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Bill James to Simpsons viewers: ‘I made baseball as much fun as doing your taxes’

November 13, 2010

Baseball fans live and die by the numbers. That's why Bill James, the man who created the comprehensive statistical discipline Sabermetrics, is a god those who obsessively follow the game.

Apparently, Lisa Simpson is one of such fan. And James is a fan of Lisa and her animated family.

In last week's episode of the Fox Television program, James poked fun at himself, the game and its fans. Here's how NESN Newswire writer Michael Hurley describes the scene:

As four nerds sat around a table at Moe's, the nerdiest of them all, Professor Frink, told Lisa that "baseball is a game played by the dextrous but only understood by the poindextrous." He then showed Lisa his laptop, which featured a smiling Bill James.

Bill James baseball stats and taxes

"I made baseball as much fun as doing your taxes," said the revolutionary number cruncher.

As a baseball fan, Simpsons viewer and tax geek, I've got to thank Matt Groening for bringing all three together, at least in fictional Springfield.

If you missed The Simpsons episode, entitled MoneyBART, you can check it out on Hulu.com.

By the way, do you know which real minor league baseball team is the probable inspiration for the Springfield team's name Isotots? Tell us in the comments section.

Hat tips to TaxProf Blog and Bed Buffaloes in Your Tax Code

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TO WRAP UP 2026

It’s over! With October’s extended filing deadline behind us, it is now time to focus on year-end moves to reduce your 2026 tax bill. 

You’ll find ways to do just that on the Tax Tips page (see the More Tax Posts drop-down menu at the top of the blog), as well as the separate tax tip pages for each month, notably October through December. If you’re on the Tax Tips page, you’ll find a monthly list at the end of this column. If you’re on another blog page, you can head straight to the October tips; at the bottom of that tips page you’ll find links to all the other 11 months’ collections of tax advice.

Not to spoil what you’ll find in that tax advice, but it does cover such things as tax deductions for charitable donations, investment moves that could reduce tax due, and ways to max out your tax-favored retirement savings. 

Finally, as the year winds down, things get hectic. There are lots of other things to occupy our time, like the much more fun upcoming holidays. But don’t lose sight of taxes, since timing is key. To be of use, most tax moves must be made by the end of the tax year. That’s Thursday, Dec. 31, which also is the last business day of the year. 

So that you don’t miss that final tax year deadline, also keep an eye on the countdown clock below. It will keep you on top of just how much time is left to make important, tax-saving moves. (Note: I’m in the Central Time Zone, so adjust accordingly for where you live.)

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