Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley discuss Vladimir Guerrero Jr.’s recent resurgence and answer listener emails on various baseball topics. They talk about what a dynastic team could do to avoid being widely hated, the idea of making a mid-plate-appearance batting change, widening foul lines to increase offense, the debate over whether reducing pitcher injuries would…
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley discuss the matchups between Paul Skenes and Shohei Ohtani, Skenes’s skills and weaknesses on the mound and as a showman, the excitement level of different types of strikes, and more. They also talk about Aroldis Chapman’s ability to maintain high pitch speeds, whether the White Sox should be deterred from…
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley discuss MLB’s decision to clear Shohei Ohtani and ban five other players for betting on baseball, including Tucupita Marcano’s permanent ban. They talk about MLB’s involvement, gambling ads, future implications, and more. Later on, they chat about Tommy Pham’s recent altercation, surprising demotions, league parity, trade rumors, memorable games, skills…
The United States Women’s National Team are back in action this weekend against South Korea, and it’s the official beginning of the Emma Hayes era. Diaspora United’s André Carlisle joins on Episode 134 to give us a glimpse into the possible future of the USWNT! Before André joins, we run through the roster and note…
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley bring on FanGraphs associate editor Matt Martell to discuss the scenes at Citi Field that kicked off the Mets’ Jorge López saga, the resulting DFA and fallout, and what this silly/sad sequence of events suggests about the potential for player intent to be lost in translation, how off-the-field issues can…
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley discuss which slow-starting 2023 pennant winner, the Diamondbacks or Rangers, is more likely to turn their season around and make it to October. They also delve into the saga of Dick Windbigler, a pitcher who injured himself by pausing mid-delivery, with a special appearance by Dick’s widow, Melba Windbigler. The…
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley discuss the Pirates calling up pitching prospect Paul Skenes, Mookie Betts’s defense at shortstop, Willson Contreras, catcher’s interference calls, catcher technique in a world of automated strike zones, reliever shuffling, Chase Anderson’s Phiten necklace, issues with amateur prospects being exploited, Ippei Mizuhara’s guilty plea, Shohei Ohtani’s WAR and two-way potential,…
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley discuss Riley Greene’s recent pants-related wardrobe malfunction, the Padres-Marlins Luis Arraez trade, Vladimir Guerrero Jr.’s struggles, a C.B. Bucknor incident, and more. Then, they are joined by Neil deMause, author of Field of Schemes, and J.C. Bradbury, stadium-funding researcher and professor of economics, finance, and quantitative analysis at Kennesaw Sports…
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley discuss a recent increase in base stealing and the criticism of Mike Trout’s loyalty to the Angels. Later, they are joined by Patreon supporter Alex Levy to talk about Alex’s background as a podcast listener, baseball fan, and mail carrier. They also answer emails about various baseball topics. Audio intro:…
After a podcast preface by Ben Lindbergh about Mike Trout’s knee injury (sigh), Ben and Meg Rowley banter (4:19) about a weekend White Sox sweep, the overdue news that Nike is supposedly fixing the much-maligned MLB uniforms, follow-ups about rule rollbacks, ballplayer dirt ingestion, the “group Maddux,” and promotion/relegation, and the Twins’ summer sausage. Then…
