Derek Bain

I am a New Jersey native with a passion for baseball, statistics, computers and video games who enjoys spending quality time with his family. Co-chair of the SABR Games and Simulations Committee since August 2022 along with Mark Wendling. Visit my Amazon author page to check out my books, promotional videos, and post a review if you're a Hardball Retro fan! My Books: “Hardball Retro’s Compendium of Baseball Video Games and Electronic Handhelds”, published in September 2024 with co-author John Racanelli, is available in paperback and digital (Kindle) format at Amazon.com. Hardball Retro’s Compendium of Baseball Video Games and Electronic Handhelds was recognized with the 2025 Sporting News-SABR Baseball Research Award. Hardball Architects – Volume 1 (American League Teams)”, published in July 2020, is available in paperback and digital (Kindle) format at Amazon.com.  Hardball Architects – Volume 2 (National League Teams)”, published in April 2022, is available in paperback and digital (Kindle) format at Amazon.com. “Hardball Architects” examines the trades, free agent acquisitions, draft picks and other transactions for the 30 Major League Baseball franchises, divided into a 2-volume set (American League and National League). All key moves are scrutinized for every team and Sabermetric principles are applied to the roster construction throughout the lifetime of the organization to encapsulate the hits and misses by front office executives. Hardball Retroactive”, published in June 2018, is available in paperback and digital (Kindle) format at Amazon.com. A cross-section of essays that I penned for Seamheads.com along with my Baseball Analytics blog spanning nearly a decade touching on subjects including "Taking the Extra Base", "General Manager Scorecard", "Worst Trades", "BABIP By Location" and "Baseball Birthplaces and the Retro World Baseball Classic". Rediscover your favorite hardball arcade and simulations in "Play Retro Baseball Video Games In Your Browser" or take a deep dive into every franchise's minor league successes and failures in relation to their major league operations in "Minors vs. Majors". “Hardball Retrospective” is available in paperback and digital (Kindle) format at Amazon.com. Supplemental Statistics, Charts and Graphs along with a discussion forum are offered at TuataraSoftware.com. In Hardball Retrospective, I placed every ballplayer in the modern era (from 1901-present) on their original teams. Using a variety of advanced statistics and methods, I generated revised standings for each season based entirely on the performance of each team’s “original” players. I discuss every team’s “original” players and seasons at length along with organizational performance with respect to the Amateur Draft (or First-Year Player Draft), amateur free agent signings and other methods of player acquisition. Season standings, WAR and Win Shares totals for the “original” teams are compared against the real-time or “actual” team results to assess each franchise’s scouting, development and general management skills. Don Daglow (Intellivision World Series Major League Baseball, Earl Weaver Baseball, Tony LaRussa Baseball) contributed the foreword for Hardball Retrospective. The foreword and preview of my book are accessible here “Hardball Retrospective - Addendum 2014 to 2016” supplements my research for Hardball Retrospective, providing retroactive standings based on Wins Above Replacement (WAR) and Win Shares (WS) for each "original" team over the past three seasons (2014-2016). Team totals from 2010 - 2013 are included for reference purposes. “Addendum” is available in paperback and digital (Kindle) format at Amazon.com. Contact me on BlueSky - @hardballretro.bsky.social

1976 Cubs – Hardball Retrospective Rosters – “Original” Win Shares Leaders

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1976 Billy North 20.9 1976 Ray Burris 19.2 1976 Rick Reuschel 17.7 1976 Gary Ross 13.7 1976 Lou Brock 13.2 1976 Burt Hooton 12.3 1976 Oscar Gamble 11.9 1976 Ken Holtzman 11.9 1976 Bruce Sutter 11.7 1976 Don Kessinger 11.1 Correctly answered by Rich Gordon, Kyle Newman, Lanny Little, Matthew Bloss, Mike Clifford, Brian Bohem, … Read more

Tom Hoffarth’s Interview with Derek Bain – Farther Off the Wall

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Hardball_Architects_Volume1_AL

Tom Hoffarth’s post was updated yesterday to include a Q&A session with yours truly. Follow the link, search on my last name and check it out! https://fartheroffthewall.com/2021/06/23/in-our-book-the-2021-spring-baseball-book-reviews-are-done-but-can-there-be-more/ “Hardball Architects: Volume 1 – American League Teams” received a mention in Tom Hoffarth’s Off the Wall – 30 books in 30 days series with a possibility for … Read more

1976 Red Sox – Hardball Retrospective Rosters – “Original” Win Shares Leaders

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1976 Amos Otis 25.4 1976 Fred Lynn 22.2 1976 Rick Burleson 20.4 1976 Carlton Fisk 19.6 1976 George C. Scott 18.3 1976 Carl Yastrzemski 18.2 1976 Jim Rice 16.4 1976 Jim Lonborg 15.2 1976 Dwight Evans 14.7 1976 Ken Brett 13.3 Correctly answered by Jon Winkler Select one of the four choices then click Vote … Read more

1976 Orioles – Hardball Retrospective Rosters – “Original” Win Shares Leaders

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1976 Bobby Grich 30.6 1976 Jim Palmer 27.0 1976 Mark Belanger 23.1 1976 Wayne Garland 20.0 1976 Don Baylor 19.0 1976 Al Bumbry 15.5 1976 Enos Cabell 15.1 1976 Sparky Lyle 13.4 1976 Doug DeCinces 9.8 1976 Rob Andrews 9.7 Correctly answered by Michael Danes, Doug Snyder Sr. and Rod Humphrey Select one of the … Read more

1976 Braves – Hardball Retrospective Rosters – “Original” Win Shares Leaders

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1976 Mickey Rivers 26.3 1976 Rico Carty 23.6 1976 Phil Niekro 19.9 1976 Bill Robinson 16.3 1976 Ron Reed 14.7 1976 Ralph Garr 13.7 1976 Wayne Garrett 13.6 1976 Larvell Blanks 11.8 1976 Rowland Office 10.6 1976 Rod Gilbreath 9.9 Correctly answered by Lanny Little, Matthew Bloss, Mike Clifford, Brian Bohem, Bryan Hartman, Doug Snyder … Read more

1976 Angels – Hardball Retrospective Rosters – “Original” Win Shares Leaders

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1976 Frank Tanana 26.9 1976 Jay Johnstone 19.4 1976 Jerry Remy 16.8 1976 Andy Messersmith 16.2 1976 Bruce Bochte 14.5 1976 Dave LaRoche 14.5 1976 Paul Hartzell 12.3 1976 Dave Collins 12.2 1976 Jim Spencer 11.9 1976 Marty Pattin 10.8 1976 Marty Perez 10.8 Correctly answered by Rich Gordon, Kyle Newman Matthew Bloss, Mike Clifford, … Read more

1975 Expos – Hardball Retrospective Rosters – “Original” Win Shares Leaders

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1975 Gary Carter 19.1 1975 Steve Rogers 18.2 1975 Dan Warthen 14.7 1975 Pepe Mangual 12.8 1975 Larry Parrish 12.2 1975 Dale Murray 9.3 1975 Dennis Blair 9.0 1975 Barry Foote 6.5 1975 Jerry White 4.5 1975 Larry Lintz 2.6 Correctly answered by Rich Gordon, Kyle Newman, Lanny Little, Matthew Bloss, Michael Murray, Brian Bohem, … Read more

1975 Rangers – Hardball Retrospective Rosters – “Original” Win Shares Leaders

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1975 Bill Madlock 25.5 1975 Mike Hargrove 21.6 1975 Del Unser 19.3 1975 Len Randle 17.4 1975 Jeff Burroughs 14.9 1975 Larry Biittner 10.9 1975 Roy Howell 10.6 1975 Pete Broberg 10.0 1975 Tom Grieve 9.7 1975 Pete Mackanin 9.5 Correctly answered by Rich Gordon, Kyle Newman, Lanny Little, Matthew Bloss, Brian Bohem, Patrick Lachaine, … Read more

1975 Cardinals – Hardball Retrospective Rosters – “Original” Win Shares Leaders

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1975 Ted Simmons 28.2 1975 Jerry Reuss 20.0 1975 Mike Torrez 19.5 1975 Bob Forsch 19.2 1975 Al Hrabosky 18.1 1975 Bake McBride 16.2 1975 Willie Montanez 15.1 1975 Steve Carlton 14.9 1975 Mike Tyson 11.0 1975 Jose Cruz 10.6 Correctly answered by Rich Gordon, Kyle Newman, Lanny Little, Brian Bohem, Patrick Lachaine, Erin Underwood, … Read more

1975 Giants – Hardball Retrospective Rosters – “Original” Win Shares Leaders

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1975 Jose Cardenal 25.7 1975 Bobby Bonds 24.0 1975 George Foster 21.5 1975 Gaylord Perry 20.9 1975 John Montefusco 20.4 1975 Chris Speier 19.8 1975 Jim Barr 18.0 1975 Garry Maddox 17.0 1975 Willie McCovey 16.9 1975 Dave Kingman 15.3 Correctly answered by Dave Shaw and Rod Humphrey Select one of the four choices then … Read more