Sebastian Cuervo’s Post

Here's some fun reading with a few statistics to get you going for the week. #Baseball #Analytics

“Most teams today have large pitching staffs because, tautologically, that is how the game is played. It is no longer questioned, but because most teams are risk averse, they do it largely because everybody else does.” My new baseball column at Kibitzing with Lincoln. Please subscribe. https://lnkd.in/eXuV_6V3

NFL is King: Why the NFL Continues to Dominate U.S. Viewership Check out my thoughts on results of the 2023 U.S. viewership and what it means for several professional sports such as MLS, NBA, NHL, F1, and more!

The Cam Booser story. Here is the sparknotes. Brief summary, the sports career of Cam Booser sports was riddled with adversity, injury after injury. He was able to get signed as a free agent with the Minnesota Twins in 2013. He never made it above high A. He then walked away from baseball for 2.5 days years. Then by coaching youth baseball he realized he could still hit 90 mph. He got in with a Indy ball team, the Chicago Dogs. After proving himself in Indy ball, the Boston Red Sox in 2023 signed him to a minor league deal. April 19th, he made his MLB debut at 31 closing out a Red Sox win. Two things had to happen for this feel good story to be all over the sports world. 1. Preparation 2. Opportunity Preparation + Opportunity = Success I am of course biased because the Red Sox organization raised me. I could never and still can’t hit a 98 mph fastball, but the Red Sox developed me for life. This story does not happen without an organization like the Red Sox. The Red Sox system does more than just field minor league teams to develop their high draft picks, they find players from places no one else would look. This is my point. In the business world, the same formula the Red Sox used to develop a pitcher can be used to develop “big league” talent for your organization. Find PREPARED talent, then develop and refine those talents. #baseball #sportsbusiness #talentdevelopment #buildingchampions https://lnkd.in/e-JW5i8H

Full trade details include: Texans Receive: WR Stefon Diggs 2025 5th Round Pick 2024 6th Round Pick (189, 200, or 204) Bills Receive: 2025 2nd Round Pick (Credit to Kevin Patra for the trade detail information) Are there any offenses in the league that are as good as the Texans are right now? Their LG and C positions are both young and have potential to develop into quality starters. Laremy Tunsil is one of the better LTs in the league. Even saying that feels like an understatement. Shaq Mason at RG will still be a good quality starter for the next 1-3 years. Other than question marks at RT, their offense is looking to be one of the best in the league. There is no limit to how many points this unfair great group of skill position players can put up with a fantastic young QB such as CJ Stroud. If he has enough time in the pocket, defenses are going to look silly trying to stop this team. Depending on what 4-5 other teams do in the latter half of free agency, trades that are made, and who is drafted to these elite/borderline elite teams, the Texans may be my Super Bowl favorites. Comment down below who the best offense is. Be sure to like the comments you agree with to see if there's a consensus, or if the NFL community is split.

If I were the #generalmanager for the #Newyorkgiants here’s what I would do 👇 - Trade Saquon Barkley for 2nd round draft pick - Trade DJ for second round Picks Build through the Draft. Grab a young healthy QB with great upside. Daboll is able to develop quarterbacks really nicely so utilize that. The receiving core is nice. Bolster the offensive line & strengthen our linebackers. Draft 2 rookie running backs focused on size and speed and run the Dual back Dallas system. Bring in a well balance Faster paced offensive game plan.

The Minnesota Timberwolves have the #1 ranked defense in the NBA this season. Here is an excerpt and corresponding video clip from my first article showing what the Wolves are doing that is leading to so much success. "The Timberwolves have made a clear defensive bet - - The Bet - - Our 2nd Big is a Massive Advantage vs. Your 4th Best Perimeter Player. A. They do NOT believe that you will bend your offense to heavily involve your 4th best perimeter player. B. IF, you do happen to put your 4th best perimeter player in more actions than normal, they do NOT believe that this player is going to make enough shots to beat them." (Clip -- Gobert daring Aaron Gordon to shoot. The Wolves are willing to live with “dare you” closeouts on the 4th best perimeter player and the corresponding results)

From 1920-1948, a parallel league of Black baseball players racked up its own set of history making statistics. A century later, the achievements of these 2300 athletes will be integrated into the Major League Baseball (MLB) lasting ledger. Unsurprisingly, we’ve seen the predictable questioning of whether or not the Negro League is, in fact, a professional league on par with MLB talent. We’ve witnessed the fury of some who questioned whether it was fair that Josh Gibson take first position over Ty Cobb with the greatest batting average of all time. But perhaps most importantly, we are hearing from the descendents of Negro Leaguers and from historians who offered a fresh perspective on what this inclusion means. In its most recent piece, The Washington Post cites historian Larry Lester, who says that the decision to integrate the statistics is a part of “‘social reparations’ to amend for decades of ‘apartheid baseball.’” While I was, of course, aware of the segregation in baseball, it wasn’t until my reading this article, that I fully processed the extent of those words. In fact, I had no idea that the official category used to describe the achievements of Negro Leaguers, was — until almost all of them died — labeled as “other.” The concept of othering is nothing new to Black people in America. But to read about it in this capacity is something else. With the reductiveness of one word, they were not only denied their experiences, but also their existence. It’s as if the world was saying an entire community of Black ball players could be lumped into the monolith of “other”, or that the accomplishments of these men didn’t warrant the humanity inherent in crediting them by name. And for me, this word and Larry’s blunt but accurate description is a sobering reminder of the cautionary tales from my own parents and grandparents. The piece also cites the lobbying of Sean Gibson, Josh Gibson’s great grandson and founder of the Negro Leagues Family Alliance, who has worked tirelessly to secure the integration and to make sure his great grandfather’s name will be on the MLB’s MVP award. In Sean’s efforts, he is rejecting the monolith once hoisted upon the Negro Leaguers. Instead, he is boldly reimagining a future where these titans of baseball individually and collectively serve as symbols of renewed hope, and of the excellence that is only ignited when we even the playing field. I commend Major League Baseball for its long overdue, but welcome decision to integrate its database and at long last, include the records of the Negro League players who forever changed the game. And thank you to historians like Lester, for holding our organizations accountable, and to all the Negro League descendents ensuring their families’ stats — and stories — serve as the paradigm shift we endeavor to have in sports everywhere. #leveltheplayingfield #appropriateattribution #MLBMakeover

American Baseball's Opening Day! No other sport globally has magnified the absolute obsession with statistics, nor has so many accepted fallacies or subjective arguments built upon "statistical oddity" (the random half-cousin of both the outlier and anomaly). Below are a few of my favorites... 👇 ⚾ "...even if you fail 70% of the time, you'll still be in the Hall of Fame!" ⚾ Hitting for "the Cycle" (in which one player records a single, double, triple, and homerun all in one game. ⚾ All-Star appearances are used as the basis of Hall of Fame criteria and contract negotiations, yet, account for less than 60% of a full season. ⚾ Nolan Ryan had 7 no-hitters but never won the Cy Young Award (top pitcher annually in both American/National Leagues) ⚾ "...90% of the game is half-mental"; well that isn't so much a 'stat' as a Yogi-ism from Professor Berra. Play ball!!! (...and don't buy into the notion of "pitch counts" or "load management"; it's all just financial engineering for the very wealthy to mitigate risk!)

The Importance of Offensive Linemen for a Successful Football Team Discover why offensive linemen are crucial for offensive success in football. Learn from the experiences of Carter Smith, a former NFL player, who emphasizes the significance of having a strong offensive line. #OffensiveLineImportance #FootballSuccess #NFLTips #CarterSmithExperience #BuildingStrongOffense #TeamworkMatters #FootballStrategy #OffensiveLineDominance #FootballSkills #SportsInsights