In a scene from “Moneyball,” Oakland A’s General Manager Billy Beane (Brad Pitt) sits at a table surrounded by a team of scouts. As they mull over how they are going to rebuild their team for the 2002 season, Beane
In a scene from “Moneyball,” Oakland A’s General Manager Billy Beane (Brad Pitt) sits at a table surrounded by a team of scouts. As they mull over how they are going to rebuild their team for the 2002 season, Beane interjects the mindless chatter and says, “There are rich teams and there are poor teams. Then there’s 50 feet of crap. And then there’s us.”
This is the heart of “Moneyball,” which is based on the best-selling book by Michael Lewis. Beane is tasked with building a World Series team with $40 million, one of the lowest budgets in Major League Baseball.
In the opening scene, the audience witnesses the A’s get knocked out of the American League Championship by the Yankees. Soon after, the team loses its three best players to free agency and exorbitant price tags.
With the bitter taste of losing stuck in his mouth, Beane meets economist and Yale graduate Peter Brand (Jonah Hill), who convinces Beane that they can build a playoff-worthy team at a bargain price.
Instead of following conventional wisdom and looking for a five-tool player (someone who hits, has power and speed, throws and fields), Brand comes with an algorithm of his own for winning.
He boils each player down to a set of statistics, paying attention how often they can get on base. In Brand’s eyes, baserunners score runs, and runs win games.
As Beane lets Brand loose on the Oakland A’s, they assemble a team of undervalued players. While they have a rough start to the season (they drop 11 games in a row), by the dog days of summer they put together an impressive 20-game winning streak, setting a new American League record.
In the end, “Moneyball” is a baseball movie that isn’t about baseball. While some criticize Beane for taking the romance out of the game, “Moneyball” offers an intelligent look at the institution of baseball.
The film isn’t characterized by miraculous wins or electrifying speeches. Instead, Director Bennet Miller focuses on the personal growth of Beane — an MLB player whose career went nowhere quickly.
Recovering from a failed marriage, Beane is driven to win and can’t bear to watch the A’s fall short of a World Series championship.
Pitt delivers a charismatic performance and gives Beane a bit of a swagger. The biggest surprise of the film was Hill, who ditched his stereotypical role as the goofy sidekick in favor of a deadpan economist. Pitt’s and Hill’s contrasting onscreen personalities make their dialogue fun to watch. Nothing is funnier than watching Hill slowly clench his fist as he negotiates a trade.
While the movie centers around the business of baseball, a subplot featuring Scott Hatteberg (Chris Patt) adds a personal touch to the film.
The Boston Red Sox catcher solemnly rings in the New Year mulling over an elbow injury that has potentially ended his baseball career. Beane gives him a second chance at the game and a spot at first base.
While the A’s 2002 season wasn’t exactly a Cinderella story — the team fell short of their World Series aspirations — “Moneyball” shows how Beane and Brand revolutionized the business of baseball.
