OverDrive - OverDrive - August 12, 2025 - Hour 1

Episode Date: August 12, 2025

Join Jim Tatti, Keegan Matheson and Michael DiStefano for Hour 1 on OverDrive! The guys dive into Mark Shapiro's comments on the team's roster, Blue Jays' series against the Cubs, Trey Yesavage's jump with the Bisons and how they keep the winning momentum going. Former Blue Jays Outfielder and Pelotero Co-Founder Chris Colabello joins to discuss the Blue Jays' winning atmosphere, the veterans making their mark and philosophy to hitting on the roster.

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Fisrael License 12-6-16-1-6. This hour of overdrive is powered by Fand-Duel. Fand-Dule, bringing you everything from the opening line to the final score. Welcome aboard on a Tuesday. Overdrive all set to sale. Jim Taddy, Keegan Matheson from MLB.com and L's brother, Mike DiStefano, with you, guiding you to the Jays against the Cubs tonight at the ball yard. Cubs are 5 and 5 their last 10, and firmly entrenched, is the number one wildcard team.

Milwaukee, in their own division, absolutely unconscious. On a roll, 10 straight. I mean, this is a team. So we'll get into the matchup, Burrios and Brown tonight for the game at the ball yard. And, of course, plenty of other things to talk about. Shapiro spoke today, so we'll get into that. But let me start off with a grand question. Before we dive into the pitching matchup, what would you define success for this Blue Jay team this year?

What's a winner? Ooh, a successful season. I never want to lean on the classic. You've got to win the World Series, or else only one team successful. and you succeed every 30 years. That's a miserable life. I think winning a round of the postseason. And by a round, I mean the ALDS.

We consider the 15 and 16 Blue J's successes. They didn't make it to the World Series. They went deep into the CS. And the way you do it matters. This team has been a success so far. If they make it to the postseason and flop again, it's a complete mess. Getting there doesn't matter at this point. You have to go a bit further.

And you need to have a moment. We are talking about what could be the end. of Bovichette's era in Toronto. We're talking about Vladdy moving from his original deal onto his big boy deal. They've won zero playoff game in their three trips. They haven't done it. They need to win at least a series.

It can't be just the wildcard series at two out of three. That's a half point. I want to see them win the ALDS at the very least. And they've got to aim high. This is all about what we talked about yesterday with that mental shift in this city. Of not being happy to be involved.

Being a wild card team, it means you're in the top half of best. baseball. Great, but it doesn't get me going. We're talking about being the very best, one of the three, four best teams in baseball, elite baseball teams. They've got to win at least a real series. They need to. I guess the next question is, and this is a conversation that I think is going to start to kind of pop up because today we're from Mark Shapiro and his contract's up at the end of the year. Ross Atkins, contract up at the end of the year, such as Bobauchette, two pillars of this organization who's been around for a long time. And I guess if they, if they

don't have that success. If they don't win around, what does that mean for the future of those guys? And we're trying to have that conversation of what it could mean for the Blue Jays. And I just, I don't, I feel as though the season that they've had, and

for years, they were patient, the organization stuck with them and believed in the process, and we're seeing the fruits of the labor finally come through. I have a hard time believing that they would just completely blow this thing up. if they don't win just one round.

Yeah, that would be a real sticky point. And I've been in so many of those year-end press conferences wondering, is this the last time I'm going to talk to this guy? Is this the last time I'm going to see them? And that's not an individual commentary on them. It's just how sports work. If you don't win, poof, you're gone. And the Blue Jays have not won when it matters most.

They've won 90-plus games. They've done good things. They've signed and traded for good players. but that only matters if you win in the postseason. It only matters if you win in October. That's what we need to see. Now, that being said, now, if they do flop in the playoffs, and I know that's doomsday, what if I get hit by a bus tomorrow, we'll see.

But if it all does go wrong, I think that we've seen enough this year still that there's a different direction. Last year when I was sitting in that room, I was saying, man, we are 10 miles down the same road. And I'm sick of being on this road. I think a lot of people sitting at home are sick of being in. down that road. There's bad restaurants and no gas stations on it. It's a mess. And they kept going down it

with the same strategy. This year I think we're going in a different direction in terms of how we talk about baseball in this city. And it's a more encouraging one. Whether it works this year, we'll see. But I think you also need to acknowledge and recognize, okay, they've changed something. That's step one. It's got to work

but they've changed something. Well, what's changed? The approach, and I think that starts with coaching in the front office. They are not trying to make every player be the same player. They're letting Vladdy be Vladdy, Bo Be Bo, George be George. That one's work. Absolutely has worked. And I think we're seeing a team where every single level of this team is in think. The front office is working with the coaching staff right. The coaching staff is working with the players the right way. Last year, some of those might have been an inch or two off. And it's

tough. When you're an inch off, you're all the way off. We're finally seeing, you know, someone might call that synergy guys if I was really leaning into the way that these folks speak some might call that synergy between departments baby but it is working and it's happening it's different well i i think that we're all looking for i think we're comfortable with where they are and how they get to the end of the regular season looking for something to legitimize what we're happy about so that it if it doesn't work out and it doesn't go deep this year there's a thought that it could next year we want this to be the start of something don't we the start of something bingo that's exactly it this needs to the start of whatever era this is in Blue Jays baseball. They're spending big money.

And frankly, guys, when the Blue Jays go out and acquire a big pitcher, make a big trade, they typically hit. That's been the strange thing about covering this team the last few years is I can't point to something and say, hey, you know what, it was all going well, but they traded for that guy and it screwed the whole thing up. They don't have that albatross contract. They don't have that mess of a contract. It looked like it might be George Springer. Yeah, that was the one. And this year, it's kind of, I mean, Burrios hasn't pitched as well this year. So maybe the back half of that contract.

If he continues to pitch this way, it could be a question mark. But the real big misses for this front office has been the drafting and developing. And more so the developing turn. Like, how many prospects have we gotten excited about, and they've just turned into nothing? Like, Nate Pearson is one. And even right now, like, you look at Ricky Teeteman two years ago. It's like, this guy's going to be a big part of the big part of this rotation in two years. Well, that has not been the case.

An injury plays a role in a lot of this, but also just the fact that they haven't developed properly. That, to me, has been the biggest difference from the previous years to what's happening now this year. Everybody who came in through the system who's been developed is having success. Whether that's Joey Lopofito, I know it's been here long, but like he was in AAA last year working with those skills coaches. He was here through spring training, working with the skills coaches. Same thing. Addison Barger's been through this organization now. like you've got some guys who are coming up

and really starting to show the fruits of the labor of that development and to me that's where I look and I'm like okay they've hit on they've hit on a lot of right things and that's one thing that in the past has not been there that seems to be shining through so jays against the comes tonight later

on 430 Chris Colabello the former jay will stop by Ryan Dempster former MLB star at 505 530 AB's list power list 605 can confirm or deny then at 630 NFL talk with Mike Sandoz. So let's talk about Mr. Shapiro who spoke today. We've got a series of clips audio only. So if you're watching on TSN4, sorry, but nonetheless you'll hear it. So here's

Shapiro on the competitive window going forward. Well, certainly having Vladia under contract addresses one of the biggest challenges that, you know, to that window, the establishment of some other young players that have stepped up and contributed meaningfully. But that is always a challenge, particularly in a division as tough as ours. And I think particularly from my pitching standpoint, we need to continue to develop pitchers and ensure that they're, you know, continue to come and contribute up here. So a lot of young players have made major strides this year, not just here, but throughout our system. That's going to be continuing, continue to be necessary and important. And really that's what propels this story forward, doesn't it? Yeah,

that's the other thing. I look at four things you need. It's the players, the coaches, the front office, and player development. You take one of those legs away, the table falls over. And player development has been that at times in the past couple of years players have been that at times and certain elements of coaching have been that at times it's never going to be perfect in one sense but that's when you see magic come together the Milwaukee brewers are a great example of this they're pretty much a model MLB organization yeah if I could build an MLB org I'd want to be the brewers with unlimited money it's just it's a perfect setup the brewers with Steinbrenner checkbooks there we go life in Milwaukee I love but that's what you're going for all four of those

lining up at the exact same time, speaking the same language, going about things the same way. And I think that's really been the important part because as players are arriving, they're not just players, they're Blue Jays players. They're trying to play this exact style of baseball instead of trying to either glue a bunch of individuals together or make them all play the same way. Hey, everyone hit singles. Addison Barger, go hit singles. No. I mean, my goodness, Addison Barger can bench me. Do not ask that man to hit thingles. You let him go out and rip it.

That's what he's done. He's been empowered to do that. We're seeing empowered baseball players. Yeah, he's one of the big wild cards for me moving forward. Like, what can Addison Bart? Like, what's his ceiling? What can he be? His adjustment time.

He had a massive season in AAA, what, two years ago, I want to say. Kate really broke out with the power. The home runs were there. And then last year struggled mightily. Didn't make the team at a camp this year. But then got a call up early. the season and he hasn't looked back. He has been swinging the stick as good as anyone on that Blue Jays team and he has been

extremely, extremely valuable to this offense to a point where now it's like, this guy's a real piece moving forward. And that wasn't a guy three months ago, five months ago, we'll say it, the start of the season that you thought, man, we're going to be talking about him playing ball in August, September, October. Like that's the one guy, a wild card where I look at and I'm like, okay, you got to find those diamond in the rough sometimes. And it seems like Barger has emerged into that.

And that's a big reason why the Blue Jays are having the kind of year that they're having. They're having that guy. It changes everything. Yeah. That's something we don't talk enough about with the Dodgers is they draft, develop, and make their own stars. Yeah, they go out and buy the guys for hundreds of millions of dollars. But they always fill in those extra spots. And the exciting thing, what that allows you to do, even when I look at Braden Fisher,

Mason Flew Hardy, developing and finding Braden Fisher doesn't just give you some real good bullpen relief right now. It saves you five million bucks next year. 5 million the next, 5 million the next, because you're not going out and trying to find Chad Green or someone else. When you develop an Addison Barger, maybe that saves you $20 million next year. Suddenly you're throwing that at a big pitcher, not just a mid-range pitcher, but an ace. It changes everything financially. And Barger, as the wild card, completely agree because he was the darling of camp a couple of seasons ago. And every spring has its darling.

This year it was Alan Rodin a couple of years ago. Addison Barger, sometimes that's a kiss of death, sometimes a signal of what's to come. And Addison Barger, when you look at him, of course, this guy is going to hit the ball 500 miles. He can throw it harder than anyone, even most of the pitchers. He can hit it harder than anyone, maybe even including Vladdy. He can run fast, do everything so well. But for years, guys, I was kind of slow on Barger. I was saying this is a league full of 20-year-olds who are breaking out.

if this guy has all these gifts and now he's 24 or 25 why isn't it happening for Barger? But he finally had that mental shift and for some guys a mental shift is unlocking their mechanics, something very complicated I remember asking Barger about this earlier

in the year and I think Boston and it was two questions that really helped me kind of garner how he approaches this and I asked him what have you done? What have you changed? He looked at me and he said, I've chilled out in the least chill way you can imagine But I said, okay, very good.

And then later I asked him the question about you've got a big Yankee series coming up. And he made it through the first sentence. You can tell he was kind of trying to tiptoe around me. And he said, to be honest, I didn't know we were playing the Yankees tomorrow until right now. So for some players, it's about complicating things. For others, Mark Shapiro always uses the many Ramirez example of just the simpler the better. Sometimes you're out. Sometimes you're safe.

Simpler the better. Barger has found that big wild card. Well, you let us know when he's going to press you because that's going to be a viral moment. moment. It will be. It will be. You know what? That's what it's all about these days anyway. Absolutely. So here's Mr. Shapiro again on the Blue Jays growth from last year. We've just established our brand of baseball. You know, that it is rooted and founded in the toughness and the cohesiveness of our players. That has translated into the types of the bats that we're having, you know, against good pitching against all types of pitching.

Tough to strike out, playing good defense, which has been a trademark over the last few years, not just this year, really putting the pressure on the other team. So we've got great players, but our results have not been driven by individual players. It's really been driven by collective effort. So the clip I like there, the phrase, our brand of baseball, and clearly with the game on the line, somebody's going to do something, doesn't matter who it is. That's the whole thing now, and it's working.

You need a good club host, you need a good coaching staff, frankly. That's not just John Schneider. Don Maddenly is part of that now in a different. way. DeMarlo Hale's a great part of that. I don't think DeMarlo Hale gets enough credit, but, I mean, A, one of the most likable guys in Major League Baseball, the players listen and respect everything he does and says. So getting the buy-in for that, that, hey, you might not play seven games this week. You might only play in four of them. But in the other two, you're going to come off the bench in a big spot that we design just for you. And when a

player trusts that they're going to be put in that spot every time, that's another form of empowerment. And I've learned to look at the coach player relationship and the front office to coach relationship more in terms of that. Do I trust that that guy is really having my best interests in mind? Because the moment you think they don't, everything is toast. But I think these Jay's players really believe that now from Schneider, from David Popkins, who we've talked about, and I can't talk about enough. But they really do believe that they are putting them in the best spots, even if it means they start the night on the bench, they're probably going to come in if you're David Schneider against the lefty, if you're earning a defensive spot, in the right

spot for them. And that's a really momentum building feeling for a baseball team. Let me just add some stuff that's just sort of breaking. George Springer is at the Rogers Center with the Jays taking batting practice, running fielding as well. Club is hopeful he'll be cleared from a concussion protocol in the coming days. We'll go out on rehab once cleared, likely multiple games. Manoa will start for the Bison's on Wednesday, aiming for 70 to 75 pitches. Beaver will start for Buffalo on Friday,

80 to 85 pitches, is what they're looking at there, and Buddy Kennedy is designated for assignment to open a roster spot. Well, they've activated Jimenez as well. He'll play second base that night against the Cubs tonight. All right. No shortage. So, Buddy Kennedy, or do we start

with what we start with, looking at the Bieber News is what I pick out of that immediately. looking at the Friday timeline because this is so important to how we map out the next couple of weeks with the Blue Jays. And if he is starting on Friday here, and we do some kind

of back of the napkin math, that probably puts him in line maybe with that opener, Miami. Yeah, mid-next week. At Miami Marlins, which would be on a full week of rest. A team that is not so great ball club. A team that is not the Dodgers. Yeah, soft start.

Yeah. But Bieber has looked fantastic. And that would line him up for a start against the Mighty Brewers. Perfect timing. The end of the month, that last series, a big weekend series against what is now the best team in baseball. Everything's gone really well with Shane Bieber. And when they acquired him, I thought it might be one less start than we're seeing in the minor leagues. I thought it might have been pushed a little quicker. But that's the luxury of having the rotation the Blue Jays have.

Yeah, Bieber's good. But the difference between Bieber and Berrios or Lauer is what? Maybe nothing for once. If they're fighting for a wild card spot, maybe they only give them two looks instead of three in Buffalo. So it's been a good build up for him. So that puts him on track. That home debut end of the month, I was thinking about this yesterday, guys, the David Price debut in 15. I think that was August 3 against the twins when he made that debut.

That was an amazing game. One of the coolest regular season games we've seen in this city ever. And I don't think we've had one like that in a long time. It hasn't been that big boom midseason edition of that level. And I don't think Shane Bieber gets the level of buzz he deserves as a name. It might not be the flashiest name, but my God, trust me, this is one of the best pitchers in Major League Baseball. And that is one that if you've got the option to be at, will be a special one. What else do we want to do here?

Oh, Shapiro, one more clip. And I like things in layers, and that's what the Js have. That's why I really like this story, because there's just like one after the other, and it all works out. So if one falters, there's another layer. And the ultimate layer is Trey Yassavage. And here's Shapiro and the possibility of promoting Trey. I think all decisions are a nature of the circumstance and the situation. And that's just one more, much like decisions of a trade deadline are different from one to the next.

That type of decision is as well. But never at the risk of harming a player. So those things will be factored in as well and every decision made. And this is a big, strong kid. Well, what did that sound like to you? I don't know if that sounded like they're banking on you, Savage, being part of the, like talking about being worried about his development more so and in this future than it is for him factoring this year.

That's kind of how I took from that, what I took from that. Lots of doors being left cracked open, and it's always hard to read through the language. You know, I'm going to start adopting some of this language at home. Have I done the laundry? Have I done the laundry? I wish you well, buddy. are a circumstance of situation. You know, who's to say?

But what I hear her as well is Mark Shapiro, who came up with a background in player development. And player development is, I can tell, a real passion of Mark Shapiro's. Like when you get him going, he typically loves to leave most of the baseball stuff to Ross Atkins and that side of the front office, which I respect.

But when you really get Mark Shapiro going about player development, you can see that baseball guy in there. And I love seeing that. and when we spoke to Ross Atkins about this, last time we spoke to Ross, but a month ago, maybe six weeks ago, the comment at the time was that you couldn't close the door

on an incredible talent like that, and I think that's going to be an approach they take. The Blue Jays' player development staff, their whole idea this year was, listen, we're going to give them the option. We're going to put Trey you savage on the doorstep with a big bow in his head and say he's right here, if you want it.

Be tempted. We talked about this yesterday, guys, with that question of, Is he one of your 13 best pitchers? I think he is. Compare him to the last guy in the bullpen. I think he is. His last three starts in AAA, pitched 13 innings,

23 strikeouts, and had a 0.69 FIP. Zero, sub one FIP. And you could speak to how incredible that statistic is. Just outstanding. And you see this delivery again that I just love. But you savage, what he brings is the,

potential of legitimate dominant. And I say that, maybe I'll compare him guys to Alec Manoa, when Manoa came up as a starter. Manoa had dominant numbers, but that was a little bit more about working around the zone, doing quote-unquote true pitching, getting some weak contacts and more sinker balling mid-90s. Trey Savage can just make you look stupid,

and he can do it over and over and over again. That does not mean he is going to be Pedro Martinez. This is not a projection of superstardom or Hall of Fame futures. But it means that the top end of his skill set is pretty far above anyone we've seen come along here in Toronto in a while. He's going to need to develop the mid end of that and be consistent. But his strikeout ability with 15 strikeouts per nine innings in the minor leagues this year, that means, and listen, I have an English degree. The math may be off.

I think you're striking out over half the batters that you record an out on. That is unbelievable talent. AAA will be a challenge. I want to see how he does there. to start Thursday with the Bisons, I believe. But if he nails his first couple of steps there, what else are you waiting for? And for a young pitcher like this,

we've seen it with Manoa, with Pearson, with Tiedem and with so many others. When you think they're good enough, cash in while you can. Some of these guys are going to pitch for 15 years, but pitchers don't last forever. Think of the Bison's, what, Wednesday night is, who did we have there? It was Menoa. Friday is Bieber, and Thursday is Yosevic.

Big weekend. I love that stuff. From my friends in minor league baseball, I know how much that means to getting a few tickets sold. So those are a good time to live in Buffalo. Okay, just looking at some more information here. But by the way, what's your Piro said made sense? I mean, that's a political answer. We're just going to let that happen. Absolutely.

What else would you say? This is what a president or a GM need to say. We're going to leave the door open, see if he can force our hand at this point. because you do not want to say, hey, we've got our eyes on them, and then if he gives up six runs next time, are you killing the guy's confidence? Tray Savage, still so young at this point. This is his first pro season. To go from low A up to AAA, one years up, to go to low way to the Major League Baseball,

up to the majors, is nearly unprecedented. And an example of a plan that the Jays and Savage himself have just nailed. Like when they started him in Singale, they got some heat for that because why is this guy who's way too good for Singale down here dominating 18-year-olds? Legitimate question. But there's rain in Vancouver. You don't want to screw up his routines.

And it took Trey I Savage buying into that. He could have been cocky and said, what's a routine? I'm better than all these children. Get me out of here. And listen, I spend a lot of time and done eating in Florida. God bless it, but a few weeks of it, you've had enough. Yeah. But he was mature about it.

He's nailed every single part. of this. I've been so impressed by that. So the ultimate question when Mark Shapiro speaks at this time of the year with the contract expiring is, will he be around? And his line was, he wants to remain with the team, and we would assume he would. What prevents

that from happening? A bigger fish, a bigger game to hunt. You never know what's out there. There are not many bigger jobs than being the president of the biggest show in a country like this. But, you know, Mark Shapiro, we've heard a similar answer from him over the years. And he has

always, almost across the board, refuse to comment on his own job status and often doesn't do it for others as well. And if that's your rule and you stick to it, I respect that. But it's a situation where I think it makes sense for all sides to continue with this. I don't tie Shapiro to much of the baseball successes or failures.

I tie him to the business side, payroll, renovations, the money that's been put into the spring complex, which I think is all very impressive. And I see no reason for that relationship to end, unless there is something more attractive out there, which would be more on... It's on Shapiro. I believe it would be on that.

The Js wouldn't want to separate themselves from which I don't believe either. I mean, there's still unfinished business, like you mentioned, from the baseball operations part of things. Like, they're still going to do something with the dome. And, like, it's... I'm not quite sure why the discourse around whether or not he does not return next year is... Well, because he's expiring. I mean, why wouldn't you look after that a year ago?

And it could be something where it was signed two months ago. Well, you want to make sure that the season went well. If the season did not go well, you don't want to lock into that. But the season has gone great. So that goes back to the original question. What is a disaster and what is a plus? Yeah. I feel like the season has gone well enough where even if they lose in the playoffs,

they took significant steps to moving forward as a franchise, where they both, Hey Man, Atkins, should receive an extension and keep moving forward with what's going on in Toronto. Yeah, as long as there's not a complete disaster on the way out, I would agree. Yeah, I agree with that. We'll see. Yeah, be interesting with the fire. We'll see.

We'll see. MLB announced its playoff slate on Tuesday with Wild Card Matchups beginning September 30th. World Series set to start October 24th. All four division series will start October 4th. Game 1 of the ALCS goes October 12th. So there's a lot of dates there. September 30th, October 24th, October 4th, October 12th, day before the start of the NLCS. Everybody's written it down.

There we go. I got to start booking hotels. That's right. So that's why I said that. Yeah. I got me nervous. And you're going to max it all out. I remember a couple of years ago. This was 2023. I believe that's written. The Blue Jays brought it up the last day of the season. We were multiple, multiple hotels booked. Lots of things up in the air. Oh, and they finish half a game out. That year. Cancel. Hit the cancel button. That's right.

Coming up next, more baseball chat with Chris Colabello, the former Jay. That's next an overdrive, TSN4, live on YouTube. TSN 1050. Welcome back to Overdrive. Jim Taddy and Kigan Matheson from MLB.com. I was Brother Mike DeStefano with you getting a set for the Jays against the Cubs at the ball yard tonight. Kevin Gosman with the ultimate X delivery today.

So apparently there's no such thing as free parking in Toronto. Was there ever? Was there ever? Guy, you've lived here for three years now. You know, this is the first parking ticket he's gotten. Welcome to Toronto, I guess. I don't recall. I've been working in this town for about 41 years.

I don't remember ever being pre-parking. Goss can eat it. He can eat the ticket. Well, I'm sure he's okay. Yeah. He'll be okay with that one. I just like, you know, the guys lived here for three years. He's just figuring that out today? Yeah, well, all he had to do is ask, right? I love the odd forays of Gossman on the Twitter, though.

Was it last week he had the can anyone help me find a flamethrower, the June 28th tweet? Pardon me? He was looking for a flamethrower. A flame thrower. I was standing in the clubhouse in Fenway Park that day. I was looking for a flame thrower. Anyone in Toronto know anyone.

I was standing in the clubhouse after a Blue Jays, when he comes up and taps him in the shoulder. Kiggs, you know where I can get a flamethrower? And I was honored that I looked like a guy who knows how to do that. And admittedly, I probably do. But I said, Kevin, before I give you advice here, I've got to tell you this is a bad idea. I can't be roped up in this scandal.

But he's one of the best personalities. Did he explain what he needed the flamethrower for? It was for celebratory purposes in the clubhouse after a big win. They already have a nightclub in there. you wouldn't believe it. But, yeah, it was to aid the celebration. I don't know if he should be using a flamethrower indoors. An indoor, like, that's like the fireworks at the hockey rinks.

Yeah, I suggest you're just the weed burner. You get out for outside. Get a foot of flame out there. The old bottle of axe body spray with a lighter. Yeah, that works. Once upon a time an Hollywood flamethrower. I think that's more what he had in mind. He had full length of the clubhouse in mine.

So I said, Kevin, I can't be involved. No, absolutely not. Happy to be considered, though. Torch. You should have said, go to Canadian tire, it won't be free, but there's a torch there.

Well, they got kind of those things. Actually, I used it this weekend. A buddy of mine, I was up at a cottage, and for the fire. He had like this,

oh, a torch thing, kind of like a mini flamethrower, and you just light it, and then boom. Yeah, low propane thing, and it worked out great.

I don't think the celebrations need that. No. An MLB Clubhouse celebration is a wild enough place. The moment I walk in there, I feel like I'm a best, to be offered like a $700 bottle of vodka or something. It's got a real

nightclub feel. I get nervous. Yeah, you've got to wear the rubber clothes. Yeah. The goggles? I'm not a fan of the goggles. I'll be honest. I don't know why you've got to put the goggles on. That's true. I learned a long time ago, Richard Griffin, who we had on yesterday, he told me a long time ago, the Neni Champagne

celebration after a big win, postseason, anything like that. He says no to the poncho. He goes in. let it hit you. I've taken the grip's lead on that. I let it ruin my clothes. I've had trouble getting taxis after that on the road before because when you get in and you smell like you just swam and beer, you are told, get out of my taxi.

So it's taking me a few swings in a couple road cities. So I've learned to take a change. That's funny. So Jace against the Cubs tonight, Burrios 8 and 4 against Brown. What is he 5 and 7? How do you make of that? I mean, Ben Brown is not pitching very well. I was looking into it today.

I am, you know, you go up for on Fanduel, I'm bent a lot of overs for Toronto. I think they get back on track offensively tonight against Ben Brown. Hasn't been pitching very well. Gives up a lot to lefties in particular. I think Barger might have, or it gives a lot to, yeah, lefties in particular like Barfito or two guys I like tonight, kind of get some offense rolling. I think we see a lot of offense tonight from the Blue Jays.

Get back to not quite rocky level, but certainly more than we. we saw in in Brooklyn or in L.A. I think you got to like about baseball. Nobody's crying about the first game back after a road trip to the west, which is a hockey sort of crutch.

They fly pretty nice. They don't like to tell you this, but they're not back in coach with me. I think they're well taken care of. Just waiting on Chris Colabello, former Jay's player, of course, from the glory years, Pelotero co-founder, diving into the series against the Cubs and also Texas

two-game two-series homestand this week, and it'll interesting to sort of reminisce about what happened back in the day, which is, what, 10 years ago now? Yeah, the big one. And they've got some energy again this year. You know, that rivalry never quite went away. Even, I mean, God, even when Rognette O'Dore played for the Orioles, he was getting booed,

even when he should have been getting DFA'd, it booing a guy kind of loses its zest when he's terrible. You know, you want it to be a villain from another team that actually doing something. Not a guy that's hitting 101, but he ate it for a few years. That one's always going to be there. The Rangers have got some juice. You sock Jose Batista. You're going to get booed every time you set foot in Toronto.

Even if you're already terrible. The Rangers have Rowdy-Tiles going right now. They're making some magic down there. Rowdy Tiles has found another home, and he is another fan base's favorite once again. All right, let's bring you, Chris Colabello, former Jay Outfielder, First Baseman, Pelotero, co-founder. Chris, welcome aboard, so you're in mid-August, just about. You're in first place, 43 games. in 49 days. How does that feel

to be in that situation? Pretty good. I wouldn't be too worried about the West Coast trips. You get a cushy day off. It's easy. It's not that hard. So don't worry about that. They'll be fine. They're in good shape. Keegan was telling us a moment ago that there is quite the celebrations

happening in the clubhouse right now. Post games apparently Kevin Gosman was trying to get a flame thrower last week for some reason. Can you think of any time where things got a little little rowdy in the Jay's Clubhouse in your days here?

I can think of plenty of times when that happened. We had Mununori Kawasaki on the team. We had Mark Burley on the team. We had Josh Tully on the team. There were some interesting post-game things that happened, a lot of which I probably can't talk about on the air.

That's an important part. There is a 10-minute window before media like me are allowed to go in. And the moment I get in, I always feel like there's being something swept up, that's the real fun part. Chris, when we look back those days, we're just talking about the Shane Bieber edition here in Toronto. He'll be having his first start in Toronto coming up in a couple of weeks. You were there for that big David Price debut back in 2015 and some of those big additions. What was it like adding superstar

talent to a team that was really getting some momentum? What do you remember about that feeling in the city that we could be seeing here again pretty soon? It was awesome. I mean, it was electric. Osuna and I were doing an autograph signing in the morning at the mall. And we came, him and I took an Uber, got a car service back to the stadium. And people had been asking us all morning if we thought we were going to get price. I'm like, that's above my pay grade, man. I don't make those decisions. And then we walked in and we saw him clear in the locker.

And it was a little bit different, right? We were trending in the right direction. We had made some trades already. And we were behind. We were seven games back in the division at the time. And I think we all saw greener pastures ahead. And getting him was such a magical moment. Like, the city responded so well.

And I'll never forget his first start. And Kevin Durant was up again wearing a David Price jersey. And it was a stadium that was packed. And we actually ended up seeing KD at the, everybody went to the OVO Drake concert after. And I'm standing next to Kevin Durant. And I was thinking of myself, am I cool enough to be standing next to him? now. That's how you knew. That was such a telling moment to me about how real it was, right? We were good and we knew it. And I think it sparked us in a way that, you know, I'm not going to

sit here and say we couldn't have done it without them, but it certainly created a different energy in the clubhouse and a different buzz in the city. That's for sure. I like what you said there. Obviously, you were thinking positive anyway, but this adds to it. In this case, to have Scherzer already on staff and a guy like Bieber walk in the door. I mean, that's like having this plus, this human resource that also delivers as a player. But, I mean, it's great conversations with these guys too, right? Yeah, the veteran presence that you talk about, the clubhouse presence, stuff's real. And I think every guy from our team that you probably talk to has alluded to it in some way, shape, or form.

And you really want guys that are just good. clubhouse guys that want to help everybody around them get better and i did an interview a couple weeks ago and somebody asked me about how young guys maintain what they're doing and i said it it's the onus is on the older guys to just remind them to just keep playing guys like just just just play don't worry about your numbers don't worry about what the end of the year looks like because if we just focus on the moment special stuff's going to happen and then you get to go play in that tournament in october which it's magical right like it's the thing you sit there and dream about when you're kid and um there's nothing like it i i don't you know i didn't play in the postseason

anywhere else but i can't imagine it feeling like it did in toronto right kansas city was grimy and tricky uh just because it's i don't know it's fall in the midwest and you feel the sunset and it's like you know it's like haunted houses type feelings um and the crowd got loud but there's nothing like roger center shaking um that place is special well one of the young guys that, you know, you talk about that has continued to hit throughout the season as Addison Barger. And we're talking about what his ceiling could possibly be as a wild card, you know, stud right in the middle of this order for years to come. I mean, you've watched a lot of Blue Jays baseball this year. Like, what have you made of the season that Barger's had? And what do

you make of the way that you can hit the baseball? I lost about half of that. I hope you guys can still hear me. But I think we're talking about Barger and how good it can be. Yeah. um he's done a really nice job he's uh he's been awesome and i i think in order for a team to be really good right in order for any team to be really good you need the veterans to play the way they're supposed to uh the guys that you have expectations out of and you need some surprises right i.e this guy is sitting over my shoulder on that side uh he was a surprise to everyone right i think according to not to me but like everybody else they're like who's this guy um but uh yeah you just need guys to step up and fill roles.

And I think it's, it's great when you, when the stars align, right? You need the stars to align in the sense that it has to be the right environment. It has to be the right opportunity, right? You lost a guy like Santander earlier. And now there's opportunity, right? You know, in my case, it was we lost Michael Saunders. Posey was on the shelf for a little bit, like we're in a weird situation. So you need guys to kind of just step up and embrace roles.

And again, I say the stars aligned because it's not, expected when you're writing a lineup card on opening day, but then, you know, the next year in 2016, everybody was asking me, who's going to lead off? I'm like, well, they don't write it in stone on opening day, so, you know, things can change throughout the year. And it's cool when you see kids like this get an opportunity and really run with it, because I think that's, uh, that's, that's part of creating, you know, a championship environment. Chris, when you look at this team's offense as a whole, when I go back to 2015, that area, you guys were leading baseball and home runs. This version of the Blue Jays, middle of the pack and home runs, but they're leading the

league in average and on base, the fewest strikeouts in all of baseball. What does that tell you about this team from coaching right on down to the players what they're accomplishing? Because this has been a big shift in Toronto. They're grimy. They're the way they need to be. And I think that was part of what our magic was, is that we had guys that could hit. Don't get it twisted. When Eddie was 0 for 15 with a bunch of roll. overs and strikeouts, if you put a runner on second and third for them, those guys are scoring. You know what I mean? And that's the telltale sign of a great team. And for all the people, I was reading a bunch of tweets the other day about, oh, batting average doesn't

matter. And, you know, John Heyman, I think, said something about, oh, look at that. The teams that are leading the league batting average are all in first place. And it's a testament to consistency. It's a testament to how you go about your bat's day in and day out. Adding average will always be important because it's a reflection. of the type of at bats you're willing to take day in and day out when things get hard. And give me a team who can do this and minimize strikeouts, right?

Football's in play. That's the definition of hitting. It has been for 150 years, but it's 2025 and we decide we're going to make new metric because we want to sound cool. Like, if you can hit, you can hit. And, you know, I talked about Blattie earlier this year and people were so worried about his homers. I'm like,

that guy needs to stand in the big part of the field. When he stays in the big part of the field, he's dangerous. I don't care if he hits the ball of ballpark. I care that he's a threat to every time he steps into the box. Let's go back to the stars aligning. There's some great stories on this team with the game on the line. You never know who's going to do it, but you can count on somebody doing it. When we look at this, the thing that's attracted to us for this story is it's happening now, but it projects into the future. Like you could see the barger story developing.

You can see the evolution there, and we don't know exactly where it goes, but it's a positive feel. When you watch them play, do you get that? for sure i think it's been a combination of things right like even early in the year george george establishing himself as being back right like that was a huge step um for the team itself the young kids got to get put in different roles at different times and and they really just kind of jumped at the occasion um you know guys like tyler heineman who i played with in triple a as the, you know, the backup catcher essentially having a career year, like those things don't happen by accident, in my opinion. They happen because you feel the support from the guys

around you. And ultimately, it becomes a race to the bat rack that way instead of, oh, I need to be selfish and be the one that gets my numbers and I don't care about anybody else. And what that does is it elevates an entire group, right? And now young players will want to support that cause as opposed to being stressed out about, you know, where they fit and how they, whether they're going to stay or they're going to get an option. And, and you have to do some things that sometimes, you know, on paper don't seem like the best moves where you might have a guy that's optional. Like, it's become like this game for a lot of teams where they're like trying to just keep team control and all that stuff when that can really affect the kind of

the makeup and the composition of everybody in that room. To me, what that room feels like at all at all times is far more important than, you know, being able to create the right matchup once over the course of a series. So, yeah, it's cool stuff going on there. I'm rooting. I'm not jealous anymore. Like five years ago, I would have still told you I wanted to lose every game. But now I'm a fan again.

I think part of the time. Chris, thanks very much. Appreciate it. My pleasure, guys. Take care. Thank you. Chris Colabello, former Blue Jay and, of course, Pellatero co-founder. You know, it's a story that has taken some roots and it's planted and it's going forward.

I like this. I mean, it's go through the list. There's a storyline forever. You know that. Yeah. I like that race to the bat rack. And that's that contagious momentum you're building. When everyone around you's doing it, you want to do it too.

It's really hitting on it right there. The race of the bat rack, it's just, it builds up. It's a snowball. Yep. Yeah. Glad to see what they got tonight. Yeah. Cubby's in town.

Getting at a pretty good time. They've been playing very well lately. I think they're under 500 since the All-Star break. Yeah, bit of a skid. Yeah, Pete Crow Armstrong has not been hitting well. He's got two hits in his last like eight games. Heck of a defender, though. Under 100 batting average right now.

This guy was like second in MVP voting a couple of weeks ago. Coming up next, we're going to go through the grid. It's listed on TSN of the people that have played. sports in Toronto that aren't liked. A bit of a contest. Yes. So we'll go through that next is Overdrive continues live on YouTube. TSN4, TSN1050.

Welcome back to Overdrive. So let's just dive into this. TSN 1050's quarter-century bracket challenge unveils the most disliked Toronto athlete division. And so day one is done and Dragage defeats Marner is the most disliked, which is interesting.

Insignier slips by Turgilloo. What else to be? Kessel is okay. Strowman defeats him handily and David Clarkson slips by Bargiani, Vince Carter all over Ricky Williams, Osuna gets by Bosch, which I think we would have predicted

Finoff gets by Frank Thomas, Gardner gets by Rios. Any surprises in all of that? I mean, the Marner is a big one. It is for me. The loss there. Let's trace some of those IP addresses on the votes here. See how much

Ferris and Marner comes back on the addresses. He was a polarizing player. though, like there are a lot of Marner supporters that believe that he was unjustly criticized for what went down here in Toronto. Like when he was the man who they decided to move on from in order to move forward,

a lot of people came out and said, well, how could you possibly think that he's the problem? Well, I would agree with that. But he did leave, and he did sort of negate any kind of movement prior to the Y acquisition, but at the deadline.

And because he did leave, and everybody, else remains because we're talking right now, he sort of is somewhat of a villain. Whether that's justified or not, time will give us the answer. Yeah, I am surprised, like, Goren Drogich. That's the other part of it. I mean, this guy, when he was acquired, said he didn't want to come here,

apologized, came here, and they got railroaded out. I just don't care about Goren Drogate. Exactly. The thing, like, why does Toronto care enough about Goren Drogich to be more upset about him and dislike him more than they do about, about, like, the Marnas situation? I get he didn't want to be here, and he came out and he's like, I'm not going to Toronto, screw that place,

and then never end up playing for this team. They didn't play it when he was here. No, I know, but wow, he didn't want to play anyway. I don't think it's what I don't attached to, guys. I think it was mutual. It's the emotion of being attached to the Kyle Lowry deal, who's beloved, and you wanted something immediately for Lowry. And I think it's a very Toronto thing, too.

You know, there is a always a little bit of that inferiority complex. For sure it is. For sure it is. It's a city I call home. It's not where I grew up and live, but there's always some of that, guys. It happens more with the Raptors than it's had in any other team. Yeah.

Right? Like there's a history of players getting trade to Toronto and saying, I'm not going there. And this city wants to be chosen. That matters. Like, that hurts the city. Clearly, according to the Twitter poll here. But I would, the, Draggett and Insignet is a very interesting situation. But Dion and Jake Gardner is that.

the matchup today. And I'm curious who's going to get more votes here because they both spent a long time as the whipping boys. So for them to be a second round matchup. At the same time. Yeah, at the same time, it feels like that's a tough decision to make for Lee fans. It is.

I like that Stroman absolutely like three to one over Kessel. Kessel became somewhat of a fan favorite. Yeah. Yeah. In a weird loved way at the end. So hey, one more W for Marcus on his way of. Yeah. Well, he was Mr. Toronto. He was for a moment. He got the tattoo. And he told us. And he told us he was. Coming up next

more baseball talk, Ryan Dempster will stop by. And then after that, AB's brightest futures in sports for franchises. Overdrive continues. TSN4, TSN1050 and live on YouTube. You've been listening to Overdrive, powered by Fanduel. Fandual, bringing you everything from the opening line to the final score. You've heard them countless times. Now, learn the details of how they came to be. Join Ruby Carr for Encore, the stories behind the songs you love. New interviews and newly unearthed archive footage make for a fascinating weekly deep dive.

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