The Ringer MLB Show

The Ringer's Michael Baumann kicks off the 2018 baseball season by needling Mallory Rubin about Manny Machado's future in Baltimore (01:15) and chatting with Zach Kram about the unique problems that Shoehei Otani poses for fantasy baseball (08:30). Then Sean Fennessey joins the show to discuss the confusing and frustrating Mets (22:00) and Ben Lindbergh closes out the show with free-agency talk (34:30).

Read Claire McNear's article on the future of Bryce Harper and the Washington Nationals here: https://t.co/af1FgWUhxH

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The Ringer's Ben Lindbergh and Michael Baumann catch up with a wave of early-offseason moves, including a quintet of managerial hirings and the emergence of a new model of manager (06:00), the players association's perplexing stance on Shohei Otani (27:30), the opt-in decisions of a trio of pitchers (and the extension of Justin Upton) (39:00), potentially era-ending option decisions regarding Andre Ethier, Ichiro Suzuki, and Jose Bautista, and the Yasmani Grandal trade market (49:00).

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The Ringer’s Ben Lindbergh and Michael Baumann discuss Game 7 of the World Series, dwelling on the Dodgers’ lack of timely hitting, Yu Darvish’s Series struggles, the argument that Clayton Kershaw should have started Game 7 instead, and how the Astros-Dodgers battle stacks up historically. Then they talk about the effectiveness of (and backlash to) tanking, how hard it is to win titles, whether teams can still become dynasties in baseball today, and how the Astros and Dodgers set up for the future (spoiler: pretty well).

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The Ringer's Ben Lindbergh and Michael Baumann discuss the story lines and hangover from a historic World Series Game 5, including home runs and slick balls (04:30), Clayton Kershaw's renewed postseason struggles (11:30), bad (and depleted) bullpens (14:00), a series of incredible comebacks and unlikely events involving baseball's best teams and biggest stars (24:00), and Yuli Gurriel's deferred suspension (31:30). Then they bring on colleague and brand-new baseball writer Shea Serrano to discuss the experience of seeing Game 5 through the eyes of a newly minted Astros fan (40:00).

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The Ringer's Ben Lindbergh and Michael Baumann go deep on Game 2 of the World Series, a classic tilt between the Astros and Dodgers. They dissect Dave Roberts's fateful decision to pull starter Rich Hill after four innings (02:45), then draft their favorite moments from the game (13:00), from the eight home runs (16:00) to the bat flips (18:00) to a series of bizarre outfield deflections (27:30). They conclude by discussing the Yankees' controversial decision to part ways with manager Joe Girardi (45:45).

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The Ringer's Ben Lindbergh and Michael Baumann close the book on the championship series by reviewing the Astros' incredible curveball usage (and bullpen avoidance) in ALCS Game 7 (02:45), tipping their caps to the vanquished Cubs and Yankees (14:00), and discussing their top reasons to be excited about the World Series and explaining why the Dodgers-Astros matchup seems so even (21:00). They finish by reflecting on the dismissal of Dusty Baker and the managerial moves of the Mets, Tigers, and Red Sox (49:00).

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The Ringer's Ben Lindbergh and Michael Baumann break down both championship series, starting with the Yankees' comeback from an 0-2 deficit to take a 3-2 lead over the Astros (05:00), the resurgence of Aaron Judge and Gary Sánchez (08:00), the atmosphere at Yankee Stadium (15:45), misleading momentum (19:30), and the Astros' issues on offense and in the bullpen (21:00). Then they discuss how the Dodgers have outplayed the Cubs en route to a 3-1 series lead (38:00) and how the Cubs saved themselves in Game 4 (43:30), and wrap up with a conversation about how postseason managing has evolved more quickly than some managers can handle (50:15).

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The Ringer's Ben Lindbergh and Michael Baumann discuss Ben's furtive baseball-watching on his wedding weekend (02:00), then break down both of the 2-0 championship series (05:00), beginning with the brilliance of Astros starters Dallas Keuchel and Justin Verlander (12:00), the riveting tag team of José Altuve and Carlos Correa (21:30), the exciting send-off Altuve gave Game 2 (25:00), and the offensive struggles of Aaron Judge and Gary Sánchez (27:30), and ending with the heroics of Yasiel Puig and Justin Turner (30:30), the latest backlash against Puig (42:30), the Cubs' faltering bullpen and Joe Maddon's flagging tactical reputation (48:00), and a discussion about which series is more likely to produce a comeback (52:00).

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The Ringer's Ben Lindbergh and Michael Baumann marvel at a sick Stephen Strasburg's brilliant performance in Game 4 of the NLDS (02:00) and condemn the macho culture that questioned his character before the start (10:00). Then they analyze the Yankees' unlikely recovery to beat Cleveland after trailing 2-0 in the ALDS (25:30), preview the Astros-Yankees ALCS (35:00), salute the three teams eliminated from the playoffs this week (48:30), and reflect on the firing of former Red Sox skipper John Farrell (49:30).

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The Ringer's Ben Lindbergh and Michael Baumann break down the weekend's playoff action, starting with Joe Girardi's curious relationship with the challenge and Aaron Judge's untimely slump (02:00), then David Price's emergence as Boston's only trustworthy pitcher (23:00) and Jose Altuve's .700-plus batting average (32:45). Then they wrestle with Clayton Kershaw's playoff reputation (37:45), whether Arizona is good enough to come back from a 2-0 deficit (42:00), and Joe Maddon's bullpen management in the Cubs' Game 2 loss to Washington (46:00).

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