Bat Flips And Nerds

Tom takes the host's chair as he and John discuss a few potentially quirky World Series stories before nailing their colours to the mast and predicting a particularly big series for a very big man - Joe West.

They then turn to the issue of domestic violence, attempting to work through the thorns of risk, PR, rehab and censure to work out the tipping point for offending sportsmen. The answer? It's complicated.

Thomas Neumann of ESPN International joins John and Tom to discuss the GB Baseball squad's WBC heroics. Things then go rapidly downhill as Ben Carter joins John and Tom to mock Tim Tebow (again) before the stakes are upped - World Series predictions, and our own adopted players? It could all come back to haunt us.

John McGee and Darius Austin are joined by LA Angels Minor Leaguer, Burlington Bees and GB Baseball utility man Jordan Serena.

John and Darius discuss two near perfect pitching performances from Rich Hill and Jon Gray, cast the lead in 'AJ Preller: Ocean's Seven' and get into the details of Adam Jones vital and timely interventions on baseball and race.

This week's one off intro music is provided by The Motorettes, with the usual sounds from the brilliant Bright Falls.

Darius Austin (@dariusA64) talks to Ben Carter (@ukbaseballblog)about pitch framing, how he got into baseball, the playoff race, and the perils of following the sport from the UK.

John interviews GB Baseball head coach Liam Carroll about the team's forthcoming tilts at the European Baseball Championship and the World Baseball Classic Qualifier. They cover Liam's background as a player and coach, his hopes for the future of the sport in the UK and his own personal coaching creed - The GB Way.

John and Tom are sorry for Clayton Kershaw's loss before bantering about the Ump Show and their beloved Red Sox. They discuss the parallels between the UK and US national pastimes, touching on the Andre Gray homophobia scandal and Fulham FC's attempts at sabermetrics.

Darius Austin and Tom Pringle join John McGee to discuss the legacy and career of a man whose all-time career came to an end this week - Alex Rodriguez.

John, Will and Darius discuss the Olympic return for baseball and the trade deadline. John thinks Jeter is overrated.

More at www.batflipsandnerds.wordpress.com

Intro music 'Mr Thief' by Bright Falls (www.freemusicarchive.org