Episode 877

Jay and I discuss the Astros’ punishment for electronic sign-stealing, the dismissal of Jeff Luhnow, AJ Hinch, and Alex Cora, and what we want the punishment of teams, managers, and front office personnel to achieve in cases like this. We then turn our attention to how the Astros and Red Sox World Series teams (and the players who played for them) will be remembered decades from now, and what his association with the scandal might mean for Carlos Beltrán’s future Hall of Fame consideration.

Please note, this episode was recorded prior Beltrán stepping down as the Mets manager.

To read Jay’s piece on the parallels between the sign-stealing scandal and the steroid era, click here.
To read Jay’s piece on the Astros’ punishment, click here.
To read Jay’s piece on Carlos Beltrán, click here.
Update: Jay’s follow-up on Beltrán and the Mets’ mutual parting is available here.

Don’t hesitate to direct pod-related correspondence to @megrowler on Twitter.

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Audio after the jump. (Approximate 44 min play time.)

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Episode 876

On this edition of FanGraphs Audio, Ben Clemens shares his impressions of the Winter Meetings, before we discuss a recent piece of his exploring free agency, and which types of teams are actually keeping the hot stove burning. Ben also shares which rosters have him the most excited for the 2020 season, and the answers may surprise you. Lastly, we discuss the latest updates from the realm of sign-stealing, and Ben discourages you from committing financial crime. 

Don’t hesitate to direct pod-related correspondence to @megrowler on Twitter.

You can subscribe to the podcast via iTunes or other feeder things.

Audio after the jump. (Approximate 44 min play time.)

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Episode 875

On this edition of FanGraphs Audio, I welcome senior writer Dan Szymborski back to the program. Dan and I discuss his favorite free agent signings of the offseason so far, the teams that have most altered their 2020 fortunes, and what a busy winter means for the overall health of free agency. I also force Dan to assign the remaining good free agents to new homes, lightening round style.

You can find all of Dan’s 2020 ZiPS projections here as they roll out.

Our RosterResource Free Agent tracker can be found here, and the Offseason Transaction Tracker can be found here.

Don’t hesitate to direct pod-related correspondence to @megrowler on Twitter.

You can subscribe to the podcast via iTunes or other feeder things.

Audio after the jump. (Approximate 53 min play time.)

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Episode 874

On this edition of FanGraphs Audio, I welcome Craig Edwards back to the program. Craig and I discuss the Astros sign-stealing scandal and how much is too much cheating in baseball, before we turn our attention to the offseason, the free agent market, the motivations of baseball owners, and the troubling trend of good teams seeming interested in shedding good players to reduce payrolls and avoid rich extensions.

You can read Craig on the Yankees’ payroll here.
You can read Craig on the Cubs’ potentially eschewing their window of contention here.
You can read Craig on the wisdom of the crowd when it comes to free agent contracts here.

Don’t hesitate to direct pod-related correspondence to @megrowler on Twitter.

You can subscribe to the podcast via iTunes or other feeder things.

Audio after the jump. (Approximate 47 min play time.)

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Sam Miller and Meg Rowley revisit a fast-moving 1916 afternoon tilt between the Asheville Tourists and the Winston-Salem Twins with some historic significance, and engage in an Effectively Wild experiment.

Audio intro: Ben Gibbard and Feist “Train Song”
Interstitial: Muddy Waters “Train Fare Home Blues”
Audio outro: Oscar Peterson Trio “Things Ain’t What They Used to Be“

Link to Heidi Coryell Williams’ Our State piece, “Hell and High Water: Hell and High Water: The Flood of 1916”
Link to Wynn Montgomery’s SABR piece, “Quicker Than Quick: A 31-Minute Professional Game”
Link to Wynn Montgomery’s SABR piece, “That Was Quick!”
Link to Emma Baccellieri’s Sports Illustrated piece, “A Brief History of the Many Times Baseball Has Died”

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Meg Rowley and Sam Miller banter about Ben Lindbergh’s vacation-induced absence, an unusual umpire Wikipedia entry, and the acceptability of failure, before turning their attention to a few listener emails answered during the Jeff Sullivan era, including what would happen if Giancarlo Stanton only tried to hit home runs, how they would prefer to consume baseball if they could only do so through either twitter or a livestream, and whether baseball would be better if it were played in masks.

Audio intro: Death Cab for Cutie “I Dreamt We Spoke Again”
Audio outro: Dashboard Confessional “Living in Your Letters“

Link to Sam’s Giancarlo Stanton home run piece
Link to the Effectively Wild Email Question Database
Link to order The MVP Machine

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 Sponsor Us on Patreon
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 Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com

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