This Week in SABR: November 22, 2019

November 22, 2019/in This Week in SABR /by admin

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 November 22, 2019:

**Read all articles from the Fall 2019 Baseball Research Journal online**

Good news! The Fall 2019 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 was delivered on November 18.

All articles from the Fall 2019 Baseball Research Journal can now be read online at SABR.org.
Click here to download the e-book edition of the Fall 2019 Baseball Research Journal.
Click here to order a copy of the print edition of the Fall 2019 Baseball Research Journal from Amazon.com.

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

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

We hope you enjoy reading the Fall 2019 Baseball Research Journal!

In Memoriam: Dorothy Seymour Mills

Dorothy Seymour Mills’s interest in baseball was “purely academic,” she liked to say, but her contributions to the sport as its first female historian were groundbreaking and influential.

She was recognized in the inaugural class of recipients for SABR’s Henry Chadwick Award, honoring baseball’s greatest researchers, and two other awards in her name, the Seymour Medal and a lifetime achievement award for women in baseball, were established by SABR. She died of complications from an ulcer at the age of 91 on Sunday, November 17 at St. Joseph’s Hospital and Medical Center in Tucson, Arizona.

For most of Dorothy’s life, her efforts to advance our collective understanding about baseball went unrecognized and underappreciated. It was not until the death of her first husband, Dr. Harold Seymour, in 1992 that Dorothy’s work finally began to emerge from the shadows. For nearly a half-century, she partnered with Seymour in the research, writing, and editing of the classic three-volume series called Baseball, published by Oxford University Press.

“No one may call himself a student of baseball history without having read these indispensable works,” wrote John Thorn, Major League Baseball’s Official Historian.

Click here to read the full announcement at SABR.org.

Call for papers: 2020 The National Pastime

SABR’s 50th national convention will take place on July 15-19, 2020, in Baltimore. To coincide with the convention, the summer 2020 issue of The National Pastime will focus on baseball in the Charm City and around the state of Maryland. Research articles may be historical, biographical, or analytical (stats welcome), but please avoid personal narrative.

Publications director Cecilia Tan will be taking queries and abstracts until December 10, 2019, and will make assignments no later than January 1, 2020. First drafts of articles will be due no later than March 1 and rewrites (if needed) will be due by April 15.

To query, email ctan@sabr.org with the subject line “TNP Query:” and a key word or two about your subject.

Click here to read the full announcement at SABR.org.

Early registration now open for the 2020 SABR Analytics Conference in Phoenix

Early registration is now open for the ninth annual SABR Analytics Conference on March 13-15, 2020, at the Renaissance Phoenix Downtown in Arizona, where we’ll bring together the top minds in the baseball analytics community to discuss, debate and share insightful ways to analyze and examine the great game of baseball. Register today to join us!

The Analytics Conference schedule consists 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.

Programming will begin on the afternoon of Friday, March 13 and will run through Sunday afternoon on March 15. A large block of rooms for SABR Analytics Conference attendees is available on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday nights. Click here for highlights of the high-quality content from the 2019 conference.

Registration: Click here to register for the 2020 SABR Analytics Conference. Early-bird registration is $395 for SABR members, $495 for non-members, and $350 for currently enrolled high school or college students (includes one-year SABR membership). Registration includes lunch on Friday and Saturday afternoons and the networking reception on Saturday evening.
Hotel: Click here to book your hotel room at the Renaissance Phoenix Downtown, 100 N. 1st St., Phoenix, AZ 85004. The special SABR group rate is $239/night (plus tax) for double occupancy. Or call (602) 333-0000 and mention that you’re with the SABR Analytics Conference. Complimentary wireless Internet is available for Marriott Rewards members in all rooms booked under the SABR block. The SABR group rate is only available for the nights of March 13 to March 15, 2020, based on availability. If you wish to book a room at the SABR rate before or after those dates, please contact Deb Jayne at djayne@sabr.org for assistance.
Research Presentations: Click here to submit a presentation abstract for the 2020 SABR Analytics Conference.
Yoseloff Scholarship: Students, apply now for a Yoseloff Scholarship to attend the 2020 SABR Analytics Conference.
Diamond Dollars Case Competition: Learn more or apply now to participate in the 2020 Diamond Dollars Case Competition.
Research Awards: We’re seeking nominations for the 2020 SABR Analytics Conference Research Awards.

SABR has a long and storied history with baseball statistical analysis, evidenced by the link between our name and sabermetrics. SABR’s long history in this area of baseball research, coupled with our mission of advancing the understanding and knowledge of baseball, makes us the perfect choice to coordinate and host this ground-breaking event.

For more information on the 2020 SABR Analytics Conference, or to register, visit SABR.org/analytics.

One week left to submit research presentation abstracts for 2020 SABR Analytics Conference

SABR and Baseball Info Solutions are excited to announce the call for presentations for the ninth annual SABR Analytics Conference.

Abstracts of proposed research presentations should be no more than 500 words in length, and must include the abstract’s title, review of previous work on the subject, a summary of the research methodology and anticipated results, and the expected contribution to the field of baseball analytics offered by this work. Submissions are open to the general public, with student presenters considered in a separate track.

Please send all abstracts to this e-mail address: analytics@baseballinfosolutions.com. The submission deadline for 2020 SABR Analytics Conference presentation abstracts is 11:59 p.m. MST, Wednesday, November 27, 2019. Note: If your presentation abstract is selected as a semi-finalist, you will be required to register for the conference in order to be eligible for a presentation slot.

Click here for complete details and criteria at SABR.org.

Seeking volunteers for SABR Nominating Committee

SABR is looking for volunteers to serve on the Nominating Committee in 2020. This committee is entrusted with soliciting candidates for our annual elections to the Board of Directors. In addition to preparing the slate of candidates, the committee also prepares a list of questions for the candidates, the answers to which will be distributed to voters prior to the election.

The committee consists of three SABR members. If you wish to serve, please contact Mark Armour at markarmour04@gmail.com for details.

Save the date! Join us for SABR Day on January 25, 2020

The 11th annual SABR Day will be held Saturday, January 25, 2020. We’re starting to compile details now on 2020 SABR Day chapter meetings around the country. We’ll post them as soon as we get them at SABR.org/sabrday.

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.

Chapter leaders, please be sure to send any details on your SABR meeting to Jacob Pomrenke at jpomrenke@sabr.org so we can update our SABR Day map.

Visit SABR.org/sabrday to learn more.

It’s time to renew your membership for 2020

For those of you whose SABR memberships expire by December 31 — you can check your current membership status here — it’s time for you to renew!

From the Baseball Research Journal and the SABR Digital Library to “This Week in SABR” and our extensive list of research resources — and, of course, all the memorable conferences, chapter meetings, and events — we hope you enjoyed the many benefits of SABR membership this past year.

We hope you please continue your support by renewing your SABR membership today.

Pay online: Click here to renew your SABR membership for 2020!
Renew by mail: To pay by check or money order, mail this downloadable PDF form and your payment to the office at SABR, Cronkite School at ASU, 555 N. Central Ave. #416, Phoenix, AZ 85004.
Pay by phone: To process your credit-card payment over the phone, please call the SABR office at (602) 496-1460 during regular business hours. (We accept Visa, Mastercard, or Discover Card.)

Thank you for your support of SABR as we continue to strive to make SABR membership a great experience and a great value!

Join the Friends of SABR and support baseball research

As we wrap up 2019, we want to thank you for your continuing support of SABR. Thanks to your dedication and generosity, SABR is stronger today than ever, with a vast array of capabilities.

We also want to invite you to join the Friends of SABR, a circle of members who are committed to using their financial support to improve our baseball community and our efforts to increase the understanding of the game we love. None of these accomplishments would have been possible without your generosity — which is why we hope you will continue and even increase your support today!

We have been busy in the last year at SABR HQ and will continue to pour our energy into notable projects in 2020. Members like you are helping us turn our shared vision into a reality.

You can join the Friends of SABR by making a gift of at least $100 at SABR.org/donate. We will use your best gift of $100, $250, $500, or $1,000 to bring more young people into the world of baseball; to publish groundbreaking books and articles; and to promote research, preservation, and scholarship. In addition, SABR HQ will also donate 10% of all member gifts back to the chapters each donor is affiliated with.

Baseball makes the world better! Thank you so much for believing that and for joining us in this endeavor.

— Scott Bush, SABR CEO

Give back to SABR through AmazonSmile

This holiday season, AmazonSmile is an easy way to give back to SABR through online purchases made on Amazon.com. AmazonSmile will donate a portion of the purchase price of your eligible Amazon purchases to SABR.

Click here to learn more about supporting SABR through AmazonSmile.

Millions of Amazon products are eligible for donations and are marked “Eligible for AmazonSmile” on their product detail page. Remember, you must visit the AmazonSmile site (smile.amazon.com) first in order for your purchases to be eligible for donations.

SABRcast with Rob Neyer: Listen to an interview with Jason Schwartz of the SABR Baseball Cards Committee

Listen to a new episode of SABRcast with Rob Neyer, a new weekly podcast hosted by award-winning author and longtime SABR member Rob Neyer — which is now available on your favorite podcast streaming services!

Visit SABR.org/sabrcast to listen to Episode #34 — our guest this week is Jason Schwartz, co-chair of the SABR Baseball Cards Research Committee and curator of its popular Twitter account, @SABRbbcards.

Subscribe to SABRcast on your favorite podcast networks, including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play, and listen to each episode as soon as it’s released on Mondays. Every week, SABRcast will feature insights and analysis of what’s happening in modern baseball on and off the field, plus compelling interviews with figures from around the game — and music from The Baseball Project.

To learn more, visit SABR.org/sabrcast.

1 new SABR biography published

One new biography was posted this week as part of the SABR Baseball Biography Project, which brings us to a total of 5,027 published biographies. Here is the new bio published this week:

Fred Schemanske, by Chris Rainey

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 all bios from 1995 Cleveland Indians book online at the SABR BioProject

In 1995 Cleveland Indians: The Sleeping Giant Awakes, published by SABR in 2019 and edited by Joseph Wancho, we told the story of a beloved Cleveland team that shattered a four-decade postseason drought by winning the American League pennant.

They had an All-Star seemingly at every position, including Jim Thome, Eddie Murray, Manny Ramirez, Kenny Lofton, Orel Hershiser, and Sandy Alomar Jr. The biographies of all the players, coaches, and broadcasters will evoke that glorious era once again for Tribe fans. The volume is also sprinkled with personal perspectives, as well as game stores from key matchups during the 1995 season, information about Jacobs Field, and other writing of interest on the historic season.

You can now read every biography from 1995 Cleveland Indians online at the SABR BioProject.

Click here to download your free e-book or get 50% off the paperback edition at SABR.org.

Visit SABR.org/ebooks to find all titles from the SABR Digital Library.

**Listen to a new episode of Behind the Numbers: Baseball SABR Style on SiriusXM on Saturdays**

Behind the Numbers: Baseball SABR Style on SiriusXM, a radio show hosted by former SABR Board President Vince Gennaro, is back for the Hot Stove offseason at a new time! Listen to a new episode at 4:00-5:00 p.m. ET on Saturdays on MLB Network Radio.

This week’s guests are Zach Crizer of Baseball Prospectus and David Epstein, author of Range: Why Generalists Triumph in a Specialized World and The Sports Gene.

You can also listen to archives of recent episodes on-demand on the SiriusXM Internet Radio app. Click here to learn more.

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.

Call for SABR award nominations

Seymour Medal, due 12/31/2019: The Dr. Harold and Dorothy Seymour Medal honors the best book of baseball history or biography published during the preceding calendar year. The award is presented during the Seymour Medal Banquet at the NINE Spring Training Conference every March. If you have a book to nominate with a 2019 publication date, contact Andy Andres at andyandres@gmail.com by December 31, 2019.
Larry Ritter Award, due 12/31/2019: 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 2019 publication date, contact Doug Skipper at theskippers1@hotmail.com by December 31, 2019.
Ron Gabriel Award, due 12/31/2019: 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. To submit a nomination for the 2020 awards, please send a copy of your work to Gary Sarnoff at runtowin89@hotmail.com by December 31, 2019.
SABR Baseball Research Award, due 1/31/2020: 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 2020 awards, please contact Bill Felber at bfelber@att.net.
McFarland-SABR Baseball Research Award, due 2/15/2020: 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 2020 awards, please contact Len Levin at lenlevin5@hotmail.com.

Please note: Only ONE entry per nomination will be considered (do not submit multiple nominations for the same award). For more information on SABR Awards, click here.

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.

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
Arturo Aguero	Houston, TX	Matthew King	San Jose, CA
Richard Blick	San Diego, CA	Bobby Knowles	Fulshear, TX
T. Christopher Bond	Eastampton, NJ	Robert Kravetz	Pittsford, NY
Howie Burgess	Wallington, NJ	Dan Lee	Pickerington, OH
Jim Chakulski	Columbia, CT	John Metzler	Ottawa, ON
Dave Cotterman	New Lexington, OH	Amane Murai	Ishikawa-ken, JPN
Steve Dugan	Mobile, AL	Matt Nussbaum	Dalton, OH
Anthony Fox	Madison, TN	Dakota Olson	Minneapolis, MN
Lori Gabay	Los Angeles, CA	Alexander Rude	Buffalo Grove, IL
Anthony Giove	Troy, MI	James Schapiro	New York, NY
W. James Hadden	Austin, TX	Mark Zeigler	Kearneysville, WV
Brendan Huerta	Chicago, IL

Research Committee news

Here are the new research committee updates this week:

Official Scoring: Please welcome Chris Phillips as a new co-chair, along with Stew Thornley, of the Official Scoring Committee. To learn more about this committee or to sign up for email announcements, click here.

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

Regional Chapter news

Here are the new regional chapter updates this week:

Bob Broeg St. Louis Chapter: November 18 meeting recap (St. Louis, MO)
Halsey Hall Chapter: December 2019 newsletter (Minneapolis, MN)
Rogers Hornsby Chapter: November 16 meeting recap (Austin, TX)

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:

November 30: Lajoie-Start Southern New England Chapter fall meeting (Greenville, RI)
December 3: Jack Graney Chapter: Talkin’ Baseball meeting (Akron, OH)
December 4: Buck O’Neil/North Florida Chapter monthly meeting (Tallahassee, FL)
December 4: Baltimore Babe Ruth Chapter “Peeps at the Peeb” monthly meeting (Baltimore, MD)
December 4: Bob Broeg St. Louis Chapter Baseball Fellowship Meeting (St. Louis, MO)
December 7: Halsey Hall Chapter book club meeting (Roseville, MN)
December 7: Bresnahan-Mud Hens Chapter book club meeting (Toledo, OH)
December 8: Elysian Fields Chapter meet-up (Mountainside, NJ)
December 8: Ted Williams Chapter meeting (San Diego, CA)
December 9: Halsey Hall Chapter research committee meeting (Brooklyn Center, MN)
December 10: Luis Castro Chapter: “Perspectivas del Béisbol” (Santo Domingo, DOM)
December 11: Bob Davids Chapter Monthly Hot Stove Dinner (Arlington, VA)
December 13: Boston Chapter Hot Stove meeting (Boston, MA)

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:

Mark Simon: Who does the public want elected to the Hall of Fame? (ACTA Sports)
Thomas Harding: In final year on ballot, can Larry Walker make the Hall of Fame? (MLB.com)
Jayson Stark: Five things to watch on the 2020 Hall of Fame ballot (The Athletic)
Jay Jaffe: Marvin Miller’s omission from the Hall of Fame is disgraceful (FanGraphs)
Ken Rosenthal: MLB’s sign-stealing investigation should not stop at the Astros (The Athletic)
Ginny Searle/Craig Goldstein: Minute Maid malice (Baseball Prospectus)
Craig Edwards: What the Astros might deserve (FanGraphs)
Rustin Dodd: The Rabbit Ball: The story of baseball’s original juiced ball controversy (The Athletic)
John Perrotto: New Pirates GM Ben Cherington used professor stint to learn more about himself (Pittsburgh Tribune-Review)
Rob Arthur: MLB’s minor-league plan would cut off 4 million fans (Baseball Prospectus)
Bill James: Improving the MVP system (Bill James Online)
Katharine Q. Seelye: Vera Clemente, flame-keeping widow of baseball great Roberto, dies at 78 (New York Times)
Rob Mains: Taking stock of 2019 preseason predictions (Baseball Prospectus)
Zach Buchanan: ‘Play better and get the hell out of here’: A weekend in indy ball, the League of Second Chances (The Athletic)
Maury Brown: Given atrocities, should MiLB use ‘Conquistadores’ name as part of Hispanic marketing program? (Forbes.com)
Denise Dunbar: ‘Spy Behind Home Plate’ details unbelievable story of baseball star turned spy (Alexandria Times)
Bruce Markusen: Three for the memories (The Hardball Times)
Miriam Zuo: Putting the play back in ‘Play Ball!’ (The Hardball Times)
Tim Jenkins: Hitting through the Unglaub Arc (SABR Baseball Cards Blog)
Chris Kamka: 2010 Tristar Obak: The History of Baseball in a Card Set (SABR Baseball Cards Blog)
Tim Jenkins: A Trip Down Trader Lane (SABR Baseball Cards Blog)
Jason Schwartz: Solving the border crisis (SABR Baseball Cards Blog)

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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