How can you not be pedantic about baseball? became a recurring theme on the podcast in 2022, in which listeners call out various issues that have bothered them in a pedantic way and which they feel should be corrected. Ben and Meg reply with their own opinions. Although Ben and Meg are both prescriptivists, they do not always side with the pedants.
The question itself is a pun on the phrase "How can you not be romantic about baseball?" from the movie Moneyball. Watch the scene.
The earliest known usage of the phrase is in Episode 1823, when Ben sighed "How can you not be pedantic about baseball?" after his tirade against the use of the term "ghost runner".
The phrase became the title of Episode 1840, when a listener was upset that umpires use a mix of singular and plural when referring to teams by their city: "San Francisco loses [singular] their [plural] challenge."
In Episode 1842, Ben and Meg contemplate two topics that veer into pedantry: How soon in a player's career can you refer to an achievement as a "career high"? Does the zombie runner have to touch first base in order for the run to count? Meg suggests that they need a "How can you not be pedantic about baseball?" T-shirt. Ben suggested that the T-shirt is not a joke.
With pedantry now well-established, listeners began writing in about their own points of pedantry, and Ben and Meg entertained their complaints during email segments.
Pre-history[]
- Episode 684: Sam argues that the "middle of the order" is 3-4-5, not 4-5-6.
- Episode 1221: Ben and Jeff agree that "three up three down" allows for double plays, pickoffs, etc., as long as the pitcher faces only three batters.
- Episode 1652: Meg likes the "slam, good slam, great slam, grand slam" tweet because it satisfies the pedant in her. Ben pedantically objects to people who say "The MLB".
- Episode 1794: Ben chides a guest for saying "the MLB".
- Episode 1812: Ben is hoist upon his own petard when he is called out for saying "the NPB" in Episode 1808.