ST. LOUIS — Paul DePodesta plans to bring a grain of salt for his popcorn when he finally gets to see “Moneyball” this week.
The ballyhooed movie, which opens Friday, portrays DePodesta, now the Mets vice president of player development and amateur scouting, as an unathletic computer geek, played by Jonah Hill, who serves as Oakland general manager Billy Beane’s right hand.
“I can’t take it seriously,” DePodesta said yesterday. “And I certainly can’t take it personally. We’ll see when I actually see it, but I’m determined not to take it too seriously.”
DePodesta, a tall and lanky former Harvard football player, won’t have his name mentioned in the movie. Hill plays a character named Peter Brand, based on DePodesta, who arrives and uses statistical analysis to help rebuild Oakland into a playoff team.
It was by DePodesta’s request that his name wasn’t used. DePodesta said the producers were under no obligation to honor that request, but he’s glad they did. DePodesta denied it had anything to do with who would play him in the movie.
“Just the whole idea of somebody else portraying me to the rest of the world was unnerving, for better or worse,” DePodesta said. “They could have made me look like Superman [and] it still would be just sort of odd. That was something that sat in the back of my mind.
“I was asked and saw some different iterations of the script, and I realized the character that was in there wasn’t even me. At that point I had to remind myself, ‘It’s a movie. It’s fiction.’ ”
Jason Isringhausen, who was part of the player exodus from Oakland following the 2001 season that forced the organization to re-evaluate its approach, seemed amused yesterday by the fact Hill was chosen to play DePodesta. Mostly known for his comedic roles in “Superbad” and “Knocked Up,” Hill is the antithesis of DePodesta.
“Paul was the same as now — you never saw him, he was quiet,” Isringhausen said. “[Hill] is totally different than what Paul is.”
DePodesta was asked how he is approaching his upcoming screening of the movie.
“I don’t think it’s really hit me yet,” he said. “I’m not even sure it will when I’m watching it. Maybe it will. Maybe it will hit me right between the eyes when I’m watching it.
“To be honest with you, [the book] ‘Moneyball’ has sort of been out there for so long at this point, everything seems surreal. Now Brad Pitt is on the cover of Sports Illustrated wearing an A’s cap. It’s like, come on. It’s unbelievable.”