Baseball PhD (enhanced M4A)

One of the best independent sports podcasts

     

This has quickly become one of my favorite independent sports podcasts. Baseball PhD, the podcast, is run by Baseball Phd, the tour company, who specializes in tours of MLB baseball stadiums. Each hour-long episode of the podcast focuses on a single team in the MLB, and is composed of a lengthy discussion on the merits of the team's stadium and history, and interviews with interesting people with a connection to either the team or the host city. Past guests have included baseball historians and biographers, former baseball officials, superfans, and spokespeople for local landmarks.

I love independent podcasts (as opposed to, say, ESPN, where the podcasters are paid employees) where the hosts are passionate about the subject without being snarky or judgmental. And I have not heard more enthusiastic baseball voices than Ed Kasputis and his co-hosts Farley and Mark. They can veer dangerously close to being too Pollyanna-like, but their enthusiasm for the sport, its surrounding culture, and genuine interest in their guests is, quite frankly, a breath of fresh air in a rather cynical industry.

I have two minor quibbles with the show, specifically Ed Kasputis himself:
1) Ed is a former state representative, and his politics tend to seep through the commentary. And he seems to be getting less subtle about his opinions as the series progresses.
2) He tends to rely on the same descriptive phrases again and again. If you want to create a podcast-based drinking game, take a drink every time he says "word picture" or "sexy." I promise you that you won't be conscious for the end of the show.

But these are two very minor criticisms of an otherwise very entertaining podcast. If you want to listen to people who have a genuine joy for the sport and want to be educated about it in a way no other podcast can, then you can get a baseball PhD too.