Speaker 1: Hello, and welcome to episode five fifty seven of five
Speaker 1: and IVE, the Baseball podcast that continues to dare to
Speaker 1: ask the question what's happening in baseball? It is Thursday,
Speaker 1: June twenty fifth, and because Craig continues to be out
Speaker 1: on an assignment, today, I happen to be your host.
Speaker 1: My name is Patrick Debue, joining me as always prospects
Speaker 1: are Jeffrey pattern Astro, as well as special guest star
Speaker 1: and BP alumnus Zach Kreiser, author of the Bandwagon newsletter gentlemen, Hello.
Speaker 2: Have we figured out Craig said?
Speaker 1: There was?
Speaker 2: I thought that I got a picture Craig last night
Speaker 2: saying there's really good French food. Is he in Paris?
Speaker 2: I'm trying to narrow down where.
Speaker 3: No, I actually know where he is. I heard on
Speaker 3: your last episode that he didn't tell you guys. He
Speaker 3: did tell me he's an Antigua. Okay, okay, the family
Speaker 3: went before and I guess when you have kids, if
Speaker 3: you find a.
Speaker 2: Vacation, yeah, you just go back that. I've started asking
Speaker 2: questions of people that have been about Disney World. I'm
Speaker 2: not happy about any of this. It's going to be terrible,
Speaker 2: but yeah.
Speaker 1: Yeah, we did Disney World once when my kids were
Speaker 1: I think boy six and three, and no we have
Speaker 1: not gone back, and hopefully I never have to anything
Speaker 1: else going on, you guys any banter. It's been a
Speaker 1: short couple of days for you, Jeff, it's been like
Speaker 1: months for you, Zach.
Speaker 3: Anything that happened since the last time I was on
Speaker 3: this podcast. I actually went to France, but not to Paris.
Speaker 3: I'm guessing the French food was better than an antigue
Speaker 3: with but you know, you take what you can get.
Speaker 1: I finished reading a book. The book is The Sports
Speaker 1: Writer by Richard Fortz. I don't know if you guys
Speaker 1: have heard of this book. I did mention it two
Speaker 1: shows ago. I've tried not to mention it since it's
Speaker 1: not a bad book. I kind of hated it, and
Speaker 1: I guess we can, you know, you can leave off
Speaker 1: what it, you know, the modern novel or anything, because
Speaker 1: it's very it's a very modern novel. But really what
Speaker 1: ended up upsetting me the most about it was the
Speaker 1: sports writing. Not necessarily it was inaccurate, but it just
Speaker 1: it was just a real time capsule into what sports
Speaker 1: writing looked like in nineteen eighty three, and every time
Speaker 1: he talked about sports or talked about the act of
Speaker 1: sports writing, it felt kind of like a personal insult
Speaker 1: about how mindless and how repetitive and how like the
Speaker 1: cool concept like basically his concept. And this is like
Speaker 1: I have Scott this Gerald quote one hundred years ago,
Speaker 1: is like, basically sports writing is the rejection of the
Speaker 1: quality of writing, like people who the idea of him
Speaker 1: going into sports writing is that he is giving up
Speaker 1: on trying to write anything good, which you know, I don't.
Speaker 1: I don't care for that. That's tough.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I think there are sports writers that do that, certainly,
Speaker 2: but yes there are.
Speaker 1: And I think the other thing that's that that hurts
Speaker 1: is that it's a reflection of the celebrity sports writer
Speaker 1: from nineteen eighty three that no longer exists, that can
Speaker 1: just like not work for weeks at a time and
Speaker 1: go vacation.
Speaker 2: And then Esquire gives him like five dollars a word
Speaker 2: to go interview it jockey or something. Yeah.
Speaker 1: So yeah, so to that part, I mean, you know,
Speaker 1: it's bitterness mixed with indifference. But yeah, don't read it.
Speaker 1: I don't. I cannot encourage people to read this book.
Speaker 1: For other books that I'm published.
Speaker 3: I finished Lonesome Dove recently, and I would encourage people
Speaker 3: to read course everybody who was ever in the past
Speaker 3: five years. But I was the last.
Speaker 1: Most well not the last thing.
Speaker 3: I've never read the most recent train.
Speaker 1: Maybe I'll get to it someday. All right, we'll go
Speaker 1: ahead and get started. So first thing on the doc
Speaker 1: I put in here, I put it halfway. There is
Speaker 1: second number one. I put in this. The title just
Speaker 1: upset Jeff just just put the most normy terribles.
Speaker 2: He didn't put Well what I didn't put No, I've
Speaker 2: used it before. You just got to put in the woe.
Speaker 1: Oh oh okay, well then I have to say it.
Speaker 2: And since I like making Craig say it also, has
Speaker 2: it been eighty I thought we're gonna do that segment
Speaker 2: next week. Are we actually at eighty one games?
Speaker 1: I think I thought we were at eighty one games.
Speaker 2: Let's say we were like seventy nine. I know, it
Speaker 2: doesn't really matter.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I guess we're seven. Well sometimes eighty.
Speaker 3: Okay, whether you want to do prices right, rules right
Speaker 3: or not? Yeah, where you're if price is right is
Speaker 3: the rule, then we got to do it now.
Speaker 1: Yeah. Yeah, So I was just gonna take us on
Speaker 1: a tour of all the different awards. Everyone loves talking
Speaker 1: about awards, but it's mostly just to catch up on
Speaker 1: you know, we talk a lot about I guess we
Speaker 1: talked about al but we talk about our favorite bad
Speaker 1: players or our favorite disappointing players. So maybe we should
Speaker 1: just like actually talk about the good players for a
Speaker 1: little bit. Uh So, looking at we'll go through each
Speaker 1: of the uh the awards right now al MVP, I
Speaker 1: should have looked up betting ons do we have? I
Speaker 1: wonder if there are current betting onds for.
Speaker 3: I think it's fine that you didn't.
Speaker 1: I think just not so much because I want to
Speaker 1: encourage anyone to bet on it, but just to see
Speaker 1: where where the normies feel about it. But right now,
Speaker 1: as far as b ref war, Bobby Witt Junior is
Speaker 1: the leader for the al MVP, followed by Cody Bellinger
Speaker 1: and you were Alvarez and uh for our stat uh
Speaker 1: it is Jordn Alvarez like wit like a full win
Speaker 1: over Mike Trout.
Speaker 2: That's like I can't get can't give up on Mike Trout.
Speaker 1: Apparently we have not.
Speaker 3: That's pretty surprising that Trut.
Speaker 2: Liked and the Phillies and the Eples. I mean, they
Speaker 2: just can't give up on it no matter what.
Speaker 1: I mean, you have to trust the process. So which
Speaker 1: where would you guys go at the.
Speaker 2: Moment for ALP, Like, it's so like the Okay, there's
Speaker 2: no good teams. Let's get that out of the way
Speaker 2: for Yeah, you can start, you can't like the way. Yeah,
Speaker 2: it's difficult. You know, Judge is hurt. I'm gonna miss
Speaker 2: enough time where he's not really going to be a
Speaker 2: factor here. Like Bellinger has been fine, but a lot
Speaker 2: of that I assume for a b refist center field
Speaker 2: or outfield defense is he's been good, but like not
Speaker 2: in a way that gets you m v P. It
Speaker 2: should just be or done if he stays healthy. And
Speaker 2: like the Astros are what a game out of a
Speaker 2: playoff fot right now? So if they make it, they
Speaker 2: have nothing else going for them except it on so
Speaker 2: like I think they'll be a good narrative case for
Speaker 2: him too.
Speaker 3: Yeah, I would currently vote for Jordon Alvarez because I don't.
Speaker 3: I just defensive stats are just really hard to get
Speaker 3: behind as a total MVP case and win not having
Speaker 3: his full usual season offensively and it seems like he
Speaker 3: might not because he's a little part and just so
Speaker 3: Jordan at the moment, but he's not known for playing
Speaker 3: whole seasons. I mean, the that's who it is right now.
Speaker 3: If we're talking about who could win it by the end,
Speaker 3: I think if the A's scamper into the postseason that
Speaker 3: Nick Kurtz could win to al MVP. But that's my
Speaker 3: non favorite answer to your question about who the favorite is.
Speaker 1: I do think, you know, for the people who like
Speaker 1: the valuable part of the most valuable player, like no,
Speaker 1: I don't know if I can't think of another time
Speaker 1: that a player has carried a team as much as
Speaker 1: Jordan's carrying the Astros right now. Yeah, so you get
Speaker 1: that one as well. My dark horse, I like, I
Speaker 1: know Ben Clemon's just posted about this morning. I read it,
Speaker 1: but Dylandgler I was thinking about writing about this week
Speaker 1: and he's by by bargrass War. He is third in
Speaker 1: the American League. He is basically both hitting and also
Speaker 1: the best defensive catcher in the American League outside of
Speaker 1: you know, people who don't play all the time. That's
Speaker 1: a fun name, Like, I'm glad.
Speaker 3: How would how would you as a Mariners fan or
Speaker 3: cal Rally appreciator. Feel if Dylan Dingler the catcher one a.
Speaker 1: L m v P would be very funny. But you know,
Speaker 1: like you can't pick the year that Aaron Judge, Aaron
Speaker 1: Jude Cerner last year count the m v put doubt.
Speaker 2: I'll throw in Colton Montgomery for the White Sox too
Speaker 2: that they make it.
Speaker 1: Okay, okay an l m v P.
Speaker 2: You can move on.
Speaker 3: Yah, Yeah, I mean yes, there are guys who would
Speaker 3: win ale.
Speaker 1: We are we are recording at one of Pete Crow
Speaker 1: Armstrong's goold you know, high points, right, and so there's
Speaker 1: been some talk about him like it's going to be
Speaker 1: until he has like a giant the biggest slump you've
Speaker 1: ever seen in three weeks. Uh, and then you know
Speaker 1: you got Actually, by reference war, it's not a Tani
Speaker 1: E Laite, it's Christopher Sanchez.
Speaker 2: Sure, I you know, you.
Speaker 3: Never know will win m v P and not young Yeah.
Speaker 1: Probably, Yeah, So I guess we can do both of
Speaker 1: those at the same time because it is kind of
Speaker 1: the same list for both. Yeah, you know, it's do
Speaker 1: you think that it's so easy to think that Sanchez
Speaker 1: will just keep doing this and it's somewhat easy to
Speaker 1: think that Atani is going to either get tired or
Speaker 1: hurt or something. I don't know. It's for me. It
Speaker 1: seems like both of those awards are pretty well locked down.
Speaker 1: You lockdown, you don't think so.
Speaker 2: I think Sanchez will have it on innings at the
Speaker 2: end of the day, like Missierowski is thrown off innings. Yeah,
Speaker 2: that's yeah.
Speaker 3: If Sancho's has if his e r A gets into
Speaker 3: somewhat normal territory, or if he doesn't throw as many
Speaker 3: innings as we expect him to. I think either sliver
Speaker 3: of an opening. People would love to give it to
Speaker 3: the mis but it takes their chance. It takes something.
Speaker 2: Like I throw the guy throwing one oh five is
Speaker 2: a little like any anybody here can get hurt, I
Speaker 2: mean get hurt tomorrow.
Speaker 1: We should just make a new word for most valuable pitch,
Speaker 1: and that way we can give him that a word now,
Speaker 1: just in case this moment in Amber. Uh. The funny
Speaker 1: thing is that second frim VP in BP stats is
Speaker 1: James Wood four point yea.
Speaker 2: Reasonable I say, like most other years, like Chase Burns
Speaker 2: would be like the favorite for this.
Speaker 1: He's third by reference War right now for the NLCI
Speaker 1: Young You've.
Speaker 2: Got like three pictures on pace for like an eight
Speaker 2: win season, which is very now. I don't think all
Speaker 2: of them will get there for various reasons.
Speaker 1: But uh, the al sim Cam Schlittler leads both our
Speaker 1: war and theirs, like feels like it's weird. Like I
Speaker 1: feel like Shlitler he got off to that incredible start
Speaker 1: and then he has since then just had a really
Speaker 1: great rest of the season. But because it's slightly worse
Speaker 1: than that first month, I don't feel like people are
Speaker 1: talking about him that much.
Speaker 3: It's I mean, I think it's purely because of the
Speaker 3: Sanchez and yeah, there's like the runs they were on
Speaker 3: that they just kind of overtook him in the public imagination.
Speaker 3: But yeah, I don't think there's any real case against
Speaker 3: Schlittler right now unless he also has some sort of
Speaker 3: aning limitation, but it doesn't seem like he's quite is
Speaker 3: at risk for that.
Speaker 1: Right Yeah. So second interesting, my reference war's Parker Messik
Speaker 1: and you would never guess who was third? Oh is it?
Speaker 3: Is it?
Speaker 1: Debt mer No, although I don't by the way you started,
Speaker 1: I almost thought you might. Good it's Davis Martin of
Speaker 1: course with two point eight for for PP, there's a
Speaker 1: huge tie for second. Drew Rastminson's got two point four.
Speaker 1: Messic and Gavin Williams both had two point four. But yeah, yeah,
Speaker 1: like this one feels like yeah unless someone.
Speaker 2: The al is not good, so that's where it's where
Speaker 2: we are.
Speaker 1: Meanwhile, like I guess, I guess we did the segment
Speaker 1: and everything's lockdown because the Rookie of the Year is
Speaker 1: really Also feel like they're both which is weird, like
Speaker 1: because like it's been a strong rookie class, Like, but
Speaker 1: it's been a strong rookie class where basically the average
Speaker 1: rookie is better than usual, and like McGonagall and weather
Speaker 1: are both perfectly fine, like perfectly solid unanimous. Oh yeah,
Speaker 1: that guy was rookie the year and twenty years from now, right,
Speaker 1: But then, like you've got a lot of guys who
Speaker 1: are like on pace for two and a half three wins.
Speaker 2: Yes, even Carson by yeah pinlightly.
Speaker 1: Who who did not have a hit for the first
Speaker 1: six weeks of the season.
Speaker 3: I think McGonagall and weather Holts are going to be
Speaker 3: like McGonagall obviously has super star upside, but like I
Speaker 3: feel like they're gonna be oh yeah, it was obviously
Speaker 3: Rookie of the Year, but then some guy is gonna
Speaker 3: come along and just blow them away.
Speaker 2: And it might be Connor Griffin, it might be Yeah,
Speaker 2: it's gonna be Anler type career for those guys. I
Speaker 2: think that's probably like, right, you're gonna like back in
Speaker 2: the Belie you'd both be worth like thirty seven reference
Speaker 2: war or something like. They have a really nice career.
Speaker 1: Weather especially feels.
Speaker 2: Like especially feels like that. Yeah, yeah, second second basement
Speaker 2: kind of not really old player skills but not like
Speaker 2: super twitchy, like the kind of guy that like, yeah
Speaker 2: it has like gets the Kinser contract but then also
Speaker 2: has the back end of the Kinser contract.
Speaker 1: Yes. Uh. Murakami is third place on both lists, which
Speaker 1: I think is very funny. Like I feel like he's
Speaker 1: six weeks he's been forgotten because there's just been so
Speaker 1: many other rookies. Yeah, you know, it's it feels like
Speaker 1: with Murkami like he could come back and just be
Speaker 1: his normal self and have a four or fifty played appearance,
Speaker 1: like four win season, or he could like just pick
Speaker 1: that moment to be like the strike to catch up. Yeah,
Speaker 1: have a real Joe Sharboneau kind of moment to him.
Speaker 1: I don't know. Messics obviously second in both categories for
Speaker 1: US for the American League. In the National League, South
Speaker 1: Stewart is second by both.
Speaker 3: He has a shot.
Speaker 2: He feels like like South Stuart feels like the guy
Speaker 2: that would have won it a few years ago when
Speaker 2: both McGonagall and Weatherhall got held down for like Super two.
Speaker 2: Yeah whatever, like because he just would have played that.
Speaker 2: He would have played the whole season, good counting stats
Speaker 2: and that was you on pace for like thirty home rounds,
Speaker 2: probably like eight hundred oss. Like, yeah, he's a first
Speaker 2: base dhe.
Speaker 1: But obviously the best player in his team, so.
Speaker 2: Maybe yeah, yeah yeah.
Speaker 1: And then Nolan McLean, who has been struggling lately, but
Speaker 1: I think struggling lately also against expectations more than and
Speaker 1: and need right, Yeah, he's been perfectly fine, but not
Speaker 1: good enough.
Speaker 2: And then Foster Griffin, also on technically rocky eligible.
Speaker 3: Yeah yeah, maybe on a different team or in a
Speaker 3: different league, but.
Speaker 2: I could have sworn did he play in the majors
Speaker 2: before he went overseas.
Speaker 1: I don't think he did.
Speaker 2: He knock get out I feel how you did let
Speaker 2: me see, Oh no, he did, he did.
Speaker 1: He played. He played during the COVID No, he's hold on.
Speaker 1: He did play during the COVID year. He played in
Speaker 1: twenty twenty two as well. He got one and two
Speaker 1: thirds innings in twenty twenty six and one third innings. Yeah,
Speaker 1: and he's still roche eligible. Yeah yeah, wild wild to
Speaker 1: have somebody be Rockie eligible six years after his debut.
Speaker 1: So yeah, any dark horses for any of these or are.
Speaker 2: You just like the year? I don't think like again,
Speaker 2: like somebody can get hurt, right, Like anybody can pull
Speaker 2: an oblique and miss eight weeks or something like that.
Speaker 3: But I think one of those guys, yeah, sorry, if
Speaker 3: one of those guys doesn't win it, I think it'll
Speaker 3: be Markami just comes back and keeps doing Mark comedy.
Speaker 1: I think of all of these, it feels like Schlitler
Speaker 1: is the one where if he gets hurt, then you're like,
Speaker 1: oh god, yeah, are we gonna where we're gonna find Nick?
Speaker 2: Mark?
Speaker 1: It's very it would be very funny if Parker miss, like.
Speaker 2: Yeah, but not Rookie of the Year, yes, which.
Speaker 1: Is technically what he would do. He's second in both
Speaker 1: right now.
Speaker 2: And how's he doing on wins? I know it doesn't
Speaker 2: actually matter anymore, but yes, I feel like he has
Speaker 2: a lot of wins wins.
Speaker 1: But he's also like he actually is striking batters out
Speaker 1: more than you would think, Like I think we've made
Speaker 1: with stuff numbers and stuff numbers are mediocre.
Speaker 2: Yeah, he's a less handed, change up guy.
Speaker 1: They're always right, but yeah he mixes well. But yeah,
Speaker 1: he strikes out like twenty seven percent of batters like
Speaker 1: it's plenty to get it done.
Speaker 3: He had the like almost no hitter to get him
Speaker 3: some notoriety.
Speaker 1: Right, Yeah, and like if Ozer Ramirez stays out like again,
Speaker 1: he's the.
Speaker 2: Most best way I am.
Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, interesting. I mean I wonder if anybody saw
Speaker 1: that coming.
Speaker 2: I've always liked parking like I saw it coming, but
Speaker 2: not like this. I assume he'd get like the Cleveland
Speaker 2: glow up where he's going to be thrown like ninety
Speaker 2: six with everything else, and he just stayed exactly the
Speaker 2: same and makes it work.
Speaker 3: I thought he would be peak lance Linn or something
Speaker 3: to that effect, but this is better than yeah.
Speaker 1: So I mean peak lance Linn was like what pretty good?
Speaker 1: The peak peaklans Lin was like it's one right.
Speaker 2: Like minor season or whatever.
Speaker 1: Yeah, exactly, all right, so open up your standings page
Speaker 1: because now it's the time the manager of the year.
Speaker 1: Oh god, I may as well live in constant fear
Speaker 1: that they're going to make me vote for manager, that
Speaker 1: you're one of these years.
Speaker 3: I mean, no one will care what you do, that's.
Speaker 1: True, Yeah, but I feel compelled to write an article
Speaker 1: about it. Pat Murphy uh as the second record, you know,
Speaker 1: the second best record baseball and Dave Roberts can't win.
Speaker 2: It, right, Yeah, rookie manager taking over for a disappointing
Speaker 2: team and a tough division I could see.
Speaker 1: Yeah, big bounce back.
Speaker 2: Although they're they I almost put a topic on here
Speaker 2: like are they going to actually hold off the Phillies
Speaker 2: because I'm less sure they're going to hold up the
Speaker 2: Phillies more on their end than the Phillies end.
Speaker 1: But yeah, I mean they're talking about Ronaldo Lopez back
Speaker 1: in the rotation. Yeah, when you're talking about that.
Speaker 2: For certain things, Prime Elder has blown right back regression
Speaker 2: towards the means, and it's like type past it.
Speaker 3: If if any of the weird teams make an actual
Speaker 3: wild card run, you know if the Marlins or Cardinals
Speaker 3: make playoffs, that one that manager will win.
Speaker 2: Yeah, having only Marble, Yeah I feel about that.
Speaker 1: I don't know how I feel about that either. But
Speaker 1: but then at least of the year.
Speaker 2: But I don't know how I feel about that.
Speaker 1: If let's say, I mean, the Marlins probably don't have
Speaker 1: a run in them, even if they're about five hundred
Speaker 1: right now. But when the Nationals are slack technically about
Speaker 1: five hundred right now? How many what percentage of fans
Speaker 1: know who the Marlins and Nationals managers are?
Speaker 2: I actually could not tell you that the national I
Speaker 2: know Clayton McCullough for the Violins, I could not tell
Speaker 2: you the national It's that's right, okay.
Speaker 3: I always have to not say Drew.
Speaker 1: Yeah exactly. Can we have a manager of the year
Speaker 1: that nobody's actually heard of before?
Speaker 2: Then?
Speaker 3: I think we do this all the time. Like the
Speaker 3: Marlins manager has won it, the nice tricker win it.
Speaker 1: It's like, but at least he played and you like
Speaker 1: knew him, Like, okay, yeah, I remember there was some
Speaker 1: slight trigger when they got hired. Oh yeah, that guy's
Speaker 1: they're around, you know. I don't know, maybe in the
Speaker 1: American League, you get hearing Boone and Kevin Cash and
Speaker 1: then yeah, and then in a bunch of.
Speaker 3: American League teams, I think it's gonna be will Venable
Speaker 3: unless the White Sox really just like fall off a clip.
Speaker 3: I don't even think they have to make the playoffs.
Speaker 3: I think competence gets will Venables the nod.
Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, I could definitely see it.
Speaker 2: I could see Kat say too, if the A's make
Speaker 2: it just because of the situation, right with the yeah
Speaker 2: moving and expectation then to get them and even if
Speaker 2: they even think of like eighty three and seventy nine,
Speaker 2: which would definitely get a wild card in the American League,
Speaker 2: I could see that.
Speaker 1: Yeah, although you know, we talked about the National League.
Speaker 1: I mean Tonyell clearly clear favorite.
Speaker 2: All right off of this who won manager of the
Speaker 2: Year last year in both leagues?
Speaker 3: Voting Murphy?
Speaker 1: Yeah, vote Murphy, remember the traditionally.
Speaker 3: I only think I remember this because I because it
Speaker 3: was so just standard.
Speaker 1: Yeah, like, yeah, I used to write I used to
Speaker 1: write an article. I think I came I can't even
Speaker 1: remember how I came up with the metric, but I
Speaker 1: came up with the Manager of the Year predicting tool,
Speaker 1: and it just basically spat out Murphy and vote because
Speaker 1: expect as long as you keep the expectations low.
Speaker 3: It's actual minus projected wins equals manager the year, there.
Speaker 1: Was something, there was more to it. I can't remember
Speaker 1: what the more to it was, but there was more
Speaker 1: to it. I think I think we used Oh I
Speaker 1: remember now, we used the one hundred thousand simulations that
Speaker 1: we do for Rob Mains' article every every spring, and
Speaker 1: I use those to figure out how many times their
Speaker 1: team won the pennant were when their divisions or something.
Speaker 1: I don't know, it's too late now anyway. And then lastly,
Speaker 1: just real quickly, let's go ahead and look at the
Speaker 1: actual standings. Who do you guys think right now is
Speaker 1: going to be in your World Series?
Speaker 3: In the World Series, the World Series.
Speaker 1: Winners for both sides, So you got the in the NL,
Speaker 1: you got the Dodgers, Brewers.
Speaker 2: I mean, I can't really against the Dodgers at this point,
Speaker 2: Like I just don't see. They're like it's going to
Speaker 2: be the same playoff teams they beat last year, and
Speaker 2: I don't again, anything can happen in a short series,
Speaker 2: but I don't think the Phillies have enough pitching. The
Speaker 2: Phillies are still starting Aaron Nola in one of these
Speaker 2: I guess in one of these games, probably the Brewers.
Speaker 2: I don't think the Brewers would get swept, but again,
Speaker 2: I just don't know how they're pitching staff Bears in
Speaker 2: a short series where they get to, you know, where
Speaker 2: they have to match up.
Speaker 1: Maybe Woodrow throws eighty two. Yeah, and the unlocks. Uh,
Speaker 1: I mean the Brewers starting miss Rasky and Harrison. I
Speaker 1: feel like I'm more comfortable with that one too, sure
Speaker 1: as it currently stands, and certainly last year, but yeah,
Speaker 1: past that, you know.
Speaker 2: The Dodgers appear to have an actual this year.
Speaker 3: Yeah, the Dodgers are having like the most competent normal
Speaker 3: regular season they've had in a while.
Speaker 2: And yeah, they're going to win like one hundred and
Speaker 2: three games probably.
Speaker 3: This ship seems steady, which probably means they'll lose in
Speaker 3: the playoffs. But yeah, look, it's any reasonable look at
Speaker 3: the standings, you got to pick the Dodgers. I will
Speaker 3: I will take the Brewers just out of the y
Speaker 3: will eventually happen.
Speaker 2: I think if that happens, though, it's going to be
Speaker 2: like we need the Dave Roberts leaves shoheo tani and
Speaker 2: for too long and Alec Parlson has a three run
Speaker 2: home run and tribute to Matt Carpenter or something.
Speaker 1: Yeah.
Speaker 3: Yeah, I'm not saying that guy were necessarily beat the Dodgers,
Speaker 3: but that's.
Speaker 2: Left at the end the end. Yeah, braves don't have
Speaker 2: enough pitching.
Speaker 1: Boy, you know, like three weeks ago, the Braves that
Speaker 1: have been so tempting and now they are starting, they
Speaker 1: they will get they will patch holes like that.
Speaker 2: I mean, they will be active at the deadlight. I
Speaker 2: just don't know like they're starting. They're already starting. Bryce
Speaker 2: Elder and Grant Homes Yeah.
Speaker 1: Right, Uh, they'll get swelling back at some point.
Speaker 2: Yeah, that's like a.
Speaker 1: At some point. I'm not sure whether that uh yeah yeah.
Speaker 2: Michael Harris is cooling off a little bit, which is
Speaker 2: going to happen.
Speaker 1: Yeah, you know Martin Perez or a check, it's three
Speaker 1: on the dog.
Speaker 2: It's Martin Prez is still doing it like Dom Smith isn't.
Speaker 2: Like Dom Smith's down to two seventy nine th seventeen four,
Speaker 2: which is like fine, yeah, it's also want to wait
Speaker 2: for Dom Smith, but it's not he's no longer like
Speaker 2: carrying the lineup.
Speaker 1: Yeah.
Speaker 2: Yeah, like they have been able to keep their catchers
Speaker 2: healthy either, which has been well, why Joey Bart is here?
Speaker 1: It's still mad about the trade. I should write about that,
Speaker 1: I guess.
Speaker 2: So okay, So, I mean it's a really good bullpen,
Speaker 2: I guess if they get in. But yeah, I know I.
Speaker 1: Will begrudgingly go with the Dodgers as well. I would.
Speaker 1: I'm I would like to say someone else. I'm desperately
Speaker 1: searching for a reason not too, but I don't think
Speaker 1: you can come up with one. I think at least
Speaker 1: there are a good teams, right, at least you can,
Speaker 1: like if the Dodgers in the American League, this segment
Speaker 1: would have been over about five minutes ago, right, Yeah,
Speaker 1: So speaking in the American League, you have the Yankee
Speaker 1: forty eight wins, the Rays at forty four, Craig not
Speaker 1: here somewhere off just like bellowing into the night. Cleveland's
Speaker 1: so forty two, Chicago is at forty one, Seattle is
Speaker 1: it forty one? We're already at teams that are five hundred.
Speaker 2: Yeah, man, very quickly, what do you guys think I.
Speaker 3: Would gonna be something the Blue.
Speaker 2: Jays, It's gonna be some. I just feel like I
Speaker 2: guess the chalk is the Yankees because they all have
Speaker 2: Judge back by then it's a really good front of
Speaker 2: the rotation. Although I'm Garrett Cole doesn't seem to like
Speaker 2: Gary called this just way, but Garrett Cole is now right.
Speaker 2: But yeah, they have enough pitching.
Speaker 3: Yeah, I support in the lineup now they have supporting
Speaker 3: like that.
Speaker 2: Ben Rice has been basically Aaron Judge this year. So
Speaker 2: I just don't I don't feel it. I guess for
Speaker 2: the bit, I should pick the Rays. So I'm gonna
Speaker 2: pick the Rays and they qualify as as well. Chandler
Speaker 2: Simpson's warming back up. Y, Yeah, all right, rob Manfred,
Speaker 2: you got what you wanted going into a CVA negotiation,
Speaker 2: Brewers Rays. The economy of baseball is fine.
Speaker 1: Yeah. I think the Yankees they're just clear favorites at
Speaker 1: this point. They have the depth of other teams.
Speaker 2: They're not even that good. Is that that they do?
Speaker 2: They do The top of their roster is better than
Speaker 2: any other top of the roster.
Speaker 3: Right here, I could be talked into the Tigers if
Speaker 3: they make up.
Speaker 2: Oh god, you welcome to the podcast.
Speaker 3: But I'll take the Blue Jays.
Speaker 1: I'll take you think they can overcome that three run,
Speaker 1: three win deaf sent under the Twins. The Twins first,
Speaker 1: my the the answer. I want my heart wants the
Speaker 1: Astros to pull this off. I don't even know why.
Speaker 1: I think it would just be scary for.
Speaker 3: That, I don't know Brown going every day.
Speaker 1: Yeah, sure, run in Peter Lambert.
Speaker 2: Peter Lambert, game teacher star here for that.
Speaker 1: Yeah, Spencer Arraghetty just outruns his fip for the entire season. Yeah,
Speaker 1: it would be very good. Uh, it won't happen, but it'd.
Speaker 2: Be very good. God, these playoffs are going to be
Speaker 2: who do you even put in the the annual Raised
Speaker 2: Guardians one PM? Yeah, wild card spot? Is it just
Speaker 2: gonna it's me the Rais and the Guardians. There could
Speaker 2: be three series like that.
Speaker 1: Yeah, you kind of like you do kind of hope
Speaker 1: for some Athletics White Sox nonsense.
Speaker 2: One of these teams, one of the Ales, either the
Speaker 2: AL Central winner or the AL West winner has to
Speaker 2: get a bye.
Speaker 3: That's true.
Speaker 1: Yeah, it's true.
Speaker 2: So the Guardians might have to wait to play the Rays.
Speaker 2: It might be Raised Athletics INZAC Manta.
Speaker 1: And then we we you know, the Podres are technically
Speaker 1: in a wild card spot right now facing them. We
Speaker 1: talked about Cleveland, Cleveland Podres.
Speaker 3: What's the fewest runs the team has ever scored in
Speaker 3: a postseason series.
Speaker 2: It's the Raised Guardian. I'm pretty like that. Then they
Speaker 2: have that sixteen.
Speaker 1: Yeah, and then they won like two to one the
Speaker 1: night before ye two games swep before runs. Yeah, yeah,
Speaker 1: all right, number We'll go on the topic number two.
Speaker 1: If you choose not to decide, you still have made
Speaker 1: a choice, Jeff, with these in the docs, so we're
Speaker 1: gonna I'm gonna let him sell who we're supposed to
Speaker 1: be picking between on these.
Speaker 2: So I was looking into actual Rookie of the Year article,
Speaker 2: which I'm not gonna end up writing, but I'm repurposing
Speaker 2: for this because when I looked up mcgonagh one weather Hold,
Speaker 2: not only are they post on all your statistical metrics
Speaker 2: of choice, even up to an including war under the hood,
Speaker 2: they are almost a exactly the same player like every
Speaker 2: exit velocity marker, contact marker, damage marker, swing decision marker.
Speaker 2: Now McGonagall does make a little more contact and uh
Speaker 2: as a better approach Weatherhole is clearly the better defender
Speaker 2: at this point, very good defensive second basement. But my
Speaker 2: question was simply, and I've kind of already a little
Speaker 2: bit of addressed this in the end of Rookie of
Speaker 2: the Year, after the rook of the Year segment after
Speaker 2: Patrick trains the agenda, but basically, who would you want
Speaker 2: who would you want going forward out of these two guys?
Speaker 1: A well, surprise, mcgonagall's ISO is down to one.
Speaker 2: It's mostly like doubles. Actually, I should say he's not
Speaker 2: hitting as many doubles as I thought he would hit,
Speaker 2: which was like the home run rate. I think we'll
Speaker 2: get to like fifteen twenty home runs, but he's not
Speaker 2: heading as many doubles as I thought he would.
Speaker 3: Yeah, I mean I tipped my hand earlier. But I
Speaker 3: like McGonagall. There's something in my pattern recognition brain that
Speaker 3: places him more in the class of guys who have
Speaker 3: really figured out getting the bat to the ball and
Speaker 3: can later figure out an approach to occasionally get the
Speaker 3: bat to the ball way out in front to hit
Speaker 3: pull home runs. Like he feels like that type of
Speaker 3: guy that will add another level. So I would take him.
Speaker 3: I would not be stunned if weather Hold ends up
Speaker 3: being the better player, but I still like mcgonagall's ceiling
Speaker 3: a lot more.
Speaker 2: Yeah, it's it's funny because you look at their profiles
Speaker 2: and it really is like marginal stuff, but it's also
Speaker 2: marginal stuff that adds up. Like the his like weather
Speaker 2: Holds see contacts like eighty six eighty seven, which is
Speaker 2: very good. Mcgonaga's is like low nineties, which does make
Speaker 2: a difference when you know you're trying. If you're trying
Speaker 2: to you know, run the balance and sell out for
Speaker 2: a little more power, you've just got more to give
Speaker 2: back without you know, strikeouts creeping in or quality of
Speaker 2: contact decreasing like weather Hole. Weather Hoole pulls the ball
Speaker 2: up fair a bit, but it's like two percent less
Speaker 2: in the air, So it's just like enough that over
Speaker 2: you know, a six hundred at bat five hundred ball
Speaker 2: in play sample, like, it does start to add up
Speaker 2: around the margins, which is again why I think you're
Speaker 2: seeing like a fifty point spread in batting average right now.
Speaker 2: You have to like Weatherhole has weather Hold, This kind
Speaker 2: of just feels like what weather Hop will be until
Speaker 2: you know, whatever the athleticism goes or the bas fue
Speaker 2: Goes or whatever. Well, you could see McGonagall like he
Speaker 2: figured it out so quickly, but also you could see
Speaker 2: just him taking a year and just being like, oh,
Speaker 2: coming back next year and be like, Okay, I'm gonna
Speaker 2: hit twenty five home runs this year.
Speaker 1: Ye I'm gonna be that hitter instead.
Speaker 2: Give me that hit her.
Speaker 3: Yeah yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1: It doesn't help that. I feel like every time that
Speaker 1: I see McGonagall, studies made some clutch hit to win it.
Speaker 2: Yeah. Yeah, he does come in like he feels more
Speaker 2: like he'll go over four were then have a two
Speaker 2: home run game the next day. Well, McGonagall just goes
Speaker 2: one for three with the walk every single game. So
Speaker 2: that's that aspect to it. Like, I don't mcgonagall's actually
Speaker 2: graded out better on the left side than I thought
Speaker 2: he would. I think they should still probably move in
Speaker 2: to second base long term once Glaber leaves, But they
Speaker 2: also are discussing this with some people yesterday or Tuesday,
Speaker 2: I don't remember. And just like, the Tigers have to
Speaker 2: fill three infield positions and he can only play one,
Speaker 2: and I don't know if they're able to find a
Speaker 2: short stop, so maybe you just him at shortstop. And
Speaker 2: live with and hope he can at least for a
Speaker 2: few years and hope he can basically battle it to
Speaker 2: a draw.
Speaker 1: Yeah yeah, I mean, I.
Speaker 2: Don't know where they're finding a second basement, a third
Speaker 2: I guess. I guess Jazz is a free agent. But
Speaker 2: the free agent class is terrible. They don't really have
Speaker 2: an internal like they've gone through their internal infield options,
Speaker 2: like it's not going to be Chase Young and or
Speaker 2: how you lay. I don't think t is done, Tween
Speaker 2: is gone, Hape Bias is here for another year.
Speaker 1: But it's true.
Speaker 3: Whether is Zach mckinstreet.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean, they'll still be here as well. I'm
Speaker 2: pretty sure that fear might be looming.
Speaker 1: I guess between them, I'm gonna pick the guy with
Speaker 1: the walk great higher than the strikeout rate. Probably just
Speaker 1: is a nice safe outlet.
Speaker 2: All right, So our next one again, we talked about
Speaker 2: this little bit in MVP, but like Peak, her Armstrong
Speaker 2: or Andy Pyees, both have taken pretty big jumps this year.
Speaker 2: PA has more on the defensive side of though he
Speaker 2: is hitting better as well. PCA has been, you know,
Speaker 2: a legitimate NL MVP candidate. But how much we believe
Speaker 2: in this going forward.
Speaker 3: I'm one as a as a preference in those two
Speaker 3: and I don't really like PCA at the levels of
Speaker 3: which I should. I think the play discipline scares the
Speaker 3: hell out of me, but I think he has the
Speaker 3: other stuff to make up for it, whereas PA has
Speaker 3: does this thing where it's like two months he's swinging
Speaker 3: at everything and hitting everything, and two months he's swinging
Speaker 3: it everything and has a zero seven to five batting average.
Speaker 3: I mean, it's really PAHZ feels like a poor man's
Speaker 3: Michael Harris the second to me, which is obviously not
Speaker 3: the level that I think PCA can be better than that.
Speaker 1: So yeah, I cannot believe the PCA has a nine
Speaker 1: point three walk percentage right now. He's the three sixty
Speaker 1: six a weep. It can't hold up. Like he does
Speaker 1: not have a plate discipline to support that.
Speaker 2: He's like he's just swinging less basically this year, like
Speaker 2: lesson he's still chasing, and he's swinging more or less
Speaker 2: in the zone, which is not normally what you'd want
Speaker 2: in this scenario. But like he is hitting the ball harder.
Speaker 2: But there's nothing here to me that says like this
Speaker 2: is real, Like none of the under Like there's a
Speaker 2: lot of blue going to red on the savant page
Speaker 2: where everybody but like squared up percentage still like blue
Speaker 2: Chase dark blue with blue Kay Again, they're all better
Speaker 2: than they were last year, like he is. His whiff
Speaker 2: has gone from twenty third percentile to twenty seventh, his
Speaker 2: chase has gone from second to eleventh, but his walk
Speaker 2: has gone from fourth to fifty third. Like it doesn't
Speaker 2: it seems like a weird sequencing thing.
Speaker 1: He's like, yeah, he's he's like ninety fifth percentile on
Speaker 1: on zone percentage. Like they just don't throw them strikes.
Speaker 1: So I guess if you're just gonna stop swinging at strikes,
Speaker 1: it's good that they aren't throwing that many to begin with, right.
Speaker 1: I don't know if that holds up, But you know,
Speaker 1: we were talking about Bryce Harper early in the year
Speaker 1: and how he was suddenly getting strikes and now he's
Speaker 1: down to you know, like the second lowest zone rate
Speaker 1: in baseball.
Speaker 3: You like PCA. In fact, I bet there will be
Speaker 3: an article about this between now and the All Star
Speaker 3: Game that everyone will memory hole within a week. But
Speaker 3: it feels like he's taken Alex Bregman's advice without the
Speaker 3: eye to do he's supposed to do with that, but
Speaker 3: he's still got the physical talent that it works out
Speaker 3: fine anyway. But yeah, he's he's doing this like more
Speaker 3: he's trying to impose patience upon himself without the actual
Speaker 3: discipline or not discipline the nuance of his eye to
Speaker 3: to make hay with that.
Speaker 2: But you know, yeah, like I assume this had been
Speaker 2: like usually when you see this happen, it's a guy
Speaker 2: that without like an actual swing decision improvement, they're still chasing,
Speaker 2: but they're just fouling more stuff off and eventually, but
Speaker 2: he's not. I was zone contact is almost exactly the
Speaker 2: same as I was last year. Like, there's no reason
Speaker 2: for Milwaukee in this much.
Speaker 1: I'm gonna take Pca just because the other reason Paties
Speaker 1: is a year older, which the single year doesn't seem
Speaker 1: like me much.
Speaker 2: But it actually does. I mean, I think that's right.
Speaker 2: I just don't. It was interesting to because I'm looking
Speaker 2: at this like PCA has clearly been the better player
Speaker 2: this year, and I could back he might have been
Speaker 2: the better player last year even with the bad second half,
Speaker 2: because Piees was like good but not great, but like
Speaker 2: I don't believe it, Like this is one of those
Speaker 2: things where it's just like the vibes are off, like yeah,
Speaker 2: like I don't like the Harris is obviously having a
Speaker 2: good season this year, but he had two really bad
Speaker 2: ones before this, Like yeah, so like could Pca like
Speaker 2: have that kind of like we just falls off a
Speaker 2: cliff the next year. By that, I mean it's like
Speaker 2: ninety seven ops plus with good center field defense, but
Speaker 2: it isn't carrying your lineup and then just pop with
Speaker 2: up one of these seasons when he's twenty seven, Yeah, probably,
Speaker 2: I think Pies will like really be more consistent, but
Speaker 2: just fall off. Yeah, sooner, like he's going to be
Speaker 2: a right fielder DH by the time he's like twenty
Speaker 2: nine probably yeah.
Speaker 1: Yeah. And he doesn't walk either, like like he's he's
Speaker 1: got a three eighteen OVP Yeah yeah, right.
Speaker 2: Would you rather be David Stearns or Craig Bresla.
Speaker 1: I'm gonna have to tackle this today because I'm gonna
Speaker 1: have to write about this David Peterson trade. We'll talk
Speaker 1: about in a little bit. I don't watch the Mets,
Speaker 1: and I think that's very Yes, I think it's a
Speaker 1: very wise choice. It makes it very hard to understand
Speaker 1: what's going on with David Peterson, whose the area is
Speaker 1: like double his FIP at this point. Yeah, but it
Speaker 1: feels like that with every single David Stern's move, Like
Speaker 1: with Craig Breslow, every time he does something you shout
Speaker 1: at the TV immediately, and every time David Sterns does
Speaker 1: something you nod approvingly, and then it goes terribly wrong.
Speaker 3: Yeah, yeah, I actually think the phrasing of the question matters.
Speaker 3: You said, who would you rather be? Yeah, I think
Speaker 3: I would rather be Craig Breslow because at least, yeah,
Speaker 3: my actions lead to reasonable consequence and I'll probably be
Speaker 3: put out of my misery soon. David Sterns. It's like,
Speaker 3: if if you phrased it, who would you read there
Speaker 3: have as your team's executive That would take David Stearns
Speaker 3: by a mile. But like, because I was in support
Speaker 3: of pretty much everything David Sterns did, I thought that
Speaker 3: all made sense. Some of it was obviously risky, but
Speaker 3: in a way that teams do all the time, and
Speaker 3: it just has all gone splat, And so, yeah, I
Speaker 3: feel like David Stearns is in this weird situation where
Speaker 3: he's taking on the brunt of what might just be
Speaker 3: a weird black cloud hanging over city Field, and Craig
Speaker 3: Breslow has his at least, you know, he had the
Speaker 3: giant cloud machine out and put the cloud over Fenways,
Speaker 3: so he's in control of his own fate.
Speaker 2: It's very funny too, because it feels like Breslo is
Speaker 2: the guy the Mets will have to hire if they panic,
Speaker 2: because that's how Bresla ended up getting that job, basically
Speaker 2: like that, Yeah, I don't know who it would be.
Speaker 2: I don't know who the Craig Breslow is right now,
Speaker 2: but I don't know who's taking that Mets job. Yeah,
Speaker 2: I just I don't think Stearns is getting fired, although
Speaker 2: it keeps getting I just I think there's too much.
Speaker 2: There's been too much stuff in the Mets executive suite
Speaker 2: over the last decade. So they finally got somebody like
Speaker 2: what is Steve Cohen going to go higher corn ferry
Speaker 2: and go get a corn ferry because he's not like
Speaker 2: who's he going to pick? But I do think there'll
Speaker 2: be changes coming.
Speaker 1: Sure.
Speaker 2: Bresola feels like he could just like Boston, so Breslow
Speaker 2: as a sort of Steinbrenner ish as so as soon
Speaker 2: as the sign better traits that Cohen gets attributed, which
Speaker 2: I don't think are entirely accurate. The Red Sox front office.
Speaker 2: Red Sox ownership is the ones that like well immediately,
Speaker 2: and they do it for different reasons than Steinbrender did.
Speaker 2: It's more to like protecting Sime. BRender was legitimately just
Speaker 2: upset whenever they lost the game. The Red Sox ownership
Speaker 2: feels like, Okay, people are looking at us, time to
Speaker 2: fire the GM, Like, well, let's give them something else
Speaker 2: to talk about.
Speaker 3: I mean, the Red Sox are depressing. Mickey Gasper is
Speaker 3: the Meadoff man. I mean it is, the Mets are confounding.
Speaker 3: The Red Sox are just like, oh this is bad, and.
Speaker 2: Yeah, like the Red Sox, like I think if these
Speaker 2: if you had your the converse of this, if you
Speaker 2: had your pick up the job, I think you would
Speaker 2: definitely take the Red Sox job. Weirdly, just because like
Speaker 2: they have these like obviously Anthony's been hurt most of
Speaker 2: the year, but they have these good young players. You know,
Speaker 2: you can go build around early and totally in the
Speaker 2: rotation and like our ranger Swaz has been fine. I
Speaker 2: don't have all that contracts going to age. We can fine,
Speaker 2: like you should be able to, Like there's just more layups,
Speaker 2: Like you just need to go get a third basement.
Speaker 2: That's better than Caleb Durban, right, Like.
Speaker 3: Don't get absolutely hoodwinked by the Brewers.
Speaker 2: That Trevors is almost done. Yeah, like it does not
Speaker 2: feel it feels like you could do were there Like
Speaker 2: the Mets, I mean, you have one Soto, right, You'll
Speaker 2: always have one Sodo and actually you can move on
Speaker 2: from that, you know. The other I don't know. People
Speaker 2: like the chef might actually hit well enough that he
Speaker 2: opts out. Given the quality of the free agent class
Speaker 2: on the position player side, he can probably beat too.
Speaker 2: But I think it's like two seventy left on this
Speaker 2: deal after this year, Like I probably beat that, which
Speaker 2: would be I think good for both sides at this point.
Speaker 2: But the Mets, like if he's good enough to opt out,
Speaker 2: they're still going to replace that production. Right here, you
Speaker 2: have like McLean has been scuffling, but I think it'll
Speaker 2: be fine. You know, benja Ewing have been have like
Speaker 2: the normal like good prospect rookie transition season where they
Speaker 2: haven't maybe actualized all of their skills, but they're going
Speaker 2: to be like three win players, right, and then it's like,
Speaker 2: you know, they should be able to solve first base,
Speaker 2: Like firstly base is not like with someone other than
Speaker 2: Mark Biento's basically like Alvarez when he's healthy, has been
Speaker 2: a perfectly fine catcher. But it just it does as
Speaker 2: someone that has covered the Mets for fifteen years now,
Speaker 2: like I don't believe in the like the black cloud stuff,
Speaker 2: but like this year has been kind of confounding and
Speaker 2: that yeah. Actually, like no, they were just like bad
Speaker 2: at putting together a baseball team before and I caught
Speaker 2: up with them by the end of the season. Now
Speaker 2: they might actually be cursed.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I mean the Mets aren't even that old, Like.
Speaker 2: Yeah, no, they're not the young players for a.
Speaker 1: While on this you just decide to give up on him,
Speaker 1: yeah the doors thirty two. Otherwise, like nobody on this
Speaker 1: team is really like if Bishet moves on, you know,
Speaker 1: SODA's twenty seven and he's like now one of the
Speaker 1: oldest players on the lineup. Like I don't know, they
Speaker 1: seem as long as I don't look at them, they
Speaker 1: seem fine, but when it comes to the Sterns, I
Speaker 1: was thinking, just like, I feel like the Mets need
Speaker 1: to need to keep Sterns just to have some stability
Speaker 1: in the front office, the way that other teams have
Speaker 1: to reset the cap. Yeah, three years of one guy
Speaker 1: just to calm down so the next time you can
Speaker 1: make a rational decision. Yeah, yeah, it's weird.
Speaker 2: And the other thing, And I talked about a lot
Speaker 2: with Jared on our podcast, but there really wasn't like,
Speaker 2: even with like perfect hindsight, there really wasn't an alternate
Speaker 2: path here, like just keeping McNeil, Alonzo and Nemo and
Speaker 2: have done it. Like Alonzo has been a eight hundred
Speaker 2: ops first baseman, which is fine, better than what they're
Speaker 2: rolling out, but not enough to make that McNeil's been
Speaker 2: terrible and Nimo has been frankly, probably worse than benja Ewing.
Speaker 3: So yeah, I was gonna say Nimo has probably he's
Speaker 3: been better than Semion, but that's only because he wouldn't
Speaker 3: have been the same with the Mets because he wouldn't
Speaker 3: have been playing He shouldn't have been playing outfield, Like It's.
Speaker 2: One of the reasons he waved his no trade is
Speaker 2: they wanted him to play Jace Morning you wanted to
Speaker 2: keep playing the outfield. Uh, and then like the others
Speaker 2: butt like okay, they could have gotten Ryan O'Hearn instead
Speaker 2: of Jorge Polanco. Good. Yeah, again, like you're just not
Speaker 2: even like you don't do the peralta trade like Froten
Speaker 2: Williams aren't helping you. You still have to like fill
Speaker 2: those innings and you're all the pictures you've rolled out there,
Speaker 2: like what picture are you signing? Yeah, I guess Michael
Speaker 2: King if you don't, if you don't find playing third
Speaker 2: base like even yeah, I mean Bellinger is the one
Speaker 2: right like you and they were around. Have you gotten
Speaker 2: Bellinger and Schwarmer, Like you can look at this and
Speaker 2: be like, oh, but that gets you closer. I mean,
Speaker 2: Bellinger's been very good, but again, the replacement level here
Speaker 2: is a j ewing.
Speaker 3: It's not replacement level, and Bellinger might not be as
Speaker 3: good in that park.
Speaker 2: Ye, right, so as that too, you know, even I mean,
Speaker 2: if you get Bellinger and swar whether you're a five
Speaker 2: hundred team right, like it's oh yeah, and that's maybe
Speaker 2: enough to make a run second half, it's better. But
Speaker 2: like that's and that's the perfect kid sight Like, it
Speaker 2: just wasn't like they didn't get a step forward. So
Speaker 2: the guys they need step forwards. And they maybe shouldn't
Speaker 2: have been making on some of them, but you know,
Speaker 2: I think they something like Lindor and Soto have played
Speaker 2: like ten games together.
Speaker 1: Yeah, we should know it.
Speaker 2: I put it in around the horns if we're out
Speaker 2: about it. But I guess we can do it here
Speaker 2: like priscoal and Door is just back ye yep, Yeah,
Speaker 2: they just like know he had played three rehab games.
Speaker 2: I don't think he played it back to back and
Speaker 2: then you just played the second game the double dder.
Speaker 3: Yea's what you gotta do.
Speaker 1: I guess.
Speaker 2: I guess like that doesn't make a lot of sense
Speaker 2: to me. But where we are, well.
Speaker 1: The Mets are at that point of the season where
Speaker 1: they're just sick of everybody that's there.
Speaker 2: Yeah, it's still mine running more.
Speaker 1: You said, we're just we're just sick of him. We
Speaker 1: just need to not have him beyond the team.
Speaker 2: Uh and now one specifically for Patrick, but you know
Speaker 2: going forward, would you rather be the Rockies or the Royals?
Speaker 1: Royals? Next section, well, I want to see the Rockies
Speaker 1: develop a picture please, Yeah, until they do that totally,
Speaker 1: Like it's like the first thing on the driving test,
Speaker 1: can you can you pull your pull into traffic? Right?
Speaker 3: You know?
Speaker 1: Great for Antonio sense of telling. Victor Voonmick has a
Speaker 1: seven point zero six y R right like your closer
Speaker 1: has a seven e arra. I don't think.
Speaker 2: They've make the moves they've made around the margins have
Speaker 2: like mostly worked out. I mean I'm talking mostly. I'm
Speaker 2: talking about like Troy Johnson and t J. Rumfeld. But
Speaker 2: like they seem to be able to identify that kind
Speaker 2: of player in a way the previous Rockies administrations were not,
Speaker 2: or they the Rockies administrations shot higher and like you know,
Speaker 2: they got like Nolan Jones for a year and that
Speaker 2: just fell apart. I look at it might for.
Speaker 3: T J.
Speaker 2: Rumfeld and Troy Johnson, but it feels like they've had
Speaker 2: to do less. There's takes less effort to get this
Speaker 2: kind of production.
Speaker 1: It's so easy not to lose one hundred and twenty games.
Speaker 1: It is.
Speaker 3: In fact, I will, yeah, I will counterpoint that the
Speaker 3: Royals are getting stressful to me in the Angels way
Speaker 3: of oh, they really don't don't know what to do.
Speaker 3: In addition to Bobby wit Junior like the the other like,
Speaker 3: it's great that Jack Kaglione has started to figure things out.
Speaker 3: That's a huge development for them. I just, oh, what
Speaker 3: are we doing with Nick Lofton and Isaac Collins.
Speaker 1: And literally gets plus every year for the rest of
Speaker 1: the job.
Speaker 3: What was it get John Rave or whatever? Like? Who
Speaker 3: is whoever plays the outfield for them? Is just like
Speaker 3: it's not even that they turn into a pumpkin. They
Speaker 3: only buy rotten pumpkins for the Mike Field.
Speaker 1: M J. Melynd Is is good enough to start at the
Speaker 1: h for the New York Mets. It must have been
Speaker 1: all right, Yeah, they it would be nice to see
Speaker 1: them develop somebody who isn't like a high first round pick, right.
Speaker 3: I just worry about the Royals that like their big
Speaker 3: show of force last year was signing to thirty four
Speaker 3: to thirty five year old pitchers for longer. It's like
Speaker 3: this is they already hadn't work out that well.
Speaker 2: And I do fine, Yeah, the pictures they just can't. Yeah,
Speaker 2: their farms just some remains very bad though. The Rockies
Speaker 2: isn't great either. Yeah, And I think the argument for
Speaker 2: the Rockies is they have confident executives from twenty twelve,
Speaker 2: which they've never had before. Now, I don't know if
Speaker 2: that gets them the upside past the Bobby Witt Royals.
Speaker 2: But I also don't know what the Royals are gonna
Speaker 2: do different.
Speaker 3: Yeah, I think the argument for the Rockies is that
Speaker 3: they made a regime change. In the Royals, we're still
Speaker 3: on Dayton Moore's underlings.
Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, yeah, I mean we've we've hit we've hit
Speaker 1: the late miguilerbre years of Salvat repairs. They're just gonna
Speaker 1: play them every day.
Speaker 2: Yeah, even though they have the two forty six OVP
Speaker 2: Jensen Carter Carter, Yeah.
Speaker 1: They probably could name Jensen Carter.
Speaker 2: Yeah, Carter Carter like a baseball player than Carter Jensen.
Speaker 2: Now that it does.
Speaker 1: Yeah, but still I'm sorry.
Speaker 2: I mean, I guess the Brails advantages are also in
Speaker 2: the El Central.
Speaker 1: Yeah, that is that does help not having to stare
Speaker 1: up at the Dodgers forever. All right, let's go ahead
Speaker 1: and take a break and we'llcome back to the show
Speaker 1: and finish the rest. All right, welcome back. We're on
Speaker 1: to segment three. A farewell to arms which is a
Speaker 1: better novel than the sports writer. Uh. First, we'll start
Speaker 1: with every Cubs pitcher. If you are a Cubs pitcher,
Speaker 1: you may want to, you know, find a safe place
Speaker 1: to hide because every one is getting hurt. Their rotation
Speaker 1: currently I think is, uh, it's Boyd back. I don't
Speaker 1: think Boyd's he comes back tonight. Okay, So as we're recording,
Speaker 1: the current rotation is Ray and Asad I think, And
Speaker 1: then that's literally it. There are three pictures in the rotation.
Speaker 2: They have added two.
Speaker 1: So well, so we will get to there. They've added pictures.
Speaker 1: I don't know if they're starters. So yeah, Edward Cabrera,
Speaker 1: he is on the il Ben Brown, I can't remember
Speaker 1: what the injuries were covering Like everybody else, I feel
Speaker 1: like it's been it's been a real hamstring year. And
Speaker 1: then you know, put in the dock house and can
Speaker 1: they make a trade, And the answer was thirty minutes after.
Speaker 2: In the should they make a trade? And then I
Speaker 2: got the betification they traded.
Speaker 1: And the trade is David Peterson for Cole Mathis Peterson.
Speaker 1: He had the ninety d R A minus.
Speaker 2: Yeah, like, look, I do think Peterson has been a
Speaker 2: little unlucky this year. I don't think he's been enough
Speaker 2: unlucky to want him in your starting irritation.
Speaker 1: I mean the reaction every Mets fan I saw. The
Speaker 1: reaction was, oh, we got somebody.
Speaker 2: Yeah, and then this came out. I'm like, like, what
Speaker 2: a ball reliever with interesting rates are they going to
Speaker 2: get for twelve starts of David Peterson? And I guess
Speaker 2: you're paying the premium to get actual She's probably more
Speaker 2: in twelve starts. You're getting fourteen starts of David Peterson
Speaker 2: instead of ten starts of David Peterson.
Speaker 1: Yeah, boy, that's fan. Yeah, and you get more starts
Speaker 1: of David Peterson.
Speaker 2: Look, the Cubs literally needed a body, and I don't
Speaker 2: know how many teams would be willing to trade it,
Speaker 2: like a current starting pitcher on.
Speaker 3: Do you think there was a premium that David Peterson
Speaker 3: could literally.
Speaker 2: Get on across the cup house. Yeah, he'd be he
Speaker 2: could start to pitch last but yeah, like, yeah, you
Speaker 2: can just get on the plane. They don't have to
Speaker 2: worry about like travel or any that.
Speaker 1: Yeah, it's weird. The man meets a flock yep. Yeah,
Speaker 1: I mean like, no, he's not striking. He hasn't struck
Speaker 1: out matters in a while, right, and that would seem
Speaker 1: to be he used to strike out, like you know,
Speaker 1: average amount in like last three years has been twenty,
Speaker 1: twenty and twenty. Yes, that's not going to get it
Speaker 1: done when you walk nine or ten.
Speaker 3: His sequencing seems to be at all times exactly what
Speaker 3: the other hitters think it's going.
Speaker 2: Yeah, well, my favorite, like Peterson had the good second
Speaker 2: half and what twenty four, No, it was before it
Speaker 2: was twenty his first like good part. I think it
Speaker 2: was twenty two. I think I don't remember. He had
Speaker 2: one season where like basically his slider was getting a
Speaker 2: forty percent with right and then Jeremy Haffner told him
Speaker 2: to change his shape so he gets spot it in
Speaker 2: his zone more and everything went to crap, like that
Speaker 2: just didn't work, Like you need good guys to chase
Speaker 2: your slider. It was like the shape change and getting
Speaker 2: hit a lot harder and missing fewer bats. And like
Speaker 2: he's shown I saw a Lance Perdowski sweet it was
Speaker 2: based like oh the Cubs traded for a cut ride
Speaker 2: fastball guy that needs a sweeper, Like I'm shocked, and
Speaker 2: like basically like yeah, there's there is a he's never
Speaker 2: He's always pitched like the sinker ball where he was
Speaker 2: in college and never pitched like a modern starting pitcher
Speaker 2: with that arsenal. They never added like he has a curveball.
Speaker 2: The sider is good, but he needs something like slower
Speaker 2: than the slider but harder than the curve that he
Speaker 2: barely throws. It would be a sweeper and he has
Speaker 2: the armslot for it, and he just needs to throw
Speaker 2: his forcing up in his own is like it's not
Speaker 2: a good pitch, but it's better. Yeah, and his sinker
Speaker 2: especially is going against righties, and said he just throws
Speaker 2: a not particularly good change up, like it's not a
Speaker 2: bad change up, but it's like a forty five change
Speaker 2: up too much. I don't know if the Cubs. The
Speaker 2: Cubs are just looking at this like, oh, we know
Speaker 2: what they do with this, and they will just let
Speaker 2: David Peterson David Peterson instead of I think making the
Speaker 2: fixes here.
Speaker 1: But it's never what they've done with the other.
Speaker 2: Every other pictures they have. Yeah, but I did not
Speaker 2: think like Cole Mathis. Look, he's hurt all he's been
Speaker 2: hurt basically since his junior year of college. But to
Speaker 2: get him out of a system that is very bad
Speaker 2: and not particularly deep. I think is good. It is
Speaker 2: amusing to me. The David Peterson, like in his Monday
Speaker 2: press availability is that we need to reevaluate like our
Speaker 2: injury tolerance and then immediately trades for like the guy
Speaker 2: that's been hurt since his junior year of college, but
Speaker 2: like he might legit like it's a legitimate major league
Speaker 2: bad at first place, which is why we're all end up,
Speaker 2: which is not something i'd expect you to yet for
Speaker 2: two and a half three months of David Peterson.
Speaker 1: Is this is this the Mets signaling that they're packing
Speaker 1: it or is this just like we can't turn down
Speaker 1: this price?
Speaker 2: Yeah, I think it's I think it's more that. But
Speaker 2: they are going to pack it. They're going to pack
Speaker 2: it in. But I don't think that isn't it? Yeah,
Speaker 2: this isn't it. Yeah, it's well, I think when they
Speaker 2: start trading the relievers more than once, like Brooks Railey goes,
Speaker 2: I think you'll know for sure or if they deal Peralta.
Speaker 2: I assume they're gonna hold Peralta pretty close to the
Speaker 2: deadline because of Scooble lurking as well. But what. I
Speaker 2: think that once they start trading the relievers, that's when y'all.
Speaker 1: As somebody who likes to write ta's because it means
Speaker 1: I don't have to think of the topic three times
Speaker 1: a week. We've been this has been a light year
Speaker 1: for transactions. I feel like, is that is that my
Speaker 1: head just because.
Speaker 2: I I feel like we.
Speaker 1: Just haven't had many interesting moves, Like I don't know.
Speaker 3: Like this is interesting moves by this time or did
Speaker 3: we just get spoiled by the dev's chaos.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I guess there there is that, but then there
Speaker 1: was like, I don't know, I'm trying to think of
Speaker 1: what the other ones are.
Speaker 2: I feel like there's fairly early in the season, but
Speaker 2: that was also like five years ago. Now I go
Speaker 2: back and look, yeah.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I don't know. I can't tell. I mean, because
Speaker 1: we've had more injuries this year, you would think there
Speaker 1: would be more scrambling like this, and instead it's just.
Speaker 2: Been every team signing Austin's later.
Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, yeah, there's been too Austin's later playing for
Speaker 1: fourteens at the same time. Trying to tell you, but
Speaker 1: it's just weird. I don't know, It's probably just me.
Speaker 1: I just feel like my expectations are off. Next on
Speaker 1: the doc, Mick Abel is having elbow surgery. He has
Speaker 1: undergo his second setback each time he seems to apparently
Speaker 1: be doing well in his rehab and then having a
Speaker 1: set back. So now he's having anthroscopic surgery, not reconstructive surgery.
Speaker 1: He's they're going to look around and figure out why
Speaker 1: he can't heal. The Twins certainly are a baseball team.
Speaker 2: That's fighting for a playoff spot, STUF.
Speaker 1: Fighting for a playoff spot. Let's see where they are
Speaker 1: on the old playoff odds right now. You guys want
Speaker 1: to give a guess what loads what do you think?
Speaker 2: Coda liked the Twins too much coming end of the season,
Speaker 2: so I still like the Twins too much. I'm gonna
Speaker 2: say there's a lot of teams here probably must have
Speaker 2: liked whatever I'm thinking about this too much. Twenty seven.
Speaker 3: I'll say twelve percent.
Speaker 1: Okay, very good. Zach is, Yeah, they're they're about the
Speaker 1: Royals below the Tigers or the Jays are looking for
Speaker 1: starting pitching. This is uh. We could have pasted this
Speaker 1: into the doc for literally.
Speaker 2: Ross Atkins specifically, they are looking for, say.
Speaker 1: Pitching yeah, let's see what is there. I mean, they're
Speaker 1: get they got Pever back and he did not look sharp.
Speaker 1: Let's see what else they think. I mean Gosmin and
Speaker 1: uh yeah, Like the top of the rotation has been fine.
Speaker 3: I think it's been very good, very good. Even like
Speaker 3: has been good.
Speaker 1: Good. Savage is like Dieri weirdly hates your Savage. I'm
Speaker 1: not really sure what's going on. It's a small sample,
Speaker 1: but he's one.
Speaker 3: He has not thrown a ton of strikes since he.
Speaker 1: And he's giving up a lot of fly balls, which.
Speaker 2: He's gonna do.
Speaker 3: But I think he'll be fine in his own way.
Speaker 1: Dylan Cees, of course, has been like just on the
Speaker 1: getting into that. Yeah, it's a young conversation.
Speaker 2: We were well, yeah, like.
Speaker 1: There's a big Patrick corbyan big flashing Patrick Corban in
Speaker 1: the rotation. I think as long as Patrick Corbin's in
Speaker 1: your rotation, you are obligated to keep saying to join
Speaker 1: a rotation.
Speaker 2: It's really shocking to me that you know, they're getting
Speaker 2: this incredible all star season from Ernie Clement and they
Speaker 2: can't put it together.
Speaker 1: Yeah yeah, well they're getting an all Star season for
Speaker 1: basically every single year the team.
Speaker 3: They are, they're just the twenty fifteen Royals, which they
Speaker 3: really are. They're going to the World Series.
Speaker 1: Luckily we do have the two the runoff now, Yeah,
Speaker 1: like if we didn't have a runoff, this would be
Speaker 1: an actual annoying story. Yeah.
Speaker 3: I sent a bandwagon about Ernie Clement like moments before
Speaker 3: we've recorded this podcast. Uh, it's just like this is
Speaker 3: not really about Ernie Clement so much. This is just
Speaker 3: about like we enjoy the specter of someone beating the Dodgers,
Speaker 3: and Ernie Clement was the one who came the closest.
Speaker 1: He's a an aesthetically fun hitter, right, he swings at
Speaker 1: everything he like, Ernie Clement feels like he's the he
Speaker 1: can't keep getting away with it brother. Yeah. Yeah, uh,
Speaker 1: there's some there's some x S tininess here in the profile.
Speaker 1: I feel like, just annoying. Yeah, but the annoying hitter
Speaker 1: he can't you know, he just fouls stuff off.
Speaker 3: You just can't go scootero or something, right.
Speaker 1: So yeah, so and and sure, there of course is
Speaker 1: back sasms. So I don't well, we'll see like he
Speaker 1: feels he apparently he feels fine. His arm feels fine.
Speaker 1: Everything feels fine except the part of the body that
Speaker 1: happens to keep him for pitching at any given moment
Speaker 1: in time. This is how old age works. Ye, at
Speaker 1: least he's not justin Verlander, who is less optimistic, you know.
Speaker 1: So Sure's there's like, I'm fine, stop talking to me
Speaker 1: about this. I will pitch tomorrow. And then Verlander's like, yeah,
Speaker 1: it might be dying. Maybe this was all a huge mistake.
Speaker 1: I could be at a beach.
Speaker 3: Both need to hang it up.
Speaker 1: Yeah, well, then whatever they want to do, it's not
Speaker 1: hurting me. Kodi Singa is in the bullpen. Sure.
Speaker 2: I Also, I also wrote that before if they created
Speaker 2: David Peterson, that still holds.
Speaker 1: But yeah, that's true.
Speaker 3: I think David Peters, I think, I think is about
Speaker 3: to be in like an angel's uniform or possibly the
Speaker 3: padres or something.
Speaker 1: This is another one where I have just chosen not.
Speaker 2: He doesn't throw as hard as he needs to anymore.
Speaker 1: Yeah. Yeah, he has a career three point sixty three.
Speaker 2: Or it was under three before, she was under three before.
Speaker 1: The Yeah, let's see, he's still strikes. He can't, he's
Speaker 1: not throwing strikes and he's giving up our runs. So
Speaker 1: like you know if you do both of those things.
Speaker 2: That's right. He's not throwing as hard. Hitters aren't chasing
Speaker 2: the forkball as much, and everything else he throws it's
Speaker 2: anywhere near the zone, it gets crushed.
Speaker 1: Yeah, there's there's the forkball with nothing to support it.
Speaker 1: The spliff finger like the lead spliff finger pitch. It
Speaker 1: feels like it's the most cliff like falling off a
Speaker 1: cliff profile a pitcher can possibly have. I feel like
Speaker 1: we just keep saying it over.
Speaker 2: And also hasn't been healthy for the last like thirty months.
Speaker 1: Right, And finally, Carlos Grasco is fate.
Speaker 3: Which team was he on? Would you like to guess,
Speaker 3: Zach which really was he on the Braves?
Speaker 2: Yes, he was on the.
Speaker 1: He's be fade by the Braves I think seven times
Speaker 1: this season already. Yeah, he is just he has just
Speaker 1: got a motel on the edge of town.
Speaker 2: I just I put this in here because I'm sort
Speaker 2: of like in contrast to the surez Aer and for
Speaker 2: Lander's stuff, where obviously, uh, Crosco was not as good
Speaker 2: a picture as them, but he was quite a good
Speaker 2: pitcher in his day. Like we, Crasco is a guy
Speaker 2: that he can keep pitching like nothing is hurting him
Speaker 2: despite his age. But it's just it's but he's like
Speaker 2: he just keeps like he just shows up to the job,
Speaker 2: like he shows up to Gwinnette when he needs to,
Speaker 2: he shows up in Atlanta comp County when he needs to,
Speaker 2: and yeah, he's gonna do this for a while.
Speaker 1: It is like from a player standpoint, like it's not
Speaker 1: good that this exists, right, like this this weird, like
Speaker 1: this digital you know, tale of the forty man roster. Uh,
Speaker 1: but also like it's very funny that the Braves are
Speaker 1: the ones that just keep doing it. We have Jesse
Speaker 1: Shan and now we have a new Jesse Shavist, and
Speaker 1: there'll be another Jesse Shavis beyond that. Like it's a
Speaker 1: gross thing momentarily and a cool thing esthetically.
Speaker 3: I feel like, yeah, they're doing it with veterans instead
Speaker 3: of with like eighteen with what it does one veteran,
Speaker 3: one singular veteran instead of eighteen different guys who shouldn't
Speaker 3: be in the majors.
Speaker 1: That is true, And Carlos Carasco is getting to choose this.
Speaker 1: He's he has chosen this life. Yeah, so sure, you know,
Speaker 1: and if he didn't choose this life, he would be
Speaker 1: just retired because he's thirty nine, and it's just funny.
Speaker 1: And also, like I know I've seen this argument online
Speaker 1: I can't remember where, but like he shouldn't though, right,
Speaker 1: Like this shouldn't work because somebody should be claiming Carlos Grasco.
Speaker 1: You would think the Cubs, who don't have any pictures,
Speaker 1: would just pick up Carrasco on one of these things. Uh,
Speaker 1: it's clearly just you know, backscratching going on here, right,
Speaker 1: because the Cubs would be a better team with Carlos
Speaker 1: Carrasco than without.
Speaker 2: I think.
Speaker 1: He's a competent starter, he's a strong He's got a
Speaker 1: three six eight y right this year. I don't know,
Speaker 1: like all right he is he is striking up three
Speaker 1: point seventy.
Speaker 2: Yeah, it's gonna keep keep keep scrolling right on the reference.
Speaker 1: He's also walked like one how many he has walked?
Speaker 1: One batter four two thirds in things. I don't know.
Speaker 1: It just feels like like there there are certain players
Speaker 1: that just keep passing through waivers that there are teams
Speaker 1: that would be improved. I don't know if Crasco is
Speaker 1: this person, but I feel like you know, and this
Speaker 1: has been true of baseball forever, right, Baseball has had
Speaker 1: gentleman's waivers for hundred years now. I guess it's just
Speaker 1: more that it feels more weird for that to still
Speaker 1: exist in the hyper efficient modern era.
Speaker 2: That we're in where gets claimed five times.
Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, I don't know it could. It's obviously it's
Speaker 1: just me. So we'll go around the horn, which we
Speaker 1: were already kind of around the horn. We're going to
Speaker 1: keep going around the horn. Were second trip around the horn.
Speaker 1: Craig Countcil had a bad week or a bad day
Speaker 1: a couple of days ago. He got ejected for arguing
Speaker 1: about Pete Armstrong getting caught stealing on a walk.
Speaker 3: It was it was weird.
Speaker 1: It was weird. So so everybody has a feeling about this.
Speaker 1: Obviously counts out the feeling with this, and I'm curious
Speaker 1: what your guys are feeling about this. So essentially the
Speaker 1: situation is that Armstrong Charmstrong started running on a three
Speaker 1: to two pitch. The picture was a ball. Armstrong slid
Speaker 1: into the base, reached the base, the tag was applied,
Speaker 1: he came off the base, and therefore he was out
Speaker 1: because he had touched second with therefore finishing the freedom
Speaker 1: of his walk. How do you feel.
Speaker 3: I think this is a spirit of the rule, letter
Speaker 3: of the rule thing, and they should just change the
Speaker 3: letter of the rule to match the spirit of the rule,
Speaker 3: which is you should only be eligible to be tagged
Speaker 3: out in that situation, especially now with all of the
Speaker 3: like replay and challenge things that could happen. You should
Speaker 3: only be able to be tagged out in that situation
Speaker 3: if you actually make a move towards the space like
Speaker 3: it is at first, if you run through the face.
Speaker 3: That should be the it the way it is legislated.
Speaker 3: It's not, so, you know, the met's made a really
Speaker 3: I guess astute if annoying challenge uh and one. But yeah,
Speaker 3: they need to change.
Speaker 2: The letter of the rule. Yeah, definitely, they need to
Speaker 2: completely like change the way they handle like once you
Speaker 2: establish contact with the base. I think this is all
Speaker 2: akin to the you know, the pop up side where.
Speaker 1: You're focus of the transfer rule.
Speaker 2: Yeah yeah that yeah, like we can we can just yeah,
Speaker 2: just like we're like Rob Manford will shove anything else through,
Speaker 2: but he won't change, like you want to pace a play.
Speaker 2: Stop having reviews at second base every time a guy
Speaker 2: can stop of a second.
Speaker 1: Yeah, got it, And we get to the playoffs and
Speaker 1: then like all of these things get ten times more
Speaker 1: annoying than they already because they all matter, right, Yeah,
Speaker 1: I hate it. I personally hate it. I think you
Speaker 1: should have to get up and start running.
Speaker 2: I don't have a num about get up and start running,
Speaker 2: but you should have to like go past the bag.
Speaker 2: I think, right, you should.
Speaker 1: You slide takes you entirely if.
Speaker 2: You try to do like the slide around it and
Speaker 2: you like reach back with your hand and come off
Speaker 2: like five. But like if you're just sliding into the
Speaker 2: base normally.
Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, yeah, I don't. I don't ever want to
Speaker 1: have to use the replay camera to measure microns. So yeah,
Speaker 1: Craig Council, you're right, you should have gotten mad dance
Speaker 1: Pat Swanson uh got eleven RBI in one day.
Speaker 2: That's why it didn't matter that Craig Council, or that.
Speaker 1: He raised his OVP by like seventy points I think.
Speaker 2: Sixty points in one day absolutely, which.
Speaker 1: Is an indictment on his previous ops. But Dancey Swanson's
Speaker 1: thirty two he is like just on pace for another
Speaker 1: four and a half win season, like this is maybe
Speaker 1: one of the most successful free agent contracts.
Speaker 2: And yeah, you still don't feel great about it.
Speaker 1: Like defense, it's all defense, uh, and yet like he's
Speaker 1: a league average hitter who like.
Speaker 2: He's got a little he's the league average hitter. Now
Speaker 2: he certainly wasn't.
Speaker 1: But yeah, like it's I it's weird. We're in year four,
Speaker 1: we're already more than we're exactly halfway. We're exactly halfway.
Speaker 2: It's one of them, Like it's it's funny I have
Speaker 2: talking about the Cubs like it's worked out fine, and
Speaker 2: also it just like wasn't enough when they did it,
Speaker 2: Like they just like like they signed a shortstop for
Speaker 2: a one hundred and eighty million dollar contract and it's
Speaker 2: worked out pretty well, and it's just like hasn't really mattered.
Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, yeah interesting. There's teams though, like there you know,
Speaker 1: just you know, imagine just not having to worry about
Speaker 1: shortstop for six years, right, Imagine the Tigers it's just
Speaker 1: been like, Okay, we don't have to deal with this,
Speaker 1: just fest string hole in our lineup for the we
Speaker 1: don't have to worry about.
Speaker 2: I mean they thought they did when they signed by it.
Speaker 3: Was that class was that was dance as Bias.
Speaker 1: I feel like Bias was earlier.
Speaker 2: I think it was Yeah, yeah, it.
Speaker 3: Wasner Is like a deal but uh, you.
Speaker 1: Know, yeah, Bias was during the first time the Tigers
Speaker 1: thought they were at the end of the rebuild. Yeah,
Speaker 1: it's a while ago now, and yet it's still going
Speaker 1: another Carlos Santana has been dfaied for the first time
Speaker 1: in his career at the age of forty one. He
Speaker 1: gets traded sometimes, I don't only twice, but this is forty.
Speaker 2: This year he signs a lot of one year free
Speaker 2: agent d esopetally.
Speaker 1: Signs a lot of years, but he also like plays
Speaker 1: him out right, usually remarkably healthy. This year he has
Speaker 1: not been remarkably healthy. He only played eight games. He
Speaker 1: was on the it was he on the sixty year
Speaker 1: was only in the fifteen. Either way, he was injured
Speaker 1: for a long time. And the moment he stopped being injured,
Speaker 1: he's stopped being a baseball player because he was hitting
Speaker 1: eighty three before that happened. Uh, this is probably the
Speaker 1: end for Carlos Santana, who had the thirty seven win career.
Speaker 2: Yep, he is wow.
Speaker 1: Thirty eight point eight. But that that's you know, yeah, yeah,
Speaker 1: and he belongs in the great pantheon of guys who
Speaker 1: caught and you can barely remember them catching. Yeah, that's that's.
Speaker 2: A real credit to a career liked zeal Award. Yeah, yeah,
Speaker 2: I mean Victor Martinez, who also had some similarity to
Speaker 2: Carl Yeah after your same time.
Speaker 1: Yeah, Aer, your Reba has decided to serve his suspension h.
Speaker 2: The cross shopping they had like a month ago.
Speaker 3: Wow, did they waited him like three days in a row.
Speaker 1: For four and four days out of five and then thought, okay,
Speaker 1: now I feel contrite. Yeah, I'm tired enough to apologize this.
Speaker 1: This is some spirit of the law.
Speaker 2: How does it take a month? Again? Like I feel
Speaker 2: like they usually trend these around a lot quicker.
Speaker 3: Yeah they forgot.
Speaker 1: Yeah yeah, maybe maybe they just forgot about it. We're
Speaker 1: hoping they never forget about it. Yeah, and then Linda
Speaker 1: War's back.
Speaker 2: Yeah, we'll see how that works. Well, SOA is dealing
Speaker 2: with a back spasmma zone or oblique something.
Speaker 1: So all right, So that's gonna move us on to
Speaker 1: a game. We're gonna play twenty grid Zach, are you
Speaker 1: familiar with Trenty grid.
Speaker 3: I don't know what that is now, all right, so
Speaker 3: what this is?
Speaker 1: I'm gonna send this in to our group chat. Well,
Speaker 1: I'm not gonna send it our group chet, just put.
Speaker 2: It in the chat in here, Craig.
Speaker 1: I don't know. If I don't know, if I can pay,
Speaker 1: I can.
Speaker 2: Find you can just send it to me separately.
Speaker 1: I will just send it to you separately. So I'm
Speaker 1: going to send this. This is a screenshot of immaculate
Speaker 1: grid from a while ago. And what's going to happen
Speaker 1: is that each of you are going to go into
Speaker 1: the booth and you were going to guess the nine
Speaker 1: categories based on the three my three grid, but you
Speaker 1: are going to try to get the most popular answer.
Speaker 1: Whoever has the most popular answers out of nine wins.
Speaker 1: I will say this is a weird grid. It's a
Speaker 1: little more wide open because of that middle column. It
Speaker 1: will relate to the listeners here in a second. But
Speaker 1: I did get six out of nine when I did this,
Speaker 1: and I was very tired, so I think you guys
Speaker 1: can do it too, So we're gonna make exact to
Speaker 1: it first.
Speaker 3: Okay, am I saying this out louder?
Speaker 1: So what I'm gonna do. I'm gonna read them out
Speaker 1: categories and then you just give me an answer. So
Speaker 1: what we're looking at are the column are the White
Speaker 1: Sox having a ten home run season and having two
Speaker 1: thousand plus strikeouts in a career, and you have to
Speaker 1: have just played for that team at any point, I
Speaker 1: think the season you have to have done it in
Speaker 1: that uniform. For the career, you just have to have
Speaker 1: worn their jersey once and then also had that career.
Speaker 1: And then on the Rose we've got the Twins, Braves
Speaker 1: and Padres so fir Zach who played? Who is the
Speaker 1: most popular player to play for both the Twins and
Speaker 1: White Sox? Jim Tony all right, next Twins and ten
Speaker 1: home runs in a season.
Speaker 3: Harder than you're auld thing? Harmon Killerbrew, Harmon killer Brew.
Speaker 1: Okay, next Twins and two thousand plus strikeouts in a career.
Speaker 3: Difficulty level impossible. I'll take Ooh, Johan Santana, did he
Speaker 3: make it? I don't think he did.
Speaker 1: Are you gonna take that? We're gonna say it. It doesn't
Speaker 1: all right? Braves and White Sox. Chris Sale, Chris Sale,
Speaker 1: Braves and ten home run seasons. Hank Aaron Braves and
Speaker 1: two thousand plus strikeouts.
Speaker 3: Uh, this is easier, but I'm still trying.
Speaker 1: To put oh, by the way, on this grid.
Speaker 3: I think regularity of people will say Greg Maddox.
Speaker 1: Okay, on this grid you can use the same name
Speaker 1: twice if you want, because things can. Although when you're
Speaker 1: doing most popular you know you gotta worry about it
Speaker 1: because the players can only do one. Yes, Padres and
Speaker 1: white sox.
Speaker 3: This such a weird combination.
Speaker 1: Jake Peve, Jake pv. All right, next we're gonna do
Speaker 1: Padres and ten plus home runs, Manny Machado and finally
Speaker 1: Padres and two thousand plus strikeouts.
Speaker 3: Ah, Greg Maddox again, maybe okay, all right, that's all nine.
Speaker 1: That was the fastest grid we have ever done. Jeff's
Speaker 1: not even looking up because you can't believe it's already over.
Speaker 3: Do people usually expound on this for a lot.
Speaker 1: No, but but they aggon nice. These games often take
Speaker 1: a couple of minutes. Here we go, all right, Jeff,
Speaker 1: the quickest grid ever done.
Speaker 2: All right, I already even looked at it. I'm trying
Speaker 2: to keep it fair.
Speaker 1: That's fine, all right. So the first category is twins
Speaker 1: and white Sox.
Speaker 2: Right off the bat with the air I do not
Speaker 2: I do not like that. Jim Tomey al right.
Speaker 1: Next is twins and ten home runs in a season.
Speaker 2: Christ Joe Mauer, Joe Mauer.
Speaker 1: All right. Next is twins and two thousand plus strikeouts
Speaker 1: in a career.
Speaker 2: I don't think San Tanna got there, but like my
Speaker 2: options get I don't think Brad Radkey got there either.
Speaker 2: Burtly Loven, Burtlyleven, al right.
Speaker 1: Next is Braves and White Sox.
Speaker 2: Braves and White Sox. I'll go with recency and say
Speaker 2: Ronaldo Lopez, okay, sometimes to make the recent trade guy.
Speaker 1: Uh Braves and ten home run season, Hank Aaron, Yeah,
Speaker 1: you would think, wouldn't you. Next would be thankt with
Speaker 1: me Braves in two thousand plus home run or two
Speaker 1: thousand plus strikeouts. And this is when I reminded Zach
Speaker 1: that you can use the same name in multiple categories.
Speaker 2: It's not gonna be Ronaldo Lopez.
Speaker 1: No, it's not. Ummm. Craig Maddox all right, Next is
Speaker 1: pod rais in White Sox.
Speaker 2: It feels like it's had a lot of crossover. I
Speaker 2: did my recency once, so I don't want to do
Speaker 2: Lucas Gilido.
Speaker 1: I wonder if there's any category which Lucas Gelido wins.
Speaker 2: Like, gotta be one.
Speaker 3: Probably is there a fell apart after his divorce column?
Speaker 3: I had surgery column.
Speaker 2: Well, Tommy John, some pitch for the.
Speaker 1: Tommy John's really feels like it should be immaculate.
Speaker 2: G recall it should be. Yeah, I just haven't. I
Speaker 2: guess technically now you have like the sleeve too, is
Speaker 2: there the is that Tommy John?
Speaker 3: Like?
Speaker 2: What is Tommy John nowadays? Reconstruction two UCL reconstructions? H
Speaker 2: I can bip Roberts in my head. I don't know.
Speaker 2: I can't get bib Roberts out of my head. Uh yeah,
Speaker 2: I'll say you Lucas Jilia.
Speaker 1: All right. Next, let's go with the Padres and ten
Speaker 1: home runs.
Speaker 2: This is famously the team would like the lowest mm
Speaker 2: hmm most career homers for that team. Manny Machiano, all.
Speaker 1: Right, And finally Padres in two thousand plus strikeouts.
Speaker 2: Greg Maddox, okay, all right. I wanted to Kevin Brown,
Speaker 2: but Patrick teed it up for me, and I don't
Speaker 2: know if he's working me.
Speaker 1: I might know, but I since I gave it to him,
Speaker 1: and I should have said it before it started. It
Speaker 1: is both of us, yea, and to the point because
Speaker 1: it is Greg Maddox. All right, so I'm going to
Speaker 1: put somebody in there for let's see, let's just put
Speaker 1: in j PB so I can look at the answers,
Speaker 1: all right. The answers are for the White Sox and Twins,
Speaker 1: it is Jim Tomy. For the twins and ten home runs,
Speaker 1: it is Kirby Pucket.
Speaker 2: You know, I almost said Kirby Pucket like that was
Speaker 2: my first and think I'm like that.
Speaker 1: Yeah. Yeah, maur and Killerbrew both got six percent of
Speaker 1: the boat Pucket gut eat.
Speaker 2: Yeah.
Speaker 1: Next, for the twins and two thousand plus strikeouts, it
Speaker 1: is Burt bly eleven, with forty score of anybody pitched
Speaker 1: in my.
Speaker 3: Head, but I didn't know if people would think of
Speaker 3: him on the Twins.
Speaker 1: Yeah. I certainly thought of Johan Santana first, but I
Speaker 1: did pick bly eleven because I was like.
Speaker 2: I have two thousand k's. No, he does not, I
Speaker 2: didn't think. So who's second behind blyleven?
Speaker 1: Let's see, let me see if I can bring that up.
Speaker 1: Oh wait, let's see, there were twelve total.
Speaker 2: Oh that's not a lot very I'm not that older franchise.
Speaker 2: But also, oh man pulls up.
Speaker 1: I have to pull up the filter. Team Minnesota Twins
Speaker 1: get results. I am not a robot. I'm not logged in.
Speaker 1: All right, Well sorry, look it up yourself.
Speaker 2: Kids.
Speaker 1: Yeah yeah, uh next, Chris Sale for the White Sox
Speaker 1: and Braves. You poke out that one, right He both
Speaker 1: said hangharon and soda and I then he only got
Speaker 1: four percent of the votes somehow, Uh Chipper Jones, I
Speaker 1: don't I don't know, guys, But the Braves in two
Speaker 1: thousand strikeouts, it is Greg Maddox for the White Sox
Speaker 1: and Potteries. You guys both missed on. The big trade
Speaker 1: is James Shields although uh PD had twelve, Gilda had two.
Speaker 1: And because you missed out on it, that means you
Speaker 1: did not have Frank Frnanda Tatis Junior in your mind
Speaker 1: for the ten plus home runs. He was the lead
Speaker 1: on that one. And then Greg Mannix for Padres and Grapes.
Speaker 1: We are Padres in two thousand strikeouts, which means I
Speaker 1: believe Jeff wins four to three. He had the two Maddoxes,
Speaker 1: the Bly eleven, the to May and Zach had to
Speaker 1: May Maddox Madi No. Four to four you guys tie fail, yeah,
Speaker 1: Sale and he didn't have Sale, all right, So congratulations
Speaker 1: on failing to win. Both of you. We tied.
Speaker 3: It's it's appropriate with the World Cup, you.
Speaker 1: Know, all right, So thank you once again. Thanks to
Speaker 1: Zach for donating his time in wisdom with us today.
Speaker 1: Search up the Bandwagon newsletter to subscribe to his work,
Speaker 1: and thanks duty to listener for joining us from an
Speaker 1: episode of Five and Died brought to you by the
Speaker 1: Baseball Perspectives podcast network. You can touch the show at
Speaker 1: Five and Died at Baseball Perspectives dot com or by
Speaker 1: publishing in a modern American novel about the alienated, wealthy
Speaker 1: white male struggling with his divorce and substituting baseball statistics
Speaker 1: for the whole in his meaningless life. Enjoy your own
Speaker 1: meaningful weekend ahead, And if you're waiting for the pod
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Speaker 1: most the fucking I would can be the answering the
Speaker 3: Older