Effectively Wild: A FanGraphs Baseball Podcast

With Meg Rowley off, Ben Lindbergh talks to three guests: James Wagner (4:55) of the New York Times about Scott Boras puns in the paper of record, why players who test positive for PEDs have disproportionately been from the Dominican Republic, and why players wear perfume and cologne on the field; Ian Araujo (41:46) about the origins, appeal, process, and future of his viral TikTok videos about id...

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley share their impressions of HBO’s new feature-length documentary about Willie Mays , Say Hey, Willie Mays! , and reflect on Mays’s career, then (29:23) talk to director Nelson George about the making of the movie, what didn’t make the movie, his interactions with Mays and other legends, and much more, followed (1:04:59) by a postscript and a Past Blast...

Ben Lindbergh, Meg Rowley, and FanGraphs writer Ben Clemens banter about Game 6 of the World Series, the Series and the playoffs as a whole, Phillies manager Rob Thomson’s decision to pull Zack Wheeler in favor of José Alvarado , Yordan Alvarez’ s titanic dinger, the Astros’ bullpen performance, and Kyle Schwarber’ s bunt attempt, before discussing the Astros’ legacy,...

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley review all of the action from the historic, eventful fourth and fifth games of the World Series, banter about a fan heckling Rob Manfred, and share multiple Past Blasts (33:22) from 1925 (plus a throwback, Philly-centric Past Blast from 1868). Then (50:08) they talk to Baseball Prospectus writer Michael Ajeto about Astros starter Cristian Javier ’s unicorn fastba...

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the percentage of MLB fans who are paying close attention to the World Series, discuss the White Sox filling MLB’s last managerial vacancy by hiring Pedro Grifol (along with Charlie Montoyo as bench coach), and then reflect on a few aspects of Game 3 of the World Series, including Dusty Baker’s decision-making, the surprising postseason defensi...

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about umpire Pat Hoberg’s unprecedented “perfect game” behind the plate in Game 2 of the World Series, followed by musings on Nolan Arenado opting not to opt out of his contract, the Royals hiring Rays bench coach Matt Quatraro as their new manager, and Rob Manfred’s latest update on the zombie runner, then break down Games 1 and 2 of the...

Ben Lindbergh, Meg Rowley, and FanGraphs lead prospect analyst Eric Longenhagen banter about Ben’s latest ex-player Facebook friend recommendations and an MLB bourbon sponsorship, discuss (9:27) David Stearns stepping down from the Brewers’ top job, Adam Wainwright returning to the Cardinals, and Aaron Boone remaining the manager of the Yankees, and then (26:53) preview a few important...

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about Ben’s baseball Facebook friend recommendations, the Phillies’ odds against the Astros in the World Series, Kyle Schwarber’ s mechanical bull ride, a hidden perk of the Astros’ pitching depth, whether we judge managers too much by their rings, the career and legacy of Dave Dombrowski, the Marlins hiring Skip Schumaker as manager, the...

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley are joined by FanGraphs writer (and Phillies fan) Michael Baumann , who covered the NLCS game in Philly, to recap the Phillies’ NLCS victory over the Padres, explain the minds of Phillies fans, celebrate Bryce Harper , review the Padres’ decisions, and much more, followed by breakdowns of the Astros-Yankees ALCS, the state and future of the Yankees, and the...

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley follow up on their 2022 minor league free agent draft results, banter about ALDS Game 2, teams “not making excuses,” the Rangers hiring Bruce Bochy, and other news, and answer listener emails about a suggestion for changing the number of games per playoff round, how an average person would do in the field if they knew where the ball was going to go, a 75-fo...

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley review the results of the 2022 minor league free agent draft, discuss Gold Glove finalists and a study about the lack of special ways to win in the postseason, recap the first few Championship Series games (and banter about José Alvarado and same-named athletes in multiple sports), and answer listener emails about the name of the Division Series, on-screen strike zone...

Meg Rowley returns from her trip to Seattle to banter with Ben Lindbergh about attending the 18-inning ALDS Game 3, the Mariners’ heartbreaking loss, the fans’ heartening response, and the franchise’s future, as well as overmatched postseason hitters, what scoreless extra-inning games could portend for the zombie runner, the outcomes of the other Division Series, why the NL&#8217...

With Meg Rowley on the road, Ben Lindbergh reunites with his former Ringer MLB Show colleagues Michael Baumann , Zach Kram , and Bobby Wagner to discuss the moods of Mets and Phillies fans and catch up on the first few days of Division Series action, touching on Yordan Alvarez , Robbie Ray , a playoff walk-off oddity, Bryce Harper , Zack Wheeler , Phil Maton , Max Fried , Jeremy Peña , geese, soup...

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about what would happen if a dominant starting pitcher were caught using sticky stuff in a playoff game, then set up the biggest storylines and scheduling considerations of the division series round, consider which matchup is most likely to result in an upset, and preview each AL and NL series, plus banter about taxing home run balls, and a Past Blast from 1915....

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about and break down all four wild card series, beginning with big-picture thoughts on the weekend as a whole and the Mariners’ improbable Game 2 comeback win before going series-by-series and discussing Mariners-Blue Jays (8:52), Guardians-Rays (33:03), Phillies-Cardinals (48:39), and Mets-Padres (1:05:50), plus a Past Blast (1:39:25) from 1914. Audio&nbs...

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the beginning of the playoffs and playoff podcasting, share a few words (17:43) from the diligent author of the retiring Stephen Vogt ’s exhaustive Wikipedia page, preview the four wild card series (30:54) and hype up the playoff field, meet major leaguers (1:07:25) Nate Eaton and Brian O’Keefe , and discuss two Royals firings and the coming ma...

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about Ben’s efforts to get the new dictionary definition for “ghost runner” changed, how to watch the playoffs when one has cut the cord, Meg’s Rookie of the Year voting deliberations, the underrated Jeff McNeil , the two teams whose per-game attendance declined this season, MLB’s problem gambling PSAs, a DraftKings ad, and more, pl...

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the Braves’ first sacrifice bunt of the season, Meg’s gratitude for the effect Mariners fandom has had on her life, the Orioles’ status as impressive also-rans, Atlanta overtaking the Mets, how to assess an MLB season, and the playoff field being set. They also react in real time to Aaron Judge’ s 62nd home run and discuss Jon Berti...

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the fight for the third wild card in the National League and the way in which the expanded playoff format shifts attention toward middling teams, appreciating postseason success and regular-season success, the regular-season dominance of the Dodgers, home-run-record derangement syndrome (17:52) and a middle ground between the warring absolutists worked up...

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the inadequacies of dental insurance and Ben’s rewarding trip to Citi Field, a Marlins marketing strategy, Richard Bleier ’s balk debacle, pitchers getting the memo about throwing strikes to Aaron Judge and Judge’s difference-making performance even when he doesn’t homer, preliminary Stat Blasts (41:33) about the most consecutive se...

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the latest hitting heroics by 30-year-old rookie Joey Meneses , then discuss the Guardians clinching the AL Central title, underdogs that defy the projections and playoff odds, and Albert Pujols ’s 700th homer. After that (47:00), they talk to Death Cab for Cutie singer/songwriter/guitarist Ben Gibbard about the Mariners’ stretch run and playof...

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the man who tried to return Roger Maris’ s 61st home run ball, two Mickey Mantle letters, the 2017 Zac Gallen / Sandy Alcantara trade, how Maury Wills changed (and dominated) basestealing, and Aaron Judge ’s recent value even when he hasn’t hit homers, then answer listener emails (38:15) about hitters setting their own strike zones, Atlan...

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the ethics of returning or selling a valuable home run ball, a dilemma involving Aaron Judge on Apple TV+, selling the opposing team’s gear in a ballpark, the Tigers hiring Scott Harris and the Royals firing Dayton Moore, the Mets and Reds setting hit-by-pitch records, Canada dropping its vaccine requirement in time for the MLB playoffs, the lack of...

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about pitchers throwing a perplexing number of strikes to an unstoppable Aaron Judge , Judge’s sensational September, upcoming contract, and more, Shohei Ohtani’ s pitching prowess, new pitches, and switch-hitting potential, Oneil Cruz ’s recent surge, Yordan Alvarez and how much of slumps can be explained by nagging injuries, Max Scherzer and...

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about minor leaguers officially joining the MLBPA and what minor league unionization might do to the game’s distribution of revenue, follow up on Gold Gloves for utility players, toilet flappers, and Joey Meneses , discuss Jon Berti ’s pursuit of 40 stolen bases, what pickoff-attempt restrictions will do to the running game, and why they don’t...