Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the latest Carlos Correa-related reporting, the Giants’ signings of Michael Conforto and Taylor Rogers, the hijinks potential of twin teammates Taylor and Tyler Rogers, the final results of the free-agent-contract over/under draft, their cautious optimism about the Angels (28:35), the Reds’ spending constraints (39:19), owners complaining about Steve Cohen, how it feels for fans when a team’s identity changes, and Trevor Bauer’s reinstatement from the suspended list (55:16). Also: a Past Blast from 1946 (1:10:15) and Stat Blasts (1:14:57) about the most distinct batters to come to the plate in one half-inning, the most Retrosheet offensive events by one player in one game, and (with guest Stat Blaster Zach Kram of The Ringer) the highest and lowest team payrolls adjusted for MLB salary inflation. (Hint: The highest is not the 2023 Mets.) Plus a postscript!

Audio intro: The Boo Radleys, “Twinside”
Audio outro: Alvarado Road Show, “Baseball Stops for Christmas”

Link to Passan on Correa
Link to The Athletic on Correa
Link to Grant on Correa
Link to Gausman tweet
Link to Verducci on Correa
Link to Correa’s house-hunting
Link to details on Correa’s leg
Link to Ben C. on Giants signings
Link to Drellich on Cohen
Link to Ben L. on long contracts
Link to Reds spending tweet
Link to Alex Eisert on Reds moves
Link to WFAN Correa call
Link to KNBR Correa calls
Link to fan self-esteem study
Link to Jake Mailhot on Drury
Link to EW competitions/drafts
Link to ESPN on Bauer
Link to WaPo on Bauer
Link to L.A. Times on Bauer
Link to 1946 story source
Link to “defensive spectrum” wiki
Link to Jacob Pomrenke’s website
Link to Jacob Pomrenke on Twitter
Link to Stat Blast info
Link to Ryan Nelson’s Twitter
Link to current team payrolls
Link to inflation-adjusted payrolls
Link to 2018 Craig Edwards post
Link to SIS on the Yankees’ defense
Link to team DRS rankings
Link to Langs tweet
Link to eclipse game box score
Link to MLBTR on Varsho
Link to outfield OAA leaders

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Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley break down every incredible angle of the biggest twist of the MLB offseason: free agent Carlos Correa’s overnight pivot from a 13-year agreement with the San Francisco Giants to a 12-year deal with the New York Mets. After their incredulous Correa reactions, they close with a few thoughts on the Pirates’ latest innovation in the realm of announcing signings (this one involving Austin Hedges), Aaron Judge and the Yankees’ captaincy, and their intention to talk about Brandon Drury and the Angels, plus a Past Blast from 1945.

Audio intro: Fruit Bats, “Stunned One”
Audio outro: The Weakerthans, “Hymn of the Medical Oddity”

Link to Ben L. on Correa
Link to Ben C. on Correa
Link to Boras comments
Link to Verducci on Correa
Link to Heyman’s report
Link to Heyman on Cohen
Link to The Athletic on Correa
Link to Emma’s tweet
Link to team payrolls
Link to team depth charts
Link to 2003 Onion story
Link to Astudillo report
Link to R.J.’s Pirates tweet
Link to Jeter video
Link to MLBTR on McCann
Link to 1945 story source
Link to SABR on Robinson’s signing
Link to SABR on Wright
Link to Jacob Pomrenke’s website
Link to Jacob Pomrenke on Twitter

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Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the differences, if any, between a two-year deal with an opt out after the first year and a one-year deal with a player option for a second year, then discuss the Dansby Swanson signing, the destinations of the winter’s top four shortstops, and the state of the Cubs, the spending of the White Sox, the AL Central, and the trajectories of Andrew Benintendi and Joey Gallo, Atlanta depending on Vaughn Grissom to replace Swanson at shortstop, the Dodgers and Red Sox essentially swapping DHs in J.D. Martinez and Justin Turner (and Boston’s confusing competitive stance), the Orioles’ unexciting signings and the Marlins’ lack of moves, the Padres and Mets continuing to add players and payroll and whether Seth Lugo is like socks, the Astros re-signing Michael Brantley, Kris Bryant being on the Rockies, and more, plus Stat Blasts about this winter’s unusually long contracts and Rich Hill’s gap between 30-start seasons (1:03:35), a Past Blast from 1944 (1:15:28), and a Hall-of-Fame follow-up.

Audio intro: ABBA, “Two for the Price of One”
Audio outro: JD McPherson, “Socks”

Link to Wendy on mutual options
Link to article on tweet length
Link to Ben Clemens on Swanson
Link to Dan Szymborski on the Cubs
Link to Laurila on Benintendi
Link to Baumann on Gallo
Link to Chris Gilligan on Lugo
Link to team payrolls
Link to SP depth charts
Link to Battery Power on Grissom
Link to Esteban Rivera on JDM
Link to Justin Choi on Turner
Link to Baumann on the Red Sox
Link to article on Bloom buying/selling
Link to article on Boston’s deadline
Link to Dan on the Orioles
Link to Hill Stat Blast data
Link to 1944 story source
Link to story on Phillies rebrand
Link to SABR on team nicknames
Link to Jacob Pomrenke’s website
Link to Jacob Pomrenke on Twitter
Link to latest Ringer-Verse episode
Link to first Ringer-Verse episode

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Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the Yankees signing Carlos Rodón, Rodón’s recent trajectory and future, New York teams at the top of the payroll leaderboard and starting-pitcher projections, the career of the late Curt Simmons, and the perfect pace of this offseason. Then (31:06) they answer listener emails about the best players to pick for a snowball fight, using the same baseball throughout a game, Steve Cohen and sportswashing, persuading Pirates owner Bob Nutting to spend, Nutting and A Christmas Carol, a lottery for a free agent Shohei Ohtani, and a baseball rope-a-dope strategy, plus a Past Blast from 1943, musings on the Red Sox designating Jeter Downs for assignment, and a postscript on late-breaking transactions and a pedantic observation about the term “DFA.”

Audio intro: The Ozark Mountain Daredevils, “New York”
Audio outro: The Orchids, “Mr. Scrooge”

Link to Ben Clemens on Rodón
Link to Jake Mintz on Rodón
Link to info on Rodón non-tender
Link to team payrolls
Link to SP depth charts
Link to Craig Wright on Simmons
Link to Pages From Baseball’s Past
Link to “The Homer They Fall”
Link to EW emails database
Link to 1943 story source
Link to info on Ullenberg
Link to Jacob Pomrenke’s website
Link to Jacob Pomrenke on Twitter
Link to MLBTR on Downs
Link to MLBTR on Benintendi
Link to MLBTR on Gallo
Link to MLBTR on Hosmer
Link to Secret Santa sign-up sheet
Link to Secret Santa FB thread

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Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the Pirates’ Vince Velasquez hype video, a “mutant option” for Cody Bellinger, and a Francisco Rodríguez-only Hall of Fame ballot, then (22:09) discuss Carlos Correa’s 13-year contract with the Giants and its implications for the NL West, the Twins and Cubs, and the future of old-player production, along with musings on the state of the Dodgers’ rotation after their signing of Noah Syndergaard. After that (51:24), FanGraphs writer Ben Clemens joins to get everyone interested in interest rates and explain why the CBA and economic conditions have encouraged teams to sign so many free agents to extremely lengthy deals this winter. They close (1:22:40) with a Past Blast from 1942.

Audio intro: The Luxembourg Signal, “Ramblin’ Rodriguez”
Audio interstitial: The Hold Steady, “On With the Business”
Audio outro: PUP, “Grim Reaping”

Link to Velasquez video
Link to signing tweet
Link to Priester video
Link to laptop tweet
Link to Pirates’ winter moves
Link to “mutant option” tweet
Link to Foolish tweet
Link to Belisle mutual option
Link to bad ballot
Link to Dan S. on Correa
Link to Mallory Pugh wiki
Link to Eisert on Syndergaard
Link to Dodgers depth chart
Link to SP depth charts
Link to Simon on Correa
Link to Olney on Judge
Link to Ricketts comment
Link to Ben on long deals
Link to Rosenthal on long deals
Link to EW on long deals
Link to Kovalchuk article
Link to NPR on interest rates
Link to 1942 story source
Link to FDR’s letter
Link to Jacob Pomrenke’s website
Link to Jacob Pomrenke on Twitter
Link to Carlin video
Link to Carlin transcript
Link to Secret Santa sign-up sheet
Link to Secret Santa FB thread

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Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley discuss the two teams at the top and bottom, respectively, of the MLB payroll hierarchy, the New York Mets and Oakland Athletics, touching on the Mets’ signings of Brandon Nimmo, Kodai Senga, and David Robertson, the A’s trading away Sean Murphy, and what a vast disparity in spending does and doesn’t signify for MLB’s competitive balance. They also banter about the other teams’ ends of that three-team trade, the state of the NL East, the Giants’ starting-pitcher signings, a reported Padres offer, the Blue Jays’ and Twins’ latest additions, Munetaka Murakami news, and more, plus a Past Blast from 1941.

Audio intro: Billy Joel, “Last of the Big Time Spenders”
Audio outro: Sex Bob-Omb, “Threshold”

Link to Patrick Dubuque on Cohen
Link to Longenhagen on Senga
Link to Baumann on Mets spending
Link to Rosenthal on owners
Link to Rosenthal on Murphy
Link to Baumann on Murphy
Link to Law on Murphy
Link to Petriello on Murphy
Link to FG payroll page
Link to team catcher WAR
Link to SP depth charts
Link to 2005 team payrolls
Link to FG post on Manaea
Link to FG post on Bassitt
Link to FG on Vázquez/Zunino
Link to Marlins article
Link to Padres report
Link to Kovalchuk article
Link to Murakami news
Link to Ben’s SNL oral history
Link to 1941 story source
Link to Lefty Grove bio
Link to Jacob Pomrenke’s website
Link to Jacob Pomrenke on Twitter
Link to Secret Santa sign-up sheet
Link to Secret Santa FB thread
Link to share of team Ks sheet

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Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about their AI chatbot counterparts, then discuss the ramifications of the Padres signing Xander Bogaerts (12:58), the significance of the Red Sox losing Bogaerts and the trend toward very long-term contracts (51:26), and a report about multiple models of the baseball being used during the 2022 season (1:19:59), plus updates and a Past Blast from 1940 (1:49:43).

Audio intro: Pixies, “Get Simulated”
Audio outro: Parker Gispert, “Life in the Goldilocks Zone”

Link to ChatGPT
Link to OpenAI
Link to ChatGPT intro script
Link to Dan S. on Bogaerts
Link to Nightengale tweets
Link to team payroll breakdown
Link to story on Bogaerts leaving
Link to story on Bloom
Link to story on Story
Link to Kram on the Meetings
Link to Stark on long contracts
Link to hitter aging curves
Link to Kovalchuk story
Link to new baseballs report
Link to last year’s report
Link to last year’s EW episode
Link to 1940 story source
Link to Jacob Pomrenke’s website
Link to Jacob Pomrenke on Twitter
Link to over-30 lineups study
Link to 1985 automatic runner ref
Link to other 1985 ref
Link to giant Turner tweet

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Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley break down the rest of the action from the Winter Meetings, including Arson Judge not signing with the Giants, Aaron Judge re-signing with the Yankees, the Padres missing out on Judge and Trea Turner, the Dodgers’ lack of interest in Carlos Correa, the Giants signing Mitch Haniger, the Cardinals signing Willson Contreras, the Cubs signing Jameson Taillon and Cody Bellinger, the going rate for mid-rotation starters, the Phillies signing Taijuan Walker and Matt Strahm, the secret to Dave Dombrowski’s owner cajoling, the Mets signing José Quintana, whether Steve Cohen has a spending limit, the Rangers signing Andrew Heaney, the Guardians signing Josh Bell, the Red Sox signing Kenley Jansen, Chris Martin, and Masataka Yoshida, the first draft lottery, the podcast’s thirstiness, and more, plus a Past Blast from 1939.

Audio intro: Eleventh Dream Day, “The Arsonist”
Audio outro: Queen, “’39”

Link to Manfred comments
Link to more Manfred comments
Link to Rob on competitive balance
Link to Arson Judge saga
Link to “the grink” tweet
Link to Heyman “grink” tweet
Link to Jay on Judge
Link to Dan on Judge
Link to Padres/Judge rumors
Link to Rosenthal on Correa
Link to Time feature on Judge
Link to Ben Clemens on Haniger
Link to Baumann on Contreras
Link to Justin Choi on Taillon
Link to qualifying offer decisions
Link to Chris Gilligan on Bellinger
Link to EW on Bellinger’s bat
Link to Laurila on Walker
Link to Walker tweet
Link to FG post on Martin
Link to SIS on Yoshida
Link to Baumann on Bell
Link to projected payrolls
Link to draft lottery results
Link to ChatGPT explainer
Link to Rule 5 scouting reports
Link to thirstiness tweet
Link to Ohtani pillow
Link to Insider baseballs report
Link to 1939 story source
Link to The Baseball Reliquary
Link to Baseball Reliquary article
Link to Jacob Pomrenke’s website
Link to Jacob Pomrenke on Twitter

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With Meg Rowley on the IL, Ben Lindbergh and FanGraphs author Dan Szymborski discuss the first batch of news from a busy Winter Meetings, including the big-money market as a whole, the blockbuster signings of Jacob deGrom, Justin Verlander, and Trea Turner, the outlooks for the Rangers, Dodgers, and Astros, the Padres’ interest in Turner and its implications for Fernando Tatis Jr., the genre of rumors about teams that tried to acquire players, the Brewers-Mariners trade involving Kolten Wong, Jesse Winker, and Abraham Toro, Brian Cashman re-upping with the Yankees, Bryan Reynolds demanding a trade from the Pirates, Fred McGriff’s election to the Hall of Fame, and more, plus postscript updates about late-breaking news/signings, followups, and a Past Blast from 1938.

Audio intro: Jon Jacob, “Buffalo Killers”
Audio outro: Parquet Courts, “This is Happening Now”

Link to Rosenthal on the market
Link to Dan on deGrom
Link to Ben Clemens on deGrom
Link to Baumann on Verlander
Link to Heyman on deGrom
Link to Heyman on Verlander
Link to thread on old top starters
Link to Jay on Turner
Link to MLBTR on the Turner rumors
Link to Baumann on the Brewers trade
Link to tweet about Winker
Link to Dipoto payroll comments
Link to FG post on Martin
Link to FG post on Estévez
Link to Twitter thread on Estévez
Link to Reynolds request
Link to Jay on the committee
Link to Jay on the HoF results
Link to Dan’s Nats projections
Link to Ben on forecasting chemistry
Link to NBA trophy news
Link to Lindsey on PitchCom
Link to EW Episode 1577
Link to road-attendance sheet
Link to Apstein on Boras
Link to Boras EW episode
Link to “Arson Judge” tweet
Link to Insider baseballs report
Link to 1938 story source
Link to SABR on the 1938 Meetings
Link to WWE belt story
Link to Jacob Pomrenke’s website
Link to Jacob Pomrenke on Twitter

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Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about Ben’s daughter’s first steps, follow up on differentiating players with the same name, equipment replacements, and suggested recreational sports for Ben to play, and then discuss the Royals’ remade coaching staff (19:43), the career of the late, all-time-great Gaylord Perry (22:57), and the latest ESPN Crasnick/Rogers annual offseason MLB insiders survey (44:58), plus answers to listener emails (1:04:33) about an MLB awards ceremony, pitcher wins, and the Tigers’ rebuild, a Past Blast from 1937 (1:31:11), and a postscript.

Audio intro: Brendan Benson, “Spit it Out”
Audio outro: Jim Noir, “JJC Sports”

Link to Jeongeun Lee6 LPGA page
Link to Bradley forgetting outs
Link to The Athletic on Sweeney
Link to Royals Review on Sweeney
Link to Manfred statement on Perry
Link to MLB.com’s Perry obit
Link to Perry’s SABR bio
Link to Perry’s book
Link to Nate on pitcher hitting
Link to Sam on pitcher hitting
Link to Eno on old pitchers
Link to 44+ pitchers by year
Link to latest ESPN survey
Link to Sam on the insiders
Link to Russell on the shift
Link to execs on rule changes
Link to EW emails database
Link to Smyth on qualifiers
Link to Mains on qualifiers
Link to Miller on qualifiers
Link to awards dinner info
Link to Poscast episode
Link to 1937 story source
Link to Jacob Pomrenke’s website
Link to Jacob Pomrenke on Twitter
Link to MLBTR on Eflin
Link to strike-zone EW episode
Link to shuttlecock article
Link to road-attendance sheet

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