Peter Gammons on Math

Over the years I, like many baseball fans, have loved reading the insightful words of Hall of Fame baseball writer Peter Gammons (@pgammo). I’ve always appreciated his thoughtful approach to the game and admired his commitment to great causes off the field like the Foundation to be Named Later.

I recently told Peter about our efforts with Training Camp and our “Learn from Sports” initiative. He was very supportive of our efforts and shared this personal story with me:

I entered Groton School in the 8th grade. I went from a public school to a competitive private school with classmates who'd gone to private schools in New York, Boston and Europe. Math was killing me. 

My teacher, Paul Wright, sat me down and said, "Peter, you've been doing baseball stats since you were five. Math is logic. You understand that logic because you know if a hitter has 12 hits in 48 at-bats that he's hitting .250, or if a pitcher allows 12 runs in 36 innings his earned run average is three. You're already good at math!"

When I was graduating, I had no plans to continue with math. But my math S.A.T. was 705.

-Peter Gammons

This reflection on his personal experience with math is what drives us. It’s a short story with a powerful message; a child’s personal passion should be embraced as a valuable educational resource.