Baseball Prospectus News: Introducing the BP Advisory Board

Enter the Baseball Prospectus Advisory Board.

I am happy to announce today that Dan Evans, Cory Schwartz, Gary Gillette, and Blake Rhodes have all agreed to serve as members of the first-ever Baseball Prospectus Advisory Board. These key industry leaders possess unique knowledge and skill sets to serve the BP team by making strategic recommendations, acting as a sounding board, sharing experiences, and making networking introductions.

The Board will available to advise our staff and management in both business and content matters, and help us provide the best products possible for our audience.

 So without further ado, please join me in welcoming the Baseball Prospectus Advisory Board.

Dan Evans
As President/CEO of Evans Baseball Consulting, Dan Evans has an incredibly unique perspective. He has been in the game for 30 years and has been a decision-maker on both sides of the table; he has worked as a club senior executive and as a player agent. A pioneer in using technology for baseball analysis, Evans orchestrated a complete and successful rebuilding of the Los Angeles Dodgers franchise during his time as their general manager, and has the second-best won-loss record (.548) of any Dodgers GM. Matt Kemp is among the players acquired during Evans’ tenure as GM.

While a DePaul University junior, Evans secured an internship with the Chicago White Sox and worked there for nearly 20 years. In addition, he also worked for the Seattle Mariners and Chicago Cubs during his career, and was a baseball analyst for the Comcast Sports Network in Chicago. 

Evans is fully immersed in all levels of baseball. He is proficient in most forms of social media, most notably Twitter (@DanEvans108). Evans is married with two daughters, an avid runner, and Chicago native. He lives in Pasadena, CA.

Cory Schwartz
Cory Schwartz is the Vice President of Stats for MLB.com. He oversees year-round live data capture for all Major League Baseball, Minor League Baseball and winter-league games. He was part of the team that pioneered the PITCHf/x system, which provides real-time data on pitch speed, trajectory, location, and type. The data his team generates is used to fuel live applications on MLB.com—including the award-winning At-Bat and Gameday products—and for online and offline business partners around the world such as ESPN, STATS LLC, and Bloomberg Sports. They also provide live data and stats to the public relations, baseball operations, and scoreboard operators for all 30 MLB clubs and hundreds of minor-league clubs. Schwartz is also a co-host of “Fantasy 411,” which airs daily on MLB Network and MLB.com, and has been competing in fantasy baseball since 1989. He is a two-time league winner in the high-stakes National Fantasy Baseball Championship, and has competed in the Tout Wars industry expert league since 2004. 

Blake Rhodes
Blake Rhodes is an experienced professional in media and public relations, strategic communications, crisis management, social media, brand marketing, and special events. During a 20-year career, Mr. Rhodes has become a well-respected specialist in managing media relationships on an international, national, and local level with high-profile newsmakers and executives.

As the director of the media relations department for the San Francisco Giants, Mr. Rhodes had the opportunity to develop communications and brand strategies with the company’s top executives. Some of the highlights during his 16-year tenure included strategizing and implementing the communications plans (general and crisis) during Barry Bonds’ career with the team, the changes in both the Giants’ ownership and field manager, and the ballpark’s name changes. Mr. Rhodes oversaw all media operations for the 78^th Major League All-Star Game at AT&T Park, the 2002 World Series, and both the single-season and all-time home-run record chases. For their efforts with the 2007 All-Star Game, he and his staff were widely hailed for running the best media operations for any of Major League Baseball’s Jewel events.

Rhodes currently works for Xenophon Strategies, where he provides strategic counsel to numerous clients, including Airbus Americas, Williams-Sonoma, and the Reform Pension Board, which serves the Reform Jewish Movement. Since joining the firm three years ago, he has also directed an internal communications program for the United States Coast Guard.

Gary Gillette
Gary Gillette is editor of SABR’s annual Emerald Guide, co-editor of the ESPN Baseball Encyclopedia, and executive editor of the ESPN Pro Football Encyclopedia. He has written, edited, or contributed to dozens of baseball books, including six editions of Total Baseball. His most recent trade book is Big League Ballparks, a complete history of major-league parks, co-authored with SABR members Stuart Shea and Matt Silverman. Gillette has been a member of SABR’s board of directors since 2009 and is co-chair of the Ballparks Committee and former co-chair of the Business of Baseball Committee. As a director of the Tiger Stadium Conservancy, he continues the fight to save the historic field at Michigan and Trumbull. As a member of the Mayor’s Committee to save Hamtramck Stadium, he is also working to preserve one of the few remaining Negro League ballparks. Gillette lives in Detroit’s historic Indian Village.