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Effectively Wild: A FanGraphs Baseball Podcast

Effectively Wild Episode 1850: Don’t Squat So Close to Me

Effectively Wild: A FanGraphs Baseball Podcast

Ben Lindbergh, Meg Rowley

Baseball, Sports

4.72.7K Ratings

🗓️ 18 May 2022

⏱️ 93 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

EWFI
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about two of the worst defensive plays of the season, which came courtesy of the Tigers and Nationals, Albert Pujols pitching and walking, the Pirates winning without a hit (but with one correct prediction), and the breakout of Taylor Ward; answer listener emails about banning gray uniforms, baseball jugglers, listing pitchers’ batting handedness in the universal-DH era, vetoing shifts and pitching changes, and catchers squatting too close to hitters; then Stat Blast (1:08:55) about the most consecutive trades made by one team, the best one-day home and road records, and the most back-to-back homers in a season by teams and players, before reflecting on how the (o)possums in the press box in Oakland may get along with their feral-cat neighbors (plus a few postscript updates).

Audio intro: The Society of Rockets, “Error Era
Audio outro: Chip Taylor, “The Possum Hunter

Link to video of Twins-Tigers play
Link to video of Nats-Marlins play
Link to WaPo on the Nats’ defense
Link to team Defensive Efficiency
Link to Tigers’ dropped popup
Link to Nationals’ botched rundown
Link to xWOBA leaderboard
Link to Sam Blum on Ward
Link to Dan Szymborski on Ward
Link to Tyler Kepner on Tylers
Link to Jay Jaffe on the hitless win
Link to García’s prediction
Link to story on VanMeter’s prediction
Link to tweet about VanMeter’s prediction
Link to story about Pujols and Gonzalez
Link to Sam on Pujols not walking
Link to Allen juggling on SI cover
Link to video of Peña juggling
Link to video of Guillorme juggling
Link to video of Dietrich juggling
Link to other video of Dietrich juggling
Link to article about Olympic juggling
Link to Jeff on catcher’s interference rates
Link to EW email questions database
Link to Stathead
Link to Stat Blast data on back-to-back HR
Link to MLBTR on Ford trades
Link to story about Schwarber as bench coach
Link to tweet about Wilson as coach
Link to press-box possum pic
Link to Opossum Society FAQ
Link to possum vs. opossum definitions
Link to tweet about Morel’s called shot
Link to video of Nats’ latest misplay(s)

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Source

Transcript

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0:00.0

We've got time to try the whole world out

0:08.0

It felt so good, just good for

0:12.0

Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh

0:20.0

We feel the rain

0:24.0

Hello and welcome to episode 1850 of Effectively Wild, a fan grass baseball podcast brought to you by our Patreon supporters. I'm a growly of

0:34.0

Fangrass and I am joined as always by Ben Lumberger the Ringer. Ben, how are you?

0:38.0

I'm doing well. How are you?

0:40.0

I'm doing alright.

0:41.0

Well, I wanted to start by asking you about two plays where no one was doing alright at all

0:46.0

because absolutely everything went wrong.

0:49.0

I don't know if this will translate to a podcast because it's not a visual medium and so we cannot convey the complete

0:56.0

incompetence on display here.

0:58.0

I will include clips of the broadcast, which will maybe hint at what was happening here, but I think there are two leading contenders for worst defensive play of this season or

1:10.0

misplay and I want to ask you which one you think was worse or I guess better depending on your perspective

1:19.0

whether we're talking about the quality of the defense or the entertainment value here.

1:24.0

So one was a pretty famous viral example here that probably a lot of you listening have seen this was from April 26th

1:34.0

and it was a walkoff the twins over the tigers and I don't know I'll play the clip here but would you care to describe what happens here?

1:44.0

I don't know if we can narrate it and convey what is happening here.

1:47.0

Well, I don't know let's try shall we try?

1:50.0

Sure.

1:51.0

So this is the bottom of the ninth.

1:54.0

This is the bottom of the ninth in a game that Detroit is leading by one run.

...

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