High Hopes: A Phillies Podcast - 162-0 is NOT in Play and Harper Puts on a Show in D.C

Episode Date: April 4, 2019

Unfortunately, the Phillies perfect season is no longer in play but James and Jack are still here. The guys react to yesterday's excruciating loss and the show that Harper put on on Tuesday night.  See omnystudio.com/policies/listener for privacy information. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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Visit Rogers.com for details. We got you, Rogers. This is the High Hopes Podcast. High Hopes. It's a bunch of baseball nerds. Well, without the computers. Talking about the Philadelphia Phillies. On Radio.com and Sports Radio 94WIP. Yo, it is another edition of the High Hopes Podcast as it happened.

It's sad. They lost a game, Jack. I was really clinging to the Zoe will never lose a game in her life hope. High hope, you might say. Didn't happen. Yeah, it happened. We can no longer name this podcast uh 162 and 0 is still in play i know it's been a fun gag for a little while yeah very sad very sad but it's okay i mean i don't know maybe on the crazy one i just like i never overreact

to baseball stuff because well especially five games into the season right like we can take certain things away from games and and whatnot and and be excited and stuff but like like robertson didn't have it sir anthony didn't have it their offense is awesome uh and nola like he just hasn't found his arm slot yet this season it's it's no big deal look at this jackie calm coming in well i mean this podcast is all about calming everyone go. Go get Greg Kimbrell now! Yeah, well, that was a little loud. That was a lot. Yeah.

Sorry. I feel bad. Sorry, everyone listening. I was trying to mimic what we've heard on the radio a lot today. Right. But, like, I don't know. This podcast is all about calming everyone down. You know, I mean, from the Bryce.

Rational, pragmatic thought. From the Bryce Harper stuff this offseason, we are the official Calm Down podcast. It's true. I like that. The official Phillies Calm Down podcast. I like it. That's a moniker I could dig. And can we just stop with the Craig Kimbrell thing? Obviously, Kimbrell will be fine, but what do we really expect? What do we really expect he's going to show up and look like right now?

Oh, like crap right now. Like no one – he's been sitting out the whole entire season. It would be a month minimum before you could ask for anything from him. So like do you think Craig Kimbrell shows up tomorrow and all of a sudden

he's back to being Craig Kimbrell? Like is that how, is that how the mind is working right now? I think so. It's crazy to me. It's crazy to me. What is Craig Kimbrell

going to do right now? Maybe in a month he gets back to being Craig Kimbrell but right now it's like, oh get him out there tomorrow and he's basically, you know, 2005 Roger Clemens

when he would do this every year. I just, it's driving me a little crazy. I can tell. Calm down. You're getting a little hot today. No, it's not hot. A little hot.

I've been thinking about it for a while. I can tell. All right, we'll get back to the Robertson thing. Let's go in chronological order because it wasn't all bad, Jack. Since the last time we did this podcast, there was one freaking awesome night in D.C. there as well. You were there for it. Yeah. It was one of those too good to be true nights.

It really was. It was too good to be true. What was it like down there? It was, I'll tell you what, honestly, I feel bad for Bryce Harper. He had to play in front of such crappy fans. For so long. And he had to play in that ballpark, which is just, it was like a football stadium. It's like a mausoleum down there.

Yeah, it's so bland and so boring. And they don't have a video board in left field, so you can't see what's going on. Really? Yeah, it was annoying. I couldn't see anything that was going on in the game. It was horrible. I mean, why wouldn't you build a video board?

It's not that old stadium. They have one. It's just above right field. Why wouldn't you put it in center so everyone could see it? Or put it in left. Yeah, or left, but still center. Everyone could see it in center. Well, that's what then affects the batter's eye.

Oh, yeah. Like left center, left center, right center, whatever. It was an electric atmosphere. It's just that what I realized about Nationals fans and the difference between them and us is that Philly's fans, we all grew up and Philly's baseball has been here since 1883

and there's a long tradition of of bad phillies baseball a lot a lot of bad phillies baseball team and professionals where it's history um well only because the games they played only because the amount of games in terms of pure losses yes yes. Yes. So the difference between – there's so many young Nationals fans because no one's ever taught them baseball. When we were growing up, we had people to teach us Phillies baseball. There was tradition. There was a culture to it. It was part of who we were.

Right. And the Nationals fans just don't have that. So it's a bunch of 30-year-olds or whatever that just don't understand the sport at all. And it was like, the one guy in front of me was wearing a Papelbon jersey with a pardoned Papelbon thing, and he was chirping the whole game after the first two strikeouts. And so let me just play this out for you. So he's coming down from the concourse.

Was this when you were texting me that you're hip checking yeah and stuff so like this this guy is coming down and philly's fans are coming up to the concourse and he he's like clapping and he's like thank god we don't got to pay him 330 million like really getting philly's fans and philly's fans faces and i gave him a little love tap into into like the sideboard yeah like a little hip check just I had to let him know that listen buddy we're here we're better than you stop like just stop like and he's like he's like oh you're cool bro and I was like I was like man first off I would kick your ass like let's be honest like like you're you're a scrawny little Nats fan like

what are you gonna do he was like he's like your classic it was honestly it was good to get back to like my fandom ways because like i i hate it was really good to be a dick again i haven't i haven't done that in a while i felt really good i hate i hate being like this media guy like i don't like the media when you i like i like being a sports fan when i can it felt good to get back to that um because that's how that's how we used to be back in the day had to give him a little one i had a tough guy i had it like it was just like shut up dude like and then and then after that he went three for three with a double or a double single and a home run after that he's reached base at eight straight plate appearances so you know pretty good yeah i'd say that's pretty good harper is locked in yeah it's It really, especially considering the short spring training,

we talked a lot about that. Is he going to get enough at bats? Obviously, after opening day, everyone's like, oh, it's going to be a slow start. Didn't have the bats in spring training. He is 100% dialed in right now. I mean, eight straight appearances reaching base. His record in his career is nine.

So he's one short of his record right now. Obviously, pounding baseballs, as you mentioned last time, and I so he's one short of his record right now. Obviously, pounding baseballs, as you mentioned last time, and I don't know, it might be all three now. You said two home runs, 112 miles per hour faster. I don't know if that 458-foot shot in Washington was going that fast. I think it was

112. Point being that he's already equaled that number from last season. A 465-foot shot, a 458-foot shot, and also just good at bats. That double he hit, his first hit of the night in Washington game one, one-two count works the count. 111 miles an hour. Okay, so, you know, trash is what we're saying.

Works the count, rips the double. He's just had really good at bats. It feels like Bryce Harper is, you know, we talked a lot about this before they signed Harper, when they signed Harper, and obviously we'll talk about it a lot more, but he is that type of hitter who can sometimes be a little cold, but when he's locked in, he is as dialed in as anyone in the sport. Yeah, and you combat the eye with the elite power, with the elite exit velocity. You combat the eye with the elite power, the elite exit velocity.

It's just him being this locked in, I think, is mildly surprising. I feel the same way. I didn't expect – we both expected big seasons. We talked about it. We have him winning the MVP. But I didn't expect it to be this quick just to be this locked in. But to be fair, this is what he always does. Like he always gets off the hot starts. He starts hot, yep.

And then he kind of tapers off a little bit. And I was thinking about this in Washington. And by the way, he's doing the, we were chanting MVP. He gave you guys the fist pump from second base, then he comes out and he actually does the bow. You asked, you're like, is he gonna bow to us? He did.

He's too good to be true. I can't. This guy. This guy guy all we ever want in philly is someone who's going to appreciate that we are fans of this team that you're going to come and go but our whole lives we're going to root for this team and it's all we care about and to actually have an athlete who recognizes that and plays into that after the game is uh you know his interview after the game he thanks his teammates for having his back when he's coming back to Washington, and he thanks the fans for coming to support him. He just gets it.

Although I do think that, first off, he put D.C. in a coffin. It was hilarious. Buried him. Buried D.C. The greatest bat flip in the history of bat flips, potentially. No. That Bautista one's still the best. Just for the moment.

I agree. But man, to do it right at the Nats dugout and just say, mmm. It was triumphant. I loved it. I know.

I didn't see it until later. I didn't know he bat flipped. Oh, because you were watching him run the baser. You were watching the ball and all that. Yeah, yeah, yeah. We were too busy

freaking out. Yeah, I bet. I thought you were losing your mind. The ball went right over you guys. I know. Literally, I saw it go right over me. I know.

I saw you on TV, buddy. It was saying buddy it was saying hey jackie fritz giving the serious clap he's like came i came here to win yeah i didn't i wasn't there to lose i had to bring the intensity from the fan base i did i have checked in that span and he was asking for it you were you you did what you needed to do i was i was i was just like bryce harper you showed up and he he really i was i'm not gonna say I didn't think he was a clutch player, but there was a part of me that was like. We didn't know, I think is a good way to put it. He's hit some big home runs in the playoffs,

but he also has a 219 average or 211 average. Those numbers are real. Yeah, but I'm with you, man. That was a big spot. It was a big spot. And so far, he's been in big moments and he is stepped up like obviously opening day he was trying to hit a home run every time that's fine then the next two days launches on one on sunday night baseball and one just when

you need it like it was it was a a titanic shot uh he he really does relish in those moments and i was down there in dc when he was when he was like pointing to us and we're all weeping like grown man tears i was weeping on tv i was like it was like i was just losing my mind this is so real we so you texted me that he bowed to you guys before the tv copy showed it i'm watching with a buddy and i'm like oh my god he's gonna bow they're gonna show about like i was losing my mind i couldn't wait for it to come back from break and show the bow i It's just awesome. I know.

I know. And what was funny is that, you know, during the whole free agency process, it was a lot like Bryce Harper doesn't need the Phillies. Like, we need Bryce Harper kind of thing. I almost think Bryce Harper needed the Phillies. I'm with you, man. I'm at the point where I think Bryce Harper needed Philadelphia because I think Philadelphia has held him to, like, you got to play this way every single day um we're not going to

rip you or whatnot but that's how we expect from our that's how you become beloved here and I think he gets that and I think it's raised his game to another level I think him being here and and and wanting to play for the fans every single night and and mentioning the fans all the time and all this stuff I think he needed Philadelphia at this point in his career because being down there like dc fans are embarrassing like they were like children they were like childs like they i mean look all the the social media stuff we saw all that it was really lame like i know they were trying to rip harper be cooler i mean like farter was one of the jerseys I saw. The big one was Benedict Harper. Which, I mean, if you're going to do that, like, Bryce Arnold is a way better name than Benedict.

Benedict Harper? Oh, no, Benedict Harper's better, actually. It is good. It's a guy, the mayor did Bryce Arnold, right? And that's not as good. That's horrible. Yeah, Benedict Harper's better. Benedict Harper's pretty good.

That's the one that's good. So they were doing Benedict Harper, but the mayor did Bryce Arnold. Yeah. Just a cornball city. Confused me there. But I was talking to one Nationals fan that was wearing a Benedict Harper shirt. And I was like, did you make that before the Washington Post article came out? And he's like, yeah.

Like the Washington Post article, if you read that. You'd be embarrassed. They gave him a freaking envelope. During a game In the middle of a baseball game A rain delay Whatever Are you kidding me?

They hand him an envelope And it's first It's a hundred and whatever Seven million dollars In real dollars And they're going to pay him Until he's 79 years old Oh my god

He should have left at that moment He should have just walked out of the stadium And been like I'm done I'm going to be a free agent Do you think Do you think that the The learners were Expecting baseball To be around in 2072? So Yeah Good point just walked out of the stadium and like, I'm done. I'll be a free agent when this is over. Do you think that the Lerners were

expecting baseball to be around in the 2070s? So, yeah, good point. Do they think the AAF was going to happen to the MLB? I think that Ted Lerner is a very old man. Which surprised me. Yeah, he's not 93 or something like that. I mean, if you think you're an old man and you're probably not going to make it for the

next couple, just give him whatever. It's the Mike Illich thing with the Tigers. That's why he gave all those contracts out, and that's why the Tigers suck right now. But he wanted to win, and I get that. You're 88. He was 88 at the time, 93 years old. What I think could be happening, and I'm not going to – I don't know Mark Lerner from anybody,

but I feel like this happens all the time in sports. Our buddy Bill Simmons has talked about this a lot, but the idea that just because someone's the son of an owner who was a great businessman or whatever owns the team for a particular reason doesn't mean that you're going to be a good owner or at all qualified to be an owner it seems like mark mark learner might not be very qualified to be an owner if he's down to let his 93 year old father make that happen yeah and oh, that sounds like a great idea. Or even better, hey, 93-year-old dad, I got an idea. It'll be like the mafia.

We'll give him an envelope. It'll be so cool. Yeah. What? And then lowball him. Yeah, and then we're going to give him like half of what he's worth. Yeah, no, it was weird. It was weird, the vitriol.

I don't think the vitriol was all towards Harper. I think a lot of it was, obviously. It's misdirected. No, no, no. That's the point. I got it. I think it was more of a reaction towards Harper. I think a lot of it was, obviously. It's misdirected is the point. No, no, no. I got it. I think it was more of a reaction to Phillies fans being there.

I think Nationals fans hate Phillies fans. Well, we've taken over their ballpark since it opened. Well, not just – all D.C. hates Phillies fans. The Redskins fans, obviously, they all hate us. And I think it was a reaction to us going down there and saying, we're going to take over your stadium, and then did. And then they were trying to say, oh, no, we're actually, it's off fan base. And then just get embarrassed and leave in the sixth inning.

And then let us do. Everybody left, man. It was embarrassing. And let us do We Got Harper chants. It was so loud. We Got Harper MVP. It was so loud on the TV broadcast. It was ridiculous.

It was awesome. Great job. Not by you, but by the other Philly fans. Yes, not by me at all. I wasn't even there. But it was a really, really impressive night. Nationals fans were embarrassing, and we took over their stadium again.

CBP South is back. There was no place to tailgate. We were in one tailgate spot, and it was way far away. It was a 10-minute walk, and it was a little lot, I guess. But walking to the stadium, it was just a bunch of restaurants and bars rather than actual tailgate spots.

I feel bad for them. The whole thing was lame. Yeah, nice little boring franchise. Lame, boring. Plus, I mean, ugh. The lowballed Bryce Harper. Just a bad job. They went from the, I would like to change my preseason predictions.

That team stinks, man. They're not good. They're just not good. They're fine. They're all right. Their lineup isn't that great. Their bullpen's trash. I mean, Rendon's really good.

Soto's really good. Turner's hurt now. Dude, learn how to bunt. Are you serious? I know you couldn't see it from the right field fans, but who bunts by putting their finger out on the front of the bat like that like did you never get taught to rest the bat on your fingers like that like what you're a professional baseball player that's why they teach you that way so you don't break his hand very funny too because my brother and i had had a conversation literally like two days before he had his his uh work fantasy baseball

draft he had the sixth pick. And we both just were like, I don't want Trey Turner at six because he's going to get hurt. Like you can't trust that guy to play a full season and a couple days later, of course, on cue. Yeah, it happened. But they're just a weird team. And I think the fact that they're pretty

much gone from a first place caliber, NLCS caliber team to maybe a third best team in the division. See, I don't know. caliber team to maybe a third-best team in the division. See, I don't know. I still think they're the second-best team in the division. I think the Mets are frisky. Oh, look at you. That's because they have J.D. Davis.

No, it's because they have Pete Alonzo. Oh, buddy. Look, I still think between Soto, Rendon, you know, Adam Eaton's a fine player. He's not great or anything. I think they're good enough offensively. Dozier doesn't do anything for me. Dozier stinks. Scherzer, Strasburg. Strasburg pitching well so far today.

And Corbin. I think that gives you a chance. No matter what. I agree. To your point. But they're frisky. The Mets are frisky. Neither team is the Phillies. No. I think it's pretty clear. And I know we're only through five games. We're not going to overreact. But neither team is the Phillies.

Two more things from the Tuesday game and then we'll move on to the less fun game. It was really fun. It was a bad night for the Hato-Double crowd on Tuesday night. Really just a great game. On the bases, I think a lot of people always give him – look, he can hit. We all know that if he's locked and he can hit, he had the three doubles. But the base running, the heads-up type plays, aware, scored a run because of it, able to take third on that one missed wild pitch, pass ball,

whatever you want to call it. Bad night for the Hato-Double crowd. Yeah, so, and a double in the first inning, or second inning, I guess. Hit that ball to the wall off Scherzer that might have gotten out. He looked locked in. And, of course, it was frustrating because you have Sunday Night Baseball where he strikes out with the bases loaded and one out. We talked about that, how everyone overreacted to that.

Listen, I think people just have to let Odubel be Odubel. And now Roman Quinn is starting his rehab assignment today. And the idea of just putting quinn in center field and not starting odubel is just silly it's insane to me we said this last year too even when he was struggling like if a uh healthy potentially locked in odubel versus quinn it's non-contest it's not and i i think odubel's been really good this year the the he's walking more than he was last year walking more yeah and that's that's when you know odubel's locked in as if He's walking more than he was last year. He is walking more. Yeah, and that's when you know a double is locked in is if he's walking. Yeah. Because

what made him so good in 17 and 16 was that he was an on-base guy that could also bat 290-ish. And last year he got away from that. He was taking wild hacks and that stuff. And I think so far this year he's done a pretty good job. He'll still chase

pitches out of the zone. He seems to really struggle, like most hitters would, on pitches that start at the knees and then just fall off the table. Like, I don't think he sees that very well out of the hand. Like, he just always swings right over that. But then sometimes he'll take one off his shoestrings and hit it 400 feet. So he's just crazy. He's just the weirdest hitter I've ever seen in my life.

But he was really good on Tuesday. He's been good this season. Outside the one bat at bat on Sunday night, I think he's had a really solid season. Hasn't really messed up in the field. Obviously, he ran into Harper that one time, which wasn't great. That's a communication thing that I think they'll get ironed out. But I've been happy with Oduble.

All right, one more. Will Mike Calfranco lead the majors in intentional walks this season? His walk percentage is like 31%, and his career is like 6%. one more will michael franco lead the majors in intentional walks this season his his walk percentage is like 31 and his career is like six percent yeah so what do you think about michael look you you reports reports are you've been seen swimming in the area of michael considering swimming back you're not sure so that that's what i heard i'm just yeah i'm not i'm not sure where i'm at on Mikel. I think as an 8-hole hitter I think he's fine. Leave him alone.

He's fine. It's weird because I will say this. His launch angle right now is at 24. Like 24.5 is his average launch angle on balls. His career is 10. His launch angle is usually around 10 degrees.

The fact that it's 24 it's obviously only five games in it's just something to monitor because his problem for the longest time was he puts the ball on the ground too much and can't drive the ball and now if he's putting the ball in the air that's a good sign because he can actually use that power and it can unlock another level of michael franco it's just that like every home runs in the same pitch it's been a fastball up and in that he just gets on and drives it out. We haven't really seen him have the plate coverage that most...

There's still something that looks weird when I watch Mike Alvarado. I feel the same way. But look, like you said, you can't rip it too much. He's been really good so far this season. I think the 8-hole thing matters too. I do think it takes a little bit of the pressure off him. It seems like he's always hit better lower in the lineup in his career.

And it seems like he's having fun. And it seems like he's enjoying himself out there. And look, he's been good so far. And he's taking more pitches. It's not just the intentional walks. He has looked like he's trying to work counts more. The issue with Franco is that we see these types of things year by year and then he always reverts back to the old Michael Franco.

So the question is, will this continue? Right. And I obviously don't really know that answer, but if he's putting the ball in the air more, driving the ball more, that's a good sign. That's a good sign for Mike Alfranco. He's in the 8-hole. There's no pressure down there. And if you get a guy that has his potential,

which is a 25, 30 home run guy in your 8-hole. Oh, it's huge. It's crazy. It's massive. It's crazy good. Before we move on from Tuesday, I do want to talk about efflin i mean i had that circled and i somehow just missed zach yes the best pitcher on the phillies right now zach he is the best pitcher on the phillies right now um what'd you think of it i thought he was great and i've like i don't i don't usually

like bringing twitter to the to the to the air everyone's like, oh, he's better than – Pavetta worse than Eflin or whatever. This is a not shocking thing to get tweeted. I'm not sure. I've never not liked Zach Eflin. I've always thought he's just a solid six innings, three runs or less. I think he can give you that on most nights. Do you agree?

Yeah. I think – look, maybe not. Yeah, I think he's a quality type of guy sure if that's my that's like a four or five era it's not great right okay but i think in this day and age it's solid right and what what he did on on on tuesday night that was really impressive to me so for eflin to be good for eflin to be consistently good he needs to spot the fastball on both sides of the plate because his off-speed stuff is not great like it's it's it's b stuff it's not overwhelming um but but if he spots his fastball to both sides of the plate then he can play that play his stuff off of that and it just it works a lot better and

what i thought he did on on tuesday was really good outside of just spotting both sides of the plate with his fastball was he's throwing two different kind of sliders now, and he's throwing one slider that comes out of his hand and moves maybe like two inches and moves like a cutter a little bit, and then he'll throw a second slider a little bit softer that's on the same exact plane as the other slider, and then just drops off the table. And it's just really hard for a hitter to stay on top of that because if they come out of the same arm slot,

one moves only two inches, one moves four inches five inches then then it's just hard for a a hitter to see that out of the hand that's what we talk about tunneling and sequencing and i think i think efflin is one of the smarter pitchers on this on this roster and that's what makes like pivetta so frustrating because i think pivetta can do that but i don't think he has the pitching wherewithal yet to do that whereas eff Eflin, I've always thought he's a really, really smart pitcher if his stuff is going right. He was 94, 95, which is great. It's huge.

That's the big difference to the Zach Eflin we knew a couple years ago to the guy we saw in good stretches last year to now is that increased velocity makes such a difference. It does. And he can finally strike guys out. Yeah, that's the key. He couldn't strike anyone out two years ago. He can get guys to swing and miss now. Right. And what I thought was really he doesn't throw it often

but he picks the right spots to use his changeup. And he threw it a couple times. 2-2, 3-2 on Tuesday night. And guys just swung right over it because he mixes it in at the exact right spot. And I think that Smart pitcher again. Yeah, I think Real Muto has really helped him from that standpoint.

And I'm just in on him. Like, worst comes to worst... In on Eflin. I've always liked Eflin. Love it. I've always been a little worried to go all in because his stuff is not great. Like, it's good, solid stuff,

but it's not like, wow, look at that guy. Right. But I just trust him at this point for six innings, three runs or less. So a perfect four starter for them is what you're saying? Perfect four starter. And Tuesday night he was really, really good. If he can keep elevating that fastball, like if he can elevate the fastball,

have the two different spins on a slider and the changeup, mix it in and throw it for a strike and keep it in the zone just long enough to where guys can just swing right over it, that's just a solid pitcher. I think Eflin is just a solid, solid major league starter. If he's my 4-5 guy, I've got a good rotation. Yeah, the high fastball really seemed to be the key to his stuff that night in terms of the swing and miss stuff. And he was confident, too.

That's where I get frustrated with Pavetta because he doesn't have the same... He has the suedo bulldog. Yeah, we always talk about it. But Eflin is... Pseudo? Pseudo the suedo bulldog like he yeah we always talk about it but but efflin is pseudo pseudo suedo whatever pseudo i always no no no no no no no no no no no no whatever it is pseudo i don't ever say suedo again what is suedo nothing not a thing are they amigos i think there's a pitcher named suedo maybe johnny Johnny Suedo? Johnny Suedo. I like that. But, like, Eflin is just, like, 94-94. Like, he just attacks his own, and I think guys like Pavetta and Velasquez can take something from that.

All right. Let's move on to the last fun game to talk about. But it really was a fun game to watch until the end, obviously. It was a back-and-forth affair. It was a fun game to watch until the end, obviously. It was a back-and-forth affair. It really, you know, obviously I think the big takeaway from it is, damn, this lineup is good and they're never out of a baseball game,

which I think we already knew going in, but it was nice to see them fight back and pick away and ultimately have that big eighth inning. Let's start with Nola, and then we'll get to the more cause for concern with the bullpen, but obviously after two starts, I'm not worried about Nola. You're not worried about Nola. What is Nola doing wrong and what does he need to do to get back to where he needs to be? What I thought about was weird yesterday was that, well, first off, he didn't have any stuff. He was just missing with all his pitches.

He was not getting any kind of calls in the outside corner, any of that kind of stuff. Every single pitch he felt like he was throwing was right on the edge of the strike zone, but just a bit outside to where it's like you can't really call that. I thought the Rendon home run was just a good piece of hitting. That wasn't really totally his fault. It was the fastball inside that just he pulled his hands in and pulled it over the left field fence. With Nola right now, and what I thought was weird yesterday from watching all of the pitchers, was it felt like none of them were throwing their fastball.

Like, Nola was throwing a bunch of off-speed pitches. Yeah, Robertson wasn't throwing his fastball at all. It was really strange. Sir Anthony threw a lot of sliders yesterday. Yeah, you're right. And Nola was throwing a lot of off-speed pitches. I thought that was weird. You think that's potentially a scouting report thing?

I think it's a scouting report thing to where they crush fastballs, maybe. That was their philosophy heading in. If you can mix it up with a bunch of off-speed, it'll keep them off balance and off of your fastball. But I thought it was weird from Nola because with Nola, you usually never see him struggle with A, command, and B, like, not being able to spot his fastball wherever he wanted it. It was weird. It was weird. I can't tell.

His arm slot's a little lower than it usually is. But he didn't have the same, like, running two-seam action that he usually has. At all he didn't, for sure. Yeah, I mean, I'm not concerned. He's Aaron Nola. He's a professional pitcher. I think he'll right this ship. But I was not prepared for him to get absolutely shelled

in his second start of the season. Yeah, and one of those starts where you knew it from the jump, from that first inning, you're just like, uh-oh, he doesn't have it today. It's one of those starts. Yeah, we haven't seen that in a while. And the only mild concern I have is that he wasn't great in September last year. And that's two so-so starts. Obviously, the brave start on paper looked good,

but it still wasn't like I was watching. Yeah, five walks is not a good – anytime he walks five guys, unless it's like the ump is just clearly squeezing him to an extreme level, it's not a good Aaron Knowles. No, it's not. So it's something to monitor rather than freak out. Yeah, I agree with you there. Nothing to, he's too good, he's been too good.

He's proven too much and too long to just say, oh, there's a real problem here. Right. If it happens five more times, we could start to talk about it. Yeah, and I didn't see any VLO decrease. It looked like around the same VLO, so anyone looking for an injury. That's the type of stuff you look for, obviously. Yeah, yeah. Didn't see any of that.

He'll be fine. Okay, bullpen. Let's get to it because that's – and look, again, the offense was awesome. This lineup is great. The fact they battled back, that Cutch double, the base running, the Kingery slide, man. The Kingery slide? The Kingery slide.

The Cutch reading the Gene Segura single? I was just about to get there. I mean, this team is – first of all, they're really aggressive on the base pass. Which is fun. It's great. I think it's been an edict where they said, all right, if it's even going to be a close play, send him. Because it seems like every situation where it's a should they send him,

shouldn't they send him situation, they've been sent so far this year. And I like that. And they've ran the bases really well. Defensively, you saw the first. Cracks in the armor? Yeah, felt like last year a little bit defensively. It did feel like last year. And obviously that Hoskins play is something you make 999 times out of 1,000,

just a brain fart, an error. It times out of 1,000. Just a brain fart and error. It was a bad throw, too. It wasn't a great throw, but it was a very catchable throw by a first baseman in that situation. But it did tail it tailed away a little bit. I get it. Do you think Hoskins is still worried about his shoulder?

He might be. Look, he's not hitting well. He was bad in 188. The last couple games, he's popping a lot of balls up. It Look, he's not hitting well. He was bad in 188. The last couple games, he's popping a lot of balls up. It feels like he's getting under things. It's just, you can tell. Look, he's one of those guys, we talked about that a lot, clearly a streaky guy where from one game to the next,

he can be completely off, and then it clicks, and he's great again. So I'm not worried about him offensively. We know he's not good defensively. Give us the DH already so we can play DH and we can move forward. Well, no, but okay. Yeah. Yes. Sorry.

All right. You didn't enjoy the riveting double switch yesterday? I was listening. This is baseball. This is beautiful NL baseball. Double switches. They're so cool. The AL is so boring.

It is such a boring product. Thank God we have a DH. Yes. Thank God we don't have a DH. Freudian slip there. Freudian such a boring product. Thank God we have a DH. Thank God we don't have a DH. Freudian slip there. Freudian slip. Alright, the bullpen. This is the big issue right now. People are upset about this bullpen, Jack. I've heard

way too many people tell me to go get Craig Kimbrell. Really? Sir Anthony, then Robertson, what have you seen from them? What's off a little bit and are you worried at all about either of them? So I am I'm more concerned about

Sir Anthony than I am Robertson. Wow. You're probably one of the few I would guess. Yeah, no, I know. It's not that I think either are going to be bad this year. But the one thing I've noticed with Sir Anthony is that his slider is not moving at all. So his slider yesterday had a horizontal movement of like 2.45 inches.

And when Sir Anthony came up, his slider was moving at like 4 inches. And like that's – Need more inches. Yeah, he needs more inches in that slider. Speaking of sliders. Oh, God, Adam Morgan. Where's the Adam Morgan update? He's been great, man.

Adam Morgan. I try to warn everyone. So the reason not to worry about Robertson and Sir Anthony is because we're finally got Adam Morgan update? He's been great, man. Adam Morgan. I try to warn everyone. So the reason to not worry about Robertson and Terranthi is because we're fine. We got Adam Morgan. Yeah, no. The reason I'm not worried about either one is because Adam Morgan is going to take their job in two weeks. Just flip the roles.

Just put Nicasio and Morgan at the end of the game. We'll put the other guys in the middle. No, I just want to know where everyone was when they realized that this is Adam Morgan's breakout year. Like, where were you when you noticed that his slider's moving 10 inches right now i don't know i still haven't been there yet you want a fun you want a fun little adam morgan nugget a lot of inch talk here a lot of inch talk i'm an inch man um ew that's short man not great yikes you want an adam morgan nugget sure from someone that interned with the phillies in 2017 okay plantac came down

to them and he said, can anyone explain to me why six teams just called me about Adam Morgan? Really? Yes. Analytics darling, Adam Morgan. Oh, buddy. Yeah. So if you look at his slider movement, you ready for this?

Yeah. I love that real quick. I just love that we're talking about Robertson and Zerney and somehow we were on Adam Morgan. Because I was there. I was there on Tuesday when he shut down the Nationals again. I was there for it. I saw it with my own eyes. It's real.

Exactly. So in 2017, his slider was moving six inches. Last year, it was moving eight inches. This year so far, it's moving 10 inches. You had some serious growth. You know what I'm saying? Someone say that. All right.

So back to Zeran and and and david robertson so robertson's one of those guys that i always just trust that he's gonna figure it out we're not seeing major fastball um velo decline it was weird they didn't throw it a lot yesterday but i don't think he had the he had the feel for it at all because everyone he threw was like outside and kept cutting away and wasn't even in the strike zone like he threw so many non-competitive pitches yesterday. Dude, I was yelling at my TV. I was literally yelling, throw a bleeping strike. Because, look, at that point, I'm not even kidding.

I would have rather a walk-off grand slam than he walking around. I would have rather a double that scores the run. I would have rather a hit. I would have rather a sack fly. Well, it wouldn't have been a sack fly because the outfield was in. But you know what I mean. I would have taken a hit. I would have rather a sack fly. Well, it wouldn't have been a sack fly because the outfield was in. But you know what I mean. I would have taken anything over a walk in that situation after walking two guys

in a row. I couldn't believe the dude couldn't throw a strike there. The only two strikes he got were swinging strikes. He couldn't even throw a strike. What is happening? You're a major league pitcher. I don't care if it gets laced. I don't care if you don't trust it. Just throw a freaking strike and take a chance.

The only way you're definitely going to lose is if you freaking walk the run in. Yeah. And he threw so many curveballs. It was brutal. It was a really rough watch. It was just weird to me. But Robertson always gets in those situations and he kind of works his way out of it. I kind of wanted to see if he could work his way out of it. But I told you after Saturday or whatever, I thought he had a little nervous look to him.

I think your point about only four spring training outings is relevant. He threw three and two-thirds innings in spring training. Yeah, I don't think that was enough. I think they underdid it. Well, I can't tell if it was them or if it was him. Was he saying, I'm a veteran. I know how to do this. I'm fine.

Maybe. We don't know. We don't know. Either way, one of them is in the wrong here because they didn't do enough. No, because he's not ready to go. Clearly not ready to go. He has no feel for his release point. He just kept bouncing curveballs.

He couldn't throw a strike. He's a major league pitcher, Jack. You could have gone out there and thrown a strike in a 3-2 count. I did appreciate the amount of tweets I got about saying, I think you could do a better job. You could have. You could have done a better job there. You know why?

Because no one could have done a worse job, Jack. Markel Robertson? Hey, sure. Yes. David Fultz. Yeah, I guess, well, he's 33. You get worried that maybe he's kind of hit a wall. I'm not there yet.

I think he'll be fine. It's a little You get worried that maybe he's hit a wall. I'm not there yet. I think he'll be fine. It's a little too early for that. We're five games in. Look, I agree. Everything's a little too early. It's five games. He hasn't looked great this entire season. I thought he looked better in spring training. He was wearing a tan glove in spring training. Maybe he needs to go back to that.

Back to the black glove. That could be it. That could be the whole thing right there. Change it all up. It probably is it. I mean, odds are. But Seranthi didn't pitch well either. The thing I'm concerned about with him is the slider is not really sliding. And it's kind of just like a spinner.

You need your slider to slide, Jack. It's in the name. It's just spinning. It's a spinner at this point. He needs to get back on top of the ball and drive down. And his fastball, it's getting hit harder than it has. And it doesn't have the same late life, it seems like, that it did last season. Right.

You know, that last little giddy-up at the end. I haven't seen that so far. And the cut. Yeah, it hasn't been there. But I feel like since their bullpen arms— I mean, the velocity's pretty much there. I think last year it was average 98.4. This year it's 97, so it's a little lower

but not anything that's going to matter that much. And I generally think that bullpen guys kind of take a little bit to get ramped up. I do too.

Except for guys like Neshek. Same stuff over and over. Solid. It's good. And Adam Morgan. Yes. Sure. Pat Neshek.

God I wish you were likable. Yeah. Because he's I trust Pat Neshek more than, I wish he were likable. Yeah. Because he's... I trust Pat Neshek more than anyone else in the bullpen. But outside of those two, I feel pretty good about the bullpen. Everyone else has been good. I know Neris gave up the homer on opening day, but other than that, like... And Alvarez gave up that homer, but Nicasio...

I just don't think Alvarez is that good. He's whatever. He's fine. I think he's fine. He's fine. He's a good guy to face a lefty. That's it. Yes.

I like Juan Nicasio. The dude fine. He's a good guy to face a lefty. That's it. Yes. I like Juan Nicasio. The dude battles. He's pitched really well so far. I think he's back after down year last year. I like Nicasio so far. I actually think Nicasio was one of those Klintec by low steals because obviously his ERA was 6 last year. But if you looked at all the

peripherals, it was like this guy should have had like a 3 ERA. And he was awesome the year before. Awesome the year before. So, awesome the year before. So, no, I like Nicasio. I mean, Neshek's been lights out. Everyone's pit Morgan, obviously. Amazing.

ERA of zero, one and O, just saying. Will he allow a run this season? Probably not. Is he our Josh Hader? Josh Hader's still disgusting. Unbelievable.

The Immaculate Ending. Did he have Immaculate ending yeah did he really throw off fastballs get out of here he's thrown like 52 pitches and 50 have been fastballs

or something he hasn't he hasn't unleashed his slider well because they're having him pitch every night he's like alright let's go throw fastballs

and mow people down that is interesting though because Juan Acasio I found out from Scott and Larry when I was listening yesterday, when I had to go pick up Zoe, also threw an immaculate inning when he was in Pittsburgh. I didn't know that.

Yeah, I heard the story. Immaculate innings are really rare. It's not like something that happens very often. It's really hard to do. Nine pitches, nine strikes, and you're out of the inning? Yeah, I'd say that's pretty hard to do. It's really, really hard to do. Yeah.

So, yeah. So, I don't know why I'm just jacking the show. I just wrote something. All right. You can keep going. You're good. No, jack it off, you might say. Yeah.

So, the celebrations thing, I kind of, I like that the Phillies are turning into, like, kind of the villains of Major League Baseball. And, because I think that can unite a clubhouse in a way. And I feel like the cool thing... Us against the world, baby. That's one of my favorite things. And the cool thing about Tuesday was that I feel like they're all for Harper and they're all behind

Harper. And he said that. That was what he said in the post-game interview. He said, my teammates, this was a big deal for me to come back here. A really emotional thing. And my teammates had my back. They've for me to come back here a really emotional thing and my teammates had my back they've been there to help me through it i thought that was really cool yeah and they saw him getting booed they saw the crowd reaction to him and i think they wanted to go out there and kick their ass and the way they've been playing this entire season so far has been like we're

gonna overwhelm you with our offense and you're not gonna be able to stop us and i know a lot of people are wondering if this offense can keep it up. And I'm kind of just, I'm at the point where I'm just saying, where do you see an inconsistency coming? Like these guys have long track records of being able to do a certain thing. Like the only guy who really you can't fully, two guys you can't fully trust are Franco and Herrera. Obviously Franco right now is playing way over his head.

He'll definitely regress to the mean a little bit. And Herrera, who knows? But the first five, those guys all have long track records of being the guy that they've been so far this season. McCutcheon's a 400 OEP guy. Segura's a 300 batter who might hit like 350 this year. He's on fire, and he's amazing. He swings at everything.

It's so great. He just goes up and hacks. It's awesome. Just a baseball player. He's just fun. I forgot. We didn't have those guys last year. I forgot how fun it is to have someone who just go up and hacks.

Yeah, it's great. Harper obviously has a track record, and he is locked in. You have Hoskins, who can be streaky. Look, and they're doing it without Hoskins really doing much after opening day. They're doing it without Real Muto doing anything. Yeah, Real Muto not doing much either. Outside of the home run on Saturday, he hasn't made an impact yet. Obviously, catching has been great and throwing guys out,

but at the offensive side of the plate, he has not made an impact yet. Speaking of Real Muto, I had an interesting question posed on the Midday Show today by a caller that I would like your thoughts on. What is Real Muto's culpability in that ninth inning with Robertson? That situation. He didn't go out to the mound much. I think he might have gone once after the second walk, I want to say. But what is his culpability in that spot where a pitcher's not throwing strikes

and he needs a pitcher to throw strikes? How much do you take? I mean, look, we're blaming Robertson. It's not Real Muto's fault that he couldn't throw strikes. But what can a catcher do in that situation? Well, if you go there once, I think yesterday was a big learning experience for JT. And I think it's another one of those data point things that you're kind of just taking and storing away if you're a catcher because you want to see if he can throw a 3-2 curveball.

I think they wanted to see what pitches Robertson feels comfortable with. Because this is the first time they've really worked together ever. So maybe you go at that one time. And maybe Robertson's one of those guys that doesn't like when people come out to the mound. That's a good point. It's possible. Yeah, so I feel like Robertson's one of those guys. I know.

Yeah. Well, his post-game interview was exactly that. He's like I feel like Robertson's One of those guys Like I know Yeah I got it Well his post game interview Was exactly that He's like yeah I sucked I sucked Right Yeah Right so to me To me

Just rewatching the ninth inning And everything It felt like they wanted To see it play out And see what they can use Going forward In a way And sure it cost them

The ball game Right And that stinks But I do think it was a learning experience from that standpoint yeah i would like to give gabe credit to uh so many managers in major league baseball will save their closer in case they get a lead in that situation on the road for a save or whatever and it obviously didn't work out but it's the right move to use your closer or best pitcher left or whoever in that situation because you need to get to extras in the first place.

You need the opportunity to get your offense out there to win a game. So I hate that. That's something that you see time and time again in Major League Baseball. I think nine times out of ten, it's a mistake. Yeah, tie game on the road, you don't want to use your closer. Yeah, that's what I'm talking about. Yeah, I've never totally got it. It never totally made sense to me.

You've got to get this guy to save. You've got to win the game first. You've got to be able to win the game to get a save. And plus, I mean, Gabe knows he has Adam Morgan whenever he needs him. Duh. Exactly. He's the real best pitcher sitting there for him. All right.

Coming up this weekend, we're going to be down there on Saturday. Twins coming to town this weekend. Interesting pitching, Matt. Some interesting pitching options coming in for the Twins We'll see Jose Barrios on Sunday That dude is legit Barrios vs. Eflin We're going to see Pineda

When we go down on Saturday Pineda's pitched good in their first start The perpetual Will it be the year guy Michael Pineda All the stuff in the world never seems to be the year for Pineda Jack Yeah I drafted him like two years in a row guy, Michael Pineda. All the stuff in the world never seems to be the year for Pineda, Jack. Yeah. I drafted him like two years in a

row in fantasy. We have all owned Michael Pineda at some point over the last seven, eight years, whatever it's been. Hopefully he doesn't have the tobacco on his neck like in Boston from a couple years ago. He does. We can get him out of the game. Kick him out. The Twins are sneaky fun. I think they might win the AL Central. I don't like the

Indians vibes at all. Indians look awful, man. Indians had Tyler Naken batting third the other day. Tyler Naken. I'm guessing most people listening to this don't even know who the hell Tyler Naken is. Well, it's Tyler Naken, so maybe that'll help him. I'm pretty sure it's Tyler Naken. Why would it be Naken? It's N-A-Q-U-I-N.

Because Q-U isn't always Q-U-A. It can be a Q sound. I don't think so. I'm pretty sure. I watch a fair amount of Indians games. I don't know. You said Anthony Rendon was Anthony Rendon. Oh, that was a long time ago.

You've said- Pineda. You said suedo instead of pseudo. Yeah, but I know my players. I'm a baseball guy. Yeah, as am I. Sorry. Sorry, I'm a baseball guy.

I'm pretty sure I think it's naked. I don't think it is. We're going to look this one up. Okay, we'll have Franski on it. We'll listen this weekend when he says it. I was right with Real Muto. Thank you, Scott. I wasn't fighting with you about Real Muto. But other people did. I'm mad. Alright, so come down. Saturday

we're going to hang out. Fighting for Frankie. Still Jack's pin tweet. Still tickets available, Jack? I think so. Okay. Not totally sure. Might be too late at this point. Final thoughts coming up in a minute, but heaven out, fighting for Frankie. Still Jack's pin tweet. Still tickets available, Jack? I think so. Okay. Not totally sure. Might be too late at this point. Final thoughts coming up in a minute, but heaven is it weird for you. Okay.

I saw my buddy do this. I think it's weird. So my buddy, whenever he has a glass of ice water or soda, if he wants ice in it he will wash the ice off with water first and shake it out of the glass to get rid of any ice dust from his ice tray machine whatever in his fridge is it weird that's that's something a crazy person like that's that doesn't even make sense i thought it was the weirdest thing i've ever seen in my life When he did it I said I'm like yo man that is super weird He's like no it makes all the sense in the world

You got all this ice dust all this stuff in there you get it off What is ice dust? I don't know I've never heard of it in my life Maybe just ice it's probably ice So yes that's a weird one That doesn't make any sense to me Being completely honest doesn't make sense at all Sorry buddy

Is it the camera? No it's the guy I watched the game with the other night It's a buddy of mine any sense to me. Okay. Being completely honest doesn't make sense at all. Sorry, buddy. Is it the camera? No. It's the guy I watched the game with the other night, actually. It's a buddy of mine. Weird. Very weird. Very weird. Okay. We can agree on that. Anything else you want to hit before final thoughts? Yeah, sure. One thing. I think the coolest thing about this Phillies team

is that they know they're good rather than thinking they're good. You got a little swagger to them? Yeah, and last year I thought they thought they were good rather than thinking they're good. You got a little swagger to them? Yeah, and last year I thought they thought they were good rather than knowing they're good. And I thought Gabe, the nice thing about Gabe this year, he's not lying to them. Like last year I thought he was lying a lot.

I remember after the first weekend, I was like, we're going to make the playoffs. Well, it felt disingenuous a lot last year. I was like, Gabe, you don't believe that. Gabe's shown a really nice vulnerability this year. And also, it seems like he, as we talked a lot about it, it seems like he got criticism, took it to heart, and is trying to change. Which is good.

It's great. I think Gabe has been phenomenal this year. I think he's been really good. Again, I just mentioned I thought that was the right move at the closer. Pulled Nola at the right time. I only have one real criticism, and it's a very, very minor one. But, and it's not really just a Gabe problem, but Andrew Knapp can't be pinch hitting in any games.

Andrew Knapp can't be on this roster. Andrew Knapp is a freaking disaster. And then here's the thing, if you're going to put him in to pinch hit, which I would rather you didn't, don't put him in against a lefty. As bad as he is from both sides of the plate, he's significantly worse from the right side of the plate.

He's a 191 career hitter as a right-hander, Jack. Put Jake Arrieta in there before you put Andrew Knapp in. I mean, I'm somewhat joking, but not that much. Andrew Knapp can't play. No more Andrew Knapp. I cannot stand Andrew Knapp. I really can't stand him. I'm done with him.

I never want to see that guy in a Phillies uniform. But here's the thing. Is that Real Amido is playing all the time. Oh, I know. I know. But don't pinch hit him. It was a lost at bat. You were giving up a strikeout right there.

You had Aaron Altair. I know you're saving him for later in the game, but I would have rather they even used him if you're going to pinch hit. And then you're also getting rid of your emergency catcher. Well, Kingery is the emergency catcher. Iery's emergency getting rid of your backup catcher so theoretically in a game that could have gone to extras i thought it was weird so i didn't like that specific move from capler and part of it the problem is that engine app shouldn't be on this team but i didn't like that specific move but for the most part i think capler's been phenomenal

well by the way kingery is the emergency catcher. I know. They said it on the broadcast. And he's never caught before. I know. It's great. Why wouldn't you have him? First off, I know he's $330 million, but Bryce Harper is a catcher. I was a catcher. Came up as a catcher. I think you can stick it back there for an inning.

I mean, they won't do it, but he makes more sense for me actually being able to do it perspective than Kingery. I know. I know. So, yeah, that was weird. But yeah. Which makes using your second catcher that much weirder. But yeah, I mean, Gabe yesterday pulls

an all at the right time. Williams gets a huge pinch hit. I know the interesting thing is that was in the fourth inning. Fourth inning. And usually you want to save your best pinch hitter for later in the game for a big spot, but Gabe was aggressive yesterday and he knew it was a momentum-changing play. If they can get a big hit there, I thought that was great.

Inserting Kingery yesterday in that double switch, which is exhilarating. Come on, man. Like, you can't get that in the AL. People were fawning over it. I saw people just cheering. Yes! That double! Oh, my God.

It's the greatest thing I've ever seen in my life. I just want you to think. life I just I want you to think Fawning I want you to learn baseball And the beauty Dude It cleared the pitcher Moved it down

It's just It was perfect Okay A well executed Double switch from Gabe Is something that you Can't get in the AL Think about that

Think about how sad it is To watch AL baseball It's so boring It's so boring You know it's boring Watching a pitcher No it's not It's the worst.

That was fun. Brett Myers in 08 never happens. So you hate the Phillies. Wow, I didn't know you hated the 08 Phillies. That's just sad to see. You hate to see a guy change in front of your eyes, but here I am, 45 minutes on this podcast and James has already changed. This is not even a Phillies podcast.

Final thoughts! Final thoughts is that it's Mickey Moniak season. It is the start of minor league baseball today. We have an outfield in double A of Haisley, Moniak, the corpse of Cornelius Randolph. This is the most excited you've been in this, but the corpse is good. This is the most excited you've been in this whole podcast. We talked about you going to D.C. and locking eyes with Bryce Harper,

and you're more excited about this. I locked eyes with the ball that Bryce Harper hit right over my head. Yes. Nicky Moniac season. They're back to the old Redding blue and the old Redding logo. Which I don't know why it ever left. The Phillies should go back to the maroon and make it a whole fun thing. Powder blue, baby.

So it's Moniac season. It is the start. I cannot. I'm just excited for the daily. So the great thing about minor league baseball is that all the stuff happens during the day and the Phillies play at night. So you can already get the. You just never have to not have baseball in your life.

You can get the fun reactions during the day and then straight into a Phillies game at night. So. This is good stuff right here, Jack. I saw Kyle Boddy tweeting at Jason Ochart over the weekend saying, give my best regards to Mickey Moniak. Everyone's in on the Moniak breakout season. I can't wait. Jason Ochart, future Phillies hitting coach?

Yes. Is he the Dodgers guy? No. He's a, not driveline, obviously, but he's that type of guy. He never played Major League Baseball. He's a hitting coach. He was coached at some JC college or whatever he played at. But he's a hitting coach he was like a coach coached at like some jc college or whatever he played at like they but he's a uh uh one of those types of guys and he seems like he's doing a really good job yeah well the phillies know future hitting coach jason

we love him we'll have him on the podcast maybe that point um and i can't wait to overreact to his power numbers at reading which is going to be electric and i wish you could see the face and adam hazley's gonna be in in AAA in a few weeks. It's going to be great. And the Lakewood roster is loaded. Luis Garcia, John DeGuzman, Alec Baum. I'm excited. Not as excited as you, but excited.

Spencer Howard is going to be in Clearwater, and they'll have the return of Kevin Gowdy in Lakewood. Remember Kevin Gowdy? Of course I do. They paid him a lot of money in the second round, and he has been hurt. The return starts now. I'm so glad.

I'm so glad the minor leaguers are back. You're so more excited about that than all the Phillies talk. I love you for that. Imagine how much better this podcast would have been today if they won yesterday. I know. I had it all planned in my head. It was like 8-6 in the 8th inning with Sir Andy coming up. I was already planning out my open. You had it all planned in my head. It kind of killed. It was like 8-6 in the eighth inning with Sir Andy coming up.

I was already planning out my open. You had the McCutcheon bomb to the wall. It was great. I mean, it's pretty crazy that we have MVP McCutcheon and they stole him. Yes. A steal at that price. I love Andrew McCutcheon. How could you not?

You mentioned the base running, everything about him. This is a professional baseball team. Yeah, they really are. All right. Mention the base running, everything about him. This is a professional baseball team. Yeah, they really are. All right, again, Saturday, we are going to be at Citizens Bank Park for the Twins game. Wear a High Hope shirt. We'll buy you a beer. We'll hang out.

It'll be a blast. My final thought, Jack, and I mentioned before I had to go pick up Zoe during the game yesterday and came back, and you know, you got to go get your daughter when you got to go get your daughter. The beautiful thing was that i had scott and larry and i just i just as a great public service announcement out there if you're younger if you always watch on tv or all that or whatever take some time to check it out on the radio and listen to scott and larry they are so good together and if you want to boil it down, first and foremost, baseball on the radio is just a beautiful thing. It's an intimate thing. There's something special about it. There's something nostalgic about it. It's awesome. But to boil Scott and Larry down

very simply, they like each other. They love baseball and they love the Phillies and the rest just comes. And it is you. I mean, you produce it all the time. It is such a great listen. I just, I don't think we give them enough credit for being the amazing baseball play-by-play color team that they are. I agree. And they're hilarious.

Yeah, they're fun. It's like a fun listen. Yes, like it's a fun, it sounds like two buddies hanging out, watching a baseball game, having a beer. Yeah, that's exactly what it is. It's the best. Yeah, I mean, they're the best. And thank God nothing happened with L.A. over the offseason with the cancer stuff.

So everything's good there. He's back. First road trip in like two years. Good for Larry. Working really hard. Coming down there, yeah. He's really grinding. You knew it was big when he went on the road.

It was like, wow, all right. Yeah, I mean, it's not that crazy of a trip but yes but yeah he's going to dc let's not get carried away here but still good it was good that he was there for those games because they were big ones and it was yes and it was great listening to the nationals version of final out oh i can imagine just sullen it was so depressed oh it's great all right so again saturday jack's pin tweet i will tweet it out as well before the game. Fighting for Frankie. We're going to be hanging out at Twins game. It's going to be awesome.

I think we're in the 308 to 310. We're going to see Jake Arrieta against Michael Pineda. What do you say, Pineda? Pineda. Yeah. I've heard it both. That one I've heard both ways. He does have the little accent over the end.

So Pineda is probably how Spanish people or Hispanic people say it. So, you know, I'm just, I'm a, you know, get it right kind of guy, not a get it American kind of guy, but whatever. Should we do a piñata for a piñata? Ooh. What are we getting? Bash him around? Not too bad.

Yeah. We are going to bash him around. And a big Pavetta start tomorrow. Like a, we need to change a tune with Pavetta. Most important start of Nick Pavetta's career tomorrow. Yeah. I mean, the real ace of this team has to stand up, and it's Nick Pavetta. There it is.

All right. We'll be back Monday. Mailbag Monday. We'll react as we get a lot more Fritz and Seltzer. Talk to you guys soon. All-star closer, Kenley Jansen. We have a question. What's the best podcast of all time?

Baseball isn't boring, baby. I'm Rob Bradford, and every single day I'm sitting down with the biggest names to show you this great game is the greatest game. It's my podcast. It's my passion. It's a cause I started more than two years ago and is now the most prolific national daily baseball pod there is. Another fact, so jump aboard the BIB Express. Follow and listen to Baseball Isn't Boring,

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