The SIS Baseball Podcast

The podcast goes global this week as Mark Simon is joined by Seibu Lions first baseman David MacKinnon and Japan Baseball Weekly podcast co-host John Gibson . Mark and David talk about David's first season in Japan both from a baseball and cultural perspective and how being a college soccer goalie made him a better defensive player (1:23). Mark and John then review the 2023 NPB Fielding Bible...

Thursday, Sports Info Solutions announced the winners of The 2023 Fielding Bible Awards. Each year since 2006 our voters have picked the best defensive player at each position. This year, we’ve added a Defensive Player of the Year award to the mix. Podcast host Mark Simon and SIS VP of Baseball, Bobby Scales run through the winners and discuss what makes them great. We are joined by Pirates third...

On this episode of The Sports Info Solutions Baseball Podcast, Mark Simon ( @markasimonsays )  is joined by national baseball writers, Tyler Kepner of The Athletic ( @tylerkepner ) and Chelsea Janes of The Washington Post ( @chelsea_janes ). This is our 3rd annual “The Year in Surprises” episode. Tyler, Chelsea, and Mark each offer their pick for most surprising team, position player, and pitcher....

On this episode of The Sports Info Solutions Baseball Podcast, Mark Simon is joined by a pair of minor league defensive standouts, Noah Miller from the Twins organization (0:58) and Nasim Nuñez (16:19) from the Marlins organization. We enjoyed talking about how they do what they do on D. Noah Miller leads all shortstops in the minor league version of Defensive Runs Saved this season with Nuñez con...

On this episode, Mark Simon ( @markasimonsays ) is joined by Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr., who has been one of the best players in baseball both offensively and defensively since the All-Star Break.  Bobby talks about how he's no longer trying to field balls and make throws at the same time and how he mentally resets before each pitch. He also breaks down some of the best plays he's m...

On this episode, Mark Simon ( @markasimonsays ) is joined by The Athletic senior writer Eno Sarris ( @enosarris ), as well as Noah Gatsik ( @iamthatnoah ) and Brandon Tew ( @brandonteweets ), who help run SIS Baseball Scout School.  Mark and Eno talk pitching, with a focus on the Giants, Astros, and Orioles. Among the names that come up are Grayson Rodriguez, Framber Valdez, and Jakob Junis, along...

On this episode, Mark Simon  is joined by Orioles catcher Adley Rutschman and MLB.com writer Jonathan Mayo , author of the new book Smart, Wrong, and Lucky, The Origin Stories of Baseball’s Unexpected Stars .  Adley talks about the challenges of catching the different pitchers on the Orioles staff, how the team’s pitching strategist helps him with game preparation, and what he could do defensively...

On this episode, Mark Simon is joined by baseball writers Jay Jaffe (FanGraphs, The Cooperstown Casebook) and Russell Carleton (Baseball Prospectus, The New Ballgame). With this being Hall of Fame week, Jay comes on to talk about a series of pieces he's written about the Hall of Fame candidacies of current players. We discuss Jose Ramirez, Freddie Freeman, Kenley Jansen, and Marcus Semien fro...

On this episode, we focus on the toughest defensive job in baseball, playing center field at Coors Field. Rockies rookie Brenton Doyle is doing it and doing it well. Mark Simon talked to Brenton about how he does what he does defensively and how his defensive game has developed dating back to his Division II college days (0:39).  SIS VP of Baseball Bobby Scales just watched Doyle play live and sha...

On this episode of The Sports Info Solutions Baseball Podcast, Mark Simon is joined by Giants rookie catcher Patrick Bailey. Patrick talked about who taught him to think like a catcher, how he works with his pitchers, what goes into pitch framing, and why he thinks he got off to a good start as a hitter too (0:31). SIS VP of Baseball Bobby Scales addressed some of Bailey's comments, talked ab...

On this episode of the SIS Baseball Podcast, Mark Simon is joined by Rangers second baseman Marcus Semien and Astros center fielder Jake Meyers for a pair of conversations about defensive excellence.  Marcus talks about a couple of memorable plays from the season, the hardest things about playing second base, the level of peak focus a hitter and fielder can have, and how eliminating the shift help...

On this episode, Mark Simon is joined by ZiPS projection system creator and FanGraphs writer Dan Szymborski to talk shop about creating a projection tool. Dan talked about the principles of ZiPS, how he created it, and how the system works. He cited specific current examples, including whether the A's will lose 120 games , how the projection on Matt Chapman changes over time, the challenge of...

On this episode, Mark Simon is joined by North Carolina sophomore center fielder Vance Honeycutt and FanGraphs.com baseball writer Ben Clemens . Vance was the 2022 ACC Tournament MVP and league Preseason Player of the Year, but he joins us to talk about his defense and his penchant for home run-robberies and other great catches . He also explains how he's evolved as a hitter, one who could be...

On this episode, Mark Simon ( @markasimonsays ) is joined by Diamondbacks third baseman Josh Rojas ( @joshrojass ) and Guardians center fielder Myles Straw ( @Myles_Straw ) to discuss what’s made them into good defensive players and baserunners.  Josh talks about the adjustments he’s made at third base and how he can feel the difference it has made for him. He also describes in detail three memora...

On this episode of the Sports Info Solutions Baseball Podcast, Mark Simon is joined by …  * ESPN broadcaster Eduardo Pérez , who celebrates the global nature of the game, and talks about his appreciation of Shohei Ohtani, Luis Arraez, and (among others) Rays outfielder Harold Ramírez. Eduardo also talks about the new rules, the pace of the game, and why this Sunday’s broadcast of Astros-Rangers is...

This episode has all the bases covered.  We start in college with Mark Simon talking to No. 1 LSU’s starting first baseman, Tre' Morgan . He’s considered one of college baseball’s defensive standouts, so we pick his brain on picks, adventures in the outfield, and much more (0:28). We move on to some MLB Prospect talk as Baseball America’s Kyle Glaser gives us the rundown on how some of the ga...

On this episode, we honor Women’s History Month with conversations with three women who are moving the industry forward with their work in baseball analysis. Mark Simon is joined first by Chelsea Janes , national baseball writer for the Washington Post to discuss player reaction to rule changes, what to make of the Padres and Orioles heading into 2023, and other season preview-related topics. Chel...

On this episode, Mark Simon ( @MarkASimonSays ) and Bobby Scales ( @Bobby_Scales ) are joined by … 4-time Gold Glove winner Marquis Grissom ( @MGBA_Baseball ). Marquis talks about the work he does with aspiring Black baseball players and youth baseball organizations and the value of going to an HBCU both for school and for baseball. (0:55) Major League Baseball's senior director of front offi...

On today's episode of the SIS Baseball Podcast, Mark Simon and Bobby Scales are joined by the general manager of the Phillies, Sam Fuld. Sam and Bobby were teammates with the Cubs in 2009 and 2010. Sam's entering his 3rd season as GM. Sam talks about what the GM job is like on a minute-to-minute basis, the adjustment in going from field to front office, the kinds of questions he asks his...

For our final show of the year, we thought we’d do a best-of to spotlight the many great guests we talked to in 2022.  Among the people you’ll hear from: - Astros World Series MVP Jeremy Peña (0:46) - Yankees SS Isiah Kiner-Falefa (3:01) - Orioles prospect Gunnar Henderson (4:44) - Nationals prospect Jake Alu (5:52) - Diamondbacks outfielder/catcher Daulton Varsho (6:30) - Cubs outfielder Ian Happ...

On this episode of the Sports Info Solutions Baseball Podcast, Mark Simon is joined by John Gibson, Ted Baarda, and Bobby Scales to review the 2022 NPB and KBO Fielding Bible Awards. John goes through the NPB winners, explaining what made certain players so good defensively (0:34). Bobby talks about what it’s like to play in Japan and how defense is taught (14:08). Ted discusses the KBO winners an...

On this episode of the Sports Info Solutions Baseball Podcast, we’re joined by two of MLB’s top defensive players, Platinum Glove (and Fielding Bible Award winning) Yankees catcher Jose Trevino and Gold Glove-winning (and Fielding Bible runner-up) Cubs left fielder Ian Happ. Jose talks about the art and skill required to frame pitches, how he gets acquainted with a pitching staff, and why he’s pas...

On this episode, Mark Simon and Bobby Scales review the winners of The 2022 Fielding Bible Awards. You’ll also hear from some of the winners that we spoke to during the season, including Diamondbacks first baseman Christian Walker , Rockies second baseman Brendan Rodgers , and Guardians left fielder Steven Kwan . Plus new interviews with Cardinals infielder Tommy Edman and Orioles shortstop Jorge...

On this episode, Mark Simon , New York Times national baseball writer Tyler Kepner and SIS VP of Baseball Bobby Scales discuss the biggest surprises of the 2022 season. They include the accomplishments of Aaron Judge and Albert Pujols (yes, Judge was to some extent a surprise), Andrés Giménez and the Guardians, and many more (0:53). Tyler also talks about his new book, The Grandest Stage , a histo...

On this episode, Mark Simon ( @markasimonsays ) talks to ... Dodgers broadcaster José Mota ( @josemota05 ) about how the Dodgers have made the most out of players like Trayce Thompson, Tony Gonsolin and Evan Phillips, and how they've excelled on defense. He also shared stories of his father's relationship with Roberto Clemente and talked about the game's young Hispanic stars (1:12)....