Effectively Wild: A FanGraphs Baseball Podcast

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about Ben’s ongoing jury service and meet major leaguers Zac Thornton and Tyron Guerrero, who used to be—but also never really were?—named Zach Thornton and Tayron Guerrero, respectively. Then (35:29) they attempt to diagnose Cal Raleigh’s offensive ills, check in on Patrick Bailey’s bat, examine how the Red Sox and Phillies wound up where they were supposed to be by a very roundabout route, assess the state of trade-deadline speculation, and consider where they would want a few top trade candidates to go.

Audio intro: Philip Tapley and Michael Stokes, “Effectively Wild Theme”

Audio outro: Luke Lillard, “Effectively Wild Theme”

Link to Meet a Major Leaguer wiki

Link to semantic satiation wiki

Link to Newsday on Thornton

Link to Thornton’s Grand Canyon page

Link to Guerrero call-up article

Link to Cotillo’s Guerrero tweet

Link to Guerrero name pronunciation

Link to Guerrero wiki

Link to MLBTR on Guerrero

Link to The Land Before Time characters

Link to Soroka name tweet

Link to Britton name article

Link to Varland name article

Link to Lovelady name article

Link to Stanton name decision

Link to Carmona/Hernández name change

Link to Jerry Gergich wiki

Link to Raleigh batted-ball profile

Link to Sam’s Raleigh posts

Link to Raleigh’s 2025 splits

Link to Raleigh’s 2026 splits

Link to original Bailey discussion

Link to profane, offensive Ferguson

Link to hitting after IBB article 1

Link to hitting after IBB article 2

Link to hitting after IBB article 3

Link to preseason playoff odds

Link to updated playoff odds

Link to Breslow on the deadline

Link to Crizer on the Red Sox

Link to Slaten quote

Link to Dan S. on managerial firings

Link to BaseRuns standings

Link to team batting WAR

Link to team pitching WAR

Link to team 2B WAR

Link to The Athletic trade candidates

Link to ESPN trade candidates

Link to MLBTR on Arraez

Link to Goodman rumor

Link to MLBTR on the Goodman rumor

Link to MLBTR on the Angels’ deadline

Link to JKG injury article

Link to Crotchfelt signing

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Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about Ben’s jury duty and his reaction to Meg and Craig’s pillow talk on the preceding episode. Then they discuss why All-Star Game pitching is overpowering, whether the Home Run Derby balls were juiced (and whether it matters), another earliest-ever Opening Day, MLB’s crackdown on teams’ boundary-pushing use of dugout iPads, Shohei Ohtani’s pitching pause, MLB app complaints, extensions for Chase Burns and Kyle Bradish, Luis Arraez as a prize of the trade deadline, and the funniest tech startups the Dodgers have seeded.

Audio intro: Kite Person, “Effectively Wild Theme”

Audio outro: Ian Phillips, “Effectively Wild Theme”

Link to EW Episode 2506

Link to Kepner on the ASG

Link to 2018 ASG box score

Link to Heyman on Harper

Link to Insta post with Harper quote

Link to MLB HRD notes

Link to longest Harper homers

Link to longest Caminero homers

Link to longest Contreras homers

Link to exit speed responsibility

Link to 2024 NBA ASG wiki

Link to 2026 NBA ASG wiki

Link to top-selling jerseys

Link to Sheehan on the lack of stars

Link to Paine on ASG philosophies

Link to 2027 MLB schedule

Link to EW season preview series wiki

Link to World Cup expansion

Link to March Madness expansion

Link to Ohtani news

Link to ulnar nerve entrapment

Link to MLB app betting odds

Link to latest FG app updates

Link to The Athletic iPads report

Link to Ben on front office encroachment

Link to Ottavino clip

Link to Dubuque on Burns

Link to Bradish on Burns

Link to MLBTR on Burns

Link to Trent’s tweet about Burns

Link to Burns pitch usage

Link to MLB pitching WAR leaders

Link to MLBTR on Bradish

Link to sweepstakes wiki

Link to sweeps week wiki

Link to MLBTR on Arraez

Link to Andrews on Arraez

Link to BZZR article 1

Link to BZZR article 2

Link to BZZR article 3

Link to BZZR article 4

Link to FOIAball post

Link to 2015 Dodgers investment news

Link to 2016 Dodgers investment news

Link to 2018 Dodgers investment news

Link to R/GA companies page

Link to Global Sports Venture Studio

Link to Elysian Park companies page

Link to 2023 Elysian Park article

Link to Elysian Park wiki

Link to Elysian Fields wiki

Link to Gilbert/Creighton interview

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This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, please visit our Patreon.

With Ben Lindbergh serving jury duty, Meg Rowley is joined by Baseball Prospectus editor-in-chief Craig Goldstein. The pair discuss the perils of hotel pillows and showers, then turn their attention to the 2026 All-Star Game, how the in-person experience compares to the TV one, and the challenges of making it a fun event relative to the Home Run Derby. Then Craig offers his thoughts on the CBA negotiations and Rob Manfred’s approach to communicating (38:58), before he and Meg discuss a few of the things they are looking forward to (and one thing they’re dreading) about the season’s second half, including the White Sox, good teams playing well, a potentially weird deadline, and Pete Crow-Armstrong.

Audio intro: El Warren, “Effectively Wild Theme”

Audio outro: Josh Busman, “Effectively Wild Theme”

Link to the Five and Dive episode where Craig discusses the Rays

Link to Craig on the weird deadline ahead

Link to Steven Goldman on the All-Star Game

Link to Jake Mintz on the All-Star Game Sandlot tribute

Link to Jayson Stark on the AL’s All-Star pitching dominance

Link to Andy McCullough on the All-Star Game

Link to Michael Baumann on Philly as the haters’ All-Star Game

Link to Katie Woo on Jordan Walker

Link to Ben Clemens on Dillion Dingler

Link to Davy Andrews on Pete Crow-Armstrong

Link to Ryan Blake on Lance McCullers Jr. Trade

Link to Dan Szymborski on an AL team with a losing record making the postseason

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Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about all aspects of the Home Run Derby spectator experience, both in the ballpark and from afar: the new format, the Netflix broadcast, the Philly fans, Jordan Walker’s win, and more. Then (49:12) they discuss how All-Star selections increasingly reflect same-season performance, Bruce Meyer’s and Rob Manfred’s comments to the BBWAA, negotiations over MLB players’ participation in the 2028 Olympics, Pete Crow-Armstrong and Ceddanne Rafaela’s mutual lovefest, and the ice-cold A’s and red-hot Red Sox.

Audio intro: Jonathan Crymes, “Effectively Wild Theme 2”

Audio outro: Moon Hound, “Effectively Wild Theme”

Link to FG HRD recap

Link to LHB-heavy preview

Link to MLB HRD notes

Link to LHB park factors

Link to RHB park factors

Link to “Year of the LHH” post

Link to MLB.com on Walker

Link to list of youngest HRD winners

Link to Walker on inspirational value

Link to historical HRD results

Link to McGwire Simpsons scene

Link to Marchand on Netflix

Link to Sam on the Derby’s future

Link to HRD X wiki

Link to Meg’s Arozarena photo

Link to Posnanski on the HRD

Link to Philly Drew/batteries incident

Link to Philly Santa Claus incident

Link to Paine on All-Star selections

Link to past EW discussion on selections

Link to Manfred competitive balance quote

Link to Meyer on MLB.TV ads

Link to Meyer/Manfred messaging summary

Link to Passan on the Olympics

Link to Drellich on the Olympics

Link to The West Wing quote

Link to Rafaela/PCA article

Link to FG WAR leaderboard

Link to playoff odds changes

Link to A’s firing article

Link to team road FIP

Link to team home FIP

Link to team batting WAR

Link to Sheehan on the Sox

Link to conn wiki

Sponsor Us on Patreon

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MLB Draft 2026

What Do Real Prospects Think About MLB’s Draft Proposal?
2026 Mock Draft 1.0
The Biggest (Literally) Draft Class Yet
Jackson Flora's Evolution, Alain Gomez-Gudino's Incredible Journey, and Other Tales from the 2026 Draft Class
2026 MLB Draft Preview and Updated Rankings
Day 1 Draft Chat
2026 Mock Draft 2.0: The Day Of
The MLB Draft Is Once Again for Diehards Only
Day 1 Recap
2026 Futures Game Recap: More Next Year, Please
Effectively Wild Episode 2504: I Choo-Choo-Choose You




Ben Lindbergh, Meg Rowley, and FanGraphs lead prospect analyst Eric Longenhagen banter about Zack Wheeler declining MLB’s last-minute All-Star invitation, JJ Wetherholt’s long-term contract extension, and how the Futures Game and amateur draft fell flat as spectator events, then discuss the top tier of draft picks, some surprising picks and revamped approaches by teams under new management, why better data hasn’t made teams much better at drafting, why no team has tried blowing by its bonus allotment, and more, plus closing banter about Bryce Harper’s explanation of his video message for a sports-betting addict.

Audio intro: Nate Emerson, “Effectively Wild Theme”

Audio outro: PJ Harding, “Effectively Wild Theme”

Link to The Simpsons clip

Link to Wheeler article

Link to MLBTR on Wetherholt

Link to Wetherholt’s draft outfit

Link to Baumann on the spectator experience

Link to Cooper on the spectator experience

Link to Manfred mispronunciation article

Link to celebrity golf tournament

Link to Futures Game FAQ

Link to draft viewing FAQ

Link to Brendan on the Futures Game

Link to Eric’s draft preview

Link to The Board

Link to Baumann on big draftees

Link to MLB draft tracker

Link to FG Day 1 draft recap

Link to The Athletic on Schaffner

Link to Crotchfelt vs. Titsworth post

Link to Angels picks

Link to Ball’s draft study

Link to Seidler on blowing up the draft

Link to Ball on blowing up the draft

Link to NBA revenue info

Link to Madisynn from She-Hulk

Link to Clemens on prospect valuation 1

Link to Clemens on prospect valuation 2

Link to camel case wiki

Link to Harper’s Instagram post

Link to EW guest appearances

Link to Dodgers extra-inning game

Sponsor Us on Patreon

Give a Gift Subscription

Email Us: podcast@fangraphs.com

Effectively Wild Subreddit

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Apple Podcasts Feed

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