Wednesday, June 1, 2005

The Relationship Between Age and Performance Among Baseball General Managers

We often discuss age-related issues on Sports Law Blog. Namely, we debate whether age floors are both desirable and legal for the NBA and NFL Drafts. As you probably know, Greg and I disagree on this topic, and if you are interested in my published analysis, please take a look at my law review article "Illegal Defense: The Irrational Economics of Banning High School Players from the NBA Draft, 3 Virginia Sports and Entertainment Law Journal 113 (2004)."

But what about age and performance as a general manager -- does experience and seasoning matter? David Gassko of the Hardball Times just released an interesting study on the performance of general managers in baseball. Using an assortment of criteria, including available resources, difference in record before and after the August 1 trading deadline, and home/away splits (which may reveal how effective the general manager is at assembling players for his team's ballpark), Gassko compiles a ranking.

Who is the best general manger in baseball over the last two years according to Gassko? Why, it's none other than 31-year old Theo Epstein of the Boston Red Sox -- the youngest general manager in baseball. Epstein became the G.M. of the Red Sox at age 29, and since that time, has done something that no other Red Sox G.M. since 1918 could do: win a World Series (with some help from inherited players that were acquired by his predecessor, Dan Duquette).

Obviously, the fact that Epstein is so young does not prove that younger general managers are better. But it does suggest that one need not be old in order to excel as a general manager in professional sports -- and as I contend, the same can be said of players in professional sports, too.

0 comments:

Post a Comment