Effectively Wild: A FanGraphs Baseball Podcast

Ben Lindbergh, Meg Rowley
  • 4.7 (2.6K)
  • Baseball
  • Updated Semiweekly

Daily baseball statistical analysis and commentary

  1. 2d ago

    Effectively Wild Episode 2533: You Win Some, You Lose 40 in a Row

    This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, please visit our Patreon. With Meg Rowley on vacation, Ben Lindbergh goes long with a few guests and segments. First, Kiri Oler of FanGraphs and Bradley Woodrum of Baseball Prospectus join to banter about how Pete Crow-Armstrong and Jacob Misiorowski illustrate the differences in modern pitcher and hitter usage and value, Sandy Alcantara as the last innings eater, two more baseball movies, Ernie Clement’s post-All-Star-Game decline, and Jefry Yan’s more muted strikeout celebrations. Then (43:34) they break down the inaugural season of the WPBL: what went right, what went wrong, the Kelsie Whitmore-Denae Benites battle, the high-offense environment, their other favorite storylines, the future of the league, and more. After that (1:33:33), Ben brings on the manager of the Pioneer League’s RedPocket Mobiles, former major leaguer Dmitri Young, along with Mobiles co-GM and Pioneer League director of operations Al Maulding, to explain how the Mobiles suffered the longest losing streak in pro baseball history, life on a traveling team, indy-ball oddities, and more. Finally (2:36:23), Ben Stat Blasts about the most times reaching base before a first career hit, players who hit their first homers off position-player pitchers, and lineups composed of players with short surnames. Audio intro: The Gagnés, “Effectively Wild Theme 2” Audio outro: The Shirey Brothers, “Effectively Wild Theme” Link to previous Bradley appearance Link to previous Kiri appearance Link to FG combined WAR leaderboard Link to Eric André meme Link to highest-WAR offensive seasons Link to highest-WAR pitching seasons Link to pitching rate-stats leaders Link to on-pace leaderboard Link to PCA fielding chances Link to Miz fielding chances Link to Miz fielding stats Link to AP on Alcantara Link to Trueblood on Alcantara Link to Baumann on Alcantara Link to IP leaderboard Link to Ben on innings eaters Link to baseball rom-com Link to Powell-Linklater movie Link to Hanks movie Link to De Niro/Lasorda movie Link to Lasorda and son article 1 Link to Lasorda and son article 2 Link to Wahlberg/Rose movie Link to Ben’s Rose obit Link to Ben on Rose and the HoF Link to worst post-ASB hitters Link to Clement vote totals Link to Yan’s last leap Link to Yan’s slide Link to Yan’s MLB strikeout pitches Link to Yan’s Insta post Link to Yan/Jackson Insta post Link to WPBL standings Link to WPBL postseason results Link to WPBL hitting leaders Link to WPBL pitching leaders Link to WPBL leaguewide stats Link to 1871 NA leaguewide stats Link to Defector on the WPBL Link to AP on the WPBL Link to Kiri on WPBL predecessors Link to other WPBL article Link to Gladys the Goose Link to Bradley on Benites Link to Bradley on Lee Link to Bradley on grand slams Link to Bradley on the playoffs Link to Bradley on WPBL offense Link to Ben on mid-PA changes Link to Kiri’s last weekly recap Link to Kiri on the Firebells Link to Kiri on the Queens Link to Apgar video Link to Apgar article Link to Sato wiki Link to Robin Roberts Stadium Link to WPBL draft order Link to WPBL run values Link to MLB-AUSL partnership Link to article on the WPBL’s future Link to Women’s Baseball World Cup Link to The 39 Steps wiki Link to MLB partner leagues Link to Pioneer League wiki Link to Pioneer League standings Link to MLB.com on the Mobiles Link to The Athletic on the Mobiles Link to the Mobiles on the Mobiles Link to Stockade wiki Link to Ben on the Stockade Link to The Only Rule Link to Empire State Greys wiki Link to Mobiles announcement Link to Mobiles YouTube videos Link to Mobiles Twitter thread Link to Pioneer League knockout Link to All-Star swing-off Link to Northern Colorado Owlz Link to Young wiki Link to Young card collection info Link to Young article 1 Link to Young article 2 Link to Young article 3 Link to Young article 4 Link to Young article 5 Link to Young article 6 Link to Young article 7 Link to betting-threats story Link to PPP HR sheet Link to Chapman wiki Link to Hartung wiki Link to Iorg game Link to LaCoss homers Link to Lara post-homer photo Link to scoreboard photo Link to 1946 game Link to 2004 game Link to 2024 game Link to 1956 fun fact tweet Link to 1926 game Link to 2025 game 1 Link to 2025 game 2 Link to listener emails database  Sponsor Us on Patreon  Give a Gift Subscription  Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com  Effectively Wild Subreddit  Effectively Wild Wiki  Apple Podcasts Feed   Spotify Feed  YouTube Playlist  Facebook Group  Bluesky Account  Twitter Account  Get Our Merch! var SERVER_DATA = Object.assign(SERVER_DATA || {}); Source

  2. 4d ago

    Effectively Wild Episode 2532: Can the Public Still Teach Teams?

    After a brief PSA about an open producer position (email wanted@fangraphs.com with the subject line “Podcast Editor 2026” to apply) Ben Lindbergh (kind of) continues his quest to temporarily resurrect a few dearly departed baseball podcasts by bringing on MLB.com’s Mike Petriello, former host of Ballpark Dimensions, to banter about a record home run trot, which “Statcast era” records they’re most confident are also all-time records, Junior Caminero’s defense and the value of small-sample defensive splits, the latest Statcast tools, Statcast WAR, predictive vs. descriptive stats, a divisive standing ovation for Pete Alonso at Citi Field, and this week’s White Sox-Guardians series. Then (58:25) Ben chats with former Astros AGM Andrew Ball and former Phillies quantitative analyst Tom Kim about Tom’s new command metric, OpenCommand, whether public baseball research still has something to teach teams, the public-private knowledge gap, and overrated secrets. Audio intro: Philip Bergman, “Effectively Wild Theme” Audio interstitial: The Spaghettis, “Effectively Wild Theme” Audio outro: Justin Peters, “Effectively Wild Theme” Link to Ballpark Dimensions podcast archive Link to Caminero trot Link to Caminero LIDOM trot Link to Langs post Link to Tater Trot Tracker Link to exit-speed contributions Link to Mike’s post on Caminero’s defense Link to Mike on the Williams homer Link to Mike’s last EW appearance Link to 2024 bat tracking Link to 2025 swing tracking Link to Nats farm system article Link to 2026 scoops article Link to scoops leaderboard Link to “I’m tired, boss” meme Link to predicted xwOBACON Link to VAAAA Link to Baseball Savant Link to “last mile” wiki Link to standing Alons-O article Link to team 1B WAR Link to Piazza ovation Link to Seaver ovation Link to Pujols ovation Link to Pham story Link to White Sox-Guardians gamer Link to Peters PA article 1 Link to Peters PA article 2 Link to Davy on Jack Reacher Link to Andrew’s baseball bio Link to The Athletic profile on Andrew Link to Tom’s OpenCommand thread Link to OpenCommand account Link to OpenCommand github Link to The Athletic on OpenCommand Link to OpenCommand validation Link to OpenCommand accuracy Link to computer vision article 1 Link to computer vision article 1 Link to pitch-tipping detection info Link to Tom on miss distance Link to Tango on miss distance Link to Sam on misses Link to Ben on COMMANDf/x Link to The Athletic on Command+ Link to “Stuff” model command stats Link to BP on command 1 Link to BP on command 2 Link to team targets article Link to team targets graph Link to command value post Link to Tom’s post on baseball analytics Link to Andrew’s Substack Link to Andrew on public baseball analysis Link to Andrew on idea value Link to Ben on baseball secrets Link to Andrew on idea value Link to Andrew on draft performance Link to Hustle+ paper Link to Ben on hustle Link to Andrew’s podcast post Link to Andrew’s podcast Link to Marvel’s Wolverine clip 1 Link to Ben’s first Wolverine pod Link to Ben’s second Wolverine pod Link to previous Winquest banter Link to Gasper story Link to Paine on position-player pitchers  Sponsor Us on Patreon  Give a Gift Subscription  Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com  Effectively Wild Subreddit  Effectively Wild Wiki  Apple Podcasts Feed   Spotify Feed  YouTube Playlist  Facebook Group  Bluesky Account  Twitter Account  Get Our Merch! var SERVER_DATA = Object.assign(SERVER_DATA || {}); Source

  3. 6d ago

    Effectively Wild Episode 2531: The Regular-Season Two-Week Warning

    With Meg Rowley on vacation, Ben Lindbergh continues his quest to (temporarily) resurrect a few dearly departed baseball podcasts. Next Up: The Baseball Show With Rany and Joe, featuring Ben, Rany Jazayerli, and Joe Sheehan of the Joe Sheehan Newsletter. With two weeks remaining in the regular season, Ben, Rany, and Joe talk about what’s worth watching the rest of the way: playoff races, awards chases, roster reshuffling, and more. They also examine some big-picture trends pertaining to MLB’s low-average offense, pitcher usage, expansion, and popularity. Audio intro: Garrett Krohn, “Effectively Wild Theme” Audio outro: The Gagnés, “Effectively Wild Theme” Link to The Baseball Show podcast archive Link to the Joe Sheehan Newsletter Link to Rany’s medical practice Link to Rany on the Royals Link to Rany on Pitcher Abuse Points Link to Ben on postseason usage Link to Dan S. on 2026 playoff rosters Link to Dan S. on the postseason crapshoot Link to playoff randomness by sport Link to Kiger wiki Link to De Paula homer Link to 2023 Cranston promo Link to attendance-boost story Link to article on Vlad’s homer Link to article on Fischer’s homer Link to the Teoscar resurgence Link to Laurila on SP usage Link to Ben on improving player talent Link to Elly throw video Link to Elly throw article Link to Passan on expansion Link to NBA franchise values Link to KC ballpark update Link to Veblen good wiki Link to Sarris on sinkers Link to Ben C. on expanded playoffs Link to Dan S. on expanded playoffs Link to FG combined WAR leaderboard Link to Schlittler MVP article Link to leaguewide K rates Link to leaguewide non-pitcher K rates Link to Ben on Ks in 2017 Link to foul-ball info Link to Ben on pitcher limits Link to Ben on improved defense Link to Rany on Ben’s gaming pod  Sponsor Us on Patreon  Give a Gift Subscription  Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com  Effectively Wild Subreddit  Effectively Wild Wiki  Apple Podcasts Feed   Spotify Feed  YouTube Playlist  Facebook Group  Bluesky Account  Twitter Account  Get Our Merch! var SERVER_DATA = Object.assign(SERVER_DATA || {}); Source

  4. Sep 12

    Effectively Wild Episode 2530: The Top 24 Players 24 or Younger

    This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, please visit our Patreon. With Meg Rowley on vacation, Ben Lindbergh continues his quest to (temporarily) resurrect a few dearly departed baseball podcasts. Next Up: The Ringer MLB Show, featuring Ben, Michael Baumann of FanGraphs, and Bobby Wagner of Patreon and Tipping Pitches. Ben, Baumann, and Bobby banter about their old show and the absence of one member of the Ringer MLB crew, how MLB commemorated 9/11, who’s to blame for banged-up Shohei Ohtani, whether they’re buying Anthony Volpe’s power spike, and what the widespread mockery of Vivek Ramaswamy’s baseball swing says about politicans’ eagerness to invoke baseball, the danger of appearing inauthentic by faking ball knowledge, and the difficulty (relative to other sports) of not looking doofy doing baseball activities without past playing experience. Then (54:49) Ben plays “Did This Famous Figure Play College Baseball?” and they draft (1:02:38) the top 24 MLB players who are in their age-24 seasons or younger. Audio intro: Dave Armstrong and Mike Murray, “Effectively Wild Theme” Audio outro: Alex Ferrin, “Effectively Wild Theme” Link to The Ringer MLB Show feed Link to Ringer Baseball feed Link to Baumann’s FanGraphs archive Link to Tipping Pitches Link to 2021 young players ranking Link to 2021 young players podcast Link to 2022 young players ranking Link to MLB’s 9/11 press release Link to Baumann on Ohtani Link to Woo on Ohtani Link to Ardaya on Ohtani Link to Ohtani comments Link to Volpe reinvention article Link to Triple-A wOBA leaders Link to Triple-A xWOBA leaders Link to Volpe gamelog Link to Cruz vs. El-Sayed Link to Vivek’s football jersey Link to EW on politician sports fails Link to Jeffries bat post Link to Vivek’s baseball post Link to eyewitness account Link to Vivek’s tennis post Link to Vivek’s bowling post Link to Vivek’s basketball post Link to post deletion story Link to Vivek name article Link to Curtis on baseball language Link to list of Baumann games Link to Eisenhower baseball controversy Link to RoS ZiPS projections Link to 2028 ZiPS projections Link to rest-of-career ZiPS projections  Sponsor Us on Patreon  Give a Gift Subscription  Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com  Effectively Wild Subreddit  Effectively Wild Wiki  Apple Podcasts Feed   Spotify Feed  YouTube Playlist  Facebook Group  Bluesky Account  Twitter Account  Get Our Merch! var SERVER_DATA = Object.assign(SERVER_DATA || {}); Source

  5. Sep 10

    Effectively Wild Episode 2529: The Bandwagon Re-Reunion

    With Meg Rowley on vacation, Ben Lindbergh continues his quest to (temporarily) resurrect a few dearly departed baseball podcasts. Next Up: The Bandwagon, featuring Hannah Keyser of CNN and Zach Crizer of The Bandwagon (the ongoing newsletter). Ben, Hannah, and Zach discuss Hannah’s transition from baseball specialist to sports generalist, her visit to Driveline Baseball for velocity training, and why position-player pitchers throw so slow. Then they banter about baseball bits and bobs: the buzzer-beating, pre-postseason returns of Aaron Judge and other prominent players; the future of rehab assignments; Zach’s 2026 rebuild rankings and his and Hannah’s debate about how bad David Stearns has been for the Mets; Mickey Gasper’s hot streak and Munetaka Murakami’s slump; a possible Rockies sale; Thomas Pannone’s Triple-A perfect game; and how the challenge system has affected catcher framing and defensive value, plus postscript follow-ups. Audio intro: Guy Russo, “Effectively Wild Theme” Audio outro: Andy Ellison, “Effectively Wild Theme” Link to The Bandwagon podcast archive Link to The Bandwagon newsletter Link to Hannah’s CNN archive Link to CNN Explains series Link to first Bandwagon reunion pod Link to second Bandwagon reunion pod Link to Hannah and Lindsey appearance Link to Marte’s cap Link to Alcaraz vs. Shelton story Link to Jay on position-player pitching Link to Sam on position-player pitching Link to underhand free throws story Link to Episode 2372 Link to position-player velo by year Link to late-comeback candidates Link to Hannah and Zach on Trajekt Link to Ben on Trajekt Link to Dan S. on Judge Link to Judge on his abbreviated return Link to Judge/Jones fun fact Link to Schwarber postseason comeback Link to Cohen on Stearns Link to Ben on Mets turnover Link to team rookie batting WAR Link to negative-run-differential division story Link to Yankees hitting without Judge Link to Yankees pitching without Judge Link to Gasper/Murakami leaderboard Link to Gasper wiki Link to Rockies/McCarthy play Link to Paige’s Rockies report Link to report summary Link to Greg Penner wiki Link to BP on team sales Link to Pannone story Link to Pannone photos Link to minor league perfectos list Link to Jeff on framing Link to Ben on framing in 2018 Link to team defensive challenges Link to Tango on team challenges Link to catcher-defensive deviation data Link to catcher-defense deviation graph Link to Ohtani/De Paula news Link to catcher’s interference explainer Link to 23 ways piece Link to 23 ways book Link to Nine Innings to Love trailer Link to Nine Innings to Love premiere Link to Tiglath-Pileser III wiki Link to Yankees winning-season streak  Sponsor Us on Patreon  Give a Gift Subscription  Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com  Effectively Wild Subreddit  Effectively Wild Wiki  Apple Podcasts Feed   Spotify Feed  YouTube Playlist  Facebook Group  Bluesky Account  Twitter Account  Get Our Merch! var SERVER_DATA = Object.assign(SERVER_DATA || {}); Source

  6. Sep 9

    Effectively Wild Episode 2528: The Roundtable Reunion

    With Meg Rowley on vacation, Ben Lindbergh brings a few dearly departed baseball podcasts (briefly) back to life. First up: The Roundtable, featuring EW cofounder (and Pebble Hunting author) Sam Miller and The Athletic’s Grant Brisbee and Andy McCullough. Ben, Sam, Grant, and Andy discuss the worst and best ballpark promotions, Doug Eddings’s cap decree and bid to become MLB’s new infamous umpire, what 2026 taught us about ump importance, whether umps uphold unwritten rules, future revelations about the Astros’ banging scheme, a trivia question in a new movie about the number of ways to reach base, Ketel Marte and the mountains teams try to climb, Sam’s recent writing about the boundaries of baseball performance, Andy’s ace updates, and Shohei Ohtani’s pitching outlook. Audio intro: Daniel Leckie, “Effectively Wild Theme” Audio outro: Austin Klewan, “Effectively Wild Theme” Link to The Roundtable archive Link to Roundtable cancellation post Link to Pebble Hunting Link to Grant’s author archive Link to Andy’s author archive Link to Jelly Roll wiki Link to Ben on baseball pizza discounts Link to Taco Bell promotion wiki Link to Jessica Simpson quote Link to Zoolander clip Link to Eddings wiki Link to Eddings article 1 Link to Eddings article 2 Link to Eddings article 3 Link to Eddings article 4 Link to umpire retirements Link to Ben on ABS Link to Gattis on Kershaw Link to banging-scheme site Link to banging-scheme research 1 Link to banging-scheme research 2 Link to banging-scheme research 3 Link to banging-scheme research 4 Link to Noggin Boss Link to MLB Isoblox cap Link to “dadhat” definition Link to The Sun Never Sets wiki Link to Joe Swanberg wiki Link to mumblecore wiki Link to Fennessey on mumblecore Link to automatic double wiki Link to Snapple on reaching base Link to SABR on reaching base Link to Enders on reaching base Link to Marte article 1 Link to Marte article 2 Link to Marte article 3 Link to Marte article 4 Link to double summit wiki Link to Sam on bad challenges Link to Sam on pitcher mistakes Link to Sam on strike rates Link to Tango on miss distance Link to Sam on Kershaw mistakes Link to Rob Arthur on ball variation Link to Andy on aces Link to Ohtani pitching update Link to Sam on two-way Ohtani Link to Beyond the Scrum Link to Sportswriters Blues Link to “50 Ways to Leave Your Lover”  Sponsor Us on Patreon  Give a Gift Subscription  Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com  Effectively Wild Subreddit  Effectively Wild Wiki  Apple Podcasts Feed   Spotify Feed  YouTube Playlist  Facebook Group  Bluesky Account  Twitter Account  Get Our Merch! var SERVER_DATA = Object.assign(SERVER_DATA || {}); Source

  7. Sep 4

    Effectively Wild Episode 2527: Feels Like the First Time

    This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, please visit our Patreon. Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about duplicate episode titles and the Angels being slightly less bad than previously indicated, Stat Blast about extended team droughts between multi-hit MLB debuts, and discuss the arrival and role of Padres prospect Ethan Salas, a (deep breath) Cubs-produced, TikTok-based, baseball-themed, microdrama rom-com, whether they have any interest in VR baseball broadcasts, and an apparent change in Minor League Baseball’s ball, followed by additional Blasting about a Jordan Walker fact that may or may not be fun, catcher hot-swaps, center fielders on the mound, and all-win/loss days for divisions. Audio intro: Jimmy Kramer, “Effectively Wild Theme” Audio outro: Gabriel-Ernest, “Effectively Wild Theme” Link to duplicate episode titles Link to Episode 1240 Link to Episode 1573 Link to Paine on Moreno/Kroenke Link to Kroenke’s land ownership Link to Langs post 1 Link to Langs post 2 Link to debutant dingers article Link to gaps between debuts Link to Close Encounters scene Link to Montes debut article Link to Ichiro rookie hits record Link to Ichiro video Link to Montes video Link to Ben on debutant batters Link to proj. strength of schedule Link to M’s rookie batting WAR Link to BP on Jenkins Link to BP on Salas Link to ESPN on Salas Link to New Yorker on microdramas Link to Quibi wiki Link to Variety on Nine Innings to Love Link to Nine Innings to Love trailer Link to The Notebook scene Link to VR broadcasts article Link to Jake/Jordan broadcast info Link to Ben’s plot hole video Link to Cooper on the MiLB ball Link to Cooper on college homers Link to Ben on the MiLB-to-MLB gap Link to Clay on the MiLB-to-MLB gap Link to FG on MiLB ball construction Link to Walker alleged fun fact Link to ITYSL meme Link to Williams vs. Wood post Link to catchers data Link to The Onion on Gillette Link to wild 1902 game Link to Garver EW episode Link to all-loss division days Link to all-win division days Link to listener emails database  Sponsor Us on Patreon  Give a Gift Subscription  Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com  Effectively Wild Subreddit  Effectively Wild Wiki  Apple Podcasts Feed   Spotify Feed  YouTube Playlist  Facebook Group  Bluesky Account  Twitter Account  Get Our Merch! var SERVER_DATA = Object.assign(SERVER_DATA || {}); Source

  8. Sep 3

    Effectively Wild Episode 2526: How Ballpark Sound Got Both Better and Worse

    Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley announce an upcoming livestream and then react to the semi-surprising sale of the Angels by Arte Moreno to Stan Kroenke, considering the significance of the sale price, the outlook for the franchise, the legacies of Moreno and Mike Trout, and what the sale might portend for CBA talks. Then (43:14), in the wake of recent reporting and discussion about the volume level at games, they talk to stadium acoustics expert Jack Wrightson of design firm WJHW about how stadium sound systems are simulated and constructed, how they’ve evolved, the sonic environments of baseball and other sports, how team preferences and practices vary, fan noise vs. PA noise, sound on the field vs. sound in the stands, why ballparks are sometimes too loud, and much more, plus (1:37:57) a few postscript follow-ups. Audio intro: Harold Walker, “Effectively Wild Theme” Audio interstitial: Grant Brisbee, “Effectively Wild Theme” Audio outro: Xavier LeBlanc, “Effectively Wild Theme” Link to Patreon registration Link to FG on the Angels sale Link to The Athletic sale article 1 Link to The Athletic sale article 2 Link to Trout quotes Link to mayor quotes Link to 2023 attendance Link to 2026 attendance Link to Moreno on fan preferences Link to Kroenke wiki Link to Moreno wiki Link to Paine on Moreno Link to new Angels park item Link to froyo fraud article Link to sale-price bubble analysis Link to WJHW “about” page Link to WJHW ballparks page Link to Jack’s WJHW bio Link to latest loudness article Link to loudness article 2 Link to loudness article 3 Link to loudness article 4 Link to loudness article 5 Link to sound level meter wiki Link to loudness wars wiki Link to SIS on Cowser Link to Langs post 1 Link to Langs post 2 Link to EW on Yandy and ABS Link to Tango on Yandy Link to Tango on the Rays Link to more Tango on the Rays Link to Jade on Skubal Link to new Plot Hole or Not Hole  Sponsor Us on Patreon  Give a Gift Subscription  Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com  Effectively Wild Subreddit  Effectively Wild Wiki  Apple Podcasts Feed   Spotify Feed  YouTube Playlist  Facebook Group  Bluesky Account  Twitter Account  Get Our Merch! var SERVER_DATA = Object.assign(SERVER_DATA || {}); Source

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