Effectively Wild: A FanGraphs Baseball Podcast
2,172 episodes - English - Latest episode: 3 days ago - ★★★★★ - 2.5K ratingsDaily baseball statistical analysis and commentary
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Episodes
Effectively Wild Episode 1621: Japan’s Field of Dreams (and Nightmares)
November 25, 2020 10:29 - 1 hour - 68.2 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the latest head-scratching Scott Boras quote, a disheartening Shohei Ohtani interview and Ohtani’s two-way future, Charlie Morton leaving the Rays to sign with the Braves, and the items from the 2020 season preserved by the Hall of Fame, then (28:06) talk to Ema Ryan Yamazaki, director of the […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1620: Jeff Sullivan Partakes in a Pennant
November 25, 2020 08:02 - 1 hour - 62.6 MBBen Lindbergh, Sam Miller, and Meg Rowley are joined by former co-host and current Tampa Bay Rays analyst Jeff Sullivan to discuss the experience of working for a team that almost won the World Series, touching on what exactly Jeff’s job is, what he learned in his second year with the Rays, what he did […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1619: Pink Hair Don’t Care
November 21, 2020 17:14 - 5 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the Effectively Wild community’s Secret Santa exchange beginning again, a new podcast featuring former EW guest (and oldest former living player) Eddie Robinson, and two more Scott Boras quotes, then reflect further on Kim Ng’s hiring and review listeners’ responses to a recent podcast discussion about picking a […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1618: Robinson Canózolol
November 20, 2020 07:57 - 50 minutes - 46.5 MBBen Lindbergh and Sam Miller banter about Representative Cedric Richmond’s retirement from the Congressional Baseball Game after a Ruthian two-way career, discuss Theo Epstein stepping down from the Cubs (and at least temporarily leaving baseball) and Robinson Canó getting suspended for the entire 2021 season after testing positive for steroid use, and share a Stat […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1617: Did Sabermetrics Break Baseball?
November 17, 2020 09:13 - 1 hour - 68.3 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley reflect on the fact that it took a former player to hire Kim Ng as MLB’s first woman general manager, follow up on the unwritten rules controversy surrounding Kyuji Fujikawa’s final out, and evaluate two recent statements by Scott Boras, then (24:07) bring on Baseball Prospectus’s Patrick Dubuque and FanGraphs’ […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1616: MLB’s Other Cheating Problem
November 14, 2020 08:46 - 1 hour - 76.9 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the Marlins hiring Kim Ng and the significance of Ng becoming MLB’s first woman GM, the Angels hiring Perry Minasian and the team’s ownership issues, Kyuji Fujikawa and an NPB unwritten rule, Ryan Tepera’s accidental MVP vote, and how FanGraphs readers feel about 2020’s new rules, plus a […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1615: Yesterday’s News
November 12, 2020 11:28 - 1 hour - 60.8 MBBen Lindbergh and Sam Miller banter about Marcus Stroman accepting the qualifying offer and tweeting about Tony La Russa, what the AL Cy Young voting says about the Dodgers, and the singular greatness of the 2014-15 Royals, then answer listener emails about Noodles Hahn and how quickly former star players get forgotten, whether there should […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1614: The Most Difficult Free-Agent Contracts Draft
November 10, 2020 06:20 - 1 hour - 62.5 MBBen Lindbergh and Sam Miller banter about Jeff Luhnow’s lawsuit against the Astros and Max Muncy’s and Joe Kelly’s comments about MLB’s permeable postseason quasi-bubble, then conduct their sixth annual free-agent-contract over/under draft. Audio intro: The Clash, "All the Young Punks (New Boots and Contracts)" Audio outro: The Electric Prunes, "Sold to the Highest Bidder" Link to […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1613: The Need for Steve
November 07, 2020 09:03 - 5 MBBen Lindbergh and guest co-host Steven Goldman of Baseball Prospectus banter about MLB’s Friday news dump, covering the Red Sox hiring Alex Cora, the Mets cleaning house in the front office and the potential for new owner Steve Cohen to be baseball’s offseason spending savior, and the league announcing that it wouldn’t discipline the Dodgers’ […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1612: Strength in Phone Numbers
November 06, 2020 08:18 - 5 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the status of the designated hitter and answer a listener email with a Stat Blast about hitters who’ve homered from every spot in the lineup, then (23:11) bring on Cleveland life skills coordinator Jen Wolf to talk about her career path in baseball, what a life skills coordinator […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1611: Feats of Clay
November 03, 2020 05:58 - 1 hour - 68.3 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley remind their audience to vote, then banter about this year’s selection of qualifying offers and what the Rays declining Charlie Morton’s option for 2021 signifies for the free-agent market (if anything) before answering listener emails about front-office parity and what teams can do to differentiate themselves from each other, and […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1610: Tony La WHOsa?
October 31, 2020 14:32 - 1 hour - 63.3 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley discuss the industry-shocking rehiring of Tony La Russa as the manager of the Chicago White Sox nine years after La Russa’s last managerial job and the Detroit Tigers’ hiring of A.J. Hinch immediately after the end of his sign-stealing suspension, then anticipate what could be an ominous offseason. Audio intro: Silver […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1609: Game, Set, Mask
October 29, 2020 12:50 - 1 hour - 68.5 MBBen Lindbergh and Sam Miller discuss Justin Turner’s positive COVID test, his unsafe decision to return to the field after World Series Game 6, and why his protocol-breaking behavior cast a pall over the World Series celebration, then examine the series’ significance to the legacies of the Dodgers and Clayton Kershaw, why the Dodgers were […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1608: A Wild World Series Weekend
October 27, 2020 10:27 - 1 hour - 59.8 MBBen Lindbergh and Sam Miller break down the exciting fourth and fifth games of the World Series, touching on Brett Phillips’ momentous hit and the Dodgers’ momentous misplays at the end of Game 4, the managerial decisions that led to that wild ending, Manuel Margot’s baserunning and Clayton Kershaw’s pitching in Game 5, and other […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1607: Goad Glovers
October 23, 2020 23:46 - 1 hour - 69.3 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the groundswell of support for Mookie Betts as the best player in baseball, stand up for Mike Trout, and explain why Betts and Trout make an ideal duo as faces of the sport, then examine Yadier Molina’s frustration with Gold Glove voting, the sabermetric reappraisal of Yadi’s Hall […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1606: Call it Even
October 23, 2020 10:24 - 1 hour - 59.3 MBBen Lindbergh and Sam Miller discuss the first two games of the World Series, touching on Clayton Kershaw’s Game 1 excellence, the Dodgers’ discipline, Dave Roberts’ pitcher usage, the status of Rays reliever Nick Anderson, the Game 2 breakout of Brandon Lowe, and the outlook for the rest of the series. Then they banter about […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1605: Welcome to the World Series
October 20, 2020 10:14 - 1 hour - 70.6 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley discuss the exciting seventh games that decided the ALCS and NLCS, the exits of the Astros and Braves, the Braves’ future, how the Dodgers defeated Atlanta, the joy of home run robberies, the Mookie trade revisited, and more, then preview the World Series, focusing on the return of off days, […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1604: The Plans for Fans in Stands
October 17, 2020 00:14 - 1 hour - 70.3 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about a podcast interview that may hinge on the Rays winning the World Series, John Smoltz’s on-air app suggestion, the latest developments in the Dave Roberts and Clayton Kershaw playoff narratives, the Dodgers and Astros on the brink, the long-term outlook for Randy Arozarena, encouraging catcher glove gestures, the […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1603: Match Points
October 16, 2020 10:24 - 5 MBBen Lindbergh and Sam Miller banter about a baseball ad on the radio, revisit the topic of how often teams win when they outhomer their opponents, discuss the brand of baseball on display this postseason, share a Stat Blast about the percentage of runs scored on homers and investigate whether all-or-nothing baseball is as problematic […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1602: Dig Deep
October 12, 2020 20:03 - 1 hour - 56.4 MBBen Lindbergh and Sam Miller banter about the Honda Fit being discontinued, then discuss Game 5 of the Yankees-Rays ALDS, why this postseason’s strikeout-centric, home-run-reliant brand of baseball may be entertaining to hardcore fans but a turnoff to non-fans, the ALCS and NLCS matchups, the incredible depth of the Rays and Dodgers, whether (and why) […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1601: Always in Motion is the Future
October 09, 2020 10:32 - 1 hour - 69.6 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about which team with a new opening at the top of its baseball operations department would be the most attractive to baseball executives: the Reds, the Phillies, or the Angels. Then (15:07) they bring on James Buffi, the biomechanics expert, former Driveline Baseball biomechanics consultant and Dodgers senior analyst, […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1600: Blown Calls
October 07, 2020 21:55 - 1 hour - 60.2 MBBen Lindbergh and Sam Miller discuss the merits of stats about the success of teams that hit more home runs in the playoffs and then review the first several games of the division series, touching on the unparalleled power of Giancarlo Stanton, the Yankees’ piggyback pitcher decision, the Astros’ resurgence, the overtaxed Padres’ bullpen, the […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1599: The Mostseason
October 07, 2020 07:58 - 5 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about potato chip sponsors, playoff games at neutral sites, juiced-ball suspicions, ALDS bad blood, how Pedro Martínez approached playoff starts, postseason MLB debuts, and the power of Giancarlo Stanton, then answer listener emails about how 2020’s shortened season will affect future pitcher workloads, what counts as a “crooked number,” […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1598: Call it Like You See It
October 03, 2020 13:28 - 1 hour - 69.3 MBWith the wild card round wrapped up, Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley react to the end of the Marlins-Cubs and Padres-Cardinals series and reflect on the wild card round as a whole. Then they critique a few aspects of the postseason’s national baseball broadcasts (including Alex Rodriguez’s small-ball boosterism, the scourge of live, in-game player […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1597: The Frantic Wild Card Catch-up
October 02, 2020 18:13 - 1 hour - 60.7 MBDuring a brief respite between games, Ben Lindbergh and Sam Miller catch up on a week’s worth of wild card action, discussing the experience of being bombarded by an unprecedented amount of postseason baseball, the playoff run environment, and the state of postseason strategy, along with observations and takeaways from every wild card matchup and […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1596: The Unpredictable Playoff Round
September 29, 2020 09:46 - 47 minutes - 43.9 MBBen Lindbergh and Sam Miller banter about a misconception about FIP and how to weigh FIP and ERA in evaluating pitcher performance after the fact, the Phillies’ failure to make the playoffs and how the outcome of their season affects (and should affect) the future of their front office, Jacob deGrom’s ever-increasing velocity and how […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1595: How Cleveland Became a Pitching Powerhouse
September 26, 2020 03:12 - 1 hour - 64.1 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about late-season playoff uncertainty, whether they’re happy with how the playoff field has turned out, the Cubs’ strange season, the surprising number of top prospects who’ve made their MLB debuts in 2020, and the percentage of promoted prospects who’ve skipped the upper levels of the minors. Then (20:47) they […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1594: Speed Trap
September 25, 2020 11:15 - 52 minutes - 48.1 MBBen Lindbergh and Sam Miller banter about whether we need middle names and what it was like not to know what players were worth before WAR and its statistical predecessors existed, then do Stat Blasts about pickoff attempts in a fan-free season, why home-field advantage has persisted without fans in the stands, and the Phillies’ […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1593: When You Wish Wilpon a Star
September 21, 2020 10:42 - 1 hour - 70.7 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about Justin Verlander’s Tommy John surgery, a different way to expand the playoffs, and whether MLB’s approach to playing in 2020 has been vindicated, then (38:52) talk to Defector’s David Roth about the Mets being sold to Steve Cohen, what life as a fan would be like without the […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1592: The Roger Angell Centennial Celebration
September 18, 2020 08:08 - 1 hour - 71.2 MBIn honor of New Yorker writer and editor and Baseball Hall of Famer Roger Angell’s 100th birthday, Ben Lindbergh, Sam Miller, and Meg Rowley discuss what they admire about Angell’s life and work, how he’s influenced their writing, and a few of their favorite Angell works. Then (26:22) they cue up a collection of original, […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1591: More Like Expanded Nayoffs
September 17, 2020 02:15 - 58 minutes - 53.3 MBBen Lindbergh and Sam Miller discuss Rob Manfred’s desire to make the 16-team playoff format permanent and how the absence of off days will affect the 2020 postseason, then conduct a Stat Blast quiz about the best same-named teammate duos, plus a non-quiz Stat Blast about pitcher usage in seven-inning doubleheaders. Audio intro: Rhett Miller, "Permanent […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1590: How to Find a Minor League Late Bloomer
September 14, 2020 10:08 - 57 minutes - 52.8 MBBen Lindbergh and Sam Miller talk to Justin Hollander, the Seattle Mariners’ vice president and assistant general manager in charge of baseball operations, about how the Mariners have discovered and signed overlooked talents like Austin Nola and Dylan Moore, how much preparation the front office does for minor league free agency, how to blend stats […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1589: The Home Run Retriever
September 12, 2020 03:58 - 1 hour - 71.7 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the extraordinary stat lines of Brewers pitcher Corbin Burnes, the role of randomness in baseball, the latest two-team half no-hitter, the Rays’ historic all-lefty lineup, the horrors of Red Sox pitching, the approaching end of the regular season, the states of the standings and playoff odds, the underperforming […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1588: Full Nelson
September 09, 2020 23:44 - 56 minutes - 51.5 MBBen Lindbergh and Sam Miller discuss the backstory behind the Lou Brock for Ernie Broglio trade, break down a clichéd postgame quote by Gavin Lux, and marvel at the historic excellence of 40-year-old Twins slugger Nelson Cruz. Audio intro: Todd Rundgren, "Cliché" Audio outro: Chip Taylor, "Santa Cruz" Link to the Chicago Reader on the Cubs and […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1587: The Live-Ball Era
September 05, 2020 03:12 - 1 hour - 82.4 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley follow up on an earlier Clayton Kershaw commercial conversation and banter about Tom Seaver and the benefits of being a late bloomer, then answer listener emails about catchers sharing secrets about their old teams, the value of game-calling, Manny Ramirez signing with the Sydney Blue Sox and the experience of […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1586: Duke it Out
September 04, 2020 01:15 - 1 hour - 62.9 MBBen Lindbergh and Sam Miller banter about a Giants fun fact, two home run facts that may or may not be fun, the ways in which the circumstances of his era shaped the late Tom Seaver’s legacy, and the latest highlights of extra-innings baseball, then answer listener emails about another possible implementation of the automatic-runner […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1585: The Not-So-Deadline
September 02, 2020 01:14 - 1 hour - 66.6 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley recap and analyze the trade deadline, concentrating on the Padres’ unprecedented activity, Cleveland dealing Mike Clevinger, the Blue Jays buying, the Diamondbacks selling, several other contenders retooling, and why the deadline was busier than expected, followed by banter about a second Clayton Kershaw tire commercial and an example of Honus […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1584: The Immaculate Golden Sombrero
August 28, 2020 16:53 - 1 hour - 60.8 MBBen Lindbergh and Sam Miller banter about how Albert Pujols has remained an RBI man without being a good hitter and the historic slimness of Cleveland rookie pitcher Triston McKenzie, then answer a listener email about whether all innings would be better with the extra-innings automatic-runner rule, followed by Stat Blasts about what would happen […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1583: The Shift in Conversation
August 28, 2020 12:30 - 1 hour - 74.4 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley reflect on the recent protests, statements, and strikes across the sports world and in MLB specifically, touching on why some teams did or didn’t opt to play on Wednesday and Thursday, the messages that those decisions sent, and whether this week will mark a lasting break from MLB players’ past […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1582: Change My Mind
August 25, 2020 02:02 - 1 hour - 59.7 MBBen Lindbergh and Sam Miller follow up on two Stat Blasts from the previous week and banter about the Dodgers’ impressive winning percentage pace, the surprisingly normal state of the standings, the Phillies’ bullpen, and the record-setting sale of a Mike Trout baseball card before discussing some of the ways in which the 2020 season […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1581: Endless Cycle
August 22, 2020 00:17 - 1 hour - 85.2 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about Fernando Tatis Jr.’s “grand slam cycle,” the most exciting cycle sequence, unwritten rules, how to interpret reports of rising TV ratings, why umpires call more strikes when they work with the same catchers, historical precedents for the Cardinals’ overstuffed schedule, a confounding Clayton Kershaw commercial, and Jeff Frye’s […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1580: Meet Me Halfway
August 21, 2020 09:57 - 1 hour - 62.2 MBBen Lindbergh and Sam Miller banter about the three-year anniversary of the Effectively Wild outing to see the total solar eclipse at a minor league game in Oregon and whether the backlash to the kerfuffle over Fernando Tatis Jr.’s 3-0 grand slam made this week a watershed for MLB’s unwritten rules, then answer listener emails […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1579: Our Favorite Small-Sample Seasons So Far
August 18, 2020 09:33 - 1 hour - 75.6 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about MLB’s BABIP bouncing back from its unusually low early level, the Tigers calling up a trio of top prospects in an attempted playoff push, and Cardinals rookie Roel Ramirez’s unprecedented debut, then answer a listener email with a Stat Blast about the longest regular-season and postseason team vs. […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1578: Welcome to Planet Earth
August 15, 2020 02:41 - 1 hour - 66.5 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the Cardinals finally returning to play and attempting to complete their overstuffed schedule, the teams with the most movement in playoff odds since the start of the season, Cleveland’s clubhouse problems with protocol-defying pitchers Zach Plesac and Mike Clevinger, the joy of watching Mookie Betts and Betts’s proclivity […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1577: Chaos Theory
August 12, 2020 05:09 - 58 minutes - 53.8 MBBen Lindbergh and Sam Miller banter about whether the idea of sports as a distraction from the pandemic has panned out, whether unexpectedly hot-starting teams like the Rockies and Tigers should “go for it” (and what that would entail), and what, if anything, MLB should do to address the curious case of Trevor Bauer’s spiking […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1576: The “Is This Guy Good?” Game Returns
August 11, 2020 02:59 - 58 minutes - 53.7 MBBen Lindbergh and Sam Miller banter about a realization about fake crowd noise discomfort, a disastrous start to a Derek Holland outing that recalled an earlier podcast discussion, whether Fernando Tatís Jr. will ever have a moment as remarkable as Fernando Tatís’s two-grand-slam inning, outfielders showing up pitchers, and more, then bring back the “Is […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1575: Rookies of the Year
August 08, 2020 04:21 - 1 hour - 83.3 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about a bad fun fact on a baseball broadcast, a case of copycat pitching involving Jake Diekman and Chaz Roe, how MLB may amend eligibility for the Rookie of the Year award in 2021, a Wade LeBlanc balk and why balks remain mystifying and debatable, plus a Stat Blast […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1574: No Fans, Good Field?
August 07, 2020 03:56 - 1 hour - 58.9 MBBen Lindbergh and Sam Miller banter about their minor league free agent draft results so far and whether this season has helped or hurt minor league free agents gain playing time, the continued watchability of revamped extra innings and the possibility of bringing back traditional extra innings for one week a year, and whether this […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1573: Make Some Noise
August 04, 2020 09:48 - 1 hour - 63.2 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about Shohei Ohtani’s arm injury and his short- and long-term prospects as a two-way player, Mike Soroka and the ongoing pitcher-injury epidemic, the latest positive tests and player opt outs, Tigers reliever Tyler Alexander’s record-setting nine consecutive strikeouts, Clayton Kershaw’s comeback and other heartening news, MLB’s uptick in TV […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1572: Baseball on Borrowed Time
August 01, 2020 01:24 - 1 hour - 74.8 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley discuss the coronavirus spreading to the NL Central, the difficulties MLB faces compared to other sports leagues, the dramatic changes that the pandemic has imposed on the sport, why robot umps aren’t part of the pandemic makeover, the jarring visuals of virtual fans, the promotion of Nick Madrigal and the […]