Moneyball

I'm probably the last baseball fan in America to see this movie. I have loved Bill James sabermetrics applied to baseball for a long, long time. I have loved baseball for over 40 years.

I just don't care much for baseball movies.

The Natural just wasn't very good. The comedies like Bull Durham and Major League don't even count. Parts of them were watchable, but they got the baseball wrong, and quite frankly were too crude for my tastes.

Field of Dreams was more a zen experience that a baseball movie. But at least they erred on the cool side of baseball.

The Casually Viewing Wife and I FINALLY had a Sunday afternoon open yesterday. We watched Moneyball.

I now have a favorite baseball movie. 8 or 9 scenes were so cool that it made me want to watch the movie again right away.

Bill James and his books have told me for years that players should always work the count and wait for walks. His books have told me that you never willingly give up outs as sacrifice bunts. His books tell me that most old-time philosophies about how to play the game are just simply wrong. The MATH of baseball plays the odds like a professional gambler plays poker in Vegas. In the long run, over a long season, the odds will always win out.

This movie showed why baseball is so stinking great. If you understand it, you can win. If you don't, you'll be a cellar-dweller even with a high-priced roster.

The best part? Even while doing everything right, you can lose to a good team in a short series. The team that destroyed Oakland's dream at the end of the movie. MY Twins. How could this not be my favorite baseball movie?