This Week in SABR: January 6, 2012

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Happy New Year! Here’s what we’ve been up to as of January 6, 2012:

Find out about upcoming events at SABR.org/events

You can visit our new Events page at SABR.org/events for an updated calendar of all SABR meeetings, gatherings and conferences. This page includes registration and details on each of our annual events: the SABR 42 national convention, SABR Analytics Conference, Jerry Malloy Negro League Conference, Frederick Ivor-Campbell 19th Century Base Ball Conference, Arizona Fall League Conference and SABR Day. We also include all regional chapter meetings, speaking engagements, book signings and any other event that may be of interest to SABR members. To add an event to our calendar, contact Jacob Pomrenke at jpomrenke@sabr.org.

Have you renewed your SABR membership?

Thanks to all of you who renewed your SABR membership for 2012 over the holidays. We wouldn’t be here without you, and we appreciate your support.

For those of you who haven’t renewed, please send in your dues before you stop receiving the many benefits of SABR membership. We’ve got a lot of exciting benefits in store for 2012 — including a groundbreaking Analytics Conference and Case Competition during spring training; new titles in our Digital Library book collection; SABR 42 in Minneapolis; many additions to the BioProject; and, of course, three high-quality research publications  — and we’re glad you’re along for the ride. 

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: all members in good standing receive two issues of the Baseball Research Journal and one issue of The National Pastime; 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 (June 27-July 1 in Minneapolis), the spring Analytics Conference and Case Competition (March 15-17 in Phoenix), the summer Jerry Malloy Negro Leagues Conference (July 19-21 in Cleveland) and the Arizona Fall League Conference; access to our SABR-L research listserv and lending library; all 27 research committees, 60+ regional chapters; and more.

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

Donate to SABR: If you support SABR and all the groundbreaking research our members have and will produce, please consider donating online at SABR.org/donate or via mail. No amount is too big or too small, and as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, your donation to SABR is tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law. If you have given in the past, we remain grateful and hope you will consider giving again. If you are a first-time donor, welcome aboard!

Note: If you have already renewed for 2012, please disregard this notice … and thank you again! If you don’t know when your membership expires, go to the Members’ Info page and click the link that says “See when your membership expires”.

Register for the SABR Analytics Conference

We don’t think you’ll want to miss our lineup of speakers for the inaugural SABR Analytics Conference. Chicago Cubs chairman Tom Ricketts, Arizona Diamondbacks president/CEO Derrick Hall, Cleveland Indians president Mark Shapiro, Milwaukee Brewers GM Doug Melvin, Cleveland Indians GM Chris Antonetti and Los Angeles Angels GM Jerry Dipoto are already scheduled to appear. More speakers will be announced soon.

Sign up now to get the early registration rate for the:

SABR Analytics Conference, presented by Bloomberg Sports
When: March 15-17, 2012
Where: Hilton Phoenix East/Mesa, 1011 West Holmes Avenue, Mesa, AZ 85210

Never before have as many of the top minds of the baseball analytic community come under one roof to discuss, debate and share learnings of insightful ways to analyze and examine the great game of baseball. Some of the topics we are planning to cover include: how technology is changing baseball; Managers Panel on how analytics has changed the game; GM Panel on how analytics shape decisions; measuring player performance; technology and in-game strategy, and much more.

The SABR Analytics Conference will begin on Thursday, March 15 and conclude on Saturday, March 17 at the Hilton Phoenix East/Mesa in Arizona. The schedule will consist of a combination of Guest Speakers, Panels and Research Presentations — plus the inaugural SABR Case Competition, in which undergraduate and graduate students will analyze and present a real baseball operations decision, and be judged by MLB front office executives.

The early registration rate ($250 for SABR members and students; $350 for non-members) will expire soon. SABR has secured a special hotel rate of $139/night at the Hilton, which includes complimentary wireless high-speed Internet, parking and breakfast buffet for two.

To register for the SABR Analytics Conference, visit SABR.org/analytics.

To sign up for the Case Competition, visit SABR.org/analytics/case or contact SABR President Vince Gennaro.

Call for SABR 42 research presentations

We invite all members to present their research findings to their colleagues attending SABR 42, June 27-July 1 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Oral presentations are expected to last 20 minutes, followed by a five minute question-and-answer period. Posters will be presented, with the author on-hand to discuss the work, during a poster session of 90 or so minutes, and will probably remain on display throughout the convention. Abstracts covering all aspects of baseball research are welcomed.

Through on-site judging, the most highly regarded presentations will receive the Doug Pappas Award for best oral presentation and the USA Today Sports Weekly Award for best poster presentation.

The submission deadline for SABR 42 abstracts is midnight PST, Sunday, FEBRUARY 19, 2012.

Submit abstracts to sabr2012-presentations@comcast.net, the research presentations address for SABR42. (You may also use the alternate address sabr42-presentations@comcast.net.) Questions regarding the submission, review, and evaluation procedures should also be sent to sabr2012-presentations@comcast.net.

SABR Day: January 28, 2012

SABR Day is an annual event that brings together SABR members and friends on the same day, regardless of where they live. The third annual SABR Day will be held on January 28, 2012. Regional SABR meetings are open to all baseball fans, so feel free to bring a baseball-loving friend. Guest speakers often include current and former baseball players, managers, umpires, executives, scouts, writers and authors.

We hope you’ll join us on January 28 for SABR Day. Here are confirmed locations for SABR Day meetings:

  • Arlington, VA
  • Boston, MA
  • Columbus, OH
  • Cooperstown, NY
  • Denver, CO
  • Detroit, MI (combined meeting of Detroit, Don Lund, Wally Pipp and Toledo chapters)
  • Fort Lauderdale, FL
  • Houston, TX
  • Kansas City, MO
  • Kenosha, WI (combined meeting of Emil Rothe and Ken Keltner Badger State chapters)
  • Little Rock, AR
  • Los Angeles, CA (La Habra)
  • Louisville, KY
  • Minneapolis, MN
  • Montreal, QC
  • New York, NY
  • Phoenix, AZ
  • Pittsburgh, PA
  • San Francisco, CA
  • Seattle, WA
  • St. Louis, MO
  • Toronto, ON
  • West Haven, CT

Find out the details of a meeting near you at http://sabr.org/sabrday. Or go straight to our Google Map here: http://g.co/maps/484pv

Attention, chapter leaders: If your SABR Day meeting isn’t on this list, please send details to Jacob Pomrenke at jpomrenke@sabr.org. We’ll post your event at SABR.org/sabrday as soon as we hear from you. 

Unofficial baseball records set or tied in 2011

The December newsletter of the Baseball Records Research Committee contains unofficial lists of assorted regular season records set or tied in the past season, along with some major individual accomplishments.

The list includes such obscure items as Most Teams With Multiple Home Run Games (Mike Cameron with 8), as well as famous marks such as Mariano Rivera’s career saves total of 603.

Lyle Spatz, chair of the committee, compiled the list with help from Clem Comly, Ev Cope, Tim Hevly, Chuck Johnson, Bruce Fleming, Ron Liebman, Madison McEntire, Stan Tyler and David Vincent. For a more complete list of major league records set and tied in 2011, see the 2012 edition of Elias’s The Book of Baseball Records.

To view the list, click here: http://sabr.org/latest/unofficial-list-baseball-records-set-and-tied-2011

Note: You can now view all committee newsletters without logging in by clicking here: http://sabr.org/research/research-committees

Six new biographies posted at the SABR BioProject

Six new biographies were posted this week as part of the SABR Baseball Biography Project, bringing us to a total of 1,766 published biographies:

All new biographies can be found here: http://bioproj.sabr.org/bioproj.cfm?a=n&m=61

Writing a biography for the BioProject is an easy way to get involved as a SABR member. Find out how by visiting our BioProject Resources page or reading the FAQs section.

In Memoriam

  • Goodwin “Goodie” Goldfaden, 97, a member of the Allan Roth Chapter and SABR member since 1984, passed away on January 1, 2012, at his home in Sherman Oaks, California. His store, Adco Sports Book Exchange in West Hollywood, was a wonder to visit, filled to capacity with floor-to-ceiling shelves full of every imaginable type of sports collectible. From an obituary in the Sports Collectors Digest: “It is impossible to summarize the life and work of Goodie Goldfaden in a few pages. … He reminded people that he was born on the same day as Joe DiMaggio, November 25, 1914. … He was in the business of selling publications, cards and memorabilia from every sport since 1925, when he and his brother Jack sold programs and pennants outside Cleveland’s League Park. He was probably the first full-time dealer exclusively in the sports hobby, opening a store in Los Angeles shortly after his arrival in 1947. He advertised, bought and sold publications and cards throughout the world. He was a resource to those interested in sports history, from Notre Dame University to Hollywood actors, the International Olympic Committee, professional coaches and sportswriters. He attended some of the earliest sports card conventions, including Jim Nowell’s 1970 gathering in California and the early Detroit shows. Goodie’s sports publication collection was even featured in Sports Illustrated.” The family requests contributions be made to the Jewish National Fund to plant trees in Israel in Goodwin’s memory. Funeral services were held Wednesday, January 4 at Mount Sinai Memorial Parks and Mortuaries-Hollywood Hills. Friends and family members can sign an online guestbook at Legacy.com: http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/latimes/obituary.aspx?n=goodwin-goldfaden&pid=155319225  
  • Greg Spira, 44, a member of the Connie Mack, Bob Davids and Casey Stengel Chapters, passed away December 28, 2011, after a long battle with kidney disease. A lifelong, diehard, passionate and knowledgeable New York Mets fan, Spira joined SABR in 1988 and was viewed by his colleagues as a peerless researcher. He graduated magna cum laude from Harvard University with a B.A. in American History in 1989. In 1991, before the World Wide Web was created, Spira founded the Internet Baseball Awards — now in their 20th year — which will live on in his name at BaseballProspectus.com. He was an important pioneer in online baseball discussion at Usenet’s rec.sport.baseball group, and an early contributor to Baseball Prospectus. (Read his “Pitching to the Score” article from 1997 here.) He also created the BaseballBooks.net website with Sean Forman and annually updated Baseball-Reference.com’s travel guide. Spira’s publishing credits include the groundbreaking 2008 Slate.com article “The Boys of Late Summer”, on the differences between ballplayers born in July and August. He also contributed, as an editor, co-editor and researcher, to Maple Street Mets Annual (2009-11), Big League Ballparks (2009), Meet the Mets (2008), Ultimate Yankees Companion (2008), Ultimate Red Sox Companion (2007), ESPN Pro Football Encyclopedia (2006-07), USA Today Sports Weekly’s Best Baseball Writing 2005, ESPN Baseball Encyclopedia (2004-08), Total Basketball (2003), Total Baseball (2001), Sports Illustrated Sports Almanac (2000-01) and Baseball: The Biographical Encyclopedia (2000). Spira was survived by his brother, Jonathan, and his mother, Marilyn. He was interred in Mount Hebron Cemetery in Flushing, Queens. You can post your memories of him at the memorial website GregSpira.com.
  • James H. Bready, 92, a member of the Bob Davids Chapter, passed away October 29, 2011. He was SABR member No. 63, joining our ranks as the first Marylander on October 17, 1971. In 1986, he received the SABR Salute in recognition of his contributions to baseball research. He was the son of the late James Ely and Mabel McIlvaine Bready of Woodbury, New Jersey. A graduate of Haverford College in 1939, he wrote for the Baltimore Evening Sun for more than 40 years as an editorial writer and book review editor. He was the cherished husband of Mary H. Bready of 68 years and the ecstatic father of three sons: Richard S., Christopher H. and the late Stephen Y. Bready, and the enormously proud grandfather of Alexander S. Bready. Services were held at the Church of the Redeemer on November 4 in Baltimore, Maryland.
  • Paul Tolland, 83, a member of the Lajoie-Start Chapter, passed away August 18, 2011, at Mount Carmel Healthcare Center in Manchester, New Hampshire. He graduated from St. Joseph High School for Boys in 1946. Paul was a U.S. Army veteran of World War II and the Korean War. He received three bronze service stars for his Korean service. He was a mail carrier for 25 years with the US Postal service and retired from there. He was a member of the Retired Postal Workers Association and the Eagles in Keene. Paul was an avid trivia enthusiast and always enjoyed his annual trips to Arlington National Cemetery and Amish Country in Pennsylvania. He was a communicant of the former O.L.P.H. Parish in Manchester and most recently attended St. Jude Church in Londonderry. Members of his family include a sister: Ann M. McCarthy of Concord, several nieces, nephews, great and great-great nieces and nephews. Graveside services with military honors were held August 23 at the New Hampshire Veterans Cemetery in Boscawen, New Hampshire. Memorial donations may be made in his name to the NH Chapter of the American Cancer Society, 2 Commerce Dr., Bedford, NH 03310. Visit www.durningbykowskiandyoung.com to sign an online register.

We send our condolences to their family and friends. 

All “In Memoriam” notices are posted in the SABR Bulletin group here: http://sabrnation.sabr.org/groups2/discussion/list/groupid/1960. Please send notices to Jacob Pomrenke at jpomrenke@sabr.org.

Calls for award, election nominations

  • Ron Gabriel Award, due 1/31/2012: This award 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. Nominations should be sent to William Dahlberg at dahlbergwn@gmail.com no later than January 31, 2012. All nominations must include one (1) copy of the research material, a link to the material or some other reference enabling the award committee to review the work.
  • Sporting News-SABR Baseball Research Award, due 1/31/2012: 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. Each award shall consist of a cash prize of $200, to be provided by The Sporting News. To submit a nomination for the 2011 awards, please send back this downloadable nominating form plus FIVE (5) copies of the work by January 31, 2012, to: (e-mail) jcassandro@sabr.org; (fax) 602-595-5690; or (mail) Jim Cassandro c/o SABR, 4455 E. Camelback Rd., Ste. D-140, Phoenix, AZ 85018.
  • SABR election candidates, due 2/1/2012: The SABR Nominating Committee seeks nominations for candidates for the 2012 SABR Board of Directors elections. Deadline for nominations is February 1, 2012. Nominees must prepare a Candidate Statement Form following guidelines that will be available from any Nominating Committee member: chair Barry Mednick, Rich Schabowski, and Barry Deutsch. Self-nominations are welcome. The offices to be filled are Vice President (2-year term: currently Bill Nowlin); Secretary (3-year term; currently Todd Lebowitz); and Director (3-year term; currently Gary Gillette.)
  • McFarland-SABR Baseball Research Award, due 2/15/2012: 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. A $200 cash award accompanies the honor. To submit a nomination for the 2011 awards, please send back this downloadable nominating form plus FIVE (5) copies of the work by February 15, 2012, to: (e-mail) lenlevin5@hotmail.com; or (mail) Len Levin, 282 Doyle Ave., Providence, RI 02906-3355.

Chapter meeting recaps

Upcoming SABR events:

Visit SABR.org/events for details on all upcoming SABR events.

In other recent SABR news:

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

Find more information about SABR at the Members’ Info page here: http://sabr.org/about/members-info.

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.

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: January 6, 2012. Last Updated: April 3, 2020.

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