Data Engineer, Baseball Research & Development

Summary:
The Washington Nationals are looking to hire a software engineer focusing on data engineering and infrastructure to join our Baseball R&D group. The data engineer will help ensure our datasets are well organized and accessible for our analysts and web developers. We are looking for candidates who are passionate about building impactful solutions around data workflows and enthusiastic about working in a baseball front office.

The Washington Nationals Baseball R&D group is responsible for deriving insights from our baseball datasets and building proprietary metrics and data products which are used to inform baseball decision making throughout our organization.

We prefer candidates who are willing to relocate to Washington, DC area for in person/hybrid work at Nationals Park but are willing to consider a fully remote option for exceptional candidates.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

• Build robust data imports that pull data from a variety of sources (HTTP API’s, cloud object stores like AWS S3, relational databases) and write to our internal data systems.
• Develop validation processes to monitor data quality and flag potential sources of error.
• Help with the deployment, orchestration, and monitoring of our data pipelines. We use Prefect for orchestration, utilizing Docker and AWS ECS.
• Design and build solutions to make working with our internal datasets easier. This work includes maintaining database tables and views, merging datasets from different sources for easier access, and possibly building internal API’s or other microservices to make data more accessible.
• Assist with the maintenance of our cloud computing infrastructure: manage and configure servers, databases, and other internal tools.
• Research and advocate for any new tooling that can aide in timely, accurate and accessible data delivery
• Write documentation
• Participate in code reviews

Requirements:

Minimum Education and Experience Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in computer science, computer engineering, information science, or a related field.
• 3+ years of relevant work experience.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities necessary to perform essential functions

• Fluent in Python and experience with Pandas.
• Proficient with MySQL, PostgreSQL, or other relational database systems.
• Experience with Docker.
• Comfortable working on the command line in a Linux environment.
• Experience using git for version control.
• Some experience with R is preferred, but not required.
• Ability to work independently with close attention to detail.
• Enthusiastic about working in baseball.
• Authorized to work in the United States.

Physical/Environmental Requirements

• Office: Working conditions are normal for an office environment. Work may require occasional weekend and/or evening work.

Our Stack

• We write most of our imports in Python, using Prefect for orchestrating our data workflows, which are dockerized and deployed on AWS ECS. Our analysts work mostly in R.
• Our servers run Ubuntu Linux.
• We utilize several AWS services, primarily EC2, RDS, S3, ECS, Batch, EFS.
• We use MySQL, PostgreSQL, MongoDB for our databases. We also leverage SQLite, DuckDB, DynamoDB for certain applications.
• We use Terraform, Ansible, and Packer for managing our infrastructure
• We use a self-hosted GitLab instance for our code repositories and for CI/CD.

All applicants for employment at the Washington Nationals are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 prior to commencing employment. Applicants who receive a conditional offer of employment will be required to produce proof of vaccination status prior to their first day of employment. Applicants with qualifying disabilities or bona fide religious objections may be exempted from this requirement or otherwise accommodated if they are unable to be vaccinated.

To Apply:
To apply, please follow this link.

Full Stack Web Developer, Baseball Research & Development

Summary:

The Washington Nationals are seeking a full stack web developer to join our Baseball Research & Development team. We are looking for candidates who are both passionate about building web applications and enthusiastic about the opportunity to work on software that has a significant impact within a baseball organization.

The developer will work on a small team to build and maintain an internal web application used by scouts, coaches, player development staff, and the baseball operations front office. Some key features of the site include scouting reports, video, player projections, custom reports and tools, and the display of both public and proprietary metrics related to player performance and evaluation.

We prefer candidates who are willing to relocate to Washington, DC area for in person/hybrid work at Nationals Park but are willing to consider a fully remote option for exceptional candidates.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

• Design, build, and test new features, working on both the frontend and backend of the application
• Support and maintain existing features
• Investigate and resolve bugs
• Develop and deploy data imports and other background processing jobs
• Work closely with R&D analysts to display public and private metrics
• Write documentation
• Participate in code reviews

Requirements:

Minimum Education and Experience Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in computer science, computer engineering, information science, or related experiences
• 2+ years of full-time web development experience

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities necessary to perform essential functions

• Ability to communicate clearly and effectively
• Ability to write clean, concise, and maintainable code
• Ability to work both collaboratively and independently
• Experience with modern programming languages (e.g. Ruby, Python, JavaScript) and frameworks (e.g. Rails, Django, Flask, Node/Express). Experience with Rails is preferred.
• Experience with frontend JavaScript frameworks, such as jQuery, Vue.js, or React.
• Understanding of relational database schema design, experience using MySQL & PostgreSQL, and comfort writing direct SQL statements.
• Experience with data visualization is preferred.
• Experience with Linux and using command line tools is preferred.
• Experience working with a large inherited codebase is a plus.
• Authorized to work in the United States

Physical/Environmental Requirements

• Office: Working conditions are normal for an office environment. Work may require occasional weekend and/or evening work.

To Apply:
To apply, please follow this link.

The content in this posting was created and provided solely by the Washington Nationals.

Performance Associate, Player Development

Summary:
Contribute to Washington Nationals Player Development for the 2023 season in a new full-time, high impact Player Development role. We are looking for qualified individuals who can aid our Player Development department by managing, overseeing, and developing player and coach-facing, data-driven processes throughout the season. In the offseason, daily tasks, research projects, and preparation for the upcoming season comprise the bulk of the work.

This is full-time position, and you will be joining the Nationals Player Development and Baseball Operations Departments as a key contributor moving forward.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

• Facilitate the management of accurate data reporting processes and structures to coaches, staff, and players.
  • Distribute a wide range of reports and communicate relevant insights to staff.
  • Monitor and analyze relevant trends in both on-field and practice settings.
  • Produce and contextualize advance scouting reports.
• Coordinate the use of player performance technology pertaining to both pitching and hitting, including wearable, radar-based, and camera-based systems.
• Collect, maintain, and organize data from all player development technologies.
• Maintain consistent testing and assessment protocols with all player development technologies and other methods of tracking.
• Collaborate with other members of Player Development, S&C, and Medical on assessing and monitoring player performance and injury risk.
• Spearhead continued education efforts on the uses and application of player development technologies and other data sources with coaches, staff, and players.
• Assist in researching new modalities and applications of player development technologies.
• Monitor public baseball research and emerging statistical tools, as well as all potential vendor data/technology opportunities.
• Other duties as assigned.

Requirements:

Minimum Education and Experience Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent.
• Degree and/or relevant professional experience in the following fields is preferred:
  • Statistics
  • Sports Science
  • Biomedical Engineering
  • Computer Science
• Demonstrated work (professional or personal) using any of R, SQL, Python is preferred.
• Fluency or proficiency in Spanish is preferred.
• Ability to write clearly and effectively in English and/or Spanish.
• Proficient in MS Office applications such as Excel and PowerPoint.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities necessary to perform essential functions

• Passion for creating data-driven plans, visualizations and engaging in research projects related to player development.
• Critical thinking skills to answer statistical and biomechanics-related questions and to test research hypotheses.
• Desire to learn about the ins and out of baseball player development and how data, tech, and sports science can make an impact on the field.
• Ability to relocate to (or close to) one of the Nationals affiliate cities.
• Familiarity and previous experience working with baseball technologies such as Hawkeye, Trackman, and a range of wearable technologies.
• Strong communication, collaboration, and organizational skills.
• The ability to translate and explain technical concepts and terms into digestible messages.
• Excellent analytical and problem-solving skills.
• Effective time management.
• Uphold Core Values: Excellence, Performance, and Accountability. These core values set the tone in everything we do, help us succeed on and off the field, make a difference in the community and provide the best guest experience in sports.  It is important that the person in the position commits themselves to these core values so that we can constantly move forward in the same direction – Together.

Physical/Environmental Requirements:

• Minimum physical requirements: Ability to travel and gain access to various areas of the ballpark for prolonged periods of time during games and events. Able to lift and transport up to 25 pounds.
• Office: Working conditions at the team’s home facility are normal for an office environment. Work during road trips will vary depending on the visiting team’s set-up – being able to adjust to different workspaces on the road will be a regular part of the job.

The Nationals are a military-friendly organization actively recruiting veterans and spouses.

All applicants for employment at the Washington Nationals are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 prior to commencing employment. Applicants who receive a conditional offer of employment will be required to produce proof of vaccination status prior to their first day of employment. Applicants with qualifying disabilities or bona fide religious objections may be exempted from this requirement or otherwise accommodated if they are unable to be vaccinated.

To Apply:
To apply, please follow this link.

Player Development Analyst, Baseball Research & Development (R&D)

Summary:
The Washington Nationals are seeking a Player Development Analyst to join our Baseball Research & Development team. The Player Development Analyst will help summarize our baseball datasets to produce actionable insights, evaluate our player’s strengths and weaknesses, build player plans, and communicate regularly with Player Development staff. The analyst will also help analyze data from various tracking technologies such as Hawk-Eye, TrackMan, and Blast Motion and occasionally assist with the operation of these technologies. The analyst will report to the Coordinator of Player Development Analytics in Baseball Research & Development.

The analyst should be able to communicate findings well to all audiences, technical and non-technical. We are seeking candidates with particular interest in player development who have a desire to interact with staff, coaches, and players when appropriate. Effective communication skills paired with data science experience are essential.

This position is based out of West Palm Beach, FL.

The Nationals are a military-friendly organization actively recruiting veterans and spouses.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

• Analyze player tracking data and produce statistical summaries for coaches
• Build interactive web apps using R Shiny
• Design and build automated reports with informative data visualization
• Consult with R&D members on statistical modeling projects
• Assist with development of player improvement plans
• Participate in R&D code reviews
• Other duties as assigned

Requirements:

Minimum Education and Experience Requirements

• Undergraduate or graduate degree from a four-year college or university, preferably in Data Science, Statistics, Mathematics, or Computer Science
• Experience analyzing datasets and training statistical models using R, Python, SQL, or equivalent
• Playing background (baseball or softball) at the collegiate level or above and/or relevant experience is preferred
• Previous experience working with baseball datasets and tracking technologies is a plus

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities necessary to perform essential functions

• Effective organizational skills and attention to detail
• Self-starter with an ability to handle multiple tasks and responsibilities
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills; ability to present ideas clearly and concisely
• Enthusiasm for learning new skills related to programming, statistical modeling, and data visualization
• Uphold Core Values: Excellence, Performance, and Accountability. These core values set the tone in everything we do, help us succeed on and off the field, make a difference in the community and provide the best guest experience in sports.  It is important that the person in the position commits themselves to these core values so that we can constantly move forward in the same direction – Together.

Physical/Environmental Requirements:

• Ability to work in a high activity and heavily crowded outdoor professional sports venue
• Work is performed in both an interior/office environment and outdoors where the employee will be exposed to prevailing weather conditions
• Typically required to climb up/down stairs and walk long distances
• Ability to work flexible hours including nights, weekends, and holidays during the baseball season
• Potential for travel required (Washington DC, affiliate cities, or elsewhere)

All applicants for employment at the Washington Nationals are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 prior to commencing employment. Applicants who receive a conditional offer of employment will be required to produce proof of vaccination status prior to their first day of employment. Applicants with qualifying disabilities or bona fide religious objections may be exempted from this requirement or otherwise accommodated if they are unable to be vaccinated.

To Apply:
To apply, please follow this link.

The content in this posting was created and provided solely by the Washington Nationals.

Analyst, Baseball Analytics

Department: Research & Development, Baseball Operations
Reports To: Director, Baseball Analytics

Role:
The Chicago Cubs are seeking analysts to join the Baseball Analytics group in the Baseball Operations’ Research and Development team. This role will focus on constructing models that estimate skills, likelihoods, and contexts for various baseball phenomena. The analyst will work closely with the entirety of the R&D department to develop methods to process data, improve the effective understanding and application of data, and disseminate analytic insights throughout the organization. Analysts may focus their efforts towards collaborating with the Advanced Scouting, Amateur Scouting, International Scouting, Professional Scouting, Baseball Sciences, or Player Development groups, as strengths dictate.

Responsibilities:

• Create data modeling pipelines that maintain up-to-date predictions of a variety of baseball metrics
• Analyze collected data leveraging in-house models and insights
• Research, develop, and test methods and models for the purpose of player assessment, development, and acquisition, as well as the optimization of in-game strategy
• Effectively present analyses using written reports and data visualization methods to communicate relevant findings
• Work with Baseball Systems team to integrate new statistical analyses, models, and data visualizations into Cubs web applications
• Incorporate new analysis into existing data processes to improve automated reporting
• Identify, diagnose, and resolve data quality issues
• Conduct in-depth evaluations of amateur and professional prospects
• Handle data and analysis requests from the coaching staff and other departments within Baseball Operations

Desired Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s or advanced degree in a quantitative field such as statistics, engineering, mathematics, physics, quantitative social sciences, computer science, or operations research
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Proficiency with SQL, and at least one statistical programming language (e.g., Julia, MATLAB, Python, R)
• Working knowledge of advanced baseball statistics
• Familiarity with advanced statistical modeling techniques
• Relevant experience working in baseball preferred

To Apply:
To apply, please follow this link.

Summer Fellow, Baseball Systems

Department: Baseball Operations: Research & Development – Baseball Systems
Reports To: Architect, Baseball Systems

Role:
The Chicago Cubs Baseball Systems Department is seeking to fill a Baseball Systems Fellow position. This role will focus on assisting the development and maintenance of the Chicago Cubs baseball information system data warehouse, including creating web interfaces and web tools for the user interface; building automated ETL processes which feed it; maintaining back-end databases; and troubleshooting data sources issues as needed. This role will collaborate with software engineers, data analysts, and other internal users in their use of the Cubs’ systems and data warehouse.

Responsibilities:

• Assist in the design and implementation of web interfaces for the Baseball Ops information system • Assist with building data visualizations for baseball users.
• Assist with design and implementation of mobile application features
• Assist with the development and maintenance of ETL processes.
• Identify, diagnose, and resolve data quality issues

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering or Related Subjects
• Expertise with modern database technologies and SQL
• Expertise in Python, Java, C# or a similar language
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• High level of attention to detail

Desired Qualifications:

• In progress Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering or Related Quantitative Subjects
• Familiarity with modern database technologies and SQL
• Familiarity with Python, Java, C++ or another object-oriented language
• Familiarity with front-end web development, including HTML, CSS, and Javascript
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills

To Apply:
To apply, please follow this link.

The content in this posting was created and provided solely by the Chicago Cubs.