The Read Optional MLB Show (ROBaseball.com): Recent Episodes
The Read Optional
Casey Boguslaw - Managing Editor at http://ROBaseball.com - brings you the latest news and analysis from the baseball world.
Casey Boguslaw and Jeremy Frank once again bring on Jim Passon to discuss waiver wire trades, Mike Trout’s MVP possibilities, and the Dodgers run at 116.
Casey Boguslaw and Jeremy Frank bring on their friend Jim Passon to critique all July MLB moves.
Casey and Jeremy don’t necessarily answer the question of what will happen (because they don’t know!), but ask each other what they would do if they were in charge of each team.
White Sox fan Casey Boguslaw brings on Cubs fans Jeremy Frank and Zach Bernard to discuss the blockbuster trade between Chicago teams.
Casey Boguslaw and Jeremy Frank discuss the final All-Star rosters and then open up the Twitter mailbag.
1:00 — Jeremy on Miguel Montero 4:20—All-Star vote talk 10:00 — Brief discussion on Rob Arthur’s article about the baseball. 11:40 — Casey’s article on the Houston Astros home/road approach differences. 15:30 — A new barrel-related stat Casey is working on. 23:15 — Discussion on the new MLBAM stat — Sprint Speed 33:25 — Team percentage of left-handed hitters/vs left-handed pitchers
0:15 — Introduction for Jeremy 4:30 — Ben Lindbergh’s findings at The Ringer about probable changes to the baseball. 14:20 — David Laurila’s interview with Brad Ausmus had some interesting answers which sent Casey on a tailspin. 24:40 — Jeremy’s statistical comparison project of team seasons. 32:50 — Which teams are buyers? Which are sellers? 51:25 — Who are current holders of MVP, Rookie of Year, Cy Young, and Manager of Year?
Casey Boguslaw gives a primer on his favorite baseball stat — barrels — pros, cons, and everything in between.
2:25: AL West — Happy Mike Trout Day! Trout keeping Angels afloat; Astros best team in baseball, but sustainable? Mariners struggles caused by injuries. 20:30: AL Central — Twins bringing déjà vu from 2015; Luis Robert to the Chicago White Sox. 32:00: AL East — David Price’s return’s impact on the division as Red Sox offense struggles; Blue Jays long road back. 34:25: NL East — Braves lose Freeman, trade for Matt Adams who is off to a good start. 40:55: NL Central — Cubs hitting woes against lefties keeping them from 2016 heights; Brewers biggest surprise in baseball. 48:10: NL West — Some great “prove-it” series this weekend: Diamondbacks @ Brewers, Cubs @ Dodgers, and Cardinals @ Rockies.
1:30: Thoughts on the Mets season headed in from the offseason 4:35: Mets health issues: Depth problem or roster management problem? 9:00: Surprise starts for Harvey 11:45: Keeping Conforto in the lineup 14:10: Impact of Eaton injury on NL East 19:00: Do the Mets have a Plan B?
3:05: NL East — Nationals’ loss of Adam Eaton; Mets Noah Syndergaard to the DL 16:45: NL Central — No one pushing Cubs poor start; Eric Thames superstar start; Starling Marte suspension 24:25: NL West — Rockies or Diamondbacks, who do you believe in? Madison Bumgarner dirt bike incident; Dodgers’ mediocre start 32:25: AL West — Astros are legit, starting season series with the Rangers 36:25: AL East — Yankees mashing offense; buying the demise of the Blue Jays? 43:00: AL Central — Is Casey buying the Chicago White Sox? Maybe?? Some fun with Tigers barrels; Royals already sellers
1:30: 1. Biggest storyline one week into the MLB season? 5:30: 2. What can we do to grow excitement in the game of baseball? WBC’s effect? 12:50: 3. What’s next for Statcast/baseball analytics? Any MLB Plus broadcasts on the horizon? 19:05: 4. Where did Deadspin’s White Sox “joke” coverage derive from? 22:10: 5. What was November 2, 2016 like for a huge Cardinals’ fan?
26:00: Illinois Basketball talk 28:00: Recapping Jon Groce era 30:45: Introducing Brad Underwood 34:15: Will talks Casey off the Illini ledge
3:45: David Stearns’ rebuilding efforts with the Milwaukee Brewers 7:35: Will Milwaukee be ready to compete in 2018? 9:35: Starting rotation outlook/bullpen trade pieces 10:45: Additions of Travis Shaw and Eric Thames — formidable lineup? 16:00: Los Angeles Angels arrow pointed downward 18:15: Can the Angels make an impact in the AL West this year? 19:40: Rotation back to full health — for now 22:00: Difficult discussions upcoming regarding Scioscia… and Trout
2:55: Chicago White Sox rebuilding offseason 3:40: Breaking down the Chris Sale trade 7:01: Breaking down the Adam Eaton trade 14:50: Why no more White Sox moves after the big two? 20:55: AL Central breakdown 23:05: What to watch for in 2017 24:30: Arizona Diamondbacks talk 26:05: It has to get better? Potential 27:15: Zack Greinke and improving the DBacks rotation 31:35: How much can a healthy outfield defense help the pitching? 37:25: Jean Segura/Taijuan Walker trade 40:55: GAME: Over/Under 2 WAR 48:35: Don’t forget to also listen to Sam’s podcast — “Diamond in the Rough”
0:45: Didi Gregorius injured in World Baseball Classic practice 2:10: No Gleyber Torres on the Opening Day roster 3:40: Who is the Opening Day shortstop? 4:45: Expectations for 2017 season 6:00: Can Gary Sánchez repeat his August success? 7:45: Who plays designated hitter? 8:15: Outfield preview — a battle of Aarons 11:05: Starting pitching; Tanaka and pray for rain? 14:30: Betances’ arbitration case fallout 15:40: The re-acquisition of Aroldis Chapman
2:00: Cleveland favorite to repeat as AL pennant winners? 3:30: Impact of Terry Francona 4:50: Best bullpen in baseball? 9:05: Can the starting rotation’s health hold? 10:55: The big offseason acquisition 14:00: Fantastic infield 17:50: Cleveland’s potential weakness 22:00: BIG AL Central favorites 24:25: GAME: Over/Under 2 WAR 29:30: WBC talk — Mexico’s gripe with the tiebreaker rules
2:30: Hacking scandal fallout 6:40: Alex Reyes’ injury and the status of the current rotation 10:30: Too many infielders? 14:20: Matheny 16:15: 2016’s defense issues; were they improved? 18:15: GAME: Over/Under Two WAR 27:20: Predictions 31:00: Some WBC talk
1:25: Why Zach chose the Houston Astros first overall 4:15: Why did the Astros take a step back in 2016? 10:10: Houston Astros World Series Champions 2017??? 11:40: Can the rotation meet their potential? Should a trade have been made? 18:35: Offense upgrades 22:45: Defense downgrades? 25:35: GAME: Over/Under Two WAR 35:40: WBC Recap
3:45: Pool A preview — Plenty of bat flip talk 9:15: Pool B preview — What Otani’s absence means to Team Samurai Japan 26:15: Pool C preview — The toughest pool and the future of Int’l baseball 32:55: Pool D preview — Will Team USA finally win this thing?
1:00: Introduction to Ewan Ross (@mentoch), BP Toronto 3:00: Team Canada: Who we know 7:15: Team Canada: Who we may not know 11:00: Team Canada: Who was left off the roster 16:15: Dalton Pompey 17:45: Pitching staff 24:00: Éric Gagné 25:40: Adam Loewen and the Waxahachie Swap
2:10: Introduction to Tadeo Varela (@TadeoVarela), sabermetric analyst for Toros de Tijuana and Charros de Jalisco 2:40: Introduction to Bambino Sedano (@bambino_sedano), reporter for Puro Beisbol 3:40: Who is or isn’t playing on Team Mexico — Khris Davis news 7:20: Excitement in Mexico for the WBC 12:30: Sabermetrics in Mexico 13:40: Japhet Amador, El Gigante de Mulegé 16:45: Nicknames 18:45: Names unfamiliar to the MLB crowd including the Mike Trout of Mexico! 20:50: Overall pitching strength of Team Mexico 28:00: LMB vs LMP 30:15: Pool D projections 32:45: Some additional names to watch
1:00: Introduction to Seb Visser (@sebvisser34), Dutch player, and press officer for Team Netherlands 3:30: Pitching staff overview 10:55: Position player overview 16:15: Pool A 17:40: Baseball in Netherlands/Curaçao/Aruba
0:35: Introduction to Kevin Senatore (@ksderwei97) from MLBItalia.eu 3:30: Italy’s opponents in Pool D 4:30: Pitching staff 12:30: Position players 19:00: Kevin’s writing at MLBItalia 21:00: Italy’s past and present in baseball 27:30: Italy's manager's farewell
1:15: Introduction to Carlos Amador (@YankeeRolo) 3:25: Colombia’s path to the WBC 5:25: Stars for Team Colombia 7:25: Top two starting pitchers 10:00: Unfamiliar names to MLB crowd 15:10: Speed and defense 17:25: Team USA upset? 20:40: Carlos’s many podcasts
1:30: Venezuelan team with Octavio Hernández (@octaviolider) — Analyst for Venezuelan National Team’s scouting department 10:30: King Félix 17:15: Why some players choose not to play for their national team 19:30: Dominican Republic team with José Gómez (@JoseEGomezF) — Director Of Baseball Ops @EscogidobbClub, Asst. General Manager for Dominican National Team 31:20: Starlin Marte playing center field 37:55: State of technology for tracking prospects in the region 41:20: Health of academies in the current political environment 47:50: The dwindling enthusiasm for the Caribbean Series 50:20: Enthusiasm for the WBC and thoughts about its current rules and future
2:30: Australia with Anthony Rescan @AnthonyRescan — Beyond the Boxscore 10:45: Taiwan with Rob Liu @GOCPBL — http://www.cpblstats.com/ 25:00 South Korea with Sung Min Kim @sung_minkim — River Avenue Blues 37:30: Japan with Kazuto Yamazaki @Kazuto_Yamazaki — Beyond the Boxscore 46:30: Power ranking the Pacific Rim 50:30: After concluding with roundtable, William Chu runs down the Chinese team. @ChineseBangqiu — http://www.chinesebangqiu.com/
0:30 : Intros 2:30 : Three bottom teams 6:00 : Nine-Twelve 13:15 : Four-Eight 23:00 : Top three teams 29:00 : WBC talk
1:40: Petriello’s career path 3:00 : Statcast’s introduction to the world 6:00 : How validated is the Statcast data 8:40 : BARRELS! 11:00: Future of MLB Plus broadcasts 13:45 : Perfecting FIP and pitching metrics 18:30 : Inconsistencies between stadiums Statcast calibrations 20:30: New defense charts on Baseball Savant 24:00 : Statcast means inevitable robot umps?
1:30: Free agents Edwin Encarnación and José Bautista 2:45: Do the Blue Jays have more work to do in the offseason? 6:60: What do the Jays look like beyond 2017? 11:15: Breaking down the 2016 playoffs 14:45: The 2017 Blue Jays rotation 20:15: Chasing the 2017 Red Sox
2:00: News around MLB; Marlins/Rockies bullpen talk 10:15: Notable recent free agent signings 13:10: Patrick, Sean, and Casey reveal their NL power rankings 26:45: NL playoff favorites 35:00: NL World Series favorites 37:15: Name that (baseball victory song) tune
Casey Boguslaw and Jesse Jensen welcome in FutureSox.com’s Brian Bilek on the White Sox trading of Chris Sale. (Recorded before Adam Eaton trade.)
Casey Boguslaw and Jesse Jensen are joined by FanRag Sports’ and The Athletic’s Ryan Davis for a briefing on the new MLB CBA and plenty of talk on the World Series Champion Cubs.
3:00: Mariners-Braves trade 6:15 : Brewers moves 9:00 : Jon Jay to the Cubs 10:30: Matt Joyce to the A’s 15:00 : Mets talk with Mike
1:00: Mariners-Diamondbacks trade/Félix Hernández downturn 8:00 : Free agent speculating 14:00: Lockout fear 18:00 : Yankees talk with Stacey
1:00: BBWAA Awards voting 10:00: 2017 Hall of Fame ballot 20:00: Which teams should sell 29:00: Imagining Mike Trout elsewhere
Casey Boguslaw and Matt Varney discuss Rookie and Manager of the Year (recorded pre-Cy Young announcement)