Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about Shohei Ohtani’ s near-cycle and newly hot hitting on days when he’s pitched, the Cardinals reinstating Willson Contreras at catcher (and Zac Gallen ’s comments on the Cardinals Way), the Sean Murphy / William Contreras / Esteury Ruiz trade revisited, post-peak Christian Yelich and the breakout of Brent Rooker , the dominant Rays’ possible vulnerability, Aaron Judge peeking while at the plate, the verdict on the shift restrictions so far, the confounding ...
May 17, 2023•1 hr 38 min
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about Akil Baddoo taking a baseball to the beans, broadcasters describing groin shots, and players deciding whether to wear cups. Then they compare a resurgent Joey Gallo and a slumping Andrew Benintendi (20:25), recall reliever Zack Littell ’s affinity for cruise ships (33:22), forecast MLB’s international future (37:22), consider the Dodgers’ secret Ugandan academy (47:06), discuss an update on MLB’s integration of Negro Leagues stats (1:13:40), and assess t...
May 13, 2023•1 hr 47 min
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about Meg’s recovery from COVID and the belated release of the CBA, predict how well White Sox cast-off Jake Diekman will pitch for the Rays, discuss injuries to Luis Garcia , Max Fried , Tyler Mahle , and more pitchers and investigate forearm/flexor strains as potential precursors to Tommy John surgery, react to Jack Flaherty’ s comments about his diminished velocity, assess the state of the Astros’, Mets’, and Braves’ rotations, celebrate the call-up of Marl...
May 12, 2023•1 hr 50 min
Ben Lindbergh talks to Will Leitch about the Cardinals’ horrendous start, their baffling decision to bar big free-agent addition Willson Contreras from catching, how Yadier Molina ’s legacy looms over the franchise, how Oli Marmol and John Mozeliak have handled the team’s struggles, how the rest of the season might go, and more, along with the Effectively Wild connection in Will’s new novel, The Time Has Come . Then (54:51) Ben talks to David Hrusovsky about wearing a SpongeBob costume to Guardi...
May 09, 2023•1 hr 59 min
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about more examples of players whose names describe what they do (like Colin Holderman ), the return of Justin Verlander , Juan Soto’ s overdue hot streak, Keynan Middleton calling out Carlos Correa , the difference between Craig Kimbrel’ s leverage and results, and how success lowers the boo threshold, then (16:22) react to excerpts from Ben’s conversation with an MLB exec about rules changes and strikeouts. After that (37:38), they bring on top-tier Patreon ...
May 05, 2023•2 hr 9 min
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about players being paid for on-field, in-game interviews, pitcher injuries and pitcher call-ups, how low Oakland’s attendance could go (and whether the team might bungle its move to Las Vegas), the NL West race, the AL East’s strength compared to the AL Central’s, which team invented the in-dugout home run ritual, whether the Angels should sign Gary Sánchez , Bryce Harper ’s return, the Marlins’ record in one-run games, Colin Holderman and nominative determin...
May 04, 2023•1 hr 25 min
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the podcast’s naming conventions, the EW reverse jinx boosting Byron Buxton , the stress of observing Jacob deGrom’ s high-wire act, Drew Maggi ’s first major league hit (off of Hobie Harris !), high-scoring, high-altitude baseball in Mexico City, MLB editing (and later restoring) an A’s highlight, White Sox fan unrest, Jazz Chisholm Jr. being mic’d up on a broadcast while batting, the standouts toward the top of the combined WAR leaderboard one month in...
May 01, 2023•1 hr 51 min
In the fourth incarnation of a time-honored tradition that recurs every 500-ish episodes, Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley are joined by former co-hosts Sam Miller and Jeff Sullivan , and The Athletic ’s Grant Brisbee , to draft assorted things that they like about baseball, followed (1:37:06) by a Past Blast from 2000. Audio intro : Benny and the Jeffs, “ Effectively Wild ” Audio outro : Sam Miller, “ Effectively Wild Theme (Ken Maeda’s Nice ‘n’ Easy Remix) ” Link to Episode 500 Link to Episode 996...
Apr 29, 2023•1 hr 44 min
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about Drew Maggi’ s major league debut and whether there should be a way for other journeyman minor leaguers to make the majors more easily, the story of short-lived Mariners mascot Spacey the Space Needle, the causes of a dramatic uptick in occurrences of catcher’s interference, Shohei Ohtani’ s anti-pitch-tipping prowess, Jordan Walker ’s demotion to the minors, the slow starts of the Cardinals and White Sox, and more, plus (1:17:03) a Past Blast from 1999 a...
Apr 28, 2023•1 hr 30 min
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about a good time to be a Pirates fan, whether the red-hot Rays or the ice-cold A’s will regress more toward the mean over the rest of the season, Rob Manfred’s comments about A’s fans, Logan O’Hoppe’ s injury and Brandon Marsh ’s hot streak, whether Bryce Harper has Wolverine’s healing factor, a Byron Buxton catch-22, the Twins’ lack of stolen bases, rosin’s real effects, the early-season injury rate, and more. Then (1:00:20) they Stat Blast about the one pit...
Apr 26, 2023•1 hr 56 min
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the podcast’s semi-official new nickname for Yandy Díaz , what Mookie Betts playing shortstop says about the Dodgers, and Andrew McCutchen ’s hot start, then (15:29) answer emails about the Reds’ many mascots, why we stop at “Quadruple-A,” how good today’s 26th men would be if they traveled back in time, sticky stuff on a tacky ball, and whether MLB would ever privatize publicly accessible Statcast data, followed (47:48) by a Stat Blast about Ross Stripl...
Apr 23, 2023•1 hr 40 min
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the continued Yandy Díaz breakout and listeners’ suggestions for his new beef-related nickname, the greatness of post-peak Clayton Kershaw and the end of Diamondbacks Madison Bumgarner , the Oakland A’s (almost) officially leaving for Las Vegas, a Scott Boras metaphor about Juan Soto , Max Scherzer ’s sticky suspension, the return of Fernando Tatis Jr. , Rob Manfred’s comments about contract-length limitations, the Marlins walking back a Bartman promotio...
Apr 21, 2023•1 hr 33 min
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about whether a remedy for former Yankees slugger Moose Skowron might help current Yankees slugger Giancarlo Stanton , Cody Bellinger’ s rebound and ovation violation, Domingo Germán’ s sticky start, Juan Soto’ s pitch-clock problem, Bryce Harper , hitting machines, and the future of minor-league rehab stints, whether Yandy Díaz’ s “Ground Beef” nickname no longer applies, the reduced drag of the baseball and the overall offensive environment this season, the ...
Apr 19, 2023•1 hr 59 min
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about an NPB matchup between Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Roki Sasaki , those aces’ current talent levels and MLB futures, how velocity has climbed in NPB compared to MLB, and how stealing bases seems to be the one thing Shohei Ohtani (and, for that matter, Mike Trout ) can’t do. Then (18:52) they follow up on earlier conversations about Cast Away , playing baseball on top of a tall building, and a pitcher who throws an unhittable pitch, discuss partial runs (26:53)...
Apr 15, 2023•1 hr 59 min
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the hot start by Jarred Kelenic and when to believe in a breakout, Jo Adell and the mystery of quadruple-A players, the odds of no Marlin hitting for the cycle until Luis Arraez did it this week, the Rays’ record-tying 13th straight win, new reports about new rules, and more. Then (51:12) they answer listener emails about the best urban, non-ballpark setting for baseball, the MLB player they would most want to be stranded with on a desert island (with a ...
Apr 14, 2023•1 hr 35 min
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about a wave of injuries around MLB, affecting Oneil Cruz , Adam Duvall , Ian Anderson , and several other players, the Rays’ undefeated start, the hot starts of James Outman , Miguel Vargas , and Jason Heyward , the sensual stance of J.D. Davis , silly team celebrations, the Rocket City Trash Pandas’ no-hit loss, a downturn in pitch spin, the lack of a downturn in position player pitching, pickoff attempts and game theory, running out the clock on an intentio...
Apr 12, 2023•1 hr 43 min
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about a Star Wars emergency and (5:17) an nVenue Apple odds update, then (8:57) answer listener emails about how good a team has to be to convince people that it’s cheating, a hypothetical Mike Trout ultimatum about Shohei Ohtani , whether MLB would ban a real-life Sidd Finch, whether not having to bat makes pitchers more likely to hit batters, which teams will have the most and fewest pitch-clock violations, clock-defeating schemes using baseballs and beach b...
Apr 08, 2023•1 hr 49 min
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about whether Ben should apply for a full-time job covering Shohei Ohtani , MLB seeking a pitch-clock sponsor, the brilliance of Sandy Alcantara , clock violations leading to ejections, post-Opening Day call-ups for top prospects (most notably Grayson Rodriguez ), Alcantara compared to Jacob deGrom , the feud between Tyler O’Neill and Oli Marmol, whether teams in last place will stay there, early playoff odds changes, neither overreacting nor underreacting to ...
Apr 07, 2023•1 hr 28 min
Ben Lindbergh and Noah Woodward of the newsletter The Advance Scout discuss Noah’s front-office career, the impact of the MLB rules changes on pace/time of game, the running game, and hitting and defense so far, how players may adapt, the questions Ben and Noah still have about the rules’ long-term effects, Rob Manfred’s characterization of analytics as “an arms race to nowhere,” and more. Then (1:00:26) Ben brings on LJ Rader of the Twitter/Instagram account Art But Make It Sports to explain ho...
Apr 04, 2023•1 hr 59 min
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the joy of Opening Day and other news, including early reactions to the new rules, Rob Manfred’s comments about the ball-strike challenge system, Aaron Judge ’s first homer, the Angels’ Tungsten Arm game, a good/bad Hunter Renfroe no-look catch, a Taylor Ward name mix-up, the Giants’ latest new left fielder, a Cristian Pache press release, Buck Martinez, George Santos’s message for the Mets, the minor league CBA, an on-field proposal gone wrong (but also...
Apr 01, 2023•2 hr 9 min
Ben Lindbergh, Meg Rowley, and FanGraphs authors Michael Baumann and Ben Clemens play “SEC Baseball Player vs. Figure Involved in the Lincoln Assassination,” banter about two umpire faux pas (3:45) and MLB’s tweaks to replay reviewing (9:45), and then (17:32) each make 10 predictions about baseball in 2023 to be voted on by listeners , followed (1:40:16) by two Past Blasts from 1987. Audio intro : Ian Phillips, “ Effectively Wild Theme ” Audio outro : The Baseball Project, “ All Future and No Pa...
Mar 29, 2023•1 hr 51 min
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about prospects who have ( Jordan Walker , Anthony Volpe ) and haven’t ( Grayson Rodriguez , Brett Baty ) made Opening Day rosters and MLB’s player-centric PSAs about the new rules, then complete their 2023 season preview series by discussing the Atlanta Braves (15:07) with Grant McAuley of 92.9 The Game, and the Colorado Rockies (53:50) with Danielle Allentuck of The Denver Gazette , plus a Past Blast from 1986 (1:26:07), trivia answers (1:30:00), a Stat Blas...
Mar 28, 2023•1 hr 49 min
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the advisability of suspending the pitch clock in certain high-stakes situations, some last-minute spring-training tweaks to the clock’s operation, and MLB’s marketing campaign about the new rules, then continue their 2023 season preview series by discussing the San Diego Padres (30:15) with AJ Cassavell of MLB.com, and the Cincinnati Reds (1:15:40) with C. Trent Rosecrans of The Athletic , plus a Past Blast from 1985 (1:54:31), trivia answers (1:59:57),...
Mar 24, 2023
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter euphorically about the unbelievable ending of the World Baseball Classic, from Japan’s semifinal game against Mexico, to the climactic showdown between Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout in the USA-Japan final, to what made the whole WBC such a success. Then (52:02) they close the book on meeting major leaguers from 2022 by talking to James Bailey , author of Major League Debuts: 2023 Edition , about his new series of annual books about every player who makes the ma...
Mar 23, 2023•1 hr 41 min
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about Team USA’s WBC quarterfinal and semifinal victories and Jose Altuve ’s injury, then continue their 2023 season preview series by discussing the New York Yankees (28:17) with Brendan Kuty of The Athletic , and the Washington Nationals (1:06:41) with Jesse Dougherty of The Washington Post , plus a Past Blast from 1983 (1:47:29), trivia answers (1:52:16), and an initial reaction to a stone-cold classic Japan-Mexico WBC semifinal (1:53:33). 2023 EW Season Pr...
Mar 21, 2023•1 hr 59 min
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the WBC’s TV ratings in Japan and (8:56) possible consequences of MLB’s RSN shake-up, then continue their 2023 season preview series by discussing the New York Mets (21:08) with Deesha Thosar of Fox Sports, and the Oakland Athletics (1:00:11) with Matt Kawahara of The SF Chronicle , plus a Past Blast from 1982 (1:39:53) and trivia answers (1:52:11). 2023 EW Season Preview Series AL BAL CHW ATH BOS CLE HOU NYY DET LAA TBR KCR SEA TOR MIN TEX NL ATL CHC AR...
Mar 18, 2023•1 hr 57 min
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about Edwin Díaz ’s season-ending injury at the WBC and the anti-WBC sentiment it engendered, then (20:39) bring on top-tier Patreon supporter Michael Eisen to discuss his history with Effectively Wild and baseball and how his scientific research is analogous to baseball research, before answering listener emails (31:29) about the best way to use an ambidextrous pitcher, reenacting a specific baseball game, what it would be like if baseball players were worse ...
Mar 17, 2023•1 hr 56 min
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about recent WBC highlights, whether the WBC should be held more often (7:44), extensions for Corbin Carroll and Keibert Ruiz (19:50), MLB preparing to take over streaming for some teams amid the Diamond Sports bankruptcy (21:22), Trevor Bauer departing for Japan (31:17), and an Effectively Wild theme song contest (35:43), then continue their 2023 season preview series by discussing the Tampa Bay Rays (42:57) with Adam Berry of MLB.com, and the Detroit Tigers ...
Mar 15, 2023•2 hr 5 min
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the exciting beginning of the WBC, early indications in spring training that MLB’s rules changes are having the intended effects, and a classic unprecedented occurrence in a baseball game, then continue their 2023 season preview series by discussing the Houston Astros (17:49) with Chandler Rome of The Houston Chronicle , and the Pittsburgh Pirates (59:39) with Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette , plus a Past Blast from 1979 (1:30:38), preview tr...
Mar 10, 2023•1 hr 44 min
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley welcome back former co-host Sam Miller to banter about his return to public baseball writing, his current relationship with baseball, and his new Substack, Pebble Hunting . Then (17:10) Ben, Meg, and Sam talk about a 1913 article about unprecedented events at the ballpark, the cliché about seeing something new at every game, the supreme examples of that phenomenon from any point in baseball history, games they attended, and games they paid attention to, and examples ...
Mar 09, 2023•2 hr 1 min
