When it was reported that the Dodgers would be hiring A’s assistant general manager Farhan Zaidi as its new GM, the move awoke the demon in former MLB infielder Ryan Theriot (.281/.341/.350, 8.0 fWAR). He took to Twitter to to exclaim about the decision to bring in the 37-year-old with economics degrees from MIT (undergraduate) and UC Berkeley (doctorate):
Free-agent pitcher Brandon McCarthy took note and promptly schooled Theriot:
As Paul Casella of Sports on Earth points out, neither John Mozeliak of the Cardinals (2011) nor Brian Sabean of the Giants (2012) have played professional ball. Moreover, Billy Beane, Zaidi’s now former boss in Oakland and the featured subject in the concentrated evil Moneyball, happens to be a former player. (Oops.)
Realizing the pickle he had put himself in, Theriot resorted to an Intentional Talk version of the mea culpa:
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