The Barbecast

Welcome to Barbecast 101! After returning for our centurial extravaganza, we took another lengthy break to finish our fall semester strong. Now home for winter break and have more time than we know what to do with, another Barbecast is here. Our special guest this week (at 15:50) is Lucas Giolito, former Barbecast guest, newest sock, and one of the three young pitchers traded from the Nationals for Adam Eaton. Lucas took some time from his rigorous Rocket League schedule to talk to us about how the trade has truly ROCKED HIS WORLD (it hasn't really that much), and what he's looking forward to in his new organization and new city. We also challenged him with a patently absurd would-you-rather type scenario courtesy of the one and only Wes Yee. After Lucas (at 53:50), the B-Ref Battle brought to you by Baseball-Reference returned from its Episode 100 hiatus with two players of varying skill levels, one who was pretty bad, and one who once won the National League batting title. We concluded (at 1:02:35) with an exciting Jake's Last Hurrah Varsity Baseball Update, and a brief discussion on Hanukkah. Then we say goodbye. Thanks for listening <3

Music: Go White Sox Go!

The B-Ref Battle is brought to you by Baseball-Reference. Use the coupon code “bbq” for $6 off a one-year subscription to the Play Index, the essential tool for statistical baseball research. Click here to order your Play Index now!

Click here for the B-Ref Battle Name Database!

Please rate and review us on iTunes! We’d really appreciate it!

Direct download: Pod_101.mp3
Category:Cespedes Family Barbecast -- posted at: 12:15pm EDT

Welcome to Barbecast 100! Wait, 100??? Yeah, 100. Only a few months late, we finally managed to find some time to record our centurial podcast. We assembled an all-star cast of past Barbecast friends/guests to help create this inordinately long show to make up for the weeks of neglect. We began with our customary e-mail segment, except this time (at 13:00), we brought on a VERY special guest to offer us some insight into the mind of a Barbecast e-mail legend. It was fantastic. Our real special guest (at 31:30) and the only Barbecast rookie this week is Rob Zastryzny, left-handed pitcher for the Chicago Cubs. Though not on the World Series roster, Rob was with the team when they, ya know, won the World Series. So he walked us through the madness -- everything from Heyward's legendary speech to getting on the wrong bus at the parade. Next (at 1:08:45), we brought on Kendall Guillemette, the secret third member of the BBQ, to talk about his memories from the early Barbecasts and his new project, Savage Baseball (details below). After Kendall (at 1:16:40), we welcomed back the official minor leaguer of CFBBQ, Kieran Lovegrove for the first time since Episode 62, to recap his first year in full-season ball and the wonders of the Midwest League. Next (at 1:34:55), we brought our mothers onto the show to share their favorite memories from the Barbecast and explain why they are still letting us do it. Then (at 1:46:20), a historic rendition of Tales from Logdog with Lana Berry takes place as we try and remember what it was like to have her on the podcast every week. Finally (at 1:57:00), we brought it alllllllllll the way back and brought on our good friend and FIRST EVER BARBECAST GUEST Craig Goldstein to tell us how much he's changed since the inaugural pod and also tell us about #PieNight. We concluded (at 2:11:30) with a genuine thank you to all who have ever listened to this silly thing that we do, and toast to another 100 podcasts. Thank you!

While we did not do our usual battle of extraordinary old baseball names this week, the B-Ref Battle is brought to you by Baseball-Reference. Use the coupon code “bbq” for $6 off a one-year subscription to the Play Index, the essential tool for statistical baseball research. Click here to order your Play Index now!

Click here for the B-Ref Battle Name Database!

Kendall is giving away a free Savage Baseball to 4 lucky Barbecast listeners. Enter for a chance to win at savagebaseball.net/bbq

Please rate and review us on iTunes! We'd really appreciate it!

 

Direct download: Pod_100.mp3
Category:Cespedes Family Barbecast -- posted at: 2:35pm EDT

Welcome to Barbecast 99! Our special guest this week (at 17:00) is Ben Lindbergh, of the world famous Effectively Wild podcast and The Ringer. Ben's Barbecast debut is long overdue, but we wanted to squeeze him into the first 100 episodes at the very least. In the few baseball-less hours we had before the Wild Card games, we drafted the World Series match-ups we most want to see at the end of October, and give our very loose explanations for why we want to see them. After Ben (at 1:02:45), another B-Ref Battle brought to you by Baseball-Reference went down, featuring two of the better names we've had in a while and a heated discussion over the pronunciation of the world "coupon". That was really exciting stuff. We concluded (at 1:13:40) with a Varsity Baseball Update on the end of Jake's fall ball season, and a brief life update from both of us regarding our current and potential future whereabouts during the postseason (EYES EMOJI). Thanks for listening <3

Music: Bon Iver

Note: Thanks again for all the kind words on Episode 98.5, our Jose Fernandez Appreciation Podcast. If you still have any thoughts or stories you want to share with us, we're happy to receive more at cespedesfb@gmail.com. Were working to respond to all the ones we've already gotten individually.

The B-Ref Battle is brought to you by Baseball-Reference. Use the coupon code “bbq” for $6 off a one-year subscription to the Play Index, the essential tool for statistical baseball research. Click here to order your Play Index now!

Click here for the B-Ref Battle Name Database!

Please rate and review us on iTunes! We’d really appreciate it!

 

Direct download: Pod_99.mp3
Category:Cespedes Family Barbecast -- posted at: 10:03am EDT

Miami Marlins pitcher Jose Fernandez passed away on Sunday morning. He was one of our favorite people in baseball, let alone one of our favorite players. We had a lot of thoughts, so we did our best to share them in a somewhat coherent manner. Rest in peace, Jose. You will be missed by many. 

If you have any thoughts/stories/feelings about Jose that you want to share, you can send them to cespedesfb@gmail.com

Direct download: Pod_98.5_Jose.mp3
Category:Cespedes Family Barbecast -- posted at: 6:35pm EDT

Welcome to Barbecast 98! After a month-long hiatus for Barbecasting due to our busy transition into our senior years of college, we shook off the rust and churned out a podcast for the listening masses (our moms). Our special guest this week (at 10:15) is the top pitching prospect in the Tampa Bay Rays organization, Brent Honeywell. Brent's minor league season ended recently, so he had nothing else to do besides come on our silly show. Topics include:

  • why Brent chooses to never lift anything ever
  • going to the same high school as Ty Cobb
  • being one of the only screwballers left on this Earth
  • his outrageously dominant professional debut in the Appalachian League
  • his mound mentality that allows him to stop professional hitters from scoring runs against him
  • the last time he ran out of gas
  • an unfortunate toe injury
  • Vienna sausage (?!?!?!?!)
  • Waffle House
  • ...and more!

After Brent (at 47:15), the B-Ref Battle brought to you by Baseball-Reference returned featuring one of the most ridiculous background stories in this segment's history. We concluded (at 56:25) with an exciting Varsity Baseball Update about Jake (America's ROOGY) potentially being a starter for his triumphant senior season. Then we talk briefly about Jake's school hosting an upcoming presidential debate. Then we say goodbye. Thanks for listening <3

Music: We Back

The B-Ref Battle is brought to you by Baseball-Reference. Use the coupon code “bbq” for $6 off a one-year subscription to the Play Index, the essential tool for statistical baseball research. Click here to order your Play Index now!

Click here for the B-Ref Battle Name Database!

Please rate and review us on iTunes! We’d really appreciate it!

Direct download: Pod_98.mp3
Category:Cespedes Family Barbecast -- posted at: 12:04pm EDT

Welcome to Barbecast 97! Our special guest this week (at 15:50) is Evan Drellich, the Red Sox beat writer for the Boston Herald. Evan is one of our favorite beat writers, so it's unclear how it took this long to have him on the podcast but hey, here we are! The Red Sox have been at the center of an argument Jake and I have been having all season, so Evan seemed like a good person to have on to moderate a discussion on said argument. Topics include: 

  • Which AL East team scares you the most?
  • Does David Price start the wild card game?
  • How is Mookie this ridiculous?
  • Mookie or Xander?
  • What is a Sandy Leon?
  • ...and more!

After Evan (at 36:20), we held a slightly different type of B-Ref Battle (presented by baseball-reference) in which we appreciated some of the most interesting Jewish major leaguers of all time. We concluded (at 56:20) with a brief look ahead to our senior years of college (?!?!?!?!?!?!?!) and an even briefer look ahead to Barbecast 100. Thanks for listening <3

 The B-Ref Battle is brought to you by Baseball-Reference. Use the coupon code “bbq” for $6 off a one-year subscription to the Play Index, the essential tool for statistical baseball research. Click here to order your Play Index now!

Click here for the B-Ref Battle Name Database!

Please rate and review us on iTunes! We’d really appreciate it!

Note: sorry for the somewhat strange audio -- will be fixed for the next pod. 

Direct download: Pod_97.mp3
Category:Cespedes Family Barbecast -- posted at: 9:21pm EDT

Welcome to Barbecast 96! Our special guest this week (at 22:00) is Adam McCalvy, Brewers beat writer for MLB dot com. The Brewers made some interesting moves at the deadline and are at an odd place as an organization, so we checked in on their psyche with a guy that knows them well. It was mostly just us fawning over David Stearns for 25 minutes, but whatever. After Adam (at 49:45), we participated in another fierce B-Ref Battle presented by Baseball-Reference. Baseball names are funny, in case you hadn't heard. We concluded (at 1:00:45) with a recap of Jake's Men's League championship victory and then we said goodbye. Simple as that. Thanks for listening <3

 The B-Ref Battle is brought to you by Baseball-Reference. Use the coupon code “bbq” for $6 off a one-year subscription to the Play Index, the essential tool for statistical baseball research. Click here to order your Play Index now!

Click here for the B-Ref Battle Name Database!

Please rate and review us on iTunes! We’d really appreciate it!

Direct download: Emails_96.mp3
Category:Cespedes Family Barbecast -- posted at: 5:31pm EDT

Welcome to Barbecast 95! After last week's guestless Carbecast on which we reminisced about the favorite parts of our roadtrip, we're back this week with two special guests. First up (at 17:55) is The Athletic Chicago's Sahadev Sharma, former Barbecast guest and relative expert on all things Aroldis Chapman trade and all things Chris Sale jersey-slicing saga. So we talked about those two things because both of them made us go "WOW!" for totally different reasons. After Sahadev (at 57:10), we brought on this year's #1 overall pick, Mickey Moniak, to discuss his first month or so of professional baseball in the glamorous Gulf Coast League, his favorite Disney shows growing up, and what his backup plan was if baseball didn't work out. Next, the B-Ref Battle of super old baseball names returned with a vengeance, celebrating two more heroes of baseball's yesteryears. We concluded with a preview of the biggest start of Jake's Men's League season, before saying goodbye until next week. Thanks for listening <3   

 The B-Ref Battle is brought to you by Baseball-Reference. Use the coupon code “bbq” for $6 off a one-year subscription to the Play Index, the essential tool for statistical baseball research. Click here to order your Play Index now!

Click here for the B-Ref Battle Name Database!

Please rate and review us on iTunes! We’d really appreciate it!

Direct download: Pod_95.mp3
Category:Cespedes Family Barbecast -- posted at: 11:33am EDT

Oh golly. A wild barbecast appeared! No, we're not playing Pokemon Go, but we did manage to scrounge up a podcast for you fine folks. 

For those of you that don't know we've been on the road writing for MLB.com for the last 3 weeks or so. Our trip is nearing its conclusion we thought that we'd kill some time driving thru Kansas (holy crap Kansas is enormous and flat) reminiscing about the best moments of the trip thus far. We each drafted five of our favorite moments from our time on the road, but we discussed some other stuff beyond that as well. Some of what we talked about has been posted/tweeted about, while some of the other draft picks can definitely be classified as #EXCLUSIVECONTENT. 

Hear us talk about...

-Interviewing Dansby Swanson

-The Ty Cobb Museum

-Getting dunked on by Jeff Hoffman

-Yoan Moncada in a virtual reality headset

-AND MUCH MUCH MORE!!

You can find all of our trip entries on Cut4 right here: http://m.mlb.com/cutfour/2016/06/24/185916752/the-cut4-minor-league-road-trip-your-day-to-day-guide

The B-Ref Battle (which we actually didn't do this time) is brought to you by Baseball-Reference. Use the coupon code “bbq” for $6 off a one-year subscription to the Play Index, the essential tool for statistical baseball research. Click here to order your Play Index now!

 

 

Direct download: pod_94.mp3
Category:Cespedes Family Barbecast -- posted at: 6:00pm EDT

Welcome to Barbecast 93! This is not a normal Barbecast -- it's shorter, there are no e-mails or B-Ref Battle, and OH MY GOD LANA BERRY IS BACK?!?! We wanted to record a quick podcast this week for two reasons: First, it's been a while. And second, we leave this week for our fourth annual insane baseball summer roadtrip. This time we'll be documenting our adventures for the good people over at MLB's Cut4 site. We spent the first part of the show discussing our trip. You can read about it and see our itinerary by clicking here. After roadtrip talk, we brought back on our good friend Lana Berry, 10 episodes and several months after mercilessly killing her off the show for no good reason. We checked in with her about her two favorite baseball teams, her LeBron hot takes, and her general life status. Yay Lana! We concluded the show with an exciting update from Jake about his recent dominance on the mound in his summer Men's League. Like, he's actually pitching really well. Then we say goodbye!

The B-Ref Battle is brought to you by Baseball-Reference. Use the coupon code “bbq” for $6 off a one-year subscription to the Play Index, the essential tool for statistical baseball research. Click here to order your Play Index now!

Please rate and review us on iTunes! We’d really appreciate it!

Direct download: Pod_93.mp3
Category:Cespedes Family Barbecast -- posted at: 7:44pm EDT

Welcome to Barbecast 92! Our special guest this week (at 17:20) is Mike Lananna, college baseball writer for Baseball America, and noted #1 fan of the Coastal Plain League's Savannah Bananas baseball team. Mike joined the show to talk about his inherent passion for the Bananas franchise before getting us hyped for this weekend's D-I baseball regionals. Topics include:

  • what makes college baseball more exciting to both watch and cover than pro ball (or other college sports)
  • why all 16 regionals this year are east of Lubbock and south of Louisville
  • what the hell is wrong with west coast college baseball programs
  • the most intriguing regionals to watch
  • ...and more!

After Mike (at 42:45), we engaged in another B-Ref Battle, brought to you by baseball-reference, featuring two players who had curiously short careers for very different reasons. We concluded (at 53:40) with a Men's League update about Jake's first start of the year (8 innings!!!!!), a shoutout to last week's guest Daniel Palka for USING PABLO SANCHEZ'S MUSIC AS HIS WALKUP SONG OMG, and gave a little tease as to what we've got planned for the summer. Hint: it's a ridiculous amount of driving. Thanks for listening <3

Musical Guest: ring ring ring ring ring ring

The B-Ref Battle is brought to you by Baseball-Reference. Use the coupon code “bbq” for $6 off a one-year subscription to the Play Index, the essential tool for statistical baseball research. Click here to order your Play Index now!

Please rate and review us on iTunes! We’d really appreciate it!

Direct download: Pod_92.mp3
Category:Cespedes Family Barbecast -- posted at: 2:10pm EDT

Welcome to Barbecast 91! After a guestless episode last week, we've returned with TWO special guests for this week's pod, both currently inhabiting the Southern League. First (at 18:15 ), we talked to Twins minor league outfielder Daniel Palka. Daniel comes on the pod a little under a year after we first saw him in the Diamondbacks organization with the Visalia Rawhide and commended him on his walk-up song. After being traded to the Twins in the off-season, Daniel's had a good start to the 2016 season with Double-A Chattanooga. We asked him about a bunch of stuff, including...

  • his experience as an aerospace engineer
  • his favorite BESR bats
  • suddenly stealing 24 bases last year
  • the process of choosing a walk-up song
  • his Backyard Baseball lineup
  • ...and more!

After Daniel (at 56:40), we brought on Brandon Liebhaber, the voice of the Jackson Generals, to discuss things related to being the voice of the Jackson Generals, such as...

  • How a Los Angeles native ends up in Jackson, Tennessee by age 23
  • What a broadcaster can learn/take from Vin Scully
  • Tyler O'Neill and Guillermo Heredia
  • Jerry Dipoto's magic
  • being overrun on the radio by Rush Limbaugh (?!?!)
  • ...and more!

After Brandon (at 1:33:45), another B-Ref Battle brought to you by Baseball-Reference went down. Names were shared. Laughs were had. And then we moved on. We concluded (at 1:41:20) with a Varsity Baseball Update about the end of our respective D-III schools' baseball seasons with similarly crushing losses in regionals, before looking ahead to the excitement of men's league baseball. Then we say goodbye. Thanks for listening <3

Music: 2Pac/Biggie (Daniel's walk-up song)

The B-Ref Battle is brought to you by Baseball-Reference. Use the coupon code “bbq” for $6 off a one-year subscription to the Play Index, the essential tool for statistical baseball research. Click here to order your Play Index now!

Please rate and review us on iTunes! We’d really appreciate it!

Direct download: Pod_91.mp3
Category:Cespedes Family Barbecast -- posted at: 11:21pm EDT

Welcome to Barbecast 90! There's no special guest this week, because we just wanted to record a full damn Barbecast and didn't have time to arrange a guest. So here we are! Instead of a guest, we did perhaps the longest e-mail segment in Barbecast history, on topic such as...

  • Trading Mike Trout (Mike Trout is a Lunchable)
  • Bartolo's dinger
  • Bartolo's dinger!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
  • Craziest thing we've done for baseball
  • Rougned Odor punching Jose Bautista
  • Rougned Odor punching other things
  • Getting punched in the face (please e-mail us at cespedesfb@gmail.com if you've been punched in the face)
  • Jake's baseball brawl story
  • How to pack bobbleheads and hats
  • An epic tale from Big Poop about Jeff Francoeur 

After our lengthy e-mail segment (at 51:50), the B-Ref Battle brought to you by Baseball-Reference returned with a name inspiring the #FreeTheB movement, and another one that is just downright strange. We concluded with a very exciting Varsity Baseball Update (at 1:00:49) from BOTH of us, as both the WashU Bears and the Wooster Fighting Scots are both heading to the D-III Regionals this week. Then we say goodbye. Thanks for listening <3

Music: Chance the Rapper

The B-Ref Battle is brought to you by Baseball-Reference. Use the coupon code “bbq” for $6 off a one-year subscription to the Play Index, the essential tool for statistical baseball research. Click here to order your Play Index now!

Please rate and review us on iTunes! We’d really appreciate it!

Direct download: Pod_90.mp3
Category:Cespedes Family Barbecast -- posted at: 11:55am EDT

Welcome to Barbecast 89.5! This not your average Barbecast. There's not even Jake Mintz on this Barbecast :( But hey, it's still 45+ minutes of unadulterated audio content for your enjoyment. Finals week has made the recording of a full Barbecast entirely impossible for both of us, but we really wanted to get something up ASAP, and so I brought Chris Crawford of Baseball Prospectus on to talk about the upcoming MLB Draft! Chris indulged me on several draft-related curiosities and answered a couple e-mail questions on topics including...

  • Jason Groome vs. Brady Aiken
  • The Mysterious Delvin Perez vs. the terrible shortstop class
  • Where In The World Is Alec Hansen's Command?
  • Buddy Reed vs. Corey Ray 
  • Matt Krook
  • How the Tigers draft strategy may change now that Dombrowski is gone
  • How teams treat pitchers throwing insane amounts of pitchers in high school/college, featuring a plus-plus rant from Chris
  • ...and more!

After answering my silly questions, Chris talks about his MLB Draft Guide, available for just $4.99 (!!!) on iTunes. If you have any questions about this year's draft class that weren't addressed on this podcast, the guide is the way to go. It's a fantastic amount of information for the price of a meh Subway sandwich. Seems like an obvious purchase now, huh? 

Anyway, thanks for listening! We'll hopefully be back next week with a full Barbecast, episode 90, likely spending three hours discussing Bartolo's home run <3

(Note: Sorry if my audio is a bit quiet compared to Chris'; I don't usually record these things and am even worse at producing them than Jake)

Click here to get Chris' MLB Draft Guide!

Click here for the B-Ref Battle Database of Amazing Names!

The B-Ref Battle is brought to you by Baseball-Reference. Use the coupon code “bbq” for $6 off a one-year subscription to the Play Index, the essential tool for statistical baseball research. Click here to order your Play Index now!

Please rate and review us on iTunes! We’d really appreciate it!

 

 

Direct download: Crawford.mp3
Category:Cespedes Family Barbecast -- posted at: 10:03am EDT

Welcome to Barbecast 89! We apologize for the lengthy delay since our last Barbecast, but it's great to be back. Before our special guest, we had a tremendous e-mail segment featuring the triumphant return of NAPOLEAN BOOKBINDERY (Note: Napolean last appeared on Episode 40, back in June 2014). Our special guest this week (at 29:00) is Jon Meoli, Orioles beat writer for the Baltimore Sun. After reminiscing about Jon's appearance on Barbecast 3 (!!!!), we asked him a bunch of O's-related questions about what's most surprising about the team's hot start, Dylan Bundy, the incredible Joey Rickard, the less-incredible Matt Wieters, and more. After Jon (at 57:30), another B-Ref Battle brought to you by Baseball-Reference commenced. It was short and sweet. We concluded (at 1:07:10) with an amusing Varsity Baseball Update about Jake's unfortunate relief appearance and a shout-out to my freshman-year roommate for setting a D-III record. Then we say goodbye. Thanks for listening <3

Musical guest: Oooo, o, o, o, oooo, o

Click here for the B-Ref Battle Database of Amazing Names!

The B-Ref Battle is brought to you by Baseball-Reference. Use the coupon code “bbq” for $6 off a one-year subscription to the Play Index, the essential tool for statistical baseball research. Click here to order your Play Index now!

Please rate and review us on iTunes! We'd really appreciate it!

Direct download: Pod_89.mp3
Category:Cespedes Family Barbecast -- posted at: 1:41pm EDT

Welcome to Barbecast 88! Our special guest this week (at 17:00) is former major leaguer Mark Teahen! Mark came on to reflect on his career, including...

  • getting drafted by the Moneyball A's
  • getting traded as a prospect
  • playing for the hapless late 2000's Royals
  • the brutal honesty of a young Zack Greinke
  • seeing that same organization be World Series champions now
  • the secret to hitting Justin Verlander
  • his two remarkable inside the park home runs (here and here)
  • pitchers that owned him/pitchers that he owned
  • playing for Team Canada in the World Baseball Classic
  • ...and more!

After Mark (at 1:05:00), another B-Ref Battle brought to you by Baseball-Reference commenced. We concluded (at 1:15:20) with a painful Varsity Baseball Update from a hurting Jake after he had a rough time catching a bullpen. I also talked a bit about the start to Wooster's season before saying goodbye. Thanks for listening <3

Musical guest: Jimmy Fallon having no respect for IMDABES

Link to Mark's fantastic charity

Link to Mark's fantastic wine bar

Click here for the B-Ref Battle Database of Amazing Names!

The B-Ref Battle is brought to you by Baseball-Reference. Use the coupon code “bbq” for $6 off a one-year subscription to the Play Index, the essential tool for statistical baseball research. Click here to order your Play Index now!

Please rate and review us on iTunes! We'd really appreciate it!

 

Direct download: Pod_88.mp3
Category:Cespedes Family Barbecast -- posted at: 1:21am EDT

Welcome to Barbecast 87! Our special guest this week (at 18:42) is White Sox insider Dan Hayes of CSN Chicago. The Sox made some news recently with the supremely strange Adam LaRoche retirement saga, so we asked Dan to give us some COLD HARD FACTS on the story before transitioning into some more substantive White Sox talk. After Dan (at 44:38), we participated in a Purim-themed B-Ref Battle brought to you by Baseball-Reference. We concluded (at 50:35) with a lengthy Varsity Baseball Update from Jake and the WashU Bears and then said goodbye. Thanks for listening <3

Music: Scenario (and other ATCQ) - RIP Phife Dawg

Please rate and review us on iTunes! We'd really appreciate it!

Click here for the B-Ref Battle Database of Amazing Names!

The B-Ref Battle is brought to you by Baseball-Reference. Use the coupon code “bbq” for $6 off a one-year subscription to the Play Index, the essential tool for statistical baseball research. Click here to order your Play Index now!

Direct download: Pod_87_Fixed.mp3
Category:Cespedes Family Barbecast -- posted at: 10:23am EDT

Welcome to Barbecast 86! We return after several weeks with special guest Jesse Agler (at 21:08), Padres broadcaster and the brilliant idiot who thought it was a good idea to put us on television for a few minutes. We talked to Jesse about the origins of Padres Social Hour, his favorite baseball thing to broadcast, the challenges of broadcasting Spring Training games, the arrival of Don Orsillo, and of course, Yangervis Solarte. After Jesse (at 53:15), the B-Ref Battle presented by Baseball-Reference ensued, with two more wonderful baseball names brought to the Barbecast table. We concluded (at 1:03:15) with a frustrating Varsity Baseball Update (Jake is hurtin') and then we say goodbye. Thanks for listening <3

Music: Spring Is Here

Please rate and review us on iTunes! We'd really appreciate it!

Click here for the B-Ref Battle Database of Amazing Names!

The B-Ref Battle is brought to you by Baseball-Reference. Use the coupon code “bbq” for $6 off a one-year subscription to the Play Index, the essential tool for statistical baseball research. Click here to order your Play Index now!

Direct download: Pod_86.mp3
Category:Cespedes Family Barbecast -- posted at: 1:14am EDT

Welcome to Barbecast 85! Our special guest this week (at 29:05) is Keith Law of ESPN! We've wanted to have Keith on for a while, so we let our conversation run a little long so we could cover as much as possible. Topics include...

  • the problem with pay-to-play showcase events for high school prospects
  • the geographical "holes" for scouts
  • how Keith adjusts his evaluations after a player proves him wrong
  • Keith's recently released Top 100 prospect list
  • why Pirates SS Kevin Newman is a damn good prospect
  • happy thoughts about Jurickson Profar (!!!!)
  • ...and more!

After Keith (at 1:27:25), a brief B-Ref Battle brought to you by Baseball-Reference commenced, featuring a guy who played on a team called the Nadjys (!?!?) and one of our most Jewish names ever, albeit subtly. We concluded (at 1:35:50) with a long-awaited Varsity Baseball Update about Jake's opening weekend and his IP and ERA projections for his upcoming season. Then we say goodbye. Thanks for listening <3

Music: Dark Man X

Click here for the What These Pitchers Want music video 

Click here for all of Keith's Top 100 content! (ESPN Insider required)

Click here for Keith's non-baseball blog, The Dish!

Click here for the B-Ref Battle Database of Amazing Names!

The B-Ref Battle is brought to you by Baseball-Reference. Use the coupon code “bbq” for $6 off a one-year subscription to the Play Index, the essential tool for statistical baseball research. Click here to order your Play Index now!

Please rate and review us on iTunes! We’d really appreciate it!

Direct download: pod_85.mp3
Category:Cespedes Family Barbecast -- posted at: 11:35pm EDT

Welcome to Barbecast 84! While we rarely mention any specifics from our pre-guest e-mail segment, this week contained an exception, as we presented our all-time Jewish baseball starting lineup, with pump-up music and everything. It was wonderful. Our special guests this week (at 20:15) are Ryan Spaeder and Kevin Reavy, the co-authors of the upcoming book, "Incredible Baseball Stats" (info below). You probably know Ryan as Ace of MLB Stats on Twitter. We talked about...

  • how Ryan got into the whole tweeting amazing baseball fun facts business
  • how he turned it into a book
  • how Kevin got involved
  • how they got Wade Boggs (yes, that Wade Boggs) to write the forward
  • how Ryan keeps track of all of his fun facts
  • HOW?!
  • ...and more!

After Ryan and Kevin (at 47:05), another B-Ref Battle brought to you by Baseball-Reference commenced. Funny names are still funny! After B-Ref (at 57:50), Lana Ber---OH WAIT, THAT'S OVER NOW (we still love Lana). We concluded with one of the dumbest things we've ever recorded on the podcast (link below). Hopefully you find it 1/100th as funny as we found it. Thanks for listening <3 

Music: We Didn't Start the Fire!

Y'all Ready for This Music Video featuring the best YouTube description ever

Pre-order Incredible Baseball Stats on Amazon!

Buy Kevin's first book, "This Day In Philadelphia Sports"!

Click here for the B-Ref Battle Database of Amazing Names!

The B-Ref Battle is brought to you by Baseball-Reference. Use the coupon code “bbq” for $6 off a one-year subscription to the Play Index, the essential tool for statistical baseball research. Click here to order your Play Index now!

Please rate and review us on iTunes! We’d really appreciate it!

 

Direct download: Pod_84.mp3
Category:Cespedes Family Barbecast -- posted at: 12:01pm EDT

Welcome to Barbecast 83! Two special guests comin' at ya. Our first special guest this week (at 20:00) is Marc Carig, Mets beat writer for Newsday and lucky guy who gets to cover Yoenis Cespedes on a daily basis for at least another year. We talked to Marc about how shocking Yo's return was to him, to the Mets, and to the crazed Mets fans tweeting firestorms of vulgarities at the @Mets account. After Marc (at 39:10), we brought on our second special guest, Andrew Moore! Andrew was the Mariners' 2nd round pick last year out of Oregon State and had a stellar professional debut. More interestingly, he's spent much of his off-season coaching JV basketball at his high school alma mater. So we mostly talked about that! After Andrew (at 1:03:45), another B-Ref Battle brought to you by Baseball-Reference commenced, featuring a family member and a guy whose tremendously long surname probably rhymes with Becky. Next (at 1:12:10), we brought on Lana Berry for her final Tales from Logdog after 75 grueling episodes of mediocre contribution. Lana is the best, but she doesn't have to be on this silly podcast every week. We concluded with an unfortunate appearance from Jake's roommates each saying something about baseball. We're so sorry about that. Thanks for listening <3

Music: Mike Jones!

Click here to watch us do bat flips with Andrew!

The B-Ref Battle is brought to you by Baseball-Reference. Use the coupon code “bbq” for $6 off a one-year subscription to the Play Index, the essential tool for statistical baseball research. Click here to order your Play Index now!

Please rate and review us on iTunes! We’d really appreciate it!

Direct download: Pod_83.mp3
Category:Cespedes Family Barbecast -- posted at: 12:31pm EDT

Welcome to Barbecast 81! Our special guest this week (at 14:05) is Lance McCullers, right-hander for the Houston Astros. The last we heard from Lance was back on Episode 59, merely hours before his 2015 season kicked off with the Double-A Corpus Christi Hooks. Within months, Lance was in the big leagues making veterans look foolish. So we talked about that! Other topics included the major league hitters he most enjoyed facing from a "WOW THAT'S THAT GUY" perspective, how he maintains focus while also being super amped/emotional on the mound, Carlos Correa, and of course, the Powerball. After Lance (at 49:35), a very special B-Ref Battle commenced. Why special, you ask? Because the B-Ref Battle is now sponsored! By B-Ref! We also talked about the long-awaited B-Ref Battle Bracket, which is currently in progress (Details below).  After B-Ref (at 1:00:20), Tales from Logdog with Lana Berry covered the college football National Championship and why Nick Saban is still doing this. We conclude (at 1:06:38) with some thoughts on returning to real college for the spring semester. Thanks for listening <3

Music: Batter Up - Nelly

The B-Ref Battle is brought to you by Baseball-Reference. Use the coupon code "bbq" for $6 off a one-year subscription to the Play Index, the essential tool for statistical baseball research. Click here to order your Play Index now!

The BBQ Best Name Bracket is here. Help us determine the best B-Ref Battle name we've ever used! Click here to vote! 

Huge thanks to Kendall Guillemette for helping us develop the bracket on the site. You can check out his other work by clicking here.  

Please rate and review us on iTunes! We’d really appreciate it!

Direct download: POD_81.mp3
Category:Cespedes Family Barbecast -- posted at: 8:45pm EDT

Welcome to Barbecast 80! It's been nearly a month since our last installment of this audio venture, so it's great to be back. Our special guest this week (at 15:18) is Erik Malinowski, purveyor of Rule 1. and freelance writer extraordinaire. We talked to Erik about the recent Hall of Fame results, the <5% player who most deserves to go in the Hall, the process of producing any of his aforementioned extraordinary freelance pieces for various corners of the Internet, and most importantly, the origins of Rule numero uno. After Erik (at 51:43), another B-Ref Battle commenced with two more silly names and an exciting announcement about next week's B-Ref Battle Bracket. Next (at 1:00:45), Tales from Logdog with Lana Berry covered what Lana would name her bowl game. We conclude at (1:02:40) with a rather traumatic but extremely amusing tale from Jake's post-semester Euro-trip, and look ahead towards our final week of winter break. Thanks for listening <3

Note: Apologies for the shaky audio throughout, particularly during Erik's segment. We also just bought new mics, so Barbecasts 81 and beyond should be more consistent.

Music: STANDIN' IN THE HALL OF FAMEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

Please rate and review us on iTunes! We'd really appreciate it!

Direct download: Pod_80.mp3
Category:Cespedes Family Barbecast -- posted at: 12:47am EDT

1