Infinite Inning 208: Dystopia in Your Mailbox

Craig Calcaterra returns to baseball’s lockout, teenage drunkenness, and division of labor in marriage. Plus tales: Ralph Houk’s prophecy/Jim Bouton’s waltz and Babe Ruth sacrifices his socks for the greater good. TABLE OF CONTENTSFate, Ralph Houk, and Bobby Murcer*Babe Ruth in the Snow*Craig Calcaterra: Dessert Wine*Raymond Chandler’s Evenings*1990 Gut*Cash-Laden Ships that Have Sailed*The Strange Love of the Atlanta Braves*Not Really a Baseball Company Anymore?*Rentiers*Drive-Up Surf ‘n’ Turf and the Team Budget*The Tablecloth Trick*Kept Males*Competitive Owners vs. Tanking Owners*Baseball vs. Netflix*Dystopia in Your Inbox (Gambling Cometh)*Life Lessons from the High Rollers*Betting in the Stands*Goodbyes.The Infinite Inning is not only about baseball but a state of mind. Steven Goldman, rotating cohosts Jesse Spector, Cliff Corcoran, and David Roth, and occasional guests discuss the game’s present, past, and future with forays outside the foul lines to the culture at large. Expect stats, anecdotes, digressions, explorations of writing and fandom, and more Casey Stengel quotations than you thought possible. Along the way, they’ll try to solve the puzzle that is the Infinite Inning: How do you find the joy in life when you can’t get anybody out?