WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.760 --> 00:00:02.960 Welcome to the Big Blue Saturday. Gabriel with you on 2 00:00:03.000 --> 00:00:06.000 a Thursday edition of our show, an abbreviated edition because 3 00:00:06.000 --> 00:00:09.279 we've got Kentucky baseball coming up yep here on Thursday. 4 00:00:09.359 --> 00:00:12.560 It's Thursday through Saturday series for all the teams in 5 00:00:12.640 --> 00:00:16.280 the SEC as they hit into Hoover for SEC tournament play, 6 00:00:16.320 --> 00:00:19.839 which begins next Tuesday. That's when the Wildcats right now, 7 00:00:19.920 --> 00:00:23.359 if they played, would play South Carolina at five thirty 8 00:00:23.359 --> 00:00:27.679 on Tuesday night. It's a single elimination tournament. So if 9 00:00:27.719 --> 00:00:29.320 you get in there, you get hot, you can do 10 00:00:29.399 --> 00:00:31.879 some damage, pick up some wins. If not, you go 11 00:00:31.920 --> 00:00:34.679 home and wait for the NCAA tournament and get some 12 00:00:34.840 --> 00:00:38.399 rest and wait for selection Sunday. So Darren Hedricks got 13 00:00:38.399 --> 00:00:41.280 the call tonight as the Cats take on the Commodorees 14 00:00:41.359 --> 00:00:44.840 down in Nashville six forty five pregame seven o'clock, seven 15 00:00:44.840 --> 00:00:48.159 oh two, roughly first pitch. You can listen right here 16 00:00:48.159 --> 00:00:51.119 and of course watch on SEC Plus. And if you're 17 00:00:51.119 --> 00:00:53.119 not sure to get there, just go to either one 18 00:00:53.240 --> 00:00:57.640 just go through Ukathletics dot com. But two games tonight 19 00:00:57.719 --> 00:01:00.640 and tomorrow at seven o'clock and on Saturday three o'clock 20 00:01:00.719 --> 00:01:04.040 Eastern time, and again we'll have it for you right here. 21 00:01:04.079 --> 00:01:05.879 Coming up in a couple of minutes, we're going to 22 00:01:05.959 --> 00:01:10.120 talk about the celebration last night Pete Rose Night at 23 00:01:10.159 --> 00:01:14.120 Great American Ballpark, and it was coincidental to Major League 24 00:01:14.159 --> 00:01:18.840 Baseball's decision to and basically to Commissioner Rob Manfred to 25 00:01:19.040 --> 00:01:23.079 remove Pete Rose, Shultz, Joe and anybody who's deceased from 26 00:01:23.120 --> 00:01:27.680 Baseball's ineligible is, thus making them eligible for voting into 27 00:01:27.719 --> 00:01:29.840 the Hall of Fame. So we'll talk about that. Well, 28 00:01:29.840 --> 00:01:32.079 hear what some of the other Hall of famers have 29 00:01:32.159 --> 00:01:35.840 to say about it, including the great Marty Brennaman, the 30 00:01:35.879 --> 00:01:38.879 former longtime voice of the Reds. A little bit later on, 31 00:01:39.000 --> 00:01:42.120 Rachel Lawson will talk with us about her softball team, 32 00:01:42.120 --> 00:01:48.200 which opens nca tournament play tomorrow tomorrow afternoon down in Clemson. 33 00:01:49.040 --> 00:01:51.400 But we do want to look at what's going on 34 00:01:51.519 --> 00:01:55.200 right now with otega Oway. Of course, he is popping 35 00:01:55.280 --> 00:01:58.599 up on social media, He is popping up on ESPN, 36 00:01:58.640 --> 00:02:01.239 as he did when he is given more than one 37 00:02:01.239 --> 00:02:04.200 interview everywhere he goes. Basically he talks to people. But 38 00:02:04.599 --> 00:02:06.560 the other night we heard him talk about the fact 39 00:02:06.840 --> 00:02:09.599 that he's all in, of course, and you know you 40 00:02:09.719 --> 00:02:12.360 got to say that. Why wouldn't you say that if 41 00:02:12.360 --> 00:02:16.479 you're testing the NBA waters and you're really anybody. But 42 00:02:16.639 --> 00:02:18.840 you know, not even Cooper Flag's gonna say, well, I'm 43 00:02:18.879 --> 00:02:21.039 just you know, checking it out to see what it's 44 00:02:21.039 --> 00:02:25.400 all about. No, No, you tell your potential future employers. 45 00:02:26.000 --> 00:02:30.680 I am completely and totally committed to this next step 46 00:02:30.719 --> 00:02:33.080 in my career. If you want me, if you don't, 47 00:02:33.400 --> 00:02:35.840 I'll be right over here when you need me. But 48 00:02:36.319 --> 00:02:38.439 if you want me right now, I'm all in, which 49 00:02:38.479 --> 00:02:42.400 is essentially and exactly what he said. But the latest 50 00:02:42.400 --> 00:02:45.639 comment we have from him is his reference to Kentucky, 51 00:02:46.319 --> 00:02:49.039 and he basically says if things don't work out the 52 00:02:49.080 --> 00:02:51.759 way he would love them to work out with the 53 00:02:51.840 --> 00:02:55.400 Combine and with the NBA Draft, he is more than 54 00:02:55.439 --> 00:02:56.919 happy to go back to lexingon. 55 00:02:56.960 --> 00:02:59.199 Obviously, my goal is playing the NBA. So you know, 56 00:02:59.240 --> 00:03:01.240 if I go through this processing, you know I'm getting 57 00:03:01.280 --> 00:03:03.680 great feedback and you know I can go it away. 58 00:03:03.719 --> 00:03:05.639 I'll do that one hundred percent. But you know, either 59 00:03:05.680 --> 00:03:07.840 situation I'm in is a great situation I just got 60 00:03:07.840 --> 00:03:09.639 to thank God for. And you know, I have a 61 00:03:09.639 --> 00:03:11.879 good situation back at Kentucky if I do choose to 62 00:03:11.919 --> 00:03:14.319 go back, So you know, either way, I'm just thankful 63 00:03:14.360 --> 00:03:14.800 to be here. 64 00:03:15.599 --> 00:03:18.840 Of course he is, because he's not only putting himself 65 00:03:18.840 --> 00:03:22.879 out there for potential employers, but they're also telling him, 66 00:03:23.199 --> 00:03:26.520 as they did with Antonio Reeves, here's what we see, 67 00:03:26.599 --> 00:03:29.039 and if you do go back to college, here's what 68 00:03:29.080 --> 00:03:32.360 you need to work on. And boy, Jack Givens had 69 00:03:32.400 --> 00:03:35.759 a great conversation with Tom Leachs this morning on the 70 00:03:35.840 --> 00:03:39.879 Leads Report, and basically he said he would love to 71 00:03:39.919 --> 00:03:43.639 have had the feedback prior to his senior year that 72 00:03:43.800 --> 00:03:47.240 Antonio Reeves had, because you know, Jack only played a 73 00:03:47.240 --> 00:03:49.800 couple of couple of three years in the NBA he 74 00:03:49.840 --> 00:03:54.520 was an undersized shooting forward, when in fact he was 75 00:03:54.560 --> 00:03:56.879 actually an undersized shooting guard as well. He was only 76 00:03:56.879 --> 00:04:00.400 six three and a half sixty four. But he's said 77 00:04:01.159 --> 00:04:04.159 he would have been told you need to work on 78 00:04:04.199 --> 00:04:07.840 your handle because you're probably going to have to play 79 00:04:07.879 --> 00:04:10.879 a lot of point guard in the NBA, which never 80 00:04:10.919 --> 00:04:13.120 occurred to me. I always thought Jack was, you know, 81 00:04:13.400 --> 00:04:18.759 swimming upstream simply because he wasn't undersized two or three. 82 00:04:19.800 --> 00:04:21.839 But he would have been a really nice point guard 83 00:04:22.199 --> 00:04:24.800 at six three and a half sixty four with shooting 84 00:04:24.839 --> 00:04:29.720 ability like that, But as he admitted on the show today, 85 00:04:30.040 --> 00:04:32.879 his handle was probably the weakest part of his game. 86 00:04:33.480 --> 00:04:36.399 He could guard well enough, you had to guard. If 87 00:04:36.399 --> 00:04:38.000 you played for Joe B. Hall, we all know you 88 00:04:38.000 --> 00:04:42.000 could score and obviously shoot, and Jack was a good leaper. 89 00:04:42.040 --> 00:04:44.120 He brought that up as well. People didn't really get 90 00:04:44.120 --> 00:04:46.240 to see that part of his game because he was 91 00:04:46.240 --> 00:04:49.519 always shooting from the outside. Jack had really good hops 92 00:04:49.560 --> 00:04:55.040 as well, was quick, was strong butt. His handle was 93 00:04:55.120 --> 00:04:59.279 not strong enough to translate to the NBA. So if 94 00:04:59.279 --> 00:05:02.000 he had been told that after his junior year, between 95 00:05:02.000 --> 00:05:05.720 his junior and senior years, this is back before you know, 96 00:05:05.800 --> 00:05:09.360 everybody tried to go after one year, he would have 97 00:05:09.360 --> 00:05:11.480 been so much better off and it likely would have 98 00:05:11.480 --> 00:05:15.120 played longer in the NBA, if not in Europe. Jack 99 00:05:15.160 --> 00:05:17.839 also played overseas a little bit, so I thought that 100 00:05:17.920 --> 00:05:21.839 was really fascinating. So that's the kind of advice always getting. 101 00:05:21.879 --> 00:05:24.800 It's what happened with the Antonio Reeves. And if Always 102 00:05:24.800 --> 00:05:27.800 doesn't come back, well good luck to him. But if 103 00:05:27.839 --> 00:05:30.319 he does, he's going to be a lot better, and 104 00:05:30.600 --> 00:05:33.639 Mark Pope talked about him the other day about the 105 00:05:33.680 --> 00:05:36.360 fact that he's already got such a great skill set. 106 00:05:36.759 --> 00:05:37.319 O teke. 107 00:05:37.360 --> 00:05:40.879 His physicality is elite, his physicality on the offensive end, 108 00:05:40.920 --> 00:05:44.079 defensive end, and that shows up in a lot of ways. 109 00:05:44.079 --> 00:05:49.879 It shows up in contact, actually hits. It shows up 110 00:05:50.319 --> 00:05:53.800 in his explosiveness, He shows up in his first step. 111 00:05:53.839 --> 00:05:56.120 He shows up in his ability to kind of navigate 112 00:05:56.959 --> 00:05:59.240 garden guys off the ball through screens and on the 113 00:05:59.240 --> 00:06:03.160 ball through screen by creating space with his chest. So 114 00:06:03.199 --> 00:06:06.920 he has in those ways, he is you know, he 115 00:06:07.040 --> 00:06:08.360 is as good as you're going to find. 116 00:06:08.439 --> 00:06:09.279 He's really special. 117 00:06:09.399 --> 00:06:12.120 He's he grew so much last season. 118 00:06:13.040 --> 00:06:16.600 And remember Pope also talked about the leaps that players 119 00:06:16.720 --> 00:06:20.639 make from year one to year two within his system. 120 00:06:21.680 --> 00:06:24.800 He alluded to his stop at Utah State and Brigham Young. 121 00:06:25.439 --> 00:06:27.680 And you know, his system is a little bit different, 122 00:06:28.319 --> 00:06:32.879 especially a system of offense, and there's not, of course, 123 00:06:32.920 --> 00:06:35.000 the thinking that has to go on. You saw it 124 00:06:35.319 --> 00:06:37.560 at the end of last season compared to the beginning 125 00:06:37.600 --> 00:06:40.279 of the year. Everybody got more comfortable with the offense, 126 00:06:40.439 --> 00:06:45.000 especially the bigs and their passing. But think about Otega 127 00:06:45.040 --> 00:06:48.639 Away coming back now after a year in the Mark 128 00:06:48.720 --> 00:06:51.879 Pope system, and how much better off he's going to 129 00:06:51.920 --> 00:06:54.800 be if he plays for the Wildcats this coming year. 130 00:06:54.839 --> 00:06:56.319 So it's fun to think about. It's going to be 131 00:06:56.360 --> 00:07:01.879 fun to watch. Speaking of recruits, we always Kentucky is 132 00:07:01.959 --> 00:07:04.600 actually looking at a kid listed as a center. He's 133 00:07:04.680 --> 00:07:07.439 only six eight two o five but his name is 134 00:07:07.519 --> 00:07:10.560 Davian Adkins. That according to two four to seven sports, 135 00:07:10.959 --> 00:07:14.600 this kid has gotten offers from Arizona State, cal Houston, 136 00:07:15.079 --> 00:07:20.600 Kansas lately Indiana. Uh but and the services he's cool 137 00:07:20.600 --> 00:07:22.959 on all of them. And I read a report that 138 00:07:23.000 --> 00:07:26.360 said this guy is interested in hearing from Kentucky if 139 00:07:26.360 --> 00:07:31.199 he hasn't already. He's from Dallas, Texas, and he actually 140 00:07:31.199 --> 00:07:35.120 plays at a prep school in oak Cliffe, which is 141 00:07:35.519 --> 00:07:39.439 southwest of downtown Dallas, and it's where I used to live. 142 00:07:40.319 --> 00:07:42.600 And now he was further south in oak Cliffe than 143 00:07:42.639 --> 00:07:45.920 I was. I was up near the Trinity River basin 144 00:07:45.959 --> 00:07:50.439 and closer to the river basin and the interstate. But uh, yeah, 145 00:07:50.480 --> 00:07:54.120 this guy from my old stopping grounds. Not that I could, 146 00:07:54.279 --> 00:07:55.800 you know, give him a call and say, hey, come 147 00:07:55.839 --> 00:07:58.360 on up to LEXI. But I just always think it's 148 00:07:58.360 --> 00:08:01.000 interesting and by the way, that place was not a 149 00:08:01.040 --> 00:08:03.800 cool place to live when I was there. It has 150 00:08:03.839 --> 00:08:06.120 since been gentrified. And I went down to visit a 151 00:08:06.120 --> 00:08:09.759 friend last year and he took me through my old 152 00:08:09.759 --> 00:08:12.600 neighborhood and it is tremendous. It's a great place, one 153 00:08:12.600 --> 00:08:16.199 of more popular places now to live in Dallas. So 154 00:08:16.600 --> 00:08:20.279 maybe the Wildcats get a young man who is going 155 00:08:20.279 --> 00:08:23.079 to prep school right now, not far from where I 156 00:08:23.199 --> 00:08:26.000 lived back in the eighties when I was in Dallas, Texas. 157 00:08:26.759 --> 00:08:29.839 By the way, speaking of the combine, Ben Roberts of 158 00:08:29.879 --> 00:08:32.279 The Harrow Leader is there. He was on the show 159 00:08:32.480 --> 00:08:34.879 a few days ago talking about going up to cover 160 00:08:34.919 --> 00:08:37.960 the combine. So he's got some good coverage at Kentucky 161 00:08:38.000 --> 00:08:40.559 dot com if you want to check that out. Up next, 162 00:08:40.600 --> 00:08:43.080 we're going to talk about Pete Rose, and we'll hear 163 00:08:43.120 --> 00:08:45.559 from some of the Hall of famers, including Marty Brenneman, 164 00:08:45.799 --> 00:08:50.360 who have opinions now that Rose is off Baseball's ineligibility 165 00:08:50.399 --> 00:08:54.879 list and is eligible for voting into the Baseball Hall 166 00:08:54.919 --> 00:08:58.320 of Fame. That's coming up, followed by UK softball coach 167 00:08:58.399 --> 00:09:02.440 Rachel Lawson, who team opens tournament play tomorrow afternoon. Then 168 00:09:02.480 --> 00:09:05.320 it's UK Baseball with Darren Hedrick, the Cats and the 169 00:09:05.360 --> 00:09:09.840 Commodorees on six point thirty WLAP Welcome back to the 170 00:09:09.879 --> 00:09:13.080 Big Moonsider coming up at six forty five pregame coverage 171 00:09:13.080 --> 00:09:16.840 of Kentucky Vanderbilt Baseball with Darren Hedrick. The two teams 172 00:09:16.879 --> 00:09:20.399 will toss it up at seven o'clock games tonight and 173 00:09:20.440 --> 00:09:24.399 tomorrow night. Then on Saturday afternoon wraps up the regular season. 174 00:09:24.440 --> 00:09:26.879 That it's on to Hoover for the SEC Tournament. So 175 00:09:27.000 --> 00:09:31.039 Darren has the action here on six thirty WLAP. As 176 00:09:31.080 --> 00:09:34.159 you probably know, last night was the celebration of Pete 177 00:09:34.240 --> 00:09:37.919 Rose in Cincinnati, and this was basically a coincidence. It 178 00:09:37.960 --> 00:09:41.000 had been planned for quite some time, of course, but 179 00:09:41.120 --> 00:09:45.840 it comes just today after Major League Baseball announced that 180 00:09:46.080 --> 00:09:51.080 Rose and others were removed posthumously from Major League Baseball's 181 00:09:51.120 --> 00:09:56.200 permanent ineligibility list. This is what has kept Rose and 182 00:09:56.240 --> 00:09:59.480 guys like Shoeless Joe Jackson out of the Baseball Hall 183 00:09:59.519 --> 00:10:03.080 of Fame. It's not that the writers or the Eras 184 00:10:03.120 --> 00:10:05.759 Committee people said no, we're not going to take them. 185 00:10:05.759 --> 00:10:09.759 It's that you've got to be eligible to be voted 186 00:10:09.799 --> 00:10:13.440 into the Hall. You cannot be on the ineligibility list 187 00:10:13.559 --> 00:10:17.519 for Major League Baseball. So now that these guys are gone, 188 00:10:18.200 --> 00:10:21.639 Rob Manfred the commissioner has changed the way they do 189 00:10:21.759 --> 00:10:26.200 business now, and if you are dead and gone, you 190 00:10:26.240 --> 00:10:29.159 are no longer on the ineligible list, the reasoning being 191 00:10:29.200 --> 00:10:32.000 something like, well, if you're not alive, you're not going 192 00:10:32.080 --> 00:10:35.840 to be around to tarnish the game. I'm paraphrasing. All right, 193 00:10:35.879 --> 00:10:38.519 that's all well and good. But as I said before, 194 00:10:39.759 --> 00:10:43.679 I have softened my stands on Pete Rose simply because 195 00:10:44.279 --> 00:10:49.240 Rose finally fest up. For the longest time, I said, no, 196 00:10:49.320 --> 00:10:52.639 he didn't belong in because he broke Baseball's number one rule. 197 00:10:52.639 --> 00:10:56.360 And yes, I know that Baseball now accepts advertising dollars. 198 00:10:56.399 --> 00:10:59.960 They're in business with gambling outfits. That to me doesn't matter. 199 00:11:01.000 --> 00:11:03.639 Players should not be allowed to gamble, at least on 200 00:11:03.679 --> 00:11:07.080 the sport that they're involved with. You should be able 201 00:11:07.120 --> 00:11:09.919 to go to a game and not have to wonder, Hey, 202 00:11:10.000 --> 00:11:12.279 is the guy who just booted that ball? Is he 203 00:11:12.320 --> 00:11:14.639 got a bet on the game? Is that why my 204 00:11:14.639 --> 00:11:17.919 team's losing? You know? Is my guy missing jump shots 205 00:11:17.960 --> 00:11:21.360 because he's trying to keep the score close under the spread. No, 206 00:11:21.440 --> 00:11:25.080 that's fundamental that should not be even an issue. But 207 00:11:25.120 --> 00:11:26.960 a lot of people say, well, he's Pete Rose. He 208 00:11:27.080 --> 00:11:30.799 was the hits king, So what my buddy Doug Flynn 209 00:11:30.840 --> 00:11:32.960 played eleven years in the major leagues. No, he didn't 210 00:11:32.960 --> 00:11:35.840 have four thousand hits. Why should a rule that applies 211 00:11:35.879 --> 00:11:38.440 to him not apply to a guy who has more 212 00:11:38.480 --> 00:11:41.200 hits than he does? You know? And to say Pete 213 00:11:41.240 --> 00:11:43.879 Rose belongs in the Hall of Fame, he's there. There 214 00:11:43.879 --> 00:11:50.240 are thirty one different mentions artifacts, you know, equipment exhibits 215 00:11:50.840 --> 00:11:54.799 references to Pete Rose, thirty one in the Baseball Hall 216 00:11:54.840 --> 00:11:57.279 of Fame in Cooperstown. And no, he has not yet 217 00:11:57.320 --> 00:12:00.320 been enshrined the way other athletes have. And if you 218 00:12:00.320 --> 00:12:02.279 want to talk about the steroids and all, that's a 219 00:12:02.279 --> 00:12:07.960 different subject. But once Rose, I think really saw that man. 220 00:12:08.000 --> 00:12:10.960 It's getting late and he was helped took a bad turn. 221 00:12:11.080 --> 00:12:14.279 Obviously died last September at the age eighty three. But 222 00:12:14.919 --> 00:12:17.360 as a listener pointed out to me and sent me 223 00:12:17.440 --> 00:12:21.279 a copy of the letter that Rose reportedly, I mean, 224 00:12:21.480 --> 00:12:24.320 I don't know this for a fact, but if somebody 225 00:12:24.360 --> 00:12:27.639 sent me the letter that Rose sent to the commissioner, 226 00:12:28.159 --> 00:12:32.360 basically owning up to everything, and that's what has kept 227 00:12:32.399 --> 00:12:37.440 a lot of former players from getting behind Pete, including 228 00:12:37.480 --> 00:12:40.759 his own teammates like Doug who told me that he 229 00:12:40.840 --> 00:12:44.080 and Joe Morgan and Johnny Bench and other Reds were 230 00:12:44.120 --> 00:12:48.200 opposed to Pete being inducted simply because he lied to 231 00:12:48.240 --> 00:12:51.840 his teammates, never owned up, and never apologized. Well, he 232 00:12:51.919 --> 00:12:56.440 finally did. Okay, So now once he did, I say 233 00:12:56.919 --> 00:12:59.039 they should put him a while he's alive. Well, he's 234 00:12:59.120 --> 00:13:02.279 probably going to go in and now posthumously. But the 235 00:13:02.360 --> 00:13:08.799 Athletic contacted a dozen Hall of famers spanning several eras 236 00:13:09.120 --> 00:13:12.600 to see what they think about the new guy on 237 00:13:12.639 --> 00:13:16.159 the waiting list. I'm going to run through him very quickly, 238 00:13:16.279 --> 00:13:19.879 but it's a pretty good cross section. Reggie Jackson said 239 00:13:19.919 --> 00:13:23.480 there's no doubt he should get in. Jim Palmer class 240 00:13:23.519 --> 00:13:27.120 of nineteen ninety, said that he talked to Pete about 241 00:13:27.120 --> 00:13:29.279 it and said, if you really love the game as 242 00:13:29.360 --> 00:13:32.399 much as you say you do, and you have a 243 00:13:32.480 --> 00:13:35.000 chance to be reinstated, if you apologize it and miss 244 00:13:35.080 --> 00:13:37.279 you made a mistake, you love the game as much 245 00:13:37.320 --> 00:13:39.440 as you say you do, why not get on your 246 00:13:39.440 --> 00:13:43.360 hands and knees and grovel essentially, and Palmer said, why 247 00:13:43.360 --> 00:13:46.559 didn't you do that? And he said Pete really didn't 248 00:13:46.639 --> 00:13:50.159 have an answer. It's like that throughout a lot of 249 00:13:50.200 --> 00:13:53.679 these comments. Mike Schmid, it was his teammate won a 250 00:13:53.679 --> 00:13:56.720 World Series with him in Philly, said there was no 251 00:13:56.879 --> 00:14:00.720 remorse there. He didn't show any atonement for his admission 252 00:14:00.960 --> 00:14:04.200 to betting on baseball, so he said he's kind of 253 00:14:04.240 --> 00:14:07.480 fifty to fifty on it. Jim Lalan said, I don't 254 00:14:07.519 --> 00:14:10.639 know the answer. The great manager, He said, as far 255 00:14:10.639 --> 00:14:12.799 as a player goes, of course, Pete Rose is a 256 00:14:12.840 --> 00:14:14.879 Hall of Fame, But he said I'd have to think 257 00:14:14.919 --> 00:14:19.080 long and hard about voting for him. Jim Cott, a 258 00:14:19.080 --> 00:14:22.360 great pitcher primarily for the Twins, but also played with 259 00:14:22.919 --> 00:14:26.440 Rose in Philly and was the Reds pitching coach under 260 00:14:26.480 --> 00:14:29.320 Pete Rose, said that yeah, he was a great player. 261 00:14:29.399 --> 00:14:32.720 His baseball a Q was off the charts. But he said, 262 00:14:33.399 --> 00:14:36.759 you know, he didn't hear the atonement either. He also said, 263 00:14:36.960 --> 00:14:41.559 do you vote for him now? As an eras committee candidate, 264 00:14:42.120 --> 00:14:44.080 you can only take three? What about Tommy John? What 265 00:14:44.120 --> 00:14:49.000 about Dale Murphy? Yeah, that's tough, he said. He asked Pete, 266 00:14:49.200 --> 00:14:52.960 did you ever bet on baseball? Long ago? Pete said, well, 267 00:14:53.000 --> 00:14:54.320 you know, I've been to the horse track and I 268 00:14:54.360 --> 00:14:56.919 bet on football. But he said he never would admit 269 00:14:57.399 --> 00:14:59.840 to betting on baseball to him, and he finally did. 270 00:15:00.879 --> 00:15:04.720 John Smoltz, the great pitcher, said he would vote for 271 00:15:04.759 --> 00:15:07.000 him if he were on the committee. He said there's 272 00:15:07.039 --> 00:15:09.399 people in the Hall of Fame that had felonies. He 273 00:15:09.519 --> 00:15:12.200 said the Hall of Fame has gotten away from the 274 00:15:12.200 --> 00:15:15.440 Code of Conduct, the character clause. But he said he 275 00:15:15.480 --> 00:15:20.440 would vote him in. Bill Mazeroski, the former Pittsburgh pirate, 276 00:15:20.799 --> 00:15:22.559 he's said out right away. I'd make him wait a 277 00:15:22.600 --> 00:15:27.879 little longer. Pat Gillick, an executive, longtime executive, primarily with Toronto, 278 00:15:28.039 --> 00:15:31.360 said the guy served his debt to society by going 279 00:15:31.399 --> 00:15:33.840 to jail for a while, which is true. He said, 280 00:15:33.879 --> 00:15:35.919 though character means a lot, I'd have to question that. 281 00:15:36.000 --> 00:15:39.000 It's going to be a tough subject. Andre Dawson, now 282 00:15:39.120 --> 00:15:43.759 standing outfielder, played with Rose in Montreal back in the eighties. 283 00:15:43.799 --> 00:15:46.600 He said, I think it's long overdue, and he said 284 00:15:46.639 --> 00:15:50.200 baseball sports in general has gambling written all over it. 285 00:15:50.360 --> 00:15:54.240 He said, this is long overdue. Tony LaRussa, the Great manager, 286 00:15:54.879 --> 00:15:57.840 said the stats are undeniable, but he said he spoke 287 00:15:57.919 --> 00:16:00.279 to Stan Musual when he got to Saint Louis in 288 00:16:00.320 --> 00:16:03.480 Red Shandy's and Bob Gibson and Lou Brock. He said 289 00:16:03.519 --> 00:16:06.159 they were very upset at Pete for a couple of reasons. 290 00:16:06.360 --> 00:16:09.799 He made the mistake, wasn't honest about it, and they 291 00:16:09.879 --> 00:16:13.159 never really felt like he was contrite or ashamed by 292 00:16:13.200 --> 00:16:16.480 it or had a big regret until he wasn't put 293 00:16:16.879 --> 00:16:20.120 in the Hall of Fame. And finally, Tony Perez, of 294 00:16:20.159 --> 00:16:23.759 course was his teammate on the Great Big Red Machine 295 00:16:23.759 --> 00:16:28.279 teams and also played with him in Philly, said he 296 00:16:28.320 --> 00:16:30.240 paid the price for a long long time. I know 297 00:16:30.320 --> 00:16:32.759 he was hurt. Said he maybe didn't look like it, 298 00:16:32.840 --> 00:16:35.919 but I know he was made a mistake and paid 299 00:16:35.960 --> 00:16:38.519 for it. He said he can always play with me. 300 00:16:39.000 --> 00:16:41.600 When I meet him again, I would love to play 301 00:16:42.000 --> 00:16:45.840 with him. Marty Brenneman, of course, was at the ceremony 302 00:16:45.919 --> 00:16:48.279 last night at Great American Ballpark, which by the way, 303 00:16:48.480 --> 00:16:52.440 was jam pack sold out, and naturally, Marty, the Hall 304 00:16:52.480 --> 00:16:56.080 of Famer and the longtime voice of the Cincinnati Reds, 305 00:16:56.360 --> 00:16:58.919 had something to say about that topic. 306 00:17:00.200 --> 00:17:02.919 Very opinionated guy. I'm not a fan of rob Man. 307 00:17:02.919 --> 00:17:05.799 For him, I'm not a fan of the transparency that 308 00:17:05.839 --> 00:17:08.519 they've kept him on the sideline all these years and 309 00:17:08.599 --> 00:17:11.839 he dies, and damn it, five months later they elected 310 00:17:11.839 --> 00:17:14.880 to make him eligible again. I've got a real problem 311 00:17:14.920 --> 00:17:17.440 with that, and it's a problem that I'll never get over. 312 00:17:17.920 --> 00:17:20.119 And I just think it's unfortunate that he could not 313 00:17:20.240 --> 00:17:22.599 be around if, in fact, he gets into the Hall 314 00:17:22.640 --> 00:17:25.200 of Fame. There's no guarantee of that, but if he does, 315 00:17:25.480 --> 00:17:27.279 it's going to be criminal that he will not be 316 00:17:27.359 --> 00:17:28.240 around to enjoy it. 317 00:17:29.000 --> 00:17:30.960 I agree with Marty on that. As I said, I 318 00:17:32.319 --> 00:17:35.200 turned around on Pete once I heard about the letter 319 00:17:35.240 --> 00:17:39.720 he sent. But the fact that they do this after 320 00:17:39.759 --> 00:17:42.839 they're gone, and again it shows Joe Jackson, I touched 321 00:17:42.839 --> 00:17:46.240 on this yesterday, never should have been blackballed. He was 322 00:17:46.400 --> 00:17:49.400 duped into putting his mark. He couldn't read or writ 323 00:17:49.440 --> 00:17:51.880 he was illiterate, and they put a piece of paper 324 00:17:51.920 --> 00:17:53.559 in front of him saying if you sign issue, can 325 00:17:53.599 --> 00:17:55.960 go home, or something lame like that. But what it 326 00:17:56.039 --> 00:17:59.039 was was a confession that he helped the Black Sox 327 00:17:59.079 --> 00:18:02.920 fix the nineteen nineteen World Series, coincidentally giving the series 328 00:18:02.920 --> 00:18:07.279 to the Cincinnati Reds. And he all along had denied 329 00:18:07.880 --> 00:18:11.160 that he had anything to do with gamblers or game fixing, 330 00:18:11.759 --> 00:18:14.079 and the stats back that up. He had a tremendous 331 00:18:14.079 --> 00:18:19.200 World series statistically made hits, made plays. What was thrown 332 00:18:19.279 --> 00:18:22.359 in with the other players, and if you've seen the movie, 333 00:18:22.400 --> 00:18:26.079 it's tremendous. Eight men out, and this is a guy 334 00:18:26.440 --> 00:18:28.279 who was one of the greatest players in the history 335 00:18:28.279 --> 00:18:32.880 of the game and should never have been on that list. 336 00:18:32.920 --> 00:18:35.519 And for some reason, no one in baseball had been 337 00:18:35.680 --> 00:18:39.599 strong enough or honest enough to admit what had happened 338 00:18:39.640 --> 00:18:41.480 with Shoeless Joe and put him in the Hall of Fame. 339 00:18:42.559 --> 00:18:45.960 So anyhow, Rose, Shoeless Joe, they're all going in. But now, 340 00:18:46.240 --> 00:18:49.519 of course Jackson's been gone forever. But we lose Pete 341 00:18:49.640 --> 00:18:53.680 back in the fall. So Reds fans are happy and 342 00:18:53.759 --> 00:18:57.079 yet very disappointed. And if he does go in, it's 343 00:18:57.079 --> 00:18:58.839 not going to happen right away. It's going to take 344 00:18:58.839 --> 00:19:01.160 a couple of years for all of this cyclically to 345 00:19:01.240 --> 00:19:05.960 work out with the Aras Committee. So always throw that in. 346 00:19:06.039 --> 00:19:09.440 Let you know what was said about Pete up in 347 00:19:09.519 --> 00:19:13.079 Cincinnati last night and throughout some of the Hall of 348 00:19:13.119 --> 00:19:17.160 famers who are still wondering about Pete Rose and whether 349 00:19:17.200 --> 00:19:19.440 he belongs in the Hall of Fame. Up next, we're 350 00:19:19.440 --> 00:19:22.039 going to talk Kentucky softball with Rachel lost in her 351 00:19:22.079 --> 00:19:26.480 team opens NCAA tournament played tomorrow afternoon down in Clemson. 352 00:19:26.599 --> 00:19:30.160 That's next. Then it's Kentucky Baseball on six thirty WLAP 353 00:19:31.160 --> 00:19:33.279 Welcome back to the Big Blue Insider. Joining us down 354 00:19:33.279 --> 00:19:37.039 our celebrity hotline as Kentucky softball coach Rachel lost In 355 00:19:37.160 --> 00:19:41.839 prepping your team for yet another appearance in the NCAA tournament. Coach, 356 00:19:42.039 --> 00:19:45.880 is it's still a thrill when you hear your name called, oh. 357 00:19:45.640 --> 00:19:48.440 Every time, you know, even though the program has a 358 00:19:48.519 --> 00:19:51.119 tradition of being in the tournament, but it's different people 359 00:19:51.160 --> 00:19:54.359 every time. So you're just thrilled for them, love the 360 00:19:54.440 --> 00:19:57.680 experience and exciting every time we get this opportunity. 361 00:19:57.799 --> 00:19:59.599 And you've got a lot of newbies this year. You 362 00:19:59.680 --> 00:20:05.000 lost some great experience from last season, So thrills for 363 00:20:05.039 --> 00:20:06.279 a lot of new people. 364 00:20:06.039 --> 00:20:09.519 Right, Oh, no question. You know the majority of the 365 00:20:09.559 --> 00:20:12.480 team turning over was that part of it last year, 366 00:20:12.599 --> 00:20:15.799 So really excited for them. It's their first experience in 367 00:20:15.839 --> 00:20:18.240 the NCAA tournament and you know, looking forward to a 368 00:20:18.319 --> 00:20:18.759 deep front. 369 00:20:19.119 --> 00:20:21.240 Got off to the great start, but this is the 370 00:20:21.279 --> 00:20:25.279 toughest conference in the world. Every team made the NCAA Tournament. 371 00:20:26.279 --> 00:20:29.079 Were you What was your reaction when you not only 372 00:20:29.079 --> 00:20:31.359 made the feel but right, so you're a two seed. 373 00:20:32.759 --> 00:20:34.839 Yeah, I was a little surprised. You know, not every 374 00:20:34.839 --> 00:20:37.720 team made it. Missouri did not make it, ok, but 375 00:20:38.000 --> 00:20:41.599 every team who had the five hundred records you made it. Yeah, 376 00:20:41.599 --> 00:20:43.839 really toughly. But anyway, yeah, I was a little surprised 377 00:20:43.839 --> 00:20:48.079 on the two seed. Yes, we finished finished, not is 378 00:20:48.160 --> 00:20:50.200 exactly how we want to do, but we started strong. 379 00:20:50.359 --> 00:20:53.319 So the body of our work was certainly good. But 380 00:20:54.319 --> 00:20:56.240 to be honest with you, in the tournament, the difference 381 00:20:56.240 --> 00:20:58.359 between the two three and the two seed and the 382 00:20:58.400 --> 00:21:01.079 three seed is so marginal. So I was a little surprised. 383 00:21:01.279 --> 00:21:03.599 But either way, I think it was played out the 384 00:21:03.640 --> 00:21:04.279 way it's going to. 385 00:21:05.039 --> 00:21:08.079 This is the kind of thing that sets a new foundation, 386 00:21:08.200 --> 00:21:10.440 doesn't it. Now. I mean, you've already got a strong foundation, 387 00:21:10.640 --> 00:21:13.880 but this group, no matter what happens down the nca tournament, 388 00:21:14.200 --> 00:21:16.880 they'll take this experience and build on it, won't they? 389 00:21:17.839 --> 00:21:20.160 Yeah, no question. You know, we are by far one 390 00:21:20.160 --> 00:21:24.960 of the youngest and teams in the whole field, especially 391 00:21:25.000 --> 00:21:27.680 out of the power conferences, and so they don't really 392 00:21:27.720 --> 00:21:29.799 know what they were getting into when they started SEC 393 00:21:29.880 --> 00:21:32.119 play this year. So just the experience of running through 394 00:21:32.160 --> 00:21:35.079 the SEC now what it takes to make the tournament 395 00:21:36.000 --> 00:21:38.119 and how to finish strong. I think that's really going 396 00:21:38.200 --> 00:21:39.160 to help us in the future. 397 00:21:39.480 --> 00:21:41.680 You got a tough, tough one toward the end of 398 00:21:41.720 --> 00:21:45.200 the year, you're swept at Texas, rank number three in 399 00:21:45.200 --> 00:21:48.160 the country, and then Georgia knocks you out of the 400 00:21:48.200 --> 00:21:51.519 SEC tournament. What did debt do to your confidence now 401 00:21:51.559 --> 00:21:55.079