One of my favorite sequences in Moneyball is the Athletics-Royals match-up, where the A’s are going for their 20th consecutive win. Brad Pitt‘s Billy Beane doesn’t make a habit of attending games, but shows up at this one. His guys are up 11-0 when he arrives. Then they proceed to blow the lead, letting the Royals tie. Chris Pratt‘s Scott Hatteberg steps to the plate. Beane hangs his head, as if caught between praying and readying himself for defeat.
Hatteberg makes contact. Beane’s head comes up. He knows the sound of a hit with potential. And sure enough, it’s gone. The A’s get their 20th in a row. (Honestly, I could go on and on about the beauty of the scene‘s execution, but that’s not really the point of this.)
How many Hattebergs did we have this year?
Sadly, I’m not among you, having gone down in flames with the missus to a Bing-and-Bowie soundtrack a week ago. But I know we’ve got a bunch who triumphantly watched their shot sail over the wall. And I’ve got company in the Land o’ Defeat. Either way, a game well played.
So here comes the usual reminder: please share your victory LDBC-elfies as comments to a post on the Facebook page, or post them on Bluesky and tag @littledrummerboychallenge.com.
And, as always, please fill out the reporting form (bit.ly/ldbcform) if you haven’t yet, so our stats are complete for the final post.
Also, if you’re willing and able, please consider donating to Americares, the traditional charity of the LDBC. As always, it’s not a requirement, but you can donate here.
Thanks from the bottom of my heart for once again taking part in this Thing of Ours. Happy Holidays, and a very Happy New Year to you and those you care about. I hope 2026 is good to all of us, and I’ll see you in a bit with the final post once I’ve tallied the numbers.
A little help, if you can: once again, we’re battling the darkness that is The Boy by trying to shed some light on the situation. So if you’re willing and able to help this year, Americares is who we’re giving to this year.
As I say every year, there’s no obligation. Everybody’s welcome in this Thing of Ours, whether you contribute or not. But if you can, Americares is a great organization.
Little Drummer Boy Challenge 
I would like to thank the Academy for my third win ever. I will admit, there were times in particular locations – airport lounge two days ago – where the soundtrack of non religious xmas tunes seemed headed right at me, but no! Not today Boy!!
Congrats, Don, and Happy Holidays!