Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about Pete Alonso’s performance since they marveled at his hot start, the return of Craig Kimbrel, Max Muncy’s tale of two seasons, how hitters fare after LASIK, the Mets’ “secret sauce” against Shohei Ohtani, whether the Dodgers’ injury woes will hurt their capacity to recruit pitchers, Brandon Pfaadt’s “yes hitter,” the latest step toward the challenge system, Eric Anthony’s dad discovery and nature and nurture in player development, the underrated Willie Davis and Reggie Smith, and more, plus a combined Meet a Major Leaguer/Stat Blast segment (1:19:39) on Nic Enright and Christian Montes De Oca (and the rule-altering signing of the 13-year-old Jimy Kelly).

Audio intro: Moon Hound, “Effectively Wild Theme”
Audio outro: El Warren, “Effectively Wild Theme”

Link to previous Pete banter
Link to Pete before
Link to Pete after
Link to Muncy before
Link to Muncy after
Link to Muncy article
Link to MLB LASIK study
Link to secret sauce article
Link to Spahn quote
Link to Cup of Coffee
Link to FG on Casparius
Link to “yes hitter” post
Link to “yes hitter” Stathead
Link to Ben on no-hitters 1
Link to Ben on no-hitters 2
Link to challenge system news
Link to Anthony and Davis story
Link to B-Ref new debuts
Link to The Athletic on Enright
Link to Guardians prospects list
Link to phantom player wiki
Link to 1972 scouting article
Link to Montes de Oca wiki
Link to Montes de Oca name
Link to Diamondbacks prospects
Link to MDO article 1
Link to MDO article 2
Link to MDO article 3
Link to MDO article 4
Link to Kelly at B-Ref
Link to MiLB.com on Kelly
Link to SI on Kelly
Link to EW Stanky draft
Link to Mexican League article
Link to Koo video
Link to Bois on Koo
Link to Kenny Jackelen
Link to player signings spreadsheet

 Sponsor Us on Patreon
 Give a Gift Subscription
 Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com
 EW Subreddit
 Effectively Wild Wiki
 iTunes Feed (Please rate and review us!)
 Spotify Feed
 Facebook Group
 Bluesky Account
 Twitter Account
 Get Our Merch!

Podcast (effectively-wild): Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about Taylor Walls fulfilling a preseason podcast prediction by being ejected after tapping his helmet following a questionable call (and the many notifications Ben and Meg received from EW listeners), Luke Weaver’s stretching injury, the Rockies’ purported improvement, the decline of the closer as bullpen protagonist, a miraculous softball-delivery dirt clod, an unfortunate instance of replay review, the LSU Shreveport Pilots’ undefeated college season, Jac Caglianone’s call-up, Corbin Burnes’s bum elbow, Mookie Betts’s improved defense, the death of Japanese baseball legend Shigeo Nagashima, and more.

Audio intro: Philip Bergman, “Effectively Wild Theme”
Audio outro: Ted O., “Effectively Wild Theme”

Link to Walls story
Link to Reddit comments
Link to @EWStats ruling
Link to Walls and Trump
Link to Walls and DeSantis
Link to Revere ride info
Link to Weaver stretching story
Link to Dan S. on Weaver
Link to carrots myth
Link to Rockies quotes
Link to Rockies 10-day offense
Link to Rockies 10-day pitching
Link to Denver Post story
Link to The Athletic on Kenley
Link to Ben on saves
Link to Ben on SP protagonists
Link to softball clip
Link to softball story
Link to Ben on Capps
Link to Springer clip
Link to Springer story
Link to Dave on slides 1
Link to Dave on slides 2
Link to Shreveport story
Link to Wake Forest story
Link to Hill Triple-A game
Link to MLBTR on Burnes
Link to CBS on Mookie
Link to Ohtani Nagashima post
Link to Nagashima obit
Link to Whiting quote
Link to Nagashima NPB Stats page
Link to Oh NPB Stats page

 Sponsor Us on Patreon
 Give a Gift Subscription
 Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com
 EW Subreddit
 Effectively Wild Wiki
 iTunes Feed (Please rate and review us!)
 Spotify Feed
 Facebook Group
 Bluesky Account
 Twitter Account
 Get Our Merch!

Podcast (effectively-wild): Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the most exciting prospects who haven’t yet made the majors but should soon (including Jac Caglianone, Roman Anthony, Bubba Chandler, and Andrew Painter), the struggles of once-ballyhooed trade targets Sandy Alcantara and Luis Robert Jr., the recent rebounds of Emmanuel Clase and Devin Williams, the returns of Mike Trout, Ronald Acuña Jr., and Spencer Strider, the differing trajectories of former Reds relievers Fernando Cruz and Alexis Díaz, the surprisingly successful and homegrown Yankees, the looming specter of Craig Kimbrel, watching Paul Skenes, what baseball would be like with man defense, not zone, and teams whose playoff odds have increased or decreased the most in the season’s first two months.

Audio intro: Guy Russo, “Effectively Wild Theme”
Audio outro: Ian Phillips, “Effectively Wild Theme”

Link to WhatIfSports offer page

Link to Passan on prospects
Link to MLBTR on Caglianone
Link to MiLB leaderboard
Link to FG prospect rankings
Link to Pipeline rankings
Link to team OF WAR
Link to FG Royals prospects
Link to Dan S. on Jac
Link to BaseRuns standings
Link to team SP WAR
Link to SB leaders
Link to team wRC+
Link to FIP since 4/26
Link to MLBTR on Jobe
Link to MLBTR on Díaz
Link to ERA-FIP gap
Link to Kimbrel contract info
Link to Tobias clip
Link to playoff odds changes
Link to Contreras article 1
Link to Contreras article 2
Link to Maldonado article

 Sponsor Us on Patreon
 Give a Gift Subscription
 Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com
 EW Subreddit
 Effectively Wild Wiki
 iTunes Feed (Please rate and review us!)
 Spotify Feed
 Facebook Group
 Bluesky Account
 Twitter Account
 Get Our Merch!

Podcast (effectively-wild): Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the Rockies’ historic series losing streak and their rest-of-season projections, an Orioles fan’s decision to get the name of Trevor Rogers tattooed on his butt, a Patrick Corbin innings-eating update, draft prospect Jace LaViolette’s dedication to staying in the lineup, the late-career struggles of Clayton Kershaw, Justin Verlander, and Max Scherzer, the Yankees’ shame about their rings commemorating their 2024 pennant, and more.

Audio intro: Austin Klewan, “Effectively Wild Theme”
Audio outro: Jonathan Crymes, “Effectively Wild Theme”

Link to Rockies stat
Link to Opta interview
Link to Kamka tweet
Link to BaseRuns standings
Link to FG playoff odds
Link to ESPN SoS
Link to Baltimore Banner article
Link to Rogers tweet
Link to Kjerstad tweet
Link to best Orioles starts
Link to Rangers IP leaders
Link to LaViolette article 1
Link to LaViolette article 2
Link to LaViolette article 3
Link to LaViolette homers
Link to Kershaw article 1
Link to Kershaw article 2
Link to Yankees rings article

 Sponsor Us on Patreon
 Give a Gift Subscription
 Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com
 EW Subreddit
 Effectively Wild Wiki
 iTunes Feed (Please rate and review us!)
 Spotify Feed
 Facebook Group
 Bluesky Account
 Twitter Account
 Get Our Merch!

Podcast (effectively-wild): Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the new hardest-hit ball of the Statcast era, exit speeds across eras, Oneil Cruz vs. Elly De La Cruz, whether Tarik Skubal has gotten too good, Aaron Judge not feeling great at the plate, whether Rockies fans should boycott the team, how the (first) Juan Soto trade is working out for the Nationals, a Clay Holmes rotation conversion progress report, Jake Burger’s minor league reset, a threat to Shea Langeliers’ A’s sprint speed lead, a dominant DH in Division III, and a new show trying to claim the podcast’s corner.

Audio intro: Benny and a Million Shetland Ponies, “Effectively Wild Theme (Horny)”
Audio outro: Tom Rhoads, “Effectively Wild Theme”

Link to Cruz homer
Link to 120+ mph balls
Link to Clemens on Skubal
Link to Cooper stat
Link to Passan Skubal tweet
Link to ESPN on Skubal
Link to Skubal splits
Link to Misiorowski story
Link to Misiorowski clip
Link to Misiorowski video
Link to new Judge quotes
Link to 2024 Judge quote 1
Link to 2024 Judge quote 2
Link to Kyle Clark commentary
Link to year-over-year attendance
Link to Nats prospects
Link to Nats WAR leaders
Link to Rule of 17 explainer
Link to Burger game log
Link to MLB.com on Burger
Link to A’s speed leaders
Link to A’s prospects post
Link to A’s shakeup article
Link to CBS Mazzone post
Link to Mazzone player page
Link to Mazzone at TBC
Link to Mazzone article
Link to clip of the other EW
Link to Brault wiki
Link to Brault on EW
Link to Simpsons clip

 Sponsor Us on Patreon
 Give a Gift Subscription
 Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com
 EW Subreddit
 Effectively Wild Wiki
 iTunes Feed (Please rate and review us!)
 Spotify Feed
 Facebook Group
 Bluesky Account
 Twitter Account
 Get Our Merch!

Podcast (effectively-wild): Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the Rockies being so bad that mostly innocuous stories about them now seem like examples of organizational incompetence, a wild loss by a Rockies affiliate, and why recent terrible teams have been so bad, then (36:56) answer listener emails about catchers framing poorly on purpose, penalizing hitters when their bats make contact with catchers, whether the draft should be helping the worst teams more, and a potential sac-fly tactic in a walk-off situation, plus a Stat Blast (1:17:59) about runners making up for bad baserunning plays, pinch running too late, failed team attempts to reach .500 for the first time, and a piece of baseball wall art, followed (1:43:28) by postscript updates.

Audio intro: Luke Lillard, “Effectively Wild Theme”
Audio outro: Kite Person, “Effectively Wild Theme”

Link to WhatIfSports offer page

Link to worst 50-game starts
Link to Dollander call-up story
Link to Dollander IL stint
Link to Gelb tweet
Link to Soto story
Link to lawsuit story
Link to “the baseball rule”
Link to @ScoringChanges tweet
Link to walk-off story 1
Link to walk-off story 2
Link to Aces call
Link to box score
Link to PCL standings
Link to Kirk/Bassitt story
Link to Stick It wiki
Link to strikes called balls
Link to balls called strikes
Link to FG post on Wilson
Link to pinch-runners spreadsheet
Link to Grichuk walk-off video
Link to baseball wall art
Link to FARTSLAM post 1
Link to FARTSLAM post 2
Link to listener emails database
Link to MiLB FAD tracking
Link to Hanel’s predictions post
Link to Stranger Things Night
Link to Victoria Day wiki
Link to Victoria Day Jays post

 Sponsor Us on Patreon
 Give a Gift Subscription
 Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com
 EW Subreddit
 Effectively Wild Wiki
 iTunes Feed (Please rate and review us!)
 Spotify Feed
 Facebook Group
 Bluesky Account
 Twitter Account
 Get Our Merch!

Podcast (effectively-wild): Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about Rich Hill’s latest perfect game bid, whether the Tigers are as good as they’ve looked, Jared Jones’ elbow surgery and the Pirates’ offensive outage, Paul Skenes and whether lower arm slots will protect pitchers’ arms, Pete Crow-Armstrong and the players who’ve ascended to “main character” status this season, and more listener suggestions for what to call tandem home run robberies and homers that clear the fence due to defensive miscues.

Audio intro: Grant Brisbee, “Effectively Wild Theme”
Audio outro: Liz Panella, “Effectively Wild Theme”

Link to latest Hill game
Link to Hill footage
Link to 2016 Hill game
Link to Hill on EW
Link to BaseRuns standings
Link to Sheehan on Detroit
Link to projected RoS SP WAR
Link to Jones note
Link to Passan on Skenes
Link to Heyman on Skenes
Link to Skenes slot video
Link to Pirates unfun fact
Link to team offense since 4/23
Link to VAA explainer
Link to arm-slot injury study
Link to Russell on n=1
Link to The Bandwagon on Brown
Link to last-year pitcher WAR
Link to BP on Brown
Link to 2025 EW bold predictions
Link to 2025 FG bold predictions
Link to combined WAR leaderboard
Link to chase rate leaderboard
Link to story on PCA moving back
Link to PCA on his mom
Link to The Bandwagon on main characters
Link to free month of The Bandwagon
Link to Paine on the Cardinals
Link to Passan on the Cardinals
Link to team defense leaderboard
Link to Meg on farting
Link to Carpenter retirement
Link to Carpenter leaderboard 1
Link to Carpenter leaderboard 2

 Sponsor Us on Patreon
 Give a Gift Subscription
 Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com
 EW Subreddit
 Effectively Wild Wiki
 iTunes Feed (Please rate and review us!)
 Spotify Feed
 Facebook Group
 Bluesky Account
 Twitter Account
 Get Our Merch!

Podcast (effectively-wild): Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about Elly De La Cruz’s unspectacular start to the season, the firing of Brandon Hyde and what it would take for them to blame a manager for a team’s disappointing season, the hubbub about Juan Soto’s hustle, MLB’s announcement about Rivalry Weekend’s success, Kyle Schwarber and the lineage of non-Hall-of-Fame hitters who’ve appeared to have a chance at “magic number” milestones, MLB’s attempt to define the swing, the overwhelming array of Statcast stats, the latest call for Shohei Ohtani to specialize, and more.

Audio intro: Gabriel-Ernest, “Effectively Wild Theme”
Audio outro: Jonathan Crymes 2, “Effectively Wild Theme”

Link to FG on the O’s
Link to FG playoff odds
Link to BaseRuns standings
Link to Girardi firing article
Link to ESPN on Valentine
Link to FG on the Twins
Link to Soto flight confusion
Link to Ben on Jeter vs. Cano
Link to Soto in-game interview info
Link to Ben on in-game interviews
Link to Soto plays
Link to Mendoza quote
Link to MLB press release
Link to Vedder Cup story
Link to Schwarber HR stat
Link to Stathead query
Link to most HR since 2022
Link to swings article 1
Link to swings article 2
Link to new Savant leaderboard
Link to article on new metrics
Link to FG on Royals pitching
Link to Ohtani strikeout
Link to Pereda ball
Link to Ohtani article
Link to Sam on Ohtani

 Sponsor Us on Patreon
 Give a Gift Subscription
 Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com
 EW Subreddit
 Effectively Wild Wiki
 iTunes Feed (Please rate and review us!)
 Spotify Feed
 Facebook Group
 Bluesky Account
 Twitter Account
 Get Our Merch!

Podcast (effectively-wild): Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about listener suggestions for terms for tandem home run robberies (and the opposite of home run robberies), whether it’s so O’sver in Baltimore, Jacob deGrom succeeding despite slightly less dominant stuff, and the realness of the rivalries in MLB’s inaugural “Rivalry Weekend,” then (48:46) answer listener emails about awarding hit by pitches based on location, not contact, which player actually “starts the scoring,” whether defenders should save the ball from their first putout, a pitcher hitting month, and pantsless mascots, plus a postscript (1:38:32) on Ayami Sato, the first woman to play pro baseball in Canada.

Audio intro: Justin Peters, “Effectively Wild Theme”
Audio outro: The Shirey Brothers, “Effectively Wild Theme”

Link to WhatIfSports offer page

Link to team wRC+ w/RISP
Link to team batting Clutch
Link to team wOBA-xwOBA
Link to FG playoff odds
Link to BaseRuns records
Link to MLBTR on the O’s
Link to deGrom FG post
Link to Rivalry Weekend info
Link to Vedder Cup story
Link to Sam on the no-go zone
Link to Rob Arthur on HBPs
Link to Billy the Marlin pics
Link to Billy video
Link to Grant on mascots
Link to listener emails database
Link to Hang Up and Listen

 Sponsor Us on Patreon
 Give a Gift Subscription
 Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com
 EW Subreddit
 Effectively Wild Wiki
 iTunes Feed (Please rate and review us!)
 Spotify Feed
 Facebook Group
 Bluesky Account
 Twitter Account
 Get Our Merch!

Podcast (effectively-wild): Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about Julio Rodríguez gifting a homer and then taking one away, two Red Sox outfielders teaming up to make a catch, home-run-robbery terminology, Conor Jackson and remembering some guys who were good for your fantasy team, pouring one out for the Austin Barnes Dodgers era, lopsided scores, and the A’s, then (55:30) discuss Pete Rose’s reinstatement from the permanently ineligible list: why it happened, what it means, and what’s next.

Audio intro: Kite Person, “Effectively Wild Theme”
Audio outro: Andy Ellison, “Effectively Wild Theme”

Link to Julio gift
Link to Julio robbery
Link to Sox catch
Link to The Bandwagon on the catch
Link to Office Space clip
Link to Patrick on lopsided scores
Link to EW bold predictions
Link to BaseRuns standings
Link to A’s sprint speeds
Link to Ben on Rose’s reinstatement
Link to Ben’s Rose obit
Link to Jay on Rose
Link to Wetzel on Rose

 Sponsor Us on Patreon
 Give a Gift Subscription
 Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com
 EW Subreddit
 Effectively Wild Wiki
 iTunes Feed (Please rate and review us!)
 Spotify Feed
 Facebook Group
 Bluesky Account
 Twitter Account
 Get Our Merch!

Podcast (effectively-wild): Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS