As we exit 2020, I wanted to reflect on one of my favorite movies, Money Ball, and the irony of that movie with the events of 2020. One of the key quotes kinda sums up 2020 for me “If you lose the last game of the season, nobody gives a shit. Try to win the last game of the season.”

This is a 2-3 min read, but I think it is worth it and we all know that you have nothing else going on! Watch for the “20” and “2020” references throughout. Happy New Year…and enjoy….

William Lamar Beane III is an American professional baseball player and current front office executive of the Oakland Athletics. He is the subject of Michael Lewis’s 2003 book on baseball economics, Moneyball, which was later made into a 2011 film.

Beane batted .500 during his sophomore and junior years of high school and batted .300 his senior season – that is a drop of .20 points. In the majors, he was a career .220 hitter.

In the 1980 MLB Draft, Beane was the 20th pick, taken by the Mets. Prior to 2015, the last time the Mets went to the World Series was 20 years ago – and lost to the Yankees.

In 2002, the Athletics became the first team in American League baseball history to win 20 consecutive games.

In the film Moneyball, Beane and assistant general manager Peter Brand build a team of undervalued talent by taking a sophisticated sabermetric approach. The key turning point of the movie and one of the best quotes comes at exactly the 2 hour (120 minute) mark, “Anyone not tearing down their team and using [the sabermetrics] model are dinosaurs.”

William Lamar Beane III has a total of 20 letters. Billy Beane + Peter Brand also have a total of 20 letters.

In the fall of 2002, Beane turned down a five-year, $12 million offer to become the general manager of the Boston Red Sox to remain in Oakland, with a 2½ percent equity stake in the team, worth roughly $8 million. That is a total compensation of $20m.

Here is to a better, brighter 2021! Be well and be safe.