Oakland Athletics Over the Past Decade, Professional Baseball Has Evolved into an into an Increasingly

question 34

Multiple Choice

Oakland Athletics
Over the past decade, professional baseball has evolved into an increasingly dysfunctional, sharply divided game of big-time haves and small-time have-nots. A few big market teams like the New York Yankees and the Los Angeles Dodgers leverage huge television contracts to acquire top talent at top salaries. Clubs in smaller cities with meager budgets make do with what's left. This trend has not proven true for the Oakland Athletics. From 2000 to
2006, the A's finished first in their division 5 times and second 2 times, all the while spending about one­third of the money as the Yankees on player payroll. The team's success as a small­market team is credited to its general manager Billy Beane. Billy Beane is a man who knows how to do more with less. He relentlessly exploits market mismatches by mining data his rivals ignore and by scooping up assets that others have undervalued, an approach made famous in Michael Lewis' Moneyball. He realizes that every player must be evaluated according to his long- term economic impact on the team. People who work with Beane describe him as "monomaniacal, ardent, and controlling."
-Refer to Oakland Athletics. One of the reasons for Beane's success is his ability to let employees know precisely what is expected of them, give specific guidelines for playing baseball (e.g., All pitchers are instructed to throw strikes on the first pitch and to throw as few pitches as possible during each inning.) , and make sure players follow these standards of performance. Beane is a(n) ______ leader.

• A) directive
• B) participative
• C) supportive
• D) autonomous
• E) proactive

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Definitions:

Experiment

A scientific procedure undertaken to make a discovery, test a hypothesis, or demonstrate a known fact.

High School Students

Individuals who are attending high school, typically in the age range of 14 to 18 years, participating in secondary education.

Depression

Feelings of sadness and dejection, often accompanied by physiological change, such as a decreased functional activity.

Injury Prevention

Strategies and methods implemented to avoid or reduce the risk of bodily harm.