Effectively Wild: A FanGraphs Baseball Podcast

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about how much Shohei Ohtani’s teammates helped him win his third MVP award, his incredible four-season stretch, whether Dekopin/Decoy is really his dog, the other MVP and Cy Young results, a Joey Meneses signing, Austin Slater and the virtues of being a team’s “top target,” the Rays’ confounding stadium strategy, the varying pronunciations of “envelope,” a listener question about RSN ownership, the seventh annual Effectively Wild Secret Santa, and more, plus a postscript Stat Blast (1:15:40) about players whose whole MLB careers were confined to “non-MLB” ballparks. Audio intro: The Shirey Brothers, “Effectively Wild Theme” Audio outro: Grant Brisbee, “Effectively Wild Theme” Link to Ohtani interview Link to Ohtani quote Link to preseason projections Link to Episode 2140 Link to Dekopin clip Link to MLB.com on Ohtani Link to AL MVP voting Link to NL MVP voting Link to AL Cy voting Link to NL Cy voting Link to MLBTR on Meneses Link to Sox Machine on Slater Link to Rays letter story Link to DRaysBay on funding 1 Link to DRaysBay on funding 2 Link to Calcaterra on the Rays Link to Manfred on the Rays Link to Joe on the RSN era Link to Rangers RSN story Link to ROOT schedule Link to Ben Zimmer’s website Link to Ben on Wolfe Link to first pronunciation Link to second pronunciation Link to summer sausage episode Link to Secret Santa sign-up form Link to listener emails database Link to 2020-only players Link to Ryan Nelson’s Twitter Link to Andrew Lowden’s cover Link to “The Good in Everyone” Link to Stat Blast parks list Link to Stat Blast players list Link to Reddit comment  Sponsor Us on Patreon  Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com  EW Subreddit  Effectively Wild Wiki  iTunes Feed (Please rate and review us!)  Spotify Feed  Facebook Group  Twitter Account  Bluesky Account  Get Our Merch! Source

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about Rich Hill’s latest (and hopefully not last) pitching exploits, then discuss how Rob Manfred’s desire to craft his legacy as commissioner could shape the sport’s direction, why sports commissioners’ tenures last so long, what qualities of the World Series-winning Dodgers rival teams might try to emulate, rumors surrounding the Dodgers and Roki Sasaki, and more. Audio intro: Moon Hound, “Effectively Wild Theme” Audio outro: Justin Peters, “Effectively Wild Theme” Link to Hill gamer Link to Hill pitching matchup Link to Hill strikeout montage Link to Hill on next season Link to Manfred on expansion Link to Manfred on national TV Link to Manfred on media training Link to Theo on copycats Link to NBC Sports Chicago news Link to link rot wiki Link to Theo on decadal changes Link to Lewie’s newsletter Link to team postseason percentages Link to semantic satiation wiki Link to MLBTR on Sasaki Link to Rosenthal on Sasaki Link to Ben’s Halo podcast  Sponsor Us on Patreon  Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com  EW Subreddit  Effectively Wild Wiki  iTunes Feed (Please rate and review us!)  Spotify Feed  Facebook Group  Twitter Account  Bluesky Account  Get Our Merch! Source

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley solicit listener suggestions for an upcoming podcast series, discuss what they would ask potential employers if they were on a Juan Soto-esque free-agent tour, and banter about the Orioles dismantling “Walltimore,” the far-less-settled-than-expected situations of the A’s and Rays, differing medical evaluations and Brusdar Graterol’s role in the Mookie Betts trade, the AL and NL Rookies of the Year, and the most interesting aspects of the Hall of Fame ballot. Audio intro: Nate Emerson, “Effectively Wild Theme” Audio outro: Ian H., “Effectively Wild Theme” Link to Multisport Sabermetrics Exchange Link to EW groundskeeper interview Link to EW Rooker interview Link to Soto meeting tracker Link to Walltimore article Link to 2021 park factors Link to 2024 park factors Link to ballpark homogenization info Link to Rays ballpark article 1 Link to Rays ballpark article 2 Link to Trop images Link to A’s/Rays article Link to A’s/Rays/expansion article Link to Daikin Park news Link to Yankees/Flaherty article 1 Link to Yankees/Flaherty article 2 Link to Brusdar trade hold-up Link to MLBTR on original Betts deal Link to PPI MLBTR on final Betts deal Link to Brusdar retrospective Link to MLBTR on Graterol’s shoulder Link to Ruth’s Chris name Link to NL voting results Link to AL voting results Link to 2025 ballot Link to Jaffe on the ballot Link to Stark on the ballot Link to Dubuque on the ballot Link to framing leaderboard  Sponsor Us on Patreon  Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com  EW Subreddit  Effectively Wild Wiki  iTunes Feed (Please rate and review us!)  Spotify Feed  Facebook Group  Twitter Account  Bluesky Account  Get Our Merch! Source

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the resolution of the Diamond Sports Group bankruptcy hearing, how declining broadcast revenue could lead to labor strife, and the Pirates’ reward offer for a baseball card that comes with a patch from Paul Skenes’s debut jersey, then (28:42) bring on Patreon supporter Craig Wingbermuehle to discuss his job and Effectively Wild origin story and then (38:25) answer listener emails about why we don’t talk more about postseason revenue, why extensions render players ineligible for Prospect Promotion Incentives, team mission statements, whether teams or the league should own home run balls, secretly promising a post-signing extension to an international free agent such as Roki Sasaki, Nick Martinez’s opt-out streak and contract progression, what constitutes a homestand and career year, and whether a player can be just 0-for-10. Audio intro: Xavier LeBlanc, “Effectively Wild Theme” Audio interstitial: Austin Klewan, “Effectively Wild Theme” Audio outro: Benny and a Million Shetland Ponies, “Effectively Wild Theme (Horny)” Link to Drellich on DSG Link to ESPN on DSG Link to Sheehan on the RSN Era Link to Pirates reward offer Link to Dunne tweet Link to Fanatics jersey tweet Link to bean-feast wiki Link to postseason share rules Link to more on playoff shares Link to even more on shares Link to Yankees playoff revenue Link to MLBTR on PPI/extensions Link to PPI rules Link to Rockies job posting Link to The Baseball Rule wiki Link to Ohtani ball on display Link to homestand definition Link to career year definition Link to Vientos call Link to Vientos article Link to listener emails database Link to The Miracle League site Link to Miracle League donations Link to Russell on the ’05 Cubs  Sponsor Us on Patreon  Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com  EW Subreddit  Effectively Wild Wiki  iTunes Feed (Please rate and review us!)  Spotify Feed  Facebook Group  Twitter Account  Bluesky Account  Get Our Merch! Source

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley follow up on previous banter about the best title for a president of both baseball and business operations, then deliver fresh banter about how Derrek Lee’s 2005 RBI total was a sign of its time, where the Rays will play in 2025 and beyond, the Marlins’ new manager, and a slew of modest Angels signings. Then (48:02) they’re joined by UPenn professor and post-doctoral researcher, respectively, Douglas Jerolmack and Shravan Pradeep, to discuss their recent research about how the sport’s storied Lena Blackburne Baseball Rubbing Mud works, its special qualities, whether it could or should be synthesized, and more. Audio intro: Luke Lillard, “Effectively Wild Theme” Audio outro: Tom Rhoads, “Effectively Wild Theme” Link to Falvey news Link to worst leadoff tOPS+ Link to 2005 Cubs batting order splits Link to Dril tweet Link to MLBTR on the Rays in 2025 Link to more on 2025 Rays Link to Rays in 2028 Link to MLBTR on McCullough Link to Ben C. on d’Arnaud Link to guests’ research paper Link to Doug’s UPenn page Link to Shravan’s UPenn page Link to Shravan’s website Link to UPenn research summary Link to NYT research summary Link to PopSci research summary Link to NBC news research summary Link to rubbing mud wiki Link to GLP-1 origins Link to rubbing mud video Link to mud maker story 1 Link to mud maker story 2 Link to sticky synthesis story Link to Ben on sticky stuff 1 Link to Ben on sticky stuff 2 Link to schedule makers news Link to schedule makers video  Sponsor Us on Patreon  Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com  EW Subreddit  Effectively Wild Wiki  iTunes Feed (Please rate and review us!)  Spotify Feed  Facebook Group  Twitter Account  Bluesky Account  Get Our Merch! Source

Ben Lindbergh, Meg Rowley, and FanGraphs’ Eric Longenhagen banter about how to abbreviate Twins executive Derek Falvey’s new dual role as president of both baseball and business operations, then (5:23) discuss Japanese phenom Roki Sasaki from a scouting perspective, touching on how good he could be, how a team could ease him into MLB, what tweaks he could make to his repertoire, the bonus pool system that could help determine where he signs, and more. After that (50:16), Ben and Meg talk to NPB journalist Jim Allen about Sasaki’s posting from a Japan-based perspective, exploring why Sasaki was posted now, how Japanese fans feel about his departure, and what the implications could be for NPB. Finally (1:21:01), Ben does a bonus Stat Blast about baseball overrepresentation in crossword puzzles. Audio intro: Alex Glossman and Ali Breneman, “Effectively Wild Theme” Audio interstitial: Liz Panella, “Effectively Wild Theme” Audio outro: Kite Person, “Effectively Wild Theme” Link to Falvey news Link to Trueblood’s Falvey tweet Link to Eric’s Roki update Link to Eric on Roki in August Link to Ben’s Roki update Link to Ben on Roki in 2022 Link to Kiley on Roki Link to Passan on Roki Link to Coskrey on Roki Link to 2024 bonus pools Link to Cooper on draft picks Link to Ardaya on courting Ohtani Link to Ohtani courtship Link to Jim on Roki’s situation Link to Jim on the Marines Link to Jim on Hirooka Link to Jim on Roki’s future Link to NPB union article Link to Jim’s podcast Link to Hang Up and Listen Link to latest HUaL Link to Raymond’s spreadsheet Link to Rooker EW episode  Sponsor Us on Patreon  Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com  EW Subreddit  Effectively Wild Wiki  iTunes Feed (Please rate and review us!)  Spotify Feed  Facebook Group  Twitter Account  Bluesky Account  Get Our Merch! Source

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about a listener proposal to artificially designate (and trade) a two-way player, then (19:28) conduct the 10th annual free agent contract over/under draft, plus closing banter (1:09:45) about the new Sacramento team’s city designation, a Philly front-office shuffle, and POBO priority. Audio intro: Philip Bergman, “Effectively Wild Theme” Audio outro: Ian Phillips, “Effectively Wild Theme” Link to typing monkeys research Link to typing monkeys research summary Link to FB thread Link to two-way rule Link to Sam on not swinging Link to previous over/under draft results Link to competitions/drafts sheet Link to MLBTR top 50 Link to FG top 50 Link to A’s name change info Link to MLBTR on the Phillies  Sponsor Us on Patreon  Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com  EW Subreddit  Effectively Wild Wiki  iTunes Feed (Please rate and review us!)  Spotify Feed  Facebook Group  Twitter Account  Bluesky Account  Get Our Merch! Source

Ben Lindbergh and FanGraphs writer Ben Clemens banter about the latest batch of Scott Boras puns, position changes for Willson Contreras and Mookie Betts, surgery for Shohei Ohtani, Skip Schumaker’s move to Texas, and Buster Posey’s front-office philosophy, then (47:21) discuss Other Ben’s top 50 free agents list—focusing on Juan Soto, Blake Snell, Corbin Burnes, Pete Alonso, Gleyber Torres, underrated/overrated options, and market trends—and (1:19:12) MLB’s most interesting offseason storylines. Audio intro: Guy Russo, “Effectively Wild Theme” Audio outro: Harold Walker, “Effectively Wild Theme” Link to Boras puns Link to MLBTR on Contreras Link to MLBTR on Betts Link to Betts Statcast fielding Link to Betts Statcast running Link to MLBTR on Ohtani Link to MLBTR on Schumaker Link to MLBTR on Bregman Link to Baggarly tweet about Posey Link to Baggarly’s Posey profile Link to Ben C. on the top 50 FA Link to Sam on “seeking” Link to Boras on Soto 1 Link to Boras on Soto 2  Sponsor Us on Patreon  Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com  EW Subreddit  Effectively Wild Wiki  iTunes Feed (Please rate and review us!)  Spotify Feed  Facebook Group  Twitter Account  Bluesky Account  Get Our Merch! Source

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about team/player option/opt-out decisions involving Gerrit Cole, Cody Bellinger, Blake Snell, and Eugenio Suárez, the Royals re-signing Michael Wacha, the players who received qualifying offers, the Minasian brothers as rival GMs (and potential PoBros), Carlos Santana’s historic Gold Glove, an international signing scandal (on multiple levels), evidence of racial bias in player development, a Japan Series upset, and more, plus a postscript. Audio intro: Grant Brisbee, “Effectively Wild Theme” Audio outro: El Warren, “Effectively Wild Theme” Link to MLBTR on Cole 1 Link to MLBTR on Cole 2 Link to pitcher WAR since 2020 Link to P RA-9 WAR since 2020 Link to MLBTR on Snell Link to Snell leaderboard Link to MLBTR on Bellinger Link to MLBTR on Suárez Link to Suárez leaderboard Link to Suárez Stathead search Link to MLBTR on Wacha Link to FG on Wacha Link to qualifying offer list Link to FG top 50 FA Link to Rob Arthur article Link to Rob on racial bias in 2020 Link to Rob on Black catchers in 2020 Link to Ringer scouting reports series Link to MLBTR on Minasian Link to LAT on the Minasians Link to USA Today on the Minasians Link to Langs Santana stat Link to ESPN on signing scandal Link to MLBTR on signing scandal Link to Rob Arthur article Link to Rob on racial bias in 2020 Link to Rob on Black catchers in 2020 Link to Ringer scouting reports series Link to Climax Series wiki Link to Climax Series bracket Link to BayStars win 1 Link to BayStars win 2 Link to Jim Allen tweet Link to Ben on the BayStars Link to Hank Hill promo  Sponsor Us on Patreon  Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com  EW Subreddit  Effectively Wild Wiki  iTunes Feed (Please rate and review us!)  Spotify Feed  Facebook Group  Twitter Account  Bluesky Account  Get Our Merch! Source

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about offseason EW, Tommy Kahnle’s love affair with changeups, the Yankees’ preparation and fundamentals, Aaron Boone’s managing, the Dodgers as a dynasty, the White Sox hiring Will Venable, Alex Kirilloff’s retirement, two prediction anecdotes, glove flips as the new bat flips, the check-swing challenge system, the Premier12 tournament, the Women’s Pro Baseball League, Eric Adams and the World Series, a Yankees executive keeping things in perspective, a record sum for a historic baseball, Shohei Ohtani trumping One Piece, Dodgers parade comments, a no-show for NPB’s Sawamura Award, and more. Audio intro: Jonathan Crymes, “Effectively Wild Theme” Audio outro: Daniel Leckie, “Effectively Wild Theme” Link to story on Kahnle’s changeups Link to Kahnle pitch types Link to pitch types Stat Blast Link to Boone report 1 Link to Boone report 2 Link to Sherman on the Yankees Link to 2015 Royals scouting story Link to Ben on the Dodgers Link to Dodgers dynasty story Link to dynasty system Link to MLBTR on Venable Link to MLBTR on Kiriloff Link to Kiriloff’s announcement Link to Gleeman tweet Link to elephants/mice info Link to Fernando prediction tweet Link to Fernando prediction story Link to Vientos prediction tweet Link to Vientos prediction story Link to glove flip clip Link to 2012 Chapman story Link to Baseball for All tweet Link to WPBL story Link to WPBL interview Link to Siegal EW episode Link to Premier12 roster Link to Premier12 wiki Link to challenge system story Link to challenge system video Link to Afterman comments Link to Adams attendance story Link to Ohtani ball auction Link to Ohtani ball auction 2 Link to Fat Joe comments Link to Ohtani shirt response Link to One Piece story Link to Sawamura Award story Link to Sawamura EW episode Link to Petriello on catching Link to “Something’s Coming”  Sponsor Us on Patreon  Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com  EW Subreddit  Effectively Wild Wiki  iTunes Feed (Please rate and review us!)  Spotify Feed  Facebook Group  Twitter Account  Bluesky Account  Get Our Merch! Source