Major League Baseball Teams Research Articles

Addressing endogeneity in marginal revenue product estimates of shirking in Major League Baseball

PurposeWhile much of the literature testing for shirking by professional athletes have used performance metrics, some works have quantified shirking in dollar terms by comparing salary to estimated marginal revenue product (MRP). However, Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) approaches to measuring shirking by comparing salary to MRP have an endogeneity problem, as salary and contract length are determined simultaneously. We test for shirking in Major League Baseball (MLB) using an MRP approach, addressing this potential endogeneity.Design/methodology/approachThis paper uses instrumental variables regression to address potential endogeneity using MLB season-level player and team data from 2010 to 2017.FindingsUsing OLS regression, the impact of an additional year of guaranteed contract on shirking is estimated at approximately $1m in 2010 US dollars, and the impact of having a long-term contract is estimated at $5m, estimates comparable to those in the literature. Using instrumental variables regression, these impacts increase to $1.6m and over $9m in 2010 dollars.Practical implicationsGiven large, causal shirking estimates, profit maximizing sports organizations should take caution when negotiating long-term contracts. These findings also have important implications for other labor market settings where workers feel job security.Originality/valueTo our knowledge, this is the first work testing for shirking in sports using an MRP approach which uses instrumental variables regression to address potential endogeneity.

Marion Jackson’s Conflicted Sacrifice: The Atlanta Daily World’s Black Southern Sportswriter on the Tension between Integration and HBCU Sport

From 1947 to 1973, a Black Southern sportswriter named Marion Jackson grappled with the role of all-Black sporting organizations during the age of desegregation. As sports editor for the Atlanta Daily World, the United States’ largest Black daily newspaper, Jackson covered various parallel institutions that provided sporting opportunities for Black athletes, such as football at Historically Black Colleges and Universities and the Negro Baseball Leagues. Although Jackson initially ignored the potential for desegregation to undermine these institutions, by the 1960s he consistently argued that the benefits of integration would outweigh the loss of all-Black sport. Yet despite this decades-long struggle, Jackson and other Southern Black sportswriters remain understudied. Scholarship on the Black press has largely ignored this Southern contingent by focusing instead on the desegregation of major league baseball teams in the Northeast. Although these Northern sportswriters grappled with similar tensions as they debated the decline of the Negro Leagues, Southern journalists lived and wrote in the heart of Jim Crow segregation. For decades they covered all-Black sporting institutions and mourned their loss after desegregation. Marion Jackson, and his willingness to sacrifice all-Black sport for integration, provides a valuable starting point for the study of these significant journalists.

If a Picture is Worth 1000 Words, How Much is a Video Worth: The Influence of Ad Format on Ticket Purchasers’ Ad Clicks

As social media advertising spending continues to rise, marketers’ understanding of how to enhance the effectiveness of these ads must also continue to expand. Utilizing an online experiment and a field study, we test the effect of different formats of Facebook ads (image vs. video) on sports advertising effectiveness (e.g. clicks to purchase tickets). Specifically, this research compares the effect of image ads, video ads, and carousel ads for a Major League Baseball team on page engagement and clicks to purchase game tickets. Vividness and fit theory are both examined as explanations. Results showed that the image ads performed the best in terms of clicks for purchase because of perceived vividness. Interestingly, the video ads only worked best for generating engagement for the social media page itself. Implications for marketing practice and research are provided.

Correlation of Joint Space Widening on Valgus Stress Magnetic Resonance Imaging With Level of Play and Innings Pitched in Professional Pitchers.

Previous studies have described various techniques and confirmed the clinical utility of valgus stress radiography and stress ultrasound in overhead athletes. The addition of valgus stress and a high-resolution anatomic assessment of the elbow with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in the active throwing position (flexed elbow valgus external rotation [FEVER] view) can add valuable diagnostic or prognostic information in throwing athletes. The purpose of this study was to evaluate findings on MRI and subsequent performance in professional throwing athletes. It was hypothesized that joint space widening in the FEVER view would be predictive of performance and the risk of subsequent injuries. Cross-sectional study; Level of evidence, 3. All pitchers on 2 Major League Baseball teams who consented to participate during their preseason screening in 2019 and 2020 underwent standard and FEVER MRI, and performance data from the following season were recorded, including injuries, mean throwing velocity, number of innings pitched, strikeout percentage, walk percentage, weighted on-base average, and level of play reached (not signed, minor league, or major league). Categorical variables were compared using the Fisher exact test or chi-square test, and continuous variables were compared using the Kruskal-Wallis test, as appropriate. Ordered logistic regression was used to determine the independent factors predicting performance. A total of 91 players underwent preseason imaging, and all players had subsequent performance data available. Multivariate analysis revealed that when controlling for age, mean velocity, history of injuries, presence of symptoms, and history of ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction, increased absolute joint space widening was predictive of a lower level of play (β = -0.63; P = .042). Univariate analysis demonstrated a significant correlation between relative joint space widening and level of play reached (β = -0.54; P = .034). Relative joint space widening remained a significant predictor of level of play (β = -0.87; P = .012) on multivariate analysis. Multivariate analysis also showed that both absolute joint space widening (β = -13.50; P = .012) and relative joint space widening (β = -13.60; P = .026) were predictive of the number of innings pitched in the subsequent season. The present study demonstrates that findings on MRI with valgus stress correlated with the level of play reached and number of innings pitched in professional throwing athletes.

The impact of national culture, altruism, and risk preference on salaries: The case of the Major League Baseball.

Based on the longitudinal data of 30 Major League Baseball (MLB) teams over seasons from 2017 to 2020, we used random effect (RE) models to conduct regression analyses on the detailed data of pitchers and fielders. Cultural distance (CD) was measured in terms of Hofstede's cultural indicators and Global Preference Survey (GPS) data. The results showed that salary premiums for foreign MLB players existed and CD was significantly positively correlated with salaries. Further, the risk preference (/altruism) difference between foreign pitchers and American pitchers was significantly positively (/negatively) correlated with the salaries of foreign pitchers. Salary estimation data showed that the salary premium was nearly 20% for players from South Korea and Panama, the lowest (only 0.11%) for players from Australia, and only 6.13% for players from Dominican Republic (accounting for the largest proportion of foreign MLB players), indicating that the MLB's foreign player recruitment policy is correct.

Anticipating the honeymoon: Event study estimation of new stadium effects in Major League Baseball using the imputation method

AbstractThis paper estimates the impact of new stadiums on attendance and revenues of Major League Baseball teams between 1970 and 2019. Recent studies reveal that two‐way fixed effects (TWFE) models may produce biased estimates, proposing an “imputation” method instead. This paper uses the imputation method to generate a counterfactual estimate, based on untreated observations: the average treatment effect on the treated (ATT) equals the difference between actual and counterfactual estimates. The analysis shows that there were significant anticipation effects associated with new stadiums, up to three seasons before opening. It suggests previous estimates may significantly understate new stadium revenue gains.

“Star Maker”: George Powles, McClymonds High School, and the Youth of West Oakland

This article assesses the life and career of George Powles, a legendary White youth sport and high school coach from Oakland, California. Born in 1910, Powles guided local American Legion, Babe Ruth, and Connie Mack baseball teams to various state, regional, and national titles and coached a plethora of outstanding athletes first at McClymonds High School, a predominantly Black institution in West Oakland and then later at Skyline High School, a predominantly White institution at the crest of the Oakland foothills, who would go onto legendary careers in professional sport. Among those he coached were iconic African American athletes who realized lasting fame for both their accomplishments on the playing field and involvement in the larger civil rights movement. Included among these athletes was Bill Russell, the Hall of Fame basketball player who led the University of San Francisco to successive National Collegiate Athletic Association national titles and the Boston Celtics to multiple National Basketball Association championships; Frank Robinson, the Hall of Fame baseball player and first African American to manage a Major League baseball team; Vada Pinson, the outstanding outfielder who played multiple years of Major League baseball; and Curt Flood, the gold-glove winning outfielder who famously challenged baseball’s reserve clause. In the end, Powles was a coach who served as an important mentor of Black athletes and believed strongly in sports power to bridge racial differences and instill important values and develop character among youth from all walks of life and cultural and socio-economic backgrounds.

How Major League Baseball Parks Reveal the White Middle-Class's Views on Cities

Abstract Since the 1950s, municipalities across the country have built stadiums to attract or retain Major League Baseball (MLB) teams. Because those teams were city-based and team owners have consistently aimed to attract middle- and upper-class white fans to their ballparks, changes in ballparks highlight how the white middle- and upper-classes thought about cities. When ballparks were popular, they provided something middle- and upper-class white fans were looking for; when they were not, something was missing. Using Houston's Astrodome, Baltimore's Camden Yards, and suburban Atlanta's Truist Park, this article traces a cyclical process in the locations of MLB ballparks and how those locations made most white fans feel safe. It shows that cities repelled middle- and upper-class whites in the 1960s and 1970s, that predictable facsimiles of urban life drew them in the 1990s, and that they again found cities unappealing in the 2010s.

Data Journey: Digitalization Projects Deliver Returns for Operators

Data are the backbone of what Klaus Schwab—the founder and executive chairman of the World Economic Forum—proclaimed to be the Fourth Industrial Revolution. This 21st‑century revolution is one of connectivity, advanced analytics, automation, and manufacturing technology. While the road to this high‑tech revolution started long ago with the use of water and steam to power mechanized production, it was electricity’s ability to power mass production that delivered us from the first to the second industrial revolution. Electronics and information systems necessary to automate production ushered in the third revolution. The data and our abilities to decipher and extract value from these seemingly random and disparate patterns of numbers and letters to create actionable intelligence is rapidly transforming the way business is conducted. Data are everywhere and in everything. But on the grand scale of time, the collection, analysis, and application of digital data is relatively young. Billy Bean and the Major League Baseball team Oakland Athletics, for example, demonstrated the importance of data‑driven decision making in the early 2000s by leveraging the power of data analytics to go from last place contender to chasing the championship in what has become known as Moneyball. Some 20 years later, the power of data and digital continues to evolve, with the bright lights of Qatar’s Lusail Stadium, for example, shining down last month on the final football match of the FIFA World Cup; every movement made by Al Rihla was captured, stored, and analyzed. But Al Rihla was not a player; it was the football created by Adidas and used in each of the more than 60 matches held throughout the tournament with an internal sensor for real‑time ball tracking capabilities. High‑speed cameras and antennas surrounding the football pitch provided additional support, feeding data into FIFA’s enhanced football intelligence service. The data collected during the matches were analyzed on a variety of metrics like possession time, line breaks, pressure on the ball, and forced turnovers, and then shared with teams with the goal of improving the game and its players. Winning the “beautiful game” is not as simple as it looks, as there’s more to kicking the ball into the opposing team’s net to score a goal as many times as possible in 90 minutes. These data offer an inside look into the processes of success or failure. Simple, too, is the production of oil and gas when explained on paper: drill a hole into the ground, route what flows to the surface into a pipeline, and then get paid for the effort invested in delivering that resource to the market when the price is right. It is more complicated than that, and data are playing an important role in delivering production increases and more. Data powered the shale gale that swept across the US oil and gas industry. David Millwee, vice president of drilling performance for Patterson‑UTI Drilling, credits data for helping to deliver the yearly increases in the lateral footage drilled.

Air Quality Is Predictive of Mistakes in Professional Baseball and American Football.

Air quality is a growing environmental concern that has implications for human physical and mental health. While air pollution has been linked to cognitive disease progression and declines in overall health, the impacts of air quality on athletic performance have not been extensively investigated. Much of the previous research focused on endurance sports indicates that air quality negatively impacts athletic performance; however, the effects of air quality on non-endurance elite team performance remains largely unknown. The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of air quality on errors committed by Major League Baseball (MLB) teams, interceptions thrown by quarterbacks in the National Football League (NFL), and overall quarterback performance in the NFL. Linear regression analysis was used to determine the impact of the median air quality index (AQI) of counties with MLB and NFL teams on errors, interceptions, and overall quarterback performance of players on those MLB and NFL teams. AQI was a significant positive predictor of errors and interceptions, indicating increased errors and interceptions with decreased air quality. Similarly, quarterback performance was significantly reduced for quarterbacks from teams in counties with worse air quality. These findings suggest that air quality has a significant impact on performance in the MLB and NFL, indicating impairments in physical and cognitive performance in professional athletes when competing in areas with poorer air quality. Hence, it is likely that air quality impacts athletic performance in numerous sports that have not yet been investigated.

Training Background and Characteristics of NFL, MLB, and NBA Team Physicians.

An analysis of the demographics and training of head team physicians (HTPs) in professional sports would be valuable for evaluating training programs and as a resource for aspirant HTPs. To outline common characteristics among professional sport HTPs. Cross-sectional study. In June 2021, publicly available directories and news articles were used to identify the head orthopaedic HTPs and primary care HTPs for every team in Major League Baseball (MLB), the National Basketball Association (NBA), and the National Football League (NFL). Data regarding HTP characteristics were collected via internet-based sources. Age, sex, years from fellowship completion to current team role, and years in current team role were compared across sports with chi-square analyses and analyses of variance; comparisons between orthopaedic and primary care HTPs were performed with Fisher exact tests and Student t tests. The most frequently attended residency and fellowship training programs were also calculated. The productivity of fellowship programs was calculated as the number of current HTPs from that institution divided by the number of fellowship positions currently offered. We identified 181 HTPs: 171 (94%) men and 10 (6%) women. The mean age was 55.4 years (range, 33-79 years); the mean time from fellowship training completion to first year in current team role was 9.8 years (range, 0-29 years); and the mean time spent in current team role was 14.1 years (range, 0-39 years). There were 94 orthopaedic HTPs and 87 primary care HTPs. The rate of fellowship training was significantly higher in orthopaedic HTPs (95%) than in primary care HTPs (67%; P < .001). The fellowship programs that produced the largest number of current HTPs were the Hospital for Special Surgery (n = 16; productivity = 2.3), the American Sports Medicine Institute (11; 1.8), and the Kerlan-Jobe Orthopaedic Clinic (11; 1.2). The years from fellowship to HTP varied significantly by sport: 7.2 for MLB, 10.0 for the NFL, and 11.7 for the NBA (P = .048). Almost all orthopaedic HTPs were fellowship trained, as compared with two-thirds of primary care HTPs. Of the 94 orthopaedic HTPs, 62% were trained at 6 specific fellowship programs. Men accounted for a majority of HTPs.

Multimodal Machine Learning for Major League Baseball Playoff Prediction

The introduction on sabermetrics has changed the way Major League Baseball (MLB) teams valued their players. Since then, new baseball stats have been made to make various predictions for MLB teams. With the immense amount of data on baseball players, teams, and scores. Using various Supervised machine learning algorithms, we plan to see how well we can accurately predict which teams will make it to the playoff for year 2019. For this research, we have gathered data from the last 20 years. The features that we will utilize for our machine learning algorithm includes Runs, Batting Average, Homeruns, Strikeouts, Innings Pitched, Earned Runs, and Earned Runs average. We decided to use a Logistic Regression model and a Support Vector Classifier (SVC) as the two machine learning algorithms for our features. After running our tests, our models showed that our trained algorithms were only able to predict accurately 77% of the teams correctly. Of those 77% accurately predicted, 59% was recalled correctly. This led to our overall projected model being only 60% accurate. As the projected model was only able to correctly predict 6 out of 10 teams that made the 2019 playoffs. We believed that we could improve upon our findings by using other machine learning algorithms or including more features that thus increase the overall accuracy of our training model.

What influences season ticket holders’ satisfaction and renewal intention? the role of season ticket service quality

ABSTRACT Purpose: The current study investigated the influence of service quality factors on season ticket holder (STH) satisfaction and intention to renew their season tickets. The current study was particularly interested in exploring the unique contribution of the season ticket-specific service quality on STHs’ satisfaction and retention in the context of professional sports. Design/Method: Data were collected from 646 STHs from a Major League Baseball (MLB) team using an online survey. The findings from the hierarchical multiple regression models confirm the influence of the STHs’ team identification, three gameday service quality dimensions (game, facility, and interaction qualities factor), and the season ticket service quality (STSQ) on their level of satisfaction and intention to renew their season tickets. Findings: Hierarchical regression analyses indicated that all groups of predictors contribute to predicting STH satisfaction and intention to renew, together explaining 42.4% and 34.7% of the variances in satisfaction and renewal intention, respectively. Results showed the importance of the season ticket service quality in satisfying and retaining STHs, even after controlling their team identification and gameday service quality. Originality/Value: The findings of this study provide helpful tips for sport managers to ensure important service qualities and train their service employees accordingly.

Thoracic Outlet Syndrome in Major League Baseball Pitchers: Return to Sport and Performance Metrics After Rib Resection.

Background:Thoracic outlet syndrome (TOS) is a rare injury that affects Major League Baseball (MLB) pitchers and is often corrected with surgical resection of the first rib. There are limited return-to-play (RTP) data for this surgery in MLB pitchers.Hypothesis:It was hypothesized that MLB pitchers who undergo first rib resection for TOS will show (1) a high rate of RTP, (2) no difference in postoperative career length compared with controls, (3) no difference in pre- and postoperative performance, and (4) no difference in postoperative performance compared with controls.Study Design:Cohort study; Level of evidence, 3.Methods:This retrospective cohort study evaluated MLB pitchers with neurogenic or vascular TOS who underwent rib resection surgery between January 1, 2001, and December 31, 2019. Players were identified through public injury reports from press releases, the MLB website, MLB team injury reports, and blogs. A demographics- and performance-matched control group was generated for comparison. Each player in the control group was given an index year that corresponded to the surgery year of the case group. Performance data included innings pitched (IP), games played (GP), earned run average (ERA), complete GP, shutouts, saves, hits, runs, home runs (HR), walks, strikeouts (K), walks plus hits per IP (WHIP), and earned runs (ER).Results:We identified 26 MLB pitchers who underwent rib resection for neurogenic or vascular TOS; 21 players (81%) had a successful RTP. Pitchers were 30 ± 3.6 years old at the time of surgery and had played 6.2 ± 3.5 seasons before undergoing surgery. Average postoperative career length was 3.1 ± 2.0 seasons, with an average time from surgery to RTP being 10 ± 4.7 months. Pitchers who RTP showed no significant differences in performance metrics compared with controls. Players pitch 0.94 (P < .05) more IP/GP in the season directly following RTP compared with the season before surgical intervention.Conclusion:MLB pitchers undergoing rib resection for TOS demonstrated (1) high RTP rates following rib resection, (2) no difference in postoperative career length compared with controls, (3) improvement in postoperative performance, and (4) no difference in postoperative performance compared with controls.

Major League Draft WARs: An Analysis of Wins Above Replacement in Player Selection

Major League Baseball (MLB) teams have 20 rounds to select players with projectable ability to compete at the MLB level. In this exploratory study, players were evaluated for differences in Wins Above Replacement (WAR) related to draft round, first round pick, educational designation, and by team. It was hypothesized WAR differences exist by round, pick number, educational designation and by team. From 2005–2015, 1,623 players were examined to determine population differences owed to draft selection. First round draftees had greater average career WAR compared to Rounds 2 to 20. Collectively, the first five picks had greater WAR versus picks grouped 16 through 30. High school (HS) draft picks were selected in earlier rounds versus collegiate athletes and HS hitters displayed more WAR in first round versus 4-year college pitchers. WAR outcomes in the first 15 picks offer more success with greater performance of HS hitters versus 4-year college pitchers. These trends may influence the current landscape of scouting and draft selection in the new draft format that has reduced player selection from 40 to 20 rounds.

Where to “Play Ball!”? A Case of a Minor League Baseball Team’s Future

After 30 years as a minor league baseball team affiliated with various Major League Baseball (MLB) teams, the Campton Hills Crushers were left without a league to play in when MLB removed the affiliations of 42 former minor league farm teams in the winter of 2020-21. Team management believed that they had four options for playing baseball in the 2021 season, including joining a well-established independent professional minor league, joining a well-established amateur summer collegiate league, starting their own in-house independent professional minor league with all teams playing out of Crusher Stadium, or starting their own in-house amateur summer collegiate league with all teams playing out of Crusher Stadium. Participants are asked to recommend one of the four scenarios to team management, based on utilizing a decision-making model that incorporates a pro/con analysis.

Understanding Korean Immigrants and Major League Baseball Fandom

Currently, there are more than 40 million immigrants in the United States, and immigrant sports consumers have been considered a significant niche market in the sport industry. In particular, Major League Baseball (MLB) teams have realized that Korean immigrants, along with Japanese immigrants, are among the most attractive Asian immigrant MLB markets in the U.S., because of their large populations in the U.S. and the popularity of baseball in their native countries (Kim &amp; Jeon, 2008). However, there has been limited research regarding Asian immigrants’ team identification with MLB teams. The theoretical framework of this study is drawn from acculturation theory (Berry, 1997) and social identity theory (Tajfel, 1982). Berry defines acculturation as “the general processes and outcomes (both cultural and psychological) of intercultural contact” (Berry, p. 8). Acculturation theory has been widely used to explain the adaptation patterns of immigrants to a new society. This theory further explains not only how immigrants evolve in new cultural contexts resulting from migration, but also how they retain their original cultural contexts and beliefs while in their new society (Berry, 1997). According to Berry (1980), there are four types of acculturation strategies: integration, assimilation, separation, and marginalization. These four acculturation strategies differ according to immigrants’ efforts to adapt to new cultural contexts as well as the extent of their relationships with their new as well as with their old societies. Social identity theory (Tajfel, 1982) is a useful theoretical framework for team identification. Social identity is defined as “the part of the individual’s self-concept which derives from their knowledge of their membership in a social group together with the value and emotional significance attached to that membership (p.2)”. Team identification research has been developed based on social identity theory and identity theory (Kwon, Trail, &amp; James, 2007). Team identification is an extension of self-identity that results from a sports fan’s psychological connection to a team (Fink, Trail, &amp; Anderson, 2002). The purpose of this study is to understand the Major League Baseball fandom of Korean immigrants by exploring factors associated with recent Korean immigrants’ team identification with MLB teams in the U.S.

Epidemiology of Spine-Related Neurologic Injuries in Professional Baseball Players.

A retrospective case series study. To analyze the epidemiology of diagnoses of degenerative cervical and lumbar spinal conditions among Major League Baseball (MLB) and Minor League Baseball (MiLB) players. Repetitive high-energy forces in professional baseball players may predispose them to degenerative cervical and lumbar spinal conditions. There is a lack of data concerning the epidemiology of these injuries in professional baseball. Deidentified data on spine injuries were collected from all MLB and MiLB teams from 2011 to 2016 from the MLB-commissioned Health and Injury Tracking System database. Rates of diagnoses of common degenerative spinal conditions as well as their impact on days missed due to injury, necessitation of surgery, and player participation and career-ending status were assessed. Injury rates were reported as injuries per 1000 athlete-exposures in concordance with prior studies. Over 2011 to 2016, 4246 days of play were missed due to 172 spine-related injuries. 73.3% were related to the lumbar spine and 26.7% to the cervical spine. There were similar rates of surgery required for these injuries (18.3% of lumbar injuries vs. 13.0% of cervical injuries, P = 0.2164). Mean age of players with cervical injuries was higher compared with the lumbar group (27.5 vs. 25.4, P = 0.0119). Average number of days missed due to lumbar injuries was significantly higher than those due to cervical injuries (34.1 vs. 21.6 d, P = 0.0468). Spine injury rates for pitchers were significantly higher than those of other position players (0.086 per 1000 athlete-exposures vs. 0.037, P < 0.0001). Neurologic diagnoses relating to the cervical and lumbar spine lead to substantial disability among MLB and MiLB players as well as days missed from play. Pitchers have over double the rates of injury compared with other position players. Lumbar conditions were associated with significantly higher numbers of days missed from play.Level of Evidence: 4.

America’s major league soccer: artificial intelligence and the quest to become a world class league

America’s major league soccer: artificial intelligence and the quest to become a world class league

Batting Average and Beyond: The Framing of Statistics Within Regional Major League Baseball Broadcasts

This study analyzed the frequency with which the regional broadcasts of the 30 Major League Baseball (MLB) teams featured traditional and modern/advanced statistics. To understand these portrayals, 60 games, two from each MLB team, were coded. The coded content consisted of any on-screen graphic featuring one or multiple baseball statistics, as well as any comment from the broadcasters about statistics. The results indicated a clear spectrum of teams, with some featuring a high level of advanced metrics in their graphics and commentary, while some were substantially more traditional. Through the lens of framing, potential ramifications for statistical knowledge within different fan bases were discussed.