A strong commitment to analytics led the Browns to hire former New York Mets executive Paul DePodesta.
The team announced the move Tuesday.
DePodesta was the Mets' vice president of player development and amateur scouting. He started his career in Major League Baseball with the Indians in 1996.
DePodesta is an authority on sabermetrics, the statistical analysis of baseball used to evaluate players.
As an assistant general manager to Billy Beane, DePodesta used sabermetrics to help improve the Oakland Athletics, a feat captured in the book Moneyball and later in the movie of the same title.