http://sabr.org/bioproj/browse. So if you’ve ever thought, “Hey, that person (or ballpark) should get the full BioProject treatment” — write the story and we’ll publish it!

Get involved! If you’d like to help contribute to the SABR BioProject, visit our BioProject Resources page or read the FAQs section to get started. We’re also looking to expand the BioProject to include all “encyclopedic” articles on baseball-related subjects from past SABR publications or committee newsletters. If you come across an article you think should be included in the SABR “baseball repository” at the BioProject, send a copy or link to markarmour04@gmail.com or jpomrenke@sabr.org.

From the archives: SABR Bibliography Committee Research Guides

From 1985-1991, a series of 15 research guides was published by SABR’s Bibliography Committee. These guides were intended to help researchers more easily find specific articles and subjects in various publications such as Sporting Life, The Sporting News, Current Biography, Dictionary of American Biography, Who’s Who in Baseball, Baseball Stars, Guide to Baseball Literature and various history journals.

These guides were written by longtime Bibliography Committee members such as Bob McConnell and Frank Phelps. You can view any of the guides on our website by clicking here:

http://sabr.org/content/sabr-bibliography-committee-research-guides

These Guides have also been added to the Research Resources page and the Bibliography Committee page.

For more information on the Bibliography Committee, which has organized The Baseball Index project and the Index to SABR Publications, compiled by the late Joe Murphy, click here.

Related links:

2013 The National Pastime: Call for Papers

The 2013 issue of The National Pastime, our annual convention journal, will be published at SABR 43 in Philadelphia next summer.

Our theme will be baseball in the Philadelphia area (the Tri-State area of Southeast Pennsylvania, South Jersey and Delaware.) We are looking for submissions dealing with various levels of baseball from Little League and sandlot ball to all levels of professional leagues. Philly has a rich tradition of baseball from its early beginnings in the 1830s, to the National League and American Association Athletics, to Connie Mack’s A’s, the Hilldale Daisies, the Philadelphia Bobbies, the Philadelphia Stars and, of course, the Phillies. We are looking to provide a broad perspective of Philadelphia baseball from its early years to the present day.

If you are interested in submitting an article, please send an abstract to Morris Levin. Please include not only your topic, but why it interests you, and how you are qualified to research it. What sources do you plan to use? A typical article in The National Pastime runs 2,000 to 5,000 words. Upon receipt of your abstract, we will forward a copy of the SABR guidelines for submission of papers.

All interested authors should make sure their SABR membership is up to date. It is longstanding SABR policy that only the work of SABR members is published in our journals. You can renew your membership online at members.sabr.org before you submit your paper.

To read articles from this year’s The National Pastime, focusing on baseball in Minnesota, click here. The TNP archives can be found here.

You can also follow the SABR Connie Mack Chapter on its new Facebook page here: http://www.facebook.com/SabrConnieMackChapter

Call for SABR award nominations

  • Larry Ritter Award, due 12/31/2012: Each year, SABR’s Deadball Era Committee presents the Larry Ritter Book Award to recognize the best new book primarily set in the Deadball Era that was published during the previous calendar year. The award is presented during the committee’s meeting at the annual SABR convention. If you have a book to nominate with a 2012 publication date, contact Gail Rowe at growes36@comcast.net by December 31, 2012. Deadline for receipt of nominated books by the committee is January 16, 2013. 
  • SABR Baseball Research Award, due 1/31/2013: The SABR Baseball Research Award (formerly the Sporting News-SABR Baseball Research Award) honors those whose outstanding research projects completed during the preceding calendar year have significantly expanded our knowledge or understanding of baseball. To submit a nomination for the 2012 awards, please contact Steve Gietschier at sgietsch@gmail.com.
  • Ron Gabriel Award, due 1/31/2013: The Ron Gabriel Award annually honors the author(s) of the best research, published or unpublished, on the subject of the Brooklyn Dodgers completed during the preceding calendar year. Eligible works include but are not limited to magazine and journal articles, previously unpublished chapters or articles in anthologies or other books with multiple authors, unpublished research papers, written versions of oral presentations, books, databases and websites. To submit a nomination for the 2012 awards, please contact Stephanie Liscio at stephanieliscio@yahoo.com.
  • McFarland-SABR Baseball Research Award, due 2/15/2013: The McFarland-SABR Baseball Research Award honors the authors of the best articles on baseball history or biography completed or published during the preceding calendar year. To submit a nomination for the 2012 awards, please contact Len Levin at lenlevin5@hotmail.com.

Call for 2013 SABR Election Nominations

The SABR Nominating Committee seeks nominations for candidates for the Spring 2013 elections. All candidates for the Board of Directors must have been members of the Society for at least the preceding four years to be eligible for election. Deadline for nominations is March 1, 2013. Nominees must prepare a Candidate Statement Form following guidelines that will be available from any Nominating Committee member.

The Candidate Statement Form, which will be available for download from the SABR website soon, must be received by the Nominating Committee chair no later than March 15, 2013.

The offices to be filled:

  • President (2-year term; currently Vince Gennaro)
  • Director (3-year term; currently Leslie Heaphy)
  • Director (3-year term; currently Tom Hufford)

The Nominating Committee also seeks your input. Members are asked to submit office-specific questions for each of the offices open in this election. We also seek input on general questions for every nominee. Candidates will answer selected questions on the Candidate Statement Form. Regional Chapter Leaders and Research Committee Chairs are especially encouraged to pass along this request to their respective members to better address member needs.

Self-nominations are welcome. If you would like to nominate yourself or another candidate or suggest a question for the candidates, contact a member of the Nominating Committee: chair Barry Mednick (bmednick@adelphia.net), Rick Schabowski (RICKIU76@aol.com), and Barry Deutsch (barryid@pobox.com).

October 27-28 Board minutes posted

Minutes from the Board of Directors meeting on October 27-28, 2012, have now been posted on the SABR website.

You can view all past minutes of SABR Board meetings by going to the page below:

http://sabr.org/content/sabr-board-minutes

Or you can go to the Members’ Info page and click on “Reports”, then “Board Minutes” to view the minutes.

MLB.com seeking stats stringers for 2013 season

MLB.com, the official web site of Major League Baseball, is seeking stats stringers to cover these clubs in 2013 and beyond:
 
Baltimore/DC (both clubs)
Houston
Kansas City
Oakland/SF (both clubs)
Philadelphia
Pittsburgh
San Diego
Seattle
Texas (Arlington)
Toronto
 
Stats stringers are responsible for digitally scoring games from the MLB ballparks, which provides the data used in the live content applications on MLB.com, including Gameday and MLB.TV, real-time highlights and text alerts, and by our business partners. This is a perfect part-time job for a diligent, responsible employee who happens to be a big baseball fan.

For more details on the responsibilities required and the desired qualifications, click here.

Those interested in applying should send a resume and cover later, addressing the above-listed qualifications, to stats@website.mlb.com. ONLY those who reply to this e-mail address will be considered, and due to volume, we may be unable to respond to all applicants.

Thanks and good luck!

In Memoriam

Francis Joseph Chase, 79, of Columbia, Maryland, died on December 11, 2012. He was a SABR member since 1983 and a longtime fan of the Boston Red Sox and Baltimore Orioles.

Frank was a beloved husband of 50 years to Carole Chase; devoted father of Amy Chase of Annapolis, Maryland; loving brother of Margaret Whitehouse of Dover, New Hampshire; and cherished grandfather of Grace Drago. He was involved in many community activities including Common Cause of Maryland, United Seniors, and National Association of Retired Federal Employees. He graduated from Dartmouth College in 1955 and was active in the Dartmouth Alumni Association. He was a lifelong Democrat and a member of the Columbia Democratic Club, volunteering on campaigns at the local, state, and federal levels. In 2001, Frank was inducted into the Maryland Senior Citizens Hall of Fame , received Outstanding volunteer of the year Award.

Family and friends are invited to call at the Witzke Funeral Homes Inc., 45555 Twin Knolls Road, Columbia, MD 21045 on Thursday, December 13, from 2 to 4 and 6 to 8 p.m. Funeral services will be held Friday at 10:00 a.m., with interment in Columbia Memorial Park. For those desiring, donations may be made to Gilchrist Hospice Care, Howard County Community Action Council, or Chesapeake Bay Foundation. Online condolences may be made at www.witzkefuneralhomes.com.

Welcome, new members!

We’d like to welcome all of our new SABR members who have joined this week. You can find all Members-Only resources at members.sabr.org and the New Member Handbook can be downloaded here. 

Please give these new members a warm welcome and help them make the most of their membership by giving them the opportunity to get involved in their local chapter or a research committee.

Here is a list of new members:

Name Hometown     Name Hometown
Nick Archuleta Commerce City, CO     Jimmy Morrow Chicago, IL
Richard Bartleson Antioch, CA     Pedro Moura Los Angeles, CA
Bobby Basham Chicago, IL     Sean Murphy Allyn, WA
Tim Beever St Louis, MO     Matt Nichols Moraga, CA
Allan Bendert Clearwater, FL     Tom Nissly Lake Forest, IL
Mark Betts Lima, OH     Gary O’Connor Fort Lauderdale, FL
Ed Bradley Easton, MD     Caleb Overman Kansas City, MO
Todd Brommelkamp North Liberty, IA     Paul Radpour Scotts Valley, CA
Russell Burhenn Topeka, KS     Paul Rhoades North Ogden, UT
Dave England Dallas, TX     Andrew Rogers Allison Park, PA
Scott Evans Tulsa, OK     Alexander Rotolo Highland Park, NJ
Neil Hahl Mesa, AZ     John Shukie Indianapolis, IN
Marien Hornyak Frederick, MD     Mark Sigmon San Leandro, CA
Jim Hostetler Woodstock, ON     John Troast Carlisle, MA
Justin Light Fort Worth, TX     Howard Wayne San Francisco, CA
Randy Morgan Paducah, KY     Matt Webber Prescott, AZ

 

Research committee newsletters

Here are the new SABR research committee newsletters published this week:

We’d also like to extend a welcome to the new co-chairs of the Pictorial History Committee, just approved by the SABR Board of Directors: T. Scott Brandon, Mark Fimoff and longtime vice-chair Cary Smith. Outgoing chairman Bill Hickman writes: “This is a strong group of new leaders. They are energized and enthusiastic about working together. They have my full support. It has been a privilege to have been given the opportunity to serve in the Chairman’s position.” Thanks again to Bill for his service and dedication over the years. 

Find all SABR research committee newsletters at SABR.org/research.

Chapter meeting recaps

Here are the chapter meeting recaps published this week:

Visit SABR.org/chapters for more information on SABR regional chapters.

SABR Events Calendar

Here is a list of upcoming SABR events:

All SABR meetings and events are open to the public. Feel free to bring a baseball-loving friend … and make many new ones! Check out the SABR Events Calendar at SABR.org/events.

Around the Web

Here are some recent articles published by and about SABR members:

Read these articles and more at SABR.org/latest.

All previous editions of This Week in SABR can be found here: http://sabr.org/content/this-week-in-sabr-archives. If you would like us to include an upcoming event, article or any other information in “This Week in SABR”, e-mail Jacob Pomrenke at jpomrenke@sabr.org.

Find exclusive Members’ Only resources and information here: http://members.sabr.org

Did you know you can renew your membership at any time? 1- and 3-year SABR memberships are available by clicking “Renew” at http://members.sabr.org. Please also consider a donation to SABR to support baseball research at SABR.org/donate.

Are you following us on Twitter or Facebook? Get SABR updates every day at @SABR or by searching “SABR” on Facebook.

Replying to this e-mail goes to an undeliverable address. If you would like to contact the SABR office, please visit: http://sabr.org/about/contact-sabr


Originally published: December 13, 2012. Last Updated: April 3, 2020.

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