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Oakland becomes Snappers' pipeline

BELOIT — Beane ball is coming to Beloit.

The Beloit Snappers announced Tuesday the signing of a two-year player development contract with the Oakland Athletics. The contract will run through the end of the 2014 season.

Oakland's General Manager, Billy Beane, and the organization's baseball philosophy were the subject of Michael Lewis' best-selling book, "Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game." The book was recently made into the full-length motion picture, "Moneyball," starring Brad Pitt.

Beane is excited about the opportunity to showcase the Athletics' young talent at Pohlman Field.

"We are delighted to welcome Beloit to our minor league system with today's announcement," Beane, the A's Vice President and GM, said in a release. "It is an established Single-A market with a strong baseball community and management team. We look forward to a very successful partnership."

The Oakland Athletics are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League and uphold a rich history of success.

"We are thrilled to begin our new affiliation with the A's," said Dennis Conerton, Chairman of the Beloit Professional Baseball Association, which operates the Snappers. "Oakland is a very successful and well respected organization that has developed a progressive system for analyzing player talent. Their record speaks for itself and their farm system is highly regarded among the best in Major League Baseball.

"They have an experienced player development staff that has been together for a long time comprised of quality individuals who will be a real pleasure to work with."

Oakland will be only the third Major League affiliate for the Snappers in its 31-year history. Previous affiliations were with the Milwaukee Brewers, and most recently, the Minnesota Twins.