Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about scheduling their days around Shohei Ohtani and the latest examples of Ohtani excitement, Tony La Russa and unwritten rules vs. fun and the White Sox clubhouse, and Spencer Turnbull and no-hitter overload (before Corey Kluber’s no-no on Wednesday), then answer listener emails about whether Ohtani is the world’s best athlete, resting or playing Ohtani during All-Star week, whether not making the playoffs is too frequent a talking point when it comes to Ohtani and Mike Trout, whether the union could file a grievance over unwritten rules, flopping vs. framing and the possibility of punishing framing, and the median number of plate appearances in an MLB hitter’s career, plus a Stat Blast about Kyle Seager and the players who’ve participated in the most career no-nos.

Audio intro: Weezer, "1 More Hit"
Audio outro: Buzzcocks, "Why Can’t I Touch It?"

Link to other athletes on Ohtani
Link to Mike Petriello on Ohtani
Link to Brendan Gawlowski on La Russa
Link to Levi Weaver on Woodward
Link to Justin Choi on Turnbull
Link to Sheryl Ring on framing and cheating
Link to Stat Blast no-hitter data
Link to Bull Durham punch scene
Link to midseason managerial changes

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Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the Dodgers signing Albert Pujols and what the rest of his season could look like, Kevin Pillar’s broken nose and the ongoing HBP epidemic, Shohei Ohtani’s latest heroics (and modeling video) and whether he can become a face of baseball and a crossover star, MLB’s rising injury rate, Huascar Ynoa’s self-inflicted fracture (and whether teams should invest in dugout/tunnel padding), Yermín Mercedes hitting a homer off of Willians Astudillo and igniting a tired unwritten rules debate, the Twins as potential sellers, Yasmani Grandal’s wild slash line, Nick Castellanos getting revenge on Rob Manfred, and Kyle Schwarber enjoying a mid-game snack, plus a flopping vs. framing follow-up and postscripts about Mike Trout’s injury and Tony La Russa.

Audio intro: Jimi Hendrix, "Crosstown Traffic"
Audio outro: Minor Threat, "In My Eyes"

Link to Jay Jaffe on the Pujols signing
Link to Jay on the Mets’ many injuries
Link to combined WAR leaderboard
Link to MLB.com on Ohtani’s homers
Link to video of Ohtani’s oppo homer
Link to video of Ohtani’s pulled homer
Link to Ohtani’s Hugo Boss video
Link to Ohtani’s Hugo Boss page
Link to tweet about the Angels
Link to video of Mercedes homer
Link to slowest pitches hit for homers
Link to video of Andrus obstruction play
Link to postgame Castellanos interview
Link to Bryant/Schwarber Twix video
Link to video of Trout injury
Link to story about Trout injury
Link to The Onion on Ohtani
Link to Ben on Tatis and unwritten rules
Link to Sox Machine on La Russa
Link to The Athletic on La Russa

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Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the same-day debuts of Jarred Kelenic and Logan Gilbert, the future of the Mariners, and whether Mariners fans have actually had it so bad, another distinction between framing and flopping, the retirement of Tyler Flowers and the impact he had on catching technique, the resurgence of Rich Hill, the state of the AL Central and whether it’s too soon to stick a fork in the unfortunate Twins, how the controversy surrounding the NBA play-in tournament mirrors the reaction to MLB’s wild card games, and the bogus revenue numbers attached to the All-Star Game, then end with a Meet a Major Leaguer segment on the Mets’ Patrick Mazeika and the Marlins’ Cody Poteet.

Audio intro: Cat Stevens, "Where Do the Children Play?"
Audio outro: Death Cab for Cutie, "Your New Twin Sized Bed"

Link to Brendan Gawlowski on Kelenic/Gilbert
Link to Baseball Prospectus on Kelenic/Gilbert
Link to Gilbert headshot
Link to MLB.com on prospect debut duos
Link to Facebook group thread on prospect debut duos
Link to Ben on Flowers’ framing improvement
Link to Ben on Flowers and league-wide framing
Link to Ben’s podcast interview with Flowers
Link to Ryan Lavarnway on Flowers’ influence
Link to 2015-19 framing leaders
Link to Ben on Molina in 2012
Link to Ben on framing and the Hall
Link to called-strike-rate data by year
Link to WaPo on the NBA play-in game
Link to NBA play-in tournament explainer
Link to HUAL episode on the play-in tournament
Link to research on NBA luck vs. MLB luck
Link to EW Multisport Sabermetrics Exchange
Link to story on Denver ASG revenue
Link to Baseball Almanac ASG revenue claims
Link to AJC on ASG revenue
Link to Gainesville Times on ASG revenue
Link to Georgia Recorder on ASG revenue
Link to study on ASG revenue
Link to Mazeika’s Twitter account
Link to story about Mazeika
Link to Sam on walk-off celebrations
Link to Mazeika walk-off videos

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Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the Mariners calling up pitching prospect Logan Gilbert, the late-inning dominance of Aroldis Chapman and (more unexpectedly) Kendall Graveman, Shohei Ohtani’s best start of the season, and the Astros providing housing for their minor leaguers, then answer listener emails about their favorite baseball seasons, how long it will take for 2020 footage of fan-free ballparks to seem surprising, MLB shifting to a six-game-a-week schedule, framing vs. flopping, pitchers protesting having to hit by striking out on purpose, ordering ballpark food from home, and the culture of intentional plunkings.

Audio intro: The Bangles, "One of Two"
Audio outro: Paul and Linda McCartney, "Eat at Home"

Link to MLB.com on Seattle’s prospect promotions
Link to The Athletic on Chapman’s splitter
Link to Pinstripe Alley on Chapman’s splitter
Link to Bronx Pinstripes on Chapman’s splitter
Link to Lookout Landing on Graveman
Link to Lookout Landing on Graveman again
Link to The Athletic on Graveman
Link to video of Ohtani’s Tuesday highlights
Link to post on Ohtani’s cutters
Link to Forman Stathead tweet
Link to report on Astros housing
Link to Jeff Long on minor league dorms
Link to Russell Carleton on minor league living
Link to story about schedule makers
Link to documentary about schedule makers
Link to video of Walker strikeout
Link to Dodgers Home Plates menu
Link to story about Dodger Dog supplier
Link to Dodger Dog ode

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Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the Mariners’ impending call-up of top prospect Jarred Kelenic, the Dodgers’ recent slump, the Oakland A’s threatening to relocate, Wade Miley’s no-hitter and how long it takes for no-no fatigue to set in, whether MLB’s offensive downturn will force the league to take action, the role of hitters in the hit-by-pitch spike, a near-umpire perfect game and the unparalleled pitch-calling accuracy of unsung umpire John Libka, the Mets’ mysterious rat/raccoon fiasco, the return of Luke Voit, zombie runners, and players and staff testing positive post-vaccine, plus a PSA about broadcasters saying “effectively wild.”

Audio intro: The Clash, "The Call Up"
Audio outro: Paul McCartney, "Keep Under Cover"

Link to FanGraphs’ top prospects
Link to ESPN report about the A’s
Link to Tony Wolfe on Miley’s no-no
Link to Rob Arthur on HBP
Link to Ken Rosenthal on HBP
Link to Sara Sanchez on HBP
Link to 2002 armor crackdown news
Link to podcast with Theo
Link to Libnak umpire scorecard
Link to Umpire Scorecards explainer
Link to Libnak call of the month
Link to Libnak Mets game
Link to Ben on umpire perfect games
Link to ump accuracy rates by game
Link to lifetime ump accuracy rates
Link to seasonal ump accuracy rates
Link to Meg on a baseball penalty box
Link to Zack Scott rat/raccoon story
Link to Jay Jaffe on zombie runners

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Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about Byron Buxton and the Twins, discuss the Angels designating Albert Pujols for assignment, and answer listener emails about whether to accept a scenario where one’s team always finishes .500 but one also gets to enjoy the career of a generational player, pitchers accepting automatic strikeouts, the best way for catchers to call for appeals on check swings, and appreciating the community of baseball as much as or more so than the sport itself, plus a Stat Blast about Glenn Davis and the most lopsided trades of all time.

Audio intro: British Sea Power, "Albert’s Eyes"
Audio outro: Shocking Blue, "Never Release the One You Love"

Link to Rosenthal on injuries in 2021
Link to Sam in 2012 on Pujols
Link to Ben in 2017 on Ohtani and Pujols
Link to data on most hits above .300
Link to Ben on retirement gifts
Link to Meg on retirement gifts
Link to interview with LSU pitcher
Link to Ben on checked swings
Link to Stat Blast data on lopsided trades
Link to Ardaya on Pujols
Link to Rosenthal on Pujols

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Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about Orioles ace John Means pitching a no-hitter and the dropped-third-strike rule that prevented him from having a perfect game, Tony La Russa’s latest managerial miscues, an umpire admitting he guessed at a call, the Yankees turning their season around after a slow start and the perils of small-sample team performance, heckling the Astros, Dylan Cease, Huascar Ynoa, and good and bad arguments for and against the DH, whether the zombie-runner rule leads to more or fewer balls being put in play, the Twins’ struggles in Manfredball games, and whether fans are being cheated by seven-inning games, plus a Meet a Major Leaguer on Angels utility man Jose Rojas and Brewers pitcher Alec Bettinger (and, indirectly, 19th-century Milwaukee catcher Alamazoo Jennings).

Audio intro: Sloan, "She Says What She Means"
Audio outro: Badfinger, "Perfection"

Link to video of Means no-hitter
Link to video of dropped third strike
Link to Sam on dropped third strikes
Link to MLB.com on dropped third strikes
Link to SABR on dropped third strikes
Link to James Fegan on La Russa
Link to Angel Hernandez play/quote
Link to story about Astros taunts
Link to Cease highlights video
Link to video of Ynoa’s grand slam
Link to Ben on the DH
Link to Ben on player talent over time
Link to story on Rojas
Link to BP on Bettinger
Link to MLB.com on Bettinger
Link to story on Alamazoo Jennings

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Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about being fully vaccinated, injuries to Dustin May, Luis Robert, Jesús Luzardo, Jacob deGrom, Shohei Ohtani, and others around the league, grumbles about Tony La Russa’s managing, the Angels’ perplexing, persistent .500-ness, the Mets firing and hiring hitting coaches, and surprising pricing for players on Cameo, then follow up on the Dodgers’ shifting against righties, umpires declaring plays too close to call, and handing out flagrant fouls for hit by pitches before ending with Stat Blasts about the most consecutive taken pitches and the longest pitcher outings without a ball being put in play.

Audio intro: Red Hot Chili Peppers, "Dosed"
Audio outro: The White Stripes, "Take, Take, Take"

Link to post on May’s pitch-type changes
Link to post on May’s injury
Link to post on Robert’s injury
Link to Luzardo story
Link to Luzardo apology
Link to BP on April injuries
Link to Jeff Passan on La Russa
Link to Rob Arthur on La Russa
Link to story about Mets firings
Link to study on offense after firing coaches
Link to defensive efficiency leaderboard
Link to story about the Angels’ defense
Link to Ben on the Angels’ .500-ness
Link to cluster luck leaderboard
Link to post on the Dodgers’ shifting
Link to Reddit thread on Cameo pricing
Link to data on consecutive takes
Link to game with most consecutive takes
Link to data on all-true-outcome outings
Link to data on all-true-outcome starts

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Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about Rays flamethrower Shane McClanahan’s regular-season MLB debut, a Bryce Harper hit by pitch and the causes of the current HBP epidemic, and the biggest surprises of the topsy-turvy standings entering May. Then (33:32) they’re joined by listener and Patreon supporter David Whitcomb to answer listener emails about whether excelling at fantasy baseball could help someone get hired by a team, what motion umpires should make to signal that a play is too close to call, whether umps telling hitters whether a pitch they swung at would have been called a strike is an unfair advantage, the frequent intentional walks of Ichiro Suzuki, making the whole diamond (or the whole field) bigger, how baseball would be different if its history were simulated many times, whether a pitcher could succeed at low velocity, and whether a hitless start in a seven-inning game that went to extras would be classified as a no-hitter.

Audio intro: James Taylor, "First of May"
Audio outro: Death Cab for Cutie, "Your Bruise"

Link to video of McClanahan’s hardest pitch
Link to Sam on flames on the broadcast
Link to story about Harper’s HBP
Link to Rob Mains on the HBP rate
Link to Rob on HBP in 2017
Link to Rob on the most dangerous HBP
Link to percentage of HBP that are breaking balls
Link to average velocity of HBP
Link to Sarah Langs on division leaders entering May
Link to Neil Paine on small-sample records
Link to Jeff on 50-game records
Link to Jeff on the standings in June
Link to Jeff on predicting second-half records
Link to AL bold predictions by Ben Clemens
Link to NL bold predictions
Link to story about Ottoneu
Link to story about Taubman’s fantasy background
Link to Jay Jaffe on position player pitching
Link to tweet about Greinke spring training story

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Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan’s morbid press conference comment, the continued excellence of Byron Buxton, Mike Trout, and Vladimir Guerrero Jr., an early-season dip in infield shifting and an interesting disparity in defensive disparity between the Padres and Dodgers, and Rob Manfred’s comment about sports betting and the pace of baseball. Then they bring on frequent Stat Blast consultant Adam Ott, who’s about to begin a new job as a data scientist in Cleveland’s R&D department, to explain how he got a job in baseball and how to work with baseball data and to deliver an in-person Stat Blast about the most successful pitchers with no outs and a runner on second (plus a bonus Stat Blast about the pitchers with the most career wins after blowing saves).

Audio intro: The Rembrandts, "April 29"
Audio outro: Jackson Browne, "Song for Adam"

Link to Shanahan comments
Link to Buxton’s 5-for-5 video
Link to Petriello on Trout
Link to Trout’s best calendar months
Link to Trout’s best 19-game spans
Link to video of Vlad’s 3 homers
Link to Ben on shifting against righties
Link to Justin Choi on shifting against righties
Link to overall shift rate by year
Link to shift rate against lefties by year
Link to shift rate against righties by year
Link to team shift rate against lefties
Link to team shift rate against righties
Link to Emma Baccellieri on early-season offense
Link to Manfred’s comment at Sportico Live
Link to Craig Goldstein on Manfred
Link to new Pioneer League rules
Link to Adam’s Stat Blast data
Link to career leaders in “stupid wins”
Link to active leaders in “stupid wins”
Link to Adam’s blog post on Opening Day starters
Link to Bill Petti on creating a Retrosheet database

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