'Moneyball' author makes stunning admission about analytics use in baseball

Fox News Flash top sports headlines are here. Check out what's clicking on Foxnews.com.

The biggest thing the Oakland Athletics were known for over the last 25 years was the use of analytics to find value in players when they could not compete with teams that had bigger wallets and more money to spend in free agency.

The math-driven strategy was chronicled in the book "Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game," written by Michael Lewis. The author wrote about the 2002 A’s team led by Art Howe and Billy Beane and how an analytical approach helped the team to 103 wins and a division title, but ultimately, an American League Division Series exit.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COM

Author of "The Blind Side: Evolution of a Game" Michael Lewis attends the "The Blind Side" benefit premiere at the Prytania Theatre on Nov. 19, 2009 in New Orleans. (Getty Images)

Before the 2002 season, the team lost Johnny Damon to the Boston Red Sox, Jason Giambi to the New York Yankees and Jason Isringhausen to the St. Louis Cardinals after winning 103 games in 2002. The team still had Miguel Tejada, Tim Hudson, Barry Zito, Mark Mulder and Eric Chavez holding it down for them.

More than 20 years later, other franchises combined the "Moneyball" idea with big money payroll. It is something the Los Angeles Dodgers, San Francisco Giants and New York Yankees have used in recent years to find an edge.

Lewis admitted in an interview with the San Francisco Chronicle that he thinks the "Moneyball" approach to the game was ultimately bad for baseball.

CC SABATHIA SHARES HIS YANKEES CATALYST THIS POSTSEASON, NATIONAL LEAGUE PENNANT WINNER PREDICTION

Oakland Athletics catcher Shea Langeliers, #23, scores a run against the New