Director, Player Projections

Washington Nationals; Washington (District of Columbia); On-site; USD 180,000 - 240,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental, vision, life and AD&D

Disability insurance

Flexible spending accounts

401(k) and pension plan

Complimentary tickets to NationalsHome

Employee discounts

Free onsite fitness center

Job summary

Washington Nationals are seeking a Director of Player Projections to lead the department responsible for building predictive models of player performance and informing acquisition, development, and deployment strategies.

The Director will manage Analysts, oversee data pipelines, and apply advanced statistics and machine learning to forecasts that drive on-field decisions and talent roadmap.

Qualifications

• Experience in statistical modeling, forecasting, and probabilistic programming.
• Experience with machine learning methods and model evaluation, deployment, and orchestration.
• Strong programming practices in Python and R and AI agent integration.

Responsibilities

• Oversee analysts building data pipelines and conducting advantage-seeking research.
• Develop forecasts using statistics and probability to impact on-field decisions.

Skills

Decision making under uncertainty

Statistical modeling

Forecasting

Machine learning

Python

R

Probabilistic programming

Tools

PyMC

Stan

Python

R

Job description

Our Vision

To become baseball’s highest-performing organization and the envy of professional sports. We will be defined by our relentless pursuit of excellence, strengthened by our connection, and fueled by our positive energy.

Our Core Values

• Joy: We want to be around people that like to have fun. We remain optimistic through the ups and downs, we enjoy the process, and we share in something bigger than ourselves.
• Humility: We don’t have all the answers. We lead with curiosity, listen generously, and seek growth from every experience – especially the tough ones. We have gotten over ourselves.
• Integrity: We do the right thing, especially when it’s hard. We act with honesty, accountability, and respect for our teammates and ourselves. We treat the custodian like the king.
• Competitiveness: We embrace challenges and thrive in high-stakes environments. We prepare relentlessly. We are energized by the idea of keeping score.

Our Vision

To become baseball’s highest-performing organization and the envy of professional sports. We will be defined by our relentless pursuit of excellence, strengthened by our connection, and fueled by our positive energy.

Position Overview

The Player Projections department builds models to predict player performance, in support of player acquisition, development, and deployment. The Nationals are seeking a Director to lead the department. A successful Player Projections group will identify the traits most predictive of player performance, build statistical models to identify the best and most undervalued players, and inform the roadmap for the organization to acquire, develop, and deploy those players. The Director will oversee Analysts who build high quality data pipelines, conduct and incorporate advantage-seeking research, utilize a deep knowledge of statistics and probability to build forecasts, and ensure those forecasts impact outcomes on the field.

We are seeking candidates with multiple years of experience in all of the following areas:

Technical Qualifications

• High-stakes decision-making under uncertainty
• Statistical modeling, forecasting, and probabilistic programming (PyMC, Stan, etc.)
• Machine learning methods and model evaluation, deployment, and orchestration
• Best practices in programming (Python, R) and AI agent integration

Leadership Qualifications

• Demonstrated leadership experience managing technical or interdisciplinary teams
• Effective cross-departmental communication and collaboration inside and outside R&D
• Deep understanding of evaluation, development, and baseball decision-making
• Excellent communication, project/product management, and interpersonal skills
• Ability to thrive in a fast-paced, collaborative, and highly confidential environment
• Deep alignment with and promotion of the organisation’s values of joy, humility, integrity and competitiveness and vision to create an organization that becomes the envy of sport.

Compensation

The projected annual salary range for this position is $180,000 - $240,000 per year. Actual pay is based on several factors, including but not limited to the applicant’s: qualifications, skills, expertise, education/training, certifications, and other organization requirements. Starting salaries for new employees are frequently not at the top of the applicable salary range.

Benefits

• Medical, dental, vision, life and AD&D insurance
• Short- and long-term disability insurance
• Flexible spending accounts
• 401(k) and pension plan
• Access to complimentary tickets to Nationals home games
• Employee discounts
• Free onsite fitness center

Equal Opportunity Employer

The Nationals are dedicated to offering equal employment and advancement opportunities to all individuals regardless of their race, color, religion, national origin, sex, age, marital status, personal appearance, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, family responsibilities, matriculation, political affiliation, genetic information, disability, or any other protected characteristic under applicable law.