{"id":5679,"date":"2017-05-13T11:57:11","date_gmt":"2017-05-13T15:57:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/meadowparty.com\/blog\/?p=5679"},"modified":"2017-05-13T12:42:44","modified_gmt":"2017-05-13T16:42:44","slug":"stick-to-baseball-51317","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/meadowparty.com\/blog\/2017\/05\/13\/stick-to-baseball-51317\/","title":{"rendered":"Stick to baseball, 5\/13\/17."},"content":{"rendered":"<p>My one Insider post this week was <a href=\"http:\/\/klaw.me\/2pAQFja\" target=\"_blank\">my first &#8216;mock&#8217; draft for 2017<\/a>, although it&#8217;s really too early for that sort of exercise. And I held a <a href=\"http:\/\/klaw.me\/2r3wYkS\" target=\"_blank\">Klawchat<\/a> on Thursday.<\/p>\n<p><em>Smart Baseball<\/em> is out now in the U.S. and Canada; you can <a href=\"http:\/\/klaw.me\/2foenM8\" target=\"_blank\">order it here<\/a> or get it at any local bookstore. We are working on getting an ebook version out in some international markets, but I can&#8217;t promise anything there yet.<\/p>\n<p>I have two signings\/talks this week, for which I&#8217;m very excited (and a little anxious, to be honest). The first is in Decatur, Georgia (Atlanta area), at <a href=\"http:\/\/www.georgiacenterforthebook.org\/Events\/show.php?id=953\" target=\"_blank\">the Georgia Center for the Book on Tuesday at 7 pm<\/a>, and the <em>AJC<\/em> was kind enough <a href=\"http:\/\/www.ajc.com\/entertainment\/books--literature\/author-events-may\/Ag3X1BQuGLeOnEThiEBOXO\/\" target=\"_blank\">to lead their book events page with a note about my appearance<\/a>. The second is in Minneapolis at <a href=\"http:\/\/www.moonpalacebooks.com\/event\/reading-and-discussion-keith-law-michael-fallon-and-peter-schilling\" target=\"_blank\">Moon Palace Books on Thursday at 6:30 pm<\/a>. I hope to meet many of you at these events, both of which are free to attend. <\/p>\n<p>I&#8217;ve been asked by many of you about organizing other events. If a bookstore reaches out to Harper Collins to invite me, and I can work it into my schedule, I&#8217;m certainly open to doing more. I do have further events scheduled for <a href=\"http:\/\/www.homestandsports.com\/upcoming-shows\/2017\/6\/8\/pitch-talks-presents-baseball-then-now\" target=\"_blank\">Toronto<\/a>, Miami (July 8th), and Berkeley (July 19th), plus am hoping to do signings at GenCon and PAX Unplugged later this year.<\/p>\n<p>I spoke with SUNY-Oswego Professor of Digital Media Brian Moritz <a href=\"http:\/\/www.sportsmediaguy.com\/the-other-51\/2017\/5\/11\/episode-29-standing-for-science-and-pie-with-keith-law\" target=\"_blank\">about the book, analytics in sports, and being a writer<\/a>. I joined The Young Turks&#8217; video show <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=cgfD5MX34bI\" target=\"_blank\">to discuss the book and media resistance to advanced stats<\/a>. I also <a href=\"https:\/\/audioboom.com\/posts\/5915079-keith-law-talks-about-the-statistical-change-in-baseball\" target=\"_blank\">spoke with ESPN Radio in Dallas<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/espn1530.iheart.com\/onair\/mo-egger-9170\/listen-my-interview-with-espns-keith-15810833\/\" target=\"_blank\">with ESPN 1530 in Cincinnati<\/a>, and with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.si.com\/mlb\/video\/2017\/05\/10\/baseball-hall-fame-mike-mussina-advanced-stats\" target=\"_blank\">SI Now about the book &#038; Mike Mussina&#8217;s Hall of Fame case<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>And now, the links&#8230;<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The best thing I heard this week was NPR&#8217;s half-hour program looking back <a href=\"http:\/\/one.npr.org\/?sharedMediaId=524744989:528175316\" target=\"_blank\">at the riots in LA after the Rodney King verdict<\/a>.<\/li>\n<li><em>TIME<\/em> is running <a href=\"http:\/\/time.com\/4767683\/bacteria-antibiotic-resistance-superbugs\/\" target=\"_blank\">a series on the rise of antibiotic-resistant bacteria<\/a> that&#8217;s worth your time. I&#8217;ve said a few times that the #1 reason I buy organic dairy and eggs is to avoid contributing to the overuse of antibiotics in livestock.<\/li>\n<li>A <em>Nature<\/em> editorial argues <a href=\"http:\/\/www.nature.com\/news\/antibiotic-resistance-has-a-language-problem-1.21915?WT.mc_id=TWT_NA_1705_FHCOMMENTANTIBIOTICRESIST_PORTFOLIO\" target=\"_blank\">we need standardized language around antibiotic resistance<\/a> to help combat the problem.<\/li>\n<li>&#8220;Nobody dies because they don&#8217;t have access to health care,&#8221; said GOP Representative Raul Labrador in a quote that will one day go on his tombstone. But it turns out <a href=\"https:\/\/academic.oup.com\/ofid\/article-lookup\/doi\/10.1093\/ofid\/ofx078\" target=\"_blank\">people with <em>C. Difficile<\/em> infections often don&#8217;t get medication<\/a> because of lack of funds, even though the drug (vancomycin) is available as a generic. (Abstract only; article requires subscription.)<\/li>\n<li>Dr. Chad Hayes explains <a href=\"http:\/\/www.kevinmd.com\/blog\/2017\/05\/vaccine-study-youll-never-see.html?utm_source=dlvr.it&#038;utm_medium=twitter\" target=\"_blank\">why anti-vaxxers who demand double-blind studies are delusional<\/a>, if not outright cruel. Such studies would violate basic medical ethics.<\/li>\n<li>Norway is reopening <a href=\"http:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/world-europe-39369429\" target=\"_blank\">a 46-year-old cold case around the murder of a still-unidentified woman<\/a> who&#8217;d been traveling in the country with numerous passports and aliases.<\/li>\n<li>The <em>New York Times<\/em> has been producing some great journalism this year \u2026 and some absolute trash, like <a href=\"https:\/\/broadly.vice.com\/en_us\/article\/the-dangers-of-treating-anti-abortion-pseudoscience-as-opinion\" target=\"_blank\">an editorial by the head of an anti-abortion group<\/a> that relied on pseudoscience and didn&#8217;t properly identify the author&#8217;s role with that organization, which runs &#8220;crisis pregnancy centers&#8221; that primarily exist to try to deter pregnant women from getting abortions, and has called abortion &#8220;the worst holocaust in human history.&#8221;<\/li>\n<li>And then the Grey Lady comes back with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2017\/05\/11\/opinion\/gop-response-comey-firing.html?smid=tw-share&#038;_r=1\" target=\"_blank\">Tim Egan&#8217;s strong editorial asking who will save our republic<\/a>, a call to Republicans to stand up against the ongoing battle between the Administration and the Constitution.<\/li>\n<li>A West Virginia journalist was <a href=\"http:\/\/abcnews.go.com\/US\/wireStory\/journalist-arrested-us-health-secretarys-visit-47319850\" target=\"_blank\">arrested for yelling questions at HHS Secretary Tom Price<\/a>. Did he break the law by trying to get past security? Or was this a violation of our right to a free press?<\/li>\n<li>The failed state of Venezuela continues its downward spiral, a story with real implications for MLB and hundreds of players in organized baseball. The latest protest <a href=\"http:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/world-latin-america-39903878\" target=\"_blank\">saw police pepper-spraying a &#8220;grandparents March&#8221;<\/a> in Caracas.<\/li>\n<li>VICE Sports goes back to how <a href=\"https:\/\/sports.vice.com\/en_us\/article\/when-the-timberwolves-passed-on-isaiah-thomas-to-draft-a-mystery-man-from-qatar\" target=\"_blank\">the Timberwolves drafted a 27-year-old player in Qatar over Isaiah Thomas<\/a>, a bizarre story that reminded me of the old days of MLB teams giving large signing bonuses to Dominican players who&#8217;d faked their ages and even names.<\/li>\n<li>Reading more books is good for your brain. I knew I wasn&#8217;t just wasting my time! This Quartz piece reviews <a href=\"https:\/\/qz.com\/963692\/how-to-read-more-books-this-year-according-to-harvard-research\/?utm_source=pocket&#038;utm_medium=email&#038;utm_campaign=pockethits\" target=\"_blank\">seven tips to increase your reading output<\/a>, although I&#8217;d say tips 1 and 2 are by far the most valuable. (Also, it&#8217;s cute that they hold up Bill Gates reading 50 books a year as amazing.)<\/li>\n<li>A North Carolina reverend and political activist told NPR that the recent executive order on &#8220;religious freedom&#8221; <a href=\"http:\/\/one.npr.org\/?sharedMediaId=527196376:527196377\" target=\"_blank\">is just thinly disguised religious bigotry<\/a>.<\/li>\n<li>Texas, continuing its own downward spiral, is now considering a bill <a href=\"http:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/texas-proposes-law-that-would-allow-adoption-agencies-to-ban-jews-muslims-gays\/?ftag=COS-05-10aaa0g&#038;utm_campaign=trueAnthem:+Trending+Content&#038;utm_content=5910069304d30104d9944339&#038;utm_medium=trueAnthem&#038;utm_source=twitter\" target=\"_blank\">that would allow adoption agencies to reject gay or non-Christian couples<\/a>, even if they receive state funding, under the guise of &#8220;religious freedom.&#8221; <\/li>\n<li>Iowa Republican Congressman Rod Blum <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/news\/the-fix\/wp\/2017\/05\/09\/just-took-a-tough-vote-this-gop-congressman-shows-how-to-not-to-conduct-yourself-back-home\/?utm_term=.76510d47613c&#038;wpisrc=nl_most&#038;wpmm=1\" target=\"_blank\">walked out in the middle of a scheduled interview because he didn&#8217;t like the questions<\/a>. He&#8217;s under fire for voting for the Trumpcare bill even though it appears his constituents don&#8217;t (or may not) support it.<\/li>\n<li>Is American capitalism <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/technology\/2017\/may\/11\/tech-innovation-silicon-valley-juicero\" target=\"_blank\">inherently anti-innovation<\/a>? And are the ongoing cuts to government-funded research killing our economy&#8217;s capacity to innovate? I don&#8217;t know, although I wish the author hadn&#8217;t used Juicero as a jumping-off point for his arguments.<\/li>\n<li>Can other countries <a href=\"https:\/\/hbr.org\/2017\/05\/why-germany-still-has-so-many-middle-class-manufacturing-jobs\" target=\"_blank\">replicate Germany&#8217;s success in retaining manufacturing jobs<\/a>? The differences between their culture of innovation and skills development and ours are stark.<\/li>\n<li>Three classic Atari videogames <a href=\"http:\/\/comicbook.com\/gaming\/2017\/05\/12\/three-classic-arcade-games-are-getting-the-board-game-treatment\/\" target=\"_blank\">will be adapted as boardgames within the next year<\/a>, although I&#8217;m not sure how these solo games will work in cardboard.<\/li>\n<li>Goofy fun: mental floss looks at <a href=\"http:\/\/mentalfloss.com\/article\/90810\/11-international-borders-defy-convention\" target=\"_blank\">eleven bizarre international borders<\/a>, including the famous Baarle-Nassau\/Baarle-Hertog borders where a town is split between Belgium and the Netherlands, but not by anything resembling a straight line. (And yes, they flipped East &#038; West Germany in one of the graphics.)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>My one Insider post this week was my first &#8216;mock&#8217; draft for 2017, although it&#8217;s really too early for that sort of exercise. And I held a Klawchat on Thursday. Smart Baseball is out now in the U.S. and Canada; you can order it here or get it at any local bookstore. We are working [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[821,60,844,190,799,870,807],"class_list":["post-5679","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-anti-science","tag-boardgames","tag-economics","tag-links","tag-science","tag-stick-to-baseball","tag-vaccines","entry"],"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/meadowparty.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5679","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/meadowparty.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/meadowparty.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/meadowparty.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/meadowparty.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5679"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/meadowparty.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5679\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5683,"href":"https:\/\/meadowparty.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5679\/revisions\/5683"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/meadowparty.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5679"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/meadowparty.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5679"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/meadowparty.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5679"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}