Billy Beane
Billy Beane
William Lamar "Billy" Beane IIIis an American former professional baseball player and current front office executive. He is the Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations and minority owner of the Oakland Athletics of Major League Baseball. Prior to his front office career, he played in MLB as an outfielder between 1984 and 1989 for the New York Mets, Minnesota Twins, Detroit Tigers, and Oakland Athletics. He joined the Athletics front office as a scout in 1990. He was named general...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionBaseball Player
Date of Birth29 March 1962
CityOrlando, FL
CountryUnited States of America
Essentially this has been a business that's been around for over a hundred years and it really hasn't changed much so any time someone's doing something differently, its probably going to create some friction.
Is this the best way you can play this?
It took a lot for him to pick up the phone, unsolicited. That was probably not an easy phone call for Ken, by himself, without his agent. ... When he picked up the phone, that spoke volumes about his interest in coming back.
It's surreal not having him here. I miss the person as much as the voice.
This is ultimately what we were trying to do during the season and in the days after it. Unfortunately we weren't able to do that and we parted ways last week. This is the outcome we wanted.
That'll be a real shot in the arm for us.
It's like having calculus first period. You are not real happy when the alarm goes off, but by second period it's already over and you are running off to wood shop.
It's something you have to consider, no question. And that's out of respect for the guys already here.
It's something we didn't know about, but he came forward with the information, so I commend him for that.
It was Ken, ... He called. I think it was probably not an easy phone call for him to make.
There was a real sense of determination in talking to him. You could get carried away with superlatives with Frank Thomas. Arguably, he is one of the greatest offensive players of his generation.
This guy's skill level and ability is undeniable. Frank Thomas is a presence.
This guy probably represents nirvana for us from an offensive standpoint. We see him as an incredible acquisition.
Do I wish everybody in baseball had the same amount to spend? Absolutely. At some point, the disadvantage of being a small-market team is that the inefficiencies will be weeded out. Having less than your competitor is never an advantage.