Effectively Wild: A FanGraphs Baseball Podcast

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 how he cleverly juxtaposes sports scenes with images of paintings and sculptures, whether baseball lends itself well to his work, and his best baseball images, plus a Past Blast (1:40:16) from 1989 and a few closing thoughts (1:46:42). Audio intro: Justin Peters, “Effectively Wild Theme” Audio interstitial: Xavier LeBlanc, “Effectively Wild Theme” Audio outro: Beatwriter, “Effectively Wild Theme” Link to Noah’s Substack Link to Noah’s BP archive Link to Noah on changeups Link to Noah on back-picks Link to Noah on pickoffs Link to Noah on pickoff substitutes Link to Noah on Greinke Link to article on clock momentum Link to Jaffe on late-season momentum Link to Dan S. on playoff momentum Link to Russell on momentum Link to Mariners-fan countdown Link to Sam on Corbin Link to Baumann on Orioles running Link to Ben C. on steals Link to Volpe SB article Link to Jeff on Lester Link to Jayson Stark on OF shifts Link to new “sweeper” classification Link to Ben on the pitch clock Link to Ben on pitcher limits Link to Ben on mound moving Link to Tango on game times Link to Petriello on BABIP Link to Passan on stat changes Link to Manfred on analytics Link to Lewie Pollis on EW Link to Lewie on leaving a dream job Link to Lewie’s follow-up piece Link to R.J. on front-office brain drain Link to MLB Closed Captioning Link to @UnfortunateMLB Link to Umpire Scorecards Link to Would it Dong? Link to Art But Make it Sports Insta Link to Art But Make it Sports Twitter Link to Art But Make it Sports website Link to Araujo EW episode Link to SI on LJ Link to LJ’s Bednar post Link to LJ’s proposal post Link to LJ’s Ventura/Ryan post Link to LJ’s Siri post Link to LJ’s Muncy post Link to LJ’s Murphy post Link to 1989 Past Blast source Link to 1989 Hadley paper Link to 1992 Hadley paper Link to 1993 Hadley paper Link to 1991 MLB payrolls Link to David Lewis’s Twitter Link to David Lewis’s Substack Link to Ward/Wade wiki Link to Arcia prediction story Link to Turner mic’d up Link to Ben on mic’d up players Link to McKenna/Duvall video Link to Stathead on Duvall Link to Pagliaroni game Link to errors preceding walkoffs Link to EW on Shamsky Link to EW on Shamsky again Link to Bowie Baysox meetup Link to Caught Steelin’ band  Sponsor Us on Patreon  Facebook Group  Twitter Account  EW Subreddit  Effectively Wild Wiki  iTunes Feed (Please rate and review us!)  Get Our Merch!  Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com Source

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 sort of right), and more. Then (58:11) they conduct the third annual Team Fun Draft, in which they draft all 30 teams in order of how fun they are to follow in 2023, plus a Past Blast (1:56:06) from 1988 and a few follow-ups. Audio intro: The Shirey Brothers, “Effectively Wild Theme” Audio outro: The Needy Visions, “Havers of Fun” Link to Opening Day press release Link to Opening Day stats Link to Manfred on the zone Link to Judge homer Link to Grant’s Judge tweet Link to Ward/Wade wiki Link to story on Giants LF Link to info on Ohtani outing Link to Tungsten Arm story Link to Renfroe’s catch Link to Renfroe catch probability Link to Pache press release Link to Baumann’s Pache tweet Link to Buck’s booth return Link to Buck impression Link to MLBTR on Verlander Link to Santos video Link to info on the CBA Link to CBA ratification news Link to Baumann on the CBA Link to Russell on Cost in 2012 Link to Russell on cost in 2013 Link to Russell on cost in 2021 Link to proposal video 1 Link to proposal video 2 Link to TMZ on the proposal Link to other proposal report Link to Yankees uni numbers story Link to Cruz homer Link to Bard anxiety story Link to 1988 Past Blast source Link to Triple-A Classic wiki Link to Triple-A Alliance wiki Link to Sam on 1988 Link to David Lewis’s Twitter Link to David Lewis’s Substack Link to Ben on the pitch clock Link to Ben’s preseason predictions Link to Meg’s preseason predictions Link to EW prediction voting results Link to double-draft episode Link to before/after WS odds Link to FanDuel OD WS odds Link to DraftKings OD WS Odds Link to EW drafts/competitions sheet Link to expanded playoffs incentives Link to Forbes on Ohtani Link to sped-up Trout/Ohtani video Link to side-by-side Trout/Ohtani 1 Link to side-by-side Trout/Ohtani 2 Link to The Sun on Angelos Link to Sun editorial on Angelos Link to Angelos radio quotes Link to Defector on Angelos Link to The Shirey Brothers Bandcamp  Sponsor Us on Patreon  Facebook Group  Twitter Account  EW Subreddit  Effectively Wild Wiki  iTunes Feed (Please rate and review us!)  Get Our Merch!  Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com Source

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 Past” Link to listener voting form Link to Realmuto ejection Link to AP on Realmuto Link to Romo outing Link to Stark on replay reviews Link to story on Zoom replay reviews Link to Dave Cameron on slide reviews Link to Cameron on transfers Link to Vogelbach/Showalter spot Link to Clay Davenport on SBs Link to FanGraphs playoff odds Link to “Gay Bar”by Electric Six Link to Rob Arthur on bat cracks Link to Rob on bat cracks again Link to MLBTR on Giménez’s extension Link to 2022 Rockies deadline story Link to Acuña 50-50 story Link to Stark on the pie slice Link to Bloomberg on match-fixing Link to more on match-fixing Link to snooker match-fixing story Link to tennis match-fixing story Link to Past Blast piece on brawls Link to Pont Past Blast source Link to more on Pont Link to Pont’s wiki Link to Pont’s Twitter Link to David Lewis’s Twitter Link to David Lewis’s Substack Link to Chris Hanel’s Twitter Link to Chris Hanel’s website Another link to listener voting form  Sponsor Us on Patreon  Facebook Group  Twitter Account  EW Subreddit  Effectively Wild Wiki  iTunes Feed (Please rate and review us!)  Get Our Merch!  Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com Source

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 Blast (1:31:34) about the biggest WAR gaps between Opening Day starters, the worst pitchers ever to start on Opening Day, and the best pitchers and hitters never to start on Opening Day, and a postscript (1:41:09). 2023 EW Season Preview Series ALBALCHWATHBOSCLEHOUNYYDETLAATBRKCRSEATORMINTEX NLATLCHCARIMIACINCOLNYMMILLADPHIPITSDPWSNSTLSFG Audio intro: Benny and A Million Shetland Ponies, “Effectively Wild Theme (Pedantic)” Audio interstitial: Simon Waldram, “What Were You Thinking?” Audio outro: Benny and A Million Shetland Ponies, “Effectively Wild Theme (Horny)” Link to MLBTR on Volpe Link to MLBTR on Walker Link to Mains on Cardinals PECOTA Link to MLBTR on Turang Link to MLBTR on Baty/Vientos Link to FG post on Vientos Link to MLBTR on Rodriguez Link to Elias on Rodriguez Link to Ben on 2022 OD promotions Link to Ben on 2022 debuts Link to MLB rules PSA hub Link to Snell/Anderson spot Link to Vogelbach/Showalter spot Link to Cranston spot Link to FanGraphs playoff odds Link to FG payroll breakdown Link to Braves offseason tracker Link to Braves depth chart Link to MLB Pipeline rankings Link to From The Diamond Link to Rockies offseason tracker Link to Rockies depth chart Link to Sam’s Rockies essay Link to article on hangover effect Link to article on curing the hangover Link to Sarris on McMahon Link to Danielle’s author archive Link to Past Blast source Link to David Lewis’s Twitter Link to David Lewis’s Substack Link to Braves-Rockies trivia answers Link to Stat Blast spreadsheet 1 Link to Stat Blast spreadsheet 2 Link to article about LBJ’s first pitch Link to Brown/Cole source 1 Link to Brown/Cole source 2 Link to Brown/Cole source 3 Link to Ryan Nelson’s Twitter Link to Woodward on changeups Link to EW on seam-shifted wake Link to Forbes valuations Link to Mains on Forbes data  Sponsor Us on Patreon  Facebook Group  Twitter Account  EW Subreddit  Effectively Wild Wiki  iTunes Feed (Please rate and review us!)  Get Our Merch!  Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com Source

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), and a few followups (2:01:33). 2023 EW Season Preview Series ALBALCHWATHBOSCLEHOUNYYDETLAATBRKCRSEATORMINTEX NLATLCHCARIMIACINCOLNYMMILLADPHIPITSDPWSNSTLSFG Audio intro: Alex Glossman and Ali Breneman, “Effectively Wild Theme” Audio interstitial 1: Anthony Parker, “Cloud 9” Audio interstitial 2: Steve Wynn, “Sustain” Audio outro: Manther, “1985” Link to Nitkowski thread Link to Trout’s HRD call to Ohtani Link to Schoenfield article Link to Drellich article Link to ESPN on the clock tweaks Link to MLBTR on the clock tweaks Link to Darren Baker video Link to Darren Baker rule Link to Cranston ad Link to Cranston on Hot Ones Link to FanGraphs playoff odds Link to FG payroll breakdown Link to Padres offseason tracker Link to Padres depth chart Link to story on Cruz’s eye Link to AJ on position battles Link to Seidler on sustainability Link to article on Forbes valuations Link to Forbes valuations Link to Reds offseason tracker Link to Reds depth chart Link to Trent’s author archive Link to Trent on Castellini Link to Trent on India Link to Trent on Greene Link to farm system improvement Link to Sidd Finch story Link to story about Finch story Link to Sidd Finch wiki Link to April 15 followup Link to David Lewis’s Twitter Link to David Lewis’s Substack Link to Padres-Reds trivia answers Link to Ryan Nelson’s Twitter Link to “The Comeback” Seinfeld clips Link to “The Burning” Seinfeld clips Link to 20-80 scale explainer  Sponsor Us on Patreon  Facebook Group  Twitter Account  EW Subreddit  Effectively Wild Wiki  iTunes Feed (Please rate and review us!)  Get Our Merch!  Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com Source

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 majors, his process for researching rookies, whether there are too many major leaguers, and 2022 debutants Jason Delay, Ben DeLuzio, and Donny Sands, followed by a Stat Blast (1:24:15) about Ichiro Cano and the highest-WAR combined baseball names, plus a Past Blast (1:33:14) from 1984. Audio intro: Liz Panella, “Effectively Wild Theme” Audio outro: The Sun, “In Perfect Time” Link to Zach Kram on the WBC Link to Ben on the WBC Link to Ohtani pitch grade stat Link to Trout-Ohtani video Link to Japanese broadcast call Link to 120 percent quote Link to more than 100 percent wiki Link to Arozarena trash talk Link to Ohtani trash talk Link to Ohtani’s speech Link to Arozarena HR robbery Link to Arozarena autographing Link to Randy autographing again Link to Sasaki candy story Link to Yoshida homer Link to Murakami walkoff Link to Ohtani double Link to WBC press release Link to All-Tournament Team Link to Meet a Major Leaguer wiki Link to book website Link to buy the book Link to B-Ref’s new debuts page Link to Ichiro Cano post Link to Ryan Nelson’s Twitter Link to Stat Blast data Link to 1984 Past Blast source Link to 1984 Past Blast source, cont’d Link to EW on Florida baseball books Link to David Lewis’s Twitter Link to David Lewis’s Substack Link to EW on RSNs Link to local-revenue article  Sponsor Us on Patreon  Facebook Group  Twitter Account  EW Subreddit  Effectively Wild Wiki  iTunes Feed (Please rate and review us!)  Get Our Merch!  Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com Source

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 Preview Series ALBALCHWATHBOSCLEHOUNYYDETLAATBRKCRSEATORMINTEX NLATLCHCARIMIACINCOLNYMMILLADPHIPITSDPWSNSTLSFG Audio intro: Harold Walker, “Effectively Wild Theme” Audio interstitial 1: The Moaners, “Yankee on My Shoulder” Audio interstitial 2: Krestovsky, “National Spark” Audio outro: Keenan The First and RandiVision, “Big Game” Link to Rosenthal on Turner’s homer Link to Nightengale on Turner’s homer Link to Trout reaction GIF Link to Wainwright quote Link to Quijada’s pitch Link to article about Bard Link to Rosenthal on the mound visit Link to FG post on Profar Link to FanGraphs playoff odds Link to FG payroll breakdown Link to Yankees offseason tracker Link to Yankees depth chart Link to Ben Clemens on Cole Link to story on in-flight wifi Link to framing leaderboard Link to Higashioka analysis Link to Woodward on back-picks Link to Brendan’s spring preview Link to Brendan’s author archive Link to Rosenthal on Judge Link to Nationals offseason tracker Link to Nationals depth chart Link to Jesse on Cavalli Link to Jesse on Strasburg Link to Jesse on Robles Link to Jesse’s author archive Link to Ben on Meneses Link to Svrluga on the Nats Link to 1983 Pirates article Link to 1983 Phillies article Link to baseball exceptionalism wiki Link to David Lewis’s Twitter Link to David Lewis’s Substack Link to trivia answers Link to Ryan Nelson’s Twitter Link to Cashner beard article Link to other Cashner beard article  Sponsor Us on Patreon  Facebook Group  Twitter Account  EW Subreddit  Effectively Wild Wiki  iTunes Feed (Please rate and review us!)  Get Our Merch!  Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com Source

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 ALBALCHWATHBOSCLEHOUNYYDETLAATBRKCRSEATORMINTEX NLATLCHCARIMIACINCOLNYMMILLADPHIPITSDPWSNSTLSFG Audio intro: Jonathan Crymes, “Effectively Wild Theme” Audio interstitial 1: The Beets, “Watching Television” Audio interstitial 2: Goodbye Kumiko, “Oakland” Audio outro: Superare, “Sunglasses” Link to Tokyo water pressure story Link to report about WBC ratings Link to Twitter thread about ratings Link to Super Bowl ratings Link to highest WS ratings Link to MLB WBC press release Link to co-exclusive partner banter Link to Sheehan’s newsletter Link to MLBTR on Diamond Link to Premier League history Link to teams’ local revenue Link to FanGraphs playoff odds Link to FG payroll breakdown Link to Mets offseason tracker Link to Mets depth chart Link to Deesha on Díaz Link to Jay Jaffe on Díaz Link to Mets trumpet taps video Link to Deesha on Álvarez and Baty Link to Deesha on the farm system Link to Deesha’s author archive Link to Athletics offseason tracker Link to Athletics depth chart Link to Nimmo video Link to Nimmo article Link to West Wing scene Link to Eck’s Pirates comments Link to Vogt hiring story Link to Matt on CF Link to story on Pache in LF Link to Dan Moore on the A’s park Link to Matt’s spring hitting preview Link to Matt’s spring pitching preview Link to Matt’s author archive Link to 1982 article source Link to Opti-Web glove Link to BP on Mizuno Link to article on baseball sunglasses Link to David Lewis’s Twitter Link to David Lewis’s Substack Link to Ryan Nelson’s Twitter  Sponsor Us on Patreon  Facebook Group  Twitter Account  EW Subreddit  Effectively Wild Wiki  iTunes Feed (Please rate and review us!)  Get Our Merch!  Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com Source

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 than they used to be, mutual pitch-calling, a league with only hitters or pitchers, a possible upside of cheating, the pitch clock and the hidden-ball trick, whether MLB games used to be closer, ending the Yankees’ facial-hair policy, a “pitch jingle,” and even bigger bases, plus a Past Blast (1:48:06) from 1981. Audio intro: Andy Ellison, “Effectively Wild Theme” Audio outro: Jeff Eliassen, “Michael” Link to “arrow in the knee” wiki Link to Baumann on Díaz Link to Jon Tayler on the Díaz game Link to Díaz injury video Link to MLBTR on Díaz injury Link to Mets spring celebration video Link to Olbermann comments Link to Ohtani throwing 102 Link to story on upcoming WBCs Link to Michael’s UC Berkeley page Link to Michael’s blog Link to Michael’s wiki Link to “The Impossible Dream” video Link to FG pitcher stuff stats Link to Cijntje story Link to Cijntje video Link to Ben on baseball talent Link to EW about baseball talent Link to Ben on hitters and pitchers Link to so-called hidden ball trick Link to Sam on close games Link to Rob Mains on comebacks Link to Rob Arthur on mismatches Link to 1999 story on Vaughn and Reds Link to retrospective on Vaughn Link to Yankees policy history Link to Rodón shaving story Link to story about policy’s legality Link to more on policy’s legality Link to more on the legality Link to Wilson story Link to McCutchen’s comments Link to just-noticeable difference wiki Link to Dick Trueman episode Link to listener emails database Link to 1981 Past Blast source Link to 2019 Visalia article Link to 1995 Harrisburg article Link to Harrisburg Senators wiki Link to fan-owned baseball teams Link to David Lewis’s Twitter Link to David Lewis’s Substack Link to Saber Seminar scholarships Link to Saber Seminar submissions Link to Andy Ellison’s website  Sponsor Us on Patreon  Facebook Group  Twitter Account  EW Subreddit  Effectively Wild Wiki  iTunes Feed (Please rate and review us!)  Get Our Merch!  Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com Source

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 (1:15:04) with Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic, plus a Past Blast from 1980 (1:53:29) and trivia answers (1:57:34). 2023 EW Season Preview Series ALBALCHWATHBOSCLEHOUNYYDETLAATBRKCRSEATORMINTEX NLATLCHCARIMIACINCOLNYMMILLADPHIPITSDPWSNSTLSFG Audio intro: Jaquan Grant, “Baseball Rich” Audio interstitial 1: David Lawrence, “I Wander On” Audio interstitial 2: Camden, “You Little Tiger” Audio outro: Gilles Cardoni, “Super 80” Link to Puerto Rico “perfect game” Link to Mitch Bratt story Link to Meneses homers Link to Zach Buchanan on Meneses Link to Ohtani homer Link to Ohtani strikeout Link to story on Satoria Link to Satoria interview Link to Pool A tiebreak story Link to “change my mind” meme Link to Caribbean Series wiki Link to Baseball World Cup wiki Link to MLBTR on Carroll Link to Buchanan on Carroll Link to tweet about Carroll Link to MLBTR on Ruiz Link to story on Diamond and MLB Link to MLBTR on Bauer Link to Jim Allen on Bauer Link to story about P-G strike Link to union info about strike Link to strike fund Link to FanGraphs playoff odds Link to FG payroll breakdown Link to Rays offseason tracker Link to Rays depth chart Link to Emma B. on Brady Williams Link to Adam’s spring preview Link to Adam’s author archive Link to Tigers offseason tracker Link to Tigers depth chart Link to Dan S. on breakout hitters Link to Cody’s spring preview Link to Cody on Comerica dimensions Link to Cody on Maton Link to Cody on injury prevention Link to Cody on Turnbull Link to Cody’s author archive Link to Cody’s Tigers podcast Link to 1980 article source Link to David Lewis’s Twitter Link to David Lewis’s Substack Link to Ryan Nelson’s Twitter Link to Damon on the Bananas Link to MLBTR on Diamond Link to EW episode on sharting Link to Hernández tweet Link to Shane McKeon’s Twitter Link to Shane’s website  Sponsor Us on Patreon  Facebook Group  Twitter Account  EW Subreddit  Effectively Wild Wiki  iTunes Feed (Please rate and review us!)  Get Our Merch!  Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com Source