Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about passing the halfway point of the regular season, the early effects of the sticky-stuff crackdown, a historically high-scoring day, the white-hot Brewers (and Willy Adames) and the red-hot Nationals (and Kyle Schwarber), a Germán Márquez gem, and a study on how kids become fans that helps explain how Ben and Meg became co-hosts. Then they talk to two academics who have used baseball data to study psychology: Professor James Archsmith of the University of Maryland (33:37) on umpires and decision fatigue, and Professor Hengchen Dai of the UCLA Anderson School of Management (56:33) on midseason trades and performance resets (plus a postscript about foreign-substance beef between Josh Donaldson and Lucas Giolito).

Audio intro: Cheap Trick, "Hard to Tell"
Audio interstitial 1: Kelley Stoltz, "Decisions, Decisions"
Audio interstitial 2: Tri-State, "Start Again"
Audio outro: Lucy Dacus, "Going Going Gone"

Link to Jeff Sullivan on preseason projections
Link to Jeff on predicting second-half records
Link to Eno Sarris on sticky stuff
Link to Rob Arthur on sticky stuff and the Dodgers
Link to Ben on the PED era
Link to Will Sammon on the Brewers
Link to Brewers predicting a home run
Link to Brewers predicting a comeback
Link to Eric Cummings data on defensive turnarounds
Link to Sam Miller on “True Wins”
Link to study on age and fandom
Link to Professor Archsmith’s website
Link to paper on umpires and decision fatigue
Link to study on umpires and air quality
Link to article about umpires and air quality
Link to study on umpires and racial discrimination
Link to article about discriminatory umpires study
Link to study on umpires and status bias
Link to study on umpires and the Gambler’s Fallacy
Link to Freakonomics on umps and the Gambler’s Fallacy
Link to study on players and rational inattention
Link to Rob on pitchers taking their time
Link to Rob on hitters taking their time
Link to Professor Dai’s website
Link to study on trades and fresh starts
Link to article about trades study
Link to Donaldson/Giolito story

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Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about Ben’s experience attending the worst start of Shohei Ohtani’s MLB career, then (15:04) discuss the Dodgers’ and MLB’s response (and their own reactions to) this week’s serious assault allegations against Trevor Bauer. (Warning: This episode contains some swears, starting at 18:18.)

Audio intro: Vanessa Peters, "Rather Bad Day"
Audio outro: Teenage Fanclub, "Tears Are Cool"

Link to Jay Jaffe on the Ohtani game
Link to Twitter thread on traveling to see Ohtani
Link to the RAINN hotline
Link to the National Domestic Violence Hotline
Content warning: Some of the links below include detailed descriptions of alleged sexual and physical assault.
Link to TMZ report about Bauer
Link to The Athletic on the restraining order
Link to The Athletic on the Dodgers, MLB, and Bauer
Link to The Athletic on Bauer’s scheduled Sunday start

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Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about Ben’s borderline excessive consumption of Angels games and the latest, greatest exploits of Shohei Ohtani, who and what is to blame for the Yankees’ ongoing struggles, Gerrit Cole’s performance post-sticky stuff, Hector Santiago becoming the first pitcher ejected for alleged foreign substance use, a Triple-A umpire’s broken-belt ejection, Zach McKinstry keeping his eye on the ball, the Tigers’ recent respectability, and more.

Audio intro: Frank Sinatra, "Bewitched"
Audio outro: Bombadil, "Leather Belt"

Link to Ohtani homer on Friday
Link to Ohtani homer on Sunday
Link to Ben’s article on Ohtani
Link to Ohtani Twitter stan account
Link to Ohtani WAR pace graphic
Link to Santiago article
Link to second Santiago article
Link to article on Ottavino trade
Link to Lindsey on the Yankees’ offense
Link to Lindsey on LeMahieu
Link to belt/ejection video
Link to belt/ejection blog post
Link to Matsuda article
Link to McKinstry quote
Link to batter ball-tracking research

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Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the brief big league stay of knuckleballer Mickey Jannis, Joey Votto’s predictions, decline, and reminders of mortality, Greg Maddux forecasting foul balls, and the states of the Cubs and Dodgers post-combined no-hitter. Then they answer listener emails about whether MLB regrets making Statcast data publicly available in the wake of scandals about the ball and foreign substances, why coaches don’t visit hitters mid-inning the way they visit pitchers, why WAR isn’t tailored to individual teams, and how much worse rooting for a terrible team is than rooting for one that’s merely bad, with closing banter about Aaron Nola tying the consecutive-strikeout record and the potential for a seven-inning game to thwart a pitcher’s attempt to record a 21-strikeout outing.

Audio intro: Tokyo Police Club, "Can’t Stay Here"
Audio outro: Isotopes, "Rule 21"

Link to Ben on Jannis and the knuckleball
Link to Votto article
Link to Maddux article
Link to story about Nola
Link to Sam on 21-strikeout games

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Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about MLB’s much-maligned All-Star Game uniforms and a pair of odd games, discuss the highs and lows of the first few days of MLB’s enforced foreign-substance ban (with special attention to Max Scherzer, Joe Girardi, and Sergio Romo), review Wander Franco’s debut and note the less-hyped arrivals of Lars Nootbaar and knuckleballer Mickey Jannis, relate a Jesse Winker home-run prediction, and close by exploring the ways in which the first-place Houston Astros, to the dismay of many Astros haters, are still very good.

Audio intro: Slothrust, "New Red Pants"
Audio outro: The Donnas, "Hot Pants"

Link to ASG uniforms
Link to Angels game story
Link to Nats-Phillies game story
Link to Manfred on sticky-stuff enforcement
Link to Rizzo on Girardi
Link to video of Scherzer and Romo
Link to video of Ohtani inspection
Link to Simpsons scene
Link to Ben on Jannis and the knuckleball
Link to Javier’s headshot
Link to Zach Kram on the Astros

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Ben Lindbergh and guest co-host Mike Ferrin of MLB Network Radio and the Diamondbacks’ broadcast crew discuss the D-Backs’ 17-game losing streak and more extended stretch of futility before bantering about Shohei Ohtani’s Player of the Week Award-winning performance and the potential for Ohtani to own All-Star Week, the call-up of (and expectations for) Rays infielder and MLB top prospect Wander Franco, and Manny Machado getting distracted by the wave. Then (50:09) Ben talks to biomechanics expert, former Dodgers analyst, and current CEO of Reboot Motion Dr. Jimmy Buffi about how sticky stuff enhances performance, whether Tyler Glasnow was right about the foreign-substance crackdown increasing injury risk, why injury rates are up this season, and whether Jacob deGrom’s ever-escalating velocity and series of minor injuries are causes for concern. Lastly (1:25:37), Ben talks to Rays pitching prospect Graeme Stinson about the lefty’s experience with sticky stuff, the wisdom and effects of the enforced foreign-substance ban, the experimental pickoff rules that have boosted base stealing in A ball, housing and nutrition in the minor leagues, and the founding and future of StatStak, the performance-tracking company he helped start during the pandemic.

Audio intro: Grateful Dead, "Loser"
Audio interstitial 1: Electric Light Orchestra, "Hold on Tight"
Audio interstitial 2: Dave Clark and Friends, "Rub it In"
Audio outro: Sharon Van Etten, "Seventeen"

Link to list of longest losing streaks
Link to Peacock plate appearance
Link to Peacock backstory
Link to Ohtani Player of the Week highlights
Link to Ohtani’s Coors BP
Link to FanGraphs Rays prospect ranking
Link to Franco origin story
Link to all-time list of youngest MLB players
Link to video of Machado and the wave
Link to Buffi’s first podcast appearance
Link to Glasnow comments
Link to Mike Sonne’s fatigue research
Link to Buffi’s elbow/forearm study
Link to Reboot Motion website
Link to 2021 experimental rules
Link to Jayson Stark on A-ball base stealing
Link to Stinson’s Twitter account
Link to StatStak website
Link to Diamondbacks game story
Link to article on sticky stuff and batted balls
Link to average 4-seam spin rate by day chart
Link to Meg on Lind
Link to Maldonado video

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Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley follow up on previous discussions about player predictions and game postponements, answer listener emails about a sticky-stuff pitcher protest, the talent level in the College World Series, the wave as a player-distraction device, a six-year-old who roots for walks, and when the Astros will stop being booed (with an aside about foreign-substance use and the Hall of Fame), then unload a Stat Blast about the Twins and teams with the most and least lineup turnover after Opening Day, before closing with a “Meet a Major Leaguer” segment on Mariners outfielder Dillon Thomas and Monarchs two-way great Bullet Rogan.

Audio intro: Franz Ferdinand, "Bullet"
Audio outro: Franz Ferdinand, "Walk Away"

Link to article about Puckett’s called shot
Link to article about Nationals delay
Link to Jeff Passan on sticky stuff
Link to Ben on mid-PA pitching changes
Link to Ben on college player development
Link to info on distracting free-throw shooters
Link to post about swinging against deGrom
Link to tweet about swinging against deGrom
Link to story on the Astros being booed in Boston
Link to Baseball Prospectus IL Ledger
Link to Stat Blast data
Link to SABR on the Cobb replacement game
Link to news segment about Thomas
Link to video of Burrows throwing (up)
Link to Baseball-Reference Negro Leagues hub
Link to Bullet Rogan’s B-Ref page
Link to SABR on Rogan’s 1921 game
Link to MLB.com on Negro Leagues two-way stars
Link to THT on Negro Leagues two-way stars

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Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about Jose Altuve forgoing a home run trot, then break down the details of MLB’s plan to enforce the rules against foreign-substance use starting on June 21, covering the pros and cons of putting that plan into action at midseason and opting to ban all substances, what the effects on offense will be, whether Tyler Glasnow’s injury presages many more arm injuries ahead, a Scott Boras metaphor, and much more. Then (51:07) they bring on EW listener and criminology scholar Josh Beck to explain what the principles of punishment and deterrence can tell us about the efficacy of MLB’s approach to preventing cheating.

Audio intro: John Lennon, "Cold Turkey"
Audio interstitial: Grateful Dead, "Victim or the Crime"
Audio outro: Paul McCartney & Wings, "Spin it On"

Link to video of 2012 Morse homer
Link to video of Altuve homer
Link to details of MLB’s plan
Link to Ben on sticky stuff
Link to Jeff Passan on sticky stuff
Link to Boras statement
Link to info on deterrence
Link to paper on deterrence theory
Link to five findings about deterrence
Link to paper on cheating in baseball

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Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about Meg’s experience seeing Shohei Ohtani pitch, hit, and play right field in person, why balks can be so incomprehensible, the differing recent fortunes of the Angels and the Diamondbacks (and Albert Pujols), Jacob deGrom’s dominance and durability, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and the big bats (and playoff fortunes) of the Blue Jays, and Baseball-Reference relaunching with the Negro Leagues reclassified as major leagues. After a break, they return (41:43) to talk more about the Baseball-Reference redesign, hearing first from researcher Larry Lester and Josh Gibson’s great-grandson Sean Gibson on the historic and personal significance of the new presentation of Negro Leagues stats and information, before bringing on Sports Reference president Sean Forman to explain how and why his company updated its display of Negro Leagues data, the ethical and practical considerations involved, and what will happen next.

Audio intro: The Minders, "Same Time, Same Place"
Audio interstitial: The Baseball Project, "They Played Baseball"
Audio outro: The Baseball Project, "Jackie’s Lament"

Link to highlights of Ohtani game
Link to Ohtani balks breakdown
Link to Ohtani balk face
Link to Jay Jaffe on Ohtani’s MVP case
Link to Sam on balks
Link to Jon Bois balk rules
Link to Blue Jays hard-hit-balls stat
Link to MLB.com on deGrom
Link to Dan Szymborski on the ERA record
Link to Episode 1560 (with Larry Lester)
Link to Episode 1626 (with Sean Gibson)
Link to Episode 1630 (with Ron Teasley)
Link to Larry Lester’s website
Link to the Josh Gibson Foundation
Link to the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum
Link to the Seamheads Negro Leagues Database
Link to Ben on Negro Leagues reclassification last August
Link to Ben on Negro Leagues reclassification last December
Link to Shakeia Taylor on merging records
Link to James Wagner on the Baseball-Reference redesign
Link to the new Baseball-Reference Negro Leagues hub

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Ben Lindbergh, Meg Rowley, and The Athletic’s Grant Brisbee discuss Grant’s experience co-hosting a podcast with Hunter Pence and Grant’s hatred of the zombie-runner rule, before attempting to explain how and why the San Francisco Giants have baseball’s best record and what they should do at the trade deadline.

Audio intro: The Baseball Project, "The Giants Win the Pennant"
Audio outro: The New Pornographers, "Need Some Giants"

Link to Baseball Barista
Link to Baggs & Brisbee
Link to Grant’s Pence scouting report
Link to Grant on the zombie-runner rule
Link to The Athletic on the Giants’ offensive improvement
Link to Grant on Oracle Park
Link to Grant on the Giants’ bullpen
Link to Tim Keown on the Giants

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