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Episode 46 - 1938 World Series and Deadline Woes
56 Plays3 months ago
Yankees sweep the Chicago Cubs to bring their third straight championship to home to New York.
Zach lists his top 5 most impactful trades this deadline and the gang wonders if the Yankees have hit rock bottom yet.
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Transcript
Introduction to 'Championship Board Bust'
00:00:04
Speaker
Alrighty, well as Emmanuel Class A would say, I bet this podcast will be a good one. What's up everybody? Welcome to another episode of Championship Board Bust with Mac, Zach, and Josh.
Baseball Drama and Scandals
00:00:13
Speaker
Today we got 1938, but man, we got a lot to cover other than that.
00:00:18
Speaker
We got the trade deadline full out for you. And for whatever reason, the world of baseball, not just MLB, but all of baseball, has kind of become a real-life episode of The Sopranos. We have a Little League World Series coach teaching kids to cheat, then parents chanting, you can't do that at a 12-year-old.
00:00:34
Speaker
Then in the big boy leagues, the system's being overrun by degenerate gamblers. And then there's a completely unrelated story about a superstar and the boss man getting into a screen fight over money. And just now, two minutes ago, breaking news has surfaced that the Yankees have fired Aaron Boone.
00:00:50
Speaker
Just kidding. It has finally happened. Nah, just kidding. Just testing if you're still listening. We all know he has more job security than Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Clarence Thomas because he's the other boss man.
00:01:01
Speaker
Anyway, Josh, take it away.
1938 World Series Recap
00:01:06
Speaker
Oh, that's great. thats i think there's That's got to be top five intros so right there. just And an agent. Give it to Justice Boone. ah So yeah, like you said, there's a lot a lot of current events to talk about, so I will try to make this as quick as I can.
00:01:23
Speaker
So the 1938 World Series a two-time defending champion New York Yankees against the Chicago Cubs. So game one at Wrigley Field, so a 21-game winner, Red Ruffing, toe-the-slide for the Yankees against 22-game winner Bill Lee for the Cubs.
00:01:35
Speaker
In the top of the second, the Yankees would strike first. Lou Gehrig walked, advanced to third on a Bill Dickey single. Then George Selkirk reached on an error that scored Gehrig, and Joe Gordon would follow it up with a single score Dickey, but the Yankees up 2-0.
00:01:46
Speaker
Bottom of the third, Ripper Collins led off for the Cubs with a single. He moved the second on a ground out and scored on Stan Hack's single. Hack would advance the second on that throw home, and the next batter, Billy Herman, would hit an infield single where Hack decided he would try to score on an infield single and got gunned down at home plate.
00:02:03
Speaker
That's Yankee-level baseball right there. In the top the sixth inning, the Yankees would extend their lead to two, but Tommy Heinrich doubled it and scored on a Billy Dickey single. Red Ruffing would complete the game for the Yankees, giving up just one run on nine hits for the game one victory.
00:02:18
Speaker
Game two, Zolotie Gomez take the mound for the Yankees against former St. Louis Cardinals ace Dizzy Dean, who we talked about four years ago in 1934, because he had been traded to Chicago in April that year.
00:02:30
Speaker
ah Dean looked really good for the Cubs after having to change his entire pitching motion because he ended fracturing his toe in the 1937 All-Star game on a comeback line drive.
00:02:41
Speaker
And he really couldn't put weight on it anymore. So his fastball just did not did not have what it used to have. You know, like the guys today, when they get older, they actually have to learn how to pitch and not just throw. Yeah.
00:02:55
Speaker
So Dean got into the game and Chicago tried helping him out. They scored in the bottom of the first inning when Stan Hack singled, advanced the third in Frank DeMere's single, and then scored on Joe Marty's sack fly.
00:03:06
Speaker
But the Yankees get to Dean in the second inning when Joe Gordon hit a two RBI double to get the Yankees lead. The Cubs
Cal Hubbard's Unique Legacy
00:03:13
Speaker
would come back swinging in the bottom third when Stan Hack and Billy Herman hit back-to-back singles, advanced on a sacrifice, and then scored on Joe Marty's two-RBI double to reclaim the lead 3-2. Dean was able to keep the Yankee bats quiet for the next four innings, getting up just one hit, but in the top of the eighth, Frankie Corsetti tagged him for a two-run shot that put the Yankees back in front 4-3.
00:03:33
Speaker
With a lead, the Yankees put Johnny Murphy in, who pitched a clean eighth, and at top of the ninth, Joe DiMaggio added an insurance run it had two insurance runs with a two-run blast of his own, and Murphy finished the game for a 6-3 victory for the Yankees, taking both games on the road.
00:03:48
Speaker
So in Game 3 in New York, Clay Bryant took the mound for the Cubs against Montepierre Sin for the Yankees. The game was scoreless until the top of the fifth when Stan Hack doubled and moved to third on Joe Gordon's error.
00:03:58
Speaker
and scored on a fielder's choice. In the bottom the inning, Gordon atoned for this error by hitting a solo shot to tie the game. Monteperson followed that by hitting a single, advancing on a walk, and then scoring on a red-roll single to take the lead.
00:04:10
Speaker
In the bottom of the sixth, the Yankees would tack on two more runs thanks to a two-run single off the bat of Joe Gordon to make it 4-1. In the top the eighth, Joe Marty hit a solo shot to bring the Cubs within two, but Bill Dickey answered in the bottom the inning with a solo shot of his own to restore three-run lead.
00:04:23
Speaker
The Yankees would win the game 5-2 and take a 3-0 series lead in a stranglehold. In Game 4, a rematch of the Game 1 starters, Red Ruffing and Billy. Bottom of the second inning, Yankees opened the scoring, when Myral Hoag reached on Stan Hack's throwing error, advanced a third on Joe Gordon's single, and scored on pitch of Red Ruffing's RBI single.
00:04:42
Speaker
Frankie Cresetti then tripled in gor Gordon and Ruffing to make a 3-0. The Cubs would get on the scoreboard the top of a fourth when Billy Jurgis hit it into a fielder's choice to score it for Frankie DeMere.
00:04:53
Speaker
The Yankees would get that run back in a bottom the sixth when Tommy Heinrich hit a solo homer off the Cubs reliever Charlie Root. In the top of the eighth, Kenodia hit a two-run shot to bring the Cubs within a run, but in the bottom that inning, Yankees broke the game open, scoring four runs on four different pitchers, including Frank Grosetti's two-run double off a Dizzy Dean that gave him four RBIs for the game.
00:05:13
Speaker
and And just like in Game 1, Red Ruffing went the distance, getting up three runs, two those earned, on eight hits, striking out six in the eight to three victory, and the Yankees would sweep the Cubs for the third consecutive World Series.
00:05:24
Speaker
And Game 2 of this World Series was the last time the Yankees would play in Wrigley, until 2003. What? was 1938. Are you? That's insane. Because they didn't play in our league.
00:05:38
Speaker
Wow.
00:05:41
Speaker
That's crazy to think about. Oh my That is crazy. like I can't run my head around that. ah So, story time. Have either of you ever heard of a man named Cal Hubbard before?
00:05:53
Speaker
No. Okay. Okay. So this is going to be a fun one. and god Oh, God. Fun fact about him. He is the only person to have a plaque in Cooperstown and a bust in Canton.
00:06:05
Speaker
Hubbard was a football player for the New York Giants, the Green Bay Packers, and the Pittsburgh Pirates. Yes, the football Pittsburgh Pirates, who are now the Pittsburgh Steelers. While he was playing, he would spend his offseason umpiring minor league baseball.
00:06:20
Speaker
He got called up in 1936, called four World Series, three All-Star games, and this is the first World Series he's calling. So welcome to Championship Robust,
World Series Player Evaluations
00:06:29
Speaker
Cal Hubbard. ah He was a four-time first-team All-Pro in the NFL, which is the main award to get, made the 1920s All-Decade team, won four NFL championships, and made the NFL's 50th, 75th, and 100th anniversary teams.
00:06:44
Speaker
So how did this happen? He would um basically just go and do his thing. And he came up with a very unique concept because back then, when we're talking about these series, umpires used to move around the field and have different positions throughout the game.
00:07:02
Speaker
And Cal Hubbard said, this is kind of dumb. Everyone should have a designated position. And so that's what happened. Everyone got a designated position. Thanks to Cal Hubbard.
00:07:12
Speaker
Yeah. Amazing concept that no one thought of, but he made a system where everyone had specific responsibilities. Obviously, he had a great career in both areas. That's how he got a plaque and and a bust. But his umpiring on the field days ended suddenly because in the 1951 offseason, he went hunting with his friend and his friend shot him in the right eye by accident.
00:07:33
Speaker
What? That's odd. So needless to say, that kind of affected his ability to see balls and strikes. Not that that would really matter in today's league. Yeah, I was going to say, there's no way he could be worse than Angel Hernandez.
00:07:44
Speaker
But this ended his on-field baseball career. But after that, he became the assistant supervisor for officials, then became the top supervisor for all officiating from 1954 to 1969. So I know you guys clown me for talking umpires, but i this story was too interesting to not put in.
00:08:00
Speaker
This is ah yeah also good ah baseball life. So up to the players, only one new guy with the Yankees, no new Cubs, but a lot of oofs with the Cubs.
00:08:14
Speaker
Dizzy Dean, as Josh mentioned, his second appearance, he stays at one ring. Went 0-1 with a 6.48 ERA. Six earned runs and 8.1 innings. Two strikeouts.
00:08:26
Speaker
Oof. Just reminder, level one, number 56 between early win and Louis Tiant. We all voted yes for Dizzy Dean. Yeah, I think that tone kind of ah yeah was the end of it.
00:08:37
Speaker
Yep. Gabby Hartnett, who finished 10th in MVP voting this year. It's his fourth and final World Series appearance and finishes 0 for 4. Batted 91 with a 364 1 for 11 with a triple.
00:08:50
Speaker
one for eleven with a triple Oof. Level one. Number 11 catcher between Mickey Cochran and Yadier Molina. We all voted yes for him. I think i think we need to get like a soundboard now.
00:09:03
Speaker
And anytime there' there's a guy that just did not do well, we just need to play the oof sound. Yeah. Billy Herman. right, Zach, get on it. All right, all right. Perfect. Get on it.
00:09:14
Speaker
Billy Herman, third appearance, still without a ring, hit 188 with 423 OPS, went three for 16, all were singles.
00:09:25
Speaker
Say it with me. Oof. Oof. Four strikeouts and a walk. Had more strikeouts than hits. Zach loves singles. I do. Yes, he does. Not when they're all singles.
00:09:36
Speaker
hate to see it. So last but not least, we have a former Yankee in his first year away from the Yankees, Tony Lazeri. Oh, before Billy Herman, Zach voted no, we voted yes, Josh.
00:09:48
Speaker
Tony Lazeri, first season away from the Yankees, playing his former team in the World Series. It's his final World Series appearance. He finishes five and two in the World Series, only had two at-bats, but went 0 for 2 with one strikeout. So say it again.
00:10:01
Speaker
Oof.
00:10:03
Speaker
For Tony Laziri, Josh said no. Zach and I said yes. And he was a player coach in the 1938 season, by the way. He played very little, um but he did obviously appear in the series. And then the Cubs released Laziri after the season. He signed with the Dodgers for 1939, but they caught him in May.
00:10:20
Speaker
So this is pretty much the end for him for where we'll be talking about him. Moving on to the winning New York Yankees, manager Joe McCarthy. It's his fourth title, fifth pennant. Just reminder, number two manager of all time.
00:10:32
Speaker
Bill Dickey actually finishes the MVP runner-up this year with five war. 313 batting average on the season, 981 OPS, 27 dingers, and 115 runs batted in. Pretty damn good season.
00:10:45
Speaker
ah It's his fourth World Series appearance, and he's 4-for-4 in the Fall Classic. ah Hit very well here. 400 batting average, 1.038 OPS, 615 with a home run.
00:10:56
Speaker
Just reminder, we all said yes to him for is he a Hall of Famer. He's a level one, number nine catcher, in my
Joe Gordon's Hall of Fame Debate
00:11:01
Speaker
opinion. Okay, Blue Zex said yes. Yeah. Joe DiMaggio finished sixth in MVP voting.
00:11:08
Speaker
His third appearance, third ring, 267 with a 779 OPS. s Not his best series. Four for 15 with a home run. So it was respectable. um Just reminder, we all obviously said yes to him.
00:11:21
Speaker
Number four center fielder of all time on my list. Lou Gehrig, this is a sad one. It's his last full season. he only plays eight more regulars He only plays eight more regular season games in 1939 for obvious reasons.
00:11:33
Speaker
His seventh appearance is sixth ring. He had a solid batting average, 286, but it was all singles, so 661 OPS, four for 14. um Obviously not his best series, but I think we can all find it in our hearts to forgive him.
00:11:45
Speaker
Number one first baseman of all time. We all obviously voted yes for him. Lefty Gomez, his fourth appearance, he's also 4-4-4. He did very well. 2-0, 1.5 ERA, 8-2 strikeout-to-walk ratio.
00:11:58
Speaker
We all voted yes for him. Level 1, number 50 starting pitcher between Don Dryasdale, Bob Lemon, and Red Ruffing, who finished fourth in MVP voting this year. a lot MVP votes for the Yankees. Also 2-0, 1.5 ERA with two complete games, 11-2 strikeout-to-walk ratio.
00:12:14
Speaker
We all voted no for him. And our only newbie for the players. Welcome to Championship Board Bust, Yankees rookie second baseman Joe Gordon. In his rookie year, Joe finished 12th in MVP voting, which when you consider all the MVP votes that were going on with the Yankees, that's no small feat.
00:12:33
Speaker
In this series, he had 400 with a 1.071 OPS, 6 for 15 with a home run, 6 runs batted in. But for the first time in a couple episodes now, is he a Hall of Famer?
00:12:45
Speaker
Joe Gordon played for the New York Yankees and the Cleveland Indians from 1938 to 1950. He wasn't elected until 2009 in the same class as Ricky Henderson by a veterans committee.
00:12:56
Speaker
When he was on the BBWA ballot, he peaked at 28.5%. Joe won the 1942 MVP, finished top 10 in the voting five times, but never finished above six besides that one season that he won it.
00:13:08
Speaker
He was a five-time World Series champ and a nine-time All-Star who finished with a 55.6 war. Now, take a look at this carefully. when you're look if you're i see I hear the typing.
00:13:19
Speaker
If you're looking, you can hear He lost his age 29 and 30 seasons to military service. When you look at the war that he had the seasons prior and every season after except for the one immediately following his military service, he probably finishes above 70.
00:13:38
Speaker
If he had a career in another era where he wasn't fighting in wars, he probably would have hit that. His counting stats are low. 268 batting average is a little rough. But remember, he's a second baseman. An 822 OPS, though, as a second baseman. And 120 OPS plus as a second baseman in a time when second baseman didn't hit a lot. 1,530 hits, 253 home runs, 975 runs batted in.
00:14:01
Speaker
To me, this is the toughest call we've had on here to date. but Looking forward to hearing your thoughts.
00:14:11
Speaker
Zach, would you like to go first? you like me to go first? I'm really thinking about it I don't have any thoughts about it. I don't have any qualms about this one. All then you go ahead Yes, Hall of Famer.
00:14:22
Speaker
Oh, boy. Marking it down. i don't I don't think it should even be up for debate. What? i Listen, if he played at age 29 and 30 in his prime, he would have been you know in the top 22nd baseman for a war.
00:14:40
Speaker
while having pretty respectable numbers and winning an MVP. And like, like, like Mac said, this was a time where second baseman really didn't hit. So yeah, absolutely. Hall of Famer.
00:14:51
Speaker
Right. That's why I'm, I'm struggling with the cap, with the counting stats. Cause they're just, they're just really low. Oh God. I'm going to go no on another military veteran. You're only really going to hate me for that.
00:15:03
Speaker
oh Just stick it with the narrative, man. You've got to go with the narrative. I respect the ability to stick to your guns and your anti-militaristic thoughts. Okay. I'll mark down no for Zach. Honestly, though, Zach, I can't clown you too much, and I'll tell you why.
00:15:23
Speaker
up until yesterday, he was a no for me, too. a Yesterday? here's why honestly i think when i did the list and ever and every once while i revised it i add some guys in um you know i saw the i saw the county numbers and i saw the the fact that he only had the one top five mvp finished And ah guess I just had some pause.
00:15:48
Speaker
And I think what happened was since I first did the list, I added a bunch of guys in um when I kind of had second thoughts. And I never really reevaluated him until I went through it yesterday. And I did end up putting him on yesterday um as a lower level. What swayed this decision of yours? What pushed you over the edge? Great question. so um So basically, number one was realizing that he missed the two prime years to military service. Uh-oh. You see...
00:16:13
Speaker
not I'm not throwing you under the bus for it. It's not just that. I'm not going to be like, oh, I'm on a curve just because he served. He's in. I'm not like that. But his let the three seasons before he went – actually, the last five seasons he before he went in, he had a five more or above in all five seasons.
00:16:33
Speaker
And then a six war above in four of those five seasons. Then when he came back, obviously, like, you've got to get your feet back in. He had a rough one. Then he came back and had another two, six and a half war seasons. Now, again, I'm not a big war guy.
00:16:45
Speaker
I understand that, you know, it sounds little inconsistent with what I normally think. But in this era, when you consider the fact that he probably also would get around 1,800 hits, probably around 300 home runs, considering the fact that you know if he never goes into war, he probably has a much better season in 1946. I steered that way.
00:17:07
Speaker
And also what happened was I added Bobby Doerr, the former Red Sox, a ah while back. Yeah. He's a second baseman with nine all-stars. He has 89 career home runs, but he has the same OPS and the same slugging basically as Joe Gordon.
00:17:22
Speaker
And when you consider, you know, the fact that he was on five title teams, I think that makes you, you know, some level of historically significant.
00:17:33
Speaker
If you're a borderline hall of famer with nine all-stars and five titles, I think you probably should be. Yeah. Can I, can I give you another argument for him? Sure. So he comes into the league in 38, right? Yep. 39, All-star 40, 41, selection 42, 43. five years row. Then he two years military service. 46, 47, 48, Four 49. all-stars a row. 50 is last year he retires.
00:17:53
Speaker
then he has two years of military service forty six forty seven forty eight forty nine four old stars in a row fifty is is last year he retires So he played, he had nine All-Star selections in 11 years.
00:18:09
Speaker
He was, undoubtedly, the best second baseman in the American League for a decade.
00:18:18
Speaker
I don't know how you don't give that ah vote. it's I can see it. I mean, and he's back I could push back a little maybe on the second baseman case, but it's a good enough case where yeah I'd have to really dig deep.
00:18:33
Speaker
But I think it's valid. 100%. I struggle with the stats. He's not even batting 270. i just i struggle with the stats he's not even batting to seventy He didn't have thousand reviews.
00:18:44
Speaker
I know, but at the time, you got to remember what was expected. We played 11 years. like We talked about Joe Tinker back in the day. We didn't do an Izzy Hall of Famer for him because we didn't start doing that yet. You guys probably would have ended up voting no for him.
00:18:58
Speaker
But, I mean, he's a 262 hitter with a 661 OPS. Historically significant. And that's what was expected out of the middle infielders at that time. So it's almost like the war argument. Can I really hold war against a guy like Dave Parker, who maybe didn't know that you know he has to do X, Y, and Z to up his wins above replacement?
00:19:18
Speaker
There were different priorities back then. I get that. Also random, but he wore number six, which I believe is Joe Torre's number, right? Yep.
00:19:29
Speaker
That's pretty cool. I was surprised a little bit that they didn't do like the double with Dickie and Barra. Yeah. Where they ended up, you know, once he was getting it retired anyway, like, oh yeah, we'll honor him too. Because I don't think Joe Gordon's even in Monument Park.
00:19:44
Speaker
No, I've never heard of him. He absolutely should be. aye That's a bad miss. I agree. absolutely should be. Zach wouldn't agree, but we agree. No. Yeah. You know me, I hate military veterans. You heard of him here first.
00:19:55
Speaker
i I just don't, I don't know how you don't with this guy. Yeah. Actually, Tony Lazeri isn't in Monument Park either. I think about it. That's crazy.
00:20:06
Speaker
me Wow. What's Utley's... Sorry. Utley's narrative now? You know I had to.
00:20:18
Speaker
Utley's war is higher, Zach. Utley's war is higher, but Utley had, again, different expectations set on him. Utley had 1,000 rupees. There you go. and He's batting 275. Wow, this is very similar, except he didn't win an MVP.
00:20:30
Speaker
And no five-time World Series yet. He wasn't a military veteran, so it's safe, Zach. Also, Zach, I should give you this, okay? If you're that nervous about Utley, Utley's best MVP finish was seventh.
00:20:42
Speaker
Gordon has four seasons that he was as at seven or higher. No, we know. I'm not voting for Utley. Don't worry. We know. I mean, I did. um probably will again. anybo we don't i don't don't count that.
00:20:55
Speaker
just You need to chill. No, we're absolutely counting that. What do you mean? no. no
00:21:02
Speaker
Well, guess guess what? when i When I vote for Daniel Murphy, of that's well. Oh, Jesus. Oh, please, please stop. No, and you can't I can't. I can't condone that one. Wait, what was funny, Josh? Daniel Murphy has a better MVP finish in his career than Utley ever did. I really liked Murphy, but I will never vote for him.
00:21:21
Speaker
The whole thing is it's just he just hanging out. He has the same postseason case as Utley, except Utley won a team award, and he has a second-place MVP finish when Utley, his best was seventh.
00:21:32
Speaker
Don't do that. Vote for Daniel Murphy for the Hall of Fame, boys. You know you want to You know the ballot is you really weak. Daniel Murphy had 20 career war, Mike. That was going to be really funny. He had one good season. He had one good season. Let's put him in for one good season. Let's put him in.
00:21:49
Speaker
it was his peak His peak season was a better season than Chase Utley. Okay. don't
00:21:58
Speaker
i don't know. Why not? No. Let's put in Lorenzo Cain. Let's turn it into the Hall of Pretty Good, like ah that that project is on Instagram. Every time yeah every time there's a one-hit wonder, you should put him in the Hall Fame. Yeah, that's genius. Put Eric Fames in the Hall of Fame while you're at it.
00:22:14
Speaker
What about Eric Garnier? We should put him in the Hall of Fame. He's a stellar guy. Josh will never vote for him. That's true. I just, they want the logic behind i know you're just trying to piss me off with the logic behind this. It's terrible.
00:22:29
Speaker
Yes, I am.
Top MLB Trades Discussion
00:22:31
Speaker
you actually If you actually believe that, then yeah you need help. but i have seen I've seen the things you do. I don't and it put anything past you at this point. Sherm knows. Sherm knows.
00:22:42
Speaker
If I actually put together like ah like the plaques we used to do for Daniel Murphy, I don't know if I'd have enough words.
00:22:49
Speaker
I just know that you would say, i would never vote for Daniel Murphy. And then suddenly he's on the ballot and he'd be like, you know what? Pity vote. You know what? Check. Well, we got to do something. It's going to very boring episode if we don't.
00:23:03
Speaker
Honestly, we could make it like ah like a meme episode. Like, like what are we going to do? Like, oh, you know, I'm trying to think of even who's on this stupid thing. ah Nick Markakis. No, no, no. Next. Ali Kendrick. No, no, no. Next.
00:23:17
Speaker
I mean, that's just the way it is. Yeah, we've got to make it fun. The hall is not going to let nobody can do fun dance. We can make no musical. No, no, no, no, no. We can make something like that. was actually out the room. Just throw memes in there or something. i don't know.
00:23:31
Speaker
Yeah, Cooperstown is going to need to make money that year, right? They're going to let somebody in. It's going to be Beltran. It's going to be some veteran committee guy. No, Beltran will get in. So, I threw this out to the boys because I thought it would be really kind of boring and repetitive if we just went, oh, Merrill Kelly to the Rangers. Oh, Oswaldo Peraza to the Angels.
00:23:49
Speaker
So um I wanted to give Zachy's most... Yeah, going to say. but Yeah, I mean, you picked like the two worst ones. that's why I threw out the boring ones. Hello. Oswald Peraza's going to be playing on the Long Island Ducks in about three years.
00:24:06
Speaker
Merrill Kelly wasn't a bad one at all. Merrill Kelly's not terrible. He's fine. Merrill Kelly was a sick starter on a team that can't make the playoffs. He's got a three ERA and a three war. I mean, nothing sees that at all. You're right. Just kidding. I'll take him on my team.
00:24:19
Speaker
All right. I threw together Zaki's top five most impactful trades this deadline so we can go ahead and dissect and and yell at me and do all that. already know what number one is. no No, you don't. No, you don't. No, no. It's probably number two or three. But –
00:24:37
Speaker
Spoiler alert. All right, going to do a very Michael style. I did an honorable mention here because, you know, he always loves to throw in an extra. Love that. This is true. This is Mike's style. You've got to throw in some extras. I did an honorable mention. We did Mr. Shane Beaver to the Blue Jays.
00:24:52
Speaker
would have been my honorable mention as well. And only because we don't know what's going to happen when he comes back. That's what I wrote down. Wow, I'm doing really well so far. I wrote a top five just so I can clown you properly, and Bieber was the one i was very i was almost ready to put in. Listen, I can't stand the Blue Jays, but I did draft Bieber in our draft, and he's been sitting on my bench in limbo just waiting for him to come back for the playoffs. So, you know what? I got to hope that he pitches well. I hope the Blue Jays lose, but I hope he pitches well.
00:25:21
Speaker
That's really funny. um Well, my number five, i don't know. Let's see how you boys like this. i got i put the Yankees with Ryan McMahon from the Rockies. Finally, a solid third baseman. He can play some a little defense. He can hit a little bit, and he has a year of control. I actually really, really like this move. What do you guys think?
00:25:39
Speaker
I like it. I don't think it's top five, but I do like it. it's not a It wasn't a bad pick. I did consider it. um I found five that I took over it. I also don't know – When's the barrier to consider it a deadline trade?
00:25:53
Speaker
Like, is it a week out? Yeah, it was a week before. This was a little early. it was a week out. ah Okay. Yeah. That's why I was borderline on it, too. I think he's done great. I like that we got him.
00:26:05
Speaker
I was very happy when we got the news. Out of the Yankee trades, I think that was the best one. Yes, I put it there. That was the only one I considered putting in the top five. I think the Duval trade was a little overrated. Bednar played well today.
00:26:17
Speaker
Very well today. um I think he's a little volatile to put in something like this. Yeah. um But I do like the move. I think there's a better there's there's five better ones, but it's not a bad pick.
00:26:32
Speaker
All right. I can't clown you too bad. No, I like i yeah I don't know. I'm kind of what I'm kind of like on this one. I don't know if it's top five, but, you know, for the Yankees needs everybody new. They did not have anybody that could play third base at all whatsoever.
00:26:46
Speaker
So you have to assume that, ah you know, if they called about a guy like, you know, Eugenio Suarez, that the price was probably going to be higher because they knew how desperate Yankees were.
00:26:57
Speaker
However, Colorado is awful. So their price was probably not as high. And I've actually had my eye on on McMahon for for quite a number of years.
00:27:08
Speaker
Oh, I remember. I think he's a decent player. and i you know He's probably going to benefit from the Yankee Stadium, even though he hasn't had a home run yet. ah But you know the guy's a career 240 hitter.
00:27:21
Speaker
so He's a boom or bust kind of guy, so he fits right in on the Yankees lineup. He's a very good defensive player, which I think gets overlooked. Which is changing pace. And he actually does take really good at bats.
00:27:34
Speaker
He does. He's working to count. But he does strike out a lot. but He strikes out, but he doesn't swing at stupid stuff. Yeah. And I agree with Sherm. The defense, I think, is really overlooked because the Yankees, I mean, we we can get into this later. it's It's abysmal. I don't even know if I want to talk about it, to be honest. I'm just really upset.
00:27:50
Speaker
I mean, he he's no he's no Nolan Arenado defensive player, but a solid player, and he's going to make a couple of really nice plays, and he's not going to be you know he's not going to throw stuff away constantly.
Gambling Scandal Impact
00:27:59
Speaker
Not to change the subject, but speaking of the Rockies and speaking of the Blue Jays, did anyone see the score of the game at today?
00:28:05
Speaker
Yes. No. Well, the Rockies added minus 19 to their run differential. The Blue Jays scored 40 runs. Sorry, 35 runs in three-game series. Yeah. Oh, God. twenty to one final score.
00:28:17
Speaker
Continue, Zach. I apologize. 10, 15, 20 runs. Okay. Number four. I put the Padres with Mason Miller, J.P. Sears. They really shored up the back end of their bullpen there with Suarez. I know Miller has had a really bad year, but I yeah think it looks good for them.
00:28:35
Speaker
That is my fourth. Yeah. Miller blew a save last night. Oh, I had a fourth as well though. i I agree. I think that's a boomer bus move for a team. That's going to need to do something to get past the Brewers, the Dodgers yeah and the Cubs.
00:28:50
Speaker
I, that's the move you make. ah You have Miller in control for many years. Yes. And he's got really good stuff. I know it's been a rough year. Relievers go up and down. We know this. He's not Mariano Rivera.
00:29:01
Speaker
Okay. Josh Hader had a bad year a couple of years ago. Edwin Diaz had a bad year. yeah yeah last i I think this is it. Even if it's not for this year, it it's a good move for the longterm.
00:29:12
Speaker
And it's a guy that, you know, he's going come in in the ninth inning in October and throw one Oh two. There's a value in that. yeah um Number three, I had a very, very similar trade. I had the Mets with Ryan Helsley and the guy from the Giants was named Rogers. They're also shoring up their bullpen with Edwin Diaz in the back. I think it's a very good deal for them as well. Wow. I had i had that in mind. we just combine two trades into one? I think that's illegal.
00:29:43
Speaker
Yeah, pick that. Yeah, you can't go by two moves in the one career. We'll do Housley then. Good, good pick. I went to his debut on Friday, and when he came in, that place was buzzing. The Hells Bells entrance, he topped out at 101, threw it like three or four times.
00:30:03
Speaker
His control was a little off. He looked a little nervous. But I think that's going to be a really good move for them. I agree with you. I have i had it five. Okay. But I was considering going higher, so I'm glad you did.
00:30:16
Speaker
Oh, well, that was good. Yeah, i kind of agree that this is a lower one. But definitely top five. All right. Number two, this is what you all thought my number one was. Phillies finally had a solid closer in Johan Duran from Minnesota. Yes, this is true.
00:30:30
Speaker
I had a two as well. Yeah, they gave up Mick Abel, which I will say, ac really he's a really good top prospect in their system. um So who knows? Duran's thrown well in the majors. to and Not Duran. Abel's thrown well in the majors as well.
00:30:43
Speaker
Yeah, Mick Abel's a really good prospect. He a legit prospect. They gave up a lot for him, but I mean, they haven't had a really good closer since I can't remember. So yeah i do they didn't have a choice for a guy like this. You have to give something up.
00:30:56
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah. I think it was, I agree. Number two. Oh, wow. Look at me and Mac. Look at us. All right. Number one's obvious. Is it? Marino's acquiring Yenio Suarez. It is very obvious. Solid bat to the lineup pushing for the AL West title.
00:31:11
Speaker
There we go. Did very well, Zach. I'm impressed. Good. Good. um One I left off, which I think should be mentioned as well, is Carlos Correa back to the Astros. That was my other one.
00:31:23
Speaker
Okay. I had that. I probably had that a little high. I had it at three. I understand he's had a rough season. I get it. understand the injury thing too. But that the AL is so weak, and I think adding a veteran bat to a younger lineup yeah is huge and a guy who has so much October experience yeah and also the mentoring aspect. Yeah.
00:31:45
Speaker
I think he could be the guy to help Jordan Alvarez break out of his slump. And there's a lot of young guys I think he can kind of help bridge with. um He's willing to go to third base, shows he's a team guy, as much as I dislike him.
00:31:57
Speaker
um Jeremy Pena is going to play short, really shorts up the left side of the infield. i and It replaces Isak Paridi since he's out for the season. yeah i thought that was a great move for them.
00:32:08
Speaker
Yeah, Correa is what, like 270 playoff hitter, and he's also under control for another two years. I think his contract's up in 2028, 2027, I can't remember.
00:32:19
Speaker
The other thing was I got to find the guy's name. The reason why I had it so high is the fact of what they gave up for him. It's a guy with like a 60. Literally got him for free. Yeah, Craig basically walked into her Twins' office and went, oh, so we're just dismantling this whole thing? You can trade me now.
00:32:37
Speaker
yeah Like, i'm not I'm not going to play for you anymore. And they went, oh, okay. And the Astros came calling again because they had been calling already. And they were like, yeah, we'll give you ah you know a ham sandwich and a can of Coke. And and the Twins kind of went, oh, I guess that's all we're getting.
00:32:51
Speaker
So the guy that they gave up the guy that they gave up for Correa has an 8.64 ERA and A+, plus and he's 26 years old. Yeah. Oh, my God. Literally, am. They gave him a handshake.
00:33:02
Speaker
That's why I wound up putting him at three, even though I know he hasn't had the best season. The fact that they literally got him for free is insane. He's actually a New York kid, too.
00:33:14
Speaker
He can like New York. yeah Went to Florida. I feel bad. for poor Byron Bucks and homie gets injured and Joe Ryan's gone. dura Joe Ryan wanted to get it. He stayed. The move fell through.
00:33:26
Speaker
Yeah, the Red Sox were going to get him and then you know every reporter under the sun was talking about it and then he didn't get it and then all the Red Sox fans were crying. It's the only thing that made me happy in the last few weeks. Honestly. was listening to Red Sox fans cry when they found they didn't get him.
00:33:40
Speaker
Well, he got Steven Mast at least. That's great. And Dustin Mast. That's great. We'll be back at a Miller trade for a second, though. ah that Oakland actually did really well because that guy that they got for the Padres to rise, yeah, that guy's going to look really good on the Yankees in a couple of years when they try get him.
00:33:53
Speaker
Yeah. That's why I lowered him to four. I would have had him at three over Correa, but I didn't like the fact that they they gave up a lot to get him.
00:34:05
Speaker
Yeah. I don't know. I mean, the way –
00:34:09
Speaker
Where the pi where they athletics are at now, they don't need Miller. No. um But they could use a guy like DeVaray. I know, but I'm saying like for the Padres... Oh, Padres need a guy like Miller now.
00:34:22
Speaker
But not to sound like Zach. I mean, wouldn't have been to go for a guy like Benard Doval for a little cheaper than the number three prospect in baseball? I mean, is any closer besides Mo worth...
00:34:35
Speaker
No, because they want to win now. i say Oh, sorry. Because they smell blood in the water because they don't think the Dodgers are as strong as they were all last year, and they want to capitalize now. I heard you, Zach Goodwin. Yeah. Class Yeah. Everyone thought he might be better than Mariano Rivera. yeah I guess we'll never know.
00:34:52
Speaker
Do we want to talk about that? Yes. ah Yes, we do. I'm sure I'm sounding like he had something really interesting to say. I didn't know. I had nothing interesting to say. oh Mike had something interesting to say. I was just going to clown him.
00:35:02
Speaker
All right. Not Mike. Class A. Oh, you were Clown Class Yeah, I was in Clown Class A, yeah. No, really have anything interesting to say. I was ready to thwart whatever your rant was, and I thought it was about this. I guess I was wrong. my Oh, no, my rant was about the Yankees. We haven't gotten to that yet. My only thought is, and I want to i shout out to our main listener, Mr.
MLB Work Stoppage and Salary Cap Concerns
00:35:22
Speaker
Mike, um because we've had this conversation a couple times.
00:35:26
Speaker
The main thing about like how the and MLB is allowing this to happen, and I don't necessarily disagree with that, but with that being said, I am not going to say that grown men... shouldn't but be able to resist their temptations.
00:35:40
Speaker
Classes, if he's guilty, should be banned from baseball. And baseball is putting themselves in a rough position, but I'm not going to blame them for players making dumb decisions.
00:35:53
Speaker
You can have rules that apply to certain people and not to others, meaning the fans can bet on baseball. They have nothing to do with the result of the game. These guys do. So yeah, baseball's open themselves up for it, but really it's the lawmakers that open themselves up for it because at that point, what's baseball going to do?
00:36:11
Speaker
I just think it's mildly hilarious that the day after class A got You know, indefinitely suspended. ah The, you know, the Guardians are posting their lineup and it's sponsored by like Bet365 or one of those. or I think it was BetNGM, like one of the big betting companies. It's like, that's just in poor taste. They we do have to read the room. Yes, I don't think agree with that.
00:36:29
Speaker
um And listen, i I do think that the gambling advertisers have gotten out of hand. I don't disagree with that whole premise, but I'm not going to you know say that the players should be given leeway because of that. like If you go on the Guardian fans, like Guardian Twitter, it's a lot of like, oh, but Otani got off.
00:36:48
Speaker
Guys, Otani's a different situation. I mean, this is a new i mean this a new one, honestly. you know I mean, there have been guys who have gotten suspended for gambling before, but it was betting on other things. that This is, I think, the new one entirely because these were guys that were I don't think they were betting. I think they were being given money to do things. To do things for the better. Yes, for the better. Right.
00:37:12
Speaker
Less has come out about the Class A one with Ortiz one. it was It's pretty clear that people were betting sums of money on him to throw balls on certain pitches.
00:37:24
Speaker
And he was very clearly throwing them nowhere near the strike zone so that nobody would actually want to swing at it. And obviously somebody was giving him a kickback for that. I mean, this is completely different.
00:37:36
Speaker
This is, in my opinion, worse than actually going and so and placing bets on something else when you're told you're not allowed to bet. You're not allowed to have a betting account. Yeah. And i'm I'm right there with you on that. I agree as well.
00:37:48
Speaker
Do you guys think he throws another pitch ever again? i don't. How long is this investigation going to take? they didn't like I feel like they're not providing any information about it at all. i don't I mean, the the locker being cleared out is is a bad sign there's a bad sign. There's no question about that. and That don't look good.
00:38:08
Speaker
i don know I think the question is, how does Manfred say it? it this like a Is this a steroid thing where it's like, it's ruining the integrity of the game, but we'll give you an 80-game suspension, then you can come back and try again. yeah ah Or is it got in a a forever thing?
00:38:24
Speaker
ah Is it going to be like a Trevor Bauer thing where they just don't want him sign a contract ever again? They never say he's not officially suspended, but he's not a allowed to play. you know, is it going be one of those or is it going to be your bad from for a life? I would ban it for life.
00:38:36
Speaker
I think he's banned for life. Yeah, if it's that bad, yeah. I think those are, you know, the stuff that, the videos that came out, I'm not saying they're guilty, but look at those videos of the first. They're guilty. It don't look good. if It's real bad. I mean, dude, they're bouncing balls in the dirt.
00:38:53
Speaker
Yeah. they have they have the They have the bets side by side, and it's like, in this game, in this inning, it's First pitch of the inning, ball. And, I mean, he's throwing a ball over the umpire's head or bouncing a ball five feet in front of the plate.
00:39:06
Speaker
Like, these are non-competitive pitches. That's the word. That's the exact word. It's non-competitive pitches. yeah Is there anyone worse to have in a betting scandal than a closer, though?
00:39:17
Speaker
Like, if you think about it, it hitter impacts the game i think three times a day. They can have three strikeouts. They can have three balls go come to them. One of them can go over their heads. And it's not going to have a profound impact on the game most of the time.
00:39:30
Speaker
The closer's coming in up a run in the ninth inning. A lot of times – Who care? It's about a win. It's coming up. That's a very good point though. But i'm saying like I'm saying for like the – Integrity of the game. For baseball, could anyone impact the results of game when the game with a closer? If you're a starter, you know yeah, it's going to suck for your bullpen that you know you're going to have to be taken out in the first inning.
00:39:50
Speaker
But you can come back from a 4-0 game with a guy on base. If you're a closer, you're coming in the bottom of the ninth. There's no recovery if you mess up. See, yeah you know what I think is actually kind of funny that you're saying that is that ah i I bet you that these have been going on the exact same amount of time, Ortiz and Class A, but it took them longer to figure out Class A because he only throws one inning, right?
00:40:18
Speaker
Right. Ortiz won't probably easier to pick out because they're betting it on specific innings. Like, you know, and guys, you know, say five innings start, they're betting on the third inning. and And I guarantee these knuckleheads were not smart enough to go, oh, going to bet on the second inning and make sure it loses so it looks real.
00:40:32
Speaker
Right. No, that's how – you're exactly right because it was a large amount of activity on a certain pitch because they're all stupid. Right. Yeah. I don't think these guys were geniuses, but somehow they got in their ear and were giving them kickbacks on it.
00:40:45
Speaker
yeah Yeah, and like I said, MLB has put themselves in a rough position because it does look out of touch when you have the Bet365 advertisement on the Guardians lineup the day after this happens. That was ridiculous. But that doesn't mean that Class A and Ortiz are innocent either or that they should be justified in their actions either if they did it.
00:41:06
Speaker
Hey, I was clowning the NHL last year or two years ago when Shane Pinto got suspended. He got an 80-game suspension 40-game suspension for Betton. And on the senator's helmet is Bet365, which is just whole comical.
00:41:19
Speaker
I feel like sports league, the league itself should not take sponsorships from gambling, but I feel like they get so much money from it. That's the problem. They can't not. It's so much money. it's the It's honestly, it's the lawmakers fault more than anything else.
00:41:34
Speaker
And I mean, it was, it was pretty predictable. I mean, this was about to happen. The cool thing is that it does seem very easy to catch. Because yeah if they're catching the first pitch ball bets... Yeah, that's kind of crazy. you're catching their If they're catching that, then you we're we're pretty secure in what we're able to find.
00:41:54
Speaker
Yeah. I mean, there they're getting guys... What's his name? Michael Porter Jr., right? I mean, honestly, the real question there all the question is... what are The real question is here, I don't know that we didn't even say, is that not even if these guys are getting suspended, these guys are going to get arrested.
00:42:10
Speaker
I don't know. this i mean, this is fraud. This is borderline fraud. People are paying money to go to the games. Yeah. But the expectation of like, it's weird because football, I think you could actually get away with it because football is actually disclaimer it as an entertainment event, which implies that football could in theory predetermine the results legally.
00:42:31
Speaker
Well, I think in football, you can, you can make the case and in court beyond a reasonable doubt that you didn't actually throw the game or something like that. Right. Can you really make the case beyond a reasonable doubt that they did not,
00:42:43
Speaker
throw non-competitive pitches? I don't know if you could. In a court of law, I don't know if you could. Yeah. I don't know. It's a question. You're saying that football is classified like wwe WWE where it's like scripted? Similar, yeah. I'll find the exact wording. but Yeah, that's hilarious. like but Not like people say that every year.
00:43:03
Speaker
but geez, we're meant to be. This team sucks, but somehow they're in the Super Bowl. I think a Taylor Swift on TV, you get more money. I'm already talking about competitive sports, but it is looked at as entertainment.
00:43:18
Speaker
That's interesting. I got to find the exact thing, and I'll come back to you guys on that. But they I believe they actually can legally fix games. I don't believe they do, because if they did, I think that Eagle Chief game would have been a lot more competitive.
00:43:35
Speaker
um i I was standing there on my sofa. was like, oh, yeah it's all rigged. They're doing it for Taylor Swift. Kelsey's going propose on the field and retire. And I've been on that for two years now. And I really felt pretty warm in that prediction the first year.
00:43:50
Speaker
This year I thought it was really going to happen. And then they got crushed. And there's no way the NFL will be in the Super Bowl in front of everybody. Mm-hmm.
00:44:03
Speaker
So I don't buy into it anymore now. I actually have been more convinced about the integrity of the NFL from that game. Just from that Super Bowl. That was the one positive thing. i Believe me, my blood boiled watching the Eagles celebrate. But to be up to win by 18 and it wasn't even that close, I mean, i
Remembering Ryan Sandberg
00:44:22
Speaker
felt a lot better about that. There's no way the NFL would want that product with everyone's eyes on it.
00:44:31
Speaker
While you look that up, something I forgot to mention at the top of the current events, Hall of Famer Ryan Sandberg um unfortunately passed away since our last recording. 16-year Hall of Fame career for the Phillies and mainly the Chicago Cubs, known as one of the greatest effect defensive second basemen, nine-time goal-glover, 10-time All-Star.
00:44:49
Speaker
Just really sad. I think he died at like, what, 64, 65? um Really sad to see, unfortunately. Very sad. Rest in peace. I had a feeling watching the induction, the way Jane Forbes Clark introduced him when he wasn't there. And it sounded like she was getting pretty teary eyed.
00:45:08
Speaker
I didn't expect it to happen the day after the induction. ah But yeah. When usually like when was collecting autographs for years and stuff, the the sign that when they stopped going to autograph shows, when they were regularly going to autograph shows, it's not a good sign.
00:45:23
Speaker
That's when you know. Or if they stopped signing through the mail, he stopped signing through the mail a couple months ago. know, that's usually like the cue of like, okay, it's getting bad. Yeah. And questionnaire it's very sad.
00:45:37
Speaker
Great player gone way too soon. Yeah.
Yankees' Management Critique
00:45:41
Speaker
65 I just looked it up very sad um so just to clarify the it is considered entertainment however if they are found they can you know fixing games is illegal for the purpose of financial gain so they can they're they're not like WWE wwe okay good they shouldn't be okay
00:46:09
Speaker
Did we want to get into the Bryce Harper work stoppage? whole thing? Okay, so i that Manfred likes to meet all 30 teams throughout the season and talk through things, which I actually didn't know he did, so kudos to him.
00:46:22
Speaker
um And the Phillies were in New York playing the Yankees, and he was in the Phillies clubhouse going over, I guess, new like some stuff. And Bryce Harper, the idea of a salary cap got brought up, and Harper said, um if you want to talk about that, get the F out of our clubhouse.
00:46:37
Speaker
And that turned out to not go so well, and Castellanos have to get involved and separate the two. So it sounds like a work stoppage is coming our way. I just – I don't know. What do you guys think?
00:46:48
Speaker
Which one is hopefully a work stoppage. I mean they've been talking about this for – basically since the last one. It's almost guaranteed.
00:46:58
Speaker
What's interesting to me is that he brought up a salary cap. as opposed to a salary floor, which I feel like the fans are almost in ah and agreement on. you't know it now Because the owners will will approve a salary cap. The owners will not approve a salary floor. That's exactly one is enough ah yeah that's why. a supermajority to approve that, and there's enough owners that don't want to do that. You think the A's wants to do that. You think the Pirates owner wants to do that.
00:47:20
Speaker
yeah Other than the Yankees, Mets, Cubs, Astros, Dodgers, how many other teams are spending? Blue Jays. how you know There's not many other than that that are going to – voluntarily say, Oh, I want to spend above a certain amount.
00:47:34
Speaker
Yeah. So I love the idea. it should be a revenue percentage. yeah el Let me rephrase that. It should be a revenue percentage of how much ah the owner of the team is worth.
00:47:49
Speaker
That's what it should be. If you can't afford it, you should be required to spend it or sell the team. That's it. You can't have a guy like the A's who is top 10 richest owner and is spending less money on everybody else by a country mile.
00:48:03
Speaker
That is what you should be trying to avoid. Yeah.
00:48:08
Speaker
It's crazy because the 2027 schedule or 2026 schedule is going to come out soon. Looking forward to it. But then who knows when we're planning our bachelor party, might even get to go to the game. I would i would ah bet my life savings on there will be no baseball in 2027.
00:48:23
Speaker
It's just not going to happen. They're not going to come to a compromise. If they're talking about it and gearing you up for it a year and a half in advance, you know it's not going to happen. There will not be baseball.
00:48:34
Speaker
Yeah. It's embarrassing. It is embarrassing, but you know they barely played the last time. you know They ended up having to cut time out of the season.
00:48:45
Speaker
Yeah. i it's just It's bad, dude. It's really bad. It is. The players will not get pushed over by the stupid crap. We can issue public apologies to Mark McGuire and Sammy Sosa because once the stoppage is over and no one's interested in baseball anymore, they'll jack them up with steroids. They'll come out at 55 years old and slam some into the 450 feet out. That's what they should do.
00:49:10
Speaker
What? There you That's absolutely what they should do. It was just a calamity of errors. Just like the Yankees. Oh, yeah. Thank you for the segue. That was an A1 segue. I didn't even know where to start with them. you are That's two great segues in a row. Yeah, go ahead. Thank you. if They're going have to cut out half of one of them.
00:49:31
Speaker
ah So, i dude, I don't even know where to start on this. Neither do i ah let me let me Let me start ah with the first one that I have to say is that they got Jake Bird from Colorado.
00:49:44
Speaker
And I heard a lot of people saying – You know, Colorado is just bad. Like, this guy is really not a bad reliever. Yankees pitching coach is really good, and he's going to fix them.
00:49:55
Speaker
And Jake Burke comes over here and turns into the worst pitcher I've ever seen in my life. So bad that I sent him down to AAA. I'm sorry. We traded away prospects and some pretty decent ones for this guy.
00:50:07
Speaker
Why? And he's in the minors. And he's now in AAA. So they could activate Mark Leiter. going Now, going on to this, let let me let me preface this by going, Devin Williams so lost his job as a closer this year.
00:50:26
Speaker
is having his worst year ever by a mile. He's given up more runs this year than he has in the last three years combined. Granted, one of those years he barely played, but that's still two and you know a third of a season.
00:50:41
Speaker
He blew a save the night before. yep The Yankees traded for two closers because they could not trust this guy. And yet they brought him in in a tie game in the eighth inning.
00:50:53
Speaker
And... Then, when Aaron Boone was asked about this decision, know what he said? Well, Leiter was warming up in the bullpen, but I didn't think it was a good spot for him to come in and pitch because he hasn't thrown in a while.
00:51:08
Speaker
Oh, wow. And you know what he did in Game 1 of the World Series? Yeah, I going to say. Nester Cortez. Nester Cortez would like a word, sir. So, hey, I guess he learned from his mistakes. It's good to know. I just... I mean, dude, I just... What are we doing?
00:51:23
Speaker
I... It's so frustrating, and like I almost don't even want to talk about it. so Somebody hits a pop fly the second base, and Jazz Chisholm's first base, right? This is routine infield pop fly where you are on first base and you just walk right back to first base and you're standing on it when he catches the ball.
00:51:42
Speaker
And if by some you know thing happens that he drops the ball, you're out at second base, oh well. Nope, Jazz Chisholm decides to stand so far off first base that the guy catches the ball, whips it to first, and gets him out.
00:51:54
Speaker
yep And then Eric Boone actually takes Jazz into the clubhouse and says something to him. Good job, buddy. You did it. Good job, Jazz. And then after that, starts yelling at the first base coach in the dugout.
00:52:08
Speaker
Like it's his fault.
00:52:12
Speaker
He probably gave Jazz a sticker and a candy bar. He didn't say anything to the rookie, Jemai Jones, who got thrown out at third base when Ronald Acuna Jr. threw the ball 600 feet to nab him because he didn't slide and really walked to third base.
00:52:29
Speaker
And you got all these ex-pros saying that, well, Boone's good in the clubhouse. You know, he says it like it is, and everybody knows the deal, and everybody knows they have to be better. You got Lance Lynn, who came to New York, got traded to New York, and was absolutely god-awful atrocious.
00:52:46
Speaker
Yep. I mean, this guy was awful. Absolutely awful. And he's going to sit there and defend Boone. i just I don't get it.
00:52:59
Speaker
Are we going to wait? Boone, every day, it's it's you know it's sunshine and rainbows. It's okay. We just got to get going, guys. It's okay. We got to figure it out. when When is it go time? Apparently, he had an interview with John Boy. It's go time. It is August, sir.
00:53:12
Speaker
no it's it's the say it's like It's the same thing. He picks he picks a new word. He picks new word every year. It's go time. It's right in front of us. And and then they go, well, you know he's just not he's just not the kind of manager that's going light his guys up and in the media. It's like, maybe he should, though.
00:53:26
Speaker
Just one day. i like one day some At some point, you've got to light a fire under onto these guys. Because they keep saying, well, they know when the clubhouse needs to be fixed. Well, why does it look like they're at a country club where nobody cares?
00:53:38
Speaker
ye Because there's no accountability. That's what don't get. There is no accountability. There is no accountability. you know You can screw up every single time. And guess what?
00:53:50
Speaker
You're still starting to shortstop. ah No matter how many times you shit the bed with two outs in the ninth inning. Don't worry. He's freaking elite, Meredith. He's freaking elite. Yeah. Thanks, Boone.
00:54:01
Speaker
But honestly, the problem with this is such a top-down issue that as horrible as Boone is, if you fire him, some new knucklehead is just going to take his place and do the exact same thing.
00:54:11
Speaker
Right? Listen, the entirety of the Yankees changed when Joe Girardi got fired. You don't say. When they fired Girardi, they fired pretty much every other coach, top to bottom in the entire system.
00:54:25
Speaker
Rob Thompson. And every shred of accountability. and they But they changed how they teach. And guys have said this many times that have been in the system that were in the system and had seen the system and how things had changed.
00:54:39
Speaker
Have you guys ever heard of HitFix OPS? no vaguely Vaguely. So the Yankees' gigantic analytics department has come up with this new this new thing called HitFix OPS.
00:54:55
Speaker
This stat eliminates what they call luck from evaluating players. Because the only things that this stat actually calculates is based upon exit velocity and launch angle.
00:55:10
Speaker
That's it. So you can get up there and you can hit a little dribbler that gets between the third baseman and the shortstop and is a single. But they won't like that. That will deduct you points on this scale.
00:55:23
Speaker
You can hit a bloop single over the third baseman's head. That will deduct you points. If you rip a line drive right at somebody, you will get more points. And if you strike out, Nothing.
00:55:35
Speaker
Hey, Justice Cashman and Justice Boone, how about we have some sort of a stat that calculates ah how many times you don't mess up in the field? Oh, I don't know.
00:55:46
Speaker
Errors. Whoever has the least amount of errors starts the game. Why are we overthinking like this? know. But have you ever have you ever seen like a judge talk about hitting, though? No.
00:55:57
Speaker
Before he got that guy that he that teach that taught him how to hit, it's like the hitting guru. Judge basically said it, that the Yankees teach hitter it's hit or miss. It's boom or bust.
00:56:08
Speaker
It's you either make contact at the perfect point or you miss the ball entirely. And this guy that's teaching Judge how to hit has taught him how to miss, right? Mm-hmm. How to, if you don't hit the ball perfectly, where you're hitting it 110 off the bat, you know, into the left field bleachers, and you're getting around on it, or the right-handed hitter, well, you're still hitting the ball, you know, 80 miles an hour over the first baseman's head, and you're doubling down the line.
00:56:35
Speaker
Yankees don't teach that. Nope. And it's very evident in every one of the guys that they have. Even guys that didn't come up in the system, like like Chisholm.
00:56:46
Speaker
yeah All their swings seem to morph into this, where they're either at a home run or they don't at the ball. That's why everybody on the team is hitting 240. They talk about the Yankees like there's some, you know, oh, they have all these catchers and everyone comes up. It's so great.
00:57:00
Speaker
Like, how come Austin Wells is terrible? Yeah, what's his average at now?
00:57:06
Speaker
I mean, they gave a guy to Boston who's hitting really well. They just traded a guy away for one of their relievers.
00:57:13
Speaker
It's terrible. 209? 209 with a 680, 20PS. and a And the Yankees will sit there and and say that this guy is great. how Can we get Ben Rice catch, please? Can we just move him? well bet you know The thing about Ben Rice is that he does have all the underlying numbers.
00:57:29
Speaker
But, you know, Goldschmidt hit like 350 for that one month. Yeah, but we got to put Rice in the lineup every day. umm Do you know bad Goldschmidt is against right-handed pitching?
00:57:41
Speaker
100. I guess he's 150. I want to guess. Out of like 700 qualifying hitters, Goldschmidt is like 700. Like if there's 725, he's 720. That's great.
00:57:54
Speaker
Against right-handed pitching. It's left-handed pitching. This guy's the best player in baseball. But against right-handed pitching, you could be throwing beach balls and he would be missing it. But the Yankees will not, will not platoon him.
00:58:07
Speaker
It is not an option. They've been asked about it. Boone has been asked about it, and they said this is not an option. 233 with a 594 OPS against right-handers. 404 batting average against left-handed. 404 is left-handed. He's one of the best hitters in baseball in left-handed pitching. He had he had a pinch hit home run off a left-handed pitcher today that won the game.
00:58:30
Speaker
i just I don't get it. i I don't get it because they say, well, we we analytics, this hit-fix OPS. This is what we're teaching. Because analytics. We only care about three things.
00:58:41
Speaker
Exit velocity, launch angle, and a pitcher's spin rate. The only three things that we care we don't care about a strikeout. There's analytics. It clearly states that this guy cannot hit right-handed pitching.
00:58:52
Speaker
Ignore it. It's ridiculous. Could that explain the bullpen? Maybe they're looking at you know when pitchers who give up a lot of exit velocity and launch angle, and that might be why our bullpen sucks.
00:59:03
Speaker
i I don't know. I don't know. Let's find the guys who give up a ton of exit velocity.
00:59:10
Speaker
i don't know, but i mean Tim Hill wouldn't be on the team if that was true because his his launch angle is very low.
00:59:17
Speaker
i just I don't get it. I really don't get it. one and it's just It's just no wonder why the Yankees going to miss the playoffs this year. It's ridiculous. Here's the messed up thing. That was intended as a joke, but you guys thought I was dead serious because that's how bad it is. that's that That is how bad it is. I knew it was a joke. but you thought i was You thought I was serious. I was i was joking.
00:59:35
Speaker
Because it is. because The Yankees' system is a joke.
00:59:41
Speaker
It's embarrassing, man. I... I'm very thankful that I'm actually out of market and don't have to watch. like Yeah. But like guys have said, like if you remember, Eric Kratz was the backup catcher on the team for a year or two.
00:59:53
Speaker
And he was a bullpen catcher for a while and he was in Yankees AAA system for some time. And he was like, yeah, they used to play games down there in AAA. And it was hit the ball as hard as you can. If hit the ball over, you know, 90 miles an hour, you get a point.
01:00:09
Speaker
Oh my God. It wasn't, it wasn't, you know, If you get a hit to point, if you hit the ball over 90 miles an hour, you get a point. It's the only thing they cared about. They don't teach base running. They don't teach fielding.
01:00:20
Speaker
It's like they assume that, oh, you made it to this level, you can field. It's like there are a lot of guys that make it to major too the MLB level that cannot field, but they can hit.
01:00:31
Speaker
Kyle Schwarber cannot field, but he can hit. Yep.
01:00:38
Speaker
You can get away with one guy on the team that's like that because you can de-age him, but you can't have 10 guys like that. You can't have 10 guys like that. I don't understand how Steinbrenner can watch this and see the fans this mad and not be like, man, got to do something.
01:00:54
Speaker
Because he doesn't care because we still show up. And I'm the moron who's going on Friday night. and know You are a moron. Thank you. Thank you for admitting it. I'm a moron. My name is Mac, and I'm a moron.
01:01:06
Speaker
Thank you for admitting that. were you one Were you one of the ah morons that were sitting there taking back everything that they bad they said about Boone at the trade deadline when they were like, oh my god, he did it. He got all these relievers and we're going to be great.
01:01:19
Speaker
And I'm sitting there going, what are you talking about? thought the trade deadline was a B-. minus Yeah, we have three closers. They all suck at the end.
01:01:31
Speaker
I was happy with the Bednar move. never really got the hype of the Doval move because fine he's just as inconsistent as Bednar. Yeah.
01:01:42
Speaker
I mean, Bednar got sat down. I the McMahon move. We talked about that. Rosario fits a need because he can back up. you know He can come in for Volpe when he inevitably throws away a playoff game if we didn't make it that far. right um But it's fine. i didn't think there was anything mind-blowing.
01:02:02
Speaker
Let me put it this way. They got two mid-level closers, a reliever who shouldn't even be in baseball, Ahmed Rosario, who is ah guy that can only hit against left-handed pitching, and as we've again we've talked about, Yankees do not platoon, will not platoon.
01:02:22
Speaker
So he will probably see most of his at-bats against right-handed pitching and be terrible. ah Caviero, who cannot field ground balls... Who is basically Quentin Barry because his only job there is to be a pinch header as to be a pinch runner, and yet Aaron Boone still messes that up by putting him hit and then field.
01:02:44
Speaker
I just deserve that. And Ryan McMahon is is is is the best. Ryan McMahon is like, oh my gosh, can't believe I'm so thankful we got Ryan McMahon. This guy's a 220 hitter. I just, I don't get, like, this is how low the bar is that we're like, thank God we got a guy who can feel his position above league average and hit 220. Literally, dude. Thank God.
01:03:04
Speaker
That's how bad, that's how bad this roster's constructed. Yep. Yep.
01:03:12
Speaker
and know and So when Bellinger walks next year and Judge has to get Tommy John and you still have Stan who can't play the field, what do you Good luck.
01:03:24
Speaker
and luck What do you do? Mingus can't play the field either. You want me to give you the... Jim's going to be your starting center field for the of one good year? You have no shortstop.
01:03:35
Speaker
You have a mediocre third baseman. You have a mediocre second baseman. Is Ben Rice going to play first base next year? i don't know. You're going to go find a new backup catcher? i don't know because your starter catcher sucks.
01:03:47
Speaker
Do you want the Justice Cashman answer or do you want the actual answer? ah i Give me the Justice Cashman answer first. um but Getting Garrett Cole back is better than anything. Oh, yes. Luis Hill is our deadline acquisition. Don't forget.
01:04:01
Speaker
And Luis Hill is now back to yeah his normal form. He's our deadline acquisition, Luis Hill. We didn't get any starters. Those are off-season free agent signings. Don't worry about our but our starting rotation.
01:04:13
Speaker
Aaron Judge's elbow is back intact, and we're good to roll. We're back to being savages in the box. Oh, Jesus. And then pussy cats on the field. but I miss those days. 2019 feels like forever ago.
01:04:29
Speaker
That was before we knew. ah Brett Gardner. ah You have to admit, as soon as Brett Gardner left, everything went down the toilet. To be honest, I'm not so far behind on that because he's the last guy from that culture era, him and CeCe.
Yankees' Fundamental Skills and Accountability
01:04:41
Speaker
He was on the love charm. Once they left, what's the culture like? ye Terrible. He was the last guy of the Girardi era. Yep.
01:04:50
Speaker
The last guy that actually knew fundamentals. but You know what I mean? The World Series era. Aaron Boone puts the mentals in fundamentals. Let me tell you.
01:05:02
Speaker
Because I'm going to have a the mental breakdown pretty f freaking soon. Oh, you should tweak that one. That's a good one. No fun and a bunch of mentals. It's just crazy, man. You know the difference? Them and the Blue Jays. Blue Jays are scrappy.
01:05:15
Speaker
Blue Jays put the ball in play. They make other teams make mistakes. They play baseball. They can run the bases and throw to first base. Yep. That's what they can do. And they know how many outs there are.
01:05:27
Speaker
these These are things that good baseball teams do. Oh, dude, I forgot about that one. Yeah. Yeah, all sudden, well, stepping off a second base, you forgot how many outs there are. why How many scoreboards does it need to be on in the Yankee Stadium if you do not know how many outs? I mean, this isn't – I mean, dude, this isn't Little League where if you forgot how many outs there are, you got to ask somebody. It's on 15 scoreboards in the stadium.
01:05:47
Speaker
i How stupid can you be? I guess he just assumed that only the Yankees would bump with two outs. So once he saw that, then – Yeah, yeah.
01:05:57
Speaker
I mean, it's it's laughable. It's just ridiculous. Out of all of the things that have happened in the last two weeks with the Yankees, that was by far the worst. And there's a lot.
01:06:09
Speaker
But that is level five on the pyramid of the dumbest things that have happened in Yankee land. Yeah, and but the thing is, like you said, that there's no accountability. i don't care who the backup catcher is, who the backup second baseman is. If you do something that stupid like Wells or Chisholm, you're benched.
01:06:26
Speaker
yeah You cannot put up with that and just be like, oh, well, yeah, I made a mistake. We'll get him next time. You can't have a guy like Jazz go, well, I thought he might drop it. Like, no, you didn't.
01:06:36
Speaker
You thought of excuse after the fact. Oh, yeah, he's making a baseball play. Don't worry. like i just yeah you have You have to bench him. You got to bench him. I would rather the fans be upset that he gets benched too much for doing stupid things.
01:06:51
Speaker
Yeah. That him not get benched ever for doing stupid things. The problem is, and honestly, like as much as I think it's – Boone's got to go, obviously. They have no second baseman. They don't even have anybody play. It's like not even that.
01:07:03
Speaker
Why did Girardi get fired? He held people accountable. And people didn't like it. The sensitive Not people. Cashman didn't like it. Cashman didn't like it because Cashman liked Sanchez.
01:07:17
Speaker
And Cashman wanted somebody who he could stuff his hand up their ass and work him like a puppet. And that's exactly what Boone does for him. He says exactly what he's told to say. And honestly, like even Girardi modeled the accountability in his own press conferences when he messed up.
01:07:35
Speaker
Yeah. He made a call... i It was against Cleveland in his last season, and he intentionally walked someone and they hit a grand slam, and we were down 2-0.
01:07:48
Speaker
And then we wound up winning. Do we remember this? No, I don't. i I'm probably messing up something, but basically he made a horrible call, led to a grand slam. I think if he intentionally walked somebody that he should have faced, and then the guy after hit a grand slam.
01:08:03
Speaker
And he basically said, I hope to God that we win this series because this is my fault.
01:08:10
Speaker
That's a model of accountability. Boone doesn't even have to throw his own players on the bus. He could say, yeah, I screwed up. That's on me. Dude, that's that's so funny because what did Boone say when they put Cortez out there to get up the walk-off home run? Well, we thought it was the right move.
01:08:24
Speaker
Right. If he just says, listen, yeah I made a mistake. I'm sorry. I think even the fans could like a couple times he'll be like, okay, that that's progress in the right direction. yeah And I think that would send a message in the clubhouse like, hey, like you know I'm not above it and neither are you.
01:08:39
Speaker
Agreed. Game two, 2017 ALDS. Yankees facing the Cleveland Indians at the time. Yankee manager Joe Girardi made a decision not to challenge a hit-by-pitch call.
01:08:51
Speaker
That's what it was. It wasn't an intentional walk. The empires ruled the pitch from Chad Green, hit Lonnie Chisholm with two outs, and replay suggested that the ball hit the bat. He didn't challenge the play. Lindor came up, hit a grand slam.
01:09:03
Speaker
Oof. I actually can't remember that. 83-87, and they lost the game. Girardi said he screwed up by not challenging the play, explaining he didn't receive a definitive replay angle quickly enough and didn't want to break the pitcher's rhythm, them but admitted it that he messed
Closing Remarks and MLB Hopes
01:09:18
Speaker
up.
01:09:18
Speaker
And the Yankees wound up coming back from two down. Wow. That sent a message. And he was gone that season.
01:09:27
Speaker
And that wraps up our 1938 installment of Championship or Bust. Thank you for listening to our event session, i mean podcast, and we'll see you real soon next time. Let's see more Mafia stuff going on in Major League Baseball by then. See you guys later.
01:09:40
Speaker
Peace.