Moneyball

Ball one to Johnny Damon and we are under way.

Damon has eight hits in 18 at bats...

a double, a triple, a couple of stolen bases.

He had four hits in the series opener.

Strike.

Down the right-field line, fair off the bat of Damon.

It rolls by Spencer.

And Damon will coast into second base with a lead off double.

Into right-center field, broken bat, it'll fall, a base hit.

They wave around Damon. He will score.

And Jason Giambi delivers...

with a run-scoring single here in the opening inning.

And the Athletics have taken that 1-nothing lead.

Go, come on, now. We gotta spin it.

Let's go, Yankees! Let's go, Yankees!

Let's go, Yankees!

Bases loaded.

The Yankees have the tying run at second, down 2-nothing.

The A's are kicking it and throwing it all over the field.

And it might lead to their elimination if they don't get it right in a hurry.

Hammered down the right-field line. Justice!

The Yankees have taken the lead.

They're standing, anticipating another trip...

to the League Championship Series.

The Yankees one out away.

Eric Byrnes, never with an at bat in Yankee Stadium...

and they don't get much bigger than this one.

Or more hectic when you're up there trying to get a job done.

And they're a strike away.

And they're roaring in the Bronx.

Losing the first two games at home in the best-of-five series...

and roar back to...

The Yankees will defend their title.

It's okay, Joe, you can leave it on.

- I don't need to watch. - Joe, leave it on.

Okay.

Imagine how bad it'd be if you were a Yankee player...

and didn't like the taste of champagne.

Better ask to get traded.

You gotta give the Yankees...

win the big game.

What a series that is gonna be in the next...

You know how many kids are wearing Giambi's...?

You know, Oakland Giambi's jerseys and hats and pictures and posters?

Those same kids will be booing in July when the Yankees come here.

Is it Giambi that's stabbing the back or the Pinstripes on the East Coast?

You can't blame them for pilfering the henhouse.

- The henhouse is there. - I can't blame them?

They're offering $120 million over six years.

The Yankees have deeper pockets and they're willing to give him money.

They're pilfering our players.

It's like we're a farm system for the New York Yankees.

- How are the guys doing? - That was a killer.

That was a killer. It's a tough one to swallow. It's...

- They played great. - They played their hearts out.

They did. They played fantastic. It just didn't fall our way.

- You'll do better next year. - But we were close, though.

- We were so close. - Right there.

Almost had it. You gotta feel good about that.

I feel great about it. I feel great about it.

We're not gonna do better next year.

- Why not? - Well, you know we're being gutted.

We're losing Giambi, Damon, Isringhausen.

Done deal. We're in trouble.

You'll find new guys. You found Jason, you found Damon.

- I need more money, Steve. - Billy.

- I need more money. - We don't have any.

I can't compete against $120 million with $38 million.

We're not gonna compete with these teams that have big budgets.

We're gonna work within the constraints we have...

and you're gonna do the best job that you can recruiting new players.

We're not gonna pay $17 million to players.

I'm not asking you...

for 10 or 20, 30 million dollars.

I'm just asking for a bit of help.

Get me a little closer and I will get you that championship team.

I mean, this is why I'm here. This is why you hired me.

And I gotta ask you, what are we doing here...

- Billy, I... - if it's not to win a championship?

- I wanna win just as much... - That's my bar. My bar is here.

My bar is to take this team to the championship.

Billy, we're a small-market team, and you're a small-market GM.

I'm asking you to be okay not spending money that I don't have.

And I'm asking you to take a deep breath...

shake off the loss, get back in a room with your guys...

and figure out how to find replacements for the guys we lost...

with the money that we do have.

I'm not leaving here. I'm not... I can't leave here with that.

What else can I help you with?

It's a good offer, and you gotta match it. I...

I need another day.

His mind's pretty made up. I just think you should know that.

- I got a call. I'll get you back. - I'll let him know.

Bye.

- Yeah? - Billy, Scott.

- Just got off the phone with Dan. - You didn't.

I was surprised he called me.

Stop. I got Johnny for 7.5 or he doesn't play anywhere else.

- That's the deal you made. - Boston just upped it to 7.75.

You there?

- We had a deal, Scott. - We have a deal, if it's 8 million.

- Oh, man, you played me. - I'm just doing my job for my client.

No, you're playing me, and you're still playing me.

Congratulations, asshole. You win.

I like guys that got a little hair on their ass.

He looks like a Mantle or a Mays, quite frankly.

- He's got a baseball body. - Matty, who do you got?

- I like Geronimo. - Yes.

The guy's an athlete. Big, fast, talented.

- Top of my list. - Clean-cut, good face.

- Yeah, good jaw. - Five-tools guy.

- Good-looking ballplayer. - Can he hit?

- He's got a beautiful swing. - The ball explodes off his bat.

He throws the club head at the ball, and when he connects...

he drives it, it pops off the bat.

- You can hear it all over the ballpark. - A lot of pop.

If he's good, why doesn't he hit good?

- He is a good hitter. - He'll be ready.

He's gonna be a good hitter against big-league arms?

- Could be great. - I don't think so.

Kid needs at bats. Give him 400 at bats, he's gonna get better.

- He can play. - He's hit everywhere along the line.

He's one of our guys.

Okay, let's move on.

- Artie, who do you like? - I like Perez. He's got a classic swing.

- It's a real clean stroke. - I don't know. Can't hit the curveball.

There's some work to be done, I'll admit that, but he's noticeable.

- Got an ugly girlfriend. - What's that mean?

Ugly girlfriend means no confidence.

You are full of it. Artie is right. This guy's got an attitude.

An attitude is good.

He walks in a room, his dick's already been there for two minutes.

He passes the eye-candy test. Got the looks.

He's ready to play the part. He just needs playing time.

I'm just saying, his girlfriend is a six at best.

Look, if we're trying to replace Giambi, this guy could be it.

I agree with you.

Damn, Billy, was that a suggestion?

Guys, you're just talking.

Talking... like this is business as usual.

It's not.

We're trying to solve the problem.

Not like this. You're not looking at the problem.

We're very aware of the problem. I mean...

Okay, good. What's the problem?

Look, Billy, we all understand what the problem is.

- We have to... - Okay, good. What's the problem?

We have to replace three key players in our lineup.

Nope. What's the problem?

We gotta replace these guys with what we have...

No. What's the problem, Barry?

We need 38 home runs, 120 RBIs and 47 doubles to replace.

The problem we're trying to solve is that there are rich teams...

and there are poor teams, then there's 50 feet of crap...

and then there's us.

It's an unfair game.

And now we've been gutted. We're like organ donors for the rich.

Boston's taken our kidneys, Yankees have taken our heart.

And you guys sit around...

talking the same old "good body" nonsense like we're selling jeans.

Like we're looking for Fabio.

We got to think differently.

We are the last dog at the bowl.

You see what happens to the runt of the litter? He dies.

Billy, that's a very touching story and everything...

but I think we're all very much aware of what we're facing.

You have a lot of experience and wisdom in this room.

You need to have a little faith and let us do the job of replacing Giambi.

Is there another first baseman like Giambi?

- No, not really. - No.

- If there was, could we afford him? - Nope.

Then what the fuck are you talking about, man?

If we try to play like the Yankees in here...

we will lose to the Yankees out there.

Boy, that sounds like fortune-cookie wisdom to me, Billy.

- No, that's just logic. - Who's Fabio?

He's a shortstop. He's a shortstop from Seattle.

Now, this is no time to push the panic button.

Our scouts will find players, Player Development will develop them.

We'll teach them to play Oakland A baseball.

With all due respect, we've been doing this a long time.

Why don't you just let us be responsible for replacing Giambi...

with who we know that can play?

- Easy power. - And loose.

Good face.

This son of a bitch is going in the first round.

You're a premium player, Billy.

You can run, you can field, you can throw, you can hit...

you can hit with power.

That doesn't come along very often.

This is Tom Martinez, national cross-checker.

- How you doing? Nice to meet you. - Billy Beane.

It's been a while since I've seen a five-tool guy that can do everything.

I'm hopeful your interest in professional baseball...

is as strong as ours is gonna be in getting you in this upcoming draft.

Mr. Beane?

Mark is ready to see you now.

- How you doing? - I'm fine.

- How are you? - Good.

- Hey, Billy. - Hey, Mark.