Painting the Corners: Recent Episodes
Logan Parker and Johnny Nienstedt
What do a JUCO pitcher and a physics major have in common? A love for the game of baseball and a desire to share it with the world! If you want to hear a unique perspective on baseball today, you've come to the right place. Logan and Johnny have played baseball, been die hard fans, and studied the science of the game, so they can speak to all types of baseball fans. Our co-hosts went to high school together in San Diego, CA and pitched for their varsity team before COVID cut off their senior season. Despite that disappointment, Logan went on to pitch for Palomar Community College and was named a 2022 All American and the California Pitcher of the Year at the JUCO level. Unfortunately Johnny's school schedule doesn't spare him time to play competitive baseball, but he still finds a way to get on the field, playing in the Santa Barbara Adult Baseball League.
The 2023 season is here, and that means its time for predictions!* Division winners and wild cards * World Series matchups * ROYs, Cy Youngs, MVPs
PLUS: one Special Bonus Prediction™ from each host!
The WBC is BACK! We've got stacked teams from Japan, the Dominican Republic, and of course the U.S., led by Captain America Mike Trout!
- Who's the favorite?
- Underdogs to keep an eye on
- Did someone say Matt Harvey? John Axford??
- Every game is televised!
We make our pick for the top 10 backstops in baseball!
- Is J.T. still at the top?
- How high does Adley's stellar rookie year take him?
- Dueces wild: two teams with two elite catchers apiece
Catch it all on our Spotify!
What an absolute doozie of an episode! We make our picks for the top 10 starting pitchers right now!
- Does deGrom's excellence outweigh his lack of innings?
- Where does a 40 year old Cy Young rank?
- A pitcher with 80 homers the last 2 years is on the list???
Check it out on all streaming platforms!
The one you've been waiting for! We make our picks for the top shortstops in baseball!
- How to separate the superstars?
- Has Wander shown us enough to be elite?
- Why offense can take you farther than defense
Catch it all on our Spotify!
Checking in at the Keystone!
We make our picks for the top 10 second basemen in baseball:
- Altuve back to dominating
- Lots of underrated players
- Advantage for converted shortstops?
Tune in to our Spotify to catch all that and more!
Who's best at the hot corner? We make our picks for the top 10 third basemen in baseball!
- How low can an MVP finalist go?
- How much do we trust defensive metrics?
- Under the "Ray"dar?
- DJ or JT for number 10?
Catch all that and more on our Spotify!
We make our picks for the top 10 first basemen in baseball!
- Freddie or Goldy at the top?
- Does defense even matter?
- Don't sleep on Vinnie P!
We make our picks for the top 10 left fielders in baseball!
- Soto or Alvarez?
- Can contact hitters survive?
- Is Kris Bryant still good?
- Who rounds out the list?
Tune in to hear us debate all that and more!
We make our picks for the top 10 center fielders in baseball heading in to 2023!
Trout still on top?
Defense > Offense?
And how about those debut seasons!
Welcome to season 2 of Painting the Corners! Logan and Johnny kick off the new year with a new series: Top 10 Right Now!
Tune in to hear their picks for the top relief pitchers in baseball heading in to the 2023 season!
Johnny and Logan interview Arizona Fall League Photographer Brendon Baranov on his journey to becoming employed by Major League Baseball and his exciting experiences photographing the AFL!
Need a recap of the Winter Meetings action? We got you! Logan and Johnny discuss all the major signings and drama from San Diego this week, from A (Arson Judge) to X (Xan Diego).
Last but not least: the AL East!
Can the Yankees re-sign Judge? What can the Blue Jays, Rays, Orioles, and RedSox do to separate themselves in such a competitive division? Is this the best division in baseball?
Part 5 of the PtC offseason preview: the AL Central!
The Guardians look to repeat as division champs while the Twins and White Sox aim to take that title back after disappointing seasons. What do the Royals and Tigers need to do to improve in their rebuild?
Moving on to the AL, we start in the West, home of the defending world champion Astros!
Will they dominate the division again, or will the Mariners be able to catch them? And don’t count out the Angels or the big spending Rangers! (Sorry, A’s)
Next up in our offseason preview series: the beastly NL East!
The juggernaut Braves and Mets look to replace key players, the Phillies will miss Bryce Harper in their NL pennant defense, and the Marlins and Nationals will try to emerge from rebuilds in 2023!
Next up in the offseason preview series: the NL Central! Tune in to hear what Logan and Johnny think the Cardinals, Brewers, Cubs, Reds, and Pirates have to do to take the next step in 2023!
We're continuing our offseason previews for the other 29 teams, starting in the NL West! Tune in to hear what Logan and Johnny think the Dodgers, Giants, DBacks, and Rockies have to do to take the next step in 2023!
It's prediction time! Tune in to hear where Logan and Johnny think the top free agents in this year's class are headed!
We've got four great shortstops, two Hall of Fame starting pitchers, and the reigning AL MVP, so strap in and get ready for some bold predictions!
Welcome to the first annual PtC Awards Show! Logan and Johnny give their picks for MVP, Cy Young, and Rookie and Manager of the Year.
This year's awards races are headlined by an all time classic AL MVP race between Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani - find out why our hosts disagreed on the winner!
PLUS: two dark horse NL MVP candidates, Justin Verlander chasing his 3rd career Cy Young award, and a different approach to Manager of the Year balloting.
Congratulations to the Houston Astros! They dominated the postseason field, going 11-2 this October and knocking off the NL Champion Phillies to win the World Series!
Tune in to hear Logan and Johnny's thoughts on the biggest moments of the series, where each team will go from here, and who we're happiest for on the Astros.
PLUS: Some breaking news mid-episode concerning one trumpet-playing closer!
It's time for the Fall Classic! Starting this Friday, the Phillies and Astros will square up in the World Series, with each team looking to etch its name in the history books!
Will Bryce Harper and the Fightin' Phils continue their cinderella run, or will the Astros' machine-like dominance take them all the way?
Tune in to hear Logan and Johnny break down each team's approach and highlight important matchups and strategies to look out for!
Sorry for the late release - no thanks to the rain in New York and our travel schedules getting back from San Diego - but we're back with another Postseason episode, breaking down the NLCS and ALCS as the Padres, Phillies, Astros, and Yankees play for the pennant.
At the time of the recording, the Padres and Phillies were tied at a game apiece and the Astros and Yankees were in the middle of game two.
After a wild, wild, Wild Card weekend featuring THREE upsets, the original field of 12 is down to 8 as we move on to the Division Series!
Big questions loom: How will the new playoff format affect the top seeds? Will their time off help them rest and rejuvenate, or will they go cold after almost a week with no games? Can anyone pull off an upset in a round that looks much less balanced than the last?
And how about three cities that haven't hosted playoff baseball in over a decade! Philadelphia, San Diego, and Seattle will be ROCKING this weekend!
Are you ready for postseason baseball?!?! Starting tomorrow, four amazing three game Wild Card Series get underway, and Logan and Johnny have you covered for all the matchups. Tune in to hear predictions for this round as well as the rest of the bracket!
New rules are coming to an MLB park near you next season! Shift restrictions, bigger bases, and a pitch clock will all be implemented in 2023. Tune in to hear the hosts' thoughts on these three rules, plus their takes on what other new rules might follow in the years to come.
Last Tuesday, our own Johnny Nienstedt got the amazing opportunity to be "Executive for a Day" at Petco Park and shadow Padres front office members! Tune in to hear all about what goes on behind the scenes, featuring:
A one-on-one conversation with assistant general manager Josh Stein, just how close Shohei Ohtani was to becoming a Padre, and why the FBI was at Petco Park!
It’s pennant chase season! As October approaches, Logan and Johnny take a look at which divisional and wild card races might go down to the wire!
This September could be a doozy: we’ve got a classic NL East rivalry, a rare 3 team divisional battle, and two stacked wild card races with plenty of hungry contenders! 🤩
PLUS! A brand new postseason format is already causing seeding controversy 👀
Tune in for the latest on all this and more!
Following up the NL episode from last week, Logan and Johnny discuss each AL team's moves and hand out grades for how well they addressed their needs. PLUS: A special guest from the Tampa Bay Rays organization joins the podcast to help break down the AL East!
Logan and Johnny break down all the trades in the NL and hand out letter grades to each team based on how well their moves addressed their unique needs. Stay tuned for the AL breakdown later this week, when a special guest joins the podcast!
Logan and Johnny react live on the air starting at 5:30 ET and running through the 6PM trade deadline, breaking down trades as they happen! Plus, coverage of some notable trades from this weekend! Tune in to hear all about your favorite team's moves!**
**Rockies not included
WHAT JUST HAPPENED?!?! Juan Soto has been traded to the San Diego Padres for a massive haul in an EIGHT player deal! Logan and Johnny hop on the air to break down what is potentially the biggest trade of ALL TIME!
Logan and Johnny take a look at MLB Trade Rumors' top 10 trade candidates - plus a few bonus names, including someone who recently turned down 440 million...
Where will they go? Who will net the biggest return? Is it worth it to go all in for Juan Soto? Tune in now to find out!
Logan and Johnny dive into the 2022 All Star Game rosters ahead of the Midsummer Classic on Tuesday, July 19 in LA. They both created blind rosters last week and now compare with each other and with the official MLB rosters. Who got snubbed? Who do the hosts think doesn't deserve to suit up after all? And what does it mean to be an All Star, really? Logan and Johnny tackle all this and more in the very first episode of Painting the Corners!