TSN: Lutovsky: Q&A with Billy Beane

Associate editor Matt Lutovsky is a fantasy baseball expert and, obviously…Billy Beane is not.

Beane, an avid video game player—he called it his “hidden vice” and said he gets “yelled at by his wife all the time” for playing—talked about his involvement with MLB Front Office Manager and offered his thoughts on fantasy baseball (he’s scared to play). He also addressed some of the issues fantasy owners love to argue about—which stat categories are best, how to know when it’s time to trade a player and what to look for when trying to figure out if minor leaguers will have success in the majors.

One of the features is on-line fantasy leagues. How much do you know about fantasy baseball in general?

BB: I’ll tell you one thing—I’ll never play on-line myself because I don’t really feel like being outsmarted and embarrassed. I say this with total candor and honesty. Particularly with Major League Baseball, if you look at the type of people who are running clubs now and then you go to the fantasy leagues and on-line gaming, they’re really starting to blend into two. I’ve had many people say, “Hey, why don’t you join my fantasy league baseball league with me?” And, quite frankly, I’m not really willing to expose myself to that arena because there are some really bright people out there.