Skip to main content
PBS logo
 
 

Book Reviews of Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game

Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game
Moneyball The Art of Winning an Unfair Game
Author: Michael Lewis
ISBN-13: 9780393338393
ISBN-10: 0393338398
Publication Date: 8/22/2011
Pages: 336
Edition: Movie Tie-in Edition
Rating:
  • Currently 3.9/5 Stars.
 17

3.9 stars, based on 17 ratings
Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
Book Type: Paperback
Reviews: Amazon | Write a Review

15 Book Reviews submitted by our Members...sorted by voted most helpful

reviewed Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game on
Helpful Score: 2
Recently entered the financial services field and this was recommended reading. Good real world example where knowledge is significant factor in success (with a special nod to mathematics and statistics). For aspiring athletes, lots of focus on players that have profound positive impact yet would have traditionally been overlooked for the major leagues. Interesting read.
reviewed Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game on + 39 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 2
very interesting insight in to a new line of thinking about baseball player evaluation
reviewed Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game on + 3 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
Lewis' ability to weave a story around how people value assets (baseball players, in this case) is fascinating and educational. I highly recommend this.
reviewed Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game on
Helpful Score: 1
I did like this, after seeing the movie, which I though brushed over some of the statistics and thoughts behind this change in baseball, I had to read the book. I found it to be interesting and an enjoyable read, though still did not explain as much as I wanted behind the change pro sports. The analytics that have overtaken all sports.
dhooton avatar reviewed Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game on
Helpful Score: 1
This was a really interesting look into the application of economic techniques to running a baseball team. In order to compete against teams with much more money, Billy Beane, the manager of the small market Oakland A's, began to look at aspects of the game which were undervalued by the majority of MLB.
The ideas in this book have led to a major revolution in how baseball teams are run and is a must read for anyone who wants to understand the inner workings of Major League baseball teams.
reviewed Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game on
Helpful Score: 1
Excellent book. Fast paced and factual.
buzzby avatar reviewed Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game on + 6062 more book reviews
Well written book, shows the complexity of Billy Beane and others. I haven't seen the movie, and I suspect I won't because the moviewriters probably made the story saccharine. I'm one that believes that Billy Beane is helping ruin the game.
reviewed Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game on + 10 more book reviews
What a brilliant book! It explains everything you need to know about the money side of baseball: behind the scene.
A must-read not only for baseball fans but for everyone else as well.
You don't even need to know the rules to understand it, and I promise you'll enjoy every moment of it.
reviewed Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game on + 1775 more book reviews
I had never seen this noteworthy book until last week when I ran across a copy on the 'free' book truck at the branch library. As I took it to the shelf of the old soldiers' home I read Chapter 9 The Trading Deck. It includes the Five 'Simple Rules' for success in this business, one being "knowing what every player is worth to you" in dollars.
The author was moved to invest his time in writing this book because he observed "some baseball executives seems to be much better at getting wins out of dollars" spent.
This edition has an afterword, i.e. how the 2003 edition was misconstrued, that makes it better than the first for readers, in my opinion.
goodnightnobody avatar reviewed Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game on + 17 more book reviews
Phenomenal. I can't believe it took me this long to get around to reading it. If you're a true baseball fan, you simply must read this book.
reviewed Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game on + 2 more book reviews
If you have any interest in baseball, this is a must read! My only criticism is that it didn't get into too much detail on any of the new "advanced" statistics. Hope the upcoming movie can live up to the book it is based on.
reviewed Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game on + 18 more book reviews
great baseball book
reviewed Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game on
From the back:
Moneyball is a quest for the secret of success in baseball. In a narrative full of fabulous characters and brilliant excursions into the unexpected, Michael Lewis follows the low-budget Oakland A's, visionary general manager Billy Beane, and the strange brotherhood of amateur baseball theorists. They are all in search of the new baseball knowledge - insights that will give the little guy hwo is willing to discard old wisdom the edge over big money.
northee avatar reviewed Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game on + 13 more book reviews
Moneyball has been out for a while but was fascinating to read how technology put a poorly funded team in the thick of competition. Traditional baseball believed in fit players that "look" like pros, but good stats proved that others could be better and were under priced. Using stats, there are a lot of traditional baseball practices that seem wrong, like stealing bases, bunting, and paying for a closer.

The reasons for questioning traditional baseball wisdom is much better explained in the book than in the movie. If you follow baseball, the book is a great read.
nccorthu avatar reviewed Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game on + 569 more book reviews
Interesting book in someways. Go through the wheeling and dealing in the Baseball " industry". For a baseball fan like me it takes some of the fun out of it. Same as the stack market.