OverDrive - OverDrive - October 31, 2025 - Hour 2 - Keegan Matheson

Episode Date: October 31, 2025

Join Bryan Hayes, Jeff O’Neill, and Jamie McLennan for hour two of OverDrive. The guys discuss George Springer being in the lineup in game six and the credit that Mark Shapiro and Ross Atkins deserve. They are then joined by mlb.com writer Keegan Matheson to discuss the Jays being a win away from the World Series and George Springer being in the lineup.

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Hour 2 Overdrive continues, powered by Fanduel, bringing you everything from the opening line of the final score. We'll get to our best spots later in the hour. We've got Keegan Matheson coming up from the Rogers Center ahead of game six tonight. A few hours away from first pitch, Kevin Gosman on the mound for the Jays. George Springer back in the lineup, D-Hing, hitting first tonight. What a story. What a scene that's going to be. If he gets up and gets a hit tonight, place will go nuts.

It's crazy. goes yard he might be pushing Popkins over to the side Popkins George. I apologize to the fan base. I'm getting some hate mail. Well this is where you can't win. Come on man they haven't won yet. It's just like

We know. Everyone knows they haven't won yet. We understand they haven't won yet. They have to put the games. I'll go on the Gord Miller train. Nothing I say affects anything. I know. Be quiet. When I work with Gord, I tell him not to say the word shut out. And he's like, me we have no effect on the game he said if if we walk outside isn't there an old saying you step

on a crack make break your mother's back he's like we can go step on cracks your your mom's back will be fine like he he's pretty funny when it comes to like the non-superstitious thing i still when i'm calling games i stay away from the word shut out i do i just i i i out of respect for the fans that you know if i'm doing a regional broadcast in ottawa i don't want the fans to be pissed at me if I say shut out and then Omar Klessi and they're like what the hell are you doing? Like it's again it's not my fault if he

lets in a goal but I try to be respectful in that situation but the fans they're pumped up you can tell they're emotional I guys I've got heat in the last hour because I said you know Atkins signed Vladdy and people like it's AA that sign him I'm like no

AA did not sign him to the $500 million deal right Vladdy could have walked Correct me if I'm wrong, right? Totally. Gladdy could have said I'm out of here after this. Atkins kept him here, but some jackass writes me and goes, no, it's A-A. And I'm like, no, it's not.

It's Vladdy. Vladdy State signed here, and it was Atkins that signed him. That was my point. Yeah. People are just on edge right now. Breathe. People are on edge, which is a little bit. They should be in a fun mood.

Exactly. Relax and how fun. It's Toronto, though. It's a Toronto sports thing. It's a sports psych. I bet you there's people in L.A. that are totally calm thinking, Dodd They'll go up there and went two in a row.

Or they'll move on to their latte and they don't care. Or they'll move on to something else possibly. But, you know, I understand it. I have been of the belief the last couple of days that it has swung more towards confidence. Not arrogance, not 100% guarantees. No one's willing to do that. No one should do that. I mean, the Dodgers, of course, can win this series.

It's a two-game series for them, right? They're not down three-nothing. They're down three-two. They come up here two games in 24 hours. the Dodgers could be World Series champs. But I get the sense that the team's confidence, the Blue Jays, is permeating through the fan base, which probably speaks to how beloved the team is,

how easy they are to root for, how much they've proven time and time again that they keep breaking through barriers. Like the first one was game one against the Yankees. Even the first two, you can bundle the first two games. Prior to that series, they had not won a playoff game in 10 years with all these guys. Vladdy, Bo, Springer, right?

Like, they lost the two against Minnesota, lost the two against Seattle, lost the two against Tampa in 2020. And then they come out of the gate flying, they pump the Yankees in two games. All right, that barrier's down. They finally lose a game. They lose game three.

Okay, now what? Are the Yankees going to come back? No, they go in there, win game four. That series is done. They drop the first two at the dome against Seattle. Come back, down three, two. They're losing game seven. They win it.

right like they lose an 18 inning marathon heartbreaking loss in game three what do they do they win game four and five like they just keep proving to the world like that they're a resilient team that's going to show up and play and that's one thing i do believe it i don't know if they're going to win tonight or went tomorrow who knows we'll see i i think they're going to because i think they've been better and i think they have shown that resiliency but i don't know anything we'll find out but i do believe that they're going to they're going to play well like i don't think they're going to show up and get pumped tonight, tomorrow, and just fold and be overwhelmed.

That is the biggest difference, and I don't want to really, but I'm going to do it, drag the Leafs into this, or it's like some of the Leaf performances where you expect, like, just what you said, you know they're just, they're going to, what you've been saying about the Jay's is they're going to be there when it counts, for the most part. Like, they get dummy the game, they show up the next game. And sometimes with the Leafs in those biggest moments,

It's like a blowout, and it's like a no-show, and you're like, what the hell was that? People are leaving the building, and they're like, what the hell was that? And they haven't done that with the J's, and that's why everyone has literally falling in love with these guys. Yeah. Like falling in love with their – and it's not just home runs. It's just the gutty plays and the diving catches and the throws to get people out at home. And the resilience is the key word. They just keep coming back and they don't quit, man.

Big difference. It's a big difference. No one complaining. Like, you're out of the game. this guy's going in perfect high fives go get them you know yeah you're playing for a contract maybe you're not going to be back next year who cares not talking about it we're here to win tonight you know it's it's it has really felt it's been refreshing you know it's been a refreshing ride that the jays have taken this this toronto sports scene on and it's the

it's it was a sports city and a marketplace and a fan base that was so easy to win over like the easiest to win over ever is Toronto because all they want it just give them a couple of comeback wins and play your heart out and do something that was unexpected and you're in right you're in the club like you're in the club of like all time beloved teams dude that's all they expect play your heart out play your ass off right it's like white collar fan base down there because the tickets are so expensive but they have this blue collar expectation of the performance

That's why guys like Gary Roberts and Darcy Tucker and Ty Domi are easily the most famous, most popular stars down there. Obviously, they like Vladi Guerrero because he can go yard and all that other stuff, but they love Ernie Clement too. Right. That's what they love, man. They want you to work your ass off. And then they walk out of the building, they're like, I can live with that. That's the starting point. And it's not just loving Ernie Clement for just being a hard worker that.

Clement has been nails. Like he's been unbelievable. Every time he steps up to the plate, I expect him to get on base. I really do. Well, yeah, it's like there's performance involved too. Yeah, like it's not just being a good guy and hey, like it's performance based where I don't know if it's come out of nowhere type of thing, but like I've been a guy that it feels weird, but like looking at Alejandro Kirk, he's unbelievable.

But I look at him, I have a tough time because I'm like, that guy is, Mashes, you know, home run at the right time, unbelievable catcher. You know, he picks people off at second base. Like, you know, and he's a likable guy. I found out his nickname within the dress, or within the doghouse the other day. I don't know if I can say it on air, so I won't, but it's funny. Like, he's, apparently he's really loved, really funny guy. Oh, yeah?

And Ross got roasted for that one, too. The signing? The trade. Oh, well, yes, they moved off, yeah, the kid, Marino, and they moved off. Yeah, absolutely. Danny Jansen as well, right? And Marino went to the playoffs, the year he got traded, and him and Gurriel Jr. were just playing unbelievable in the Diamondbacks run. And it just kept coming back to Ross, like, what are you doing? But you're right about, you know, giving credit where it's due.

Varsho has been phenomenal for this team. Yeah, I totally agree. And Kirk was the right guy to choose. You know, you're only going to have one guy. You're only, only one guy is going to catch, you know, two out of three games and get the money. And they picked the right guy. And there was a time when they were humming haze where Varsha was not in the mix, he was injured. And there was a bunch of people that were like, he better be sitting on the outside looking in

because I don't want him to disrupt what's going on out there. And he went right in and he just fit in seamlessly and he was dynamite. He's been great. His first full year, he struck out a ton. you know he didn't play great you know but he didn't man this year he's been outstanding last year he was really good and the deal it's played out played out beautifully for the jays have we buried the lead where at the starting of the season what did we expect from george springer literally nowhere close to this clearly exactly where he has been their MVP and now he's battling through

injury and schneider i guess said you know the MRI suggested it's not too terrible and it's basically a pain threshold thing and he's going to go he's going to play so you know i have all the appreciation in the world for that and bo bishette even was asked i guess like this could be his last game was a blue jay tonight it's if they win tonight or if they don't they play tomorrow that could be it both been here for a decade yeah could be it in a world series man maybe it's just say check please i'm going to go try something else different somewhere else i think it's i think it would be received well both ways yes you know like if you win all good man all good good but also if you win maybe it's like i want to run it back and because he had you know got injured

down the stretch and was injured for the first couple of rounds who knows what the contract's going to look like yeah what kind of offers are going to be out there i don't know i don't think he knows what's available there's no hemming and hawing it's either strong one of the two things it's like that was great 10 years world series i'm going to go do something different yeah or i'm running it back with these guys i don't love them and i haven't played that well or whatever i've been injured. Maybe a short-term deal, right? They give them a one-year deal, give them money, give $25 million, whatever the price is, I don't know. Just say, how about you come back for another platform year? Let's run it back for a season, and then we'll figure it out. I think that's

possible. Keegan Matheson from the park in about 15 minutes. Deer Hazie B, a little bit later in the hour as well. Mailing and Friday brought to you by Boston Pizza, Canada's favorite sports bar, enjoy $15 lunch at BP where you get an entree, a side and a drink, and you'll get it in 20 minutes or less. Fast lunch doesn't have to be fast food. See you for a $15 fast lunch of your local Boston pizza. So the Jets won last night. The Sends came back.

They were down 3-1. They pushed it to overtime, wanted to shootout, I believe, last night. Yeah. And the Oilers were up 3-1, blew that lead, lost to a J.T. Miller. That was a pretty nice play. I don't know what Bouchard was doing there again. Bouchard is under fire, man. Bouchard was horrendous last night.

He was. Like, it's really weird what's going on. on with him. Unfortunately, I think he is playing himself completely off the Canada radar. I think that's already happened, to be honest with you. He would have to go nuts so on the positive. Watch both of these guys. Like, Drysidal lets him go, but watch Bouchard.

Where are you going? Goes away from it. He hesitates because he's thinking maybe the guy's going to pass it to the late guy. So what? Noodles, that's like, I'm not a defenseman. Like, Brandon Carlow did that the other night. I don't know who it was that scored. I know the player you're talking about, yeah.

He just stood there and it's like when it's, what's that? Cylinder goal? No, it was at home. It wasn't the last game they played. But I know what you mean. I know what you're talking about. When you're the defenseman like that, you're the last line of defense where sometimes you just have to say, I got to cross-check this guy or he's going to score a goal.

I agree. I agree. And you know what? We talk about it all the time. If he can get a save there, we're not talking about that. Because at the other end, Schisturkin was unbelievable. Like, unbelievable in the third period. He made a save on Drysidal.

It was on the back door. Like, that was a for sure goal. Roslovak passed a two-on-one, back door. Roslavik, open net, Schisturkin gets across. McDavid, wide open net, Schisturkin gets there. Like, it just, that's the thing like. But Bouchard, those are, there's three goals he was on the ice that if it's not directly its fault,

it's damn his fault it's damn near the first goal he goes d to d breakway goal in the net okay goal he could bail him out but it's a nice play uh there's a the second goal he tries to go up the wall it gets knocked down and then he he gets outside the dot and they go in two on one and score on that play and then that overtime goal if if we want to lay it at his feet go ahead because he doesn't he makes a poor read on it and expects it dry saddle dry saddle passes off to him and you don't get a save minus three he's just directly involved in all three, and that's not just a one-off. He's been poor all season long.

And I, it's funny, at some point, the coaching staff that keeps putting them out there for every third shift or whatever, at some point they have to own it and say, they dressed 11 and 7 last night. So they had 7d dressed. At some point, you can miss a rotation. I don't know how you guys feel about that, but like there is a rotation where you You can go $10.5 million rotation miss? It doesn't matter, guys.

It doesn't matter what you're getting paid. You're trying to win games in October, November, or whatever. It happens if a guy's not playing well. You don't skate around out there with your contract around your neck going, hey, I make 10-5, so I've got to be out there. If William Nylander turns the puck over, I've heard Chief yelling at him. You can miss a rotation. You can, like, it doesn't matter what you get paid.

It's what you're doing. And to me, at some point, there is going to have to be. be some accountability with that player. It just doesn't seem like there's a cycle. Big money, you get yelled at, oh, I don't want to be here. That's the cycle. Nobody likes that nowadays, Jamie. Listen, the point, he's 24 years old, and he's a hell of a player.

He's not playing well. There's, you know, I'd be fine with giving him a longer leash, and I think that's what they're doing, but his play hasn't been good enough. That's the thing. And, you know, Evanton's, what, 3-0 and 2 at home. They probably should have been 5-0 at home, because they pissed away the game against Calgary, and then they pissed that game away last night. So, I mean, you know, you're getting points, but there's so much that they're leaving on the table there.

And those, you can point at like a couple players and go, we need a little bit more from you. Well, that's the catch-22 with him, though, is that he's so nonchalant and low, you know, no-pulse guy that, like, that D-to-D pass. That's literally him on the boards and his partner was on the boards. Like, that's the most dangerous pass in the game. and he didn't even look. I know. But, you know, seven out of ten times, that play gets pulled off. You're like, wow, what a play.

I can't believe he did that. I can't believe he tried it. No one else would even think of trying that play. He had a pass the dry saddle on a breakway the other day that was a 160-foot zone pass out of his zone. A rocket on his tape sent him in for a goal. It was unbelievable pass. But the thing is, at some point, what do you want? because you want one of those plays

and then four of the other like at some point If it's even or in the negative then you can't have it That's the thing The stability of his game is not there And at some point Now they got Walman coming off injury

And Walman got caught flat footed On goal number three I think it was But they had 70 that they could address Or they did dress last night You could have rotated through And I think someone's got a second And he's a 10 and a half million dollar defenseman

stop playing like a guy that Dry Seidel and McDavid on the power play made you into a $10.5 billion defenseman. Because the guy that's getting paid that much is a well-rounded player and competes in battles and is in for leadership and plays every shift. Not just the guy that dishes it off to McDavid or shoots one-timers from Dry-Siddle. You can't be that guy. But, oh, we've seen it. In the playoffs, he's...

He was in the hut last year at the Canadian Open. He was at, like we did, put him in the hut. Well, you started the hut. I didn't have him in the hut. Hayes, you were close on the hut. I think it was top five. You had him in there. I don't know if I did.

I don't think he's ever been in my hut. I'm not sure. The point being. Thoroughly impressed. There is just so much more there with that player. There is. He's an incredible talent. He has all the tools.

But the casual, like, these players are like. And that's why Canada again, I think it's a no-go zone for them. I could look at it and say, not playing him. I don't disagree with you on that because you can't have, you can't have, you can take the pass. If he hits McDavid with a 160-foot pass for a breakway, you'll take it. But if he goes D-to-D and gives up a breakway goal. In a gold medal game and Michael's going the other way?

Yeah. There's no escaping it. It's a disaster. Yeah. All right. So you've got the mood meter this week. Yeah, I think the top and the bottom might be easy, but you guys weigh in. Do you want me at 7?

Do you want one? What do you want? Last week we did, we started at 1. I think it's more convoluted this week than it was last week, but I think start a one again. That's so we did it last week. So I had, to be honest, I had one and one-eight because I had Marty St. Louis and I had Scott Arnieo because both those teams. Yeah, they're both playing really well.

They're playing very well, and you've got to be happy. So I had St. Louis kind of at one because Montreal, what they've been doing, now they're on, you know, been out west, tough road trip and that, and they're still getting points and contributing and where they are in the standings. To me, I would give St. Louis a slight edge on Arneill because I think Montreal's the surprise team. Yes, I agree. Montreal, I think, makes sense. He doesn't deserve to lose the one spot based on what's happened this past week.

Exactly. So I had one in one A, but Scotty Arneal right there. I mean, Winnipeg is second in the league in points. Sheifley's been great, man. Yeah, their whole team has played very, very well. At three might be a surprise for you guys, but I had Adam foot. Okay. Okay.

This is a team, and I watch them play. Nine injuries. Nine injuries. No Quinn Hughes. You know, Kiefer Sherwood is the guy who's leading. It's been awesome. But if you look at where Vancouver is, like they're, you know, they're hanging around. And maybe, like I say, it might have been an aggressive three.

But I think Vancouver at, what, 12 points, what are they? And are they in a wildcarts? Yeah, they'd be in the playoffs. So to me... And Dempco's healthy. He's been healthy and he's been unbelievable. But I look at it, Vancouver story, he's just outside. They're a point out.

But I just, I think Adam Foote has to be happy with based on the injuries and inconsistency. It's not like Pedersen's been light in the world on fire either. No, sir. So nine injuries, Pedersen not lighting the world on fire, and they are not at the bottom of the league. To me, I think Adam Foote is kind of right there. They're a 500 team. Okay. Six and six.

Vancouver foot at three. I had Knoblock at four because Ebenton is, they still get points. You know, you're going to be pissed at Bouchard. You can be pissed at that, but they still win games or get points. So I feel like there was other guys that we'd be more pissed. Yeah, I think that's reasonable. Totally.

Totally. Okay. And then at five, I had Greenie, Travis Green. They've rebounded. They rebounded, but I'm still, the penalty kill. They gave up two last. night like the penalty kill is very concerning because that's that like they've got to get it up to 85% or 80% or whatever it's in it's had something with a six in it at last I checked like

65% I believe it's close to worse than the league if it's not the worst in the league I have to and their goal tentating hasn't been great right no it's really struggled which doesn't help the penalty kill exactly but I you know so I had greenie there uh at five penalty kill is at 62.2 2% one step ahead of the Minnesota Wild at 60%. So that's why I went Greenie at 5. Happy with the getting the points and the contributions without Brady, but the penalty kill, I would circle at that. Number 6, I had Craig Barubi.

And there may be a fight at 6-7, but I went Barubi at 6 because the team, the expectations are high, but there's still some points under the time. Where was he last week? I think he was at 6, too. I think I had them at five. I think I had Green and Huska below him. Oh, you're right.

I did. You did. And then green right after Sends went back to back, a home at home, I think. Yeah. And then they won last night. So, yeah, I had green in Huska, 6, 7. I had Baruba at 5. And then I've had Huska there at 7.

I think Calgary is a better team than two wins, but they've got two wins. That's the two regulation wins. They had that game last night, too. They had it. They were playing well. But at the end of the day, like, I think Ryan Huska wakes up and he looks at the standings and he's not happy. And that's fair to assess.

Reasonable. Right now they are 32nd in the National Hockey League with two regulation wins and two O.T. slash shootout losses. Well, eight, eight losses. It's, you know, November tomorrow, man. Like, it's November tomorrow and like it creeps up on you quickly. And I would say with the Leafs in mind, you know, they can rest their laurels. on, hey, we've had bad octobers before and that's accurate. It doesn't mean it's

acceptable, but it's accurate. They've had really slow starts. They always floor it in November. Always floor it in November. And what generally has led to charge for the last nine years is a red hot goaltender in November. Someone with like a 950

save percentage on the month that just like Freddie used to do it when he first got here. Jack Campbell when he had that big year, it was the November where he got started. Joseph wall i believe you know it's so they're going to need and i guess it stole ours to have an unbelievable month for them to feel better about their game rack up points and get to december and say see i told you i told you so it was just a slow star just like we always do but you know

again the jays are supplying cover you know there's supply and cover for them but the cover ends tonight or tomorrow. Yeah, you're right. The cover ends tonight or tomorrow. Well, by Sunday, regardless, the cover's done. Covers gone. The dome's coming off. The roof is opening. It'll be thrilling. All the reporters will be coming out of the ground coming to

watch the Leaf games. They're like, what do we have here with the Leaf games? Oh, yeah, let's take a sniff over here. What's behind door number three? Yeah. Oh, four on twos, five on ones. Let's have a peek. Yeah. And you can see it and feel it, you know, throughout the market that Matthews is in a spotlight he's never been in before no like this is very very unique

for austin where you know everyone's looking at him saying what are you doing what is happening you know like what is going on last year we know it's an injury you're you're 100% now we get that Mitch isn't around so he's not coming back what are we doing here yeah you know like I look at him tomorrow night I think Stollos has got to have a night clearly but If Matthews doesn't have a green light special night, we're not far away from panic mode, like Halloween music being played. Well, someone's going to flat out ask him to his face,

what's wrong with you? Your play doesn't even look like it has in the past. Is there something, what's up with your play? Right, exactly. Because that's what every other podcast, what we're talking about, and someone's going to pose it to him. What do you think of your own play? Because it doesn't look like the Austin Matthews

that the fan base and your teammates and your coaches and GM have seen in the past. That's coming. It's impossible not to. You're the captain. You're the highest paid player. You're the best player. Yes. You're 28.

You're not 38. No. You've got to have it. You're in your prime. You know, you've got to be great. And it's not some crazy, dumb-ass Toronto media question. No, it's not. It's a fair question.

It's a hundred percent fair. It's fair. Yes. And it may not be there today, but it's coming if this continues. And it doesn't help. Again, like we always say, the goalie can mask some things. If they were 8 and 2 when he was playing like this, whatever. You know, side story, you're talking about it.

And glass half full, wait until they get chugging with this guy playing better. But it's not happening. You're losing and your best players playing, let's call it what it is, the worst hockey of his career. Like, that's what it is through 11 games. It's the worst 11-game stretch of his career. There's no question. And he's got to be way better. All right, Kegan coming up.

George Springer is back. What does he make of this decision? Springer playing D-Hing leading off tonight. Gosman v. Yamamoto. We'll head down to the dome. Catch up with Kagan next. Mail it in Friday is brought to you by Boston Pizza, Canada's favorite sports bar. Enjoy $15 lunch at BP where you get an entree a site and a drink and you'll get it all in 20 minutes or less.

A fast lunch doesn't have to be fast food. See you for a $15 fast lunch at your local Boston pizza. All right, best bets later in the hour. Raptors NBA Cup starting tonight everyone's so excited for the NBA Cup sure it's a high priority for people this evening so Raptors playing Cleveland first game with the NBA Cup you know it's going to be a afterthought of an idea like it's

you know what I mean like yeah just never it hasn't caught yet no no excitement no build up maybe it will in a decade but it doesn't seem like anyone's having NBA Cup watch parties tonight don't think that's happening There are Blue Jay watch parties. Obviously the lucky 50,000 or so in the dome, they're going to be on their feet this evening. Down the street at Scotia Bank Arena,

people are going to be jacked. Bars, restaurants, basements, all around the country, cannot wait for the game tonight. Let me ask you this. If you were going up to push away Tommy Verduch, and just as you took one step up, Kagan grabbed you and pushed you aside and said, I'm presenting the trophy to someone

who does he give it to well why don't we ask him why why ask me why don't we ask him here he is from mlb.com our main man keegan matheson looking like an absolute stud stud stud phenomenal uh what's the vibe like vibe check down there keegan yeah guys i've got swimming trunks on here below the camera we're just kind of piecing it together but it's uh quite the scene guys i walked up about two o'clock in the afternoon and lines at all the gates It's no giveaway, nothing extra to come in, but people just want to be around the stadium. It's pretty cool to be around the city right now, downtown guys. Everybody's in Blue Jays gear.

Everybody's talking about the Blue Jays. There are some fans coming in here right now, and there are, to my left and right cameras, and people as far as you can see. This is one-of-a-kind experience here. Yeah, it really is. And we were discussing, you know, maybe the one person in particular that would get credit for the reason the Jays are in the position they're in right now. The outside-the-box-thinking type person.

Right. Do you have anyone in particular that you would give the most credit to as to why the Jays are on the verge of winning a World Series? Yeah, so I don't get Vladie. I don't get the obvious guys. Do we get the, like, the Ray Bork Stanley Cup pass? Do we get Max Scher grabbing onto one? But he's had a few before, you know?

Keegan, let me just give you an example. I would have given the trophy. I would have handed it to the hitting coach. because he changed everything. I like that. He's got to be early in line. I like Scherzer. I like George Springer to be up early in that line.

Then you think of the glue guys, the Ernie Clement, Miles Straw types, who may not have the biggest numbers, but everybody loves them. But I don't mind the little David Popkins early in the line, guys. I like it too. It's outside the box thinking, and you mentioned Springer,

who I got to be honest, I was not bracing for him playing. tonight. I thought that ship had sailed. I thought it was done. He would not pick up another bat. Maybe he'd be a, you know, pinch running at some point like he was going to the other night. Take us through, you know, how this all came about and what

are the reasonable expectations for Springer batten lead off and de-hing tonight? Yeah, guys, in L.A. when I saw Springer grab at that right side, and he walked right off, too. He didn't talk to the trainer. They did not have a big conference. He just got out of there. And I figured that was the end of the season.

because they're calling it right side discomfort. Nobody wants to say body parts at this time of year, but we're all smarter enough to know. It's probably an oblique. And obliques are not a two or three-day deal. This is something I thought was the end for George Springer. So I'm surprised he's in this lineup, guys. Maybe he's only 70%.

Maybe we see him kind of grabbing at it and wincing a few times. We'll see. But all he's got to do is connect once. All he's got to do is have that one big moment. And he has the World Series experience, guys. He's got that 2017 World Series MVP. I would not bet against him in any way, but I'm shocked he's out there.

Kagan, how do the Jays get to Yamamoto? They've got to be one step ahead of Yamamoto, guys. John Schneider said the last time Yamamoto was kind of three different pitchers. Each time through the lineup, he shifted his shape to be one step ahead of the Blue Jays. Now, that's going to take some guessing. The Blue Jays have to take some shots, quite frankly, because if you take a guess, if you take a chance and you fail, well you're going to end up with zero runs

which might be what you end up with anyways who cares take some risks take some shots against yamamoto he is beatable his z a r a is not zero he is human and i think the blue jays can get to him with the advantage of seeing him a second time but they've got to be bold in this guys because if they are not one step ahead of yamamoto

he'll torch them he's an amazing pitcher outside of paul skeins probably the one guy i would want in the mound if i'm an m lbgm and they need to jump him They need to do what they did earlier in this series to Blake Snell. They need to get out, take a chance. Well, and maybe get lucky, according to Blake Snow, right? Maybe you get lucky and you find, you know, you find a couple of hits tonight. You know, it's interesting when you consider, obviously, Yamamoto is the talking point

because of what happened in game two and because there's an understanding and, you know, it's quite obvious that the Dodgers are literally fighting for their lives tonight. But Gossman is flying under the radar for me here, Kegan. Like he was matching him stuff for stuff until the seventh inning in game two. He was phenomenal in game two. I think he's the right guy to be on the mount up against Yamamoto. I think he'll take it personally that he gets another shot at this guy. What are you expecting at a Gosman tonight?

I agree. I think there's going to be a little spice to Gosman, guys. I think this is going to be one heck of a performance from him. Because last time, like you said, Hayes, those home runs, I can't just discount those. They were real. They left the yard. But up until then, it was one of the big. the best performances i've ever seen from gosman against a really really good lineup and i don't think

that it's going to kill gosman that they just saw him because yamamoto maybe the blue jays benefit from that he throws five six seven different pitches seeing him again is a benefit that's an advantage kevin gosman was never going to surprise anybody right he was going to throw his fastball up in the zone the splitter down of the zone and he was going to do it over and over and he was going to bet that he's better than the hitter it's why he's great that's what he does every single time so seeing him for a second time in a week I don't think that helps the Dodgers much it's the same guy, same pitches

so I trust Gosman man this is the moment he was brought here and I have all the respect in the world for Gosman as a pitcher man I think he's really going to rise to this one this is exciting Keegan I said some dumb stuff at the beginning of the show and it was immediately topped when Brian Hayes spoke up yeah yeah

dude listen to this Brian Hayes came over the top Brian Hayes came over the top and he said Otani kind of Maybe he's tired. Maybe he's just not himself right now. And it's scared the hell out of me. What are your thoughts on those type of comments from A'sy B?

You know what? He's coming off nine times on base and then pitching a game and then flying across the country. I know these guys fly a little nicer than me. And I know they've got lots of fancy stuff in those boxes in the dugout. They can help wake you up and keep you going. But everyone's worn down this time of year, guys. I think Otani will be okay today. and guys I keep coming back to the fact or the idea sorry

that Otani's not going to go out laying down here he's not going to go 0 for 4 and lose the world series he's going to do something whether it's tonight or potentially tomorrow they're going to have to deal with Otani again some way some form but I do think guys the last two days that fatigue might have been a factor

he didn't look like himself he didn't have that explosiveness at the plate but tonight's you know I'm sure he got a nice seat on the flight didn't fly back middle seat like me So I think he'll be all right. Yeah, I'm sure he's, that day off does scare me a little bit, you know, and him having the ability to simply focus on bats. But he didn't look great to me, you know, is that bats in game four or game five?

No. He did not look good. And really, it's been the Otani show in terms of driving the bus for the Dodgers offense for the most part. Obviously, Freeman walks him off in game three. In game two, it was the Will Smith home run that set the home in the end. I think it was Muncie that hit the other one. But, you know, it's the rest of the lineup, the Js have handled pretty well. and they have a different approach and mentality tonight.

If you're Dave Roberts, you have to win. You'll do anything you can to win tonight. Everyone is clearly available. How does this apply to Schneider knowing that they do have the ability or it's the possibility they play tomorrow night? How do you see him handling his bullpen and his bench and how much all-in mentality would you expect out of Schneider tonight? I think you pretend that this is game seven already, guys.

You can figure out tomorrow, tomorrow. And Max Scherzer, if there is a game seven, would be the starter, but you can figure that out coming off of the off day. Maybe Trey I Savage comes back around tomorrow. We'll see. You've got some options. But I think that John Schneider has learned from the past few post seasons, and those post seasons have held a lot of lessons for the Blue Jays.

I think that lifting Berrios for Kikuchi. I know nobody wants to hear about that anymore. But I think that those moments of overthinking and overplanning have taught this front office and taught this coaching staff and taught John Schneider a lot. And I think that John Schneider's done a really good job of learning from that. He has been pretty open and pretty outright with talking about that. He's beat himself up pretty good. And I think that he's learned from that and we'll avoid that now.

If they've got any chance at all, whatsoever, I think he's going to empty the tank and you figure out tomorrow tomorrow, which I like. Can't leave any scraps from the table tonight. Kegan, let me just clarify something. and I don't want to get too far ahead of myself. Are you confirming? You just said, we'll deal with tomorrow, tomorrow,

but Scherzer will be the guy tomorrow, taking the hill. He would be tomorrow. I expect he'll have the cleats on tonight, too, but if they need a starter tomorrow, it's Scherzerzerzer. You're concerned about that. I don't know. I just, I thought it was a negative. You've been missed your optimism.

I thought it was a two-piece. I don't sense a lot of optimism from O here. I don't know. I don't know. I just. Well, how about they avoid that? That's why you went tonight. you don't have to worry about tomorrow yeah that's the mentality i think that's what you're

suggesting keegan um yeah we'll see were you there yesterday when dave roberts face planted running the bases i was not here guys i was standing over here we're doing some sports center hits here from the field but i missed that i wish i had been here for that guys that would have been a great little uh background clip behind me but uh what a beautiful video though you know yeah coming after a couple of tough losses it's just i'm i'm sure you're sure that played really well in L.A. Oh, here we go. That's a good moment.

That'll be a meme forever. Blows a wheel. Yeah. One of the great bass runners. He tried to take the inside track, too. That's tough, you know. That's the thing, too, right. Yeah, the head start and the inside track.

And, you know, it's not the 04 ALCS anymore for Dave Roberts. Just trying to keep it loose with the boys, and then boom. Yeah, I appreciate that. I'm okay with that. All right, Keegan. I'll see you down there in a couple hours, buddy. It should be a fun night. It's going to be a great weekend either way.

And as always, we appreciate you doing this. You got her, fellas. See you soon. Hayes. Enjoy your parking. Yes, I will. There he is. Kegan Matheson at MLB.com, live from the Rogers Center. I got my spot.

Did you tell him the spot? I haven't told him anything. Dude, I love Kegan. This would have to be a waterboarding situation to get this detail out of me. I have a spot. There's no one that ever parks here. it's just out of the fray. I guarantee you it's at somebody's house or something.

A driveway. You know there's people, two 90-year-olds that live inside, they have no idea that you're parking on their driveway. Well, that's what it is. I do have a buddy, an idiot friend of mine who's offered up his spot, and you can't even get to it because the cops, it's right across the street from the dome,

and I keep telling them, I can't get there. I don't want to park there. I want to be able to get out. So just tell us what it is. Is it like an abandoned lot or is it just a little sideway? It's just a, it's a spot, man. There's a spot. It's a spot that only a Toronto lifer would know about.

Yes. That's what you're saying. And the more important detail is it's like everyone knows the dome and everyone knows where this is going. Again, if they win, Front Street will be insane tonight. So this is an escape route spot. It's just on like an inch past the border of where you're, you would expect everyone to be downtown. So, you know, again.

You were probably in a cab one night shattered, and you drove by it, and you're like, if I ever go down to that dome, I'm going to park that. That's the place right there, where you can just Batman your way out of the city, you know. And I don't know what I'm going to do tonight. You know, we'll see. Again, the game has to be played. When, if they win, it's one thing. If they lose, it's another, same thing tomorrow, clearly.

Oh, yeah. But it's a Friday night. You're leaving at 5 a.m. Yeah, well, exactly. Like, if there's parties on the field. I'm going to be there doing interviews and doing hits and all that. Let me ask you this. This is just being ridiculous, though.

Would you be fine with somebody dumping a giant gatorade on you as you're standing there? No, I would know. Anything happens to this guy's closing? I can see the pissy face coming. I'll rosenthal, the guy. And you literally get like a face full of blue gatorade as you're talking. That's a fight. It's like possible.

I mean, the thing is, you know, most guys I think are respectful. I'm not going in the clubhouse, you know, but they come out on the field, and they're in and out, in and out, you know, we'll see what happens. Vladdy comes and just blast you. Spraying everybody. If you get hit, you get hit, you get hit with shrapnel, so be it. You know, like, I'm a professional, you've got to grind through it. You've got to do what you've got to do tonight.

That would be the greatest site ever. Yeah, we'll see. We'll see. All right, Dear Hazy Bee coming up, some advice on that front and others as we lead into a big night and a big weekend. Best butts as well. We'll get to that next. Mail it in Friday is brought to you by Boston Pizza Canada's favorite sports bar.

Enjoy $15 lunch at BP where you get an entree of sight and a drink and you'll get it all in 20 minutes or less. A fast lunch doesn't have to be fast food. See you for a $15 fast lunch at your local Boston pizza. People send in a tweet they write us for our professional advice on life things. Dear Hazy Bee, every morning my boiler has a gasoline. My wife thinks it's the baby. Dear Hazy Bee. If you want to come to Hazy Bee,

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See you for a $15 fast lunch of your local Boston pizza. We'll be out Winnipeg soon, right? Asking for advice. How do we prep for the peg? Yeah, right? Probably a jacket, I'm assuming. November 13th, there might be some coolness out there. Yeah, I'm going to take a look at the, you know, the forecast, the future forecast, get a read.

Are we talking parka? Are we talking? No, I think we ease into it, right? Winter coat, though. Winter coat. I'm wearing a winter coat. Okay. There you go.

We'll have people from the peg. Hook us up, man. We can't wait. It's going to be awesome. How about this cat? I got one here for you. I need help here, fellas. I have an in-person exam tomorrow at 8 a.m.

I don't even know what the hell that means. At a test center in Hamilton, I live in downtown Toronto. This was booked long before the Jays run. My girlfriend texted me, letting me know they have a table book to watch the game. Do I floor it or stay in? Thanks.

I wish we had more info on what this was for. If this is a career move, kind of feels like you've got to be prepared for that. Yeah, like, if you're taking, like, driving a big rig and taking a big rig for some kind of driving test or something, you can't show up. You can't Uber it there, gooned. No. Yeah. No, but it, like, you're right, we need more context on the test. Because if it's a, you know, a test to get into a club or something like that, then you're like, to hell would it show up hung over.

They just don't even go. It seems something serious, like an in-person test. It's like a driving for like a special truck. But on a Saturday morning? Yeah, that's when they do those stupid tests. You get in when you can and you get in when the roads are clear if it's stuff like that too, right? You ever pulled up to a mall and they're doing like motorcycle testing on an empty parking lot at 9 a.m.? That sounds like something this could be like. Kind of feels like you need to be sober and have your wits about you.

Unfortunately. But it is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Dude, it really is, man. It's game six, 2025. It's been 32 years, you know? And they're not alone. There's so many, I had someone write to me. Scott, actually, from the peg.

Scott, I hope he's listening. I'm sure he is. He's in town. Got to meet us at the Boston Pizza when we're out in Winnipeg. He said him and five of his buddies were flying in today, 6 a.m. flight. They're like, do we, like, what's the plan during the flight? You know, it's like going to Vegas. I said that.

I said, just have a great time and just, you can get a little siesta in the afternoon. You'll check into the hotel. You pin it until two in the afternoon and just have a three-hour shutdown and get back at it. Perfect. You can do it. If you can handle that, that's the problem. If there's one guy that goes overboard, puking and drags it, you've got to make it to the game. You've got to enjoy yourself.

Keep in mind, you know, if they win, you're going all night. So you've got to figure that out. You're right. I'd say enjoy yourself. but make sure you can last to enjoy and remember the festivities. That's a great point. If they win. I couldn't do it anymore.

Like 20 years ago I could. I couldn't anymore. I couldn't be drinking at 8 a.m. And, you know, at my age and no way, man. I'd need to just ease into the day. I'd be more, you know, let's have a great dinner. Let's go somewhere for like 5.30, you know, really fired up from there. But I'm living a different lifestyle in a different world.

That's what's been crazy about this experience. Like, I'm down there in a suit, the press box. I haven't had one beer, one drink, one, you know, obviously I'm working. Like, I'm not asking for people to shed tears, but it's such a different experience if you're in the seats and, you know, the party and like if they went pouring out onto the street, I was talking to my dad today. He was there in 93. He said he and his buddy walked all the way up to, like, Young and Dundas.

You know, they took the train down, TTC down, and he's like, we just walked because the streets, there were a million people downtown. That would have been so awesome. Yeah, well, he lives in North Toronto. He just, I'm saying, you could get on at Union. He's like, we're just going to walk all the way up young. Like, just keep going. Half an hour, 45 minute walk, you know, in the crowds.

And I would anticipate something similar, right? There'll be millions of people downtown. And I have to apologize. I have to correct one thing. I want you tonight. I totally forgot about this. To hand that trophy. to Donnie Baseball.

Don Mattingley in the World Series. I totally forgot. Donnie Baseball. I hope he has a mustache for tonight. Mustache tonight. Best bets powered by Fanduel. Make your picks and assemble the same game parlay in seconds on the Fandwell Sportsport gap. Colts laying to points.

Seahawks laying to points. Hayes and Bro seeing the board very, very clearly. Those are our two picks. I'm not touching the Owen Wilson pick because I don't love. like the Owen Wilson pick. So we're on the Seahawks and the Colts, best bets, powered by Fandwell. The Fandrelts sportsbook app is the exclusive home of the overdraft. Same game parlay.

Police play responsibly 19 plus, physically located in Ontario. All right, here we go. Game six tonight, possibly game seven tomorrow, Leaves in Philly tomorrow, Raptors in Cleveland tonight. Chiefs Bill's on Sunday. Loaded weekend. What a weekend. It is about to be.

So we're looking forward to it all. 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 live, every hour of every show, up on YouTube live on TSN's YouTube channel. We're out of here, enjoy your evenings. Enjoy your weekends.

We're back Monday at 4 p.m. We'll chat then. Dear Hasey B is brought to you by Boston Pizza, Canada's favorite sports bar. Enjoy $15 lunch at BP, where you get an entree, a site, and a drink, and you'll get it all in 20 minutes or less. A fast lunch doesn't have to be fast food. See you for a $15 fast lunch at your local Boston pizza. Introducing Brian Adams Radio on IHart Radio. Hosted by Brian Adams himself.

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