Director, Player Projections

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.

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 organization’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:

The Nationals offer a competitive and comprehensive benefits package that presently includes:

• 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.