Halford & Brough in the Morning - Thomas Müller Lands in Vancouver

Episode Date: August 14, 2025

In hour one, guest host Jamie Dodd and Josh Elliott-Wolfe dive into what happened the previous day in sports including Thomas Muller touching down in Vancouver and how engaged fans are on his arrival. Jon Morosi joins to discuss the latest around MLB and his conversation with Larry Walker.    This podcast is produced by Andy Cole and Greg Balloch. The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rogers Media Inc. or any affiliate.

You're listening to Halford and Brough. This one's bounced back to the mound. Monson, looks at the runner back to third, fires to second, that's one. Throw to first in time. Here comes the throw to the plate. They got him. Triple play. The Vancouver Canadians get three outs in one instant.

Myers out of the stretch, the pitch, and a swing and a miss. He struck him out. Would you like fries with that? 12 in a row for the crew. Good morning. Welcome to Halford and Brough. No Halford, no brough. It's Josh Elliott Wolf and Jamie Dodd here.

But you're back. I'm back. We've added one element to the mess. We did it. And then, so there's been no A-Dog this week. Nope. There's been Elon in. Elon's out.

Lena's in. Good morning, Lena. Where am I? You're at work. Oh. Yeah. Over there. Welcome.

Welcome. Laddie, good morning. Hello, hello. I know where I am. Yeah. Well, you're a season. You're a season fat. You're there for the rest of your life.

Oh, oh, wow. And Jamie, good morning. Good morning. On that note. Alfred Abram is brought to you by Sands and Associates, B.C's first and trusted choice for debt help. With over 3,000 5 star reviews, visit sands dash trustee.com. We are a broadcasting live from the Kintech studio, Kintech Footwear,

and orthotics working together with you in step. And Josh, it's great to have you back on the show. Do you want to share with everyone? Because I was like, I'll let Josh tell you all about what's keeping them off the show. Okay, I got to prepare a statement. So I wasn't here yesterday. A couple, a couple evenings ago. So Tuesday evening on the day I thought was Wednesday, but it was Tuesday.

I am watching the Blue Jays game. They were taking on the Chicago Cubs. Off to a good start. I was pumped. It was a great game. And all of a sudden, my TV stops working. I'm like, ah, that's weird. I look at my phone.

The Wi-Fi isn't working. And that alone was enough to not come in. No. Classic Zoomer. So fragile. I can't do this. Can't work in these conditions. No.

So I'm like, oh, maybe I got to like reset my internet box. Because Rogers would never do this thing, right? And so I go and check the internet box where it is store. and there is a lot of water dripping down in said box. Not ideal. And it was very wet. So I was like, you know what? This is probably why it isn't working.

And then on the other side connected to the same wall for me is our like breaker panel. And I opened that and there's water dripping down that too. Ooh, that's not good. That's not where water is supposed to be. Generally, you try to keep the water out of the circuit breaker. Yes. So we had some, uh, a leak from. Upstairs the third time in the past a year and a half really fun.

So that is the wrinkle that really blew my mind when this is because like I think anyone who lives in an apartment The unit above you flooding is like the classic nightmare scenario like oh my God. This is a disaster. What's going on? It's not even my fault. They're doing something. Yeah. It's like a once in a lifetime thing ideally Well third and 18 months for you. Yeah. That's wild. Is he just overdrawing baths upstairs or what's the deal? This one supposedly was a washing machine. I don't know but regardless what it ended up with was we have no power for a little bit. I had to move myself, my wife, all our refrigerated and frozen items, a bunch of stuff, our cats to my dad's house. And that was a process. It happened in the evening, happened throughout the night. So Jamie thankfully stepped up yesterday because I was like, I can't even do prep for the show. And I

was not able to go to bed until like 1 a.m. that night. Now, which do you think is crazier? Your apartment being flooded three times in 18 months or my car getting totaled while sitting parked on a street twice in 18 months definitely yours definitely yours one time is there like a curse or something that for people that work here i don't know because don't put that out in the universe one time for that i'd be like oh that's like that's pretty bad yeah two times in 18 months yeah that's crazy that was wild is that recent uh second time i've been on the same car for over a year now and it has not been totaled so i'm very excited about that Congrats.

Okay, so on the shit, that's why I'm back. So I'm back today, I'm back tomorrow. Okay, so on the show today, though, at 6.30, we're going to talk to John Morosi from MLB Network. We'll talk baseball, go all around the league, and what's going on. The Milwaukee Brewers have been really good. We can talk about the LA Dodgers, who I think we all kind of look at as a team that once we get to the playoffs, they're going to turn it on. But maybe not. Maybe there are some concerns about the L.A.

Dodgers. And we'll also talk about an interview he did with Larry Walker as well, local product, and obviously in the Hall of Fame. All of Fame. Yeah. So we'll talk about that too. At 7 o'clock, Tim Booth from the Seattle Times. We will focus in on the Seattle Mariners and everything going right for them. It was a loss last night for the Seattle Mariners. So the win streak is over, but things still going really good for the Seattle Mariner. So we will talk to Tim Booth about that at 7 o'clock and at 8. Ashton

Bell, PWHL, Vancouver. Their first expansion pick will join us not only in general but in the studio. That's right. So get pumped at 8 o'clock. Josh put on his best hoodie for the occasion.

Dude. So the other thing, I did not know we had a guest in studio until last night. And I obviously not living at my house right now. I did not bring... Your finest suit? Yeah, my finest suit. No excuses.

Or a lot of clothes. So I was like, oh, Lena texted us last night. I was like, okay, I have socks and sandals on, and I am wearing a hoodie. That is what I've got. That's what it's all about. So hopefully Ashton Bell doesn't look at me in disgust. She probably won't even notice. Walk out.

Yeah. I'm not doing this. I'm not going to let you interview me. It would have been funnier if you borrowed your dad's suit and if he was like three sizes bigger than you. Yeah, that would have been a good call. Next time. Do we have a guest in studio tomorrow? I can do that.

I can figure something out. Okay. The other part is they're coming over from Jack first, right? She's coming over from Jack. And they always look great. So this is... They're real professionals. Yeah, not us.

No. Not us. Okay, so working in reverse at 8 o'clock, Ashton Bell from PWHL, Vancouver. At 7 o'clock, Tim Booth. Seattle Times at 630. John Morosi from the MLB Network. That's what's happening on the show.

Laddie, let's tell everybody what happened. Hey, did you guys see the game last night? No. What happened? I missed all the action because I was... We know how busy your life can be. What happened? Missed it?

You missed that? What happened? What happened is brought to you by the BC Construction Safety Alliance, making safety simpler by giving construction companies the best in tools. resources and safety training visit bcccsa dot cae so the other thing that I was really upset about missing yesterday yeah

was a good flight tracker show love some flight tracking and I listen back to to you hosting solo thank you I listened to other shows throughout the day and I was like oh they're all doing flight trackers it's my favorite show to do and I missed it but the the excitement

the Thomas Mueller excitement ran throughout the day as we practiced flight into Vancouver. He arrived, immediately went to White Spot. Yes, which is crazy. Fantastic. Good for him. Pirate Pack Day. I was going to say, big day for White Spot yesterday. Pirate Pack Day and the like official welcome site for Thomas Muller at YVR. And the reason he went to a white spot is because they were having a viewing party for the Vancouver Whitecaps. And, you know, also the Pirate Pack stuff. That's chaotic. On Pirate Pack Day? I know. There's a lot going on. And Thomas Mueller showed

out. Wear this pirate hat, Thomas Moller. I could you imagine. He's like, maybe I don't want to be here anymore. How is this is a big part of our culture here in B.C. This is how it's going to be for you, all right? Once a week, you're doing there. We're paying you in chocolate coins. You want some de blooms?

Okay. So, the reason he went to the white spot was because there was a whitecaps game last night. They were playing against Lattie's Forge FC. His favorite team. Great team. From Hamilton. Go Forge.

I love all other players, which many I can name. Yes. Of course. Please name several. Okay. And in the game, the white caps did not win, but they ran to a draw against Forge FC in the Canadian championship semi-final, and it is a two-match situation. Yes, two legs.

So not the ideal result, and I checked, I did my research, the away goal rule, not in effect in the Canadian championship. So it's just to draw the fact that they scored twice in Hamilton doesn't really give them a leg up coming home for the second leg. But still, I know it's Forge and they're one of the best CPL teams out there. You would feel pretty good about the White Caps chances coming home for the second leg in September to still find a way to get the result in advance to the final there. I will also say the Capp's second biggest recent signing, a distant second, but Kenji Cabrera, who was kind of brought in to replace Pedro Vite. He made his club debut, came on in as a sub in the 85th minute. So that's the result playing Forge in Hamilton, but really, as you said, the main story for the white caps yesterday was the official arrival of Thomas Mueller in Vancouver, in BC, in Canada to begin his career with the white caps.

And it's funny. I mean, I was doing, you know, anytime we break out the flight tracker on the station, it's a little bit tongue and cheek, right? We're doing it partly as a joke. And I was having some fun with it following as he left Germany. I was a little surprised to see that, A, we weren't the only people doing the flight tracker. Like, people were doing it on social media. There was legitimate excitement to be monitoring it throughout the day.

And I'll admit, I was a little surprised to see the scenes at YVR as well. Like, there were a lot of people there. And I know there was the watch party. So it kind of worked out perfectly, right? We're going to have the watch party at YVR, at the white spot YVR, where I watch all my soccer matches, famous soccer bar. Yep. And then he'll arrive.

And it's perfect. So you have all these white caps fans there. I can't really remember a scene quite like that, though, for an arrival of a new player in Vancouver to see the hoopla, the excitement, the genuine fan engagement with the moment for that player. And it was pretty cool to see. And obviously, you know, the Whitecaps go out and sign a player with the name recognition and the history, the talent, the track record of Thomas Mueller. You know people are going to get excited. What I saw yesterday anyways, I think that surpassed. what I was expecting to see from whitecaps fans, sports fans here in Vancouver.

Yeah, I would agree. I do think there are a lot of, like, especially for the white caps, there are a lot of diehard white caps fans who I, who I would expect when a signing like this is made to, to go to YVR and be there and be pumped. But there was much more casual fan excitement than I expected to see as well. And look, it's not, it's, I guess it's not super surprising because they it's like this is the biggest signing in white caps history i believe for uh muller who

was doing a media availability today his first as a vancouver white cap i think it's supposed to be the biggest uh avail not surprising again in white caps history that makes sense yeah yeah which checks out yeah with up to like 60 media members and cameras and all of that so it's going to be a big thing and i do i'm i will say i'm i'm happy i'm kind of proud of Vancouver and maybe casual white caps fans for showing up for this and being pumped absolutely because I think it does go a long way in making Vancouver a legitimate sports city when we can get excited about stuff that isn't Canucks related well and I also think it's it's appropriate to kind of recognize just how decorated a player he is right and

obviously he was never in the the messy Ronaldo tier of fame or accomplishments or you know and then Killeen Mbapé kind of coming along after that and threatening or even, you know, Namar or anything like that. But he was for a long time, one of the absolute best attacking players in Europe, World Cup champion, Champions League champion, of course, Putin, like what, 13 Bundesliga titles, which is outrageous. This is, this guy's a big deal. And I think we all knew that.

But as you said, it's kind of great to see the everyday fans, obviously some hardcore whitecaps fans, but also just like people who appreciate sport, people who appreciate greatness. showing up in person in YVR to kind of make that scene and make that welcome yesterday for Thomas Mueller. And I got to admit also, you know, I know it was interesting reading all the reporting and hearing a lot of people weigh in on why Thomas Mueller decided to come to Vancouver. And part of it was, hey, he wants to win. And he's not, you know, some people come over and it's all about like, oh, I want to establish my brand in the U.S. and I'm going to be a big part of the marketing campaign for this team. I'm going to be really, they're going to put my face all

over the place and use me to sell tickets. And that was very much not what Thomas Mueller was interested in, right? He didn't want to be a part of this big kind of dog and pony show to sell tickets, which is interesting because he seems to have a great personality. Like, and he's already all over social media. Yeah, he's doing an amazing job of engaging fans and getting people excited and making this seem like a really big deal. And I didn't know a lot about him off the pitch before this, but as we're learning more about him and as you said, seeing the social media content and all that. I think as much as that was a secondary or even less than that concern for him coming over, I think he's going to have that effect because not only does he have the track record and

the weight of being a great player, but he seems to be just a really interesting and engaging personality as well. Yeah, he definitely does. And yeah, he is a much more personable person, I guess, off the field than I expected him to be. And that is a, that's an exciting part of this. And we'll see, again, I'm excited to see how the media availability goes today and how his first match goes. And eventually, you know what, he's going to play in the, will he play in the second half of this Canadian championship semi-final against Forge FC? Really show Forge FC what we're about? I would be a little surprised if he plays in the Canadian Championship against Forge. I kind of want him to.

I mean, that would be sick. Thomas Mueller is in the Canadian Championship. I think the real question is, does he in fact make his debut on Sunday? how much does he play? When does he come in if he's coming in off the bench? He seems to be fit. I mean, he took the video yesterday. He's out doing his workout in Munich before he gets on the plane. This is what people want to see from Elias Pedersen. That's right. Do the video, do the social media while you're working out. That's what people want to see. And that's what Thomas Mueller was doing.

And well, he is expected to make his debut on Sunday. They really have to adopt. So I would be wild. He'll come off the bench. Even if it's just for a couple minutes at the end, he'll come off the bench to make his debut there. Okay. So that's what's going to do. going on with the Vancouver Whitecaps into the world of baseball, the Toronto Blue Jays. They lost 4 to 1 to the Chicago Cubs in the second game of their three game series. The third goes today. I believe it's at noon. It's an early game.

So adjust accordingly, but the Jays do lose 4 to 1. It wasn't a great night at the plate. Cade Horton is underrated. He was the starter for the Cubs. He had a pretty good showing. carried a no hitter for a few innings and he was looking really good for the Cubs but yeah the Jays lose

I don't know if there's a there are too many takeaways other than sometimes you're going to lose some games Hortons do well in Canada yes that's what it comes down to notably notably Hortons do well in Canada but if you're looking for some good news the Boston Red Sox they also lost 4 to 1 so the Js still 4 and a half games up

on them for the league in the American League East. It's kind of felt like that's how it goes. Every time it's like, oh, no, the Jays might be slipping. The Red Sox also slim. No harm, no foul. So it all works out. You lose a game, but they lose, so it's all good.

Don't worry about it. And then in the minors, I did hear this on the show yesterday. Laddie was hyping up Alec Manoa's the next Roy Halliday. That's what was going on. It's on the same path as Roy Halliday. That's what I said. Basically the same guy. Laddie calls him future Hall of Famer, Alec Manoa.

I mean, you know, But, if you're right, we can look back on this. Yeah. And it'll be a wonderful time. We'll all look back and laugh. What a joyous occasion it would be. He did have a rehab start in Buffalo with the Bisons. He went one in two thirds, gave up two hits, gave up three runs, had three walks, one strikeout, threw around 50 pitches.

So he's got some road to go. Not ideal. He's got some road to go. Trangis Savage is expected to start. It's been like three years since he's been an effective major league pitcher. so I can't say I'm that surprised. He's also been injured. Yeah, he was not throwing a baseball for a year of that.

Yes. Just like Roy Haldon. I will agree, though, that for, like, before his injury, Alec Menoa was struggling. He had a bad year, right? Well, the pitch clock and all that stuff. The pitch clock really got to him. It was a tough time.

But I do have hope, like, he is still young. I do still have some hope for Alec Menoa, but I'm maybe a little more reserved in my hope, and I would kind of put him down the list of like guys I'm excited to see in the near future for the Blue Jays, especially when you factor in Shane Bieber could potentially become a back soon.

Trey Savage, again, he's a really hyped up prospect. We'll see if he makes it to Toronto this season. A lot of it probably depends on what he does in Buffalo, but in the minor so far he's been pitching really well. So we'll see what happens with Minowa, but for me, he's kind of like a next year project. Oh, yeah. I mean, and I think he's also at the stage where

if you get anything out of him that's gravy at this point honestly if he becomes a number four starter for you it's like wow that's incredible that's almost found money at this point they can afford to do that because Manoa actually shockingly still has options left so even when his rehab assignment runs out they can just assign him to

AAA which is a nice luxury to have yeah they're in a good spot with him and yeah slow playing him is definitely it seems like the right move moving on to the other localish baseball team the Seattle Mariners lose four to three to the Baltimore Orioles they rallied from three to one down. They tie the game in the top of the ninth

and then the Baltimore Orioles came back and they got the winner in the bottom half of the ninth inning. So the Mariners did not get the benefit of the out-of-town scoreboard. No, because it was the Astros who beat the Boston Red Sox, so who handed the Red Sox that loss. So the Astros win, which means the tie atop the AL West standings for first place was short-lived, at least for now. Seattle goes back to being a game back of Houston and a little surprising. I mean, it happens even to the best of relievers, but Matt Brash usually so reliable, so effective for the Mariners giving up the game winning run in the bottom of the ninth.

But, you know, I mean, like, I'm not a Mariners fan. I'm a Jay's fan, but even going through and doing it this week following both of these teams. And you really are in that baseball mode of, okay, last six, seven weeks of the season here. the results every day are a big deal, right? And you're monitoring not just what your team is doing, but what the other teams around them are doing. And this is the best part of baseball, honestly, with the games every day and seeing how the races hold up

and how they develop, Mariners fans are going to be glued to what the Astros are doing each and every night pretty much here. It's fun. I'm stoked for it. I'm stoked for the Jay's side of it. I'm stoked for the Mariners side of it. And one game back now,

but there's going to be a lot of twists and turns to come, I think in the AL West. Yeah, I think so too. And again, that's, I feel like that's the one, obviously that's the one that's going to be the most interesting when it comes to division races in the American League because I do feel like, even though the Red Sox are relatively hot lately,

they have cooled down. They're 500 in their last 10. It's really difficult to make up four and a half games for the rest of the- Famous last words. I know, I said it out loud. I shouldn't have said it. It's not that difficult.

Yeah. Anyway, I don't think they play. the Jays though. The Red So they do. Oh, they do? Okay. So there you go. My bad. You know what?

If it all unfolds. If it all comes crashing down, we can point it right to Josh Elliott one. I'm making a bold proclamation right now. The Toronto Blue Jays will win the American League East. Yeah, they play Boston at home, the Jays, second to last series of the season. So that could be potentially a really big one.

And you know what? I'll even say as disastrous as they're, last couple of months has been, I wouldn't count out the Yankees even at six games back with the talent they have on that team. If they ever figure out how to run the bases and play defense like a major league team, they can still be very dangerous as well. I'm counting them out. I'm counting them out. I'm counting them out. It's August. It's August and they haven't learned out to play defense and run the bases. Teams make up like five and six games in a two week span all the time in baseball. Like crazy things happen. The Yankees just give me the

ick though. Oh sure. I'm not like cheering for them. I'm just saying don't get them out. The way the team is assembled this year, it just doesn't feel like... They don't have great vibes. No. And Aaron Judge, like, coming back from the injury, he hasn't been that great. If he refines his form down the stretch, which, like, he probably will to an extent, that would go a long way and maybe giving them the extra leg up on other teams around them to try to climb up the standings. But to me, I don't know. I look at, I just, I don't see the Blue Jays.

And again, maybe famous last words, I don't see them falling out. of I'm saying it so, so much. So young. So naive. The Blue Jays won't screw it up. What was it, 87 where they blew a huge lead? Yeah, I mean, it was before my time.

Before my time too. They've done it before. Wasn't even this millennium, guys. What are we concerned about? We're going to talk more baseball of John Morosi coming here next, but I think the Dodgers lost last night, so they're out of first place in the NLS.

We can talk about that. I do feel, though, and I know we've all like, I'm not breaking news here that Shohay Otani is a two-way player but you see him strikes out Mike Trout twice former teammate of course last night and the second one it's like

101 miles an hour absolutely dotted on the outside corner and he's also what second in the major leagues or third in the major leagues in home runs yeah I feel like it's we've kind of gotten blasé about it like it's absolutely insane he leads off the game with a triple

that he's in the he's starting like I just want to everyone to take a moment and think and he's not just okay at both of them it's not like he's a pitcher who's a decent hitter's like no no no he's arguably the second best hitter in major league baseball and he can dot 101 on the outside corner to strike out mike trout how he doesn't what's happening it's crazy i don't get it and yeah he's uh he's so good to watch he's so good at those two things and so bad at hiring people to manage his affairs he's such a bad judge of all the talent went into baseball The judge of character?

No, nothing. Yeah, nothing. Okay, so on the other side, we are going to speak to John Morosi about everything going on in Major League Baseball, including Shoea Otani and the Dodgers, and more from around the league as well. It is Halford and Brough, Josh Elliott Wolf, Jamie Dodd on Sportsnet, 650. Welcome back to Alfred and Brough, no Alford, no Brough. Still drafts Thursday, though. It's still here. Josh L.A. Wolf, Jamie Dodd.

Alfred & Brough is brought to you by Sands and Associates, B.C.'s first and trusted choice for debt help. With over 3,000 5-star reviews, visit sands-trustee.com. Really wakes you out. Really just get you fired up for a Thursday. So much. So much noise all at once. Uh, 650, 650, Dumbar,

Lumber Text Line. Keep the text coming in there. You can get your What We Learns in as well. It's Metro Vancouver's trusted choice for contractors and Renault Warriors for over 50 years. Visit them at one of their three locations to serve you or online at Dumbar Lumber.com. Yeah, you can text in 650, 650, whatever you want. I get your What We Learns in as well, and we'll hit them later on in the show. I see a couple of texts about Thomas Mueller, so we'll try to hit those as the show goes. goes on because it is, today is the first time we'll hear him speak to Vancouver Media. So, going to get some hard-hitting questions. Absolutely.

Like, can you help Canada win the World Cup? Yeah. He didn't speak while eating a legendary burger yesterday? He didn't. That would have been great. That would have been such a good move. You know what's funny is I think when Bastion Schweinsteiger joined in the Chicago Fire, there was like a similar question.

Of like, will you help the US win the World Cup? Yeah. Yeah. So there's something about the distinction between MLS and the World Cup that America soccer journalists or yes not soccer sports journalists aren't quite getting yeah yeah that one I think was like a city council it was yeah

yeah that's a tough situation to be put in okay anyway we go to the hotline powered by Power West Industries and we welcome in John Marosi from the MLB network appreciate you taking the time John how are you doing great Josh and Jamie great to be with you today and I'm just fascinated that we might see another

Mariners Blue Jays postseason series of which case, I think Vancouver is going to be right in the middle of the conversation if that's the case. That is the, uh, that's the dream scenario that I brought up. I'm super pumped about the idea. Ideally in an ALCS would be, would be great. But I do think, uh, that would be a great series to watch. What are your thoughts on? Why don't we, we'll start with the Blue Jays and then maybe we'll get to the Mariners as, as we go on here. But what are your thoughts on, on where the Blue Jays are at post deadline? I think overall it's, it would be difficult to imagine

in the big picture looking better than it does right now for the Blue Jays, if you compare to where things started, for example. When you consider that there was all this stress and pressure at the start of the season, what was going to happen with Vladimir McGarro Jr.'s contract and how much pitching depth would they have? The depth has largely held up pitching-wise. Vladdy, of course, got signed. Bo Bouchet's having a really great contract years, so whether or not he returns,

obviously is a separate question. but he's at least producing right now. And up until George Springer's recent injury, he was having a phenomenal year, and hopefully he's back soon as well. So I think all the way around, the young players have taken a step forward. Max Scherzer is now healthy.

It's remarkable to me, Josh and Jamie, that for a major free agent signing like Anthony Santander, he's been hurt for a lot of the year, and was not very productive when he was in the lineup, and yet they're still in first place by a somewhat comfortable margin. And I think the big picture point,

and this applies to both the Mariners and the Jays, is that the American League is as winnable now as it's been in any year that I've covered the sport, to be honest with you, going back to the last two decades, in terms of being wide open. If you tell me that any one of six or maybe even seven teams right now ends up winning the league, I don't know that I'd be surprised,

just based on how wide open it is, how flawed a lot of the, a lot of the good teams are. And the National League obviously has had some really talented teams. They have some pretty flawed teams too. So it's just, it's a very balanced major league baseball landscape right now. And I don't think anybody would have thought when the season started

the best record in the game would belong to the team that plays in the smallest U.S. market, which is the Milwaukee Brewers. So it's a really interesting time to follow the game for sure. Yeah, and I wanted to ask you about those brewers because what they're doing is pretty incredible. I mean, they had the long win streak earlier in the season. and now they've tagged on 12 in a row. And, you know, I don't want to completely discount the name value of some of their players,

but it's not exactly a star-studded roster there in Milwaukee either. So it's the smallest American market. It's also not one with a ton of household names up and down the lineup. How are they doing this, the Brewers? How have they established themselves as the team of the best record in baseball? Young athletic position players. You look up and down the lineup, with the exceptions of first baseman Reese Hoskins, who, of course, is a notable player for a long time in Philadelphia,

and then Christian Yelich, who once upon a time was an MVP for the Brewers in the National League, you look at the rest of the group of position players, and they're largely in their 20s. You've got someone like Andrew Vaughn who looked like he was a failed prospect with the White Sox, and he comes to Milwaukee, and now he's a superstar. You've got a 27-year-old catcher in William Contreras. You've got arguably their most valuable all the way around player in Bryce Terrang, who is an excellent defender. He gives you power. He steals 20 plus bases.

He plays second base. Joey Ortiz, not a big offensive guy, but a solid defensive shortstop. Caleb Durbin has played a lot of third base. They got him in the Devin Williams trade. Isaac Collins is the reigning National League player of the week. Jackson Churio is only 21 is the franchise cornerstone of the future. Sal Freelick is a really smart, tough grinder, former hockey player from Massachusetts

who played baseball at Boston College. He both looks, talks, and moves like a hockey player, which is great praise coming for me, and I'm sure from both of you, too. So it's just a lot of young, talented guys in their 20s who really enjoy playing together. An excellent manager and Pat Murphy, a pitching staff has gotten better as the years gone along

because they now have Brandon Woodruff back, and he's got a 2.06 ERA after seven starts. Freddie Peralta's pitched like an ace all season long. Quinn Preetzer, it seems like, doesn't ever lose a game. He's 11 and 2. It's a really, really good team all the way around. And it's really nice balance between, I think, the old school baseball guys like a Pat Murphy,

who's the manager, and then the newer school analytics that have helped a lot of their pitchers take the next step. And a lot of times when we talk about teams like the Brewers, it's like, okay, yeah, you're having a great season, and it's awesome to see it, but when they don't have the household names and they're more of a balanced lineup, I guess the questions about what they can do

come playoff time start to come up and how legit they actually are. What do you think of that? Where do you think the Brewers are at come to postseason and can they go on a run? They absolutely can. I think their bullpen. When you look at that question about how the team stacks up,

I usually tend to look at it and say, okay, are there one or two stoppers in the starting rotation to where, yes, as much as as much as the playoffs have become a bullpen-focused endeavor, you still need to have a couple starters to give you enough length so that way you can use your bullpen aggressively, maybe in a game three or a game four of a series, because they're arrested in games one and two. And Woodruff is an ace, and Peralta is pitching like an ace. and Quinn Priestler almost never loses. And so you look at the rotation, that's plenty solid.

And in the bullpen, you've got an all-star closer in Trevor McGill. Anderson's had a good year in the bullpen, Adnary Rebaix, Jared Caning. They've had guys that are not necessarily, again, to your point, household names, but you don't need to have that to win. The Texas Rangers won the World Series two years ago with having a couple star position players in Seeger and Semen, and Garcia got hot. They had Evaldi in the rotation, but that was not a superstar-laden team.

And I think that World Series in general between Texas and Arizona showed that you don't have to have a bunch of household names or a massive payroll. I mean, obviously in the case of the Rangers, they signed Semen and Sieger to those significant contracts, but I would not describe them as being a team that's comparable to the Dodgers or to the Mets. And then, of course, last year we had the Dodgers-Yankies World Series, which was a couple of the Blue Bloods and baseball matching up for the first time in a World Series in more than 40 years. And I thought it was really interesting that last year, Josh and Jamie, I was hearing a lot

of conversations during, you know, after the 20-23 World Series of, hey, what's wrong with the playoff format? You're disadvantaging the top seeds. This is bad for baseball. You've got Texas and Arizona in the World Series. What's going on? And then after last year's World Series and said, oh, my gosh, the whole system favors the big market teams and what are we going to do for everybody else. It's not a big market like the Yankees and Dodgers. They're clearly going to meet the playoffs again. Well, no, they're probably not because they're both very flawed right now. And there's still really good teams, but I would not say that we're headed towards a rematch of the Yankees and Dodgers. So my big picture point on baseball is that there

is much more competitive balance in this sport than a lot of the critics would have you to believe. And there's a reason why that in baseball, we've had a quarter century go by without a repeat champion, whereas the other sports, the other major sports in North America all have had repeat champions, it's a wide open sport in the way that it seems to be very, very often. Yeah, and speaking of, you know, the parody and on the competitive balance in the NL West right now, a pretty

interesting division race is shaping up. The Dodgers, I think for a long time, we just look at it and say, yep, Dodgers are going to win their division, no doubt about it, look at all the talent, look at all the money. But they are now a game back of the San Diego Padres in the NL West. having lost four in a row, how concerned are you about the Dodgers, not necessarily just as it relates to the division race, but we know what the goal is every year for L.A.

It's to win the World Series. How concerned are you about the Dodgers from that perspective? I do not think that they are the favorites in the National League any longer. I am concerned in the sense that while they've brought back some of their key starting pitchers, it has not led to them winning a bunch of ballgames. They're winning, they're losing games late in a fashion that you would not expect of a team that people believed was going to go on a march to winning a second straight world series. They lost a home series to St. Louis.

They were just swept by the angels. And the thing there is the last two games were one run losses by the bullpen. and that's not the kind of result you would expect from a team like the Dodgers. They're a really talented team that is just not playing up to their standard right now. And the other piece of this is you look at how much baseball they've played. I almost compare this. It's not the same sport and it's different in a lot of different ways, but to the teams that end up playing,

they go on two deep Stanley Cup playoff runs and then how much gas do they have left in the tank the next year. And I think that's kind of almost what's going on right now with the Dodgers. They stay here a little bit of an older roster. Yes, they've got Kershaw back. I just don't think they're quite as fundamentally found as they once were. We saw over the weekend, O'Otani getting thrown out at third base on a stolen base attempt, and Dave Roberts acknowledging it wasn't a very good baseball play. That's a fundamental lapse that you would not expect from a team like this.

Muki Betts has started to pick up his production. obviously one of the most dependable, reliable players in the game for a long time, but he's having a bit of a down year. It just, it seems like the momentum belongs to the other teams. And there is something to be said, I think, for, for youth and, and keeping things fresh and exciting, you know, the brewers are trying to win their first World Series ever. The piders are trying to win their first World Series ever. There's, there's, and then you look at the American League side of the ledger, and the

Mariners have never even been to a World Series before. So there's a lot of teams. that have just never won it that have a lot of drive and a lot of inspiration to do something that's never been done whereas about 80, 85% of the Dodger roster just did it last year. And I just think there's that something extra ingredient that it seems like some of these younger ball clubs seem to have right now and the Dodgers don't. Yeah, I think that's fair.

The thing I can't shake though is just, is there a team that can get close to matching the upside the Dodgers have if they do turn it on come playoff time? well that that's a great question and i think the answer to that is is no if if they're if they're going and if mookie is mooky again and and freeman plays this october like he did last and otani is otani obviously a one of one player in the history of the game you know andrew freebin was quoted recently as saying that that he believes that if all their pitching is healthy and going they're going to have the best 13 man pitching staff they've ever had in the postseason And I think he's probably right that whether it's Yamamoto,

Snell, Otani, Kershaw, Glassnow, you go down on the list and then you think about the bullpen and is Roki Sasaki going to come back and be a relief option for them. They believe that they'll get meaningful contributions down to the stretch from guys like Michael Kopeck. So you're right. I mean, if everything clicks, they are still the best team on paper. The names and the pedigrees, they're the best.

I think Andrew Friedman is correct when he says they still have a chance to have their best roster. I just look at it and say it hasn't happened yet to where they've really hit their potential. And right around the time that you would have expected them to start doing it, they've lost four games in a row, including three straight to a team that's out of it in the Angels. So haven't seen it yet. We may still see it. But it's a fascinating line that I can't remember who first said this, but it's true whether we're talking about baseball, hoops,

hockey, football, anything, that you've got many of the same players, but not quite the same team. And that is why sports are so much fun to follow, because you might bring back the same roster, players get a little bit older, they slump, they change a little bit, they evolve, and it can be hard to do it all again. And I think that the Dodgers on some level are living that reality right now. John, sticking in the NL just for a second here as well, going out to the NL East to the New York Mets have really been in free fall recently going from kind of neck and neck in the division with the Phillies to now holding on to the last wildcard spot in the NL. What has gone so wrong for the Mets this season, but of course recently, specifically?

Yeah, it's an important question because you're right. I mean, the Mets, they've been so aggressive in spending and Steve Cohen wants desperately to bring a World Series title to flushing. But what I say is you go back, I think it was early June, there was a Mets Dodgers series out in L.A. We actually happened to be doing the game, and I remember watching it. Francisco Lindor was hit on the toe by a pitch, and he broke his toe. He's kept playing through it, but he's got a broken toe. And if you look at the Mets ever since that day, Lindor has not been the same player, and they have not been the same team.

because you look at it and otherwise Soto has gotten more comfortable. I think it's been one of the more underreported stories of the year that Soto's actually had a pretty darn great first year in New York on that side of town at least. And then Alonzo, of course, just set the franchise record for home runs. But this team is just not quite clicking. And the pitching has been disappointing and injured. We've seen Montas loses rotation spot, obviously. so they've had to call up a young prospect here to start this weekend.

I just think that the pitching has left them a bit disappointed, especially in the rotation, and then Lindor's injury, and it's not his fault. I want to be clear about this. He's just, it's pretty darn difficult to play shortstop in the major leagues on a broken toe. And he is, you know, as much as we associate Lindor with just this joy of playing the game and the smile that he brings

and kind of the carefree vibe, he is an intense competitor, intense, loves the game, cares about the game, thinks the game 24-7, and I just think that he has not been able to catalyze his team in the same way because he's got a broken toe. And if you look at basically the last two months even, they've got a losing record since Lindor's injury, and I think that is not an accident. Switching leagues here, how wide open do you think the American League is right now? I think there's at least a half a dozen teams and maybe even more that have a legitimate chance to win the league. I include Cleveland in that conversation.

They're only a game back of New York, just like the Reds are a game back of the Mets as we kind of tie together those two New York teams that are both in jeopardy of missing the playoffs, which that might be mentioned in the back pages of the New York Post that happens. Maybe that might be mentioned a couple different times. But you look at the American League, you know, I live in Michigan. I see a lot of the Tigers, and there were certainly times during the year where we said, oh, my gosh, this team is just playing great baseball, and they can win the World Series. And they could. They could also get knocked out in the first round based on the way they're playing. And I tend to think that's true of a lot of different teams right now in the American League.

Red Sox feel the same way. If you get their young players all going at the same time, and Roman Anthony, what he has brought to them, and the attitude he's playing with, and you get Garrett Crochet pitching his office. often as you possibly can during the course of a postseason run. He could be the Madison Bumgarner of this year's playoffs. Crochet could. He's just, he's a horse. He is a true ace.

And scoble for Detroit, same thing. So if Detroit and Boston match up, my goodness, what a, what a series that would be if we see those two teams going out and those two ace left-handers. So it's, you could easily script it and say that these teams all have a legitimate chance. And by the way, that includes Toronto. That includes Seattle. But the Mariners are as scary as any team right now in the American League because their rotation, and it's hard to do this, but their rotation has gotten better as the year has gone along because their guys have gotten healthier. And when they've gotten healthy, they, for the most part, stayed healthy and gotten back into their form.

It took George Kirby a while, but now that he's back, he is really back. And Logan Gilbert is back. And Logan Evans now, who's been really good for them, it probably can go into a bullpen role once Bryce Miller comes. back. So they're, they are totally stacked. The Jays are about to add Shane Bieber to the mix in the coming days. Jeff Hoffman had a pretty solid outing after that, that really unique adventure there on Sunday at Dodger Stadium. So, uh, wide open and, uh, it would not surprise me if, uh, if Vancouver fans are watching either, uh, their closest geographic team there in Seattle or, uh, or Toronto there in the World Series. Uh, before we let go, we did want to play a clip from, uh, The Road to Cooperstown

podcast that you host. And there is a local connection with Larry Walker being on the podcast last month and another local connection talking about his favorite hockey team. So we're going to play a clip and then we'll ask you about it after. So here's Larry Walker on the Road to Cooperstown podcast with

Joe Morosi. And one last hockey-related question, I'm curious because of all your connections, of course, you grew up in the Vancouver area. You've got a close friend who leads the Bruins now and different places that you played over the years, whether it's Montreal or Denver. How many different favorite teams do you have or do you have one set favorite team well in hockey it's

it's it's it's all it's it's it's always going to be the vancruver conducts and and now my good buddy adam foots the head coach so i was happy to see him there and uh i might actually fly up the vancruver to see some games now or when they're in florida when i'm there i may go catch a couple of games that i can see footy managing team so i'm excited for him and i'm always excited for it connects to hopefully win a stanley cup before i leave this earth you know the seattle seahoggs from my football team and they finally did it so I need the Canucks to come through now. Larry Walker saying what every Canucks fan

has been saying for quite a while here John. How is it talking to Larry Walker? Great. Love my conversation with Larry and I'm so lucky the Road to Cooper Sound podcast. The idea is that we're interviewing every living Hall of Famer and we've got, I don't know, probably about

halfway through the list. And the great thing is that we add new names every year. Of course, Billy Wagner, Sisi Sabathia in each row this year. But But Larry was phenomenal, and he got emotional towards the end talking about just what it means for him to have gotten the call and to be a Hall of Famer and to now have this new community. He really is such a proud Canadian. He speaks so warmly about his roots in Maple Ridge and certainly what it meant for him to be

able to play in Montreal. He talked about taking the Metro to the Olympic Stadium and what Montreal fans were saying to him and the encouragement they would offer him when he was getting off to the Metro. And, of course, I'm sure a lot of our listeners know that the friend I was referencing as Cam Neely, who was a dear friend of Larry's, even from his hockey days when he was playing. And actually, the interesting thing, and probably, again, a lot of our listeners know this, that Larry, his initial response in relationship with bat and ball sports was softball, with his dad and his brothers.

And so it's a great lesson, and I'm a sports parent myself, that you don't have to have this linear path to where you're on, the best team that you make the, you know, the best team for your travel hockey program when you're 10 or 11 or 12, Larry barely played baseball until his later teams. And he learned the game as more of an older player, even after signing pro. So it's a great example of just being an athlete, loving the game. And he was regarded and still is as one of the great five-tool players ever. And it was because he just spent time playing hockey, playing softball doing different sports and I hope our listeners enjoy the full hour there with Larry

on the road to Cooperstown because I know I learned a lot by having that conversation. Definitely. John, we really appreciate you taking the time. Have a good one. Sounds great. You as well. Thanks for the invitation, Josh and Jamie and look forward to our next conversation as well. Sounds good. There's John Marosi from the MLB Network and the Road to Cooperstown podcast. If you want to listen to the full Larry Walker interview, you can wherever you find your podcast. Again, the Road to Cooperstown podcast, and Nary Walker was on last month with a Canucks connection as well. No's Adam Foote. Yeah, he's a buddy of Adam Foots too, which makes sense. They're both in Denver in the 90s and early 2000s. Okay, on the other side, running out

of time here in this segment. I'm sorry, we're going to talk to Tim Booth from the Seattle Times. We'll get into everything going on with the Seattle Mariners as they, in my opinion, are one of the most dangerous teams heading in to the postseason. That's next. It is Halford and Brough. Josh Elliott Wolf, Jamie Dodd on Sportsnet, 650.