Effectively Wild Episode 2481: Tarp Off the First

Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the “tarps off” fan-shirtlessness trend sweeping MLB ballparks, early grand slams, inside-the-park home runs, and “little league home runs,” more sources of baseball embarrassment, Blake Snell’s bone spurs (and the Dodgers’ perennial pitcher-injury issues), Gerrit Cole’s return to the Yankees, Gio Urshela and other players who excelled for one team but struggled for others, updates on early-season sensation Joey Wiemer, John Brebbia, and this season’s class of rookie hitters, and the league’s trend toward catcher challenges. Audio intro: Ted O., “Effectively Wild Theme” Audio outro: Philip Bergman, “Effectively Wild Theme” Link to shirtless Rockies fans Link to Rockies fan photos Link to shirtless Cardinals fans Link to shirtless Mariners fans Link to shirtlessness trendpiece Link to AP piece on the trend Link to latest Giants thrust Link to Snell surgery update Link to MLBTR on Cole Link to MLBTR on Fried Link to MLBTR on Westburg Link to MLBTR on Berríos Link to Wiemer option news Link to Brebbia update Link to MLB rookie offense Link to FG post on Padres timeliness Link to Arenado grand slam Link to Arenado game play log Link to previous Slam Blast Link to Wood ITPGS Link to Lee’s ITPHR Link to Clemens LLHR Link to Ohtani LLHR Link to Sam on the LLHR Link to “Yakety Sax” Link to “Yakety Sax” wiki Link to Urshela retirement post Link to Urshela wRC stats Link to Small retrospective Link to Chavez Stat Blast Link to Mariners game story Link to Wilson pinch-hitting complaints Link to Sheehan on ABS Link to Sheehan Bluesky post Link to Trueblood on ABS Link to Tap to Challenge Link to MLBTR on Crawford Link to 2025 Cortes article Link to Kimbrough wiki Link to Kimbrough SABR bio Link to Kimbrough book excerpt 1 Link to Kimbrough book excerpt 2  Sponsor Us on Patreon  Give a Gift Subscription  Email Us: [email protected]  Effectively Wild Subreddit  Effectively Wild Wiki  Apple Podcasts Feed   Spotify Feed  YouTube Playlist  Facebook Group  Bluesky Account  Twitter Account  Get Our Merch! var SERVER_DATA = Object.assign(SERVER_DATA || {}); Source