Using R for Analyzing Baseball Data

Keith Woolner - Director, Baseball Analytics

Keith Woolner enters his eighth season leading the Baseball Analytics group, having joined the Indians organization in 2007. He is responsible for developing innovative ways to organize, analyze and present information to support baseball decision-making. He leads a team of analysts who study statistical data, scouting reports, medical histories and contract information to assist with in-game strategy, player acquisition and forecasting future performance.

Prior to joining the Indians, Keith was Director of Research & Development at Baseball Prospectus for 10 years. He has co-authored 10 books, including several editions of the Baseball Prospectus annual and the award-winning Baseball Between The Numbers. Keith is the inventor of VORP (Value Over Replacement Player), a well-known sabermetric statistic. He worked in the software industry for 15 years before joining the Indians, including stints at Oracle and SAS Institute.

He holds dual Bachelor’s degrees in Mathematics with Computer Science and Management Science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (M.I.T.), and a Master’s degree in Management Science & Engineering from Stanford University.