Effectively Wild: A FanGraphs Baseball Podcast
2,149 episodes - English - Latest episode: about 1 month ago - ★★★★★ - 2.5K ratingsDaily baseball statistical analysis and commentary
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Episodes
Effectively Wild Episode 1898: One Award to Rule Them All
September 03, 2022 03:20 - 1 hour - 87.9 MBBen Lindbergh, Meg Rowley, and listener/Patreon supporter Nathan Valentine banter about Nathan’s dual team fandom, then answer listener emails (9:58) about Aaron Judge’s lead over the next-most-prolific HR hitter, handing out awards for all of MLB rather than each league, Jhoan Duran and defining an “off-speed” pitch, what constitutes actually visiting a stadium, and whether […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1897: Pluses and Meneses
September 02, 2022 06:58 - 1 hour - 89 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the annual promotion of Terrance Gore as a harbinger of the changing seasons, the modest September roster expansion and the arrivals or returns of Gunnar Henderson, Oswald Peraza, and Billy Hamilton, an umpire caught swearing on a hot mic (4:45), whether the Yankees could actually lose their lead […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1896: No Backsies
August 31, 2022 05:13 - 1 hour - 101 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about Ben’s habitual misappraisal of checked swings and the potential for automated checked-swing calls, then discuss the potential unionization of the minor leagues via minor league players joining the MLBPA, Nationals rookie replacement Joey Meneses outplaying Juan Soto and Josh Bell since the trade deadline, Shohei Ohtani, Aaron Judge, […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1895: Buggin’ Out
August 27, 2022 00:09 - 1 hour - 92.9 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about Julio Rodríguez‘s complex, long-term extension with the Mariners, which wild card contenders Meg is most worried about as a Mariners fan, George Kirby’s game-starting strike streak and the nature of a strike, the new CBA’s impact on midseason callups, and Bryce Harper’s return, follow up on MLB players […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1894: The Indomitable Dodgers
August 26, 2022 02:52 - 1 hour - 70.8 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the approving responses to Ben’s blistering (by Ben’s standards) Yankee Stadium review, Christian Walker’s scale-breaking defense at first base, “defended” vs. “defensed,” the Dodgers’ historic run of regular-season success, and the battle between teammates Nolan Arenado and Paul Goldschmidt for NL MVP frontrunner status, followed by Stat Blasts […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1893: Flame Inflation
August 25, 2022 00:42 - 1 hour - 85.8 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the inflation of flames for fast pitches on baseball broadcasts, Oneil Cruz’s record-setting hard hit and the limitations of tools, Ben’s review of a trip to Yankee Stadium and Red Sox pitcher Josh Winckowski’s review of Wrigley Field compared to Fenway Park, the potential impact of a forthcoming […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1892: Keeping it 100
August 19, 2022 06:31 - 1 hour - 89 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the impending premiere of Game of Thrones prequel House of the Dragon, the projection-system verdict on the Braves’ extension of Michael Harris II, the White Sox signing Elvis Andrus, the possibly underrated, could’ve-been-Hall-of-Fame career of José Abreu, and the sophomore improvement of Ha-Seong Kim, then (25:06) answer listener […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1891: So Long, Jon
August 18, 2022 06:29 - 1 hour - 71 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley follow up on Tony La Russa’s suspicious pinch-runner call, banter about Joey Gallo on the Dodgers and Andrew Benintendi on the Yankees, the utility of booing, and the parochial concept of being unable to play in New York, the curious timing of the Rangers’ firing of long-tenured executive Jon Daniels, […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1890: You’re a Peach
August 17, 2022 03:58 - 1 hour - 91 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter a bit more about whether Dottie dropped the ball on purpose in the movie version of A League of Their Own, then discuss an Angels defensive meltdown, a vomiting Oakland Athletic, a Javier Báez bad-ball batted ball, Tony La Russa (and Bill Veeck) taking suggestions from the stands, the […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1889: A Different League
August 13, 2022 03:35 - 1 hour - 92.8 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about whether Dottie dropped the ball on purpose in the 1992 movie A League of Their Own, then (steering clear of spoilers) review and discuss the highs and lows of the new TV reboot, the first season of which debuted on Friday on Amazon Prime Video. After that (49:54), […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1888: Paper Tigers
August 12, 2022 04:59 - 1 hour - 105 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the Mariners’ soaring playoff odds, a wild Mariners-Yankees game, the other greatest team gainers and losers in playoff probability over the past month, the difference between Baseball-Reference’s playoff odds and other sites’ versions, Keith Hernandez’s thoughts on the Phillies, how their own preseason predictions have held up, Steven […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1887: There Used to Be a Ballpark (And it’s Still There)
August 09, 2022 01:12 - 2 hours - 120 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the Dodgers’ and Mets’ “statement” series and the awe and anxiety inspired by Jacob deGrom, follow up on Vin Scully’s musical taste, retractable mounds, and Justin Verlander vs. Max Scherzer, and discuss a recent Rockies pickup and promotion and a hazardous mound visit, followed (33:00) by a Past […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1886: Vin’s Vignettes
August 05, 2022 23:51 - 1 hour - 62.7 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about a possible solution to the quandary of not enough slashes in “triple slash stats,” discuss the increasing excitement surrounding Aaron Judge’s home run record chase, and (20:00) share a Past Blast from 1886. Then (24:47) they welcome back singer-songwriter, baseball balladeer, and converted Dodgers fan Dan Bern to […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1885: The Pit Clock
August 05, 2022 06:41 - 1 hour - 95.8 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about Clayton Kershaw’s back, balky backs in general, some of the players traded at the deadline who made immediate impacts in their debuts, and the perhaps surprisingly small impacts that deadline moves make on playoff and World Series odds. Then (15:09) they answer listener emails about intentionally scuttling a […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1884: The Great Trade Deadline Download
August 03, 2022 10:06 - 2 hours - 121 MBAfter a busy deadline day, Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley react to all the trade activity, beginning with a high-level overview of the deadline, a recap of the Rockies’ inactivity (5:28), the Padres’ Juan Soto, Josh Hader, Brandon Drury, and Joe Musgrove moves (13:58) and the mad genius of A.J. Preller, the equally unprecedented nature […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1883: Know Your Value
July 30, 2022 06:20 - 1 hour - 102 MBBen Lindbergh, Meg Rowley, and FanGraphs writer Ben Clemens banter about a flummoxing fun fact, Justin Verlander’s career vs. Max Scherzer’s career, and Max Meyer’s Tommy John surgery, then (24:55) discuss the Andrew Benintendi trade, Joey Gallo’s struggles, and the biggest questions surrounding the trade deadline before (45:53) reviewing “other” Ben’s work on the annual […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1882: Back-Tracking and Bat-Tracking
July 28, 2022 01:44 - 1 hour - 77 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about Mike Trout’s rare back injury, Zac Veen and vaccines, the Rangers’ one-run record, interesting team trade rumors, and teams with tough deadline decisions, plus a Past Blast from 1882. Then (42:40) they talk to MLB.com’s Mike Petriello about Statcast’s newly public bat speed and swing path data, touching […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1881: Antitrust Us
July 27, 2022 04:34 - 1 hour - 70.9 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about a convoluted fun fact, the Cardinals’ anti-vaccination contingent, a historic Red Sox slump, an injury to top draftee Druw Jones, and a Willians Astudillo double-play pitch, Stat Blast (16:00) about Bryan Shaw and late-starting starters (plus an update on zero-RBI cleanup hitters), and share a Past Blast from […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1880: The 10th Anniversary Interview
July 22, 2022 23:55 - 1 hour - 89.9 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley wrap up the podcast’s 10th anniversary week by doing a dozen listener-inspired Stat Blasts and then (51:53) talking to 42-year-old Red Sox starter and podcast legend Rich Hill about how the game and his game have evolved over his long career, plus (1:31:18) a Past Blast from 1880/postscript. Audio intro: Silk […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1879: Me and Julio Down By the Ballyard
July 21, 2022 08:04 - 1 hour - 107 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley are joined by FanGraphs lead prospect analyst Eric Longenhagen to banter about what accounts for the variability in how quickly prospects acclimate to the majors and detecting holes in swings, discuss (10:50) which teams have the prospects to trade for Juan Soto, review (22:59) impressive performances from the Futures Game […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1878: The 10th Anniversary Draft
July 20, 2022 05:47 - 1 hour - 86.4 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley continue their celebration of the 10th anniversary of Effectively Wild by bringing on former cohost Jeff Sullivan and Most Frequent Guest (for now) Grant Brisbee to banter about Jeff’s job with the Rays and draft their favorite baseball stories from the past 10 years (plus a Past Blast from 1878). […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1877: The 10th Anniversary Retrospective
July 18, 2022 10:50 - 2 hours - 161 MBOn the 10th anniversary of Effectively Wild’s first episode, Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley kick off a week-long celebration by reflecting on the milestone, then (6:40) bring on producer Dylan Higgins and listener Chris Hanel for a round of Effectively Wild trivia and fun facts. After that (41:49), they dig into the podcast archive for […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1876: Overbooked
July 16, 2022 00:53 - 5 MBWith Meg Rowley on the road, Ben Lindbergh does an almost-all-interview episode featuring the authors of four new baseball books: First (3:22), Howard Bryant on Rickey: The Life and Legend of an American Original; second (42:45), Jeff Fletcher on Sho-Time: The Inside Story of Shohei Ohtani and the Greatest Baseball Season Ever Played; third (1:19:36), […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1875: Ten Men Out
July 15, 2022 06:22 - 1 hour - 102 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about Shohei Ohtani taking over the MLB WAR lead, a Taylor Ward/Jared Walsh mixup, an on-air “zombie runner” endorsement, another fruitless hidden ball trick attempt, and the need for an amended rule about replay reviews of slide plays, then (26:03) discuss the Blue Jays firing manager Charlie Montoyo and […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1874: We Are Made of All-Star Stuff
July 13, 2022 03:31 - 1 hour - 84.1 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about Ben’s hazardous last week, then discuss the ongoing mellowing of attitudes and discussions surrounding the All-Star game, embracing the game’s potential for sentimentality, how it would feel to be a team’s lone All-Star representative, the results of a new poll about robo umps, an NPB record and whether/when […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1873: Puke and Rally Cap
July 09, 2022 04:54 - 1 hour - 78.9 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about Ben’s unfortunate Brussels sprouts incident, then answer listener emails about the ballparks with the most and least locations where a ball would be a home run only in that park, the Rays’ MLB-leading outs on the bases, the Orioles’ possibly improved pitcher development, a loaner-type trade where a […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1872: A Moderate Amount of Hijinks
July 08, 2022 02:43 - 1 hour - 89.7 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley rant and banter (ranter?) about MLB’s approach to promoting the Futures Game, then (17:33) discuss superheroes throwing baseballs, the latest exploits of the semi-superpowered Shohei Ohtani and Sandy Alcantara, and Ohtani’s chances against Aaron Judge (and others) in the AL MVP race, Stat Blast (39:03) about losing teams with two […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1871: Empire State of Grind
July 05, 2022 23:45 - 1 hour - 82.3 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the possible end of the Taylor Ward/Tyler Wade broadcaster confusion, Ward getting caught unawares at first base, and the Twins turning the first-ever 8-5 triple play, then Stat Blast (11:06) about Cam Vieaux and the most pitches thrown in various types of innings, share a Past Blast (23:33) […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1870: Please Don’t Put in the Newspaper That Manfred Got Mad
July 02, 2022 04:59 - 1 hour - 105 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the varying interpretations of Bobby Bonilla Day and what may be the last-ever Bruce Sutter Day, then (17:20) discuss what an expansive ESPN profile of Rob Manfred reveals about the MLB commissioner. After that (48:49), they answer listener emails about players jumping straight from college to the majors, […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1869: Big Coach on Campus
June 30, 2022 06:15 - 1 hour - 72.5 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley are joined by Jake Mintz of Céspedes Family BBQ to talk about Twins pitching coach Wes Johnson leaving the team midseason to join LSU, why MLB teams are hiring coaches from college and why colleges are hiring them back, whether MLB teams should pay coaches more, the state of player […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1868: And Here Come the Sunflower Seeds
June 29, 2022 06:33 - 1 hour - 90.1 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about a surprising ESPY nomination for Jorge Soler, another Tyler Wade/Taylor Ward broadcaster mixup, the massive Mariners-Angels brawl and ensuing suspensions and pizzas, Bryce Harper’s broken thumb and not-broken face, Mark Appel finally making the majors, an update on the Joc Pederson–Tommy Pham feud, the Yankees getting no-hit, the […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1867: Defining Fun
June 25, 2022 04:23 - 1 hour - 92.4 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley answer listener emails about why players in the dugout seem so confident in pitch locations, whether it would ever help to wear two gloves, MLB Big Inning and other baseball equivalents of NFL RedZone, the extreme dimensions of the Polo Grounds, what makes it so impressive that some players perform […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1866: That Sinking Feeling
June 24, 2022 06:10 - 1 hour - 89 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about two spectacular games by Shohei Ohtani and Ohtani’s extraordinary playing-time pace and relay a sinker-iffic response from Michael Lorenzen to a previous discussion about baseball grip, then (24:22) answer listener emails about using different-colored balls to denote different levels of liveliness, how much time to train players have […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1865: Slide Rule
June 22, 2022 05:10 - 1 hour - 90.8 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about whether changing managers is at all responsible for the Phillies’ recent success, the Yankees’ almost unparalleled winning-percentage pace, the Royals’ historically terrible pitching performance and the pressure on their pitching coach, another Taylor Ward/Tyler Wade broadcaster slipup, Anthony Rendon’s season-ending surgery, Michael Lorenzen’s comments about baseball slipperiness and […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1864: One Giant Leap
June 17, 2022 03:39 - 1 hour - 105 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about a broadcaster relatably mixing up Taylor Ward and Tyler Wade, the Dodgers “fixing” former Rockies pitcher Yency Almonte, a deep, perplexing rabbit hole (7:46) of baseball-themed CarShield commercials, the bat spike as the new bat flip, an umpire’s close call with a broken-bat shard, and the building backlash […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1863: Belly to Bellyache
June 15, 2022 03:41 - 1 hour - 101 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about what it means to be humbled, whether Joe Maddon’s mohawk could have caught on and caused a Shohawk had he not been fired, another point about Aaron Judge’s potentially historic home-run pace, a Byron Buxton fun fact, whether Buxton or Luis Arraez is a more entertaining hitter, Ozzie […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1862: Forbidden Ball Trick
June 14, 2022 02:33 - 1 hour - 85 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about Joe Maddon’s mohawk, the latest details about Mike Trout’s (and Tommy Pham’s and Joc Pederson’s) legendary fantasy football league, a rash of hidden-ball-trick attempts, the “old guy’s still got it” resurgences of Nelson Cruz and Joey Votto, how big a deal Aaron Judge’s potentially historic home-run pace should […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1861: I’m Not Maddon, I’m Just Disappointed
June 11, 2022 00:29 - 1 hour - 101 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about Joe Maddon’s firing, the impact and end of the Angels’ 14-game losing streak, and whether the Angels or Phillies are in a worse position for the future, Tony La Russa’s intentional walk on a 1-2 count, whether the weather and the humidor can explain MLB’s sudden upticks in […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1860: Start Them Young
June 10, 2022 03:44 - 1 hour - 107 MBWith Meg Rowley on the road, Ben Lindbergh talks to a trio of guests. First (4:10), he’s joined by Mr. King, the creator of Northwoods Baseball Sleep Radio, to talk about baseball as ASMR, crafting a fictional league, broadcaster, and collection of players, replicating the soothing, white-noise sounds of a baseball broadcast, putting his listeners […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1859: Three Strikes and Burnout
June 06, 2022 08:25 - 1 hour - 82.7 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about Mike Yastrzemski trying the “KK play,” the distinctive smell of rat urine, Buck Showalter making a mid-PA pitching change, Dave Roberts running afoul of a position-player-pitcher rule, the wording of the zombie-runner rule, Nick Pivetta’s near-miraculous mechanical adjustment, and Mike Trout’s slump, plus a baseball-history fact from 1859. […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1858: The Fan Who Knew Too Much
June 04, 2022 03:18 - 1 hour - 68.9 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about Joe Girardi’s firing and where the Phillies go from here, the Astros’ Yordan Alvarez extension, the dip in DH offense, and the trade deadline, then answer listener emails about MLB.TV highlights, the upside of ignoring playoff odds, getting plunked on a full count, things that haven’t happened in […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1857: Hit Me Right in the Phils
June 03, 2022 03:56 - 1 hour - 88.4 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley announce the availability of new Effectively Wild T-shirts, then follow up on the latest, Mike Trout-related developments in the Tommy Pham–Joc Pederson fantasy-football/slap story as well as Josh Donaldson’s comments about his teammates not supporting him. After that, they banter about a home-run robbery that wasn’t, the homer hitting of […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1856: Slapped Silly
June 01, 2022 03:57 - 1 hour - 92.7 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about Nick Castellanos’s uncanny tater timing, and then (4:43) Ben attempts to explain the Joc Pederson–Tommy Pham fantasy-football dispute (and resulting slap) to Meg. After that (44:42), they discuss the Reds’ resurgence, an umpire’s hot mic, updates on defensive-positioning restrictions and the forthcoming pitch clock, and whether the standings […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1855: Glass Ass of Emotion
May 28, 2022 06:27 - 1 hour - 91 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley answer listener emails about why we don’t see more hidden-ball tricks in MLB, why big leaguers practice fielding grounders between innings, comparing the careers of Paul Goldschmidt and Freddie Freeman, how baseball broadcasts should discuss domestic-violence suspensions, whether Rickey Henderson would still have stolen bases if he’d been inflicted with […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1854: Comedy of Errors
May 27, 2022 03:46 - 1 hour - 86.9 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the apparent end of Mike Trout’s long-lasting SuperPretzel sponsorship, Willians Astudillo’s return to the majors, the Phillies’ fielding and a seeming surfeit of amusingly bad defensive plays across the league, the arrival of overall no. 1 prospect (and Orioles catcher) Adley Rutschman and how to tell when a […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1853: What Are the Odds?
May 26, 2022 12:55 - 1 hour - 97.9 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley talk to Kelly Pracht, the CEO and co-founder of predictive analytics startup nVenue, which has provided the real-time probabilities displayed on this season’s MLB Network-produced Friday Night Baseball broadcasts on Apple TV+. They discuss nVenue’s origin story, its sports-betting ambitions, its 100-plus-input machine-learning model, which factors are and aren’t predictive […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1852: Roger, Over and Out
May 21, 2022 02:49 - 1 hour - 5 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley pay tribute (for the umpteenth time) to the great Roger Angell, who died at 101 on Friday, then banter about which underperforming hitters are most in need of the kind of breakout game that slow-starting Trevor Story had this week. After that (21:41), they bring on listener and top-tier Patreon […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1851: You Say Tyler, I Say Taylor
May 20, 2022 01:40 - 1 hour - 79.3 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the rabidity of opossums and Eugenio Suárez‘s keepie-uppie skills, then discuss the White Sox offense and Tony La Russa’s rationale for batting Andrew Vaughn ninth, Max Scherzer’s oblique injury, and the possibility of a Juan Soto trade, before meeting major leaguers (53:30) Logan Gillaspie (Orioles) and Brandon Hughes […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1850: Don’t Squat So Close to Me
May 18, 2022 04:41 - 1 hour - 85.4 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about two of the worst defensive plays of the season, which came courtesy of the Tigers and Nationals, Albert Pujols pitching and walking, the Pirates winning without a hit (but with one correct prediction), and the breakout of Taylor Ward; answer listener emails about banning gray uniforms, baseball jugglers, […]
Effectively Wild Episode 1849: When the Whiff Hits the Fan
May 14, 2022 02:48 - 1 hour - 65.1 MBBen Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about a wave of baseball ads for cryptocurrencies and NFTs coinciding with crashes in the crypto and NFT markets, injuries to Bryce Harper and Clayton Kershaw, the dominance of the Dodgers, Yankees, and (especially of late) Astros, the early NL West race, Robinson Canó getting a job as Jarred […]