High Hopes: A Phillies Podcast - The High Hopes Phillies Podcast: Aaron Nola, the Season Saver

Episode Date: August 24, 2018

Aaron Nola saved the season today and James Seltzer and Jack Fritz are here to talk about an up and down series against the Nationals. They also preview the Blue Jays series and... Jack Fritz is gettin' married! Should he watch the Phils on his honeymoon? 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

You know what's great about ambition? You can't see it. Some things look ambitious, but looks can be deceiving. For example, a runner could be training for a marathon, or they could be late for the bus. You never know. Ambition is on the inside. So that goal to beat your personal best?

Keep chasing it. Drive your ambition. Mitsubishi Motors. Your teen requested a ride, but this time, not from you. It's through their Uber Teen account. It's an Uber account that allows your teen to request a ride under your supervision with live trip tracking and highly rated drivers. Add your teen to your Uber account today. Yo, it is another edition. Add your team to your Uber account today. married on Saturday, Fritzy. You're going to Costa Rica. You're basically on vacation time right now. Fritz is throwing out atrocious takes to me before we start recording. I can't even

repeat them. He's making like 13 minute long commissioner videos in our WIU fantasy football league, which by the way, was epic and awesome. But you are totally checked out right now and I love it, Fritz. So listen, I'm going to be in Costa Rica. I'm going to be a married man. People are going to think that I'm going to come back soft. Can I get some preemptive takes out there? Yeah, you already got a few out before we started recording. I hope you don't repeat those ones, because they were pretty terrible. Number one, imagine not trading Nick Foles this offseason. I feel good about that one. Yeah, hold on.

It's fine, but you got to say imagine not trading Eagles legend Nick Foles. That's the way to say it, just so you know. Aaron Nola is better than Greg Maddox, and I don't think there's any. How can you even argue at this point? He throws harder, just as much movement. He has a better curveball, and his changeup is better than greg maddox's i don't understand how this is even a conversation at this point i i can't speechless i got nothing to say there i love aaron nola i do too man man he was like aaron nola today was just so unbelievable.

And it was one of those everyone wishes kind of baseballs back to the early 2000s, 80s, 90s, whatever, where starters would just take the ball and win a ball game. And listen, I love that kind of baseball. And I think that's a great brand of baseball. And I understand that third time through the lineup numbers are great and it makes sense to take a guy out and all that stuff but man was it freaking awesome to see your ace take the ball and say hey get on my back I'm gonna win us a ball game today in a game that the Phillies absolutely had to win yeah Aaron Nola saved the season today and I don't think that's an understatement they would have been four back the Braves handled their business as the Braves do against bad teams

you know the Phillies can do that against bad teams Jack but the Braves handled their business they would have been four back the division would have been hey look I know they got seven of ten against the Braves dead in the season but it would have been in a really bad spot falling further back in the wild car race. And also just the way this team was kind of reeling for the first time all season, you know, it's kind of been like the hallmark of all our discussions, Jack is adversity and they battle back and they're never out of it. And for the first time all season, even you and a lot of people out there, we're starting to say, all right, it was fun.

It was a good run. It was a good time. And look, they might not make the playoffs. They're right now. They're not a playoff team. If the season ended today, I know people love that trope, but for a day when the season in my mind really was on the line, like I know there are 35 games left and anything can happen. We saw a Phillies team come back from seven in 17 games against the Mets. So we all know anything can happen. But the way this team had been reeling, and today after losing last night on the Zimmerman walk-off shot, they had to have this game, Jack.

And they had to have it against the best pitcher in baseball. And Aaron Nola went out there. And like you said, he just said, get on this game, Jack. And they had to have it against the best pitcher in baseball. And Aaron Nola went out there. And like you said, he just said, get on my back, guys. I got it. Don't even worry. This is mine. Like, I got this. And I think, Jack, and we've talked a lot on this show all season long about how good Nola is and how he's underrated.

I think last time you and I talked, we talked about him being a top five pitcher in baseball. So we haven't been underrating him here, but I think from a national perspective, from a, uh, around baseball perspective, this game to me felt like for the first time all season, people really took notice. You know, we're, we're, people are starting to say Aaron Nola for MVP now, Jack. Do you feel like this was kind of a statement moment in Nola's career so far? Yeah, because he outdueled Max Scherzer. And I thought Scherzer was brilliant. But, I mean, heading into the seventh inning, they were both in the same amount of innings.

Heading into the seventh, I think Scherzer was into the 90s, whereas Aaron Nola was still in the 60s. Very Greg Maddux-like, Jack. Yeah, I mean, some say it might be better than Greg Maddux. What one says, but yes. And it's just like, I think for the first time in maybe his entire career, people finally realize what Aaron Nola is.

He's not Max Scherzer. He's not 97. He's not all that overwhelming stuff. But what Aaron Nola is is a guy that throws wiffle balls. And today, his two-seamer was just – I mean, it's always like this, but today it just felt like he was jumping a little bit extra. It felt like his curveball was a little bit extra. It felt like he took his game to a next level and and it was just it was it was something that the aces of

ace do and do i think the the nola for saiyan or nola for mvp talk is a little aggressive and do i think it's gonna happen like i i just think that i think it's ridiculous like i don't think i'm with you like i mean he's gonna he's not going to win the Cy Young. How can he make him MVP? Yeah. And DeGrom should be the Cy Young winner. But regardless, he's a top three pitcher in the NL, and that's not debatable at all.

He's been absolutely brilliant, and it felt like that a lot of people, based off social media interaction and all that stuff, around the game were just tuning in today to see Nola versus Scherzer. And the fact that Nola went out there and just out-dueled Scherzer, it was a very proud moment for a proud papa. Yeah, I think we were all kind of proud papas today

when Nola went out there. Look, I think it's also really heartening to see that in the two biggest starts he's had all season, under the brightest lights, boston start and today he's been his best like the best we've ever seen him you could say at least in my mind the two best starts of his career and we're this deep into his season and he's getting better jack and he's got he's got a big game field him he does he really does he's so calm and he's so collected like he never it never feels like things are too big for him when the phillies make the playoffs whether it's

this year or in the next coming years like i've this year has just solidified my belief that nick that aaron nola is going to be a a big game pitcher for a long time whether it's the the the wild card game throwing him out there in a one game elimination playoff, whether it's the wild card game, throwing him out there in a one-game elimination playoff scenario, whether it's the DSCS World Series. This guy doesn't get phased by anything, and I think he relishes in pitching in big moments. You mentioned the Red Sox game. It wasn't, in hindsight, not that big of a game,

but I think in his mind he was saying to himself, I'm facing the best offense in baseball let me show them what i can do today they needed an ace like performance they needed a stopper and aaron nola went out there and was the stopper and he feels like a guy that that rises to big occasions uh he can throw now he's at the point where he can throw three pitches for strikes in any count and i talked to kevin franzen about this like how do you have a plan for a guy that can do that because i don't think you can name dropper right there good work it's it's a pod dropper it's true it's embracing the pod so why don't you just relax there look hey i'm a kevin franson fan i think that and i think you know everyone does a good job and all that i

think he is the best uh who has done it with Scott Franski other than Larry Anderson, obviously. And I think that they have a great rapport on the air, and Franzen just says things that the other guys don't. So I really like Franzen. And he actually embraces analytics. He embraces the modern game of baseball, and he doesn't just trash on the product that is on the field right now.

And I think as a fan, how do you not find that refreshing like i think the people that listen to the high hopes podcast are people that are generally younger and generally in tune with how modern baseball works and for the entire season it's felt like both announcing crews have kind of crapped on that and i think when you bring in a guy like franson it just it just feels more like like this is how i want to listen to modern baseball look at this i love it but uh back to your nola point so i like that you with the big game call and all that you've gone he's greg maddox during the regular season and john smoltz in the playoffs that's where you're going with aaron nolan and i like it i'm a fan of it but i i agree

with you on the fact that that at least from what we've seen so far it seems like nola relishes those moments and is at his best and and i'm with you man that's it's so incredibly exciting to think about especially because um look i the national media and just baseball fandom has been slow to pick up on how great nola was nola is is, but it's, you know, at first it took us a little bit of time to get there too. I think all of us, as he progressed, we're like, Oh wait, he's not a three. Oh wait, he's, he's not a two. He's an ace. He's a legit ace who you can put in the biggest of games and think that, Oh, that guy's going to go out and win this for me. And that's,

it's awesome, man. Do I have to, do I have to do it? Do I have to do it right now? I mean, it feels like you're kind of teaming me up for this but that fraud pete mccannon it was around this time last year it was around this time last year that pete mccannon came out into the media and said that arinola is a number three starter thank listen listen pete mccannon like if you hate gabe gapler you probably like pete mccannon which means you're probably an idiot and like gabe or pete mccannon came out and said that aaron nola was a number three starter and proceeded to bat freddie galvis in

the two hole for an entire season and you're to tell me you missed that kind of baseball manager? Get out of here. I love that if there are people listening to this podcast who are fans of Pete McKinnon, you just called them idiots. So that's good. Shout out to the idiots. It's good stuff. Probably not a ton of people are big Pete McKinnon fans listening to this one. And look, I think there's a reason Pete McKinnon doesn't have a job right now. And there's a reason that Pete McKinnon has always been an interim manager. All right. That's just,

there's a reason for that. But look, I, you know, back to Noel, I just think, I think it's exciting. I think it's, it's not just, we've seen him grow and progress and all that, but to see him in these moments, the first opportunity, obviously this season where we've gotten to see him pitch in big games and to see him step up the, the first opportunity, obviously, this season where we've gotten to see him pitch in big games and to see him step up the way he has has been really heartening. I do agree with you, though, that I think Jacob deGrom right now has to get to Cy Young. And I know that wins matter to voters, but Jacob deGrom, I mean, what that dude is doing this year is pretty amazing. And from an MVP perspective, just to the point, because I do

agree with you, I'm very generally very leery about giving the MVP to a player who plays every fifth day. I do think it's interesting though that, and again, I would give it to Nolan Arenado before I would give it to Nola. There are a couple other guys I would probably give it to, probably Freddie Freeman as well. But having said that, there's no question that Aaron Nola's the MVP of the Phillies this year. There's just no question about it. And I do think that, again, I'm very hesitant and I know that Kershaw has won it and I think Verlander might've won the MVP and it happens. But I do think that in a way, in a weird way, Nola's MVP case is just as strong as his Cy Young case in the sense that

how this Phillies team is. But we've talked about all year, like, how are they winning games? How does this keep happening? All that type of stuff. I think Aaron Nola so clearly, 19 wins in his starts this season, that's over a quarter of their wins on the season. I think that there is at least, I generally think it's a ridiculous thing to give the starting pitcher the MVP, but in this case, Jack, I don't think it's as crazy as normal. I think that there's at least a case to be made. I think he's a top five-ish MVP candidate this year.

No, there's certainly a case to be made. I mean, he's going to end up being a defining factor in a lot of Phillies' wins this year, which obviously is not totally predicated on team success. I understand why wins have been totally pretty much ridiculed in all of baseball. Yeah, it's a silly stat for pitchers.

But, I mean, if you're looking at B-War, he has the highest war amongst all NL players, which is ridiculous. Now, if you look at Fangraph's war, it's a little different. He's like third behind DeGrom and Scherzer. And, listen, I think DeGrom's a Cy Young. I mean, he has a 171 ERA. It's so absurd, man. And also the lowest fit.

So he's a Cy Young, and I think he's ridiculous. But that shouldn't discount how much Aaron Nola has meant to this Phillies team this year and how ridiculous he has been. His MVP case is probably better than his Cy Young case, which is a ridiculous but um that was kind of my point which is kind of weird it's kind of crazy no and it's fine like i don't think he's gonna win mvp but the fact that we've been having this discussion exactly is utterly ridiculous for a guy that yeah he was he's supposed to be a fast riser rise to the minor leagues number seven, that was going to be like a number three, whatever. And for him to develop into this is just insane, and that's great. At the age of 25, no less.

Right, right. And I saw Jilio put out the rankings of players in Philadelphia right now, and he had Embiid one, Nola two, Carson three, which, like, I mean, you can argue that however you want, but the fact is that all three of those guys are under 25 which yes and i think that's the top three i've we've talked about this i would put wentz ahead of nola but regardless i think that's the top three and which is fine i don't think it's arguable i know ben simmons a really good player like

i don't think you can argue it right now no i don't think you can either and the fact that like arinola that that that sequence to harper oh i meant to get to that oh my goodness dude that i mean that was the like today was his defining start but that that a bat is his defining at bat pitches 101 and pitches 102 on the day we're both 95 miles an hour right past bryce harper who has been the hottest hitter on the planet in the entire second half. And I am leaning towards preferring him over Machado if I need to. Oh, oh, oh, who said that? Who on this show said that before? Who said that?

Listen, man. Oh, wait, who was it? Oh, it was me. I said that. OK, just checking. He's really good. He's really good. Harper's locked in.

And Nola just completely blew two fastballs right by him. And huge moment. All right. We wouldn't be talking about the win if it weren't for Philly's putting up a couple runs. And, Jack, how did they put up those runs? Hashtag pro-duble, baby. Are we sure it wasn't Roman Quinn? Is O'Double getting locked back in, Jack?

Do you feel it coming? I mean, we've talked about this. I mean, I feel like you, me, Joe Giglio, Mike Angeline, and a few other people have basically been fighting the good fight. And the vast majority of people. Not thegoodfight.com. We like thegoodfight.com. We've just been fighting the good fight and uh and the vast majority of people not the good fight.com we we like the good fight.com we've just been fighting the pro duble no no no i love the good fight.com yes you knew what i meant the good fight f-i-g-h-t we'll find the good fight and i believe those guys have too actually good fight has been i know i know pro duble in that game no no it was a good clarification actually because you're right it could have come off as I'm starting a feud with people I like.

But, you know, do you feel this coming? Is this the time? I – this is going to sound – this might be the dumbest thing I've ever said, which is saying a lot. That's not true. What you said to me before the show was the dumbest thing I've ever said, but this could be second. I thought he was starting to look locked in ever since his at-bat Sunday against the Mets.

You mentioned that on the last show, actually, that we did. I know. And I thought he looked better. And then he kind of dipped out. And even the home run today. Listen, I was very excited about the home run today. But it kind of felt like a mistake. And he had a toe tap.

And it was just, there's a lot going on there. And I want to believe he was locked in. But I kind of feel like it was barrel-met baseball at the exact right time, and I'm not sure he was completely locked in. Because even the two at-bats previous to that, it was just weak fly balls to, I think, shortstop and center field, and it was just like this guy's popping up more than he ever has in his entire career. Like his infield fly rate is ridiculous. And the home run is great.

What made Odubel so good and why we defended him for a long time was that he was hitting a bunch of doubles, and sometimes a home run would come. And I think he has three doubles since June, which is ridiculous. Not good. Not good. Not good. It's not good at all. We made Odubel Odubel's the doubles.

The home run was great today, but I would rather have all the doubles rather than – he'll probably hit 25 homers this year. I would rather have the doubles than I would the home runs. Jack Fritz prefers doubles to home runs. Remember everyone that he said that. But you know what I mean, right? I know. I'm, right? I know. I'm kidding.

It makes sense. The point is when Oduble starts ripping doubles into the gap and into the right field wall, then you know he's locked in. Home run today doesn't show you that he's locked in. Right. I would be more in on Oduble being back-back if it was a double in the first and then the home run. It was just like the home run kind of felt like a product of a good swing

and a good spot. And it was a great time to do it, but I'm not going to say he – or I'm not going to proclaim that he's fully back. Yeah, and I think that's fair. I'm not ready to do that either, but certainly nice to see. Jack, obviously we can't ignore the fact that this team has played pretty poorly up until the aaron nola throwing them on his back today game and i know you and i are very frustrated you

seemingly uh almost despondent yesterday after the loss uh you know a season over ish type of thoughts in your head has uh where are you at with this team right now? Just on a macro level with coming off the win yesterday. I mean, look, Tommy Hunter talked about it in the locker room after saying, you know, we're going to go on a run here. I think that Reese Hoskins talked about it before the game saying, you know, if you fold up now, you shouldn't be playing baseball and all that type of stuff. They're saying the right things. They go out today and obviously with the help of a,

of one particular guy get the job done. But are you still nervous about this team or do you think that today could be an opportunity to kind of turn things around here? I think, I think today can be a little bit of a springboard for sure. And hopefully, hopefully it isn't like, I'm not, I'm not like, I, I, I was very upset with the first two games of the series, and I understand that, you know, things could have turned out differently and they could have swept the series.

I mean, they were up 4-1 in the seventh in game one. They were obviously up in the ninth last night before Ryan Zimmerman's BS took over. God, I hate that guy. Yeah, the word. He's such a BDI turd. Yeah, he's a hate-the-face guy alone. Like, even if he never played baseball against the Phillies, I could see Ryan Zimmerman walking down the street and go,

yeah, I hate that guy. Right. And, you know, it just felt like everything with the Phillies that has been going on this season started to catch up to them. Like the starting pitcher, the starting pitching numbers were ridiculous. Like all the young guys were far outperforming their projections. And it felt like there was regression coming, but they kept pitching well and all that stuff.

The offense was maddeningly inconsistent, which they've just been all this entire season. And the defense was still terrible. And it felt like there were some leaks in the bullpen. It just started to feel like everything that was going right for the Phillies, all the little things, they just started to not go right for them at the wrong time when they're trying to make a playoff run. And honestly, they looked tired to me.

They looked worn out. And today was really nice to see Aaron Nola come in and put him on the back and hopefully jolt them a little bit. Hopefully, like if you're in a clubhouse, right, and you see your ace go out there, put that kind of performance on, like how do you not just say, come on, boys, like we got to nut up, and we got to go, we got to go. He is laying it all out there on the line for us.

Let's go help him out. Let's go on a little run here. Because the first two games of this series, they lost, but it felt like they were worn out, they were tired, and the bullpen was starting to make mistakes. And it was honestly, it just felt like this team was kind of crumbling a little bit. And even though they won today, they haven't won a series since July 26th. Like, that's just a fact. even though they won today, they still haven't won a series since July 26th.

Like, that's just a fact. And hopefully the series against Toronto kind of jumpstarts them a little bit because the Blue Jays kind of stink. Yeah, well, the Blue Jays definitely stink. But again, look, a team stinking has not seemed to make as much of a difference for this Phillies team as it should be. But look, we'll get into the Toronto series in a minute, but I think you're dead on there. And I think, look, if nothing else, like you said,

even from a human perspective, if you see someone go out and do that for you, for your team, for your cause, kind of like when you see me just host the hell out of a High Hopes podcast, you want to kill it for me too. You know what I mean like when you see me just, you know, host the hell out of Ohio's podcast. You want to you want to kill it for me, too. You know, I mean, agreed. Yeah. So but look, I really believe in that.

And I think that if nothing else. And again, I understand. Like you said, Jack, that's I didn't realize it. If I realize when you stop and think about it, you know, they lost the series of Padres. They lost the Mets. They, you know, didn't win series against Boston, didn't lose them either, but it has been, yeah, exactly split them. Um, so it's been a while. I just, when you hear that, you know, I 26, that's, it's almost a month since they won a

series. So that is a jarring stat. But, um, I do think that look again, not to beat that drum again, but this team has shown resilience all season long. And I think that, again not to to beat that drum again but this team has shown resilience all season long and i think that you know if they're going to make a run now's the time after that aaron nola showing the opportunity to go back out and get themselves back in this and and jack you mentioned it but they got to do it against toronto this is um they've been so disappointing against teams that they should beat and beat handily like lately against the Mets, against the Padres, against this nationals team, which isn't as good as them, but really, you know, the, the really bad teams they face, they

seem to play down to their competition. It's been a hallmark of this team so far. Um, at least certainly over the last month when they've, they've struggled. So it's a big spot going into Toronto against, like you said, a bad baseball team. The dude who's pitching against them tomorrow night is a dude I've never even heard of, Ryan Barucki. He's got an 81 ERA, Jack.

So this is a guy you've got to take advantage of. Well, I mean, the guy who started Saturday in the Padres. That's what that's at. Yeah, or Jason Vargas Sunday. I know. I'm with you. That's my point. Like, that is my point here,

is that this team needs to go into Toronto and handle their business. We'll get to that in a minute, but real quick, I've got to touch on a couple injuries. Dubai Ramos gets sent down on a huge deal. Obviously, Ramos has been, excuse me, gets put on the DL, been off and on with the injuries. But we all thought Wilson Ramos was headed to the DL, as Andrew Knapp was in the clubhouse today

and reporters reporting Wilson Ramos to the DL likely. And it turns out Wilson Ramos is going to be okay. That is great news. The hand injury doesn't seem to be bad enough to put him on the DL. But we got kind of a surprise as Justin Boer to the DL with an oblique strain. I know that you're probably happy about this because you don't have to hear people asking for Boer to play more, but outside of your, you know, your, the take side of this, um, how big a loss is this for this team? I know that, you know, as a, someone who's played fantasy baseball for, for close to 20 years,

oblique injuries suck for players. They never come back when they're supposed to. If it's a month, it's six weeks. If it's a month, it's six weeks. If it's two weeks, it's four weeks. It's always a longer injury than it should be, which makes sense. I mean, you think about the obliques and swinging bats, and it's a tough injury for a baseball player. But how much is this injury a concern for you in terms of the roster and heading into this stretch run here?

Are you saying that I care more about facilitating my brand than the well-being of the roster and heading into this stretch run here. Are you saying that I care more about facilitating my brand than the well-being of the Phillies? No, I actually don't think that, but I think it's far closer than it should be. How about that? Yeah, it is. And I like Justin Boer a lot, but I don't think he should be playing over Carlos Santana.

But regardless of that point, yeah. And last night was surprising, too, because it was the ninth inning. I thought the move was one of the worst moves I've seen from Gabe Kapler this entire season. It was the top of the ninth. They had bases loaded. They had a lefty in to face Justin Boer. And Justin Boer doesn't hit lefties.

And that's just a fact. Justin Boer does not hit well against lefties. And I would have put in Scott Kingery. I know Scott Kingery has had a rough year, but if you've watched the last week, week and a half, he actually is putting solid swings on baseballs and looks like to kind of slowly be breaking out of this thing. If Wilson Ramos is healthy, I would like to see him getting at bat.

And then into the ninth inning, Justin Boer was all of a sudden out of the game, and Reese Hoskins was playing first base. Roman Quinn was in left, and Adubo was in center. And, like, I was saying to myself, why would you hit Justin Boer there if you're going to take him out of the game anyway? Like, it didn't make any sense from a baseball standpoint. And now this came out today where he had the oblique injury and yeah i mean that stinks because i think the optionality uh was really good and i think late in games like

if you're going to tell me we had to choose between justin boer or or andrew knapp like yeah i'll take justin boer every single time and whether or not that was that was putting the pressure on carlos santana i hope it was because heading into today's game before he had to face Max Scherzer, Santana was on a six-game hitting streak and looked like he was starting to square up some baseballs. And I hope maybe the addition of Justin Boer was like, all right, man, I got to start kicking it into gear a little bit here.

The worst part of the Boer injury is the bench stuff because it's late in games. It's nice to have Justin Bo Justin bore or not even late games. If it's a six inning and there's runners on first and second, instead of bringing a pitcher up, you can kind of bring up bore and he can hopefully turn a, turn a, a bunt situation into a beginning.

And, um, it would have been nice heading into September with all the bullpen pieces to have Justin bore out there. But like you said, a bleak injuries just suck, and we don't know when he's going to come back. Yeah, it's a real bummer.

It's just a terrible injury, as we discussed, in terms of whatever they say, Justin Boer, whatever they expect, just add a week at least to it. But I'm with you. It's a bummer of an injury from a roster construction standpoint, from the ability to mix and match. And most importantly, like you said, for whether it's the sixth, seventh, eighth inning, whatever it is, to have that legit bat come in that you can count on in those spots to give you good at bat,

to potentially knock one out of the park, it's frustrating. And I thought when given the opportunity to start, Bort played really well as well. Really, his entire tenure so far in Philadelphia has been just one good at bat after another for the most part. So it's a bummer of an injury. But like you said, I do think, I totally believe that Santana's recent surge is the result of Bort.

What else makes sense? I mean, the timing matches up and, and I, they're humans. You know, if you're getting pushed a little bit, you would expect that you're going to kind of try and produce a little more. And maybe that fire has, has worked for, uh, for Santana, by the way, uh, just to note, this won't happen too often, but the Philadelphia Phillies and the Philadelphia Eagles both played a game today and the Phillies scored more runs. Well, points, I guess.

Yeah, Phillies outscored them. How about that? Let's go with that. I mean, Jesus. But back to the Phillies, the team that really matters. The only team that matters. The only team that matters. And the team that will win more championships from now forward.

How about that? That's a weird take, but okay. Yeah, I'm just throwing it out there. I don't know. I mean, if I had to bet, though, I would bet you if you asked me who's going to win more championships over the next 10 years or 15 years, let's say, I think I'd bet on the Phillies. Okay, and I thank you for bringing that up for one second

because whether or not the Phillies make the playoffs or not, it would stink if they missed the playoffs because we've watched this entire season. It's been a really fun season. Having the Phillies back has been mostly good, except the takes are just ridiculous. The Eagles nature of Phillies takes has just almost driven me off a cliff. But this is the worst the Phillies are going to be for the next five to seven years. Like, this is the worst. Like, I understand they're not the youngest team in baseball anymore

because they brought in that Struble, Wilson Ramos, Justin Boyd, all these older guys. But before that, they were the youngest team in baseball, and they're still in first place again, at least. And heading into next year, you're going to add a Machado or Harper. And then the pitching staff is going to get better. Like about the Phillies is going to get better. And I just want to keep that in context for people who are just like, oh, the Phillies suck, Klintzak, Gabe Kapler. They don't know what they're doing. This is the worst this team is going to be for the next five to seven years. So buckle up. 100% that is a fact in my mind. It not even a a hope in my mind that's a fact

and they have the money they have the resources and they have young talent jack like you said so the future is bright and it's a great point as this season unfolds and as we you know whether they make the playoffs or not or even if they stumble out of it and don't even play meaningful games in the last week or two of the season, no matter what happens, A, this has already been a successful season, and B, the future is so incredibly bright. So I think it's really important to remember that. And we also, I don't know how we got this far into the show

without mentioning that the Phillies got their 69th win of the season today, Jack. It's very nice. It's a pretty nice number. But I think it's a great point. And I think looking forward, people should keep that in mind. And it's going to be a really exciting time for this Phillies team in Philadelphia moving forward. Jack, any other final thoughts on kind of the past week or so since we've talked, or last few days that we've talked before we kind of look ahead to what's coming up?

Well, I feel like I should probably talk about this because it's why I feel like what it's why people tune in. People tune in for the Jack Fritz pitching breakdowns. And I feel like I just got to talk about the starters for a second. Very, very full of yourself there. I like that. People are tuning in for your pitching takes. It's good. Yeah. No one cares about what you bring this by. They tune in for the pitching breakdowns. I think it's fair. Listen, I'm getting married this weekend. It's my weekend.

Anyway. It's true. It's true. Okay. So Zach Aflin the other night, his fastball location has not been good. And if Zach Aflin wants to reach a I completely trust you stage of his career he's got to have good fastball location because as we saw um I guess that was Wednesday night he he without fastball location he's just not a very good pitcher and it was weird though because you know he he had he had trey turner on

first in two different scenarios and although it's scenarios i don't know why it says scenarios i think i said scenarios because john barton says scenarios and he is so bad at pronouncing things that i just got it in my head that scenarios it's scenarios it's definitely scenarios i know unless you're unless you're british and john also says uh instead of routes he says roots which i've noticed and it really pisses me off anyway um there was two scenarios where he had trey turner on first base and instead of focusing on getting out bryce harper who was again the hottest hitter on the planet he he is throwing over three or four times or maybe even seven times

and i just i didn't understand the logic of that because because because zach eflin is a guy who who is a rhythm pitcher when he gets in a groove he's almost unhittable and he completely got himself out of the groove and i don't know whose idea that was i don't know if it was if it was zach eflin's idea or rick kranz's idea but i thought it was a terrible decision to make because listen trey turner's to steal a base regardless. How much do you focus on getting the guy that can tie the game on one swing? I just thought it was bad pitching.

His fastball location I thought was all over the place, and it was leaking over the middle of the plate, and guys were taking advantage of it. So not a great start for Zach Eflin. Starting to get a little bit concerned there. And it's just like, I know revisionist history is visionist history uh and listen the process the process with Cole Hamels is the process I mean Cole Hamels before the trade to the Cubs was a legitimately bad pitcher like he was a bad pitcher whether you whether you want to throw the road splits in my

face listen his last two roads road starts he allowed four earned. He was not a good pitcher before he left Texas. Tonight he throws a complete game, allows one run, and has like a.6 ERA since joining the Cubs. Like, it's very frustrating now that it feels like some of the Phillies pitching has hit its wall. Yeah, and look, the Cole thing, obviously, I think there are a lot of people who are really angry and frustrated about it, but I'm with you, Jack.

I mean, if you looked at the picture that Cole Hamels has been in Texas really for the last year, it wasn't a good one. And look, sometimes guys get into situations where it's competitive and games matter and that gets them going. And I think that's what happened with Hamels. And that's not something you can predict. That's not something you can know. As we've seen Hamels be an amazing pitcher in big games and we've also seen him be a terrible pitcher in big games so yeah I think it's a really fair point and it's certainly been frustrating hearing the Cubs takes all right again Velasquez with with four innings just a brutal

one I mean that was his third straight start with that one, I mean, it's hard to blame him for this one, though. I mean, an hour and a half rain delay or whatever it was, I mean, it's like, I was surprised he let him go back out there, to be honest, in that spot, because usually, you know, your arm, you know, if you pitch for three innings or whatever it was, your arm cools down and all that, and you got to get it back up and go back out there.

You're a pitcher. You know how tough that is. I have trouble getting upset about that. I think that was as much the rain delay as anything. Yeah, he was mostly fine. The one thing I noticed in that game, though, and this is the old pitcher in me, but Victor Arano comes in. Yes, real quick, I saw you tweet this, and I thought this was a great point, Jack. Yeah, so Victor Rano comes in with bases loaded and gets out of it with one out. And it's just how pitching works sometimes where you go into a big moment, you get out of it, and going back out there and not being able to reach that emotional high that you were just on

and that emotional energy and focus that you had. It's just kind of pitching. It's kind of how pitching has always worked. I know it worked for me. I know I'm like a Division II pitcher. But it's kind of just the philosophy of the pitcher. When you get out of a big moment like that, it's hard to replicate the kind of intensity that you need to get out of that.

And I wouldn't have put Arano out there again, but that's just me. Yeah. It's human nature. And we've talked about that a lot. And I know I say it a lot, but I do think that in a, in a general sense, I think people don't step back enough and say, Oh yeah, these are human beings playing these sports and they're not robots or whatever, uh, who act the way you expect them to act. So I think that act. So I think it's a really fair point on psychology of a pitcher and that type of spot. All right, looking ahead, big series against Toronto.

You never thought you'd be saying huge series against the Blue Jays, but it is, Jack. Must win? Must win. Yeah, I think you need to win the series for sure. I think you have to win two of three. And to be honest, I really need them to win all three. And again, I'll have to win two of three. And to be honest, I, I, I really need them to win all three. I, and again, I'll be okay with two or three, but I think you have to win this series.

Yeah. Yeah. I mean, Toronto's not very good. And the Braves are playing the Marlins too. Let's not forget that. Wait, hold on. That's not possible. This, this is illegal, right? Like they, the Braves have only played the Marlins for this last month. I know. It's been so brutal. I don't think they've played anyone else. That can't be legal. I know. It's unbelievable. Maybe a Marlin will throw out Acuna again and it'll set it off.

Yeah, I mean, and Toronto started. Like, me and you both follow baseball a lot. And I've never heard of the guy they're starting tomorrow. Me either. Literally never heard of him. Marco Estrada on Saturday, like, he's fine, but for the love of God. He stinks. I think Marco Estrada's Sunday.

I think it's Aaron Sanchez on Saturday. Well, on my app it says. And, well, Sunday on my app it has Gaviglio. Sam Gaviglio. Yeah, they have him starting. Joe Giglio starting on Sunday. I think Joe Giglio is a better pitcher than Sam Giglio. Again, like not a good starting staff.

I need a big weekend from Justin Smoak for my fantasy team. But other than him, just not a great offense. So, yeah, it's a big weekend. Take advantage of this team and take care of business. And hopefully, like we've said, the NOLA start jolts this team a little bit. care of business and hopefully like we've said the the nola start jolts this team a little bit yeah i i'm with you i think it has to and uh look this team's bad this blue jays team they're 11 games under 500 but i think they're a worse team than that um they're still kind of living off a decent enough start um guys they're this this is uh

one of those teams that most phillies are going to watch this game and say, who the hell is Teoscar Hernandez? Or, you know, whatever. There's a lot of names in this lineup that you guys aren't going to know. But that's the reason Phillies have to take advantage of them, and they have to beat a bad team. More importantly than all that, Jack Fritz is getting married this weekend. Fritz, how you feel?

Give us the quick one minute. How you feeling about your last days as a bachelor well i mean i haven't really been a bachelor for like nine years so yeah true but you know what i mean technically technically sure uh listen i'm honestly excited to get it over with i think the wedding's gonna be fun i'm gonna i'm very much looking forward to it but like the little stuff i'm excited to get over with the like I don't know it's just like some of the stuff is just so pointless to me I'm like are you kidding me

and frankly I haven't really planned that much it's been mostly Jill who's killing it but I just like it's caused some unneeded stress that I don't want to deal with I'm not a big stress guy so I'm looking forward to the day. I'm not a big stress guy. I'm looking forward to the day. I think it's going to be

great. I have some Phillies related stuff in my vows. It's very on brand for me. I don't take anything seriously, so I think I should take my vows semi-seriously. But yeah, no. I'm excited for it. It's going to be a lot of fun.

I'm excited to get away from work for the good week and a half. Go to Costa Rica, uh, you know, hang out. It's going to be great. It's gonna be great. And,

uh, and I'll come back with some takes. Yeah. Fritzy is on vacation. I'm sure he'll find a way to get his takes in while he's on vacation, but, Oh yeah. I mean,

listen, I mean, listen, I'm not even going to be a log on Twitter. Well well i probably will be there there's probably wi-fi but i'm gonna get a call from fritz in costa rica with his telling you hey hey here's my twitter password you gotta put this out there for me this has to get out there i have as jack told me before the show he's got to document his takes that that's how that's how important this is yeah well listen i'm going to be in costa rica i'm going to be thick yeah i just don't know james like i know it's my honeymoon i know i'm but like but the phillies are in a don't stop stop it stop it i know where you're

going we've talked okay okay high hopes listeners you wonderful beautiful people you um i need you to tweet at jack fritz two things one wish him congratulations on getting married because that's really cool and jill is a sweetheart of a girl and i'm very excited for him but also tweeted him and tell him to not watch the phillies on his honeymoon especially because he'll be in costa rica and to watch the phillies he's gonna have to jump through hoops while he's on his honeymoon with his new wife for Jill. Do this for Jill. Please tell Jack. Congratulations. But take a week off from the Phillies, bud.

They are in a pennant race. And I feel like I'm willing them to victories. I don't know. We'll see. I will try not to watch the phillies but i also think about them 95 of my years so good luck i'm sure i'm sure jill's happy to hear does she get the other five percent at least or is she like sure three percent and then there's two here one here two percent is two percent as foals takes well those will be firing out tonight, too.

So it's going to be a big week for Jack Fritz. Everyone, again, seriously, though, if you like Jack Fritz like I do, I should give him congratulations. He's getting married. Our little guy's getting married, and we're very excited about it. So, Fritzy, any final thoughts before we get out of here? I think you've had enough thoughts. I don't even think you need a final thought for this one.

No, I got a final thought. You always do. I just want to point out that in his last 11 games, Cornelius Randolph. Yes! 342 average with a 405 OBP

and two homers in AA. That is very interesting. Monitoring it closely. Him, Moniak, Haseley. Are the Phillies too good? Maybe. Wouldn't that be something if Moniak and Randolph guys who, and I had written off Moniak. He's so young in the first pick and all that.

But, like, I think many people written off Randolph, still young as well, or young-ish. But wouldn't it be something if they got something out of those two guys yeah they can get something on mike trout trade they're planning their way right into the mike trout trade i got nothing else that's a perfect final thought right there like bring mike trout to do it for jack's wedding as a wedding present i mean you're talking about the phillies and your vows so all right uh that's gonna do it for uh this i hopes john marks and i will be back as uh as jack will be on his honeymoon come to you on sunday and the Phillies in your vows. So, all right. That's going to do it for this, I hope. John Marks and I

will be back as Jack will be on his honeymoon coming to you on Sunday and maybe a little audio from the wedding. We're going to try and make that happen too.

We'll see. Either way, shout out to Jack Fritz. Get married. We love him. Enjoy Costa Rica, buddy. And again, everyone, shout out some congratulations.

And we'll talk to you on Sunday. Until then, go Phillies. 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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