PHNX Arizona Diamondbacks Podcast - Someone forgot to preheat the Hot Stove and we chat with Reno Aces manager Gil Velazquez

Episode Date: November 23, 2022

MLB free agency remains stagnant, the Hall of Fame releases an unimpressive 2023 ballot, and Alek Manoah is not making friends during the holidays. But Reno Aces manager Gil Velazquez stops by to cheer us up and tell us a bit more about the future stars of the D-backs organization.  BUY D-BACKS TICKETS HERE: https://gametime.hnyj8s.net/c/3442941/1410622/10874 SUBSCRIBE to our YouTube: https://bit.ly/phnx_youtubeALL THINGS PHNX: http://linktr.ee/phnxsports PHNX: Stock up for the holidays! Check out the PHNX Locker on Black Friday. Save up to 90% off everything. And when you spend $75 dollars, get a $15 gift card. Mob on over to https://phnxlocker.com/ DraftKings: Download the DraftKings Sportsbook app now (https://bit.ly/3Jl1dMX), use promo code PHNX and make your first deposit of FIVE DOLLARS and get TWO HUNDRED DOLLARS in FREE BETS INSTANTLY! For every leg you add you can boost your winnings up to ONE HUNDRED percent!If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, crisiscounseling and referral services can be accessed by calling 1-800-GAMBLER (1-800-426-2537) (IL/IN/MI/NJ/PA/WV/WY), 1-800-NEXT STEP (AZ), 1-800-522-4700 (CO/NH), 888-789-7777/visit http://ccpg.org/chat (CT), 1-800-BETS OFF (IA), 1-877-770-STOP (7867) (LA), 877-8-HOPENY/text HOPENY (467369) (NY), visitOPGR.org (OR), call/text TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN), or 1-888-532-3500 (VA).21+ (18+ WY). Physically present in AZ/CO/CT/IL/IN/IA/LA/MI/NJ/NY/PA/TN/VA/WV/WY only. Min. $5 deposit required. Eligibility restrictions apply. See http://draftkings.com/sportsbook for details.OGeez!: Enter the “Flavoring Life” sweepstakes. One winner will receive 3 bags of OGeez, an OGeez! Hat, a PHNX shirt of your choice, and a PHNX annual membership. Sign up at gophnx.com or visit https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfIplqDYsxYeiotn5Zc6hRahaX0a5qG99eHVzkhOlGZDRdgUA/viewform. Must be 21 years or older to purchase.Four Peaks: We are teaming up with Four Peaks to host all US and Mexico World Cup matches at their 8th Street Pub. Enjoy beer specials, giveaways, guest appearances, and more while watching on their 22’ jumbo screen. Click here to register for free: https://www.eventbrite.com/cc/phnx-2022-world-cup-watch-parties-1329339Enter to win the “Toast of the Month” sweepstakes to win a $50 Four Peaks gift card, a PHNX shirt of your choice, and a PHNX annual membership. Go to goPHNX.Com or visit https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfOabxo8KQxOWwn9wTilMBuTMAJdrL0CaH9lzfuJqgKN9vfSg/viewform Must be 21 or older. Enjoy responsibly. Bad Birdie: use code “BadBirdiePHNX” to take 15% off your next Bad Birdie order! https://glnk.io/7qnq/phnx-sportsMor Furniture: Sit in the same seats we do! Check out https://morfurniture.comUnderdog Fantasy: Sign up for Underdog Fantasy today! Go to the link https://play.underdogfantasy.com/p-phnx and use promo code “PHNX” to receive a deposit match up to $100Liquid Death: Get free shipping on all water and merch at https://LiquidDeath.com/PHNX FOCO: FOCO has you covered with the best Arizona Merchandise. Head on over to foco.com. For all non pre-sale items use the promo code “PHNX” for 10% offWhen you shop through links in the description, we may earn affiliate commissions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Well, hello and welcome in to another edition of the PHNX D-Backs podcast right here on PHNX. My name is Derek Monta. Of course, I'm your mayor of PHNX. This guy is the thunderstick. I'd like to thank him for holding it down yesterday without me. I heard your ad reads were good. We begrudgingly have to let you back on the show today. But Sean did, he made quite an impression yesterday.

I'm not going to lie. So I don't think you've seen the last of Sean. pause on the PHNXDVAC show, but I guess we're happy to have you back there. He's saying that Jesse Friedman, Thunderstick, vice mayor is saying that when he was the one that refused to let Sean on the show. If you remember, Sean was my office MVP. Do you think I'm going to give that to somebody that I don't want on my show in here joining us as a third? Getting ready to replace Jesse? Absolutely not. I know how electric Sean is when he's in here. And it was Jesse who was holding it against him. But see, look it.

I mean, like I said yesterday on the show, you know, Leah had to produce. Jacob was busy. No one else was in the office. So Sean was just kind of the only option we had. But like I said, he made a good impression. And so I think we're probably going to have it back on at some point. Chris Melton in the chat says, there's receipts, Jesse. There's receipts.

That's all I'm going to say. Of course, this show is brought to you by the fine folks at the Drafking Sportsbook app, America's top-rated sports book app. Jesse, very excited. We have a guest today. We're joined by Bill Glaxie. Gil Velazquez of the Reno Aces, PCL manager of the year, and I'm not sure if you remember,

but kind of guided those Reno Aces to the PCL title. Very excited to have him join us today. But first, we have some hot stove discussion, I guess, if you want to talk about that. More importantly, it's like Thanksgiving. Did someone forget to preheat the hot stove? The hot stove is lukewarm at best right now. It happens every baseball season.

Let's be honest. We don't really get things popping off until the winter meetings. But with all of our excitement for free agency, all these free agents hit in the market. And so far all we have is the New York Mets and the New York Yankees being cleared of collusion when it comes to Aaron Judge, MVP, free agent. Apparently, according to someone within the Mets organization, the two owners for the two teams, Cohen and Steinbrenner, had a discussion that sounded of sorts like they weren't going to try to outbid each other for top free agents, which violates some rules within baseball.

Am I not wrong about that? I mean, it's also. It's very smart. I mean, it's very smart. It's smart until somebody finds out about it, right? Yeah, until someone blabs about it. Yeah, I haven't really been able to verify, like, the credibility of this report.

You feel like it's pretty credible? Like, do you think this actually happened? MLB had to get involved and make a decision here when it came to collusion between the two teams. I guess that's pretty credible. Yeah. Yeah, I mean, it's kind of surprising that they would actually try something like that. I mean, I feel like you had to see it coming that, you know, somebody was going to figure out what was going on here. But, but I mean, it is in their own best interest.

Right. Although I have to say that like, I think the San Francisco Giants would, would, you know, I mean, they're a factor in this as well. It's not as if it's just like the Yankees and the Mets going back and forth. Like even if they were able to collude, the giants would come out and be like, hey, we're willing to offer more than both of you. So one of you guys is going to have to come up to our price, in which case the collusion doesn't really even matter at that point. I'm saying I feel like this. I know this is collusion. I'm not saying it is or isn't, but I'm also saying like, is this really the first time this has happened that two owners basically had a chat with each other?

According to the quote was that they enjoy a mutually respectful relationship and do not expect to upend that with a high profile bidding war. And that's between Steve Cohen and Yankees chairman, Hal Steinbrenner. But again, like, yeah, of course. I mean, sometimes if you know somebody or have some sort of relationship with them, you can't do that. It's just collective bargaining agreements really prevent these guys from ever talking about this stuff with anybody and having it come to light. I mean, we've been in Mike Hayzen press conferences before where someone asked a question that kind of veered towards Hayeson's thoughts on, you know, maybe the contracts that are being given out or something of the sort. And he can't comment on that because once he does, it's a violation. of the collective bargaining agreement.

There's been other cases too. I believe there was something said from the Astros owner about Justin Verlander. And it kind of, again, something, all I have to do is say a little something, you know, that might lean towards them giving their position or making some sort of comment on the market right now, which could be completely insane based on what we've seen when it comes to the retention of some of the relievers just around baseball, let alone some of these high-priced-free agents that are going to get scooped up. I mean, I don't know how much Edwin Diaz's market necessarily affects like Aaron Judge. It's going to be fascinating because Aaron Judge is 31 years old, I want to say.

That's old. Like, not that old. Not that old. It's not that bad. Oh, Jesse, you got to stop coming after me. You got to stop personally attacking me. He's older than some of the other free agents, some of the other top-end free agents. on the market, right? And especially just like given his size, it's hard to know how a player

like Aaron Judge will age. I think a lot of people have optimism just given how athletic he is and the fact that, you know, he's not just a hitter. He's a pretty solid defender. He can even play some center field as well. So I don't think there's that much concern from that standpoint. But anytime you're talking about a guy who's, you know, who's 31 years old entering free agency and you're talking about, you know, 7, 8, 9, 10 years or whatever it might take. I don't know. I don't know if Edwin Diaz's 102 million really has any impact on that.

It's like, what are you willing to pay for a guy who, you know, just hit 62 home runs and had an outstanding season? I think the market for him is going to set itself kind of separately from a lot of the other guys out there. Yeah. Brian Abdallah said in the comments, Aaron Judge Wants a bidding war. He absolutely does. And Gabriel Ferrer says someone is going to,

give Judge eight years 350 million 350 so that would be wow that's that's an insane AV I mean eight years

350 that's 44ish million 43 million per year would you give Aaron judge I'm not I would give

43 44 million per year for that long I would have a hard time even if I had the money giving any player that much money right I just refused to believe that any

player makes that big of a difference to your team to put so much money on one player and their impact. You know, like you said, he's getting older. Who knows by the age of 36, 37, if he's still going to be able to perform anywhere close to where he currently is right now, not to mention the fact that a single injury could ruin that entire pipe dream as far as him being a valuable part of your team for that length of time. Yeah, also thanks to Brian for helping me out here. He is 30. I did just check and confirm that as correct. So yeah, he's currently 30.

He'll be 31, though, in April. So, yeah, it's not like he's super old. I mean, he's not like a 34-year-old free agent or anything. But, I mean, you're talking about at least what, like, I think seven years is kind of a no-brainer. Like, there's no way he gets less than seven years. So it's like, do you think that Aaron Judge is going to be a good baseball player in his age, you know, 38 season? Is that something that you're willing to bet on? I don't know.

We're seeing that out of Justin Verlander. I know he's a pitcher, so it's different when it comes to pictures. And he's also not human. He is not human. That is very true. That is very true. But in other starting pitcher news, I don't think Garrett Cole is going to be inviting Alex Manoa over for Thanksgiving dinner or even sending him a Christmas card after a recent

interview, Jesse, where Manoa was asked, who is the worst cheater in baseball? and he had something interesting to say. He didn't really hesitate too much. Let's check. So you ready? Yeah. All, let's do it. Who is the worst cheetah in the baseball story?

In baseball history? Yeah. Cheater? Yeah. Garrette. What he did? Yeah. He cheated.

He used a lot of like sticky stuff. Yeah? To make his pitches better. Wow. And he kind of got caught out on it. Okay. So this one. for you.

Oh, this are for me. Yeah. That's one that big one. You answer it. Aye. This one, I never had this one. This too big. Oh, they are moving.

Why did this to me? I told you, I'm answering every question. I'm not drinking at you. Yeah, you're doing that. Is that Sergei Baca? That's Sergei Baca. That is Sergei Baca's podcast. How hungry are you?

How hungry are you podcast? Ah, that makes sense. That is Alex Manoa labeling Garrett Cole as the biggest cheater in baseball history. I mean, objectively, that's not true. I mean, yeah, of course. There's literally no case to possibly be made that Garrett Cole is the biggest cheater. But yeah, I mean, there was a pretty uncomfortable interview with Garrett Cole back in 2021. The Spider-Tack interview.

Yeah, that was the year that Major League Baseball really cracked down on, you know, the usage of those kind of substances during games. And yeah, I think it was June 2021. Garrett Cole was asked in a press conference, have you ever used this stuff? And it's hilarious. We probably should have pulled video about too. He turns into a sputtering car from a cartoon. Yeah, he just doesn't know how to respond.

I don't know. I don't know. I don't quite know. I don't quite know how to answer that. He's only as guilty as he himself admitted. And in that interview, he admitted a lot of. But that said, he's not the biggest cheater. I mean, come on, he's not the biggest cheater in MLB history. But Alec Manoa and Garrett Cole have had their beefs over the years. There was an incident in a game recently.

I don't know if they were even pitching against each other in that game, but there was a guy hid by a pitch and they were tripping back and forth at each other. So all I know is that in 2023, if we get an Alec Manoa, Garrett Cole pitching matchup, that is going to be must see TV. It needs that. It must be. For sure. Must. Absolutely must. Both guys need to bat in that game.

I know it's an American league game. What? Both pitchers need to D.H that game. Just so they have a chance to hit each other? Yeah, exactly. Exactly. That's exactly what I want. Well, Alec Manoa became one of our favorite pitchers just during the All-Star game with everything he did, how entertaining he was.

He is a big personality. It doesn't surprise me that he didn't shy away from a question like this. No. No. It did surprise me, given the question was, who's the biggest. baseball cheater, cheater in baseball in history, right, that he would go after somebody who's still currently playing versus a wide range of players who are no longer active that he could have got after.

Right, right. It would have been weird for him in some way to go after a player who retired, you know, to go after one of the PED users or, you know, some of the names that we talk about a lot. Because I don't know. That would just come across. It's like, oh, Alec Manoa has this hard-hitting opinion about, you know, which icons in baseball are, you know, we're the biggest cheaters. Like, I don't think that really comes across for him very well.

Whereas him going after Garrett Cole is a big statement. Yeah. But it's also something that, like, you know, the Blue Jays fan base is going to be all over. And the Blue Jays and Yankees kind of already hate each other at this point. So they're not really trying to maintain any kind of peace there. So, yeah, in some ways I'm not that surprised that Alec Manoa chose violence in this particular, in this particular instance. Gabriel Ferrer said, we're not. fact of the history of baseball there had never been a player named Alec now there's two at the same

time. Alec Thomas. Really? What? I don't believe you, but I'm going to verify that. I trust you. I don't feel like you would have come in the chat in the comments with that ammunition and misfired, but I mean, that's not that uncommon of a name.

It's really not. But I bet they both get called Alex a lot. I'm pretty sure I called him Alex. Yeah, you definitely did call him Alex. I started. I know his name's Alec, but yeah, I get mad at people for doing that. to Alec Thomas. So my apologies, of course. Jesse over here wants me out of here really bad, obviously. I think that's what's going on here. But we're very excited to have you guys as diehards,

debacks diehards, P-HNX diehards. And if you haven't signed up for that diehard membership, please do so. Not only will you get an incredible amount back, but you will also get access to the diehards newsletter, which Jesse is a part of, making sure he gets out to you guys as well. So it's very exciting for that. Also make sure sign up get a T-shirt or a free hat once per year. Not only that, but we have our Q&A's, all sorts of stuff. We're all about the culture. We're all about content.

And we're all about giving you guys everything that you want it. Because, of course, in our community, it's all about you guys. 25% off tailgates. We're going to have members-only invites and events. We've had our incredible watch parties out at Four Peaks Brewing Company so far. So really, we thank you guys so much. for being here, for being part of everything we're doing here. Make sure to sign up for a membership that way you don't miss out on that.

Shout out to Jesse for his guest appearance on DNVR Rockies. Working double duty today. I don't like that. What have you done? What have you done today, Derek? I'm only going to be on a new show later that we have on the network called G-rated, where we're going to be talking about the new song. It's not called G-rated.

That's a common misconception. It's called Graded, and it's about cheese. I'm sticking to it. Thanks, she's worse. Anyway, we thank you guys for being here in the chat, of course. Make sure to subscribe to the PHNX Sports YouTube channel if you haven't done so already. Sign up for notifications. That way you don't miss when any of our shows go live.

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But we are very excited now. like I said, we were joined a little earlier by Reno Aces Manager slash the PCL Manager of the Year, Gil Velazquez, and here was our chat with Gil. Well, Gil, thank you so much for joining us. We appreciate you taking some time. Congratulations first on being named the PCL Manager of the Year and how your Reno Aces did this year, winning the PCL Championship. We were thrilled to watch it. We know we've had a lot of fun watching this. young guys on the team. And I know Jesse and I are wondering a bit about the excitement of the Aces winning the PCL championship and coming so close in the AAA championship. What's the excitement level been like in Reno? Well, first of all, thank you for having me. I think

I mean, this year was an outstanding year, not only for the Reno Aces, but the Arizona D-backs, all these young talented players going up. And, uh, having their major league debut. But for the Aces, it was just an exciting year, you know. Getting to win the PCL and with all the moves we had, it just, the guys never lost focus of what the goal was to show up to the ballpark every day and play for each other. Gil, I'm curious, Diamondbacks fans got a little bit of a glimpse of Corbyn Carroll

just at the very end of the season. and I know he wasn't with Reno for very long this year because he obviously got called up. Just what were your impressions of him in that brief stint of his in Reno? And what do you think DeBak's fans have to look forward to going into next year? Oh, man, I'll tell you what, this kid is super talented. You don't get to see these type of players very often. He's got everything.

He's talented. He's an excellent human being. He's a great teammate. He's disciplined. I feel he's got every tool to be you know a superstar for a long time in the major leagues and there's a couple of other guys obviously that have come up that played with you this year

I guess my question that I've always wondered is how difficult as a manager is it to balance a team winning like the Reno Aces 1 setting you know what was a club record for most regular season wins while balancing the roster kind of changing so much throughout the season? Well, I think relationships is what it comes down to. These guys have known each other, you know, coming up through the system. The Diamondbacks did an outstanding job.

Just, you know, whether it was a camp or it was, you know, instructional league or a trip to wherever it is, these guys got to know each other. They got to know each other coming up through the system. some guys went to double a some guys went to a ball you know so they they met in triple a and and they knew each other they were comfortable with each other um so that that's what i meant by them playing for each other it wasn't nothing nothing new for them um but yeah i tip my hat to the organization they did an outstanding job keeping these guys um as as a family to be honest

Gil, what did it mean to you? I know we touched on it earlier that you won the manager of the year award for the PCL. Just what did that mean for you? Just coming in this year as your first year as the manager of the Reno Aces and, you know, achieving what I presume is a pretty high honor for you, especially in your first year. Yeah, absolutely. I mean, of course, I'm honored, you know, but, you know, I've always said the players is what makes the manager. You know, they play hard for each other. They play hard for the staff.

And at the end, I get the reward, but I feel like that's a reward that came from everybody's effort. As a manager in minor league, how is it different for you? Like, as far as developing guys versus at a major league level where the end goal is always winning, right? The end goal is trying to get that championship. Do you still have that kind of as motivation for you? you or do you kind of approach it as you're helping these guys along their baseball journey getting to that next level? Well, I think development happens on a daily basis.

You don't, you don't ever stop developing. We try to preach to these guys, you know, once you get in between those lines, it's, it's no longer development. It's competitiveness. It's performance. You've got to get out there and compete. But throughout the day, you're developing. You're working with guys.

you're having conversations, you're letting them know things you're seeing. And honestly, a lot of times it's just having conversations with them, listening to them and them giving them themselves the answer. But it's just being there, being there available for them at all times as much as you can and actually loving what you do. You know, you got to enjoy what you're doing. So these guys make it fun, especially when you've got talent like that, you know, coming to the ballpark, it's fun.

Yeah. Well, and as part of their development being competitive, like I feel, I feel like you have to have a, like a competitive nature as an athlete in general, right? But you as a manager, I feel like, you know, with what you accomplished in your first season, that you have to be competitive and you personally have to win

and that kind of might carry over to those guys, yeah? No, 100%. I think, you know, being in the game as long as I've been, I wouldn't be in the game as long as I've been if I didn't have any competitiveness in me. I think some guys have it more than others, but I believe everybody that puts a uniform on has it. It's just finding a way to get it out of them and keeping them focus and being in the present. Speaking of competitive nature, Gil, Jake McCarthy seems to have all of the competitive nature that you could possibly have. There was a moment where he stole home,

attempted to steal home. Attempted to steal home late in a game. Didn't end up going so well for him in that particular game. But DeBax fans loved watching him run the bases this year. Obviously, he has lightning speed. He made significant progress this year offensively as well. It was kind of an up and down year for him. I know he had a couple of different stints with you guys down in Reno.

But it seemed like that final stint with Reno this year. I think you hit like 369 or something ridiculous and just put up incredible numbers before being called back up to the majors where he saw. stuck for the rest of the year. What did you see from him specifically in that final stint with you guys in Reno? I imagine it's not too surprising for you that he's had all the success that he had in the big leagues this year? I think Jake coming down, you know, for me it was comfort being with the guys that he came up with. You know, not only that, but I think the coaching staff are hitting coaches did a great job with him as far as.

working with him, not giving them the answers, but working with him. It's a back and forth conversation that they have. And, you know, at the end, I felt they made Jake feel like he found the answer himself. So once he felt found his routine and he felt what was working for him, he trusted it. You know, it's easy to trust something that you feel you found yourself. a lot of times coaches want to give the answers and it's hard for the player to trust because they want results instantly and he felt something that worked for him and we rode with it

we just we just gave him the confidence and the trust to do what he felt was right and you know he's he's he's dynamic man he can do a lot of things on the field but the competitiveness in him talking about competitiveness, he's different. It's different when it comes to competitiveness. Yeah. And we've talked a lot about here, or in Reno and in Amarillo,

both being a very hitter-friendly ballpark, Reno being a really hitter-friendly ballpark. So as a manager, how do you kind of, how does that impact you developing, not only the hitters, but the pitchers who also have to play in such a hitter-friendly elevation. We didn't talk about it. No.

We just didn't talk. We didn't talk about it. I mean, honestly, there was comments throughout the year where the ball didn't fly as much this year in Reno. But we didn't feed it. We did. We just, you know, played the game. We didn't focus on the ball not going nowhere or the ball going too far. It was about, you know, making pitches.

and quality at bats, just, you know, barreling balls up. Guys, I can say also, like, we, our guys were hitters. They were hitters first before they were, you know, trying to hit the long ball. Yeah. I don't, I don't, I believe we didn't hit that many home runs compared to the year before. And I, I can't say why, but, you know, I think, I think when guys get on base more often, you can do a lot more with a baseball team. Yeah, and it seemed like you guys,

like no lead was safe when it came to you guys this season. It seemed like you guys were always able to come back and have some big late- inning wins. And, I mean, I know we've seen some deficits that you guys came back from this season. The offense was definitely potent, but like you said, a lot of it was just getting guys on the base path and getting them in.

Yeah, you know, I said it all year. one of the things that I felt that we did really well was seventh, eighth, ninth inning came around. We could be down three runs, four runs. It never felt like we were out. Right. They found ways to get on base on the last three innings and whether it was to get the tie-and-run up in the box

or whatever it was. These guys, they found ways to get walks, to get hits, and keep the line moving, and they just didn't quit. They played the nine innings, and there was a few games we came back and won, and it was an exciting team. It was a dynamic team. On the pitching side of things, Gil, and I guess this kind of goes back to what we were saying earlier about the hitter-friendly environment in Reno.

Brandon Fought seemed to be immune to the hitter-friendly environment. I don't know how he put up the numbers that he did. I mean, in some ways it was basically historic in some ways, just how good his numbers were in Reno on the mound this year. I know he was sort of a workhorse for you guys down the stretch. Diamondbacks fans are absolutely looking forward to having Brandon fought, hopefully play a significant role in the big leagues next year. What did you see from the right-hander this season?

He stays composed, man. He doesn't let a home run or a run score to affect them. He just keeps making pitches. He pounds the strike zone. He doesn't ever want to walk anybody. So he challenges guys. You know, he goes after them. But besides him going after him, he knows he's got good stuff.

You know, he's confident. And, you know, when he has to make that pitch to throw a strike, he does it. He does it. And, you know, but he's, he's really good. But the other guys that went up, too, you know, it's going to be exciting. It's exciting for the debacks, where, you know, The organization is going right now with the talent that's going up. But Fatt, yes, he's going to be another guy that's going to be exciting to go up.

What's one name that Diamondbacks fans may not know from the Reno Aces, but maybe they should? Oof. Let's just say Doug Draveck. I don't want to say any player's name and everybody calls me and says, why didn't you pick me, man? What's up? Yeah, we just gave out MVP awards last week around the office, and it's been chaos since we did that.

So I completely understand not wanting to choose your favorites for sure. But, yeah, Diamondbacks fans are very excited about Brandon Fought, and pretty much all the guys, like you said, Dre Jameson, Ryan Nelson, a lot of the pitchers that have come up have really stepped up and been incredible at a major league level, even if at times there are numbers that we saw in the minors not really reflect that. Oh, yeah, I mean, you know, we, there's other, there's other players that are coming too, you know, from double A with great arms. But yeah, there's numbers out there that doesn't really completely say the story of who the player is, you know, and that's the beauty of baseball.

You know, you never know what's going to happen. You know, you could have a really bad year one year. Next year you're having a unbelievable year and you're in the big leagues. And that's the beauty of just continuing to grind. and not quitting and just putting yourself in situations to give yourself opportunity. You know, last thing for me, I'm curious, what are your conversations with Tori Lavello like throughout the year? Is that a pretty open line of communication from you guys? Is it more of just like maybe a more occasional check-in?

What is your relationship been like with him? No, yeah, of course, I've known Tori for, I mean, he managed me in the Meyer leagues back in, I believe it was 2010. But yeah, our conversation. Our conversations were, you know, it was an open, open policy as far as call me, I call you, and, you know, I have that comfort with him of when he asked me questions. I feel I can be genuine and honest with him. So, yeah, we definitely stayed in contact throughout the year. He called me and asked me about the guys.

And, you know, he just, he's a great man. Well, we wish you all the luck. We are excited about 2023. excited about seeing more young prospects because you guys have done an excellent job and not only developing these guys, but I feel like getting them ready at a major league level. When they, when they hit the ground up here, that's one thing we've seen consistently from the young players is they seem to really adapt to a major league level fast. And I think that's a credit to you and your staff. Yeah, you know, I want to give credit to the whole organization. I think there's a lot

of coaches in the organizations that go unmentioned, you know, throughout the, throughout organization. We got a bunch of coaches I've been with the organization for a few years now. And it's just, you know, I enjoy being with the timebacks because of the people we have. And I think that plays a role in players coming to the organization and feeling, you know, welcome and at home and developing the way they should develop. So, you know, I want to give credit, not to our staff only, but to everybody. Well, we appreciate your time so much, Gil. We thank you. And again, wish you the best of luck. Baseball never stops for you, so best luck down in Mexico, Cali, as well.

All right, thank you. You guys have a good day. Absolutely outstanding stuff from Gil Velasquez. And honestly, I think that the great hair starts at the AAA. Yeah, yeah. Unfortunately, we got cut off before we could ask him about his. Because, I mean, that has to be, it's obviously a theme throughout a lot of the young players that Diamondbacks have brought up recently.

And Gil Velazquez has to be, you know, at the heart of that movement. He really does. I mean, it's where the training really starts is with the head and the hair, right? But, of course, we have a lot of great heads of lettuce from those young guys coming up and great stuff from Gil. Very excited to see what the Reno Aces can do next season. Of course, building on what they've built from this year. I still think it's just amazing that they were able to do what they did with the ever-changing roster. And I know that's nothing new.

I know that's something that all, you know, minor league teams go through, the constant changes, the constant call-ups being sent around and things like that. but it just felt like that team succeeded no matter who was on the field for them. Yeah, it's weird, man. I mean, AAA baseball is weird because you constantly have guys, you know, being called up to the big leagues and then once they've been used up, they're sent back down and then you kind of have to like pick up the pieces, right? There's some checks and balances there now with some of the restrictions they put in place on how many times you can, you know, demote and then promote a guy in the same year.

So it's a little bit better now than it used to be. It's weird. I mean, you know, you get Corbyn Carroll and, you know, he's leading off for you or hitting in the middle of the lineup for a month and then he's gone, right? It's just bizarre. It's unlike anything that we ever see at the big league level. So there's a lot of weird dynamics to work with there. And Gil Velazquez seems, you know, just very well equipped to deal with all of those things. He also, as much as we tried to get him to like take credit a little bit. Refused to. The man refuses to take credit for anything. He refused. He refused. He kept pointing it back to. to all of us players, which, you know, says a lot about who he is as a person, but I almost wish we'd gotten him to, like, take a little bit more. Just one credit. Just one piece of credit. Well, and here's the thing is he comes up his first year as a manager, wins PCL manager

in the year, and guides his team to the PCL title. So there is some credit due to Gill, but I will say that a good manager, especially credits, you know, his team, credits that everybody involved and knows that he is not the sole reason. for that. I just think that with minor league teams focusing so much on the development of guys, I find it amazing right now that the Reno Aces are so successful at doing both. It felt like almost everybody that got called up impressed us this past season. And it felt like the Aces managed to continue to keep things on a role despite who was there. So Gil deserves all the credit in the world for that. Well, we are very excited, of course, for World Cup.

at least some of us are very excited for World Cup season to roll on. This guy over here, not so much. But today Canada is taken on Belgium. We are firmly in Leah's backing Leah and Team Canada just because we support Leah and everything she does. Of course, at Four Peaks, we'll be hosting every U.S. and Mexico World Cup match. We have been having an absolute blast at these watch parties, you guys. It was off the, what do the kids say, chain hook? You're asking me what the kids say?

I don't know, but it was incredible. It was electric. We'll just keep using that. But make sure to join us for all of those matches at Four Peaks at the A Street Pub. Yesterday, we had delicious breakfast buffet, drink specials, and an appearance from Rising Head coach, Wang Garra. So make sure not to miss out on that. It's an atmosphere. I was not expecting that kind of atmosphere, Jesse.

But again, it's something to get excited about. It's World Cup season. Yeah. We have so many different eclectic World Cup soccer. soccer fans around the valley that all root for their own team. So it's a lot of fun to come out there and be a part of it. You enjoy those beer specials,

giveaways, guest appearances like we had and so much more. $3 kill lifters and wow, wheat pints. And of course, must be 21 years or older to enjoy it and enjoy responsibly. But come on down. Have a blast with us at the Fort Peaks A Street Pub. Things that aren't so fun. Oh yeah. Leah's Singh, O Canada.

I was saying it a little on beds today. Yeah, she was, she was singing it all around the office. If you want to hear me sing, just go watch bets. Yeah, that's right. That's right. And I was singing in the office very loud. Well, we enjoyed just sitting here during that interview, so maybe we can just play that right now. We'll just sit back again.

Unfortunately, we have Hall of Fame news to talk about because the Hall of Fame ballot for 2023 dropped, and it's not impressive. Why do you hate Bronson and Royos? I don't know. Mostly because of his time here is an Arizona Diamondback, Jesse. Why don't you hate Bronson? Arroyo more is my question. You mean the guy who was like the most durable starting pitcher of all time. I was there for that press conference.

And then came to the D-Baccident and instantly got hurt and Arlington. It was not a great, not a great outcome there. But yeah, like, Bronson Arroyo is kind of like, I don't know. Like he is sort of the fine. The prime example of what we're getting in the Hall of Fame ballot. And I mean, some of these other names may be a little bit, a little bit more. I don't want to say respectable. But Brian Abdallah says,

Royo had a better music career than baseball. Yes, sir, you're not wrong about that. Well, no, yes. The group is at least the additions, the first year editions for the 2023 ballot. They're good players. It's not like you're knocking them. There are a lot of players,

a lot of names you recognize, but they're not great players, right? Carlos Beltran with a career war of 70.1 is by far the most impressive. Outside of that, it does get relatively mediocre. And I'm not really trying to insult guys, like Jacoby Ellsbury and Matt Cain and some of these other guys that have had successful baseball careers. But it just goes to show, I feel like that, you know, the, again, that steroid era, the PED era, whatever you want to call it. Yeah. Really, really leaves us lacking as far as star power

goes when writers and, you know, people in Major League Baseball don't want to vote in the guys that honestly put up the incredible numbers of that era due to those connections. Yeah. I mean, I think, I think I think Hall of Fame voters are going to have a much easier time this next year because you're not, you know, it's not going to be as much of a question of like, how do I find a way to vote for everyone I want to? Right. Now the question is who do you want to vote for? Like you have, you have the bandwidth in your ballot to cast votes for whomever you, whoever you would like. One name that does kind of stand out to me is Matt Kane, someone that we're obviously a little bit more familiar with here in Arizona. I feel like it's not totally crazy to say that Matt Cain was sort of on like a Hall of Fame trajectory for a while there.

If you look at his career, like from when he came up at the age of 20 in 2005 up until 2012, he was a really, really good starting pitcher. Yes. And I mean, he didn't win the Cy Young Award. He never actually finished top five. So maybe I'm even giving him a little bit too much credit here. But I don't know. if he continues on that same trajectory and is able to maintain that, I think maybe there's,

maybe there's a case for him to at least be someone you would really consider casting about for. The problem is that once he got to really his age 28 season, the wheels just kind of came off. And we've seen that with a few San Francisco, former San Francisco Giants pitchers where, you know, they make their debut really early in their career. And then once they hit 30 or close to 30 things, you know, things kind of start to go off the rails.

Is there anybody you think that will get in that's already on the ballot that has a better chance now because maybe, like you said, the new additions aren't really going to garner too many votes? I don't know. Because we have like Jeff Kent on his 10th year on the ballot. Yeah, I think Jeff Kent would fall off after this year. But I don't know if Jeff Kent is, I mean, he's interesting for sure. I don't, I would be somewhat surprised if you wound up, if you wound up getting in.

But of course, again, it's not, it's not a matter of, you know, which guys can you fit on your ballot. It's like just who do you think is deserving. So in some ways, that's good because, you know, it seems like at times guys fall off when they really shouldn't have. And it's just because there were, that class was just stacked and people just didn't have enough votes to go around. So, so yeah, but I mean, this list is, we've got Jared Weaver in here, which is,

Jared Weaver was good for a while, but man, he was not good for those last few years. Andre E. Zier, R.A. Dickie, Jason Worth. Yeah, I mean, John Lackey, I don't know, Jesse. There's not a lot on here that's exciting. And that goes for even the existing guys that are going to be on the ballot for 2023. I think Todd Hilton is a little bit of a little bit of a lot. Todd Hilton is interesting. Yeah. Case there. And I also think Scott Rowland, who's the closest to percentage-wise. of getting in with a few years left on the ballot probably has a good chance but i don't know man it's the hall of fame is getting to a point where all of this debate and discussion about who belongs and doesn't belong kind of has taken a little bit of the luster off of it i still am a huge

hall of fame guy and i try not to let any of this impede my enjoyment of cooper's town but at the same time it just gets to be such a petty argument sometimes about guys careers and everything It reminds me a little too much of arbitration where there's too many people trying to tear these guys down instead of building them up because they always want to make a case why they don't belong versus why they do belong. So I don't know. Yeah. I mean, I think that just kind of came naturally with like, you know, Kurt Schilling's reputation and all the guys who were involved in PD scandals and whatnot. We're kind of to the point where we're kind of moving past that now. I agree with both Brian and Gabriel. I think Todd Helton is pretty. I think that's pretty clear cut. I agree too. But yeah, it's just different. It's different than what it's been the last few years for sure. Well, sir, I am thankful for you.

I know tomorrow is the big day. We have two more audio podcast this week, so make sure to join us for those. But you can get a double dose of Jesse if you want that for some reason today. Same thing with this guy over here. I'll be on graded podcast later, as Jesse likes to call it. But just a quick shout out to all of you. Of course, we are so thankful for you guys. I know it's the thankful time of the year.

I'm sure we're going to talk about it. Save the thanks for tomorrow. I'm just thankful. I'm just very thankful. You're not allowed to be thankful on the day before Thanksgiving. I'm thankful for the entire week of Thanksgiving. I've had to put up with my family this week and not my direct family. I always have to put up with extended family.

So I'm thankful to be here in the office right now is what I'm saying. But I am thankful for them and I'm thankful for you guys. Thank you guys so much for joining us. I am. I have to say real quick, I am thankful for new Zips Projection standings that just came out. Yes. I'm not going to talk about it yet, although you could go. on fan graphs and find it if you want to.

Or you could wait for tomorrow. Or you could wait for tomorrow's show and we'll delve deep into that. But suffice it to say that some of the projections we talked about yesterday, you know, 84 wins and all this. It might actually be somewhat reasonable. So join us again tomorrow for sure on audio. Well, what people aren't thankful for, Jesse, was your review of Major League. Oh, this is true.

It's because people don't understand how percentiles work. Would you go ahead and light now? People don't understand how percentiles. work. If I give a movie, like, that's what that's what that little thing. That's what we're trying to imitate, right? It's percentiles on baseball savant. So baseball savant, the way that percentiles work is, I mean, the way that

percentiles work in general is that it's the, it's the percentage of data points that are at or below that one. So what I'm saying, in essence, is that Major League is better than or equal to 74 percent of other movies. Of all movies made. Of all movies. Of all the movies, Jesse's seen, which is like a handful. Right.

So it's not like a 74 test grade, right? 74 test grade would be pretty average. That would be a 50th percentile grade. This is the same guy that got mad at me about giving Merrill Kelly a B. Let's forget that. Well, letter grades are a whole other thing. So don't get me on letter grades again. See, this is where it gets confusing.

I don't understand anything anymore. But, yes, we're thankful that Jesse gives us somewhat of an explanation, but we're still mad about giving him a great movie. Major League that I was gonna it was good it was good I really did I really did enjoy it It was better than I was expecting he did text me that that was his first feet Yeah Was wow that was a better movie that was surprisingly actually pretty pretty fun to watch and Gabriel first is 1980s Renee Russo is the most beautiful human being ever and I am not gonna argue with that

Anyway, I'm beating up on the furniture of course you guys know I'm not allowed to buy any new office chairs over at more furniture But it's that time of the year we know you need seats for tomorrow. We know you need all the chairs you can So make sure to spruce up your home during more furniture's fall sale at more Furniture.com. Get over there. Save yourself some money. Plus, you'll receive a $100 gift card for every $1,000 you spend. So make sure to do that. Make your, get your home ready. It's that time of the year. It's the holiday season. So just be like Tori Lavello and make your home very open and welcome for guests. At least that's how we imagine. We have no information. You say this like Tori Lavella has invited you to his Thanksgiving table tomorrow.

Hey, you never know, Jesse. If I show up on the zoo meeting, you'll be a little jealous, I'm sure. Of course, we are thankful. I don't care what Jesse says. That might come tomorrow, but we are thankful for you guys being here today. We are thankful that you spent your lunch with us on behalf of everybody here. We always appreciate you guys. Tune in.

Of course, you can follow us on Twitter. I'm at Kap underscore Caveman with a K. Jesse is at Jesse and Friedman. Our show is at PHNX underscore D-Backs, but of course all roads lead to at PHNX underscore sports on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. We thank you guys again on behalf of Leah, Jesse and myself. We appreciate you guys. We love you.

And remember, kids, baseball is fun. but it's so much more fun when you drag Garrett Cole during your interviews.