Effectively Wild: A FanGraphs Baseball Podcast

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the Cubs signing Craig Kimbrel, ruminating about how he’ll help Chicago, why other teams may have held off, and why it took so long for his prolonged free agency to come to a close. Then (18:06) they bring on FanGraphs prospect experts Kiley McDaniel and Eric Longenhagen to analyze the amateur draft and modern development, touching on player picks and team approaches they liked or disliked, how their mock drafts held up, pitchers vs. position players, trends in the types of players selected, whether there’s more consensus among clubs about amateur prospects than there used to be, how data is changing the draft and development, whether technology is inclusive or exclusive, college pitch counts, 2018 draftees who’ve improved the most, whether prospects will be promoted more quickly than before, changing the time and location of the draft, the outlook for the 2020 amateur draft, the ETA for (and problems with) an international draft, and more (plus a Dallas Keuchel addendum). Audio intro: Jim James, "Better Late Than Never" Audio interstitial: Sparks, "Reinforcements" Audio outro: Super Furry Animals, "The Gift That Keeps Giving" Link to Rosenthal on the Cubs signing Kimbrel Link to Rosenthal on other teams not signing Kimbrel Link to Craig Edwards on the Kimbrel signing Link to Craig’s draft-pick valuations Link to Kiley and Eric’s first-round review Link to Kiley and Eric’s draft odds and ends Link to part one of Rany’s research on high-school hitters Link to part two of Rany’s research on high-school hitters Link to Kiley on hitter development in college Link to Ben on pitcher development in college Link to Gerald on 2019 college pitcher usage Link to Eno on draft trends Link to Kiley and Eric’s podcast on the international draft Link to Trout and Ohtani as the new Bash Brothers Link to order The MVP Machine  iTunes Feed (Please rate and review us!)  Sponsor Us on Patreon  Facebook Group  Effectively Wild Wiki  Twitter Account  Get Our Merch!  Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com Source

Ben Lindbergh and Sam Miller banter about the paucity of pitchers selected at the top of the draft, the Hall of Famers Mike Trout passed in career WAR in May, Trout’s quietly impressive season, whether WAR has helped Trout’s reputation more than Trout has helped WAR’s, the surprising names at the top of the 2019 WAR leaderboard for pitchers, and Andrew McCutchen’s season-ending ACL injury, then answer listener emails about baseball-inspired national holidays, what would happen if Max Scherzer insisted on batting cleanup, and the most inconsequential topics discussed on baseball broadcasts, plus an update on the pulling-pitchers-mid-plate-appearance approach and a Stat Blast on the lack of good hitters over 30 and whether old players are getting worse or young players are just getting better. Audio intro: John Lennon, "Cleanup Time" Audio outro: The Cardigans, "War" Link to the amateur draft’s first-round results Link to Ben on the decline of top-rated pro pitching prospects Link to Sam on the Hall of Famers Trout passed in May Link to Meg on Hamels Link to Ben and Rob on old hitters and fastballs Link to Rob on old hitters’ slow pace Link to order The MVP Machine  iTunes Feed (Please rate and review us!)  Sponsor Us on Patreon  Facebook Group  Effectively Wild Wiki  Twitter Account  Get Our Merch!  Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com Source

Ben Lindbergh and Sam Miller banter about whether it would make sense for one team to “blow up the draft” by ignoring the bonus slotting system for one year, paying a premium for the top amateur talent, and incurring the maximum financial penalty. Then they discuss Ben’s new book about baseball’s player-development revolution, The MVP Machine: How Baseball’s New Nonconformists Are Using Data to Build Better Players, which is out today. (Go get it now!) Audio intro: The Tragically Hip, "Machine" Audio outro: George Harrison, "Try Some, Buy Some" Link to Passan on the MLB draft Link to first excerpt from The MVP Machine Link to Foley’s book-signing event Link to order The MVP Machine  iTunes Feed (Please rate and review us!)  Sponsor Us on Patreon  Facebook Group  Effectively Wild Wiki  Twitter Account  Get Our Merch!  Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com Source

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the Mariners’ recent run of ineptitude, why some teams talk to the media and whether there’s a moral obligation for teams to share information about preventing player injuries, a question from a fantasy player who’s aiming to compete in 2027, a Clayton Kershaw vs. Jacob deGrom matchup as non-must-see TV, and the aging of Kershaw compared to that of Felix Hernandez, then discuss the arguments against and for extending the protective netting in MLB ballparks to the foul lines (and mention a few FanGraphs upgrades). Audio intro: Graham Parker, "Protection" Audio outro: Dr. Dog, "How Long Must I Wait?" Link to Ben on college player development Link to Ben on protecting team secrets Link to Elton question Link to study on injuries from foul balls Link to Travis on the uptick in fouls Link to Rosenthal on extending the netting Link to FanGraphs’ mock draft 3.0 Link to Kiley on college player development Link to Foley’s book-signing event Link to preorder The MVP Machine  iTunes Feed (Please rate and review us!)  Sponsor Us on Patreon  Facebook Group  Effectively Wild Wiki  Twitter Account  Get Our Merch!  Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com Source

Ben Lindbergh and Sam Miller banter about a small way in which Willians Astudillo made the world better, baseball as a conversational icebreaker, Cody Bellinger’s incredible WAR pace, whether Bellinger is overshadowing the rest of the Dodgers (and Clay Bellinger), and a few of 2019’s other breakout batters, present a Stat Blast about Statcast no-hitters (and Statcast hitting streaks), then answer listener emails about whether playoff odds are fair to teams that appear out of the race and why we don’t see more pitchers pulled in the middle of plate appearances. Audio intro: The Flying Burrito Brothers, "Cody, Cody" Audio outro: Stephen Malkmus, "The Hook" Link to Petriello on Bellinger’s possibly best-ever season Link to Sam on Bellinger’s possibly best-ever season Link to Sam on Statcast no-hitters Link to MLB.com on Statcast hitting streaks Link to Sam on alternate timelines Link to Sam on season simulations Link to Sam on season simulations again Link to Sam on out-of-contention teams Link to Nate on FiveThirtyEight forecast calibration Link to FiveThirtyEight forecast calibration interactive tool Link to Ben on matchup decisions Link to article about Girardi pitching change Link to 2015 podcast conversation about Girardi pitching change Link to Foley’s book-signing event Link to preorder The MVP Machine  iTunes Feed (Please rate and review us!)  Sponsor Us on Patreon  Facebook Group  Effectively Wild Wiki  Twitter Account  Get Our Merch!  Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com Source

Ben Lindbergh and Sam Miller banter about the Rays’ four-man outfield against Cavan Biggio and the gradual ascendance of four-man outfields across the league, Sam’s belated thoughts on the Mets and baseball in Avengers: Endgame, a few underappreciated aspects of the late Bill Buckner’s career, and the record number of MLB debuts this decade by sons of former big leaguers (including the return of star-caliber sons), then discuss the origins and sustainability of the Minnesota Twins’ best-in-baseball start to the season, what makes the Twins an entertaining team, Cleveland’s comparatively disastrous first two months, and more. Audio intro: Garcia Peoples, "Four Walls" Audio outro: Weezer, "Trampoline" Link to picture of four-man outfield against Biggio Link to article about Biggio’s swing change Link to four-man-outfield instances per season Link to Ben on the history of four-man outfields Link to Buckner on the Fielding Runs leaderboard Link to Buckner on the Defensive WAR leaderboard Link to examples of the Mets in post-apocalyptic movies Link to Travis on MLB fathers and sons Link to Stubbs interview episode Link to Foley’s book-signing event Link to preorder The MVP Machine  iTunes Feed (Please rate and review us!)  Sponsor Us on Patreon  Facebook Group  Effectively Wild Wiki  Twitter Account  Get Our Merch!  Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com Source

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about snow in Colorado, the Rockies and the decline of Kyle Freeland, and the new-look Lucas Giolito and the White Sox rebuild, then discuss the state of the standings and the number of teams out of contention, touching on how the bad teams got that way, the impact of losing on attendance, the merits of rebuilding, the struggles of the Indians and Nationals (and the success of the Twins), the frequency of blowouts, Mike Trout leading the league in WAR, and consuming the season via players instead of via teams, and more. Audio intro: Vampire Weekend, "Spring Snow" Audio outro: The Proper Ornaments, "Who Thought" Link to THT piece on Coors Field Link to Freeland interview episode Link to Devan on Giolito Link to video of Giolito mechanics Link to Eaton-Frazier feud explainer Link to Rob Arthur on bad teams being out of the race Link to Rob Arthur on losing and attendance Link to Rob Mains on the decline of comebacks Link to Jay on Cleveland’s offense Link to Devan on the Memorial Day checkpoint Link to preorder The MVP Machine  iTunes Feed (Please rate and review us!)  Sponsor Us on Patreon  Facebook Group  Effectively Wild Wiki  Twitter Account  Get Our Merch!  Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com Source

Ben Lindbergh and Sam Miller banter about Robinson Cano hurting himself hustling, Chris Carter dominating the Mexican League, the incredible continuing career of Ruben Rivera, pop-up dekes, a possible fun fact involving Orioles homers, the return of Ryan Feierabend (and an uncommon complete game), multiple improvements for instant replay review, and the significance of Carter Stewart signing with the Fukuoka Softbank Hawks of the NPB, then answer listener emails about using Statcast for fair/foul calls, the most unique lineups in a single season (and league-wide unique-lineup creep, plus the most painful thing ever to happen in baseball history), and a shift in which the pitcher covers first, plus a Stat Blast about the gradual disappearance of games with more walks than strikeouts. Audio intro: Run-DMC, "Hit it Run" Audio outro: Jenny Lewis, "On the Line" Link to Ben on the cost of Cano not hustling Link to GIF of Cano’s injury Link to video of Carter Link to Mexican League leaderboard Link to Rivera’s bottomless B-Ref page Link to Passan on the Mexican League Link to Jay on Feierabend’s knuckleball Link to Kiley on Stewart and Boras Link to Passan on Stewart Link to KG on Boras loopholes Link to lineups data Link to info on teams maximizing minor-league options Link to video of Colon vs. Gordon Link to preorder The MVP Machine  iTunes Feed (Please rate and review us!)  Sponsor Us on Patreon  Facebook Group  Effectively Wild Wiki  Twitter Account  Get Our Merch!  Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com Source

Ben Lindbergh and Sam Miller banter about Sean Doolittle’s delivery and Steve Pearce’s even/odd-year pattern, then discuss current record chases (involving Cody Bellinger, Christian Yelich, and the Orioles’ pitching staff), whether it’s possible to have exciting record chases based on Statcast stats, the significance of five-tool players (and scouting tools) in 2019, and more, plus a bit of one-sided banter about the Mets. Audio intro: Dinosaur Jr., "Stick a Toe In" Audio outro: Said The Whale, "Record Shop" Link to story on Cubs’ Doolittle protest Link to Doolittle vs. Edwards GIF Link to Sam on .400 hitters Link to story on .300 hitters Link to Jeff on Raburn Link to Ben on five-tool players Link to Ben on Cano’s hustle Link to Dan on Orioles homers allowed Link to preorder The MVP Machine  iTunes Feed (Please rate and review us!)  Sponsor Us on Patreon  Facebook Group  Effectively Wild Wiki  Twitter Account  Get Our Merch!  Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com Source

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the bounceback of Chris Davis, which Statcast stats they would most want to have for the entirety of baseball history, which aspect of instant replay review most dramatically changes the game, and the new-look Josh Bell and Tommy La Stella, then (28:36) talk to FanGraphs prospect analyst Eric Longenhagen about the recent wave of MLB debuts by top prospects (including the Angels’ new two-way player Jared Walsh, Cole Tucker, Nicky Lopez, Nick Senzel, Keston Hiura, Carter Kieboom, Austin Riley, Griffin Canning, Shed Long and, soon, Brendan Rodgers), why we’ve seen so many prospect promotions, Boston’s bullpen duo of Darwinzon Hernandez and Travis Lakins, the contrasting seasons of Justus Sheffield and Casey Mize, the impending return of Luis Urias, how the new Triple-A ball has affected scouting and player development, and more, plus a preview of the best players, overall talent level, and teams with the biggest opportunities in the upcoming amateur draft. Audio intro: Sharon Van Etten, "Comeback Kid" Audio interstitial: Filthy Friends, "The Arrival" Audio outro: The Replacements, "Talent Show" Link to Petriello on Davis Link to Jay on La Stella Link to news about TrackMan and Hawk-Eye Link to Rob Arthur on the transition to Hawk-Eye Link to replay-review data Link to Ben on today’s players being the best Link to FanGraphs’ preseason top prospects list Link to FanGraphs’ preason 2019 impact prospects list Link to Eric on Hiura Link to Eric on Rodgers Link to Kiley on Riley Link to Kiley on Senzel Link to Rob on Triple-A homers Link to latest mock draft Link to FanGraphs prospect board Link to preorder The MVP Machine  iTunes Feed (Please rate and review us!)  Sponsor Us on Patreon  Facebook Group  Effectively Wild Wiki  Twitter Account  Get Our Merch!  Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com Source