Tipping Pitches

Alex and Bobby discuss favorites for the Mets’ upcoming talent show, break down the news that MLB is lobbying to exclude minor leagues from minimum wage law in Florida, and take stock of the results of the official Tipping Pitches Fans Union Survey (thanks to listener Owen for putting it together!), then talk to The Athletic’s senior MLB writer Evan Drellich about his new book “Winning Fixes Every...

Alex and Bobby bask in the idea of a book on “business and baseball” from Alex Rodriguez, then discuss Manny Machado’s contract extension and Peter Seidler’s perspective on on risk vs. reward, the A’s going door-to-door looking for stadium money in Las Vegas, Bob Nutting’s CBA hopes and dreams, Tony Clark shutting down the prospect of a salary cap, and Rays reliever Ryan Thompson’s tweet thread on...

Bobby and Alex discuss Chris Christie’s wasted 80-grade corruption potential, plus MLB’s new economic reform committee designed to increase revenue parity and navigate the Bally Sports bankruptcy. Then, they bring on Lindsay Zoladz, pop music critic for the New York Times, to review Joe West’s seminal debut album “Blue Cowboy,” as well as his spoken word sophomore effort “Diamond Dreams,” before a...

Alex and Bobby ponder what it would take for Rob Manfred to put out a statement on the prevalence of UFOs in the skies right now, then talk at length about Cowboy Joe West’s showdown with Wikipedia, including his obsession with “grammer,” his revelations about Manfred’s dislike for Bob Nightengale, and why he didn’t use his own platform for this spring of content, before wrapping up with a listene...

To pass time in what is the most dead week of the baseball calendar, Bobby asks Alex to name as many people playing in the Super Bowl as possible (spoiler alert: it doesn’t go well). Then, they’re joined by “Meddling Adults” and “The Newest Olympian” host Mike Schubert to discuss the emergence of Derek Jeter in the public eye, Aaron Judge returning to the Yankees, and whether or not Derek Jeter an...

Bobby and Alex react to Elon Musk’s unfortunate newfound association with the Oakland A’s, break down the likely reasons why Arte Moreno decided not to sell the Angels, and speculate about what the demise of Bally Sports could mean for the rest of the baseball landscape, then answer listener questions about attending a full season of games, potential pod sponsorships, and the simplest way to expla...

Alex and Bobby discuss former Brave GM John Coppolella’s reinstatement after a “lifetime ban” for breaking international signing rules, MLB hiring a blackouts czar and what it means for the future of streaming, robot umpires coming to Triple A, thoughts on expansion, and the implications of facial recognition technology in MLB ballparks. Links: John Coppolella on life before and after MLB’s banned...

Alex and Bobby tie a bow on the Carlos Correa Mets saga, before checking in on some arbitration deadline decisions and examining the state of the arbitration system as a whole. Then, they react to two owners doing their favorite thing (shooting themselves in the foot), before answering some listener questions and voicemails about EGOTs, the three wise men, and Charles Johnson. Links: Join the Tipp...

Alex and Bobby are back with their fourth annual State of Labor in Baseball and are joined, as always, by FanGraphs staff writer Michael Baumann for a discussion on minor league unionization, payroll disparity, The Atlanta Model, and what the recent spate of mega deals says about the league’s economic health, plus why Baumann doesn’t fear Trea Turner, the scam that is grass, labor being entitled t...

Alex and Bobby are joined by CHGO writer and podcaster Janice Scurio for the second installment of Baseball Butterfly Effects, this time focusing on hugely consequential what ifs surrounding the White Sox, Twins, and Expos. Follow Janice on Twitter @scuriiosa. Links: Join the Tipping Pitches Patreon Tipping Pitches merchandise Songs featured in this episode: Booker T & the M.G.’s — “Green Onio...

This week, Bobby and Alex are once again joined by Grant Brisbee (this time for the original reason they invited him!) to talk about some of their favorite "what ifs" in baseball history — hypothetical alternate timelines where things go differently, broadly speaking. Grant shares a different path for one of the greatest pitchers of all time, while Bobby does what he does best: imagines...

A Met, apparently. Alex and Bobby bring on Grant Brisbee for a special midweek reaction pod for this wild turn of events, and discuss such topics as: 1) What?, 2) How?, 3) Why?, and 4) What? They don’t uncover many answers but they do reveal quite a few emotions, and Grant assures everyone that he’s actually laughing, really. Follow Grant on Twitter @GrantBrisbee. Links: Join the Tipping Pitches P...

Bobby and Alex do a (slightly belated) dramatic reading of the history of Mike Piazza’s quest to bankrupt an Italian soccer team, then take stock of the myriad “mega-deals” over the last couple weeks and how they reflect the health of baseball’s economic landscape, and try to figure out whether Chaim Bloom has any clue what he’s doing, before answering listener questions about conspiracy theories,...

Alex and Bobby banter about the litany of transactions over the last week and do a little discourse about the discourse surrounding contracts, then bring on Insider investigations reporter Bradford Williams Davis to break down his report in partnership with Dr. Meredith Wills regarding MLB’s use of three different baseballs in 2022, including how the league tried to discourage cooperation with thi...

Alex and Bobby grin and bear the news that Jacob deGrom is leaving the Mets to join the Texas Rangers, before recapping a quick hits list of news items from the past two weeks, including: José Abreu signing with the Astros, Disney purchasing the remainder of BAMTECH for $900 million, the Brewers dumping all salary, and the Rays pivoting to real estate. Links: Join the Tipping Pitches Patreon Tippi...

After their longest layoff between recording episodes, Bobby and Alex are back with another episode of the acclaimed podcast Tipping Pitches. This week, they run through some news items they missed in their time off, including the FTX meltdown, Billy Beane’s Irish exit, collusion abound, buying and selling Atlanta stock, Jim Crane taking the reins in Houston, and baseball’s impending rule changes....

For their classically on-brand roundup of the 2022 season, Bobby and Alex bring on Stephen Hesson, Lauren Walker, and Jane Ost to run down the dumbest things that happened in baseball this year, including the emergence of Roger Maris, Jr., Dave Kaval yelling at a seagull, The Tony La Russa Experience, an ill-conceived hologram, scoring at the Coliseum, the Great Sunflower Seed Incident That Wasn’t...

Alex and Bobby talk with Sami Khan and Michael Gassert, co-directors of “The Last Out,” a new documentary that follows three Cuban players in their journey to the major leagues, about how they went about making this film, how the focus of the project evolved as the filmmaking process went on, balancing the callousness of the international signing system with the humans at the center of the story,...

Alex and Bobby discuss the Houston Astros’ World Series victory and reflect on the narratives surrounding their win, Dusty Baker finally getting his, the beauty of this Phillies team, and more, then run down a few of Probably Popular Opinions and answer listener questions about tweets and Wet Guys.  Links: Watch “The Last Out”  David Roth on Wet Guys Join the Tipping Pitches Patreon Tipp...

Bobby and Alex discuss what to look for when scouting and developing your child, then discuss games one and two of the World Series, including the Phillies’ caffeine habits, the realization of J.T. Realmuto the star, the virtues of cranked-up umpire mics, and what to make of the various cheating accusations this postseason, then touch on Rob Manfred’s comments on the zombie runner and the A’s pros...

Alex and Bobby give their takeaways from the championship series that concluded this week, then break down the strange allure of an Astros-Phillies World Series, including the likability of the not-so-ragtag team from Philadelphia, the inevitability of Houston, and the strange arc of this postseason. They spend the second half of the podcast discussing Taylor Swift’s “Midnights.” Don’t say you wer...

Bobby and Alex take a wander through the vast world that is Jon Heyman’s mind, then discuss the (nearly) completed division series, including the Phillies as the last standing NL East team, the Guardians’ #brand of #baseball, the parity among baseball’s top teams, and more. Bobby breaks down his platonic ideal of a playoff baseball game, they discuss why playoff format discourse is missing the for...

Alex and Bobby review the results of the Wild Card round, take a look at the matchups they’re excited for in the division series, and unpack Bobby’s uneasy relationship with Mets fandom currently, then answer listener questions about the updated Enemy of the Pod with the Rays eliminated, Joe Musgrove’s ear, the potential for Joe West album features, and more. Links: Join the Tipping Pitches Patreo...

Bobby and Alex preview the 2022 MLB playoffs by making the case for each of the teams in the hunt for a trophy this October for the average Tipping Pitches listener. Self-described Dodgers masochist Makenna Martin also joins to plug the 5th annual Hottest Dodger Bracket and their raffle benefiting Peace Over Violence and their Domestic Violence Action Fund. Follow Makenna on Twitter @makenna_m19....

Alex and Bobby pour one out for Derek Jeter’s Tampa mansion and celebrate the real estate cycle of life, then discuss Albert Pujols’ historic achievement and the blissful lack of narratives, Aaron Judge’s home run chase and Apple TV’s ill-timed broadcast, and what the AL Central says about the state of competition in baseball. Links: Derek Jeter’s former mansion slated for demolition Ken Rosenthal...