David Roth returns to discuss the Mets’ fall from the pennant race, the Baltimore Orioles’ complete absence therefrom, and the 1982 Yankees vs. the Afghanistan withdrawal. Plus tales: A pitcher who did everything right and yet everything went wrong and the Orioles compared to the Mary Celeste.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
The Book of Koob*Rebuilding vs. Tanking vs. Not Giving a Damn*David Roth: Maine is Another Country/Misplaced Darwinian Struggle*The Ad You Don’t Want to Hear/Grammar-Policing Derek Jeter*The Mets in Freefall*deGrom’s Detachable Torso and Zack Wheeler*Mets Crazy-Board*The 1982 Yankees vs. the Afghanistan Forever-War*The Cat-Food Analogy*Managing to Feel Like You’re Managing*The Orioles’ Losing Streak (Measured in Years)*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?