The Windup: The Roundtable | Crazy On-Field Kerfuffles & The Playoff Races Are Getting Really Interesting

Podcast: The Windup (The Athletic)
Episode: The Roundtable, Ep. 173
Date: September 5, 2025
Hosts: Grant Brisbee, Andy McCullough, Sam Miller

Overview

This episode dives into the surge of on-field confrontations (kerfuffles) in MLB, specifically focusing on recent player altercations, emotional expressions in baseball, and boundary-pushing celebrations. The roundtable of The Athletic's top baseball writers unpacks the perennial debate over unwritten rules and exuberant showmanship, then transitions into a deep discussion of the 2025 playoff races. They debate whether this era genuinely lacks great teams, or if perceptions are skewed by the sport’s shifting competitive landscape.

Key Topics & Discussion Points

1. Opening Banter & Roles (01:38–03:39)

• Catcher vs. Pitcher banter: The crew playfully discusses which of them would make the best game-caller as a catcher.

  "I just feel like I can never trust that you're not going to be doing a bit. I think Andy takes what we're… you know, I think Andy takes the sport seriously." — Grant Brisbee (01:58)

• Twitter memories: They reminisce about Grant’s infamous Twitter bits and internet reactions.

2. On-Field Kerfuffles: Celebrations & Anger (03:39–14:55)

Rafael Devers’ Home Run & Kyle Freeland’s Outburst (03:39–13:05)

• Incident: Rockies pitcher Kyle Freeland gets angry at Rafael Devers for watching his first-inning home run.
• Takes on Player Expression:

  “I thought this was done. I thought we were in a post bat flip society... But no, we had Kyle Freeland... getting really mad for how long Rafael Devers watched [his] home run.” — Grant Brisbee (03:39)

• Meta-Take: Andy is “pro emotion”—supporting both flamboyant celebrations and opponents getting mad:

  “I am pro emotion in sports… I am pro pimping home runs. And I am also pro getting furious when someone pimped a home run. I don’t think you can police it only in one direction.” — Andy McCullough (07:08)

• On Unwritten Rules: They agree that players, not fans, police celebrations.

  “It’s the players who hate this stuff the most... They hate, hate each other.” — Grant Brisbee (05:00)

• Was Devers’ Home Run Actually 'Pimped'? Grant and Sam argue Devers’ reaction was standard, not disrespectful.

  “He leaned back in the way that you often see… that’s why it was so surprising… Freeland’s yelling at him.” — Grant Brisbee (09:01)

Limits of Celebration (10:57–12:21)

• Where’s the Line? The hosts humorously debate how wild celebrations could plausibly become.

  “There is a point where you can pull a book out of your back pocket… light it and read a book around the bases.” — Sam Miller (10:57)

• Team Bits vs. Individual Trot: Sam’s personal pet peeve is the proliferation of dugout/team celebration bits, not slow home run trots.

  “I don’t like that. That’s what makes me old.” — Sam Miller (12:21)

Deeper Meaning of Anger in Baseball (13:47–14:46)

• Room for Anger: Grant reflects that society prefers happy emotion in sport, while anger makes people uneasy.

  “We all think we’re pro emotion, but we only wanna see people be happy… not giving people room to be angry is really fascinating.” — Grant Brisbee (13:49)

• Potential for escalation: Anger is unpredictable and potentially dangerous in-game.

3. Pitcher-Catcher Kerfuffles: Framber Valdez vs. Cesar Salazar (15:37–26:04)

Breakdown of Incident (15:37–24:03)

• What Happened: Astros’ Framber Valdez appeared to cross up rookie catcher Cesar Salazar after conflict, resulting in Salazar taking a 93 mph fastball to the chest.

  “Will Middlebrooks… was like, yeah, he did it on purpose. Everybody knows he did it on purpose. Anybody who’s ever played knows he did it on purpose.” — Grant Brisbee (17:16)

• Pitcher’s Intent: Andy and Sam hesitate to judge intent, noting they’ve never seen such a thing.

  “I feel uncomfortable suggesting it was intentional because I’m not in the guy’s head. And the guy says it wasn’t. The footage does not look great.” — Andy McCullough (17:16)

• Catchers used to being crossed up:

  “We used to have like six cross ups a game… we're going to reminisce about the era… when baseball players just routinely crossed each other up all the time.” — Grant Brisbee (25:14)

Meta-Discussion: Technology, PitchCom, and the End of Cross-Ups (26:04–28:51)

• PitchCom technology’s impact:

  “Getting rid of signs gets rid of the threat of illegal sign stealing.” — Andy McCullough (27:08)

• Gripes about batteries & silly details: Extended mini-rant about the tech behind “PitchCom” and comic discussion of solar/kinectic-powered devices.

4. Playoff Races: Are There Any Good Teams?! (29:16–38:05)

Surprise Contenders & Fluid Standings (29:16–31:47)

• Playoff odds upheaval: The chance of a surprise team breaking into the top 12 jumps from 17% to 43% in a single week.

  “We're almost to a coin flip that some surprise team will get in and you know I'm here for it.” — Grant Brisbee (31:47)

• Teams like the Rays, Giants, Diamondbacks, and others are suddenly in the playoff mix.

Is Baseball Actually Full of Mediocrity? (31:47–35:58)

• Grant wonders if there are no good teams or players left.

  “It can't be true that all the same players were here two years ago? Where did all the good players go?” — Grant Brisbee (32:20)

• Andy argues the perception of “superteams” was warped by extreme tanking in the late 2010s:

  “Our perception of what is a...great team was distorted...because...winning 100 games was like de rigueur for being a great team, right? And part of that was because...there was the Orioles and stuff like that, and now again, like we have the Rockies.” — Andy McCullough (33:05)

• Flat distribution: Talent is more evenly spread after years without expansion. Tanking cycles may explain fluctuations.

“Just Get In” and the Wild Card Effect (38:05–44:22)

• Sam pushes back on “decline of greatness” narrative; instead, he’s worn down by how quickly new teams pop onto the playoff radar.

  “Every week I've got to care about some new team...it's exhausting. It's not for me.” — Sam Miller (37:49)

• Andy notes the joy for fans whose teams unexpectedly return to contention or sneak into playoffs—refers to the 2014 Royals.

  “If you're a fan of the Rays...or Texas Rangers who've been kind of a miserable...watch this year...the fun of it is kind of being in there hanging around and getting to make some noise.” — Andy McCullough (39:02)

• Sam relates his experience editing a post that said, “Should the Giants even try to win the wild card game?”—and the team subsequently won the World Series.

  “That, to me, is the definitive ‘just get in, baby.’...Jeff Weaver, the Church of Jeff Weaver...the Rangers 2023, where their bullpen was just abysmal...and then in the postseason, it's like, hey, their bullpen's pretty cool. How about that, right?” (41:38)

5. Relievers, Awards, and Baseball Obsessiveness (44:22–47:43)

• Discussion about volatility of relievers and whether the “Reliever of the Year” award is even meaningful.

  “Is he good?...You would just ask people who are die hard baseball fans, you'd name a reliever and say, is he good? Like right now? And no one would know...” — Grant Brisbee (43:11)

• Andy admits not knowing potential award winner Ryan Walker; Grant champions obscure contributors.

  “I had never heard of Ryan Walker...Like, that's kind of my shtick, that guy's not worth my time.” — Andy McCullough (44:49)

• Sam’s story about dressing up as Mel Ott at camp as a “Secretary of Commerce” kid cements the baseball-nerd tone.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “We all think we're pro emotion, but we only wanna see people be happy, we don't wanna see people be mad...not giving people room to be angry on the field...I'm gonna be thinking about that for a long time.” — Grant Brisbee (13:49)
• “Generally speaking, in the modern age, you are allowed to take your time getting out of the batter's box...You have to go a lot further than that before the modern pitcher generally will react. This is not 2011 anymore.” — Grant Brisbee (11:50)
• “If you're a fan...getting to see this team that you thought was...dog [bleep]...crank it up randomly and get into the postseason.” — Andy McCullough (40:59)
• “That, to me, is the definitive ‘just get in, baby.’” — Sam Miller (41:38)
• “Is he good?...and no one would know.” — Grant Brisbee (43:11)
• Grant compares obscure relievers to party tricks about knowing all the Secretaries of Commerce.

Timestamps of Key Segments

• 01:38 – Show start, banter, and roles
• 03:39–14:55 – Devers-Freeland home run kerfuffle and unwritten rules
• 15:37–26:04 – Astros pitcher-catcher conflict (Valdez-Salazar incident)
• 29:16–31:47 – Surging playoff odds and surprise teams
• 31:47–35:58 – Is this the era of “no good teams”?
• 38:05–44:22 – The “just get in” playoff philosophy and wild card upsets
• 44:22–47:43 – Reliever volatility, awards, and baseball nerdery

Final Thoughts

This episode brings a high-spirited, insightful, and often irreverent examination of baseball’s culture shifts, the fluidity of playoff contention, and the emotional undercurrents that keep the game unpredictable and compelling. Listeners come away with a richer understanding of modern MLB dynamics—and plenty to laugh about along the way.