OverDrive - OverDrive - June 9, 2025 - Hour 3

Episode Date: June 9, 2025

Join Bryan Hayes, Jeff O'Neill and Jamie McLennan for Hour 3 on OverDrive! TSN Golf Analyst Graham DeLaet joins to discuss Ryan Fox's playoff win at the RBC Canadian Open, the U.S. Open's storylines a...nd Scottie Scheffler dominance in the field. MLB.com Blue Jays Reporter Keegan Matheson joins to dive into the Blue Jays starting to heat up, Bowden Francis' evident issues on the bump and Addison Barger's notable emergence and Bryan gives his FanDuel Best Bets.

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Starting point is 00:00:56 Some restrictions and exclusions may apply. See participating stores for details. Final hour, Overdrive continues powered by FanDuel bringing you everything from the opening line of the final score. We'll get a same game parlay cooking later this hour for game three of the cup final. Graham Dillette will join us from Oakmont ahead of the U.S. Open in about five minutes. Keegan Matheson in St. Louis. Love seeing this man. The Cards, great baseball town. The Cardinals, a great, great organization. I'm sure there'll be a lot of Blue J fans fans down there your old neck of the woods Noodle st. Louis Missouri ready gritty
Starting point is 00:01:31 gritty town big baseball town man great great sports town it actually is a great sports town it's very hidden cuz you know every when you think of Midwest you think Chicago and a big city like that but st. Louis they love their sports teams and they got, for the most part, pretty good teams there. You know, I was there late 90s. Guys love it there. It's like, I hear the same thing, Jamie, about, excuse me, people kind of goof on Buffalo, where it is, the snow.
Starting point is 00:01:57 A lot of guys that I ended up playing with that played in Buffalo love it, live there, love the golf, say it's awesome living in Buffalo. And people, guys that play in St. Louis, they love it, live there, love the golf, say it's awesome living in Buffalo. Guys that play in St. Louis, they love it there. In an age where we're talking about state taxes, Florida, lifestyle, Vegas, LA, California, there's guys that literally fall in love. I love playing in Carolina. I might retire there in the winter.
Starting point is 00:02:23 You go to a place, you live there, you just fall in love with it. Yep, and that's, I talked to Jamal Mayors today. He lives in St. Louis, retired there, played in Chicago, won a cup there, played throughout the league, but retired in St. Louis, Pronger, Keith Kachuk, like you name it, it's actually, you think about it, there's some pretty good players that have come out of St. Louis, two in the finals. You gotthew kachak and trent frederick is a st.
Starting point is 00:02:47 louis boy right st. louis so they grew up together. yeah like they'd have a travel team man yeah it goes tron on whoops a mass once in a while yeah like I remember we played in a tournament where in bantam and there was this missouri team from kids all over the state and even from like probably different states as well right like they'd be bringing kids in from There was this Missouri team from kids all over the state and even from like probably different states as well. Right? Like they'd be bringing kids in from Michigan probably and Illinois and all over the place.
Starting point is 00:03:12 Stacked like absolutely stacked. So yeah, that's it's a game three tonight. And based on what we saw the first two games, I guess would it surprise you if it was two, one and tight checking in both teams that 17 shots tonight feels like it would surprise me. Well, I think they're going to knock it down guys because I don't know what the stat was. There's something like that. I mean, Jamie, you might know this. The first two games, they're like for each each team got like 18 or nineteen high quality chances. Yeah.
Starting point is 00:03:45 And the coaches got to be looking at that saying guys like this is insane enough. How they stop these guys. But how do you do it? That's the thing. I don't know and I'm glad they can't stop it because it's awesome to watch Hayes. Well it is but the chances were forty five to twenty nine after two games for Edmonton. So yeah I mean even Florida is averaging almost 15 chances a game and And the Oilers are 25 chances game. I mean keep in mind Context there's double overtime involved. So there's a lot of hockey overtime the other one
Starting point is 00:04:17 So those numbers are a bit skewed, but it wouldn't surprise me one of these games I don't want to say dud but but you might see a team, or the team's either a little bit tired or very cautious, and it's a two-one drag fest where you drag them out and it's an OT winner or it's a late goal or something like that. Like our three-one with an empty net or something like that. That seems more likely later in the series
Starting point is 00:04:43 when you start to get nervous. Like game seven last year was not thoroughly entertaining. No it wasn't. It was kind of a chess match where both teams were playing tight. My fear would be game five because they played tonight, Thursday, and then Saturday in Edmonton. That's a quick turnaround from Florida to Edmonton and you're playing in less than 48 hours with a time change, too I mean that could be a little bit dicey, but at the same time you're playing it's the Stanley Cup man Like it's the Cup final. What else do you we always say this? What else are you leaving keeping it for?
Starting point is 00:05:18 What are you saving it for? I mean, I might as well go put it all on the line So yeah, we get game game three tonight best bets later in the hour Jays in st. Louis Graham de Lett will join us here in a moment He's down at Oakmont. I just saw a video This is gonna be great content Johnson Wagner our buddy from the Gulf Channel and NBC Because NBC has the rights to this and the US Open is not like Augusta they're gonna allow him to go out there and do his thing and he is gonna be hitting shots All week from all over this place in the rough bonkers crazy greens It's gonna be a while. He's gonna look honestly like a 30 handicap out there
Starting point is 00:06:03 Great Well, you know what I mean. I'm going to play that for him the next time we have him on. Dude, last year when he started doing this, he had the yips. He was hoseling wedges. He hit some weirdos, man. Some bonkers shots. Yes.
Starting point is 00:06:20 Skank balls on live TV and the guys on the panel were like, what is this guy doing? There is some golf language hosling and skank And none of them are positive terms there's no there's no positive language in the golf world. It's all negative But yeah, it's you know it's it's a quick turnaround because I thought Osprey Valley held up very very well like the winning score was 18 under into a playoff and It certainly will not be 18 under this week though You can bank on that coverage of the US Open on overdrive brought to you by Subaru Here's our TSN golf analyst Graham the let what's happening GD How are you guys? How about flushed? That's a good nice positive. Yes, you're right. You're right compressed or flushed That's that's a good then nice positive yes you're right you're right compressed or flushed that's that's very good not enough not it there are positive ones
Starting point is 00:07:08 they all sound negative to me though is like I didn't you know not it's a good one well not at that I mean let's let's be honest here let's you know it's never heading down a pathway there that yes be careful everyone keep it on the rails exactly what did you think of the way the course held up, the Canadian Open? You know, Ryan Fox wins it on the fourth playoff hole. How do you think we'll look back on the 2025 RBC Canadian Open? I thought it was great, honestly. I mean, I think the course held up really well.
Starting point is 00:07:41 I mean, considering that they had ball in hand on Thursday and like literally perfect conditions like playing in a dome that Thursday afternoon. I mean you give the best players in the world those type of conditions with perfect lies every single time and I mean they're going to shoot nothing. So there's two 61s on Thursday and it looked like it was kind of going to be one of those sort of runaways and we had good weather all week but the course held up. And I mean, there was only two guys that turned into the weekend in double digits under par. So considering that two guys shot nine under the first day,
Starting point is 00:08:11 I think that was pretty good. And then, I mean, to be 18 under on a PGA Tour event, I would say that that's pretty solid. I mean, and if they wanted to, there's nothing you can do with mother nature. I mean, if it didn't rain overnight, Wednesday and into Thursday morning, uh, the course would have been much more firm comes Sunday afternoon.
Starting point is 00:08:28 And that winning score would have probably been like 14 or 15. You know what I mean? So, uh, I think it was good. And I think that it, um, it showed well on TV. And I think that in general, like the players were kind of pleasantly surprised. They didn't really know what they were going to guess here. And, uh, you know, a lot of the TPCs are kind of just these modern day huge ballparks. And there's a little bit more character out there than I think a lot of guys anticipated. JD, to go back to earlier in the week, Rory McIlroy missed the cut. He was awful on Friday.
Starting point is 00:08:58 Awful. Do you think, I mean, I don't know what he was up to on Thursday night, but it was he was probably hanging out with you and your buddies I don't know what he was doing, but do you think he's an orange real buddy? He was downtown Do you think that this guy can get on a bird Go to Florida and then go to this golf course and get it together and make the cut I mean, I can't even believe that we're saying we should be saying about R Rory, is he going to win this? But can he get it together after that performance and be dialed in for Oakmont? Well, I mean you could tell that he just wasn't there mentally at all. I mean like you can
Starting point is 00:09:34 talk about how poorly he played, but I mean like I've never seen him just like so like half-ass swing everything. Yeah, it looks like something's wrong with him. It was almost like he didn't care but I mean the main thing for him if he does want to compete is he's got to figure out his driver. I mean that thing is an absolute weapon. He's the best driver of the golf ball in the entire world and I mean it was ugly last week and I he had he'd switched to this new driver that had that was like a little bit shorter and I think he was
Starting point is 00:10:01 trying to go for like something that he could control maybe a little bit more which I don't know why he needed to change anything because he controls the big one pretty good but I think he's trying to prepare more for this week coming up here at the US Open and I mean I hope that that is over and he goes back to kind of like you know what he has normally been doing. But yeah, that, I mean, that was, I've never seen anything like it from one of the best players in the world. It was awful.
Starting point is 00:10:31 I was like, he's had a charity event, you know, that he was, that he agreed to six months ago and he forgot. He's like, fine, I'll come, but I got better things to do. You're right. Yeah. And he only saw nine holes in the practice rounds too. So I mean, the preparation just wasn't there. No, not in the practice rounds too. So I mean the preparation just wasn't there. No, not in the least. Yet you know you look at the way the Canadians showed up
Starting point is 00:10:48 and a lot of Canadians are gonna be down there at Oakmont and you know there was a time when when you were at the top of that list GD and you know you were there and Mike Weir was kind of crossing over but there was two or three Canadians at most you'd hope you'd make the cut and maybe be in contention. And here's another Canadian Open like the last few where you got five, six, seven Canadians who are going into the weekend top 25, top 30. You know, it's pretty incredible. It really is. I mean, like, yeah, like when I was playing, Weirze was kind of on his way out and it was
Starting point is 00:11:23 like me and Hearn and then, you know, Nick Taylor and Adam Hadwin were just kind of coming onto the scene and I mean like legitimately for till we have not not only just in the Canadian Open just any regular event if we had two Canadians playing on the weekend, that was pretty good back then. So we've come a long way and all the big dogs like I mean you think of Nick Taylor and Corey, Like, I mean, you think of Nick Taylor and Corey, Adam Hadwin and who am I missing? Matthews, Taylor Pender, those five guys who you kind of expect, you know, they're kind of the top five guys, the Canadians, and they all played well. I mean, like, you know, top thirties or whatever, but you got to play solid on the PGA Tour to finish top 30.
Starting point is 00:11:58 You know, you're a hot putter a week away from a top 30 being a top five or like maybe one silly mistake or whatever. So I think that they're all there all the games are pretty good shape here and now trending night with graham delet uh... so we had all of my u.s. open uh... if i gave you scotty sheffler or the field who would you take bomb at the end of the shepherd on june second saying that that they but who's gonna beat this guy?
Starting point is 00:12:25 The way that he's playing right now is an absolute joke. And the thing is too, the harder a golf course is, the more top players separate themselves from the rest of the field. And I mean, that's like, it's not going to get any harder than this. Like I haven't been out there yet. I'm here in Pittsburgh right now. I'll go out there tomorrow morning and check it out But I mean you guys have seen all the social media posts I'm out of soon with this rough and I they might be the hardest conditions that I've ever seen I think when I get out on the golf course there on Tuesday
Starting point is 00:12:55 Graham explain to the viewers and us I'm curious to get this answer I watched you play on the PGA Tour and you were a fantastic Ball striker and you could move the rock and you did things Really? Well, so you at the top of your game and if you were in the final group with Scotty like what does he do? That just separates him from you. Is it like consistency? Like is it longer is it better approach shots like you were a tour player who was known as an unbelievable ball striker. So what does this cat do? That's just so much better than everyone else. Well, the biggest thing is he doesn't make mistakes. I mean, I said, I don't know
Starting point is 00:13:33 if you guys watching Muirfield, but I mean, that golf course was playing super tough there a couple of weeks ago and he went around just like bogey free, just kind of ho hum. And he's, he plays a lot, he plays a lot like tiger. Like, I mean, he, we always remember all these fantastic crazy shots that Tiger Woods hit throughout his career, but if you sit back and look, he played kind of the most boring golf.
Starting point is 00:13:52 He hit to the middle of so many greens, just made life easy on himself, and he was a great putter. And Scottie maybe isn't a great putter, but he's got really good hands around the greens, and that kind of makes up for it. So when he does miss a green, he's got three, four feet kind of little tap ins. And I mean, if you can make those, he doesn't need to, he hardly even make any putts because
Starting point is 00:14:14 he just doesn't get himself out of position and make bogeys. And then, you know, you look at the complete opposite, a guy like Jordan Spieth or whatever, it's like he's making five, six, seven, eight birdies, but he's making four or five bogeys and it's like he shoots three under but it looks insane and then Scottie Shepler, he lulls you to sleep and shoots 64 and that's really the difference, he just doesn't make mistakes. It's incredible to watch, man. It really is and you look at the playoff yesterday where we were discussing it earlier, Graham, that that was not quality
Starting point is 00:14:46 golf either guy was playing, man. They missed very makeable putts. They, you know, burns chunked a wedge at one point. What did you make of the decision though to move the cup for the fourth playoff hole, something I've never seen before? I saw you on SportsCenter afterwards. You said you've never seen it before. I think it's kind of... I've never seen before. I saw you on SportsCenter afterwards. You said you've never seen it before. I think it's kind of-
Starting point is 00:15:07 I've never even heard of it. I didn't even know it was possible on the fly, but I thought it was a pretty cool idea once they actually went ahead with it. Yeah, you know, and I was kind of sitting there on the back of the 18th green, and I was sitting there with Duffy and Weeks, and I was like, man, what they should do
Starting point is 00:15:21 is move these tees up and give these guys a chance to go at it, and too. I mean, it was basically, they might as well just drop two balls at a hundred yards and had a wedge contest for the first three times going through there. So it was nice when that wind kind of died down in that last playoff hole and they were both able to go for it. And yeah, there wasn't a lot of great shots, but that second shot that Ryan Fox hit in there, I don't even know what it was, eight feet or whatever for Eagle was absolutely
Starting point is 00:15:43 incredible. And that's what earned him the win. And I I mean you can talk about Sam's three pot but he knew that he had to try to make it because you got to expect a guy from eight feet to make it so I mean he gave that Eagle pot a run and I mean I wish I'm sure that he wishes he only had a three or four feet pass but you got to you got to give it a run at that at that point in time and you know Ryan know right but the pressure on anyone the golf tournament gd heading in the next week all the goofy tweets are always starting where a guy comes out and says if you give me this score i would take it into the
Starting point is 00:16:14 clubhouse right now and i'd be happy with it and ben griffin said it would be plus four i think that's not... Daily? What's that? Daily or total? Total. He said the total. He was sitting in the clubhouse. You think 4 over could win this thing? Really? Wow. From what I'm hearing from other people, yeah. Like I said, I haven't been there's any question that over par is definitely in the mix and I heard someone Someone was telling me that Keegan Bradley said that he thinks that it could be double digits over par So who knows, you know It's always harder to when you play practice rounds because you're always at the back of every single tee box The rough hasn't been trampled down yet
Starting point is 00:16:59 Like it always plays harder on a Monday And longer and the roughs nastier on a Monday in a practice round than it is by Thursday, Friday, everything starts to get trampling down. But the USGA is also known to rake up the grass back towards the tee sometimes to bring that difficulty back. So we'll see what happens. I'm sure you've played Oakmont. The story's about it, everyone's like, toughest golf course you could ever play considering the rough
Starting point is 00:17:25 But considering the greens how tight the fairways are how small the greens are Like is it the toughest course you've ever played? You know, I actually haven't I never did play that open in 17. I was hurt that year, but um, I mean I hear from everyone It's you know in normal members conditions. It's one of the hardest courses in the world So when the USGA gets their hands on it, it's obviously pretty crazy. Yeah. I wonder if this is gonna be like a Tiger 2000
Starting point is 00:17:53 at Pebble moment for Scheffler, where everyone else is plus three, plus four, plus five, and he's seven or eight under. You know, like you just- That is a, that's a possibility, yeah. And that would, and that honestly, and like you wouldn't be surprised to see it, because like I said, the better you are, and mentally he's so good too, he's so patient, he doesn't get rattled, and that's
Starting point is 00:18:11 a big thing obviously at the US Open. He can just kind of plot his way around this golf course and shoot maybe two under for 72 holes, and you never know, win by 10, it's a definite possibility. All right, GD, catching up. I tell you one quick story though. Hey Z-Ray before we go We're on the golf channel coverage and can't remember Steve Lowry hits this shot I'm like, oh, that's the kind of shot that 15 handicapper dreams that he could hit Oh dog text me and Steve Sands in the booth and he's like dude. I can hit that shot I'm like first of all, I don't know if you even can and secondly I was talking about 15 handicaps I didn't know he had
Starting point is 00:18:47 gone not that that high already right exactly sandbagging all over southern Ontario come on buddy those are private texts you don't share that stuff on TV man I love it alright GD enjoy yourself down there thanks there's Graham Ball, man, you see some funny activity at a golf course man, I Dude, I saw a guy during the playoff. I would love to find this guy he had 30 cold beers yesterday and they were just panning the crowd and He was practicing his swing and he was so shattered in the crowd. It's a Netflix series, man. People in a golf crowd.
Starting point is 00:19:29 Oh, big time, man. Big time. Because that guy watched someone swing. He's like, I could probably pull that off. He went and played nine holes with his buddies at 8.30 p.m. hammered. I'm going to knock this on every green. He thought he was Rory McIlroy. Ryan Fox, trying to pull the Fox.
Starting point is 00:19:46 Because Fox does the big wide open stance. Like his front foot is forward. I wanted to ask Graham Dillett, if Ryan Fox pulled up to a grubby driving range and a pair of overalls in an orange hat and started hitting seeds, how much would you play him a hole for? I pay him for 500 a hole he looks wax you dude He does man like he plays fast. He's quick. He's got a nice swing. He's got like yeah His toes are pointed outwards and he just weird action lashes is it sustainable though like is this guy gonna be around?
Starting point is 00:20:22 twice on tour in the last month and a half just saying like is this a guy that like you guys are concerned about going like this guy is gonna be top five in the world but he's gonna pick off a couple more like he's just a real player that yeah he's gonna pick off some wins he's got confidence man like yeah you know what it's like when you're an athlete when you start winning like you, man. Like, you know what it's like when you're an athlete, when you start winning, like, you get confident, man. Yeah, for sure. Look at that Ben Griffin guy.
Starting point is 00:20:51 He was just known as kind of a good player, and now he's got confidence and he picked off a win, and now he just feels he can do it. That's massive. He's got the aviator shades on, and he's just motoring around tour. Yeah. He asked to wear those though, but he's got eye problems.ator shades on and he's just motoring around tour. Yeah. He has to wear those though, but he's got eye problems.
Starting point is 00:21:07 No, I understand that. But he could wear Ray-Bans or something. I would like to see a golfer wear the goggles like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Yes, that's what he could wear too. He could wear them. Is there not a golfer that wears sport goggles? A guy tried it a couple years ago. He had these goggles. Doogie you try to find this picture?
Starting point is 00:21:27 They went on his head and then they didn't wear a hat and they had two bars that went back on his Was that a helmet? I know what you're talking about, but that was not a tour player It was a tour player that tried to make a fashion statement with goggles that it looked like a spaceship Yeah, he looked like an X-Men. Yes, he looked and he tried it on tour It was the most bizarre thing you've ever seen in your life. Okay, you've got to find this We'll find it in a full breakdown forthcoming Keegan Matheson from st. Louis and best bet still to come overdrive continues TSN 1050 and on TSN
Starting point is 00:22:05 2. Are you age 16 to 30 and ready to make a real impact? The Youth Thrive Program, funded by Canada Service Corps and delivered by the Career Foundation, is your chance to develop leadership skills, connect with mentors, and gain real-world experience, all while giving back to your community. Best of all, it's a no cost program available across Ontario, Nova Scotia, Alberta, and BC. Thoughts are limited, so register now at careerfoundation.com. That's careerfoundation.com. Join today and be part of something amazing. pick. Is he a tour player though? What? Is the guy a tour player? It is a tour player. And Hayes, if I ever said I've got some business people, do you want to come and join the group?
Starting point is 00:22:53 And you wheeled in with the goggles that this guy, look, this guy is on the DP World Tour and he wore those shades on the golf course. I love it. Charles Xavier. The guy's out there just rolling the rock. Like how could you possibly wear those? Hey, imagine being his playing competitor on the first tee. I would call it infraction, a two shot infraction and I would demand a new partner. And this guy wheeled up to the first tee with those on and shook your hand and said play
Starting point is 00:23:26 well. I know one guy who would wear those. You know who it is? Jason Strudwick. No, not even Strudwick would rock those noodles. I'm telling you, he wears a visor and he's got no hair up top. The guy walks around in a visor. The visor's an aggressive hat, man. I've never been able to pull it off. I have a tailor-made visor the visors an aggressive hat and i i i never i've never been able to buy the
Starting point is 00:23:46 tailor-made visor i wear all i love it but you've got a healthy head of hair and i can see strutty being that guy who just doesn't care about his golf attire like me and haze are so dialed in with our golf peter malar stuff we care i could see strutty saying, I want something that doesn't match and those goggles and it's short shorts. It's just terrible stuff.
Starting point is 00:24:10 I'm telling you. Yeah, he would have bad style, I think. But those are totally different ball game, man. Like that's a totally different story. I guess they were Oakleys too, which, that's the kind of thing. One other guy. Whoever launched that is probably in a new career now.
Starting point is 00:24:26 William Nylander. I feel like, nobody is wearing those glasses. I could see William Nylander wearing those. A Swedish guy, European guy, good looking, and I'm telling you, Willie Stiles would wear those. I don't know if he could pull it off. I think you're right, and it would be considered cutting edge and cool, because it's Nylander.
Starting point is 00:24:44 Yeah, exactly. If it's strutty, it's not cutting edge and cool because it's knee landing. Yeah, exactly. If it's strutty, it's not cutting edge and it's definitely not cool. No. Best bet's later in the hour. Jay's in St. Louis tonight. Again, Max Scherzer is going to have a rehab start with the Bisons, I believe, on Friday and he's going to need at least two rehab starts before hopefully getting the green
Starting point is 00:25:03 light and he returns to the team like we're into June man We're into June and this guy has pitched three innings for this team And yet they've survived without them, you know But there's only so far you can go now like we continue to talk about Bowden Francis and his struggles, but that's that's leaning on the negative There's a lot of positives here 10 and 3 in the last 13 their bats are alive I'm telling you like I said earlier seeing the shed in the Guerrero into barger. I love it. I love the way this looks Alejandro Kirk is a clutch hitter man. He has arrived or he's returned
Starting point is 00:25:39 He was there a couple years ago my buddy Paul Ross from that buddy Paul Ross that works with us out in that building. Yes, he said believe in this guy. Professional hitter. That's what he is. Two strikes, two outs, ninth inning, this guy is going to put a ball in play. Not every time, but more often than not. That's exactly what he's been doing recently. While Noodles brought up the biggest question, Hayes, can he be a professional hitter like that's what he's known for because he seems to just he goes in spurts where he can just dis oh he got thrown out on a double play yesterday where it was like he was running
Starting point is 00:26:13 backwards I don't know if you saw that that's not gonna change hey break it to you but I know he's always gonna get thrown out it was nonsense like the guy bobbled it and threw it to second and then the guy did a spin-o-rama on second before he threw it to first. I don't think it's actually running that's the issue. No, no. Well, whatever it is, the end result is not going to be positive. He's not a 5-2-0 player.
Starting point is 00:26:38 Put it that way. Alejandro Kirk is not Ken Griffey Jr. But he catches a really good game like pitchers love throwing to him. Yeah, and he's hitting now He's clutch and they got him locked in. Yeah, they signed him through a big extension before the season started. So There's a lot of positivity right here a lot of positivity around the Blue Jays And a man that that travels with them a man that's around them every single day is in st louis ahead again one of the series jays cardinals tonight would of course be keegan matheson of mlb dot com and keegan joins us now you
Starting point is 00:27:12 don't even i'm doing very well fellows coming to you from uh... funny st louis right outside the stadium here i am on the surface of the fun but it's a good place to be i love it i love it and I said, you know, I've said it multiple times today Sometimes we lean into the negative and we'll get to that. There's a couple of negative stories But I think it's been overwhelmingly positive the last couple of weeks What kind of mojo are you picking up around the club when you're in the clubhouse around the dugout batting cages? What's life like right now on the road with the Blue Jays?
Starting point is 00:27:48 Totally different feeling guys being around this roster the coaching staff they're probably just like disappointed to see me instead of actively upset to see me every day so that's a little better in my life but man they are making good on a lot of stuff they were talking about earlier in the year because this roster and John Schneider included talked a lot of stuff they were talking about earlier in the year because this roster and John Schneider included talked a lot about a better clubhouse, a better feel, better energy. None of that matters if you're not winning. Now when we see them winning it's a little easier to see what that looks like. It's so hard to measure it and even for me I'm around the team every day. I can't really feel that out myself. It's only for players to but you're starting to see that come out a bit and you're starting to see this
Starting point is 00:28:29 Kind of snowball a bit for them in a positive way and the fact they've done all of this With no value from Santander with Scherzer giving them three innings Garcia gone Jimenez has not given them much it's pretty amazing they've been able to do this so far and with Bowden Francis's rotation spot being pretty ugly so far a lot's gone against them but they're making it work right now that's where I was gonna go Bowden Franzen where do you make of his game and you know how close is he to missing a spot in the rotation at least a starter to yet just not working right now is something is not working
Starting point is 00:29:08 whether opposing hitters are picking up on something that's coming or what's happening but found francis does not have that dominant pitch he does not have kevin gosman splitter for example or both a burial that combo fastball curbball he had is pretty unique so if you're Kevin Gosman and you have a couple of starts that really suck whatever you're still gonna throw that splitter over and over because that's
Starting point is 00:29:33 your thing that works what is it then that Bowden Francis comes back to I'm not sure I don't know what that next move or that next pivot is I do think though guys that he needs to stay a starter i think he needs to remain a starting picture that doesn't mean it has to be here you can figure that out buffalo for a little bit but i don't think the blue jay should start yanking him back and forth into the ballpark and again that
Starting point is 00:29:57 valuable for anybody the issue right now that i don't really know who takes that big eric lowers there you do have Paxton Schultz Spencer Turnbull We just spoke to but John Schneider said I like the way he worded it. He said right now He's locked in so take that for what you what you mean, but right now locked in I guess subject to change Like I don't know what they do Keegan because it's got a really bad vibe And I was talking about Tanner Roark where it had an ugly feel to it where it was like, oh calm down we're not going there right now but just a feel of an interesting comp I do yeah
Starting point is 00:30:34 no but you know the feeling where you knew he was going out there and you knew he was getting rocked and then he got rocked and it was like wow how many how much longer can you keep wheeling them out there to get rocked i don't think the roller conversations are good one of the valuable one to have because the the feeling at that point was that you didn't really know what the adjustment was he was going to make bro art was also not a guy who could overpower you or dominate you with the
Starting point is 00:31:01 real standout pitch and when pictures who relied bit more on feel and mixing pitches start to get hit really hard, it's hard to bounce back from that. And what we're seeing right now is the league adjusting to battle Francis. He was absolutely fantastic last year in August and September. You can't take that away from him. But this is what happens when the league takes a look at that and adjusts so it's his turn to bounce back to that and
Starting point is 00:31:28 if he does get this next turn the rotation it it sounds like he's going to right now standing here on uh... whatever day of the week this is monday it sounds like you're going to get it but if that one doesn't go well i think that decision time automatically at that point and it's the blue jays would love him to bounce back and you don't have to be great, you have
Starting point is 00:31:48 to be average. Give the Blue Jays a four and a half VRA. That's enough right now. It just can't be a six. They don't need perfect. They just need decent trade now. Keegan, our fearless leader, Brian Hayes, every once in a while gets a hate on for somebody and right now he kind of has one for Santander.
Starting point is 00:32:10 What are we going to do with this cat? Healthy, can he get it together? What are we dealing with here? I like it. We've got the hater alerts. Anthony Santander. This has been a bad start. Nothing about this has been good.
Starting point is 00:32:26 There's nothing I can stretch, pretend it's been good. He has been hurt on top of the slow start. And my question guys, and where my mind goes now is that if Santander is a slow starter every single year, a proven slow starter, that's okay as long as he bounces back, but now that he comes back from this injury injury, it doesn't sound like he's close right now, but once he gets back in a week or two or three, is that another start? Do you start slow again? He's such a rhythm and feel based hitter and what that means is that he benefits from
Starting point is 00:33:00 every single day at bat. He's the type of hitter who John Schneider says needs to swing his way out of things, which means you need at bats every day. And that's the one thing he's not getting right now. The Jays need power from him. They do not need him to come back and put the ball in play. They need him to hit the ball out of play and provide immediate offense with power. It's not been pretty.
Starting point is 00:33:23 And the lineup has gotten bio-K without him, but it's an awkward one so far. Again guys, that's where my mind goes. When he comes back, is that another start? That's a bit of a slow start into June, July? Because now pitchers are as good as they've been all year. Well, I think you can spin it as a glass half full though. They've survived without him like you said and if he gets back to form then you're you're basically adding a bat that can capable of hitting 40 plus home runs but I love Bichette into Guerrero into Addison Barger like I love the way it looks I love the way it feels that's
Starting point is 00:34:00 the lineup again tonight you got Kirk getting fourth like I'm curious because like we talked about it a ton through the spring, that we anticipated Bichette into Vlade into Santander, and that's how they started the year. Let's say Santander was available to come off the IL, could be activated, was gonna play tonight. I think they'd ease them into it.
Starting point is 00:34:18 They'd probably start them maybe sixth in the lineup, maybe seventh, I don't know. I mean, Springer's hit for power again. Maybe he stays where he's at. But could you picture a scenario where Santander turns into like a pure kind of conventional old school cleanup hitter if Barger's capable of continuing to produce the way he's been producing? Yeah, I think you need to prioritize Barger right now because he represents what this team needs and what I don't
Starting point is 00:34:45 think they've chased enough over the last few years which is upside this team has leaned a lot on guys like Brandon Bell Justin Turner like veterans who are 36 and a one-year deal hoping that they will just get one more year of value but what you see in barger right now is complete untapped potential and we all see it with those physical tools like when he puts it together he can do things that not a lot of people can do on this team and in the sport. When he's been doing that lately he is worth building lineups around and when Santander
Starting point is 00:35:17 returns he's going to have to be shaped around that at this point. Until Santander gets hot he's going to be hitting lower in that lineup I think now in a perfect world yeah he gets back up to be that number four that number five with Kirk in there is a much higher contact bat but that might be a bit of a slow path back for Santander the update today was just that he's kind of a week out from his injection in the shoulder and nothing really new from that so it sounds like it's still going to be a little bit like we're not talking this week i don't think the songs on there
Starting point is 00:35:48 and the hotter barger gets and the more barger mania man keeps the bill momentum uh... he's going to be prioritized i think you should be with keegan matheson m l b dot com j's cardinals in saint louis tonight uh... lot of mac sure is a news coming out of St. Louis. I guess you know he's been pitching some side sessions and building his arm up again. It sounds like he'll probably get a rehab start on Friday with the Bisons and he's going to have at least two rehab starts before he returns. You know, spin this for us Keegan. Like are
Starting point is 00:36:23 we supposed to believe that he's going to arrive and then all is good from here on out? Do you believe he'll even make it through those two rehab starts? Like what are you hearing on Scherzer and not only how good he's telling everyone he feels, but how good he actually feels and how good he looks? He's alive, fellas. That's number one. And that's a... Sorry, I just had a police dog walk by me and take a little too long of a look here. I got nervous for a second, but he's moving on. Okay. All right.
Starting point is 00:36:51 Thank goodness. But with Scherzer, the update we got today was as encouraging as it's been in a long time. And the issue for him is not building up for those early bullpens. It's when you get to 50, 60 pitches. And he said that all year. So all along, my opinion has been that he'll be back when he's back because nothing really matters until he does a full game. 60, 70 pitches. So we're finally going to see that.
Starting point is 00:37:18 And if all of this goes well, I would bet on it just being two rehab appearances. One on Friday, one next week on Thursday or Friday, probably with AAA Buffalo. That would be huge. Now at the same time, we've had Max Scherzer conversations for two, three months now because there continue to be setbacks and delays. So for his sake, you hope that this goes well and there's not another one, but if he keeps saying over and over that it needs to be past 50 pitches to see how he recovers still kind of in wait and see mode and the J's need to see how he bounces back from these how that some
Starting point is 00:37:54 feels so it's not a not a typical rehab it's a rehab with a question mark I think still at this point but the point I also keep coming back to fellas that if he gets back I still think he's a really good MLB pitcher like he's not just giving you a four ERA I think he can be dominant still in shorter bursts Keegan I'd like to be optimistic about Scherzer in the comeback, but I just have a feeling it's gonna get to 60 pitches whether that's in Buffalo Yeah, and there's an issue and i think we can all agree if there is that's the end of the line and this guy just disappears
Starting point is 00:38:31 that would be the awkward point because uh... i do i would not volunteer to be the person to ask mac sure there if you want to short uh... pitching shorter stem in the big leagues i i do not think he's wired that way and that's what it would get really awkward for the blue jays. We saw this in spring, late in spring training when he was building up again it looked like he'd be okay but then he got to that 50-55 pitches the next day his thumb was barking and he spoke to us
Starting point is 00:38:55 it was pretty he was pretty dire at the time about how it felt and how he couldn't come back until it was a hundred percent. So at a certain point the the human body to begin is not built to throw baseballs like Max Scherzer throws baseballs and when you do it a hundred thousand times and you're forty going on forty one there are certain realities that set in and he is fighting against those right now but I do agree and that's why it's a rehab with a question mark that you have to monitor he's not just getting some innings in and then coming back. Yeah we'll see what comes of it with him but oh you bring up a good
Starting point is 00:39:33 point like if it doesn't work and there's another trip to a specialist like nah dude it's like we can't it's almost the organization has to say just check please yeah can't use your 15 sheets. Thanks for everything we tried. It was worth a shot. Because the trade deadline, it's coming up pretty quick. Now Keegan, right? You've got to get your ducks in a row here. Like if Francis is in a part of the future, or possibly isn't,
Starting point is 00:39:56 and Scherzer doesn't become an option, you've got three guys you can rely on right now. That's not going to cut it the rest of the year. No, and the rotation is going to be there big thing at the deadline guys you can hope on the noah coming back sure you can hope on three savages their number two prospect who was bumped up to double a today but he's twenty one i don't know and you need if you have to
Starting point is 00:40:20 question marks in your rotation unique five options but you need options on options what i think would make a lot of sense for the Blue Jays at the deadline is a rotation move kind of like Barrios when they traded for him a guy that's not just for this year but for next year and maybe even beyond that a larger move and understanding where they're at with Scherzer has to be part of that even if he's back even if he gives them a few starts, you probably want some depth beyond that.
Starting point is 00:40:47 But they need to know exactly where they are, not just by July 31, but within the next couple of weeks. There's a lot of question marks up in the air, because I think they need to be really aggressive at this deadline. Keegan, you mentioned the barger mania, and unlike my two colleagues here, I am very, I am very patient with
Starting point is 00:41:07 my expectations. I don't get out of hand. What are you talking about? When I watch this guy hit bombs, I'm like, this guy's a stud. He's just got that sweet lefty swing. Tell me this is going to turn out and tell me this is for real. I would love to. I have been really slow on Barger guys.
Starting point is 00:41:30 I'll be honest with you. I've been slow. He's a sixth round draft pick. It's not like this is you know. And at the same time guys, I've seen these, I've seen how strong he is. I've seen how fast he is. I've seen how hard he hits the ball. For years now, and in a league where players are breaking out as superstars at age 20, 21, 22, I've asked for years now, where is
Starting point is 00:41:51 it? Like for a guy that can do all these things, why isn't it happening for Addison Barger? And it's always that mental side of the game. And the mental game means different things for different folks. For some guys, it means knowing every number and being smartest dude in the room trattison barge right think it means calming down and being like a nine out of ten instead of forty out of ten which i think you thought he was at the minor leagues a lot of the time he is all intensity man and
Starting point is 00:42:18 what we're seeing now with the big test because i always have someone like david schneider in mind that big start then the league adjusted so what's gonna happen these next couple of weeks? If this goes a couple of weeks longer, yeah, I believe in Barjah long-term and if that happens, it changes the whole trajectory of this team. Honest to God, I think it does. As a power-hitting third baseman who's suddenly a great defensive third baseman, I didn't see that coming either dude, so it's this is an amazing start I've been slow to believe in it, but I am absolutely starting to and
Starting point is 00:42:50 The guy has fan favorite written all over him too because he creates highlights unlike anybody outside of laddie. Yeah He's a beast man. He's the next George Brett. That's what I Like looking in a mirror really absolutely I love it all right Keegan great stuff, buddy next george brett that's what you know i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i can't great stuff but he has the book launch going to get so so you're signed a bunch of autographs last week when you're a rockstar big deal fell as i was suited up my link shaking hand it's uh... yeah after a week of talking about myself too much i'm very happy to be on the road with some some quiet hotel beers. I think this will be a nice balance beautiful
Starting point is 00:43:30 Well, I'm a Budweiser right you better be ready to turn buds. They don't serve anything else down there Enjoy your sculpture here. I'm happy. Absolutely Thanks Keegan Keegan Matheson of MLB comm its new books out in a big party last week. It was awesome and here i'm happy after that thanks to you can keep it matters of them will be dot com it's new books out in a big party last week it was awesome and uh... men anderson barger that's our guy that is our guy we'd love him he seems like a great grinder yeah it's just a little crying and he is for power a place with intensity is planned third
Starting point is 00:44:00 base like like you can set is defending well and well it was coming together there's two sides to it he was mentioning like the justin turner type contracts in the older veterans on the one-year deals but you have to have a guy perform like this for them to avoid those types of things and there's risk all directions for this type of stuff if you're like yeah we believe in this kid and he doesn't he doesn't play then you're kind of screwed well that's why the teams always go out and sign that veteran guy because they're not that worried about him and you know learn from Not past mistakes but past examples
Starting point is 00:44:33 We just went through this with Bowden Francis where he had a great two months and we're like this guy's here and he's the real Deal. So bargers gonna have to show it for a long time. Yes, but that's the nature of being a young player All you can do is play what's in front of you and he's playing really well of course he's playing tonight bat and third like you should be uh... best bets powered by fandall still to come overdrive continues tsn ten fifty and up on youtube live
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Starting point is 00:46:16 Well someone's going to be up to one tomorrow. Someone is in the driver's seat as of tonight. Right? I mean this is a big swing game. We talk about game fives, game sevens, game ones, game three, man, when it's split, best three out of five. Now maybe tomorrow we do a hut with five each in their own hut, best playoff performers
Starting point is 00:46:38 in the last 10 years. I love that idea. Oh, well, I got you. A five pack, we each have keys to our own hut. Yeah, I want a door opening sound, Joe from the Bridge and JP. I want a key unlocking. I want just welcome.
Starting point is 00:46:53 Oh, the whole line, man. Massive production value. Last 10 years, the five best playoff performers in the hut. You know where you go looking for it? Remember the show Gilligan's Island? Remember he had the hut and you need that the sound of like you know the straw or the whatever it is make it that's that's that's what you need. JP this is all you. Yeah you gotta
Starting point is 00:47:17 get to work. I know you can find this. He'll be on it. JP will be on it. All right the Hut's coming up tomorrow. Confirm it then I coming up tomorrow. We're coming off a Jays game coming off Game three of the cup final inching closer to the US Open. It's going to be a great week. Thanks to everyone behind the scenes for helping out. We appreciate it. Everyone for tuning in today. TV, radio, podcast, web and of course up on YouTube and YouTube live on the TSN YouTube channel. We're out of here. Enjoy your evenings. Enjoy the games tonight. We're back tomorrow at 4 PM. We'll chat then. I Heart New Music. Your digital station for brand new drops, fresh finds, and tomorrow's bangers. Powered by North by Northeast, celebrating 30 years of discovering the artists you love
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