The MVP Machine Authors Ben Lindbergh and Travis Sawchik

22nd July 2019

It’s baseball week here at Bullseye and bestselling authors Ben Lindbergh and Travis Sawchik are stepping up to the plate. They’re the writers behind the book: “The MVP Machine: How Baseball’s New Nonconformists Are Using Data to Build Better Players.” They’ll talk to us about how players aren’t the only ones changing the game. And even if you’re not into baseball, we promise there are some lessons to take away!

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Photo: Basic Books
Ben Linbergh and Travis Sawchik on their new book “The MVP Machine: How Baseball’s New Nonconformists Are Using Data to Build Better Players”
It’s “Baseball Week” at Bullseye and bestselling authors Ben Lindbergh and Travis Sawchik have stepped up to the plate. Their new book is titled The MVP Machine: How Baseball’s New Nonconformists Are Using Data to Build Better Players. It takes a look at the tide-shift happening in the game of baseball. Even if you’re not a huge fan of the game, there’s a lot to take away from the lessons in the book.

Chances are you’re aware of the change in baseball strategy due to a little film called Moneyball. The film, and the book before it, recounts how general managers and recruiters turned to statistical data and probability to arm their teams with the best players in the league. But with the Yankees and the Dodgers and just about every other team in the league all using the same strategy, the efficacy of this method began to wane. That’s where The MVP Machine: How Baseball’s New Nonconformists Are Using Data to Build Better Players comes in.

The book gets into how a lot of conventional coaching in the big leagues is totally wrong. Throwing your fastball a lot? Wrong. Having a nice even swing? Wrong. Striking out a lot? Who cares! Furthermore, the book examines the dramatic changes happening in the league and how data technology and innovations in coaching are disrupting the front offices as well as lineups. It’s a fascinating look at the history of baseball and the potential future that lies ahead.

The MVP Machine is available now.

In this episode...

Senior Producer
Producer
Maximum Fun Producer
Maximum Fun Production Fellow

Guests

  • Ben Lindbergh
  • Travis Sawchik

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Bullseye is a celebration of the best of arts and culture in public radio form. Host Jesse Thorn sifts the wheat from the chaff to bring you in-depth interviews with the most revered and revolutionary minds in our culture.

Bullseye has been featured in Time, The New York Times, GQ and McSweeney’s, which called it “the kind of show people listen to in a more perfect world.” Since April 2013, the show has been distributed by NPR.

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