Author Archive

Effectively Wild Episode 664: The Brawling Royals and the Remarkable Mets

Ben, Sam, and Will Woods talk about the Royals’ latest dust-up, the Mets’ 11-game winning streak, and Giancarlo Stanton’s almost physics-defying home runs.


Effectively Wild Episode 663: Your Mostly Excellent Emails

Ben and Sam answer listener emails about defining team success, four-man outfields, pitcher offensive futility, baseball’s Star Wars trailer moments, and more.


Effectively Wild Episode 662: Michael Schur on Metacommentary 10 Years After Fire Joe Morgan’s First Post

On the 10th anniversary of Fire Joe Morgan’s first post, Ben and Sam talk to Michael Schur about FJM, sports-media sins in the age of Twitter and, oddly enough, The O.C.


Effectively Wild Episode 661: How Different is Baseball in 2015?

Ben and Sam banter about batting around and Bryan Price’s media meltdown, then check in on early-season statistical trends.


Effectively Wild Episode 660: The Weekend-Long A’s-Royals Rumble

Ben and Sam banter about Alex Rodriguez and discuss the three-day dispute about unwritten rules between the A’s and the Royals.


Effectively Wild Episode 659: The Making of the Modern General Manager

Ben and Sam talk to Mark Armour and Dan Levitt, the authors of In Pursuit of Pennants, about whether good GMs have to break rules, how long competitive advantages last, and how good teams go bad.


Effectively Wild Episode 658: Playoff Odds Changes and the Meaning in Small Samples

Ben and Sam talk to Matt Trueblood about the teams that have hurt or improved their odds the most, and the aspects of performance that are significant in small samples.


Effectively Wild Episode 657: The Switching Cities, Dealing Draft Picks, and Trading Divisions Edition

Ben and Sam banter about Mike Trout and answer listener emails about trading draft picks and divisions, saving failing franchises, limiting pitchers, and more.


Effectively Wild Episode 656: How to Pick Breakout Players

Ben and Sam banter about Jon Lester and then talk to the entire TINO (There Is No Offseason) podcast crew about their breakout-player beliefs.


Effectively Wild Episode 655: Lester vs. Hamilton: The Pickoff Culmination

Ben and Sam banter about the weekend’s best plays and Mike Trout’s hidden hobby, then discuss the potential pickoff showdown between Jon Lester and Billy Hamilton.