The Infinite Inning

Dan Taylor discusses Lights, Camera, Fastball, his new history of the Hollywood Stars baseball team. Plus tales of great Giants catchers of the distant past and George Steinbrenner fires a third-base coach because of a controversial playoff send.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Buck Ewing Would Like a Word With You*George Steinbrenner’s Postseason Tantrum ‘80* Dan Taylor: The Hollywood Stars and the Studio Stars*Co-Starring William Frawley, Spencer Tracy, and More!*Respect for Joe E. Brown*Harry Ruby on the Field*Bob Cobb: More Than Just His Salad*The Stars Ally with Branch Rickey*The Virtues of Manager Fred Haney (in the Men’s Room?)*The Tragedy of Carlos Bernier*The Stars and Integration*Bobby Bragan and Jackie Robinson*Bragan and the Consecutive Pinch-Hitters*The Minor Leagues Today*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?

Mike Ferrin, Kevin Goldstein, and Steven Goldman, once the hosts of Baseball Prospectus Radio on SiriusXM, reunite to discuss that Chicago vibe, awkward interviews, and debate just how the San Francisco Giants are doing it. Plus tales: A fringe player gets on the wrong train and the longest winning streak of all time amounts to nothing.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
The Fats Dantonio Story*The Big Streak*Mike Ferrin and Kevin Goldstein: Bob in Crisis*Two Eddie Vedder Stories?*Why is Chicago?*Cubs Attendance vs. White Sox Fans (“Trixies and Chads”)*That Wrong Billy Interview*The Sad Gene Lamont Interview*Should Players Have to Talk to the Media?*Mike Zunino, Third-Overall Pick*Reverse-Engineering the San Francisco Giants*Haiti, the Dominican Republic, and the Border*Will We Have Labor Peace?*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, David Roth, Jesse Spector with a rare collective sighting as the starting rotation reflects on four years of episodes, 20-plus years of writing about baseball, managers who aged before our eyes, Javier Baez, and so much more. Plus tales of a manager making that one fatal mistake and Tris Speaker gets a heart.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Babe Ruth Doesn’t Quite End Two Careers with One Hit*Tris Speaker, His Mom, and Healing Old Wounds*Cliff Corcoran, David Roth, Jesse Spector: Lantern Flies in the Phillies Dugout*Keeping it Fresh*Baltimore Orioles Reggie Jackson is a Dirty Lie!*Red Sox, COVID, Stick to Sports*100,000 in the Stands*Rangers at Orioles; Please Help Us*The Lee Elia Rant*The Chris Davis Contract and After*The Mets vs. Their Own Prospects*Wilford Brimley Managers*The Time Steve Met Billy Martin*The Big Finish to the 2021 Season*The Javier Baez Conundrum*Steve Kemp Alert!*Goodbyes.

WARNING: This episode has a few more swear-words than usual. Please undertake evasive action if your battleship is easily dented.

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?

A new hour-long mini-episode features yet another John McGraw insult, a discussion of vaccine mandates, Holocaust analogies, and the logical fallacy of hasty generalization both in and out of baseball (Babe Ruth has two legs and plays baseball and Isan Diaz has two legs and plays baseball, so they must be exactly the same), and a tale of catching great Ernie Lombardi mouthing off to his boss with predictable consequences. Guests resume next week!

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Part 1, in which Charles Ebbets is Insulted*Hasty Generalizations, Distortions, Vaccines, the Holocaust, and Why Various Players Are Not Fish*Ernie Lombardi Says Exactly What He Thinks of His Boss*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?

A medically-necessary solo episode has a lesson about keeping your eye on the ball rather than your fingers on the banjo, some Zen advice from Casey Stengel, and the tale of a busted prospect who could have used some Zen of his own.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
The Pirates Try to Sing Their Way to a Pennant*Just Tra-La-La (Yankees and Mets versions)*Sympathy for Roy Parmelee*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 returns to discuss the Mets’ fall from the pennant race, the Baltimore Orioles’ complete absence therefrom, and the 1982 Yankees vs. the Afghanistan withdrawal. Plus tales: A pitcher who did everything right and yet everything went wrong and the Orioles compared to the Mary Celeste.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
The Book of Koob*Rebuilding vs. Tanking vs. Not Giving a Damn*David Roth: Maine is Another Country/Misplaced Darwinian Struggle*The Ad You Don’t Want to Hear/Grammar-Policing Derek Jeter*The Mets in Freefall*deGrom’s Detachable Torso and Zack Wheeler*Mets Crazy-Board*The 1982 Yankees vs. the Afghanistan Forever-War*The Cat-Food Analogy*Managing to Feel Like You’re Managing*The Orioles’ Losing Streak (Measured in Years)*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 talk Dodgers, diving for balls, and salary caps. Plus tales: A short shortstop fails to measure up and Roy Campanella asks the wrong team for a job.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Tommy Macmillan and the Non-Magical Manger*Campy’s Plea to the Phillies*Craig Goldstein: Baseball is Everything it Touches*The Trea Turner: Time-Traveler?*Cool Papa Calls In/Joe DiMaggio Didn’t Dive*Seager vs. Turner?*Once More Unto Cody Bellinger*Betts to Second/Tatis to the Outfield*Goldstein on Sprint-Speed*Is the ‘Playoff Chase’ Over?*James and Chaim*The Orioles and ‘Competitive Balance’”*The Barstool Flirtation*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 talk trading deadline and Olympic-mandated underwear worn as outwear. Plus tales: A player loses half of what he’s got below the waist and another loses everything, period, on two hellish plane-flights.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Schang!*Cool Papa Bell and Roy Parnell*Proper Comportment for Airline Passengers, 1935 and 2021*Cliff Corcoran: The Busiest Trading Deadline in History*The Trevor Story Story*Juan Samuel Tingles*Eugenio Suarez at Sea/Kyle Farmer at WAR*Women’s Olympic Beach Volleyball Uniforms*How Does Anyone Survive the Olympics?*What’s Up with the Rays?*No First Baseman to Boston/Schwarber vs. the Green Monster?*The When/As/If of Chris Sale*The Blue Jays Stay In*A Brief Look at the Phillies*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?

Jesse Spector returns to talk everything from Olympic softball to Australian-rules football with a great deal of trade deadline chatter in-between. Plus tales of a player whose bat-control skills got him punched in the face and some Negro Leaguers recall one time they struck back.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Twenty-Seven Foul Balls Equals One Punch*Revenge on Bobo*Jesse Spector: Olympic Ennui*Softball, Carl Mays, Dan Quisenberry*Watching for the Joy of It*Trade Deadline for the Unvaccinated/State of the Yankees*Joey Gallo for Another Year*Jason Derulo?*The Children are Awaiting on You All to Awaken and See*What if You Bring a Gun to a Genocide?*Kendall Graveman Revisited*“Too Much Analytics!”*The Interchangeable Rays*Back to the White Flag Trade*Amoral Drafting (Logan Mailloux) and Empathy*An Australian Grace Note*Goodbyes.

Warrior for the Underdog Sheryl Ring returns to discuss Trevor Bauer, the limits of consent, and why it’s so difficult to escape an abusive situation. Plus tales of a Yankees-Braves trade that nearly happened but didn’t and we look at the lessons of a shooting outside the Nationals game.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Roberto Kelly for Jeff Blauser*Shooting at the Nats Game*Sheryl Ring: Eviction Moratorium*Collapse in Florida*Trevor Bauer: Power and Control*It’s So Very Hard to Leave*On Consent*The Difference Between Sex and an MMA Match*Should the Yankees Trade at the Deadline?*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?

Warrior for the Underdog Sheryl Ring returns to discuss Trevor Bauer, the limits of consent, and why it’s so difficult to escape an abusive situation. Plus tales of a Yankees-Braves trade that nearly happened but didn’t and we look at the lessons of a shooting outside the Nationals game.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Roberto Kelly for Jeff Blauser*Shooting at the Nats Game*Sheryl Ring: Eviction Moratorium*Collapse in Florida*Trevor Bauer: Power and Control*It’s So Very Hard to Leave*On Consent*The Difference Between Sex and an MMA Match*Should the Yankees Trade at the Deadline?*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 Calcaterra returns to talk All-Star Game Ennui, Enjoyable MLB 2021 surprises and disappointments, Richard Donner’s “Superman,” and much more. Plus tales of bad knees and collapsing teams in both baseball and the larger world.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Mourning Ronald Acuna’s Knee and Other Things as Well*The Orioles, the Astros, and the Danger of Deferred Maintenance*Craig Calcaterra: “Swell” and “Superman: The Movie”*The All-Star Game Blahs*Are We Over Validation by Authority Figures?*The Rural Purge*When Good Teams Go Bad It’s Wonderful*The Giants, “The A-Team,” and a Team That Can’t Repeat*Aged Tigers*The 2021 Yankees*Kevin Maas Syndrome*Ruth Kapelis on Trevor Bauer*On Consent*What Kind of Person?*The Morals Clause*”The Goose Man”*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 returns to discuss the upcoming trading deadline, climate change, and Mets injury-setbacks that aren’t setbacks. Plus the Yankees’ disappointing season provokes a remembrance of George Steinbrenner’s cruelty and generosity and (TRIGGER WARNING) Trevor Bauer is discussed in the context of a great old baseball horror story.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Some of George Steinbrenner’s Greatest Hits*George Steinbrenner and the Vets’ Reunion at Yankee Stadium*Trevor Bauer and “Foul Play”*David Roth: “Cool”*A Brief Orson Welles Digression*The Great Sweating Players of Our Time*“It Sure Holds the Heat!”*Portland, ME Accents versus Delco, Baked Beans and Brown Bread*Vaccination is a Competitive Advantage*COVID and the College World Series*Anthony Rizzo, Jason Heyward and Unproductive Agency*The [Twins?] Vaccine Lottery*“The Italian Doctors”*Trade Value of the Unvaccinated*deGrom deDiagnosed*Travails of Francisco Lindor*Not Everyone Can Trade for Starling Marte*The Vogelbach Incident*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 talk sticky stuff and celebrate the Negro Leagues, plus tales of players having catastrophic organ failure on the field and reacting to some of the game’s longest losing streaks.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
When Your Organs Fail Mid-Pitch and Other Digressions*Nazi Losing Streaks Never End (with the Arizona Diamondbacks)*Cliff Corcoran: No team in a sombrero*A “Bring It On” Reference on the Infinite Inning?*The Cheaters (Waiving the White Shirt)*There’s a Bathroom on the Right*Aaron Judge and Non-Incriminating Home-Road Splits*The Ethics of A.J. Hinch*Juneteenth, the Negro Leagues, and Baseball-Reference*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?

Jesse Spector returns to talk grip-enhanced cheating and “snack cakes,” plus tales of Satchel Paige under attack by a man imitating a pig and John McGraw hit below the belt.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Piersall, Paige, and the Walk-Off Grand Slam*The Church of B’Grobus*McGraw, Crossfire, and an Accusation*Jesse Spector: Hostess vs. Drakes*Gerrit Cole, Spider-Grip, Et Al*Jacob deGrom in the Age of the Inquisition*“Sticky Stuff is Central to Both”*The Disappointing Yankees*The Post-Farm System Era?*Rewind Johneshwy*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?