High Hopes: A Phillies Podcast - The High Hopes Phillies Podcast: Bryce Harper is NOT Going to the Padres

Episode Date: January 31, 2019

James Seltzer and Jack Fritz are here to calm you down about the Bryce Harper meeting with the Padres report. The motto of today's podcast is "R-E-L-A-X." The guys calm you down, give you multiple Boras takes and tell you how you can get a High Hopes tee shirt! They're in!  Rate, subscribe and review! 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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Contact a licensed TD Insurance advisor to learn more. This is the High Hopes Podcast. It's a bunch of baseball nerds. Well, without the computers. Talking about the Philadelphia Phillies on radio.com and Sports Radio 94 WIP. Yo, it is

another edition of the High Hopes Podcast. I'm James Seltzer. With me as always is my guy, Jackie Fritz. Jack, I'm going to start off by just letting you know I want to get it out there. It hasn't been out there Podcast. I'm James Seltzer. With me as always, my guy, Jackie Fritz. Jack, I'm going to start off by just letting you know I want to get it out there. It hasn't been out there much. I'm meeting with the Padres today.

Wow. Yeah, I just want to put it out there. Boris is also using you. Let everyone know that, yeah, I'm meeting with the Padres today. It has been a... It's been a really long week. I've got to be honest with you.

It's been the worst. I'm getting real sick of all this, Jack. Not going to lie to you, buddy. Getting real sick of this. And I thought Not going to lie to you, buddy. Getting real sick of this. And I thought it was all coming to a head this week. There's a lot of momentum building towards it being like, this is the week. And then today happens. And it's not the week.

And then today happens and it seems like it's all slowing down again into this big death of misery. I mean, friend of the show, we love you, Bob. Bob Nightingale saying it could stretch into March. No, Bobby. No. I will be. It's not going to send. I said on the last episode, I hopes that I believed it would happen after the Super Bowl.

I'm going to stick with that prediction. I still think it makes a lot of sense. But man, the way that is playing out. All right. Let's start with the rumors today. Oh, yeah. First and foremost, we mentioned this last time. Apologies to Carl Weathers.

Worst thing we've ever done in our lives. I feel so bad about that. It was bad. Also from last show, apologies to Greg Maddox and others. And Max Scherzer and King Felix. So we got a lot of apologies going around. They all listen to the podcast. I mean, I consider myself a pitching guy.

Yeah, it's a bad job. It was bad. It was bad it's bad all around we do like baseball like we are baseball fans and the fact that we missed that was a bad indictment it was in the moment we're thinking right sometimes it just doesn't pop up you put me on the spot i put you on the spot that was on me so uh it was a bad look all around uh hope you still listen to the podcast yeah don't hate us now back to what we're talking about. The freaking Padres, Jack. The mystery team is the Padres. Can you think of a place less likely for Bryce Harper to end up than Sandy freaking Eggo? What is happening right now?

I'm so tired. Scott. Boris. Enough. Listen, Scott. You POS. Enough, man. Stop.

I know how great you are. You're the best who ever did this. I know how great you are you're the best who ever did this I'm starting to really hate you bro well everyone hates him but here's my

thing is that when I saw the Padres thing come out I honestly James I am not lying to you I started laughing I did too

my first reaction was like an audible snort was like ha like that kind of thing and as I started laughing and everyone started commencing

this freak out like he's actually a sign sign with the Padres, I could not help but think of what Matt Klintak's reaction was. Because in my mind, Matt Klintak kicked his feet up, lit a cigar, and said, that's adorable, Scott. Like, that is adorable. Bryce Harper is not signing. The San Diego Padres cannot afford him.

They signed Eric Cosmo last year. They're not going to have 30% of their payroll being cooped up in two players. I understand that Luis Urias, Fernando Tatis Jr., and the kids are coming, and Paddocks or whatever his name is. I understand they have a lot of young talent. Best farm system in baseball. Yeah, and them and the White Sox. Also, side tangent, they traded Fernando Tatis Jr. for James Shields.

Oh, it's so bad. An epically all-time bad trade. Imagine if they had Fernando Tatis Jr., Eloy Jimenez. In Chicago? Oh my God, are you kidding me? They have two of the top three prospects in baseball. To go along with Yon Mankata and Michael Kopech. Good job by the White Sox.

Rick Hahn's a good GM. I'm just saying that everyone's freaking out about the Padres, and I just don't understand why. Relax. Please. This is the most obvious. Here's how I envision this, The Phillies have their money. They have their offer.

They haven't budged from it because they haven't felt the need to budge from it. All that today is. Who benefits the most from that getting out? It's Boris. Obviously. Everyone's reporting this all today. It is a clear sign like, hey, I need to drive up some kind of other interest or else I'm going to take Bryce Harper to Philly with less money.

Like, that is what is happening. And Klintak, to his credit, is staring down the belly of the beast because I don't think he's going to flinch unless there's a legitimate offer on the table. Unless he has to, right? That's what it comes down to. And in his mind, he's reading through the BS and he's saying, I don't buy it.

And he should. That's one of the things, the fears we talked about was the Phillies bidding against themselves in this offseason they seem to be doing a really good job of waiting this out just like they did last year with obviously didn't turn out to be a great signing but waited out the Jake Arrieta signing we've seen the Phillies attempt to do this they're looking for value here's my question Jack because it's been the kind of the number one reaction to today is, they waited too long.

They blew it. They're going to get caught. Someone's going to come in and get him. Talk to the people, Jack. Listen, listen. Even if they, even if you think that they waited too long, like, I want you to listen to this part very carefully. The Phillies came into this offseason saying they're going to spend stupid

money or whatever. They have the money. They've been planning for this for years. No matter what team goes out there and says, hey, here's a $300 million offer, whatever. Scott Boris and Dan Lozano are not going to check back in the Phillies before accepting whatever

offer. So if they come back and say, hey, we got $300 million from the Padres, which is not going to check back in the Phillies before accepting whatever offer. Correct. So if they come back and say, hey, we got 300 from the Padres, which is not going to happen. Middleton and Klintak and McPhail can all come together and say, cool, here's 330. If they have to do it, they're good. So no matter what, the Phillies ultimately have a trump card. And I just want to say this, that at this point,

this is now a middleton show i think if it comes down to money like you can't get cheap john like if you want to really be jack middleton you better you better spend the money if you have to because clint x doing his best job negotiating but if it comes back down to hey this is their offer they're gonna take it unless we top it then jack middleton has to show up. Jack! I'm just saying that stop. Like, he is no matter what offer comes out, if you hear about an offer, whatever, Dan Lozano

and Scott Boras are going to check back in with the Phillies. That's what's going to happen. Look, they have a fiduciary responsibility to their client to do so. Like, they owe it to Manny Machado and Bryce Harper to get them the biggest deal that they can. It wouldn't make any sense to be like, oh, well, we got a better deal.

See ya. Sorry, Phillies. Like, of course you're going to go back to the Phillies. The Phillies aren't out of this because other teams are getting involved. And again, we don't really know if any teams evolve. Look, very easily, Scott Borska said to the Padres, hey, come have a meeting with us. We know you're not going to be able to afford Harper, but I'll help you out down the road. Get my back.

That stuff happens all the time. There are so many things like this. And look, the Padres should be having a meeting. Do your due diligence. Find out what the price is and say, maybe we can afford that. And then the Phillies can top it. This is all, I am done, Jack. I am so done.

I'm not listening to anything. I'm not believing anything else I hear. I think Bryce Harper will be at Philly. I think it's going to happen at some point. Until that point happens, I'm done. And here's my – I got a Scott Boras take for you. I'm just glad you have a take. Yeah.

Hey, well, you know, sometimes you got to bring it. Well, I mean, one take is that Scott Boras is the greatest ever doer, but that's not really a take because everyone knows it. I believe that Scott Boris was the reason for those leaks this week. The gambling site. All that type of stuff. Someone leaking to something in Vegas to change the World Series odds. All that type of stuff.

I think that came directly from Scott Boris because Scott Boris is trying to use us against the Phillies. He is trying to make Phillies fans so angry, so ready for this, that there is so much pressure on this organization from the fans that they're like, we got to do this now. I believe that to my core. It's a great take.

It's a great take. And I don't know if maybe they did, but me and Joe were talking about this last night. Usually I don't want the teams in this town to listen to the fans. But in this case, it's so overwhelming. Listen, if we get Manny Machado, I think we'll be happy. But I think it'll be a tad disappointing. Oh, absolutely.

At this point, it absolutely will be a tad disappointing. And I just think, for the first time ever, is listen to the people. Listen to the fans. Harper is our guy. We want that guy to be in Citizens Bank Park. Home runs sell, sex sells, and that's what Bryce Harper is. He's the face of baseball, too. Mike Trout's the best player. Bryce Harper is the most recognizable

player in the sport. For some reason, people can't get that through their school. I said that on the show the other night. It's very different things. We can all agree. Mike Trout's the best player in baseball. We know that. He's the best player in a generation. I mean, Derek Jeter was the face of baseball. He's not in the first battle hall of fame. That's a take right there. Yeah, that's a point, though.

It's okay to say. Bryce Harper is more famous. If you go up to a thousand people, a million people, whatever, and show them a picture of each guy, more people are going to know Bryce Harper. It's just what it is. Yeah, so, like, listen. The whole Padres thing today, from this point. Padres.

We're talking about the San Diego Padres. They couldn't even keep their football team in that city. From this point... The Padres. We're talking about the San Diego Padres. They couldn't even keep their football team in that city. There are certain teams in all sports that will never win a championship. The Padres are one of those teams for me. Can you imagine Bryce Harper and Padres Brown? It's just not going to happen. It's not going to happen.

They are a small market team that has a great farm system. They're not going to commit. The Rangers, when they brought in A-Rod, 25% of the payroll was A-Rod. And they couldn't afford anything else. It was a disaster. And A-Rod played great. And it was a disaster. Yeah, so just from the High Hopes podcast to you,

just know this is all posturing BS from Scott Boris because no one else is really in the Bryce Harper sweepstakes. No one else is in the Bryce Harper sweepstakes besides the Phillies. It is only the Phillies. The Nationals, no. And I swear to God, I am going to have a personal retweet Armageddon when they sign Bryce Harper for every a-hole that tweets me every freaking day about how he's going back to the Nationals.

Like, I hope everyone in my timeline unfollows me because there's going to be a fury of just tweets back at me saying he's going back to the Nationals. They're not getting any one of these guys. Bryce Harper is going to be a Philly. Everything that's happening right now is BS. I understand that a lot of people in this town, this is their first offseason, they've really been paying attention

for like seven years. The game has changed. This is a classic Boris. Relax. He's going to be a Philly. That's the official high hopes position. It is a staunch position. We feel incredibly strongly. We've been saying it for months now,

and nothing has made us waver. In fact, everything we've heard, including this Padres thing today, has just made me feel even more confident that Bryce Harper is going to be a Philly. I enjoyed, by the way, the Bryce Harper liking the Reese Hoskins Instagram post in like a minute. He literally was not even up for it. It was under a minute. Reese Hoskins posts something along the lines of like,

it's going to be excited to get to spring training. What could happen? Or something like a cloud bubble. And Bryce Harper liked it immediately. And look, here's the thing. They're getting Bryce Harper. I just, I'm so, and this narrative I mentioned before is driving me crazy. They waited too long.

Right. Look, this is baseball now. It sucks. I hate this whole thing, but this is how it works. J.D. Martinez, a Scott Boris client, the top free agent on the market last year, signed on February 26th. February 26th.

I mean, yeah, Arrieta was into March. Arrieta was into March. So I- And he was the, you know, him and Darvish, the best pitchers on the market. Well, only one GM. Who would have thought that Arrieta would actually he was Him and Darvish The best pitchers on the market Well Only one GM Who would have thought That Arieta would actually

Be even better than Darvish Darvish is that bad I'm talking about How bad we knew Arieta was But anyway So yeah So if any of Listen if you

As a High Hopes listener You understand this right Yeah we have That's why you listen Into this podcast And if If you got a friend out there That is freaking out

Just tell them to listen To the first 12 minutes Of this podcast I like that yeah Because listen to the first 12 minutes of this podcast. I like that. Yeah. Because listen, this is what we need. This is a big, deep breath. I feel like the High Hopes podcast today is a big ass deep breath.

Yeah. We're the Aaron Rodgers of podcasts right now. We literally- What? Relax. It's going to be 50 minutes of relax. Yes. I got excited.

I thought he was going to sign this week. We all did. There was a lot of smoke. There was a lot of I got excited. I thought he was going to sign this week. Like there was a lot of smoke. There was a lot of good things. And I buy into this, like generally agent smoke or, you know, like a Bob Nightingale tweets or this or that. Like I buy into the Vegas smoke usually like that stuff is real to me when they change odds, when they change, like that's the type of stuff that usually gets me and it doesn't always end up being true, obviously. Yeah. Yeah. But that's the type of stuff that usually gets me and it doesn't always end up being true, obviously.

But that's the type of stuff that I'm more inclined to believe in because Vegas usually knows. Right. So, listen, it was Roller Coaster Week and the official trailer for the show is being released on Monday. So I wonder if... What did I say? After the Super Bowl? I'm sticking to it.

Yeah, well, it's probably going to be after the Super Bowl. But, listen, whether it's... And Jeff Paston was just on SportsCenter before I left, and he was saying that a lot of people in the industry think it's going to happen within the next two weeks, so it seems like it's really heating up. Because both sides are starting to realize how ridiculous this is, that it's dragged into spring training. These guys are 26-year-old Hall of Famers, and they should be signed by now.

It's just outrageous. I mean, just the fact that his market is quote-unquote, and we all know it's just the Phillies, but that Bryce Harper's market is the Nationals, the Phillies, the White Sox, and the Padres is a disgrace for baseball, but that's a whole separate issue. When was the last time the White Sox have been mentioned in any Harper

thing? Yeah, nothing to do with it. They're just being thrown in because Scott's like, get as many in there as you can. Okay, and here's another thing with when the Harper thing comes about. I don't know about you but i feel like it's gonna absolutely come out of nowhere like all of a sudden i don't think there's gonna be like a lot of smoke building up to it i think it's just randomly one of the guys says hey it's like the mlb the show tweets hey and then it's over i'm over the mlb the show thing i don't think anything i don't think they have anything to do with anything just straight trolling the entire time they're trolling everyone

i'm out on MLB The Show. I hate them. Alright, if it turns out that they were straight trolling, no Phillies fan is allowed to buy MLB The Show. Unless he signs here. Even then, I guess you do it to support Bryce, but eh, a little mad at the game if they're trolling. But I guess if he signs here, then

we can't assume that they didn't know and then it's okay. You're right. So I guess we can't troll because he's going to sign here, so I guess never mind. I'm just saying that I have this feeling that it comes out of nowhere. It's a Bob Nightingale tweet when no one's expecting him. It's like, hey, he's coming to Philly. Right. And this is not to disparage any of the beat writers.

It's just that I don't think anyone really knows anything. Matt Gelb was on with us the other night on The Evening Show, and he was like, I've been trying for months. I have no idea where they want to go with this. He has no idea. And Matt Gelb's a really good Phillies reporter. Even Salisbury, who's been on this Machado thing this whole time,

he is starting to hedge because he doesn't know. Zalecki doesn't know. And the Phillies, to their credit, have been freaking ridiculous. Locked down. It's really impressive, actually. Isn't it insane? It's insane in this day and age when it feels like everything leaks.

It's been crazy. I mean, it was like... We haven't heard any... The fact that at this point we've not heard a single, even any sort of report about what the Phillies offer is, is incredible at this point. We've had no... The only offer we've heard

is the original Nationals $300 million offer, which Nightingale came on here and said wasn't even $300 million with deferred payments, all that type of stuff. We've not heard a single Bryce Harper number since then, which is crazy, which also makes you think

maybe the numbers aren't as high as you expect, but that's another way. Yeah, I mean, Howard Askin's been saying he doesn't think he's going to get $300 million. Howard also said he thinks they're going to get Machado and not Harper. Yeah, because no one knows anything. Nobody knows.

But my main point in all of this is that McCutcheon's son came out of nowhere. We haven't heard the Phillies connected with him. Great point. And then Robertson was like, hey, they're interested in him. And then five minutes later, it was like, oh, he's already passed his physical. It was really funny. Here's a picture of his family in front of the Philly sign. It was really funny because my brother Peter texted me the night before that happened and said why aren't the Phillies in on

David Robertson? I love that guy and no one's talking about him. I was like yeah great point and then the next day they signed David Robertson. I was like way to go Pete good call but nobody had it. He was just like why are we not hearing the Phillies attached to him? Because we weren't. And then the next day he signs with them. Right. So I think, honestly, I think it's better to read tea leaves than to trust anyone right now. And that's what we're doing.

That's basically what you and I have been doing is we've only been looking at what makes sense. And for us, Harper has always made sense. So also, a little Ryan Howard thing just came out. And I guess he talked to tmz and he said he would prefer harper over machado and that he said that he tells us that he actually has a great relationship with bryce on a personal level what and he said howard says he's talked with bryce before and has mentioned to him message him during this free agency free agency period remains the same bryce man dear thing your thing. You know what it is.

What? Howard. Ryan Howard's the closer? When did this happen? I thought Zach Ertz was the closer. Shout out to Zach Ertz. But we all talked Worth up, right? We're all like Jason Worth.

You're there with him. Tell him your buddy's with him. We didn't know Ryan Howard was tight with Bryce and telling him the business. The big piece, baby. I mean, think about it. Is there anyone better to say, hey, bro, you want to be a left-handed power in that stadium? Yeah. There isn't.

There isn't a better person. Hey, bro, I want an MVP in that stadium. Left-handed power is due pretty well there. Also, a fun fact about the Ryan Howard MVP. That happened in his age 26 season. It did. Which will also be Bryce Harver's first. That's a very good point.

And Bryce Harver's- He had 58 home runs that season, didn't he? And Bryce Harver's been in the league since, what, he 19 so yeah uh listen if anyone's like well i don't know if bryce harris is actually good um let's just relax and say this guy's only 26 years old oh god and he's already hit like more home runs than hank aaron like all these williams like all these big guys that that's another narrative that has been driving me crazy do we really want to pay this guy this much money? He hit.243 last year. Go away. Go away.

There is nothing worse than that. It is the worst take out there. It is the worst take that is out there. Is Bryce Harper good enough? Is the worst take out there? He is a generational player. Again, like we talked about, to at 22 put up an 11- ops season is is literally unheard of

because no one's ever done it in the history of the sport uh just to to this whole narrative that bryce harper isn't good enough for that he's got a low batting average people love to quote that he batted under 250 two of the last three years he also batted over 320 or 319 two of the last four years so go back another year he bet at 333 and he bet at 319 two of the last four years. So go back another year. He batted 333, and he batted 319 two of the last four years. Like, what are we doing here? We're picking and choosing what we want to choose. And also hurt last year or a couple years ago, whatever,

that factored in as well. It's just a lazy, silly narrative. So let me just put this stat out there. If he took out, and this is courtesy of Blake Finney, if he took out Bryce this is courtesy of uh blake finney if he took out bryce harper's mvp season which again was one of the five best offensive seasons in the last 30 years yes at 22 his career numbers are 269 373 uh 142 homers 860 ops 127 ops plus uh that's during his career without the mvp season uh manny machado years, 283, 337, 168 homers, 826 OBS, 122 OBS plus.

Anthony Rendon during his entire career, 285, 361, 102 home runs. So Harper without his MVP season is still a better player than those guys, or a better hitter at least. A better pure offensive player. Like without, even without. Look, 337 to 373 is an on-base percentage is a significant gap. Yeah, I mean, his on-base skills are ridiculous. And couple the fact that he has, like, two 300-plus hitting seasons.

And again, like you talked about, going to the perfect park for his skill set. Yep. Everyone relax. Relax. And again, look, whatever number they get him at it seems and this is This is conjecture here but at the way it's Playing out it seems like whatever they Sign him to will be a discount will

Be up of a good value and That's why that's why I think that Boris is getting More teams involved I think so too he doesn't have the number He wants I think that's very clear I think the Phillies have exactly they haven't they haven't Had to budge from whatever offer they Made I know some people think they haven't made an offer. Like, that doesn't really matter.

Yeah, if nothing else, they've given parameters. They've said, hey, this is the range. They might not have given him a formal offer, sign this sheet and we're good type of thing, but they have let Scott Boris know where they're at. And it's Scott Boris' job to try and get them higher. And that's what we're seeing right now. Absolutely what they're at. And it's Scott Boris's job to try and get them higher. And that's what we're seeing right now. Absolutely what we're seeing. Again, the San Diego Padres.

Really? I don't know. It's the San Diego Padres. It's the definition of a meaningless baseball team. And I feel like the Nationals are only in there to kind of maybe scare the Phillies. The Nationals are in there because he played there for his entire career. That's it. That's the reason they're in there. They're not really in there to kind of maybe scare the Phillies. The Nationals are in there because he played there for his entire career. That's it. That's the reason they're in there. They're not really in there. They're in there because

that's the team he played for, so they're in there. Now, let me tell you the single most important part. The single most important reason why Bryce Harper has to sign here. Are you ready for it? I've been ready. His career number is off of Nick Pavetta. 333 batting average.

538 OVP. 1,100 OPS. Yikes. Two home runs. And I'm just saying that every Bryce Harper highlight I've watched, which is a lot of them, there's both Pavetta just absolute launches are on there, and I need that to stop, okay? How about this?

We're talking about a Pavetta breakout now. Desperately, we need it. Maybe bringing Bryce here actually is the reason you get the Pavetta breakout because he doesn't have to face him. Right. I mean, Bryce Harper owns Nick Pavetta. Because Nick Pavetta struggles against lefties, and we don't like to talk about his deficiencies,

but that is a major deficiency of Nick Pavetta. I'm just saying, the single most important part of Bryce Harper signing here is not the home runs, the MVPs, the 40 home run seasons. Nah. It's the lead up to a Nick Pavetta breakout season. On brand, Jack Fritz. I had to do it. On brand.

I had to do it. All right. So, any more relaxed type stuff from you? Because I'm good on the relaxed at the moment. So, I have a question for you. Yes. So, I had this thought this week, and I think it's a good take. Boris needs Machado to sign first.

Because that way he can just put all the pressure on the Phillies. Oh, I think, look, if Scott Boris had his way, I think he would be ecstatic if Manny Machado signed with the Padres or the White Sox or something now, for sure. I think Boris... The reason I don't think it's going to happen is because I think that Manny is also waiting on the – like, Manny is the Phillies' backup plan, and they know that they can get the most money out.

Like, same thing for Manny. If you flip it around either way, right? Like, that if another team signs Harper, then all of a sudden the Phillies become what Manny would go to. Probably. So, I don't know. I know what you're saying. I think it's – look, I think both guys want the other side first.

Yeah, I just, I think Boris, I think Boris is just dying. I'm worried that he's going to hold out as long as it takes for Machado to sign first. I'm worried about all of it because I'm so tired of this. Like, I, another week of these takes that are coming out. The meltdowns? Another week of meltdowns, I don't know if I can take it. I mean, I guess I almost want to just tell people, like, don't

look at anything. Don't find out. Just don't read Bob Nightingale's Twitter. Don't read John Heyman's Twitter. Just log off. That's the phrase. Log off. I mean, if you want to tweet your freakouts to me, I'll try to respond. It's just like every single day I'm getting meltdown tweets and I feel like I have to i feel like i have to be the suicide also

another question for you yes do you think all right who would who would the phillies have to sign first in your mind to make both realistic you know what i mean i do know what you mean like i here's here's what i. I honestly don't think it matters. You don't think they're signing both regardless? No, not even that. I just think that it's ultimately going to come down to dollars and cents the Phillies are willing to spend. We don't know if they want both.

First of all, if they want both, but I think it'll come down to a situation where, let's say Harper signs first, it's Machado not getting what he wants from other teams, and the Phillies saying, all right, we'll take you for that. I think that's the way it would happen. So you think that Harper would have to sign first?

And I think it could see both ways. But I think it's more likely if Harper signs first. I guess is the best way to say it. Okay. Because I was thinking about this as well. Maybe if they sign Machado, then they're like, well, Harper's really been our guy this whole time. Let's all go out and just get both these guys. I'm wondering if...

Well, I think it is interesting because it doesn't seem like... I don't think there's any other team going to where Harper wants to be. But there also might not be any other team going to where Machado wants to be. That's the issue. Although I do think if they get Harper, if they get Harper, I think that they

trade Franco and sign Moose. I do too. I don't, again, I think they want Bryce Harper. That's the feel I get. I think they want Bryce Harper and Machado will go somewhere else. I think Machado could go to the Padres. That's the type of thing, again, I think they want Bryce Harper. That's the feel I get. I think they want Bryce Harper and Machado will go somewhere else. I think Machado could go to the Padres. That's the type of thing, like, if it's done after, where it's a little less money, you're not giving $300 million, maybe you're going $200 million.

I think Machado's going to earn substantially less than Bryce Harper is my big takeaway. If I'm Manny Machado, if I'm Manny Machado, I'm signing a one-year deal, honestly. And rebuild your value. And hey, hustle every play. Do all that type of stuff. That's what you need to do.

You being a dumbass and saying that I'm not Johnny Hustle or whatever, that tanks your value this off. It was unbelievably stupid. I mean, I know we talked out here, and when it happened, it was part of the reason i said i wasn't down on machado because of the actual comment itself that like whether he hustles or not or whatever again i think that's overblown i'm down because he's such a freaky moron that he would say like how dumb are you how dumb are you you're about to be a free agent looking for one of the biggest contracts of all time and you're like ah hustling's not my thing really no no how did those words leave your mouth you should be lying you should be doing whatever you have to do it's just crazy to me

yeah crazy so if i'm him man just just take a one-year deal wherever you can get it and like just rebuild your value and and maybe it's here he signs a one-year deal like that'd be crazy i was actually thinking about i didn't think about a one-year deal. That'd be crazy. I was actually thinking about, I didn't think about a one-year deal, but I was thinking about a four-year deal. What if you just gave him four years 180 and just say, screw it. We're not going to need it for a few years.

And I thought about it in this way, in that it would allow, the only way both agents can come out of this offseason as winners is one gets the biggest contract of all time the other gets the highest aav of all time it's the only other way you could spin it right and again it's not as big a win you want that sticker price you want 330 or whatever machado's not getting at this point i think it's pretty clear so like why not why not give lozano something and say hey it's a four-year deal but this is the most a player has ever made

in a single season in history major league baseball or something like that like as a another way to appeal to their camp to give them something where they can feel like they did their job you know what i mean and if you're boris you should definitely take it as a win that he's not going to sign for the most money absolutely and just sign as soon as possible come on scott like i'm just so frustrated because like i feel like everyone in baseball knows he's going to be a Philly. Yep. And has for months, right? Let's go back.

Let's go back to the very beginning of the offseason. Remember when we thought he was going to sign at the winter meetings? Of course we did. That was adorable. It was super cute. It was the cutest moment of the offseason. Bob Nightingale, two plus months ago or whatever, says he's going to the Phillies bank on it. 90% of baseball believes it.

You and I had a pod we called the worst kept secret in baseball. And now here we are months later feeling the same way. It's just nothing has changed. It's been three months of blue balls. It is the all time blue balls. It's the worst. It is. It is the worst.

It has really sucked a lot of the fun out of it. We talked about this a lot. And look, ultimately, whenever he signs, Phillies fans will be ecstatic to have him. And it will go by the wayside. I'm sure there'll be some fans. No one's going to remember he signed on March 1st or whatever. People will get over it. Or the vast, vast, vast majority of people will get past it and over it.

Before you go on, there is no way this is lasting until March. I agree with that. For as much as I think the show stuff is BS, they do have copies to sell. It comes out March 26th. They have to do something. They have to send them around the world. I mean... Yeah, so it's not going to last until March.

There's no way. There's just no way that's going to happen. It's going to be within the next two weeks, I would think. I agree. Like I said, I'm sticking by my post-Super Bowl thing that week after next week I guess that is which but again it's it's the it really has this is something where we as Phillies fans went into this offseason saying this is going to be the most exciting offseason of our lifetimes and it really has sucked the joy out of it and listen it's bad for baseball we have for baseball we will be very excited when he signs it's just our minds but it's

going to feel like an exhale moment rather than pure jubilation. Jack, that's a really perfect way to say it. It's going to be like, thank God, finally. It's going to be a finally instead of a, yeah! You know, instead of that type of, like, exciting reaction. You're right. And I think that's a problem. Yeah, it stinks.

It's unfortunate. But, you know, Jeff Fasten also said yesterday, he was like, an agent, or whatever, put it to me this way, free agency doesn't really start until January 15th. Maybe we just have to... We have to do our thing. Why don't they do it? I agree with you, but that's what they should do. What baseball needs to do is say, hey, winter

meetings, free agency starts then. And then it's a real thing. And then you go. And who knows how it changes from there. Maybe because it starts at winter meetings, there's more action. Who knows? But at least there you're waiting three months or two months or a month for a guy to sign. Granted, we'd be talking about it from the end of October until now anyway,

but we would really only be waiting a month. We'd be like, oh, it's only been a month. We'll get him. It's going to work out. It would just change the way people look at the issue. And we could actually plan for free agency stuff rather than just be upon us. And be like, when could this happen?

Maybe the winter meetings. Oh, no, assholes. It's not going to be the winter meetings. Actually, no move is ever going to happen in the winter meetings ever again. God. Which is crazy because Jason Ward did sign the winter meetings that long ago,

that contract with the Nationals. I remember vividly I was at those frigging winter meetings and it was such a big deal. Everyone's like, worth $122 million. Can you believe it? Whatever. Yeah. Well, it's unfortunate.

God, Scott, you're such a jerk. And again, the best who ever did it. There's a reason that Scott Boris does this. And I don't remember a time Scott Boris has ever lost. I don't remember a time Scott Boris hasn't gotten what he wanted. The Arietta contract was kind of an L. It was a little bit of an L, but the age and all that, you're right, a bit of an L. Well, alright, so the Red Sox

came in the last offseason saying, we're paying them five years, 110, take it or leave it. They ended up at 110. Yeah, you're right. In five years, 110. Yeah, so maybe we're starting to get to that point where Boris, where the owners are starting to say, like, this is our limit, buddy. Yeah. As a group. We're not going past that. Maybe GMs are getting smarter. Well, obviously, they're getting

smarter, but like... Oh, 100% GMs are getting smarter. They're getting way too smart. I mean, it's good that there are smart teams. There's really no dumb teams left except for maybe the Marlins. And, yeah, it's just the stuff that came out today. I mean, first it was the Diamondbacks thing that was hilarious. There was this Nationals guy or whatever that was like. Oh, Chris Russell, right?

Yeah, and he was like, yeah, he's wanting to be a National this whole or i want to be a diamond back this whole time and i was like first off they just got rid of paul goldschmidt because they can't pay anyone they can't pay him they didn't sign aj pollock what are we talking about why are you reporting that like why are you reporting that he's not he's not going to the time packs so stupid so everyone relax um it's gonna be fine and yeah maybe just stay free agency agency starts January 15th and everyone won't have months and months and months of freak out. Again, even if it doesn't really change anything, it just frames it in a different way. It changes our whole mindset.

Exactly. It changes the way we look at it, which would ultimately matter because we're the one. Ultimately, look, the Phillies are going to get the guy that they want to pay and that's going to work out the guy's going to get his money scott boar is going to get paid we're the only ones who really have to suffer through this whole thing like they're all working out they'll be fine they'll figure it out we're the ones who have to go through the pain and the anguish of waiting every day so and getting let on and let it stray and lie to i mean and it's all it's to the point where it's like it again we'll all be super excited we're We're not going to hold it against Bryce Harper, but I guarantee you there will be fans out there. And I know Joe DiCamera has said this on the Midday Show, that he's going to hold up a bit of a grudge against Harper for making us wait this long, which I disagree with.

I agree. It is silly. So silly to say that. It's not Harper's fault. It's not his fault. He's doing his job. He's trying to get the most money he can for his lifetime. This is it.

This is his biggest earning potential in his life. And you can't blame Scott Boras. The guy's just doing his job. Bl trying to get the most money he can for his lifetime this is it this is his biggest earning potential in his life and you can't blame scott boris guy's just doing his job blame the system but still there will be people like that there will be like joe's like i want him to play here so what does that have to do with anything like i want him to want to play here i mean yeah see i i hope i really james if i can ask you one thing please hold him accountable for that when he signs here and it's opening day and he's freaking out say hey you didn't want him you didn't want him bro yeah so please for the all summer just remind him of that and let me ask you a question so i've thought a lot about opening day um i've thought about it being a nice day sunny a little bit chilly a little chilly i mean to vet on the mound which is i mean the only reason people were there. And the bar is pretty chilly. Pavetta on the mound.

That was good. So let's say. Pavetta on the hill. Opening day Pavetta. Let's say that they sign Harper. I think the ovation is like raucous, right? Obviously. This is not my point.

It would have been a pretty bad point. Do you think that if they sign Machado, it's as raucous? No, it'll be raucous. It will be loud. People will cheer for Manny Machado if he signs here and he's coming up, batting cleanup, batting second, wherever he wants to put him. But if it's Bryce Harper, it will be louder. There's no question about it.

I mean, he's going to be viewed as the messiah. He's the most... I know. Think about it this way. When have the Phillies gotten the face of baseball? When have we ever had the face of baseball? Even the Rollins, Howard Utley guys. Maybe. And at that point,

Pete Rose was 39 years old or whatever. He was the face of baseball. We're getting the face of baseball heading into his prime. He's about to start his prime. This never happened here. Now batting for the Phillies. You do a great Dan Baker, by the way. It's an underrated Jack Fritz impression. Listen, I don't want

to sound like a crazy person, but I have walked around my house doing that for the last two straight weeks. You've said it to me a hundred times. Now batting for the Phillies. I do it a lot. It's very good. I'm not trying to be a psychopath, but I just walk around my house. Jill's gone all day because she works. So it's pretty

much just me walking around doing Dan Baker impressions and closing my eyes and envisioning Bryce Harper hitting Titanic shots. Every time someone posts a video of that clip of Howard going triple deck against the Nationals, I just think of Bryce doing that. Yeah, buddy. Oh, Jesus. I just need it. Scott, please, for the love of God.

Just enough. Let's do this. Relax and let's do this. Don't log off. That's our advice. Except for us. Follow us. We'll tell you what's going on. Relax and let's do this. Don't log off. That's our advice. Yes, everyone just log off. Except for us. Follow us.

We'll tell you what's going on. Of course. I want to put this Mike Alfranco, Mike Moustakis thing to bed. I thought it already was. No, I know. But I think there's some people out there that still think it would be a lateral move. Oh, there are. I've heard them.

This is now for anyone that believes that. Coming from the last known inhabitant of Mike Alfranco Island, no less. He does have a leg kick now. Yes. Jack Fritz, the last person left, was seen swimming off the island on his own as it was burning to the ground. Screaming I was wrong. So I have some stats here that I think should put this whole thing to bed. The first couple of stats here come from a good friend of the podcast,

Ryan Origitano. He is just a guy that loves the podcast, and he sent me some Mike Boustakis. Well, guess what? I love Ryan. Yes, we all do. So this is last year. Franco's hard hit percentage, this is from Baseball Savant,

was 27.5%. Soft hit percentage was 28.3%. Ground ball percentage was 49.2%. Whoa, buddy! Yeah. Not good, friend! Barrel percentage was 28.3%. Ground ball percentage was 49.2%. Whoa, buddy. Yeah. Not good, friend. Barrel percentage was 7%. His exit velo was 88.1%.

His launch angle was 9.5%. These are not great numbers, friends. No. Not great at all. Mike Moustakas last year. Hard hit percentage of 41.2%. Wow. I mean, significant difference there.

Yeah, Franco was 27.5%. 27, yep. Soft hit percentage of 41.2%. Wow. I mean, significant difference there. Franco was 27.5. 27, yep. Soft hit percentage was 21.7. His ground ball percentage was 34%, which is... Significantly lower,

15% lower. His barrel percentage was 8.5%, which barrel percentage is bad at balls, 95 plus miles per hour off the bat. Mm-hmm.

Average exit velocity of 89.3 up from the 88 that Franco had. Which is a significant difference. Right. off the bat. Average exit velocity of 89.3 up from the 88 that Franco had. Which is a significant difference. One mile per hour might not seem like a lot, but it does matter. Michael Franco's launch angle, 9.5.

Mike Moustakis' launch angle, 19.6. If that's not enough... We wonder if that fits what the Phillies like to do. If that's not enough, from Johnny Heller, another friend of the podcast, he did a park factor thing That's what the Phillies like to do. If that's not enough, from Johnny Heller, another friend of the podcast. Shout out to Johnny. He did a park factor thing last night where he combined, he overlapped Miller Park and Kauffman Stadium.

First of all, real quick, shout out to all these wonderful, enterprising listeners who do these things because this is awesome. Yeah. Now this was, yeah, it was great work. It just makes us sound better than we actually are. So if you put Mike Moustakis in Citizens Bank Park last year and 81 games and still played his road games, he would have batted 268 instead of 251. He would have had 38 homers.

He would have had 38 home runs here last year. Coming off a season before that where he already hit 38 home runs, you could be thinking of 40 home runs. Coming off a season before that where he already hit 38 home runs, you could be thinking of 40 home runs. Mike Moustakis is a clear, and not even factoring the defense yet, because Mike Moustakis is a better defender. So once again, take your freaking Mike Galfranco 270 batting average and shove it.

This is so great. Because Mike Moustakis is not a lateral move. Get Franco out of here. I'm sorry if you still believe in him. I was the last one. Well, I'm not. There's people still on the island. I'm just saying that it's time to get on.

As I've been saying. But he has like a- You did get mad at me last year with Moustakis. I think we had this exact argument the other way around last year. I'm sure there's an enterprising list where you can find out. Never happened. Don't listen to that podcast. Look, all I'll say is I'm very happy to have you on board.

Mike Moustakas Island is a nice stay. I would be very cool with Mike Moustakas. Look, and it's one of those things that, again, going back to tea leaves and all that, it just makes a lot of sense. It really is a move that would make sense for this team. Another lefty bat in there, all that type of stuff. So, all right, Fritz. What else you got? Relax, by the way, everybody.

Everyone relax. Should we talk? Time to talk t-shirts? Oh, wait. One more thing. And then t-shirts. Prospects. Prospects, right. Prospects. Top 100 lists have started to come out. It was on MLB Network the other day. The Top 100 Countdown show.

So, only three Phillies that I've seen on any of the lists, have been obviously Sixto, who I've seen anywhere from low 20s to 30s. I think he was like 15 somewhere. Was he? Yeah, he was pretty high up. Alec Boehm, of course, is generally in the 50s, 60s range. And then Luis Garcia at the back of some lists. And Medina's been in there as well.

Medina has been at the back of a couple lists too. You're absolutely right. Yeah. And so... It's just frustrating, right? Iina has been at the back of a couple lists too. You're absolutely right. Yeah, and so. It's just frustrating, right? I don't want to be like a Debbie Downer guy. It's just that whenever I watch these, like I watched the whole Prospect show yesterday, and I was just like. Of course you did.

That is, Jack is so their target audience. I was just like, crap. Like the Braves had four guys in the top 50. And they do. And like, just, there's just. And that's not even including acuna who's graduated last year yeah there's just and would be number one on any list there's just so many dope prospects out there well number one is is i mean vlad guerrero jr i don't i don't ever remember looking at minor

league now and and if you if you like these types of things go take a look at vlad guerrero's minor league performance i mean he's put up numbers that I've never seen. Dude, it was talked about this week that he's the best prospect of all time. You could argue he's the best hitting prospect of all time. You could argue it. He might be the best hitting prospect of all time. Like, he's up there. James, he's his dad

with plate discipline. It's unbelievable. His dad's the first Hall of Famer. And I'm just saying that... He was the first ballot. I think it was a first ballot. Yeah, so it just got in. He was just not unanimous. Yeah, 75% right on the line, I think. What killed the Phillies after their window,

after their run there, was that they did such a poor job of developing talent, all that fun stuff. That's the reason why this has been such a pit of misery. I'm just saying that I do trust this front office. I trust its ownership staff. They put a lot into that, as we know, with the Dominican

and starting to really try and beef this type of stuff up. And they've used their own, they've developed their own analytics that aren't even public that they've been using on their minor league guys. Which is great. It led to a Mickey Moniac breakout. They need to start really hitting on hitters. Which, again, to the minor league guys. Which is great. It led to a Mickey Moniak breakout. They need to start really hitting on hitters. Which, again, to the minor league thing, putting hitting coaches everywhere who are teaching the same philosophy, it does seem like they're taking the steps to do this type of stuff.

Now, unfortunately, it might be like two years. Might be the wrong approach. We don't know. Well, it's just two years too late. It should have been happening. Well, that's what I mean. It might be the wrong approach at this point by the time you're getting there, but at least there's uniformity throughout the we don't know it isn't

there's uniformity which i think is a good thing right and obviously guys like jason ochard and that would help it just like the thing that caused me so much depression the other day when i was watching the top 100 is that like a guy like kesson hiora was on it and i don't know if we ever had this podcast during the hazley draft but i just remember being all over kesson hiora like he was my guy i feel like we did have the podcast, but I don't think I, I don't think you guys let me talk about it. I don't think we let you talk a lot of prospect type stuff.

So disappointing. Now you can do whatever you want. How about that? I can do whatever I want. Thank you. But he like, actually no, you had your podcast and you brought me on to talk about Haisley.

I did on Phillies Today. Right. And I just remember thinking like Kessin Hura rakes. And the guy is raked. And it's just like, he's a top 20 prospect now. Or top 30 prospect. And Nick Madrigal, who I talked about last year.

Oh, yeah, I remember that. He's a top 40 prospect. And it's just like, I was right, and I just wish the Phillies had my eye. That's the point of this whole rant

is that I wish the Phillies had my eye. Just kidding. They are great at their job. But I think the Phillies are taking the right approach, and I think they're putting the right resources into player development. They're putting guys all over the place. They've done a really good job developing pitchers, I'll say that.

The pitching depth is legit. They had to start doing it with hitters. I think Ochar is a really, really big step forward. I trust that when they go through this next run they have, when they bring in Harper, they will be able to sustain that because they're going to have talent coming through the system. Which is the key. And another thing, we texted about this.

That's another reason why Bryce Harper is so, so, so very important. Because the Phillies right now, they have a bunch of good players. Like Hoskins, good player. Nola's better than a good player. Nola's a good player. But we're talking hitting right now. Right. They have Scott Kingery Like Hoskins, good player. Nola's better than a good player. Nola's a good player. But we're talking hitting right now. Right. They have Scott Kingery.

Could be a nice player. And Scott Kingery was like last year's Nick Madrigal. I mean, he was in the 40-year range. And we are very bullish on Scott Kingery. I think Scott Kingery's going to be a very good player. And he's going to get more playing time

than people think. I think if Herrera struggles, I actually think he's going to play a lot of center field. And look, there's still a chance that Cesar's not on this team. I would think he's going to be, but there are still moves that are going to be made here. I wonder think he's going to play a lot of center field. And look, there's still a chance that Cesar's not on this team. I would think he's going to be, but there's still

moves that are going to be made here. I wonder what their plan is with Cesar. I don't know. That's why I'm really confused. I don't know what they're doing. We'll see. But I think, look, if it was Cesar Hernandez and a Mike Moustakas trade or something, or not Mike Moustakas, some sort of trade like that, Moustakas free agent, of course, but a player like that, or if they don't

want Moustakas and they trade for a third baseman or they trade for a reliever I could see that I wouldn't bet on it but I could see that yeah and they didn't pay Kingery to sit the bench like I think they're gonna give him as they did it last year like even when he was the worst player in baseball yeah potentially on the offensive side of the ball they still played him so Kingery's being that the Phillies don't have that guy they don't have that guy and that's why Harper is so important they don't have a Tatis they don't have a Guerrero they don't have that guy. They don't have that guy, and that's why Harper is so important. They don't have a Tatis. They don't have a Guerrero. They don't have an Eloy Jimenez.

They don't have these guys who are the top-hitting prospects in baseball. They just don't have it. They don't have a guy you can look at and say, all right, like a Ronald Acuna in Atlanta, a guy who you could say, all right, that's going to be the centerpiece of our team for the next six, seven years until he hits free agency, and then likely, hopefully longer.

They don't have that guy. There is no guy like that. Right, and I think Harper... Harper's that guy, and he's only 26. Obviously that guy, but he extends the window a little bit and doesn't put the pressure on a guy like Boehm to come up and you have to break next. Right away, or Luis Garcia, or whatever.

Right, so Harper kind of takes the pressure off of all his guys, takes the pressure off Hoskins. A very, very important signing, because if they want to realistically start competing as fast as possible, I don't know if they have the real star potential to keep this window open for a while. I think Boehm's being underrated a lot by a lot of prospect systems just because he was hurt last year. And I get it. And just the fact that he's in the 60s after just getting drafted last year is still good.

It's still good. It's still good. I think Luis Garcia's a little low, but I guess when you're comparing him to Wander Franco, who's like a top five prospect in most cases. Yeah. Wander, he's nasty, that dude. I know. I know.

But it's the same type of thing. Like, look, what the Phillies have done in the Dominican Republic and with their international scouting, shout out to Sal Agustinelli, of course. Our boy. Our guy. Friend of the podcast. What they've been doing with that is is they're they're doing things that will enable them to

be able to find guys like Wander Franco to find the next Wander Franco like that's what they're doing they're setting up the infrastructure so they have a better chance to find a Wander Franco to find another Luis Garcia to find a Ronald Acuna to find these types of guys that you need to have that international infrastructure for yep

so I hope that they I hope that they continue to, like even when they get a Harper or whatever and the windows open, I hope they continue to not be negligent against the minor league system development stuff because they need- It's imperative. In today's game, I mean, that's the wild, wild west now. Totally. And even just as having guys you can trade to make runs and all that type of stuff. Like, look, you get Bryce Harper, you build this team up, you're going for the World Series,

you want to make a trade for a starting pitcher to help you get there. You need prospects for that, too. There are so many other reasons that it's so critical to build that up. Jack, we got t-shirts. We got t-shirts. We got High Hopes t-shirts. We got t-shirts. We got t-shirts, David.

We got High Hopes t-shirts. So, Jack, as you guys know, you listen to this show, has a tendency to get more excited about things than other people might. Like, I don't know, some minor league players highlights or whatever. James, can I just, I have to say it once, podcast now. Life, liberty, and Mickey Moniac. That's exactly right. Point being, I don't know if I've ever seen Jack get more excited about anything than these high-ups t-shirts. He texted me a hundred times about it yesterday.

We got him. It's awesome. We got the guy. We got Bryce Harper. We got high-ups t-shirts. They are soft. They are tri-blend. They are incredibly comfortable.

I got mine yesterday. It is a delight. Now, my problem with them is that they don't show off my best features. They stick to me and make me look even fatter, but they are gorgeous t-shirts. They're good looking t-shirts, and again, they are super comfortable, which for me matters.

And again, if we see you at the ballpark wearing one of these, we will buy you whatever you want. Yeah. Oh, yeah. You can say, I want that frosted drink that costs $25. Done. Yeah. Don't care. Whatever you want. It's on us, baby. Yeah. say, I want that frosted drink that costs $25. Done. Yeah. Don't care. Yeah.

Whatever you want. It's on us, baby. Yeah. Yeah. Literally. I want your wallet. Sure. I think that's a fair trade.

Way to wear that shirt, buddy. All right. So we'll have some fun ways to get these shirts out to you guys and all that. But we're going to start with this, Jack, because we've talked about this a lot, right? It was our whole Christmas thing, right? Our holidays thing. We're like, share the podcast. Yes. Share the podcast yes we want people who might not know about high hopes to become part of this family that we freaking love we love all you guys we really do like jack and i talk about it not just into microphones we talk all the time about how much we love our listeners how much

we love this podcast and the just like the community built of high hopes exactly it's a family i feel like it's a family i feel I want this to be the high hopes family. So we want to make that family bigger. So here's what we're going to do. And I guess it could be a little hard to get the picture right or whatever, video, anything you want. Proof. Proof. All you got to do is prove to us

that you're getting someone who's not subscribed to High Hopes to subscribe to this podcast. Send us a picture. Send us a video. Send us a handwritten letter from your friend. Maybe that's not as good. We need proof. Yes. But send us proof and you're getting high up shirt.

That's it. It's that simple. You show us that you, any one person, it could be your mom who doesn't even know how to use her phone. Hey ma, I'm getting you high hopes. I'm showing you how to do this. Whatever you got to do, prove it to us. You get a shirt.

It's that simple. We'll DM you and It'll be game over. Game over. And then you... And here's the beautiful thing. That's the beautiful thing. Because not only you get the shirt, but then you get our wallet, our beer, whatever you want at the game. You just get the shirt. You wear it to a game. We're at games all the time. Off chance we're there.

We're there a fair amount. We go to a lot of games. We try to. Yeah. Eventually. Jack goes to a lot. This year we have to set up an actual High Hopes night. Oh, well, that is a lock. We will do... We're gonna have some fun stuff coming. We go to a lot of games. We try to. Jack goes to a lot. This year we have to set up an actual IHOPs night. Oh, well, that is a lot. We will do. We're going to have some fun stuff coming. We've been working with our gal, the great Cindy Webster, to try and come up with some really fun There was no one on the plane. We love the

Phillies. Cindy Webster is the only person on the plane I think might love the Phillies more than we do. And she is all in on IHOPs. She is all in on IHOPs. So we've got some really fun stuff coming your way. We've got guests. We're doing all kinds of cool stuff, but T-shirts right now. This is the thing. If you want an IHOPs T-shirt, just help us out.

It's easy. Get us subscribers. Yes. We're desperate for it. Pay it forward. Pay it forward. Pay it forward. If you like us, share us with other people.

That sounded weird, but I like it. Yeah. Pass us around. Pass us around. I love it. Two hits and pass the left. All right, but I like it. Yeah. Pass us around. Pass us around. I love it. Two hits and pass to the left. Alright, Frenzy. Final thoughts. Um, okay.

Uh, I don't think there has been a single player on this roster more overrated this offseason than Roman Quinn. Roman Quinn is not very good. He is sure he's exciting. He's a gunge guy. He can steal you some bases. But anyone that wants to start Roman Quinn over Odubel Herrera, just stop.

Are we doing this again? If we're talking about upside and we're talking about the best version of the Phillies, it's with a 300 hitter that can hit 20 to 25 home runs. Because that's what Odubel Herrera is. If you can take the home runs from last year, and I think he got a little too home run happy in the middle of the summer. If you can take the home runs from last year, combined with the usual average that has typically been there,

you're getting an all-star caliber player. So enough with the Roman Quinn stuff. He came up and he was fun for that little bit. Do people understand that he batted 145 the last month of the season? I don't think so, no. Do people just only watch the two weeks he was up here and was like, wow, that guy's fun? It's just like, relax on the Roman Quinn.

He should not be starting in center field for the Phillies. Hell with the bench guy. He's a perfect bench player. Switch hitter, a lot of speed, good at defense. That's a perfect guy to have on your bench. It's the exact type of guy you want on your bench. If he wants to be our Dave Roberts, be our Dave Roberts.

Yeah, you're damn right he can be. So, relax on Roman Quinn. Oduble should definitely be starting in center field on opening day and MVP Oduble starts soon. We're going from pro Oduble to MVP Oduble. MVP candidate Oduble.

I like it. Oh man. Top 10 in MVP voting. What if that happens? I will bow to you. I have Pavetta, All-Star Game, and I have Oduble Herrera. These are good. I can't wait. We're going to do a bold predictions pod at some point.

It's going to be a lot of fun. Listen, I understand. If our bold predictions come true, the Phillies are winning the World Series. Yeah, exactly. So, hey, crazier things have happened. Yes. Rate and review the podcast. It means everything to us.

And, again, find someone to subscribe to the pod. We'll get you a t-shirt. They're awesome shirts. They're comfortable. And then we can meet at a game and hang out and have beers and it'll be awesome. Mucho beers. Mucho beers. All the beers.

Mucho cerveza. We both like beers. We're beer guys. Jack's a big time beer guy. With a big time beer gut. Just look at him in the I am shirt. You can tell. Yeah.

It's also the reason why I'm here and not in the big leagues. There it is. Found Keystone Light. Lost the cutter. There it is. David Wells could do it, but I guess not you. No. He's a peak athlete.

All right. Please, please let us be talking to you on a day that is earlier than one week from now because that'll mean it's an emergency. Although I do appreciate that Harper News comes out on Thursdays. That's true. They've been very kind with that. Yeah. Sometimes it's Bob Nightingale giving us the news directly on this podcast,

which was fun as well. But yeah, hopefully we will know something before next Thursday. If not, we'll be back then. But we are waiting. We are on call. We are basically surgeons, doctors right now because we're just on call at all times. Some would say more important.

I wouldn't, but some would. And that's the important thing. All right. For Fritz, for me, find someone to subscribe to Buy Ups, buy a t-shirt. Let us know. All-star closer, Kenley Jansen. We'll be right back. It's my podcast. It's my passion. It's a cause I started more than two years ago. It is now the most prolific national daily baseball pod there is. Another fact. So jump aboard the BIB Express.

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