Toronto Mike

Moneyball is Just a Movie, Right?

movies

I actually wrote this entry on Google+ first... then realized nobody will read it there.  So here's a modified version for the 12 of you checking in on a Saturday morning.

I saw Moneyball last night, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.  It's great fun for those of us who like inside baseball, but it also works for the non-baseball enthusiast.  Brad Pitt as Billy Beane was a great idea.

Because this is the not-so-distant past, and based on real events in a sport I follow closely, I kept comparing the data in my memory bank with what I saw on the screen.  It was close, but Moneyball seemed to suffer from selective memory syndrome and cherry picked the data to fit the mold.

I remember that 2002 Athletics team. Primarily, I remember their first three starters and an MVP shortstop. The movie barely mentions those four:

  • Barry Zito
  • Tim Hudson
  • Mark Mulder
  • Miguel Tejada

Those were the big 4, am I right? Instead the movie primarily focuses on:

  • Scott Hatteberg
  • David Justice
  • Chad Bradford

Still a great movie, but very misleading. No mention of Hatteberg playing DH in the beginning, there's a scene where they decide to get Jeremy Giambi after the 2001 season, Hollywood stuff like that.

Moneyball-Poster

But see it anyway. Great flick.

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