Episode Details

Ben Lindbergh and Russell Carleton of Baseball Prospectus banter about the return of Joey Votto, the suddenly exciting Cincinnati Reds, the NL Central and NL West races, and more, then (25:52) discuss several of the developments chronicled in Russell’s new book, The New Ballgame: The Not-So-Hidden Forces Shaping Modern Baseball, including the impact of the one-inning reliever, the expansion of baseball’s talent pool, the redefinition of positions, the strikeout conundrum, and the role of analytics in shaping the sport. After that (1:25:01), Ben honors the promotions of Votto and Bo Naylor by talking to Scott Crawford, director of operations for the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame, about the Hall’s latest induction weekend, its election process and criteria, the history of the Hall and baseball in Canada, the Hall’s collection and relationships with other Halls of Fame, the baseball landscape in Canada, and more, followed by a Past Blast (1:55:50) from 2022.

Audio intro: Jimmy Kramer, “Effectively Wild Theme”
Audio interstitial: Alex Ferrin, “Effectively Wild Theme”
Audio outro: Nate Emerson, “Effectively Wild Theme”

Link to record of EW guests
Link to video of Votto’s return
Link to Votto’s postgame interview
Link to MLBTR on Votto
Link to Krall comment
Link to Reds playoff appearances
Link to Reds depth chart
Link to team batting ages
Link to team pitching ages
Link to BaseRuns standings

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