The "Moneyball" approach was that rather than go for well rounded players, they would go for people who were able to get on base and were able to cancel the other team. This approach is a science, because it uses relevant factual information and statistics to make decisions regarding players, not a scout's "intuition".
2) What is the equation used to calculate OBP? (In class research/discussion)
OBP is calculated by finding how often a player is able to get on base divided by his total number of bats, excluding non-hit situations.
3) What is design? (In class research/discussion)
Blend of creativity and art with realistic development, leading to the use of creativity and artistic abilities within the confines of utility and possessing intent to achieve a specified goal.
4) Describe 3 situations where movie characters (intentionally or not) applied a step from the PLTW 12 Step Design Process. Explain both the (a) situation as well as (b) how the step is relevant:
1 -
a) the trainer refused to play anybody on first base except Pena, while Bean wants the team played differently.
b.) Bean limits the usable resources of the team by removing Pena from the team, forcing a change in the team's composition and strategy.
2 -
a.) the scouts are trying to decide who they will pick as new players.
b.) Bean asks them to identify the basic question, going back to the original step of the 12 step process.
3 -
a.) the team hires a pitcher with a weird throw who is older than usual.
b.) the select him because while he doesn't fit the scouts' ideas about a good player, his throw and abilities are up to par with the statistical numbers that Bean expects.
5) What is “Leadership”? List the three aspects of leadership that we come up with in class. (In class research/discussion)
1 - Leads by example, doing things that the students will do to show that the leader will do what everyone else will do.
2 - Takes charge of activities by giving clear instructions and defining the steps to achieve goals
3 - Encourages interest and maintains focus/structure for achieving goals.
6) Describe 3 circumstances from the story where a character exercised effective leadership:
1 - when Billy Bean tells his new assistant to fire a player.
2 - his interaction at the scout talks
3 - the point where Billy confronts the manager about how he is using the players.
7) According to the movie, what was the A’s record at the start of their winning streak? 75 : 50
8) What does this ratio simplify to (roughly)? .6 : 1
9) How long was the A’s record setting winning streak? 20 games won.
10) Given the A’s win/loss ratio at the start of the streak (listed two questions above), what are the odds of winning 20 games in a row? Run the numbers. (In class research/discussion)
.6^20= 3.65615844 × 10-5 = much less than .01%.
11) Based on your calculation, do you think the A’s got lucky or was there something to the Moneyball approach?
I think it was the Moneyball approach. The chances of this kind of record otherwise is astronomically small, to the point that it is comparable to the chance of being struck by lighting just by walking outside.
12) Did Billy Beane strictly apply the “science” of Moneyball to his management approach? Was there an “art” to his efforts as well? Describe a circumstance where he broke from the Moneyball approach to make a positive change for the team.
He broke from his approach to hire Giambi's younger brother based on the science of moneyball, but had to fire him because he generated a low morale and fought against the things that the Moneyball system was tryinng to achieve.
Bonus Question (look into this if you’ve finished ahead of the class):
Money Ball was originally a book. What author wrote the book? What other books has this author written? Is there a theme to his writing?
Money Ball was written by Michael Lewis, who also wrote How to Win an Unfair Game. His books tend to be about the influence of economics and math into fields usually considered to do without those things.
It's "Oscar Season", will Moneyball win the Oscar for any of the categories it's up for?
I haven't seen the Oscars, but maybe.
