To be clear, there are two positions here.

Position: Sports Info Solutions Research & Development Internship

Location: Coplay, Pa.
Read the rest of this entry »

Position: Texas Rangers Baseball Systems Developer

Location: Arlington, Texas

Read the rest of this entry »

The pitch clock is coming. It’s coming to the major leagues, and it is inevitable. It’s existed in the minors for a handful of years, and the whole idea there was that it was a trial. A test, before implementation on the biggest stage. From the sounds of things, you can expect to see pitchers — and hitters! — operating with a clock as soon as 2018. Whether you love it or hate it, don’t blame me. I’m just the messenger. And actually, no, Buster Olney is the messenger. I’m just the messenger’s messenger. An excerpt from his report:

But the foundation of the changes to come in 2018 will be in the implementation of a pitch clock, sources say, and MLB is intent on using the same limit used in the minor leagues the past three seasons — 20 seconds between pitches when there are no runners on base.
[…]
Twenty seconds, with pitchers required to begin their motion within 20 seconds of the previous pitch.

There are two key points in there:

1. 20 seconds
2. when there are no runners on base

If you check out our leaderboards, you’ll see that the league-average pace this past season was a hair over 24 seconds. Pace is the average time between pitches — cutting out pick-offs and mound visits and whatnot — and 24 is greater than 20. Now, the writing suggests pitchers would just have to begin throwing at 20 seconds, so maybe it would work out to be more like a 21- or 22-second cap. Your takeaway might be that a great number of pitchers will be affected. To say nothing of the hitters who have developed their own particular time-wasting quirks.

But the runners-on-base part is significant. There’s a truth you might feel, without truly knowing: Pitchers work faster when the bases are empty.

Pedro Baez is probably the current face of slow pitchers. He did average the slowest pace in all of baseball last season, and so it’s deserved. I want to show you something, with help from Baseball Savant. Here are all of Baez’s career games. I’m not talented enough to just pull all of Baez’s actual pace data when there have and haven’t been runners, but I can show you all his individual game paces, along with the rates of pitches thrown in those games with runners on. It works! The relationship is clear.

As Baez has thrown more and more pitches with runners on, he’s worked slower and slower. He’s made 24 career appearances in which he threw every pitch with a runner on, and his average pace in those games is 36.6 seconds. He’s made 62 career appearances in which he threw every pitch with no runner on, and his average pace in those games is 27.6 seconds. Still slow! Still needs to be sped up. But that’s a nine-second difference. Baez has responded to the situation, and he isn’t alone.

I found a post from January of 2015, written, coincidentally enough, by Sean Dolinar. He found that, with the bases empty, pitchers tended to deliver pitches within roughly 20 seconds. With runners on, however, they slowed down substantially, by eight, nine, or ten seconds. And it makes sense; those runners might be threats to advance, and the situations are more important, more threatening. Pitchers have to be more careful, and their attention is divided.

So while a pitch clock would make a real difference in the majors, it wouldn’t be as dramatic as you might be inclined to think, if it’s only active when the bases are empty. Certain pitchers would be forced to speed up, pitchers like Baez and dozens of others, but most pitchers would be able to work more or less like normal. Which, I think, is how the pitch clock has been received in the minors — most players have said they’ve hardly even noticed it. The real slow-downs take place when there’s a runner or two or three, and it doesn’t look like those situations are being targeted. Not as Olney wrote his report.

Maybe that just means this can be taken further down the road. And we can’t reach any certain conclusions when we don’t yet have an actual rule, with actual, explicit details. This is for baseball to sort out in the coming months. But it sounds like we’re about to have a pitch clock. And it sounds like it should have only a modest effect. Maybe that’s a good thing and maybe that’s a bad thing, but it’s a thing, and it’s for us and everyone else to get used to.

Position: San Diego Padres Baseball Systems Developer

Location: San Diego

Read the rest of this entry »

Harold Ramirez, once a top 100 prospect, was outrighted by the Toronto Blue Jays today. A 23 year old that used to have speed and bat-to-ball skills on his side, Ramirez has seen knee injuries rob him of the former. He was never a center fielder, and now has a ways to go to prove that he has the upside that his hitting tool once suggested he did.

But this may be a learning moment for Ramirez. Take a look at something Eric Longenhangen wrote this spring:

There are scouts who think Ramirez is a future plus hitter but acknowledge that it’s unlikely there will be more than 40 game power here at peak unless he drastically alters his approach. That offensive profile doesn’t play in left field without good defense, something I’m increasingly skeptical Ramirez will be able to provide. He hits, and therefore will likely find some sort of big-league role, likely as a bat-first bench outfielder.

Now take a look at all minor leaguers under the age of 24, graphed by their ground ball to fly ball ratio and speed score. Ramirez is in red.

It’s untenable to be as slow as Ramirez is now and hit as many grounders. That’s why he was released. He’s not a center fielder, so a decent hit tool alone is not going to float him to the major leagues.

But Ramirez is still young, and still has that hit tool — he was in the top 25 in the same grouping by strikeout rate — and another team may give him a chance. A chance to drastically alter his approach. And a release is just the kind of moment that spurs this kind of change.

Position: TruMedia Networks Client Support And Content Coordinator

Location: Boston (remote possible)

Description:
TruMedia is seeking a uniquely skilled talent to lead and contribute in multiple areas of our business as our Client Support and Content Coordinator.

One of the primary responsibilities of the role will be managing the content that TruMedia produces. This will include creating public-facing content for our web site, blog and social media accounts, as well producing highly targeted internal content for our current and prospective clients. Currently TruMedia focuses on football, baseball, soccer and cricket – so deep knowledge of any or all of these sports is ideal.

Beyond content, this role will also call for day-to-day interaction with our 50+ clients across professional sports teams and media in an account management setting – with a particular focus on our MLB clients. This person will be our front line support for teams when they have any questions related to our services.

Another responsibility will be as our functional QA lead across all of our products. This means you will provide constant feedback to our engineering team on features and functionality that will improve our offerings. It also means you will need to understand how teams can use our products to improve their processes and decision making.

And finally, we are looking for someone who understands the sports analytics landscape across multiple sports. You won’t necessarily need to build machine learning algorithms and code in JavaScript (though if you can, that doesn’t hurt!), but you do need to have an understanding of how to use data to both tell better stories in the media world, and help teams win more games.
Read the rest of this entry »

An early Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah everyone. The Nippon-Ham Fighters are reportedly going to post Shohei Ohtani.

Now there’s still an obstacle to be cleared.

The Fighters want the old posting fee of $20 million to be grandfathered into the arrangement, and Joel Sherman of the New York Post reported there is a “tentative agreement” in place between the MLB and NPB to do just that. Now, the MLBPA simply must sign off. That appears to be the final hurdle.

Read the rest of this entry »

Roy Halladay died in a plane crash on Tuesday, in the Gulf of Mexico, near to the Florida coast. He was the only victim, and he was 40 years old. Halladay loved to fly — following his retirement from baseball in 2013, it became one of his major pursuits.

We know Halladay for his career, and it was an incredible one. He ran a four-digit ERA in 2000, and three years later, he won the AL Cy Young. Seven years later, he won the NL Cy Young, and along the way he threw a perfect game and a playoff no-hitter while making an All-Star roster eight times. Out of a career nearly sidetracked before it really began, Halladay fashioned a Hall-of-Fame-worthy record. Few pitchers have ever worked with such efficient tenacity. As an opponent, Halladay seemed something other than human. He seemed something better. Humans aren’t programmed with such laser-like focus.

Halladay was the model of a professional athlete, and, from the sounds of things, he was the model of a person. He made no enemies, even out of his rivals. Those who knew him have always spoken highly. Some baseball players are said to be the most driven. Halladay actually was. Some baseball players are said to be the hardest workers. Halladay actually was. Some baseball players are said to be worth the price of admission. Halladay actually was. Halladay was everything you could possibly want, and that wasn’t a feeling shared just among fans.

I wanted to be Roy Halladay. I’m heartbroken, rest easy Doc.

— dan haren (@ithrow88) November 7, 2017

Roy Halladay was your favorite player’s favorite player. He left the game better than it was, and the same could be said of his community. Halladay was one of the special ones. You mourn the special ones. You mourn everybody, every mother and father and daughter and son, but, you mourn the special ones.

Position: Seattle Mariners Baseball Analytics Intern

Location: Seattle

Description:
We are seeking an individual with a background in statistical analysis and a passion for baseball. The position will work directly alongside the analytics team on a wide range of projects, providing ample opportunity to directly impact front office decision-making. Start and end dates are flexible, and we will consider applicants who are available for only the summer of 2018, but preference for candidates that can start by Feb. 1.
Read the rest of this entry »

Position: St. Louis Cardinals Baseball Operations Fellowship

Location: Jupiter, Fla.

Description:
The St. Louis Cardinals baseball club is seeking candidates for a Baseball Operations Fellowship position to be based out of the Jupiter, FL complex. The Fellowship position runs from early 2018 through December 31, 2018. It is a full-time position eligible for insurance consistent with a typical Cardinals full-time employee. Fellows will be compensated based on an hourly rate of pay competitive with similar entry level positions in baseball. This Fellowship position will be a one-year opportunity – Fellows will not return in the same position in 2019. At the end of the Fellowship, the Cardinals and Fellow will jointly determine if there is an appropriate opportunity for full-time employment within the Cardinals.

The Fellowship position is designed to provide entry-level baseball executives with an opportunity to gain experience mainly in the International and Player Development departments at the home of the Cardinals’ Spring Training, Extended Spring Training, Gulf Coast, Florida State, and Instructional Leagues. While working at the direction of the Jupiter-based Directors of the International/Player Development departments, the Fellow will also provide occasional support to the St. Louis front office.

Responsibilities will be driven mostly by baseball activity taking place at the Jupiter complex and will be closely tied to interaction with Minor League players, many of which are international and require assistance in a foreign country. Native-level Spanish fluency is ideal with a high degree of proficiency as the minimum requirement. Duties will include, among others, serving as interpreter, translating documents, assisting on-field personnel with daily planning, supporting recently drafted players upon signing, organization of player immigration documents, and basic analysis of international scouting reports. Training will be provided for any scouting responsibilities associated with the role.

This is an exciting opportunity for entry-level individuals passionate about baseball and willing to start in a highly dynamic environment. The ideal candidate will have demonstrated a strong work ethic, deep enthusiasm for international baseball, and high intellect to quickly adapt and implement on the go. The Fellowship will provide such a candidate with a broad range of experiences across Baseball Operations and the possibility of full-time employment.
Read the rest of this entry »