The Infinite Inning

David Roth returns to talk the non-sale of the New York Mets, the irrational trade of Mookie Betts, and asks why the president has an old-time Yankees second baseman on his mind. Plus, a tender encounter with a warm Yankee Stadium security guard and why childhood inadequacy can leave one feeling like Juan Samuel.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Face Down in Joe Girardi’s Bouncy Castle*David Roth: The 1961 Yankees vs POTUS (Bobby Richardson Batting Leadoff)*Rudy Has a Ring/Mookie Betts Was Traded*Which of These Marge Schott Crimes Was Worse?*The Mets Non-Sale (Barbarians at the Citi Field Gates)*Rick Porcello: Local Guy/Missing Carlos Beltran*If the Mets Had Mickey Mantle’s Injuries to Manage*“Flexibility”*Cespedes’ Destiny*Whither Yasiel Puig?*“The Cruncher and Racism Show”*Goodbyes.

WARNING: As in all Rothian episodes, there is the occasional bit o’ cussing. Please hide impressionable gerbils.

The Infinite Inning is not only about baseball but a state of mind. Steven Goldman, rotating cohosts Jesse Spector, Cliff Corcoran, and David Roth, and occasional guests discuss the game’s present, past, and future with forays outside the foul lines to the culture at large. Expect stats, anecdotes, digressions, explorations of writing and fandom, and more Casey Stengel quotations than you thought possible. Along the way, they’ll try to solve the puzzle that is the Infinite Inning: How do you find the joy in life when you can’t get anybody out?

Jesse Spector returns for interlocking discussions of the return of Dusty Baker and revisions to the dinosaur room at the museum. Plus, tales of White Sox and Mets sales gone awry and Rickey Henderson and Mookie Betts trades compared.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
The Wilpons, the Comiskeys, and the Desire to Give Birth to Yourself*Rickey Henderson Gets Traded*Jesse Spector: Tacosaurus*Dusty Baker Rides Again*Billy Martin Should Not Be in the Hall of Fame*The Limits of Cheating*Garry Maddox vs. Juan Lagares*Jesse’s NIMBYs and a Personal Crisis*Youth Homes, Minor League Teams, The Offer of Hope, Exploited Dreams, Dreams No Longer Desired, Fewer Beds and Bases Available*Goodbyes.

The Infinite Inning is not only about baseball but a state of mind. Steven Goldman, rotating cohosts Jesse Spector, Cliff Corcoran, and David Roth, and occasional guests discuss the game’s present, past, and future with forays outside the foul lines to the culture at large. Expect stats, anecdotes, digressions, explorations of writing and fandom, and more Casey Stengel quotations than you thought possible. Along the way, they’ll try to solve the puzzle that is the Infinite Inning: How do you find the joy in life when you can’t get anybody out?

Allen Barra (Mickey and Willie; The Last Coach; Yogi Berra: Eternal Yankee; Inventing Wyatt Earp) discusses his friendship with MLBPA head and new Hall of Famer Marvin Miller. Plus, the consequences of immorality in baseball and a couple of highly flawed Giants relationships.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Hal Chase, Roberto Clemente, and “The Good Place”*Managers Hired, Fired, and Hitting Each Other*Allen Barra: Marvin Miller’s Belated Enshrinement*What Was Marvin Miller Like?*Verbal Jujitsu*A Union Man His Whole Life*A Brief Visit to Birmingham*Marvin Miller vs. Bowie Kuhn*Czars Can’t Be Fired*Abraham Lincoln Doesn’t Enter Into It*Disenchanted/Bitter/Betrayed by Reggie*Bobby Thomson Had the Dodgers’ Signs*Ranking the Top Six Wyatt Earp Movies*Consulting for “Tombstone”*”Glory” and the Denigration of African American Soldiers*Goodbyes.

The Infinite Inning is not only about baseball but a state of mind. Steven Goldman, rotating cohosts Jesse Spector, Cliff Corcoran, and David Roth, and occasional guests discuss the game’s present, past, and future with forays outside the foul lines to the culture at large. Expect stats, anecdotes, digressions, explorations of writing and fandom, and more Casey Stengel quotations than you thought possible. Along the way, they’ll try to solve the puzzle that is the Infinite Inning: How do you find the joy in life when you can’t get anybody out?

Marc Normandin returns to talk Astros and Red Sox sign-stealing fallout, plus tales of a player so serene he could sleep in the middle of a ballgame and a Dodgers fan objects to women in the ballpark.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
When Edd Roush Needs a Nap, Edd Roush Takes a Nap*Ladies’ Day (“Dames! Dames! Dames!”)*Marc Normandin: A Brief, Inadvertent “Rise of Skywalker” Chat*Astros and Red Sox Cheating Reactions*The Astros’ Taubmanism and the Price of Hubris*Jeff Luhnow and Management-Consultant Culture*Are the Astros Players Permanently Tainted?*Down with the Hall of Fame Gallery, Up With the Museum*Did the Last Two Postseasons Really Happen?*What is Wrong with the Colorado Rockies?*Are the Red Sox Building Up or Tearing Down?*Let’s Dispense with the Ideas of Managers as Difference-Makers*A.J. Hinch: No Good Men in Sodom*Trevor Bauer is Blocked*Goodbyes.

The Infinite Inning is not only about baseball but a state of mind. Steven Goldman, rotating cohosts Jesse Spector, Cliff Corcoran, and David Roth, and occasional guests discuss the game’s present, past, and future with forays outside the foul lines to the culture at large. Expect stats, anecdotes, digressions, explorations of writing and fandom, and more Casey Stengel quotations than you thought possible. Along the way, they’ll try to solve the puzzle that is the Infinite Inning: How do you find the joy in life when you can’t get anybody out?

Rob Arthur of Baseball Prospectus discusses the juiced ball, Astros sign-stealing, and the past and future of the human race. Plus John McGraw fights while Boston burns and a pitcher is mocked for his weight.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Walter, not Jumbo*The Brief Story of “Jumbo Jim”*A Fire in Boston*Rob Arthur: Fruit Flies No Matter What*Malthus Was Right? (“Who’s Mathis?” Andy Asked)*WAR (What’s It Good For?)*The Hall of Fame and the Soft Factors*The Ball is Painfully, Obviously Juiced*Juiced Balls vs. Juiced Players*Manfred’s Reasons and Excuses*How Did We Miss the Astros’ Sign-Stealing?*Will the Real Alex Bregman Please Stand Up?*Mike Trout’s Genes vs. Yours*Goodbyes.

The Infinite Inning is not only about baseball but a state of mind. Steven Goldman, rotating cohosts Jesse Spector, Cliff Corcoran, and David Roth, and occasional guests discuss the game’s present, past, and future with forays outside the foul lines to the culture at large. Expect stats, anecdotes, digressions, explorations of writing and fandom, and more Casey Stengel quotations than you thought possible. Along the way, they’ll try to solve the puzzle that is the Infinite Inning: How do you find the joy in life when you can’t get anybody out?

Lincoln Mitchell returns to discuss his new book, San Francisco Year Zero: Political Upheaval, Punk Rock, And A Third-Place Baseball Team, about the surprising 1978 Giants and the way the events of that year, including/especially the assassinations of Harvey Milk and George Moscone, changed the city’s future. Plus: An A’s fan lights a flame and a manager takes his owner with him.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
A’s Fans Burnin’ Down the House*Bucky Harris Speaks Frankly *Lincoln Mitchell: The third-place 1978 San Francisco Giants?*The almost-Toronto Giants*Memories of Candlestick Park and other Giants dysfunction*Giants vs. Seals (and Burritos in the Mission)*The Milk and Moscone Assassination and Its Effects*The Potato-Stand Graft*Why Did We Turn to Violence in the 1960s and 1970s?*The Potato Stand Quid Pro Quo and Ukraine (But not the Ukraine)*Phony Beatlemania (The Hippies vs. The Punks)*All the Wasted Giants’ Prospects*Johnny LeMaster: “BOO”*Vida Blue Reappraised*And Jonestown, Too*Goodbyes.

The Infinite Inning is not only about baseball but a state of mind. Steven Goldman, rotating cohosts Jesse Spector, Cliff Corcoran, and David Roth, and occasional guests discuss the game’s present, past, and future with forays outside the foul lines to the culture at large. Expect stats, anecdotes, digressions, explorations of writing and fandom, and more Casey Stengel quotations than you thought possible. Along the way, they’ll try to solve the puzzle that is the Infinite Inning: How do you find the joy in life when you can’t get anybody out?

Craig Goldstein (Baseball Prospectus) returns to discuss the Gerrit Cole signing and the experience of being at the Winter Meetings. Plus 1961 Yankees falsehoods and a Luber-ish Cleveland deal.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
That Lyin’ Yankees Manager*Gene Green Got a Raw Deal*Craig Goldstein: The Red Sox Are In For an Offseason of Tough Looks*The Gerrit Cole Contract*The Nationals Are Irrational (When Do You Actually Spend the Money?)*The Bud Selig Fig-Leaf*George Steinbrenner and the Minority Partners*The Owners are Not Like Us*Fixing Free Agency*What is the Social Contract?*The Royals and Coke*At the Winter Meetings*The Dodgers Miss Anthony Rendon*Goodbyes.

The Infinite Inning is not only about baseball but a state of mind. Steven Goldman, rotating cohosts Jesse Spector, Cliff Corcoran, and David Roth, and occasional guests discuss the game’s present, past, and future with forays outside the foul lines to the culture at large. Expect stats, anecdotes, digressions, explorations of writing and fandom, and more Casey Stengel quotations than you thought possible. Along the way, they’ll try to solve the puzzle that is the Infinite Inning: How do you find the joy in life when you can’t get anybody out?

Cliff Corcoran returns to ask, “Who is the Best Pitcher in Baseball?” Plus assorted tales of baseball in 1917 (real men eat raw ice cream?) and a Pirates manager loses his job.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Baseball Unpasteurized*Callahan’s Way*Cliff Corcoran: Dr. Hat*Who Was Buried Beneath Third Base in Yankee Stadium?*Who is “The Best Pitcher in Baseball”*Cy Stood for Cyclone*Dave Stieb and Johan Santana: Greats Who Could Expire at Any Time (Ron Santo)*Santana vs. Koufax*Will the Best Pitcher of the 1950s Please Stand Up?*How About the 1980s?*Oatmeal and Lettuce Leaves* Jacob deGrom in the Santana Basket*Early Wynn and Roberto Clemente*Clayton Kershaw and the Hall*The Jacoby Ellsbury Era and the Britt Burns Trade*The New Inefficiency is Wanting to Be Good*Goodbyes.

The Infinite Inning is not only about baseball but a state of mind. Steven Goldman, rotating cohosts Jesse Spector, Cliff Corcoran, and David Roth, and occasional guests discuss the game’s present, past, and future with forays outside the foul lines to the culture at large. Expect stats, anecdotes, digressions, explorations of writing and fandom, and more Casey Stengel quotations than you thought possible. Along the way, they’ll try to solve the puzzle that is the Infinite Inning: How do you find the joy in life when you can’t get anybody out?

Amanda Smith, cohost of the Disaster Girls podcast and the author of Le Renard Argenté: The Silver Fox at War explains what inspired her to transport a certain Dodgers second baseman to World War II, plus tales of sign-stealing gone awry and a scrap drive that almost ended Warren Spahn’s career before it started.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Chuck Dressen Has a Plan For That*Spahn vs. the Rusty Toasters*Amanda Smith: A Book of Tweets?*Cody Bellinger Wins the MVP*The Politics of Fandom/Bad First-Date Tactic*World War II Twitter*Chase Utley Liberates Europe*Sgt. Rock (Is Going to Help Me)*Killing Nazis is Now Political?*It’s Not the Killing, It’s the Justice*Into the Utleyverse*Disaster Girls and 85/34 (1988 Dodgers)*In Defense of Dave Roberts*Goodbyes.

The Infinite Inning is not only about baseball but a state of mind. Steven Goldman, rotating cohosts Jesse Spector, Cliff Corcoran, and David Roth, and occasional guests discuss the game’s present, past, and future with forays outside the foul lines to the culture at large. Expect stats, anecdotes, digressions, explorations of writing and fandom, and more Casey Stengel quotations than you thought possible. Along the way, they’ll try to solve the puzzle that is the Infinite Inning: How do you find the joy in life when you can’t get anybody out?

David Roth (ex-Deadspin) returns to discuss the demise of Deadspin and the rise of Carlos Beltran.

WARNING: As is true of all Roth episodes, there is quite a bit of cussing. Hide the hamsters.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Harvard Eddie and a Requiem for a Friend*Mookie and Pete*David Roth: Spanf’d Out of a Job*The Value is in Not Sticking to Sports*“It’s Unpleasant, But Maybe They Like It”*The Non-Reactionary Death of Splinter*You Have to Admit It’s a Vivid Insult*The Importance of Editorial Independence*The Pro-Union Argument*The Perversity of Work*Roth on Beltran: Excited/Sorry*Ron Darling’s Handshake*The Future of Deadcast and other Features Let’s Remember Some Potatoes)*Goodbyes.
The Infinite Inning is not only about baseball but a state of mind. Steven Goldman, rotating cohosts Jesse Spector, Cliff Corcoran, and David Roth, and occasional guests discuss the game’s present, past, and future with forays outside the foul lines to the culture at large. Expect stats, anecdotes, digressions, explorations of writing and fandom, and more Casey Stengel quotations than you thought possible. Along the way, they’ll try to solve the puzzle that is the Infinite Inning: How do you find the joy in life when you can’t get anybody out?

Craig Goldstein reveals his plans for Baseball Prospectus, mourns King Felix and (preemptively) Clayton Kershaw, and wonders if there’s a wrong way to love your cat. Plus tales of George Steinbrenner and Hal Chase that should sound strangely familiar.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
The Roy Cohn Client*Hal Chase Asks for a Favor*Craig Goldstein: The Wrong Way to Love Your Cat*The Editor is Dead, Long Live the Editor*The BP Community*Fear of Solipsism*Where Have You Gone?*King Felix and Doc Gooden*Does there Need to Be a Baseball Prospectus?*Baseball is Everything and Everything is Baseball (But Will It Keep the Customers Satisfied?)*The FanGraphs Question*Origin of a Dodgers Fan*When You’ve Married a Braves Fan*The Astros Take All the Marbles?*“Terrible Pedro Baez Performances”*Goodbyes.

The Infinite Inning is not only about baseball but a state of mind. Steven Goldman, rotating cohosts Jesse Spector, Cliff Corcoran, and David Roth, and occasional guests discuss the game’s present, past, and future with forays outside the foul lines to the culture at large. Expect stats, anecdotes, digressions, explorations of writing and fandom, and more Casey Stengel quotations than you thought possible. Along the way, they’ll try to solve the puzzle that is the Infinite Inning: How do you find the joy in life when you can’t get anybody out?