PTI - What's going on with the Eagles and MLB Playoffs

Episode Date: October 11, 2025

Tony Kornheiser and Michael Wilbon discuss the Eagles and Giants and what's to come for the MLB Playoffs. . Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hey, sports fans, the ESPN app has all of ESPN all in one place. The ESPN app is your home to thousands of live events, ESPN shows, and originals across every ESPN network and service. And now you can check if you already have ESPN Unlimited as part of your TV package for no additional calls. Visit activate.esPN.com to learn how to access your account or sign up, then start streaming in the ESPN app. It's all of ESPN all in one place. Sign up or activate now. Pardon the interruption, but I'm Mike Lobon. I'm told it's National Love Your Hair Day, Tony. How do we feel about that?

Tony Kornheiser. Do you people think that's funny? Yeah. You really think that's funny? You know what? People who obsessed with hair, I laughed at them, because I would have shaved it when I was nine if I really, how much I liked it.

Yeah. I don't know. Somehow I don't think your mother and father would have allowed you to do that at not. No, I did not. I think they would have said, you just hold off from a while. My mother was upset when I was.

upset when I did it at 34. I can understand. And welcome to PTI boys and girls. In today's episode, the Phillies are out. The Cubs force a game five in the future faced another possible loss when they host the Lions on Sunday night. But we begin today with last night's Thursday night game in New York, where the one and four Giants basically dominated the defending Super Bowl champion Eagles, beating them 34 to 17. Rookie quarterback Jackson Dart accounted for two Giants touchdowns, and rookie running back Cam Scataboo ran for three. others. This was the second game in just five days where the Eagles scored

only 17 points. Wilbon, what does this result say about each team? How long before somebody with the Giants, whether we're in management or coaching, says Scataboo, you do that again, you're fine. Because you come down, you tear your ACL, you're fine. Tear your ACL? I'm afraid he's going to break his neck.

I'm afraid of that. So, the Giants have these two young, talented kids who bring a certain energy in spirit and maybe complete naivete. And it's working. It'll work every other week, maybe, if they're lucky,

for the rest of the season. And then you figure out whether or not, you know, they've got something sustainable in the future in terms of playoffs and contending. And so we set that aside. It was, I'm in Wrigley Field last night, just looking at the score on my phone going, what the hell is going on in East Rutherford.

But Philly's got something. The Eagles have something more. We talked about it all week. Everybody's talked about it. all week. They can't figure out what to do. They have no identity. Sequan Barkley. You know, he just shouldn't have 12 carries. Should have 20 carries. There's no load

management for Sequan Barkley. He's a veteran player. You brought him over and he wins a Super Bowl for you and gains 2000. No, stop. What are you doing? Somebody needs to bring a coach's only meeting to say, what the hell are you people thinking now? And Siriani may do that

because they had this happen like last season. So two things stand out to me about this. One is that the Eagles at this point now are in what I think is serious trouble. You mean like two years ago, serious trouble? No, like right now serious trouble. All right. They don't score anymore.

Their rushing is not nearly as good as it was last year. Their passing is not nearly as good as it was last year. I have some numbers for you that are astonishing, given who they are. They're defending Super Bowl champions. Going into this game last night, they ranked 30th out of 32 teams in offense. They ranked 31st. out of 32 teams in passing offense, and they were dead last in three and outs.

They were going three and out 47.2 percent of the time. It's worse in the league. Now, you may think it's irrelevant, and you may laugh at the fact that they have these internal meetings with A.J. Brown. Yeah, I do. And, I understand. I'm paying attention. Okay. He's really good.

And Sequin Barkley and Jaylen Hurts. Okay. But there's something wrong there. Mike, that's a four and two team, and their point differential is. minus and they have been outgained in all six games this year. And they won four of them. The other thing that has to be talked about is Jackson Dart, in fact. If Dayball keeps his job as Giants coach, it's going to be because of Jackson Dart.

And he's probably kicking himself or should be kicking himself that he held on to Russell Wilson for that long. The kid has beaten the charges and the Eagles who we think are playoff teams. His rating last night was 104.6. He runs and passes sort of like Jaden. Daniels. I'm just saying he's got a chance. He's got a chance. He's got a chance. I'm not going to get carried away. And by the way, and Scataboo, you know who he reminds me of? You're old enough to get this reference. Do you remember Charlie Tolar and the AFL with the Houston Oilers? Yes, I was called

the human bowling ball because he was five, six. I don't understand why he lasted so long, why people, general managers who don't like running backs, who basically say, we don't need this position. Really? This kid can't help you at some point on any, on most teams? So, so. The Phillies went out of the baseball playoffs in a way they would like to forget. With the game tied, bases loaded with Dodgers,

two outs in the 11th, Philly Releaver, Orion Kirkland. Did I get that right? Kirkker Ring. Batched that slow roller back to the mound. Instead of trying to get the out of first base to end the inning and the threat, he tried for the force at the plate

and unleashed what he later called a horse bleep throw. Dodgers win and advance. Oh, my God. Tome. What did you make of how it happened? So I was glued to that game. And, you know, in that moment when Kirkering throws it away and the Dodgers score and the Dodgers win, the next shot is poignant and cinematic. The Dodgers are running around the infield. They're literally running around Kirkering, who is in the front of the mound, his head is down and his hands are on his knees. It is the moment of ultimate sadness for him and ultimate joy. Well, not World Series joy, but to keep winning a series. Ultimate joy for the Dodgers. And you feel for the kid at that point. Now, we've seen this 100 times already.

We see Real Mudo standing there pointing to first, saying throw it to first. And the kid is, I don't know, 40 feet away from home plate and throws it hard and throws it wide right and loses in that moment. And it's game over, series over. it's terrible. But I would point out to people that the only reason that the Phillies got the run that they got

was on an error by a Dodgers relief pitcher. And that was Emmett Sheehan. There's a groundless, a man on first, ground ball of Freeman. Freeman goes to Mookie, covering shortstop. Mookie comes back.

The reliever is now covering first as he's supposed to do. Mookie has a good throw. He just misses it, goes into the dugout, the runner gets on second. Next batter-up gets a hit. And you get a run and it should have been two out and nobody on.

I feel for this kid, I have covered a lot of events in my life where somebody made a mistake, a gaff, and you identify immediately when you're there and you're in a locker room and you're two feet away from that person in misery. This is the definition of the phrase, agony of defeat. Yeah. I was there when Ernest Biner Fumbo with the Gold Line, I'm sorry if everybody in Cleveland is just turning the TV off.

in a huge game that the Browns are going to get to the Super Bowl and to see the misery but I was lifted a little bit in this case I was lifted I needed to feel better in that the way the Phillies players came to him and hugged him

and talked to him and his manager and his coaches and he's trying to walk right through them to get to a place where he can be by himself and they're like no you're going to take this hug essentially is what they did and that may be this is that image is going to stay with me much longer than anything the Dodgers did last night. So I think all the baseball series have been great.

But you know that I do like the Phillies. I admire the Phillies. I think the Dodgers are a little bit better. Glasna was great last night. Sasaki was great last night. I would have walked in the bottom of the seventh. I would have walked Otani as well, but I was stunned that Mukhi Betz on the three-two pitch.

He didn't go for it. It was this high. It was this high. It was this high. That's all it was. What was Otani going into that at bat? like one for 19 or something. Lefty power, righty-lefty situation.

But if Buckey Betts thinks he's going to walk against a guy who had one walk in 23 games, really? Let's stay with baseball. Move to where you were last night. Riggily Seattle in Chicago where your Cubs once again scored early. Ian Hap hit a three-run homer in the first inning. Matthew Boyd, who I know you like, went into the fifth, gave up nothing. The Cubs shut out the Brewer 6-0, forced a decisive game five tomorrow. Wilbon, what are your takeaways from the game?

And who do you think has the edge tomorrow? He's winning. There's winning and staying a lot. But, you know, I've been to Wrigley Field 150 games in my life. And very few of them, if any, were like last night. Everybody who was there, who was either there or watching, understands if you're in Chicago. And we got a lot of losing in Wrigley Field in the postseason. We got Bartman.

You got Bartman. Hey, the One World Series in anybody's lifetime, we lost two of those three. And so the third game was just like desperation, just get through it. and to have that crowd, both managers said later, and I couldn't know this at the time, both managers said the crowd and the atmosphere affected the outcome of the game. Who says that?

Well, both managers say that. I know. There was a joyousness about it. It wasn't as desperate as I might think because the Cubs were facing elimination. And the home run in the first inning, which took a lot of, of the pressure off the Ian Hap hit

that was just a bomb. It really changed things. And the question is, Tony, when they go back to Milwaukee, this is a 90-mile trip. That's all this is. When they go back to Milwaukee, is there any momentum

or does it just not matter in the way that you and I, as we covered baseball, we're told by managers, Earl Weaver, it doesn't matter. Yeah, I mean, I would only say this,

that the Milwaukee Brewers scored three runs in 18 innings in Chicago. which is terrible, but they scored 16 in 16 in Milwaukee. I have some questions for you. Did you wear a Cubs jersey? I had Cubs stuff. Did you wear a Cubs jersey?

Not a jersey. Not a jersey. Okay. You were afraid it was going to be cold. Did you get inside? Did you go in a suite? It wasn't cold. Did you dump it out?

It was great. So you tuft it out the whole way? 62 degrees. I'm proud. Well, you know. You were afraid at the beginning it was going to be too cold. Didn't anybody offer you a seat in a suite? I don't need it.

I was fine. It was like the, you're going to laugh at me for saying this. It was sort of the crowd and the scene and all of it. It was sort of like the nights when Jordan played against the Lakers in the finals early in his career, the early finals. Patrick Kane and the Blackhawks when they actually went out and won. This is a place looking at that team and falling in love with that team. We may not have long to be in love with them because game five is tomorrow at 9 o'clock Eastern time.

And I don't know about pitching. You know, I don't, I'm anaga, you know, who you just. like to try it out there has not been effective. It's been bomb. I think it's an 8 o'clock game. Eight o'clock game. I thought it was, okay, eight o'clock, good. All right.

Enough. Okay. Eight o'clock. I just wanted to know how you. We're falling in love with them, but I'd like to, I'd like to have Dodgers, Cubs. That's what I'd like to have. You know, you have a chance. Fight with Irvin Johnson.

You do have a chance. Let's take a break. Coming up, the Tigers and Mariners play their deciding game five tonight. Who you got? Will the Chiefs fall to two and four after facing the Lions Sunday night, The toss-ups next. You want to tell the people the last time the Cubs went on the road for an elimination game, what happened?

I don't know. How about the World Series? Did that work for you? I thought we lost it. Maybe after that. Time for toss-up. Two men enter. One man leaves, finishes the show, gets on his burner accounts, and posts all sorts of praise

for himself across social media. I'm not doing that. What's first? What's first? Toss up who you got in tonight's game five? The Tigers or the Mariners? This is all the Tigers could have asked. for to put all their eggs in one basket and the basket is Tariq Scoopal.

Okay? He has been good to great in the playoffs so far. He's 1 in 0 with a 184 ERA, 23 strikeouts in 14 innings and he's allowed eight hits. He'll probably win the Cy Young Award again and he's rested. So if Seattle beats him, good for Seattle. I mean, the two best players left in the American League are on display in this game, Cal Raleigh and Tariq Scoob. That's right, right?

And if you're a viewer, what you want to see is if the guy with 60 home runs can take it out on the guy with the best ERA in the league. But the guy with the best ERA in the league, people should be advised watching this fine program, got lit up in a similar situation by Cleveland last year. Last year. And look, I'm with you. I'm looking at this going, my first, second, and third reactions are scoobel, school, and scoble. That's what I'm going with because starting pitching means something to people. people of our venture. Of a certain age.

Yeah. Of a certain age. So I don't want to see a damn bullpen day. I want to see a guy who can go out and go eight innings plus if he needs to. And you think Scoobo could do that or hand it to a closer, not a, not a bullpen array. So I'm with that, Tony, but. So you're afraid of that. I'm afraid of it.

Let me just say something to you. Tyler Glasnow had a very bad postseason record. How did he do last night? See, like, if you go back to last year and you can't discount. this year. Like what he's doing right now this year. That's why I'm going with school bowl. I'm just saying this is and good for these

two teams have this sort of showcase platforms. I'm happy to see it. Next. Toss up, to which team are you leaning on Sunday night? The Lions or the Chiefs? Okay, the game is in Kansas City. The Chiefs are 2 and 3. The last time the Chiefs started

2 and 4, they still made the playoffs. It was 2021. So, history tells us this is not a critical game, although we feel that this might be a critical game. I look at Detroit right now. I think they're playing the best football in the NFL. They have the best scoring offense. After they lost to the Packers, in the next four games, they rocked out 161 points. So I am leaning towards them, but this gives me a very small window, a window in which Patrick Mahomes at home is an underdog and loses. happened earlier this year against the Eagles. So there's precedent there.

I'm going to Kansas City this week. Every time this year already, we have we, meaning collectively, across all networks, stupidly, loudly declared somebody was the best team in the league. Then they lost. Early on it was the Packers. Then it was the Chargers.

Then it was the Eagles. Now it's Detroit. Detroit's fine. Do you think they are the best? team in league right now? Probably. Yeah, that's what I think. I think. But they're still going to lose.

They're not going something and won? You think there's a curse of the best team? I just think that what we need to look at is an actual league and its trends and its patterns. We need to look at a league where no one is 72 dolphins or 85 bears or the 07 Patriots or whatever year that was. At some point, a dynasty slips. Teeters. Yeah. Could that be happening this year?

Yes. Yes, but they're going to win this game. Okay. They're going to win this game. They're going to knock Detroit back a little bit. And Detroit can recover next week. And I'm not saying that. And Kansas City.

You're all in on Kansas City. This week. Okay. Only this week. Why don't you put it in the confidence pool? Are you high up? Come on, you're going to show some guts here, put it in the car. You're not.

You're not going to do that. You're not going to put it. You're only a camera. That's it. That's great. I win. Let's take one final break. When we come back, when Wilbon's Mercury, avoid a sweep.

in game four, the WNBA Finals tonight. I don't know. I don't know. The nine is in the bucks, Battle for a share first. No, not a lot of confidence. That's it. That's it.

You sat here and told people you loved them and they were going to win. Yeah. But, yeah. No, you didn't put your money for you. They're not in my pool. I stink this year. Oh.

Stink. Pardon the Interruption is presented by the refreshing taste of twisted tea, hard iced tea. Please drink responsibly. Part of Happy Hour. Happy time, people. Happy 39th birthday, Andrew McCutcher.

McCutcheon came up with the Pittsburgh Pirates as their number one draft choice in 2005. He spent his first nine seasons of the majors in Pittsburgh and was MVP of the National League in 2013. McCutcheon was traded to the Giants in 2018, who then traded him to the Yankees. When he was granted free agency, McCutcheon signed with the Phillies

before the 2019 season. Then he went to Milwaukee and back to Pittsburgh. This year he hit 239 with 13 homers and 57 RBI for the Pirates. Overall, McCutcheon is a 271 hitter with 332 home runs, 1,152 RBI, and 1290 runs scored, and a five-time All-Star. These are not Hall of Fame numbers, but they are good, solid career numbers. He's been an important person to that franchise and belongs there to me. Yeah. In that Pittsburgh uniform.

And when you see the white uniform to sort of double it, that reminds us. us of 21. Yes, Clementian Stargell. No doubt. Absolutely. No doubt. Happy anniversary, Marcus Allen, on this day 44 years ago. The great USC tailback rushed for 211 yards against Arizona, his

fifth straight 200-yard game. Five straight remains the college record, though Allen now shares it with Rashad Penny of San Diego State, Jamario Thomas of North Texas, and the great Barry Sanders. That season, Alan rushed for more than 200 yards in eight of the

11 games he played for USC, and he won the Heisman trophy. Over the course of his college and NFL career, Alan won the Heisman, a national championship in USC, a Super Bowl with the Raiders. He was MVP of the Super Bowl and MVP of the NFL. And you know who else has done all of that? No one is who. I guess he was wearing 33 at SC because they had retired.

OJ's 32. He wore 32. Is that possible? We're 32 in the pros. Tony, he's one of the great players of all time and doesn't get talked about in that context. And he was. Oh, he was.

And a melancholy trails to Sister Jean. The Loyola, Chicago men's basketball superfan and team chaplain died Thursday at 106. Sister Gene came to national recognition in 2018 when the Ramblers made their Cinderella run to the final four, beating four top ten seeds along the way. Sister Gene was born Dolores, Bertha Schmidt, in 1919. She became a nun in 1937.

Seven, joined the staff at Loyola, Chicago in 1991, and the basketball program in 1994. First as an academic advisor and then chaplain. Sister Jean played basketball as a girl. She wrote in her 2023 biography, and I'm quoting here, I may be an old nun, but I know my hoops. When you're driving up Sheridan Road, for some of us, to Northwestern, you first passed Loyola. My mother's alma mater. I have not been able to make that drive any time in the past 10 or more.

years without thinking of Sister Jean, who people say you could occasionally see on that lakefront campus as well. People don't talk about it as much. It's beautiful. And she became a very important person, a symbol of a lot that was good in Chicago and specifically at Loyola. Totally agree. One correction, the Cubs last win on the road in a winner take all game was not the 2016 World Series Game 7, as I suggested. They also won in Washington the next year in game five of the NLDF. Weren't you at that? I eliminated it from my memory.

No, I eliminated it from my memory. Let's go to the big finish if we could. Yanke and Cody Bellinger opting out of his contract to become a free agent. Does that make sense to you? Yeah, but why is he on solo contracts all the time? Beliger's good. He can hit a, he's a power hitter, he's a terrific fielder. Come on.

Shedur Sanders will back up Dylan Gabriel for the Brown Sunday. Does that matter? Yeah, because he's the next one in, and Dylan Gabriel is not the rock. Is he? It's not. Maybe now. Niners and Bucks play on Sunday. Who you got?

I'm going to go with the bucks. I mean, Baker Mayfield, man. He's been great. He's been the MVP to this point. I think so. Yeah. U.S. men soccer has a friendly against Ecuador tonight. Break it down.

What do you expect? About soccer. Here's what I know. United States is ranked number 16 and Ecuador is ranked number 24. So I have the games in America. It's a friendly. Games in Austin. I mean, it's a friendly.

All right. Last one. The ACEs can sweep the mercury in the WMBA finals tonight. Will they? It's going to be hard. for Phoenix was sovereignly out with this concussion. It's just, I hate that it comes to that, that the best players in a series can't all play,

but the, you know, Aces will probably close it out. We're out of time, we'll try to do better the next time. I'm Tony Corny. I'm Mike Wilbon. You know, I'll talk about Chicago crowds. I've got those with the Bears in 85. That was crazy.

If you're from Chicago, you love. Catch us on the Deuce Monday.