moneyball

Noun capitalized: Moneyball

Moneyball (uncountable)

1. Baseball management relying on sabermetrics.
   • Sure, the Florida Marlins and some others have a shot, but the “Moneyball” approach — using spreadsheets and unconventional thinking to fell baseball’s rich Goliaths — seems to have been co-opted by the big guys themselves.2009 August 7, Tom Kuntz, “‘Moneyball’ Is in a Slump”, in NYTimes Idea of the Day Blog
   • Sure, statistical analysis has changed baseball's front offices for the better. A little. But most things haven't changed. The Red Sox version of Moneyball, after all, includes lots and lots of money, and there's nothing new there.2011 September 2, “The ‘Moneyball’ Effect: Are Sabermetrics Good for Sports?”, in The Atlantic
2. (broadly) The application of advanced analytics to any domain in order to improve outcomes.
   • Campaigns are spending a lot of money, but they are not playing Moneyball.2011 October 5, John Sides, “The Moneyball of Campaign Advertising (Part 1)”, in The New York Times
   • The technical savvy on display was enough to show any guest that there’s more—a lot more—to the hotel business than the front desk and housekeeping. As host Wapner said, “It’s moneyball for hotels.”2012, Patrick Mayock, “Bill Marriott shines in primetime spotlight”, in www.hotelnewsnow.com, archived from the original on 19 Apr 2013