Effectively Wild Episode 1297: Cistulli and Desist

November 16, 2018

EWFI
Ben Lindbergh and Jeff Sullivan banter about a big day for Willians Astudillo, the still-overlooked greatness of Anthony Rendon, the mystery of Jeff Mathis, John Middleton’s comments about the Phillies’ impending spending spree, and the Orioles hiring the Astros’ Mike Elias as their new GM. Then (26:50) they bring on outgoing FanGraphs managing editor Carson Cistulli to talk about how he got a job with the Blue Jays and what it will entail, his initial suspicion that the offer was a prank, his (low) level of confidence in his own abilities, how he’s managed to identify overlooked players, why teams are hiring a new type of writer, his feelings about leaving FanGraphs, why he gradually grew on the readers, and how his life will change.

Audio intro: The Zombies, "Moving On"
Audio interstitial: Iggy Pop, "I’m Going Away Smiling"
Audio outro: Gord Downie, "Christmastime in Toronto"

Link to R.J. on Mathis
Link to Sam on Mathis vs. Napoli
Link to Sam on Mathis vs. Napoli again
Link to Carson’s first FanGraphs post
Link to Carson’s Fringe Five results summary
Link to Carson’s 2018 Fringe Five results
Link to Carson’s farewell post
Link to listener’s extra-effort visualization
Link to EW Secret Santa sign-up