Ben Lindbergh
All Books By Ben Lindbergh
The MVP Machine
- By: Ben Lindbergh
- Narrator: Josh Hurley
- Length: 14 hours 50 minutes
- Publisher: Hachette Audio
- Publish date: June 04, 2019
- Language: English
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4.29(1915 ratings)
Lindbergh and Sawchik’s behind-the-scenes reporting reveals:
- How undersized afterthoughts Jose Altuve and Mookie Betts became big sluggers and MVPs
- How polarizing pitcher Trevor Bauer made himself a Cy Young contender
- How new analytical tools have overturned traditional pitching and hitting techniques
- How a wave of young talent is making MLB both better than ever and arguably worse to watch
Instead of out-drafting, out-signing, and out-trading their rivals, baseball’s best minds have turned to out-developing opponents, gaining greater edges than ever by perfecting prospects and eking extra runs out of older athletes who were once written off. Lindbergh and Sawchik take us inside the transformation of former fringe hitters into home-run kings, show how washed-up pitchers have emerged as aces, and document how coaching and scouting are being turned upside down. The MVP Machine charts the future of a sport and offers a lesson that goes beyond baseball: Success stems not from focusing on finished products, but from making the most of untapped potential.
The Only Rule Is It Has to Work
- By: Ben Lindbergh
- Length: 13 hours 20 minutes
- Publisher: Tantor Media, Inc
- Publish date: May 17, 2016
- Language: English
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4.24(5106 ratings)
It’s the ultimate in fantasy baseball: You get to pick the roster, set the lineup, and decide on strategies-with real players, in a real ballpark, in a real playoff race. That’s what baseball analysts Ben Lindbergh and Sam Miller got to do when an independent minor-league team in California, the Sonoma Stompers, offered them the chance to run its baseball operations according to the most advanced statistics.
We tag along as Lindbergh and Miller apply their number-crunching insights to all aspects of assembling and running a team, following one cardinal rule for judging each innovation they try: it has to work. We meet colorful figures like general manager Theo Fightmaster and boundary-breakers like the first openly gay player in professional baseball. Even Jose Canseco makes a cameo appearance.
Will their knowledge of numbers help Lindbergh and Miller bring the Stompers a championship, or will they fall on their faces? Will the team have a competitive advantage or is the sport’s folk wisdom true after all? Will the players attract the attention of big-league scouts, or are they on a fast track to oblivion?