Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley link up during the Winter Meetings for a brief bonus episode in which Meg tries to stump Ben about genuine and fake media-scrum statements supposedly made by baseball superagent Scott Boras. Audio intro : Yo La Tengo, " If it’s True " Audio outro : Jethro Tull, " Sparrow on the Schoolyard Wall " Link to photo of Boras scrum Link to order The MVP Machine iTunes Feed (Please rate and review us!) Sponsor Us on Patreon Facebook Group Effectively Wild Wiki Twitter Account...
Dec 10, 2019•24 min
Ben Lindbergh and Sam Miller follow up on (o)possums playing dead, discuss the Nationals signing Stephen Strasburg to a record contract for a pitcher and the implications for the Nationals, Scott Boras, Anthony Rendon , and Gerrit Cole , banter about the possibility of Shohei Ohtani hitting on the days he pitches, the elections of Marvin Miller and Ted Simmons to the Hall of Fame, MLB moving the amateur draft site to Omaha, and the end of marijuana testing for minor leaguers, then review the fir...
Dec 10, 2019•1 hr 17 min
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about covering transactions past and present, the latest eye-catching comments by Scott Boras, the Tommy Pham trade and Blake Snell ’s candid real-time reaction to it, and what the busy signing season so far augurs for the future of free agency and labor relations, then answer listener emails about players with more times caught stealing than strikeouts and team TV networks airing classic losses, with additional discussion of the weird and wonderful Nick Madri...
Dec 07, 2019•1 hr 17 min
Ben Lindbergh and Sam Miller discuss a crowdsourced effort to help baseball writer Jen Ramos , then banter about hot stove terminology and why free-agent activity seems to be picking up, analyzing the implications of a busy non-tender deadline day and the expectations-exceeding signings of Drew Pomeranz , Mike Moustakas , Cole Hamels , Zack Wheeler , José Abreu , and others, as well as changes in how teams evaluate players and the benefits of playing possum. Then they answer listener emails abou...
Dec 05, 2019•1 hr 17 min
Ben Lindbergh and Sam Miller banter anew about José Abreu ’s perplexing RBI total, then predict and discuss the answers in the sequel to “the Crasnicks,” a survey of front-office executives on hot-button offseason questions conducted by ESPN’s Jesse Rogers. Along the way, they touch on the four-player Padres-Brewers trade involving Luis Urías and Trent Grisham , the Orioles placing Jonathan Villar on outright waivers, the definition of a “splash,” and more, plus post-discussion banter on the bas...
Dec 02, 2019•1 hr 24 min
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the artifacts from the 2019 season that will be preserved by the Hall of Fame, and then (32:25) Ben talks to FanGraphs’ Jay Jaffe about the 2020 Hall of Fame induction cycle, including the shrinking of the ballot backlog, first-timers Derek Jeter and Bobby Abreu , whether Jeter will be elected unanimously, Larry Walker ’s chances in his last year of eligibility, which other holdovers on the ballot may benefit from the weak crop of debuts, Barry Bonds and...
Nov 27, 2019•1 hr 24 min
Ben Lindbergh and Sam Miller banter about Charlie Finley’s dual “innovations,” Harvey and Little Blowhard, then answer listener emails about Chris Davis and why some veteran players may be unwilling to change, whether Gerrit Cole could regress away from Houston, the purpose of punishing the Astros for sign-stealing and how many years of draft picks a team would give up in exchange for a championship, and whether baseball players will ever take in-season vacations, plus Stat Blasts about players ...
Nov 26, 2019•1 hr 12 min
Ben Lindbergh and Sam Miller banter about what the Padres’ 2017 Rule 5 trio is up to now, the Mariners’ aggressive Evan White extension, how teams would distribute their spending if every player (amateur or pro) were a free agent but spending were capped at a percentage of MLB revenue, the just-announced All-MLB Team, the White Sox signing Yasmani Grandal , whether the early action on the free-agent market has been at all surprising or encouraging, and the results of Sam’s surveys about a “Baseb...
Nov 26, 2019•1 hr 15 min
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley host a FanGraphs Live! event and EW taping at Subculture in Manhattan, featuring three panels comprising seven guests: “Major League Update” (current events and New York baseball) with FanGraphs’ Jay Jaffe and The Athletic’ s Lindsey Adler and Mark Carig ; “Baseball By the Numbers” (sabermetrics and Statcast) with FanGraphs’ Craig Edwards and MLB.com’s Mike Petriello (45:54); and “UMP: The Untitled McDongenhagen Panel” (scouting and player evaluation) with FanGraphs’...
Nov 22, 2019
Ben Lindbergh and Sam Miller talk to Paul Dickson, author of The Hidden Language of Baseball: How Signs and Sign-Stealing Have Influenced the Course of Our National Pastime , about, well, what the book’s subtitle says, including the origins of sign-sending, the earliest allegations of sign-stealing, historical precedents for the Astros’ sign-stealing scheme, the effects of sign-stealing, why so many players say they prefer not to know which pitch is coming, the frequent disagreements surrounding...
Nov 20, 2019•55 min
Ben Lindbergh and Sam Miller banter about “sinister right-handers” and scientific songs, then discuss the latest revelations about the Astros sign-stealing saga before reviewing the overlooked accomplishments of some of 2019’s league leaders and discussing the role of bold ink in the era of sabermetric saturation. Audio intro : Liam Gallagher, " Bold " Audio outro : Sloan, " Follow the Leader " Link to image of Astros tunnel Link to The Athletic report about email to Astros scouts Link to ESPN r...
Nov 19, 2019
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the first stirrings on the free-agent market, the latest developments in the Astros sign-stealing scandal, where MLB investigation’s might lead, what the appropriate punishments would be, the psychology of sign-stealing, whether pitchers should call pitches, fighting technology with technology, Mike Trout ’s MVP award win, a fixable flaw in the BBWAA’s awards voting, the hirings of Ben Cherington and Gabe Kapler, and EW Secret Santa sign-ups, plus a post...
Nov 16, 2019•1 hr 16 min
Ben Lindbergh and Sam Miller banter about the latest linguistic crimes by Scott Boras, then discuss the Astros sign-sealing scandal, touching on Mike Fiers’ role in the revelations, whether sign-stealing actually benefited the Astros, the immorality of sign-stealing, what the Astros’ punishment should be, the history of sign-stealing, whether the Astros sign-stealers acted alone, whether other teams are stealing signs in a similar way, what MLB can do to prevent electronic sign-stealing, the fut...
Nov 14, 2019•1 hr 14 min
Ben Lindbergh and Sam Miller banter about the baffling trade rumors swirling around Mookie Betts , Francisco Lindor , and Kris Bryant , try to discern why they would be on the block, discuss how the likelihood of the top-rated team winning the World Series compares to the likelihood of the best team taking the title in other sports, and then conduct their fifth annual free-agent-contract over/under draft. Audio intro : Ben Kweller, " Free " Audio outro : The Only Ones, " You’ve Got to Pay " Link...
Nov 12, 2019•1 hr 25 min
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about Ben’s return from vacation and Meg and Sam’s episodes in his absence, former Angels minor leaguer Mike Fish (not to be confused with Mike Trout ), and a roundup of recent news, including Stephen Strasburg opting out, J.D. Martinez not opting out, Mookie Betts trade rumors, robot umps coming to the minor leagues, new old Hall of Fame candidates, and comments by Braves GM Alex Anthopoulos that kicked off a collusion conversation. Then (39:11) they talk to ...
Nov 09, 2019•1 hr 30 min
Sam Miller and Meg Rowley revisit a fast-moving 1916 afternoon tilt between the Asheville Tourists and the Winston-Salem Twins with some historic significance, and engage in an Effectively Wild experiment. Audio intro : Ben Gibbard and Feist “ Train Song ” Interstitial: Muddy Waters “ Train Fare Home Blues ” Audio outro : Oscar Peterson Trio “ Things Ain’t What They Used to Be “ Link to Heidi Coryell Williams’ Our State piece, “Hell and High Water: Hell and High Water: The Flood of 1916” Link to...
Nov 07, 2019•41 min
Meg Rowley and Sam Miller banter about Ben Lindbergh’s vacation-induced absence, an unusual umpire Wikipedia entry, and the acceptability of failure, before turning their attention to a few listener emails answered during the Jeff Sullivan era, including what would happen if Giancarlo Stanton only tried to hit home runs, how they would prefer to consume baseball if they could only do so through either twitter or a livestream, and whether baseball would be better if it were played in masks. Audio...
Nov 05, 2019•1 hr 9 min
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the Nationals’ well-earned World Series victory, the Nationals players they’re happiest for, the a strange, all-road-wins series, the brilliance of Zack Greinke , the decisions of A.J. Hinch (including a bad bunt, pulling Greinke, using Will Harris , and not using Gerrit Cole ), Max Scherzer ’s high-wire act, the futures of the Nationals and Astros, the free agencies of Cole, Stephen Strasburg , and Anthony Rendon , Scott Boras owning the offseason, whic...
Oct 31, 2019•1 hr 44 min
Ben Lindbergh and Sam Miller banter about a wild World Series Game 6, including a controversial interference call on Trea Turner , a strange conference call with New York, the ejection of Dave Martinez, the greatness of Stephen Strasburg , George Springer , Anthony Rendon , and Juan Soto , bat-carrying briefly becoming the new bat-flipping, a Max Scherzer sighting, why this series has been strange, the Nats pulling Strasburg in the ninth inning, and the outlook for Game 7. Audio intro : The Dece...
Oct 30, 2019•1 hr 1 min
Ben Lindbergh and Sam Miller banter about audible umpires, Lance Barksdale’s ball/strike calls in World Series Game 5, the Nationals’ offensive outage in Games 3-5, Max Scherzer’s neck spasms, Dave Martinez’s moves, why the series has been somewhat unexciting, the Nationals’ and Astros’ outlooks going into Game 6, the Astros’ retraction of their statement about Stephanie Apstein and Sports Illustrated , and a few hirings across the league, including the Pirates firing GM Neal Huntington and the ...
Oct 29, 2019
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley discuss the latest on the Astros and the benefits and limitations of front-office diversity, Rob Manfred’s new comments about the baseball, Kris Bryant ’s grievance against the Cubs, umpire Rob Drake’s apology for a bad tweet, and Yu Darvish’ s good tweets, then answer listener emails about Juan Soto’ s age and clubhouse drinking, the Nationals’ clubhouse chemistry, whether teams should stagger their starters to avoid opponents’ aces, whether stealing third is easier...
Oct 25, 2019•1 hr 14 min
After an update from Ben Lindbergh on the Astros’ firing of Brandon Taubman and inadequate apology, Ben and Sam Miller follow up on a discussion of postseason chase rate, talk more about Taubman, and break down the first two games of the World Series, focusing on what went right for the Nationals, what went wrong for the Astros, why putting balls in play can be both good and bad, what lessons teams might draw from this postseason and the Nationals’ success, the outlook for the rest of the series...
Oct 24, 2019•1 hr 21 min
Ben Lindbergh and Sam Miller banter about their playoff livestreams, the Yankees’ ALCS defeat, why pitchers are allowed to demand new baseballs, and pulling a catcher from the game when a team is leading, then discuss Sports Illustrated reporter Stephanie Apstein’s report about the post-ALCS behavior of Astros assistant GM Brandon Taubman, the Astros’ response to that report, the response to that response, and why the Astros’ actions seem so reprehensible and signify pervasive problems. Then the...
Oct 22, 2019•1 hr 12 min
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about their upcoming live event, review ALCS Game 4, the Yankees’ precarious position, and the career and last appearance of CC Sabathia , then discuss the significance of MLB both allowing investment funds to take minority stakes in multiple clubs and proposing to downsize and reorganize the minor leagues before wrapping up by answering listener emails about whether the Cardinals’ season was a success and whether it would make sense to change the playoff stru...
Oct 19, 2019•1 hr 22 min
Ben Lindbergh and Sam Miller discuss the Nationals’ sweep of the Cardinals, why the Nationals are good and fun, Stephen Strasburg and the history of no. 1 draft pick pitchers, Gerrit Cole ’s performance in ALCS Game 3, how Wednesday’s rainout affects the Yankees and Astros, and the Angels’ opioid problem and hiring of Joe Maddon as manager. Then (36:22) they talk to writer and researcher Rob Arthur about the de-juiced postseason ball, how we can tell that the ball is behaving differently, how mu...
Oct 17, 2019•1 hr 23 min
Ben Lindbergh and Sam Miller break down the latest ALCS and NLCS action, touching on the Cardinals’ offensive outage, Mike Shildt’s old-school managing, the Nationals’ pitching, the Astros’ purported pitch-tipping and sign-stealing, Aaron Boone’s quick hooks, and the de-juiced ball, plus a Stat Blast about this October’s anomalous bullpen usage. Audio intro : Neil Young, " Wolf Moon " Audio outro : The Flaming Lips, " Hit Me Like You Did the First Time " Link to story on Paxton’s pitch-tipping i...
Oct 14, 2019
Ben Lindbergh and Sam Miller banter about Sam’s thoughts on Clayton Kershaw , Joe Kelly , and Dave Roberts, Tyler Glasnow’ s pitch-tipping, Gerrit Cole ’s strikeout streak, and the future of the Rays, the Astros-Yankees and Nationals-Cardinals championship series matchups, and whether it ever makes sense to predict a postseason sweep or a series lasting the maximum number of games. Audio intro : Avey Tare, " Tipped in Hugs " Audio outro : The Bees, " Sweet Like a Champion " Link to Ben on Dave R...
Oct 11, 2019•1 hr 3 min
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the wild NLDS Game 5 between the Dodgers and the Nationals and the wild (in a different way) NLDS Game 5 between the Braves and the Cardinals, touching on Clayton Kershaw ’s blown lead and postseason career, what Dave Roberts was thinking and what’s next for him, the Nationals winning a postseason series, the Cardinals’ 10-0 first-inning lead and Jack Flaherty , Cardinals rookie Ryan Helsley and the Tomahawk Chop (1:24:48), the new, higher-drag baseball,...
Oct 11, 2019•1 hr 52 min
Ben Lindbergh and Sam Miller banter about Sam’s delayed postseason viewing schedule and five macro traits of the playoffs thus far (low batting averages with runners in scoring position, starters outperforming relievers, high pitch counts, the ball not carrying, and late-debuting postseason players), then analyze aspects of every ongoing and completed division series, including Mike Shildt’s managing, the Nationals’ bullpen use, the Astros’ rotation, Charlie Morton ’s mesmerizing pitch overlay, ...
Oct 08, 2019•1 hr 12 min
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley discuss and reflect on the first two games of the Nationals-Dodgers and Braves-Cardinals NL division series and the first games of the Astros-Rays and Yankees-Twins AL division series, focusing on playoff win probabilities, the Nationals’ aggressive/desperate usage of Max Scherzer , the greatness of Stephen Strasburg , a perplexing but ultimately not costly intentional walk, the Braves’ Game 2 redemption and an old-school duel, the contrast between the latest Ronald ...
Oct 05, 2019•1 hr 3 min
