This Week in SABR: April 27, 2018

Welcome to “This Week in SABR!” Click here to view this week’s newsletter on the web. Here’s what we’ve been up to as of April 27, 2018:


SABR 48: Just a few weeks left to register early for 2018 national convention in Pittsburgh

We hope you’ll join us for what promises to be a spectacular SABR 48 convention on June 20-24, 2018, at the Wyndham Grand Pittsburgh in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. 

Early registration is available now — but only through May 18 — at SABR.org/convention; all baseball fans are welcome to attend. Click here for more information on SABR 48 registration rates, all-inclusive packages, and optional sessions. Or click here to register for SABR 48.

The Wyndham Grand Pittsburgh is conveniently located within walking distance from PNC Park and a light rail station, many downtown cultural amenities, and right across the street from the picturesque 36-acre Point State Park where the three rivers converge.

Click on a link below for more information about SABR 48.

  • Registration: We’re again offering a special all-inclusive rate for the annual SABR convention. For $319, a savings of $30 off the regular rate, SABR members can get:
    — Full registration to SABR 48 in Pittsburgh (early-bird: $249; regular rate: $279)
    — 1 ticket in the Corner Box (LF) section to the Pirates vs. Diamondbacks game on Friday, June 22 — includes special “A Day at the Ballpark” pregame session at PNC Park ($40 value)
    — 1 ticket to the Awards Luncheon on Friday, June 22 ($60 value)
    Non-members can pay $394 for the all-inclusive rate. The deadline to register with the all-inclusive rate is Friday, May 18, 2018. Click here for complete information on SABR 48 registration rates, all-inclusive packages, and optional sessions. Or click here to register for SABR 48!
  • Hotel: Please note: Our SABR room block at the Wyndham Grand Pittsburgh is almost sold out! If you have trouble booking your room online, please contact Deb Jayne at djayne@sabr.org to be placed on a waiting list in case any rooms become available. The special SABR group rate of $149/night (plus tax) is only available to registered convention attendees for the nights of Wednesday, June 20 through Saturday, June 23.  The Wyndham Grand Pittsburgh is located at 600 Commonwealth Place, Pittsburgh, PA 15222.
  • Awards Luncheon: SABR will host a special Awards Luncheon on Friday, June 22 at the Wyndham Grand Pittsburgh. The Awards Luncheon, which includes a full meal, will feature the announcement of SABR’s annual awards — including the Bob Davids Award, our highest honor. One ticket to the Awards Luncheon is included in the all-inclusive package or guest tickets are available for $60 when you register for SABR 48.
  • A Day at the Ballpark: For the third year in a row and fourth time in five years, SABR will present “A Day at the Ballpark” before the Pittsburgh Pirates game against the Arizona Diamondbacks on Friday, June 22 at PNC Park. Special thanks to the Pirates for this great opportunity and for offering us a large block of tickets in the Corner Box (LF) section at an affordable price of $40 for SABR members ($45 for non-members). Purchase of SABR 48 conference registration AND a game ticket will be required to attend this special session. Guests and spouses can get in the ballpark early with purchase of a special SABR 48 Ballpark Session pass ($25) and a Pirates game ticket. Click here for more details.
  • Speakers: Click here to learn more about our featured speakers and panelists, including Pittsburgh Pirates president Frank Coonelly, Executive Vice President/General Manager Neal Huntington, Senior Director of Baseball Informatics Dan Fox, broadcaster Joe Block, former All-Star pitcher John Candelaria, Sports & Exhibition Authority of Pittsburgh and Allegheny County project executive Thomas E. Kennedy, and more.

All SABR 48 attendees will also receive a souvenir print edition of The National Pastime, our annual convention journal, focusing on baseball teams, players and events in the Pittsburgh area. All SABR members, whether you attend the convention or not, will receive the e-book edition of The National Pastime in their inboxes later this summer.

Stay tuned for more featured speakers and the complete schedule to be announced in the coming months. Visit SABR.org/convention to learn more.

We hope to see you this summer in Pittsburgh!


SABR room block at Wyndham Grand Pittsburgh is almost sold out

Our SABR room block at the Wyndham Grand Pittsburgh is almost sold out! If you have trouble booking your room online, please contact Deb Jayne at djayne@sabr.org to be placed on a waiting list in case any rooms become available.

The special SABR group rate of $149/night (plus tax) is only available to registered convention attendees for the nights of Wednesday, June 20 through Saturday, June 23. 

The Wyndham Grand Pittsburgh is located at 600 Commonwealth Place, Pittsburgh, PA 15222.

Visit SABR.org/convention to learn more about SABR 48 or to register for the convention.


Heaphy, Lebowitz re-elected to Board; Armour elected as SABR Director

SABR members have re-elected Vice President Leslie Heaphy and Secretary Todd Lebowitz, and elected newcomer Mark Armour to the organization’s Board of Directors in the 2018 election.

Leslie Heaphy was re-elected as SABR’s Vice President in an unopposed race, receiving 1,006 of 1,008 first-preference votes. Todd Lebowitz was re-elected as SABR’s Secretary in an unopposed race, receiving 988 of 996 first-preference votes.

Mark Armour was also elected as a SABR Director to replace Ty Waterman, receiving 492 of 1,035 first-preference votes. John McMurray finished runner-up for a Director’s seat with 221 first-preference votes. Barry Bloom received 171 first-preference votes and George Skornickel received 146 first-preference votes.

A proposed by-laws revision that appeared on the ballot regarding a change to the organization’s name was withdrawn prior to the tabulation of election results.

The 2018 SABR elections featured online voting for the ninth consecutive year as well as traditional paper ballots. A total of 1,125 votes were received, constituting about 20.23 percent of the membership.

Click here to read the full article and find full voting results at SABR.org.


Check out highlights and photos from the 2018 SABR Frederick Ivor-Campbell 19th Century Conference

The 10th annual Frederick Ivor-Campbell 19th Century Base Ball Conference was held April 20-21, 2018, at the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York. 

The 2018 conference was highlighted by a keynote address from baseball historian Don Jensen, along with a panel discussion on “Playing Ball: A Tribute to Tom Altherr” with John Thorn, David Block, and Larry McCray; a special presentation by Bill Ryczek: a re-created play-by-play broadcast of the greatest 19th-century game, Red Stockings at Atlantics, June 14, 1870; a Member Spotlight interview of Bob Tholkes by Tom Simon; plus book signings, research presentations, and a welcome dinner.

Check out highlights and photos at SABR.org/ivor-campbell19c.


Spring 2018 Baseball Research Journal is on its way

Good news! The Spring 2018 edition of the Baseball Research Journal has been mailed out to all SABR members.

Those of you who receive the print edition should find your BRJ arriving in the next two to four weeks. For digital subscribers, the e-book edition will be delivered soon.

To learn more about contributing to a future SABR publication, click here.

To read more articles from the BRJ archives, click here.

We hope you enjoy reading the Spring 2018 Baseball Research Journal!


Check out the new SABR Games and Simulations Committee website

Are you interested in baseball games, from vintage table games to computer and video-game simulations? Then follow along with the SABR Games and Simulations Committee’s brand-new website, which launched this week at sabrbaseballgaming.com.

Led by committee co-chairs Richard Bergstrom and Joe Runde, the SABR Baseball Gaming site will include essays and articles on all sorts of baseball games — how they mirror baseball, how they effectively further our understanding of how the sport actually works, and how they influence our appreciation of its players, teams, and organizations.

You can also follow along with the Baseball Gaming committee on Twitter at @SABRbballgaming.

Check out some featured articles below:

The committee is also seeking contributions from any SABR members who wish to write about baseball games and simulations. If you are interested in learning more, please contact Richard Bergstrom at sabrbaseballgaming@gmail.com.


The SABR Bookshelf: Spring 2018

Periodically throughout the year, SABR.org publishes The SABR Bookshelf, a listing of new books that are received at the SABR office. Here are The SABR Bookshelf listings for Spring 2018:

https://sabr.org/content/sabr-bookshelf-spring-2018

Click on the link above for more detailed information on each of these books:

  • From Spring Training to Screen Test: Baseball Players Turned Actors, edited by Rob Edelman and Bill Nowlin
  • Moments of Joy and Heartbreak: 66 Significant Episodes in the History of the Pittsburgh Pirates, edited by Jorge Iber and Bill Nowlin
  • Tiger Stadium: Essays and Memories of Detroit’s Historic Ballpark, 1912-2009, edited by Michael Betzold, John Davids, Bill Dow, John Pastier, and Frank Rashid
  • Perfect Pitch: The National Anthem for the National Pastime, by Joseph L. Price
  • Home of the Braves: The Battle for Baseball in Milwaukee, by Patrick W. Steele
  • Red Sox vs. Braves in Boston: The Battle for Fans’ Hearts, 1901-1952, by Charlie Bevis
  • Baseball Pioneers: True Stories of Guts and Glory As Told By Pioneering Men and Women of the Game, by Kelly Holtzclaw and Jon Leonoudakis
  • Biz Mackey, a Giant Behind the Plate: The Story of the Negro League Star and Hall of Fame Catcher, by Rich Westcott
  • Mets in 10s: Best and Worst of an Amazin’ History, by Brian Wright
  • Motor City Champs: Mickey Cochrane and the 1934-1935 Detroit Tigers, by Scott Ferkovich
  • Baseball Greatness: Top Players and Teams According to Wins Above Average, 1901-2017 , by David Kaiser
  • Whitey Herzog Builds a Winner: The St. Louis Cardinals, 1979-1982, by Doug Feldmann
  • Koufax Throws a Curve: The Los Angeles Dodgers at the End of an Era, 1964-1966, by Brian M. Endsley
  • Glenn Killinger, All-American: Penn State’s World War I Era Sports Hero, by Todd M. Mealy
  • Alou: My Baseball Journey, by Felipe Alou with Peter Kerasotis
  • The Pitcher and the Dictator: Satchel Paige’s Unlikely Season in the Dominican Republic, by Averell “Ace” Smith
  • Winning Ugly: A Visual History of the Most Bizarre Baseball Uniforms Ever Worn, by Todd Radom
  • Dick Bosman on Pitching: Lessons from the Life of a Major League Ballplayer and Pitching Coach, by Ted Leavengood and Dick Bosman
  • Gehrig and the Babe: The Friendship and the Feud, by Tony Castro
  • Davey Johnson: My Wild Ride in Baseball and Beyond, by Davey Johnson and Erik Sherman
  • Brothers in Arms: Koufax, Kershaw, and the Dodgers’ Extraordinary Pitching Tradition, by Jon Weisman
  • Try Not to Suck: The Exceptional, Extraordinary Baseball Life of Joe Maddon, by Bill Chastain and Jesse Rogers
  • The Big 50: St. Louis Cardinals, by Benjamin Hochman
  • The Big 50: Cincinnati Reds, by Chad Dotson and Chris Garber
  • The Big 50: Minnesota Twins, by Aaron Gleeman
  • The Shift: The Next Evolution of Baseball Thinking, by Russell Carleton
  • The Big 50: Boston Red Sox, by Evan Drellich
  • Joy in Tigertown: A Determined Team, a Resilient City, and Our Magical Run to the 1968 World Series, by Mickey Lolich with Tom Gage
  • Hawk: I Did It My Way, by Hawk Harrelson and Jeff Snook
  • The Hometown Team, by Steve Babineau and Mike Shalin
  • The Cloudbuster Nine: The Untold Story of Ted Williams and the Baseball Team that Helped Win World War II, by Anne R. Keene
  • Once Upon a Team: The Epic Rise and Historic Fall of Baseball’s Wilmington Quicksteps, by Jon Springer
  • The Lyston Brothers: A Journey Through 19th Century Baseball, by Jimmy Keenan
  • Babe Ruth: A Superstar’s Legacy, by Jerry Amernic
  • Hardball on the Hill, by James C. Roberts
  • If God Invented Baseball: Poems, by E. Ethelbert Miller
  • Outside the Lines of Gilded Age Baseball: Alcohol, Fitness, and Cheating in 1880s Baseball, by Rob Bauer
  • Baseball’s Brotherhood Team, by Bryan Steverson
  • Dawn and Dusk of the Colonial League, 1947-1950, by George Pawlush
  • 100 Moments that Shaped Baseball History, by Jacob Kornhauser

Bolded names indicates that the author(s) is a SABR member. Click here for a list of publishers found in the SABR Bookshelf, along with their contact information.

To see past listings in the SABR Bookshelf, click here.


New SABR Oral History interview: Sheldon Ocker, Spink Award winner

Our newest interview in the SABR Oral History Collection is with Sheldon Ocker, the 2018 recipient of the J.G. Taylor Spink Award for meritorious contributions to baseball writing. Ocker spent more than three decades covering the Cleveland Indians for the Akron Beacon-Journal and once served as national president of the Baseball Writers’ Association of America before retiring from the newspaper in 2013.

Click here to listen to Sheldon Ocker’s SABR Oral History interview online.

The interview was conducted by John McMurray, chair of the SABR Oral History Committee, on February 27, 2018.

Check out more highlights from the new SABR Oral History Collection website, which launched earlier this month, at oralhistory.sabr.org


SABR Digital Library: Moments of Joy and Heartbreak: 66 Significant Episodes in the History of the Pittsburgh Pirates

As we gear up for the SABR 48 convention this summer in Pittsburgh, add this new baseball book from the SABR Digital Library to your collection:

Moments of Joy and Heartbreak: 66 Significant Episodes in the History of the Pittsburgh Pirates
Edited by Jorge Iber and Bill Nowlin
Associate Editors: Russ Lake and Len Levin
ISBN (paperback): 978-1-943816-73-6, $19.95
ISBN (e-book): 978-1-943816-72-9, $9.99

201 pages, 8.5″ x 11″

Click here to read the full description of this book at SABR.org.

SABR members, get this e-book for FREE!

Having trouble downloading our e-books? To view PDF files on your computer, click here to download the free Adobe Reader software. Having trouble downloading e-books to your Kindle, Nook, Sony Reader or iPad? Click here for additional help.

SABR members will get discounted rates for all Digital Library publications, including many for free. For a full list of SABR Digital Library titles, visit SABR.org/ebooks.


2 new SABR biographies published

Two new biographies were posted this week as part of the SABR Baseball Biography Project, which brings us to a total of 4,503 published biographies. Here are the new bios published this week:

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

  • Search for any SABR biography: You can now visit sabr.org/bioproj_search to search for any player — or manager, executive, scout, spouse, broadcaster, or umpire — who appears in the SABR BioProject. You can also browse all of these BioProject categories and a lot more, including 300-game winners, Hall of Famers, 1960s All-Stars, or Negro Leaguers, at our Browse page: sabr.org/bioproj/browse.
  • Read bios from SABR’s No-Hitters book: In SABR’s No-Hitters, edited by Bill Nowlin and published in 2017, we focused on pitchers who threw no-hitters and the no-hitters they threw. Naturally, we couldn’t present biographies of everyone who ever threw a no-hitter nor could we present Games Project accounts of all of them. From around 300 no-hitters thrown in the majors (out of over 213,000 games), we have selected 59 no-hitters to include, along with the biographies of the men who threw them. All of the biographies — from Hall of Famers such as Bob Feller, Sandy Koufax, and Randy Johnson to more obscure pitchers such as Larry Corcoran, Charlie Robertson, and Dallas Braden — that appeared in No-Hitters can now be read online at the SABR BioProject. More game summaries from the No-Hitters book will be posted at the SABR Games Project soon. You can also download the No-Hitters e-book for free or purchase the paperback edition at 50% off by clicking here.

2 new stories published by the SABR Games Project

Two new game stories were posted this week as part of the SABR Games Project. Here are the new game stories:

New Games Project stories can be found at SABR.org/gamesproject/recent. Find all published Games Project articles at SABR.org/GamesProject.

If you have any questions about the Games Project, please contact Mike Huber. To request an assignment, please contact Steven C. Weiner. After the article has been completed in accordance with our Authors’ Guidelines, please submit it to Len Levin, who will initiate the editing process and get your story started toward publication.

  • Get involved: Have memories of a game you attended? Or a game you watched that caught your interest? Write about it! Writing for the Games Project is an easy way to get involved as a SABR member. Find out how by reading the Games Project FAQs section or checking out the Authors’ Guidelines. We have editors and fact checkers who are willing to help you write your first article.

Read all articles from SABR book on greatest games at Milwaukee’s County Stadium

In SABR’s From the Braves to the Brewers: Great Games and Exciting History at Milwaukee’s County Stadium, edited by Gregory H. Wolf and published in 2016, we told the stories of memorable moments from the heart of the Badger State. All of the stories that appeared in this book are now available to be read online at the SABR Games Project by clicking here.

Here is a sampling of articles from this book:

To read more articles from the SABR Games Project, visit SABR.org/GamesProject.


Listen to Behind the Numbers: Baseball SABR Style on SiriusXM on Sunday nights

Behind the Numbers: Baseball SABR Style on SiriusXM, a radio show hosted by SABR President Vince Gennaro, is back for the 2018 season at its regular time: 7:00-8:00 p.m. ET on Sundays, on MLB Network Radio.

This week’s guests are SABR members Jay Jaffe of FanGraphs and Ben Lindbergh of The Ringer.

You can listen to archives of recent episodes on-demand on the SiriusXM Internet Radio App, and you can watch video highlights of Behind the Numbers: Baseball SABR Style on SiriusXM on MLB.com. Click here to watch more video highlights of Baseball SABR Style from MLB.com.

Behind the Numbers: Baseball SABR Style on SiriusXM focuses on examining and interpreting the statistical analysis that plays a critical role in baseball today. It airs weekly throughout the year on MLB Network Radio, available to subscribers nationwide on XM channel 89, Sirius channel 209, and on the SiriusXM Internet Radio App.


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: https://sabr.org/content/this-week-in-sabr-archives.

For more information, click here.


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 Membership 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.

You can find contact information for any SABR member in the online membership directory (SABR.org/directory).

Name Hometown     Name Hometown
Brett Bosley Richmond, VA     Phil Maggio Arlington, VA
Doug Brei Fairport, NY     Michael McFarlane Shaker Heights, OH
Eric Crane Danvers, MA     Kevin Peace Sugar Land, TX
Fred Crimi Capitola, CA     Chris Pilkington Peterborough, ON
Pedro Diaz Chagrin Falls, OH     Rick Reiff Laguna Beach, CA
Bruce Einhorn Nipomo, CA     Bob Selsor Wayne, PA
Christopher Hailey Williamsburg, VA     Mike Skoog Gainesville, VA
Henry Henderson Evanston, IL     Ken Wenger Lititz, PA
Patrick Lyons Boulder, CO     Michael Zambotti Philadelphia, PA

 


Research Committee news

Here are the new research committee updates this week:

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


Regional Chapter news

Here are the new regional chapter updates this week:

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


SABR Events Calendar

Here is a list of upcoming events on the SABR calendar:

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. 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.

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Originally published: April 27, 2018. Last Updated: April 3, 2020.