Ben Lindbergh convenes a roundtable of hitting analysts—Robert Orr from Baseball Prospectus, Esteban Rivera from FanGraphs, and Ryan Parker, formerly of Baseball Prospectus and the Los Angeles Angels—to diagnose the problems with free agent Cody Bellinger’s much-diminished bat and recommend how to revive it. They also discuss their approaches to analyzing hitting, coachability, the differences between public and private hitting analysis, the importance of mashing mistakes, the Angels, and more. Then (1:15:03) Ben closes with a Past Blast from 1934 and a few followups about Bellinger, tweets, and assists on strikeouts.
Audio intro: Wednesday, “Cody’s Only” Audio outro: The Killers, “Cody”
Link to Dan Szymborski on Bellinger Link to story on Bellinger’s shoulder Link to story on Bellinger’s leg Link to Chris Gilligan on Bellinger Link to Ken Rosenthal on Bellinger Link to Prospects Live on Bellinger Link to Bellinger vs. Musgrove K Link to Versalles SABR bio Link to SwingGraphs Link to SwingGraphs data Link to Esteban on Acuña Link to Esteban on vertical bat angle Link to Robert on crushing cookies Link to Rosenthal on Angels moves Link to Joon Lee on the Angels system Link to EW with Clay Bellinger Link to 1934 story source Link to Biele article series Link to story on Ella Black Link to Jacob Pomrenke’s website Link to Jacob Pomrenke on Twitter Link to MLBTR on Harper’s TJ Link to Blue Jays tweet Link to Canseco at Vice Link to Canseco on time travel Link to assists story 1 Link to assists story 2 Link to assists story 3 Link to assists story 4
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Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about omissions from their Baseball Twitter draft, a few transactions (including the Kyle Lewis trade, the Gio Urshela trade, and multiple shortstop swaps), the Angels acquiring average players, the Dodgers non-tendering Cody Bellinger, the Phillies extending Dave Dombrowski, the new BBWAA Hall of Fame ballot and Ben’s ballot decision, a series of sports-betting investigations, a college-baseball trailblazer, comeback players of the year, and more, plus Stat Blasts (54:28) about Aaron Judge and intra-team WAR gaps, the most unique players put out, consecutive innings with double plays, and the timing of game-winning runs, a Past Blast (1:04:06) from 1933, and an Angels postscript.
Audio intro: Adrianne Lenker and Buck Meek, “Angels” Audio outro: Mimi Roman, “Never Ramble, Never Gamble, Never Roam”
Link to Heyman tweet Link to Baer tweet Link to Nightengale tweet Link to Bautista tweet Link to Justin Choi on Lewis Link to Baumann on shortswaps Link to MLBTR on Dombrowski Link to MLBTR on Bellinger Link to Jay on the BBWAA ballot Link to Jay on the committee ballot Link to EW on Ben’s ballot last year Link to NYT sports-betting thread Link to NYT sports-betting article 1 Link to NYT sports-betting article 2 Link to NYT sports-betting article 3 Link to NYT sports-betting article 4 Link to Olivia Pichardo news Link to comeback players story Link to Ryan Nelson’s Twitter Link to WAR-gap Stat Blast data Link to putouts Stat Blast data Link to game-winning-runs data Link to Rob Mains on comebacks Link to 1933 story source Link to SABR on Browns ownership Link to MLB.com on the Browns Link to SABR on Jackie in Montreal Link to Jacob Pomrenke’s website Link to Jacob Pomrenke on Twitter Link to MLBTR on the Renfroe trade Link to tweet about Renfroe and Trout
With the future of Twitter uncertain, Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley welcome Craig Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus and Jordan Shusterman and Jake Mintz of Fox Sports and Céspedes Family BBQ to draft the best tweets and traditions from more than a decade of content on Baseball Twitter (plus a Past Blast from 1932). (Warning/preview: Prepare for somewhat saltier language than usual.)
Audio intro: The Rentals, “Elon Musk is Making Me Sad” Audio outro: Sparks, “Here Comes Bob”
Link to list of some tweets Link to Martino/collusion story Link to unread Rosenthal column Link to Rosenthal column tweet Link to Trout emoji EW episode Link to Chubs EW episode Link to Chubs tweets Link to Chubs explainer Link to Ben on teen newsbreakers Link to Defector on Nightengale photos Link to “Ralph” explainer Link to “wall of porn” post Link to Ben on the Castellanos meme Link to Gmail redesign Link to 1932 story source Link to SABR on Cardinals ownership Link to story about Landis and Rickey Link to story on Rickey’s farm Link to Jacob Pomrenke’s website Link to Jacob Pomrenke on Twitter
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about redefining the MVP award, FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried’s unearthed baseball blogs, Billy Beane’s new role with the A’s, and the Braves’ spinoff from Liberty Media, plus a Past Blast from 1931. Then (30:27) they bring on listener and top-tier Patreon supporter Peter Bonney to discuss his baseball background and answer listener emails about baseball economics and the leaguewide effects of low-spending owners, an open-ended player to be named later, batters weeping intentionally, the art of arbitrary endpoints, PitchCom voice actors, how many MLB games are available via video, a team award for the regular season, how to order umpires by accuracy in the World Series, holistic Hall of Famers, and having to win three straight games to win the World Series.
Audio intro: Night Beats, “Crypt” Audio interstitial: The Claudettes, “Dozing in the Crypt” Audio outro: The Mother Hips, “Payroll Peter”
Link to AL MVP results Link to NL MVP results Link to The Ringer FTX explainer Link to Bloomberg on FTX Link to Milky Eggs on FTX Link to SBF’s baseball blog posts Link to SBF’s first post Link to SBF’s first pitcher-roles post Link to SBF’s second pitcher-roles post Link to SBF on fetishization of the old Link to Dave Cameron’s pitching post Link to SBF’s 2021 Twitter thread Link to story on FTX lawsuit Link to Ohtani/FTX press release Link to Manfred on FTX Link to MLBTR on Beane Link to Liberty Media announcement Link to Travis Sawchik on the Braves Link to 1931 story source Link to SABR on night baseball Link to Jacob Pomrenke’s website Link to Jacob Pomrenke on Twitter Link to Peter’s THT articles Link to Peter’s umpire presentation Link to Peter’s Fenway presentation Link to Peter’s company Link to Kwan on strikeouts Link to The Gist on polarization Link to Sawchik on PitchCom Link to Pujols homer reel Link to Dayn on a team award Link to the Stat Blast song Link to the EW emails database Link to Ryan Nelson’s MVP tweet Link to MLBTR on Bellinger
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about Shohei Ohtani and the Cy Young Award, Buck Showalter and the Manager of the Year Award, Bryce Harper’s elbow surgery, the Angels signing Tyler Anderson, Anthony Rizzo and the Yankees’ record Defensive Runs Saved total, the Mariners trading for Teoscar Hernández, title inflation and the “associate manager,” and Royals owner John Sherman requesting a new ballpark, plus a double Past Blast (38:21) from 1930 (featuring Jack Powell’s meaty demise). Then (51:06) they talk to FanGraphs lead prospect analyst Eric Longenhagen about AFL award winners Heston Kjerstad and Connor Thomas, whether improvements carry over when players change teams, how rules changes are affecting player evaluation, this week’s 40-man-deadline roster crunches, and Kodai Senga and other NPB players who are coming to MLB.
Audio intro: Tri-State, “Hawk in the Fog” Audio interstitial: Jordana, “Crunch” Audio outro: The Ozark Mountain Daredevils, “Mr. Powell”
Link to MLB.com on Showalter Link to Ben Clemens on Anderson Link to Hawk Harrelson call Link to Jay Jaffe on Rizzo Link to highest team DRS totals Link to Defensive Efficiency leaders Link to Esteban Rivera on Teoscar Link to MLBTR on Venable Link to Sherman’s tweet Link to Field of Schemes on Sherman Link to AFL award winners Link to FG prospect rankings Link to Laurila on Boras Link to Alex Eisert on Hilliard Link to Evan Drellich on rule changes Link to R.J. Anderson on rule changes Link to MLBTR on the Rays’ roster Link to Eric’s AL East piece Link to Eric on Latin-American SP Link to MLBTR on Nolan Jones Link to 1930 story source Link to SABR on William Veeck Sr. Link to SABR on Margaret Donohue Link to Jacob Pomrenke’s website Link to Jacob Pomrenke on Twitter Link to @OldBaseballNews on Twitter Link to article about Bill Haber Link to first Powell article Link to second Powell article Link to NL Cy results Link to Ben on Alcantara Link to AL Cy results
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about Scott Boras’s opinions about postseason pitch clocks and a neutral-site World Series, discuss Meg’s NL Rookie of the Year vote (14:16) and the rookie class, and then conduct two drafts: the eighth free-agent-contract over/under draft (35:37), and the fifth World Series odds movers draft (1:29:46), plus a Past Blast (1:48:40) from 1929 and a postscript.
Audio intro: Whitehorse, “Best Bet” Audio outro: Aimee Mann, “Mr. Harris”
Link to Boras’s pitch-clock comment Link to Boras on the World Series Link to Ben on the rookie class Link to Chris Gilligan on the rookies Link to Tango on the WARs Link to EW wiki on drafts Link to competitions/drafts sheet Link to Ben Clemens on RP signings Link to MLBTR top 50 FA Link to FanGraphs top FA Link to Keith Law’s top FA Link to qualifying offers Link to Stathead on tall hitters Link to WS odds spreadsheet Link to Fanduel odds Link to DraftKings odds Link to 1929 story source Link to Jacob Pomrenke’s website Link to Jacob Pomrenke on Twitter Link to Craig Wright on few SB Link to NL RotY results Link to AL RotY results Link to Dan S. on Strider Link to Ben N-S on Rutschman Link to Tango’s math
With Meg Rowley off, Ben Lindbergh talks to three guests: James Wagner (4:55) of the New York Times about Scott Boras puns in the paper of record, why players who test positive for PEDs have disproportionately been from the Dominican Republic, and why players wear perfume and cologne on the field; Ian Araujo (41:46) about the origins, appeal, process, and future of his viral TikTok videos about identifying sports games in the backgrounds of movies and TV shows; and Jeff Pearlman (1:20:24) about his new biography of Bo Jackson, The Last Folk Hero, Jackson’s life and career, separating Bo facts from Bo fiction, and hypotheticals about Bo, plus a closing baseball news brief (1:59:45) and a Past Blast from 1928.
Audio intro: The Americans, “Guest of Honor” Audio interstitial 1: Jim Lauderdale, “If You Look Real Close” Audio interstitial 2: Boogie Down Productions, “Bo! Bo! Bo!” Audio ioutro: Crowded House, “Be My Guest (Home Demo)”
Link to Alden’s list of Boras puns Link to video of Nimmo pun Link to Correa’s Dior line Link to James’s NYT pun mention Link to Boras episode of EW Link to James’s PED/DR article Link to NYT article on Tatis Link to James on perfume/cologne Link to Ian’s TikTok account Link to The Athletic on Ian Link to Ian’s The Office video Link to Mel Magazine on Ian Link to Ben’s Elementary article Link to The Irishman Reddit thread Link to Defector on the buzzer-beater Link to second buzzer-beater story Link to Hilbert’s problems wiki Link to baseball Hilbert’s problems Link to article on TikTok security Link to The Last Folk Hero Link to Seitzer/Jackson excerpt Link to Bo’s tweet about autographs Link to 91-yard TD video Link to Bo scaling the wall Link to Jeff’s website Link to The Bad Guys Won Link to “Sho Knows” t-shirt Link to Astudillo report Link to MLBTR on Click Link to Jay Jaffe on Click Link to MLBTR on Powers Link to Dan Szymborski on Kershaw Link to FTX bankruptcy report Link to FTX sponsorship news Link to MLB/FTX press release Link to Ohtani/FTX press release Link to Emma’s tweet Link to tweet about Triple-A ABS Link to J.R.’s World Series data Link to 1928 story source Link to SABR on the DH rule Link to Jacob Pomrenke’s website Link to Jacob Pomrenke on Twitter
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley share their impressions of HBO’s new feature-length documentary about Willie Mays, Say Hey, Willie Mays!, and reflect on Mays’s career, then (29:23) talk to director Nelson George about the making of the movie, what didn’t make the movie, his interactions with Mays and other legends, and much more, followed (1:04:59) by a postscript and a Past Blast from 1927.
Audio intro: The Baseball Project, “Sometimes I Dream of Willie Mays” Audio interstitial: Michael Franti & Spearhead, “Say Hey (I Love You)” Audio ioutro: Gallagher and Lyle, “Willie”
Link to Say Hey website Link to Say Hey trailer Link to story about banning Mays Link to story about basket catch Link to Mays on Bewitched Link to Mays response to Robinson Link to Alvin Dark controversy Link to Bill Greason’s SABR bio Link to MLBTR on Baker and Click Link to Michael Mountain’s cLI data Link to 1927 story source Link to Jacob Pomrenke’s website Link to Jacob Pomrenke on Twitter
Ben Lindbergh, Meg Rowley, and FanGraphs writer Ben Clemens banter about Game 6 of the World Series, the Series and the playoffs as a whole, Phillies manager Rob Thomson’s decision to pull Zack Wheeler in favor of José Alvarado, Yordan Alvarez’s titanic dinger, the Astros’ bullpen performance, and Kyle Schwarber’s bunt attempt, before discussing the Astros’ legacy, the 2022 team vs. the 2017 team, and the “dynasty” debate. Then (45:29) they cover Edwin Díaz’s extension with the Mets, what the Phillies have to teach teams about spending, and Other Ben’s ranking of the best free agents (1:01:15), touching on the strengths of the class, their expectations for the pace of the offseason, the contracts Aaron Judge and Jacob deGrom could get, the premium shortstops available, the best and worst values on the market, and more, plus a Past Blast (1:30:33) from 1926.
Audio intro: Frazey Ford, “Season After Season” Audio outro: Ben Gibbard, “Star Sign”
Link to Justin Choi on the Astros Link to Ben Lindbergh on the Astros Link to Zach Kram on the Astros Link to Jayson Stark on the Astros Link to The Onion on the Astros Link to Alvarez homer video Link to story about Alvarez’s hands Link to reliever familiarity research Link to Wheeler fatigue article Link to Eno on Cash and Snell Link to Devan Fink on Cash and Snell Link to story about Schwarber’s bunt Link to tweet about Astros’ bullpen Link to Baker’s Cosby comment Link to Dan Szymborski on Díaz Link to Ben C.’s free-agent ranking Link to Hamm’s Turner video Link to 1926 story source Link to SABR on the Grier game Link to SABR on Negro Leagues no-nos Link to Jacob Pomrenke’s website Link to Jacob Pomrenke on Twitter Link to Minasian’s comments
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley review all of the action from the historic, eventful fourth and fifth games of the World Series, banter about a fan heckling Rob Manfred, and share multiple Past Blasts (33:22) from 1925 (plus a throwback, Philly-centric Past Blast from 1868). Then (50:08) they talk to Baseball Prospectus writer Michael Ajeto about Astros starter Cristian Javier’s unicorn fastball, the value of vertical approach angle, and the state of pitching analysis, plus a postscript.
Audio intro: The Cribs, “Different Angle” Audio interstitial: Dawes, “From the Right Angle” Audio outro: Ringo Starr, “Vertical Man”
Link to Baumann on Game 4 Link to Baumann on Game 5 Link to Ben Clemens on Peña Link to xBA figures from Game 4 Link to Walsh misplay Link to Hoskins misplay Link to Mancini play Link to McCormick play Link to Manfred letter Link to Manfred Reddit thread Link to Manfred heckling video Link to 1925 story source Link to Ban Johnson SABR bio Link to SABR on O’Connell and Dolan Link to Jacob Pomrenke’s website Link to Jacob Pomrenke on Twitter Link to 1868 story source Link to @OldBaseballNews on Coolidge Link to Coolidge article source Link to collected “boner” articles Link to “boner” etymology Link to Michael on Javier Link to Passan on Javier Link to Michael on Gallen Link to Matt Lentzner on pitch angle Link to Ethan Moore on VAA Link to Alex Chamberlain on VAA Link to Chamberlain on VAA again Link to VAA primer on YouTube Link to Ben Clemens on the Giants Link to Robert Orr on the Giants Link to Bregman on hitting spin Link to Jackalopes name change Link to Ben on pitcher deception Link to Michael’s podcast