Analyst Talk - Amy Schoch - The Curveball Analyst

Episode: 00342 Released on October 26, 2026 Description: After spending 26 years working in minor league baseball, Amy Schoch never imagined her next career would be in law enforcement analysis. But when COVID brought her baseball career to an unexpected end, she found herself starting over as an administrative assistant with the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department. What began as a temporary job turned into a second career and a new passion.

In this episode of Analyst Talk with Jason Elder, Amy shares her journey from baseball promotions and marketing to becoming an criminal intelligence analyst. She discusses how her marketing background influences her approach to data visualization, dashboards, and analytical products, and why analysts need to think about how they communicate and market their work to decision-makers.

Amy also shares her Analyst Badge Story involving a series of dollar store robberies. By mapping locations, identifying patterns, and looking beyond county boundaries, she helped connect investigations and identify a suspect. The experience reinforced the value of curiosity, creative thinking, and collaboration across jurisdictions.

The conversation also explores using AI to improve analytical products, the importance of continuous learning, and the surprising similarities between baseball and crime analysis. Amy and Jason even play a game of "Baseball or Crime Analysis?" before discussing running, Disney races, and Amy's Words to the World: "Look beyond the obvious and understand the story beneath it." [Note:  Description produced by ChatGPT.]
Name Drops:  Bob Ross (00:08:15), Mike Winslow (00:20:55), Sean Ramaran (00:43:20), Natalie Fellows (00:45:20), Dr. Carly Province (00:45:25) 
Public Service Announcements:
Jessica Elsmore (https://www.leapodcasts.com/e/atwje-jessica-elsmore-the-hustler/)
Kyle Mcfatridge (https://www.leapodcasts.com/e/atwje-kyle-mcfatridge-the-sna-sme/)
Jennifer Loper (https://www.leapodcasts.com/e/atwje-jennifer-loper-the-junk-drawer/)
Related Links: 
https://www.nashville.gov/departments/police
https://www.mlb.com/milb/nashville
DYK with Mike Winslow:  https://www.leapodcasts.com/?s=did%20you%20know%20with%20Mike%20winslow 
Sean Ramaran:  https://www.leapodcasts.com/e/atwje-sean-rambaran-the-let-bylaws-be-bygones-analyst/ 
Association(s) Mentioned:
Vendor(s) Mentioned:
Contact:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/aschoch/
Transcript:  https://mcdn.podbean.com/mf/web/54ixcgqa2wazq3n8/AmySchoch_transcript.pdf
Podcast Writer:
Podcast Researcher:
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00:02:08 - From Minor League Baseball to Law Enforcement Analysis
00:10:35 - Adjusting to Police Department Culture
00:16:35 - Applying Marketing Skills to Analytical Products
00:25:35 - Using AI and Technology to Improve Analyst Work
00:31:15 - Amy's Analyst Badge Story: The Dollar Store Robbery Series
00:37:45 - Marketing the Value of Crime Analysis
00:40:55 - Baseball or Crime Analysis? A Game of Shared Concepts
00:44:50 - Advice for Analysts: Be a Sponge
00:46:30 - Personal Interests: Running and Disney Races
00:52:55 - Words to the World: Look Beyond the Obvious