Effectively Wild Episode 1494: Listen to What the Bang Said

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley recap and consider the implications of the latest and greatest analyses of the Astros’ banging scheme, which appear to show that the team’s cheating didn’t increase its offensive production in the aggregate. Then (20:08) they talk to the man who made that research possible, longtime Astros fan Tony Adams, about his epic effort to document the extent of the Astros’ banging scheme, what motivated him to spend weeks watching and listening to pitches from 2017 Astros games, how he felt about the revelation that the Astros had illegally stolen signs, what the 2017 title meant to him at the time, what it means to him now, and the 2020 team. Lastly (53:56), they bring on Professor Woody Studenmund to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the pioneering North East League, the oldest APBA league in existence, and explain the appeal of baseball simulation games, the highlights of the league’s history, and the value of having a lifelong hobby.

Audio intro: Galactic (Feat. Mavis Staples), "Does it Really Make a Difference"
Audio interstitial 1: Johnny Flynn, "Been Listening"
Audio interstitial 2: The Coasters, "Keep on Rolling"
Audio outro: Lee Graves, "Sixty Years and a Day"

Link to SignStealingScandal.com
Link to Rob Arthur’s article
Link to Bill Petti’s thread
Link to Ben on sign stealing’s effectiveness
Link to The Athletic article about Tony
Link to info on APBA
Link to article on the NEL
Link to The APBA Blog
Link to order The MVP Machine

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