Yesterday, the Pittsburgh Pirates hired David Eckstein as a special assistant to baseball operations. In a 2014 piece, Gabe Lacques wrote about Eckstein and his visions of the game, writing:
Eckstein says he envisions squaring up sabermetric principles with what he calls the “geometry” of baseball that only trained eyes can see: The spin of a pitch, how to position defenders based on how the ball comes off a right-handed hitter’s bat as opposed to a lefty…
He still espouses many theories that align with traditional scouting, such as clubhouse chemistry. “It’s very important to have that locker room with everyone on that same page, and fighting for that same cause,” he says.