This Week in SABR: October 18, 2013

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Welcome to “This Week in SABR!” Here’s what we’ve been up to as of October 18, 2013:

Registration now open for 2014 SABR Analytics Conference

SABR has a long and storied history with baseball statistical analysis, evidenced by the link between our name and sabermetrics. While SABR is a multi-faceted organization involved in virtually every aspect of baseball, we have taken a major step to re-connect with our beginnings by producing and hosting the third annual:

SABR Analytics Conference
March 13-15, 2014
Hyatt Regency Phoenix
Phoenix, Arizona

Once again, we’re 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.

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.

  • Early registration rates:
      — SABR members: $395 early rate; $595 full rate.
      — Non-SABR members: $495 early rate; $695 full rate. If you are not a SABR member, click here to join.
      — Students: $350; includes one-year membership to SABR. Must be a currently enrolled high school or college student. Please e-mail Deb Jayne with a photocopy of your student ID to receive the registration promo code.
     
    Please note: Lunch is included with your registration on Friday, March 14 and Saturday, March 15. The mixer/welcome reception is included with your registration on Thursday, March 13. Specify any special dietary needs when you register.
        
  • Hotel: The 2014 SABR Analytics Conference will be held at the Hyatt Regency Phoenix, 122 N. 2nd St., Phoenix, AZ 85004. Click here to book your hotel room at the special SABR group rate of $169/night (plus tax.) Or call (602) 252-1234 and mention that you’re with the SABR Analytics Conference.

    Complimentary wireless Internet is available in all rooms booked under the SABR block. The cutoff date to book your room is February 18, 2014. The SABR group rate is only available for the nights of March 10 to March 18, 2014, based on availability. Book your room today! 

Some of the topics we are planning to cover include:

  • General Managers Panel on how analytics shapes front-office decisions
  • Player Panel – how major league players take advantage of analytics
  • Biometrics/Injury Prevention Panel  NEW!
  • International Baseball Panel  NEW!
  • Baseball Scouting Panel  NEW!

Check back soon at SABR.org/analytics as we announce more featured speakers, panels and presentations!

For complete coverage of the 2013 SABR Analytics Conference, visit SABR.org/analytics/2013.

Almost time to renew your SABR membership

For those of you whose SABR memberships expire on December 31 — that is, anyone who joined before August 2012; you can check your current membership status here — it’s almost time for you to renew. We’re excited about the upcoming year ahead of us and we hope you’ll take advantage of all the great membership benefits offered to SABR members in 2014. Here’s a short list:

http://sabr.org/member-benefits

You can 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 are the same as they have been in recent years: for this, you get two editions of the Baseball Research Journal, the expanded e-book edition of The National Pastime; 6-8 free e-books published by the SABR Digital Library; “This Week in SABR” every Friday; access to research resources such as Paper of Record (with complete archives of The Sporting News); discounts to all SABR conferences such as the National Convention (Houston 2014), the SABR Analytics Conference, the Jerry Malloy Negro League Conference, and the Frederick Ivor-Campbell 19th Century Conference; discounts to MLB.TV, the MLB.com Store and much, much more.

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.

Cy Young Award winner Mark Davis to speak at 2013 SABR Arizona Fall League Conference

The fifth annual SABR Arizona Fall League Conference will be held October 31-November 2, 2013. The conference will feature four AFL games at three different ballparks. Guests will see all six AFL teams, showcasing every major league team’s top prospects. The final game on Saturday night is the Fall Stars Game at Surprise Stadium.

After taking in a game on Thursday afternoon, guests will also be treated to dinner at Don and Charlie’s, home to one of the great sports memorabilia collections you will ever see. Friday’s schedule includes two AFL games and a pregame ballpark dinner at Talking Stick at Salt River, along with special guest speaker Mark Davis, 1989 National League Cy Young Award winner and now a minor league pitching coach in the Kansas City Royals organization. Davis spent 15 years in the major leagues with the Phillies, Giants, Padres, Royals, Braves and Brewers.

On Saturday morning, attendees will join members of SABR’s Flame Delhi (Arizona) Chapter for their regional fall meeting. Saturday night is always a highlight of the conference as the top prospects from every organization participate in the AFL Fall Stars game. All of this, including transportation, is included in one low registration price.

Can’t make it to all three days of the SABR Arizona Fall League Conference? Single-event registration is now available online for the Thursday night dinner at Don & Charlie’s, the Friday night cookout with Mark Davis and ballgame at Talking Stick at Salt River, and the Fall Stars Game on Saturday night at Surprise Stadium.

All baseball fans are welcome to attend.

Hotel: The host hotel is the Holiday Inn Express & Suites in Old Town Scottsdale (3131 N. Scottsdale Rd., Scottsdale, AZ 85251). The deadline for the SABR group rate has now expired. Call (480) 675-7665 or visit www.hiescottsdalehotel.com to book your room.

There is a free airport shuttle which also is available from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. for rides anywhere within a three-mile radius of the hotel.

Registration: Your registration fee of $165 (before October 7; $175 afterward) includes all game tickets; an AFL Media Guide; dinner at Don and Charlie’s; ballpark dinner at Talking Stick at Salt River; and transportation to and from all events. Hotel registration includes breakfast and complementary happy hour each day. Register for the 2013 SABR AFL Conference by clicking here. Questions: Please Contact Rodney Johnson at sabrrodney@aol.com.

The Arizona Fall League (mlbfallball.com) is baseball’s premier player development league. In the first four years of the conference, attendees were treated to sneak peeks at Mike Trout, Bryce Harper, Buster Posey, Stephen Strasburg, Nolan Arenado, Gerrit Cole and Billy Hamilton before they hit the big leagues.

A detailed schedule and more information can be found at SABR.org/AFL.

New SABR chapter for Spanish-speaking members in Latin America

A new SABR chapter for Spanish-speaking members in Latin America, the Luis Castro Chapter, is expected to be approved by the Board of Directors in its conference call on Sunday, October 20.

The Luis Castro/Latin America Chapter, led by Leonte Landino, will serve SABR members in Central and South America countries and the Caribbean, including Venezuela, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Mexico, Cuba, Colombia, Panamá and Nicaragua.

El capítulo Luis Castro / América Latina sirve a miembros de SABR de habla hispana en todos los países de Centro y Sur-América y el Caribe, incluyendo a los territorios principales del béisbol como Venezuela, República Dominicana, Puerto Rico, México, Cuba, Colombia, Panamá y Nicaragua. Para suscribirse a los anuncios de correo electrónico de este capítulo y recibir notificaciones instantáneas de los próximos eventos de SABR en su área, haga clic aquí y luego haga clic en “Join Group” en la parte superior de la página del capítulo.

The launching event of the Luis Castro/Latin America Chapter, “Perspectivas del Béisbol,” will be held on November 15, 2013 in the heart and soul of Winter Baseball, Maracaibo, Venezuela. Click here for more details.

A vibrant city with one of the richest baseball traditions outside the United States and home of many generations of major leagues, the event will take place in the middle of the Venezuelan Winter Baseball season and minutes away from Luis Aparicio “El Grande” Stadium, home of the Águilas del Zulia.

The Rafael Urdaneta University will host the event in its grand “Lecture Hall” on the shores of Maracaibo Lake and will feature recognized baseball speakers, industry leaders and experts on different areas that will discuss ideas, similarities and differences of baseball coverage and angles from their unique positions. Guests will have the opportunity to be part of the conversation with panelists and share baseball knowledge, debate positions and benefit from a unique baseball experience.

Featured speakers will include Leonte Landino of ESPN Deportes, Dominican broadcaster Ernesto Jerez, Luis Alfredo Alvarez of ESPN International, Venezuelan broadcaster Jose Luis Mora, and author/writer Augusto Cardenas.

For more details or to register for the “Perspectivas del Béisbol” on November 15, click here.   

Reserve your spot at 16th annual Rocky Mountain SABR Banquet on November 15

The 16th annual Rocky Mountain SABR Banquet will take place at 6 p.m. Friday, November 15, 2013, at the Denver Athletic Club, 1325 Glenarm Place Denver, Colorado 80204.

Make your reservation now. Just a short time remains before our special baseball evening!

The Keynote Speaker will be Bryn Smith, the starting and winning pitcher in the Colorado Rockies’ inaugural home opener in 1993. He pitched in the Major Leagues from 1981–93, signed with the Rockies as a free agent and went on to defeat Montreal, 11-4, on April 9, 1993 at Mile High Stadium.

Our Featured Speaker will be Jeff Bridich, Senior Director of Player Development for the Colorado Rockies, who joined the organization in 2004 and was involved with development of their player database used in making personnel decisions.

Tickets for this special evening are $50.00 per attendee. Reservations can be made by sending a check to:

RMSABR
5803 Orchard Creek Ln
Boulder, CO 80301

OR you can use PayPal via the link below:

https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=L9FQNMWD7U87N

For more information, visit RMSABR.org or contact chapter president Matt Repplinger.

Retroactive All-Star Game Project: AL stars win 1917 series

Editor’s note: This game summary is from the Retroactive All-Star Game Project. Voting was conducted to select retroactive MLB All-Star teams from the 1917 season and the games were simulated using Out of the Park 14. 

In another battle of stars in the annual mid-summer All-Star Series that began in 1916, the American League’s best from 1917 took Games 1 and 3 of a three-game series at New York’s Polo Grounds to even the All-Star series at one win apiece. The opening contest was a back-and-forth affair that was finally settled in the 10th inning on an RBI hit by Ray Chapman, who went 5 for 5 in the 5-4 victory.

Game 2 was a 7-1 blowout at the hands of the National League, who used a quartet of hurlers to hold the juniors to only three hits.  The deciding contest was never really close as the A.L. pocketed a 6-3 win behind four innings of fantastic relief by Babe Ruth and three hits off the bat of George Sisler. 

Highlights and outstanding players include:

  • Ray Chapman and Tris Speaker combining to go 7 for 7 for the AL with three RBIs and two runs in Game 1; George Burns collecting two hits, two runs and two steals for the NL, and Pete Alexander allowing only one hit in three innings.
  • Honus Wagner driving in three runs for the NL in Game 2, and the three-hit pitching by Hippo Vaughn, Leon Cadore, Al Demaree and Fred Toney.
  • George Sisler going 3 for 5 with two RBIs for the AL in Game 3; Larry Doyle’s long home run to right center field, and Ruth’s four scoreless innings of relief.
  • Chapman going 7 for 14 (.500) and driving in five runs in the series.
  • Ruth and Carl Mays combining for a 2.45 ERA in 11 innings in the series.
  • Gavvy Cravath slugging .727 with a homer and three RBIs in the series.
  • Honus Wagner hitting .444 with four RBIs in the series.
  • Hippo Vaughn, Grover Cleveland Alexander and Leon Cadore allowing no earned runs in 14 combined innings.
  • William Fischer throwing out all three would-be base thieves in the series.

You can find full accounts of all three games, box scores, game logs and stats here. 

Learn more about the Retroactive All-Star Game Project by clicking here.

— Mike Lynch

Seamheads Negro Leagues Database updated with 1934 Negro National League stats

The latest addition to the Seamheads Negro Leagues Database includes the 1934 Negro National League plus four important independent clubs from that year.  The league enjoyed more stability this year.  Once again pursuing a split-season format, the NNL started the first half with six clubs: the Pittsburgh Crawfords, Chicago American Giants, and Nashville Elite Giants were retained from 1933, while the Philadelphia Stars, Newark Dodgers and Cleveland Red Sox were added to the fold.  The Homestead Grays, Baltimore Black Sox, and Philadelphia Bacharach Giants withdrew from the league, although the Grays were associate members.  The Kansas City Monarchs and New York Black Yankees also opted to stay out.

The American Giants, led by Turkey Stearnes (.356/.407/.601) and Mule Suttles (.315/.378/.450), were the first-half champions.*  In the second half the league added the Black Sox and Bacharachs. The Philadelphia Stars rode the young arm of 21-year-old lefty Slim Jones (20-6, 1.31, 170 Ks in 212 innings) and the veteran bat of 38-year-old Jud Wilson (.360/.436/.500) to the second half title, setting up a playoff matchup against the American Giants for the league championship.  In a thrilling series, the Stars fell behind three game to one, but rallied to tie the series at three apiece.  Then in the final game on October 2 Jones secured the NNL pennant with a five-hit shutout.

The Pittsburgh Crawfords, 1933 champions, were left out in the cold, having failed to win either half despite great performances from Satchel Paige (13-2, 1.45, 141 Ks in 136 innings), Josh Gibson (.318/.385/.607, 12 home runs), and player-manager Oscar Charleston (.324/.403/.505).

This was perhaps Satchel Paige’s greatest year, which is saying a lot.  On the Fourth of July he no-hit the Homestead Grays while striking out 17.  He was the winning pitcher in the East’s 1 to 0 victory in the East-West All-Star Game.  In August Gus Greenlee loaned him out to the bearded (and otherwise all-white) House of David team for a tournament of independent and semipro teams sponsored by the Denver Post.  He won three games in five days to pitch the Davids to the championship, including a crucial 2 to 1 win (with 12 strikeouts) over a Kansas City Monarchs team that had been reinforced by Willie Foster, Turkey Stearnes, and Sam Bankhead.  To top the season off, Paige beat 30-game-winner and World Series champion Dizzy Dean (fronting a semipro team) in late October.

Satchel Paige and his young counterpart, Slim Jones, were so dominant that in September two special showdowns were scheduled in Yankee Stadium.  The first, on September 9, ended in a 1 to 1 deadlock.  In the rematch (which forced a delay in the NNL playoffs) Satchel prevailed, 3 to 1. He fanned seven, walked nobody, and allowed the eventual league champs only five hits.  Jones pitched well, but three unearned runs gave the Crawfords the win.

This would be the high water mark for Stuart Jones.  Alcoholism ruined his career and within four years he would be dead.  Satchel Paige, of course, kept on going, and going, and going, all the way to the major leagues and the Hall of Fame.

*-Note that the historical record really does the American Giants a major injustice in 1934.  In games with box scores the team went 18-21-3, but in games without box scores the Giants were 19-5.   Individual Giants’ players surely take a statistical hit because of this.  It’s hard not to think that Willie Wells, who hit only .204 in games we’re able to include, probably did a lot better in those 24 missing games.

— Gary Ashwill

4 new biographies published by the SABR BioProject

Four new biographies were posted as part of the SABR Baseball Biography Project, which brings us to a total of 2,572 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.

1950s Boston Red Sox biographies now posted online: The 1950s Red Sox were teeming with huge stories. You might know about Ted Williams, of course, but consider his teammates: Harry Agganis, a legendary local athlete whose tragic death is remembered by millions in the region; or Jimmy Piersall, whose illness and breakdown led to a book and two movies; or Jackie Jensen, a famous collegiate football star who forged a great career with the Red Sox. The Red Sox are famous for failing to integrate until 1959, the last team to do so. The people mostly blamed for this oversight (Tom Yawkey, Joe Cronin, and Mike Higgins), as well as the man who finally broke the color line (Pumpsie Green), were all profiled in our 2012 book Red Sox Baseball in the Days of Ike and Elvis: The Red Sox of the 1950s, edited by Mark Armour and Bill Nowlin, with Maurice Bouchard and Len Levin. The SABR BioProject biographies from that book can now be read online at: http://sabr.org/category/completed-book-projects/1950s-boston-red-sox. The e-book is available for free to all SABR members; SABR members also get 50% off the paperback version. Click here for details.

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.

Call for Papers: 2014 The National Pastime

The 2014 SABR national convention will take place July 30-August 3, 2014, at the Royal Sonesta Hotel in Houston, Texas.

To coincide with the convention, the summer 2014 issue of The National Pastime will focus on Houston-area baseball. In particular, we will be focusing on 1962-present to avoid overlap with the special book on pre-Astros baseball that the Houston chapter is concurrently producing. We expect most of the articles will center on the Astros, but we are open to other topics that fit the time frame (Women’s baseball? Little league? Fan studies? College baseball? You tell us.) Articles may be historical, biographical, or analytical, but please avoid personal narrative.

This issue of The National Pastime will be edited by publications director Cecilia Tan. She will be taking queries and abstracts until November 15, 2013, and will make assignments no later than December 1. First drafts of articles will be due by March 1, 2014, and rewrites (if needed) will be due by April 15.

Queries should include 1-2 paragraphs of brief but detailed encapsulation of the article idea, as well as a description of why you are interested in it or qualified to research it. Be specific about the sources you plan to use and what of your research is original. If you can estimate the length of the finished article, that is good, too. Typical articles tend to run 2,000 to 5,000 words — the size of a midterm paper, not a masters thesis. The upper limit on papers for the TNP is around 6,500 words. 

To query, email to ctan@sabr.org with the subject line “TNP Query:” and a key word or two on your subject. For example: “TNP Query: Bagwell/Biggio Comparison.”

Some possible subjects that could be included:

  • invention of Astroturf/uniqueness of the Astrodome
  • the April 15, 1968 marathon 24-inning game
  • 1963 all-rookie game
  • Colt Stadium’s contribution to the establishment of Sunday night baseball
  • the lone game in Astrodome history that was rained out
  • Leo Durocher’s over-the-hill misfit time as Houston’s manager;
  • analysis of the blockbuster trade of 1971
  • the so-called Astrodome Indian Burial Grounds Curse
  • Astros pitchers dying young (Don Wilson, Jim Umbricht, possibly Darryl Kyle)
  • 1986 All Star Game
  • Astros postseason performance analysis
  • The Killer Bs

Remember that every article must include proper citation of sources and present a clear thesis, and to be published in a SABR journal your SABR membership must be current. For full writers guidelines, submit a query to ctan@sabr.org and you will receive the full guidelines in reply.

For more information on the SABR 44 convention in Houston, visit SABR.org/convention.

MLB.com seeking stats stringers for 2014 season

MLB.com, the official web site of Major League Baseball, is seeking stats stringers to cover these clubs in 2014 and beyond:

  • Anaheim/Los Angeles
  • Chicago (both teams)
  • Cleveland
  • Colorado
  • Detroit
  • Miami
  • Oakland/San Francisco
  • Texas

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 At-Bat, Gameday and MLB.TV, real-time highlights and text alerts, and by our business partners. This is a perfect part-time job for a responsible, computer-savvy person 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 letter, 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! 

ICYMI: Highlights from last week’s This Week in SABR

We’ve heard your feedback: Some of you have said you look forward to “This Week in SABR” every Friday, but sometimes there are just too many compelling articles and announcements to read every week. We’re not complaining — hey, keep up the great work! — but we know the feeling. So in an effort to make the length of this newsletter more manageable to read, we’ll summarize some of the repeating/recurring announcements in a special “In Case You Missed It (ICYMI)” section of “This Week in SABR”.

Here are some major headlines from recent weeks that we don’t want you to miss:

All previous editions of This Week in SABR can be found here: http://sabr.org/content/this-week-in-sabr-archives.

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.

Name Hometown     Name Hometown
Craig Brown Duluth, GA     Rod Moore Beder, DEN
Thomas Culkin Port Charlotte, FL     Andrew Pregler Syracuse, NY
Terry French Kansas City, MO     Christopher Rager Oakland, CA
Kevin Gaughan Boston, MA     Ray Rivera Seaside, CA
Dann Howitt Douglas, MI     Tony Stahl Sycamore, IL
Mark Ligi Jessup, PA     Mark Thomas Bedford, PA
Jeffrey Love Brea, CA     Greg Thurston Converse, TX
Terry Lowery Charlotte, MI     Mario Vricella Crystal, MN
Jon Meyers Olathe, KS        

 

Research committee newsletters

There were no new SABR research committee newsletters published this week.

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

Chapter meeting news

Here are the new 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.

This Week in SABR is compiled by Jacob Pomrenke, and sent out to all SABR members on Fridays. 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 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: October 18, 2013. Last Updated: April 3, 2020.

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