from NoveList PlusLewis, M. (2003). Moneyball. New York: W. W. Norton.

ISBN:  9780393057652

Rating: 4Q4P

Readers' Annotation: Billy Beene, general manager of the Oakland A's manages, to have the best record in baseball with the smallest budget.

Summary:  Billy Beene, general manager of the Oakland A's, develops a new way to look at baseball recruiting.  He has to otherwise he has no hope of competing with the ball clubs with the big budgets.  He must do something different.  With the help of his assistants, Bill James, and James' annual stats newsletter, Baseball Abstract, Beene makes the changes he needs to put together a winning team with a very small budget.  The traditional scouts, players and coaches are skeptical, but his method works and leads to embarassment for teams with bigger budgets and less success.

Evaluation:  This book will appeal to baseball fans who want to know more about the game, especially the economics of the game.  The author, Michael Lewis, weaves the personal story of Billy Beene with his professional experiences and the larger story of baseball in the early 2000s.  Readers may get bogged down in the details of the math.  I found myself skimming at times when the story got too technical and math orriented, but I also found that I now understand more about baseball then I ever thought I would.  Moneyball will also appeal to readers who like to read books before they see the movie.  The movie adaptation of the book was released in 2011.

Genre:

• Popular Non-Fiction

If you liked Moneyball try...

• other books by Michael Lewis
  • The Blind Side
  • The Big Short
• License to Deal by Jerry Crasnick
• The Extra 2% by Jonah Keri