PTI - Who Will Start At QB for the Browns?

Episode Date: July 31, 2025

Tony Kornheiser and Michael Wilbon discuss NFL camps, MLB trades, and Katie Ledecky 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 Wilbon. It's International Day of Friendship, Tony. Who's your best friend?

I'm Tony Kornheiser, a man who's co-hosted this show with me for years. Pablo Torre. What? What? What? What? Yeah. Very fun.

No, it's you. Very fun. You and Pablo hanging out. Yeah, it's you and my dog Chessie who's in the room with me right now. And I hope won't park. Welcome to PTI, boys and girls. In today's episode, baseball's trade deadline approaches. A professional golfer pulls out an 18-inch putter, and Dan Gratziano joins us for five good minutes.

But we begin today with the National League Central Showdown between your Cubs, Wilbon, and the Brewers. The teams had been even atop the division entering this series, but the Brewers easily took the first two games, twisting Wilbon into a pretzel. This afternoon, the Cubs finally delivered some relief, winning the third game. Well, Bon, how important was it for the Cubs to stave off a sweep? Huge, huge, Tony, and not for the standings. We're going to get five games back in Wrigley with the cheese ends coming up fairly soon. So it's not the standings, although being one back as opposed to being three back, it is a better thing. But last night, I stayed with the Cubs Brewers game, even though we were getting hammered.

It was like 9-3 after Vaughn hit a grand slam for the Brewers. And I stayed with the game, and I told a dear friend who is a lunatic. like me over the Cubs. She says, why are you staying with this? And I said, because I want to see what kind of fight they've got. I want to see if the Cubs want to fight the Brewers like a true rival. And so tomorrow they come out with the right attitude. And they did.

Shoda Imanaga was not great. He's been better. But he got them through it through those early innings, Tony. And the Cubs built the lead. And this was necessary to fight them. The Brewers are the best team probably in baseball. Yes, better than the Dodgers right now. But I think the Cubs know they can hang with them, but you got to fight them.

This fight's going to go right through the end of September. So today was huge in that regard. Yeah, I don't have the passion you have, but I agree with you that it was important for the Cubs to win this game. I mean, the Cubs got thumped in the first two games. The scores are 8, 4, and 9-3. that's, you know, that's a 10-run differential in two games. And the teams were going in opposite directions. Prior to today, I believe the Cubs had lost six out of nine.

And prior to today, Milwaukee had won eight out of 11. If you go back to May 25th, Milwaukee was 39 and 15 in that stretch of time. Best team in baseball. The best in baseball for that period of time. And the Cubs, and we need to say this, the Cubs are having a great season, a great season. but Milwaukee was running them down and running them over. And there's an irony here, as you're well aware of, that Craig Council had left Milwaukee to manage the Cubs.

And Milwaukee had picked up a couple of really good people in the last couple of months. Quinn Priestley, who I believe beat the Cubs yesterday, 11 starts. Preaster, yeah. It's 9 and 0, 2.0 and 2.6 OERA, they picked up. And that's better than your boy, the Mizz. They picked up Andrew Vaughan to play some first bases. Last 15 games bat in 375. So everything tracks well for Milwaukee.

That's why it's so important for the Cubs to stay above water with this and win this game. Yeah, I agree. Day of relief for me. Meanwhile, baseball's trade deadline is about 24 hours away, and we've already got a little bit to discuss. The Angels landed picturesquez Luis Garcia and Andrew Chaffin from your nationals, a sign that the angels think they're going for it. And Twins shortstop, Carlos Correa, was out of the lineup today.

And Bob Nightingale's reporting that Correa has told friends he'd be willing to waive his no trade to return to the Astros. Tom, where do you want to start? I'm going to start with the Nationals. I'll just add parenthetically that at one point today, they were down 9-1, so I don't have a lot of faith in them. These two pitchers, Garcia and Chafin, are relievers for the Nationals. The nationals have, as you know, because I say it all the time, statistically, the worst bullpen in all of baseball.

The ERA going into today was 566. So whoever you pick up from the nationals, you're not getting Mariana Rivera, okay? Garcia's ERA is 410, which is nothing special. Chafin has been good. In the 20 innings that he's pitched, his ERA is 270. But the point for me is that the Nationals bullpen is terrible. there ought to be like hazard tape around it. Whoever he gets aren't going to help you.

If, in fact, the angels, by doing this are going for it, you would say to them, well, why didn't you pick up relievers from a better bullpen? My belief, Mike, is that Mike Trout's not getting to the playoffs unless the angels trade him. They trade him this year to a team that's going to the playoffs. The Correa thing would have been very interesting five years ago when Correa was great. He is not great today. Not great today. So far this year, batting 267.

Got seven home runs, 31 RBI. It's his least production of his entire career. I will concede it would be fun to see him in Houston, fun to see him with Altuvae, though they won't be playing next to each other. He'll be playing third base, and isn't Altuvae in the outfield this year most of the time, right? The point with the Astros is they make the right moves. They do.

Everything the Astros do. Over now a series of years, they get it right, and maybe Correa needs that emotionally. Maybe he knows. I remember when he went to the twins. It was like, whoa, this is a great move for the twins. They're getting a truly great player. And then, you know, then it's sort of Peters out, as you point out,

and there's less production, less production. Going back to the Astros could be a brilliant stroke could be. You know, these other moves so far are around the fringes. The big guns are still out there waiting to be dealt. And I guess we're going to come down to the 11th hour right here in the desert. We're waiting for a team that could basically just say, could cave and go all prospects and get rid of big time front line players. The Diamondbacks could do that.

It has not happened as of this moment, but it could. So there's a lot more to talk about coming, we would think. Tyler Rogers is a very good reliever. He just went to the Mets from the Giants. And that is a pretty big move for the Mets. I mean, they need it. Well, everybody needs a really, obviously. 1-8-O-E-R-A.

It is a good move for the Mets. Yeah. We turn to golf now and one of the more unusual visual you'll ever see. It is Canadian club pro Felipe Garrape showing off his new putter. That putter is only 18 inches long. It's legal and it's weird looking to see Garrape bend over like this. But as you see, Mike, the putt goes in. Yesterday, Garrape shot 71 in the PJ Championship of Canada. So Wilbon, does this short putter deserve shade or praise? Shade. Shade. You can't praise that. if you took out that putter, wherever we play,

and particularly at Columbia, the ridicule I and everybody in the group and everybody on the golf course would heap on you would be deserved. Now, having said that, if you're playing for a living, whatever gets that putt down is fine. I mean, I can justify it.

I can defend them, but would I still make fun of this? Are you kidding me? It would go the entire, four plus hours the ridicule that would be heaped on whoever pulled this putter out during a round a golf. So I understand that. I understand that.

But let me just go over this. Is it legal? Yes, it is legal. Does it look stupid? Yes, it looks stupid. Now ask me if I care. Anybody who plays golf wants a putter that is dependable and works for him. You know, if you see, the ball is getting.

to the hole. It's dropping into the hole at that point. I just, I mean, I think to myself that if you have confidence in a putter, it's okay if it's made out of Swiss cheese. Again, the biggest question is, is it legal? Because, Mike, 10 or 12 years ago, there was a real long putter that it looked like you had to fasten to your chest, and that was declared illegal at some point. So it has been done. This thing is legal. Do you look like something out of the little rascals, yeah, you look idiotic. It looks like it belongs to a four-year-old. But again, if it drops and most matches are won by putting, it's okay. It's okay. Yeah, but Tony, but Big If, he shot 44 on the front today. So maybe it's not working. And if you look that stupid,

and it's not working, then just bring the ridicule. Just bring it. That's what sport is about. You know a of people. You know a lot of people who play the same set of clubs for years and years and years and years and they're always fooling with putters. You know, they go to a blade, they go to some portion of thing, they go to a mallet. And these putters cost hundreds of dollars. And if you find one that works, even if you look like a dope, if it works, I think you use it. Let's take a break. How many putters you got? About 15. Michael's got 14 of them and I steal them every once in a while. Coming up, Trey Hendrickson shows up to Bengals camp, we'll ask Dan Gratziano what it means.

We'll also ask him which new head coach might be standing out to him in the NFL of L. The average putter is 34 to 36 inches. This is half the size. You dend over, you do. It's like for a four-year-old. You look idiotic. We have several football questions

for our good friend ESPN National NFL Insider, Georgetown's own, Darren Gratziano. Let's start with this. The Bengals celebrated pass rush at Trey Hendrickson. He converted his holdout into a hold in today. Does this mean, in your opinion, that he's close to a deal? It does not. It means that he was sick of being fined $50,000 a day in an effort to get more money.

That's a little incongruous. So he shows up today and he's not going to practice, I'm sure, until this is settled. Bengals have offered him a deal. They believe it's fair. He disagrees. wants more guarantees in future years. That's not something the Bengals have tended to do throughout their history. In fact, they broke precedent for Joe Burrow and Jamar Chase, but that's about it. So, Trey Hendrickson at age 30, not a guy that the Bengals feel comfortable guaranteeing money to

in future years beyond this one. And that has been the source of the dispute. At some point, somebody's going to have to move in the other's direction. But they have a few weeks to get this sorted out. And the fact that he's there is at least a positive as they prepare for their season. Ah, the Bengals being the Bengals. Some of us were covering that stuff 30 and 40 years ago. Let's move to a place more familiar to Tony and me. Washington, where Terry McLaurin is having a hold in. You're going to be there tomorrow, Dan, with the commanders.

What's the latest on McLaren in his contractual situation? Kind of similar. I mean, another player who's, you know, where the first number turned from a two to a three or will soon. And he's, you know, he's asking for high-end. wide receiver money. He believes he's earned it. He's been the good soldier there, the good teammate, you know, through a lot of difficult times. And now that it's good, he wants to, you know, he wants to be rewarded and fair enough. So so far he's asking for more than Washington has been willing to give. The wide receiver market has gone well past $30 million a year for

the top guys. There are teams out there that think that that's, that's crazy that, you know, there's like seven or eight good ones coming out in the draft every year. I'm not saying Washington is one of those teams, but there is a little bit of a pushback in some places about where the wide receiver market has gone. I think Washington's willing to pay Terry McLaurin, but there's a little difference of opinion in terms of how high the number needs to be. And right now, same situation as Hendrickson. He's there, not practicing, and at some point, you know, something's going to have to give. Well, we know all the new head coaches are in camp. They're practicing and running practices.

of them, Dan. Is there one that has a favorite storyline for you, one of those seven you are watching more closely than the others? My favorite storyline is Travis Hunter, and that's a new head coach in Liam Cohen in Jacksonville. I'm extremely excited to see what they come up with for him. I was at their camp on Sunday and talked to Liam Cohen and talked to the GM James Gladstone about the ways they're trying to prepare Travis Hunter for a dual role, something we, we, we. really have not seen to the level I expect to see it with Travis Hunter. So I think that's fascinating. Obviously, Liam Cohen has to get, you know, the offense in shape and Trevor Lawrence playing

the way, you know, we've always thought he should be playing. But I think the Travis Hunter story is one of the coolest ones right now in the NFL. And if you ask me about new head coaches and good stories, that was the first one that popped into my head. Yeah, we'll get you out of here on this. We know Travis Hunter is going to play. That's different from this question because this question is about Brown's quarterbacks and we don't know who's going to play. They have four quarterbacks including two draft picks. Kenny Pickett has an injured hamstring. How do you see this whole situation playing out? Look, Pickett, I think, was a factor, like had a real chance, and may still, depending how long he's out. But the issue has been getting

enough reps for all four guys. So Pickett's injury might help guys like Dylan Gabriel and Shadur Sanders get more reps. They don't feel like they need a ton of reps for Joe Flacco. They know what he can do. But the rookies may have a chance to get more practice reps as a result of the picket injury. And maybe that helps the case of Gabriel or Sanders to be the week one starter or at the very least start at some point this season. I think they remember the Browns had Kenny Pickett before they had any of these other guys. So I think they want to give him a chance if he's healthy. But right now he's not. And that will force them to take a longer look at some of the rookies. Guys, it's, it's, it's really kind of a mess. I think the best

thing you can say about the Browns quarterback situation is they have two first round picks in next year's draft. Unbelievable. This year is already shocked. The last time we asked about Cleveland this year, I hope. Thanks, Dan. Yeah. Wonderful appearance. Thank you, Dan. You got it. Let's take one last break still to come.

Orioles outfielder, Cedric Mullins, makes another improbable catch. He's living above the fence line. He is. Darry Says many NBA executives do not think the Lakers' bubble title is legit. Ooh. Ooh. Hater-Rey.

Daryl Mory, how many titles has Dary won again? Refresh my memory on this. I know he's your boy. How many titles? Happy time, people. Happy 91st birthday Bud Sealing. The former commissioner of baseball was the owner of the Milwaukee Brewers, not to mention a car dealer in Milwaukee.

Sealing was great friends with Hank Aaron. Wilbon, didn't you tell me you had dinner with Sealing and Aaron in Arizona? Seelig was chosen commissioner after the owners had enough with Faye Vincent and turned to a fellow owner. Seelig was either acting commissioner or official commissioner of baseball from 1992 to 2015. That is a long run. During Sealing's tenure, there was that dispiriting impasse that canceled the 1994 World Series. It was an expansion of playoff rounds and the installation of interleague play. And also under Seelig's watch was the uplift.

retirement of Jackie Robinson's number 42. In my 40 plus years, Bud Seleague, one of my favorite people to cover in all that time in sports. And yes, I was fortunate enough to be invited to his home by his lovely wife, Sue, to have dinner with Bud Sealing and Hank Aaron. What's better than that, Tom? Bud Seleuk, I know there's that 1994 World Series thing you can't get away from, but there's so many other things that happened. Remember when we said he was hiding under his desk and he called us early in the pizza? TTI history has said, put me on tomorrow. And, of course, we did.

Love, Bucci. Happy, happy anniversary, Katie Ledecki. On this day, 12 years ago, at the age of 16, the D.C. born swimmer crushed the world record in the 1,500 meter freestyle for her second goal at the World Swimming Championships in Barcelona. Ladeki broke the previous record by more than six seconds. She has gone on to lower that record five more times

with an all-time best of 15 minutes, 20.48 seconds in 2018. Yesterday, Ledecki again won the 1,500 at the Worlds in Singapore. Ledecki is the most decorated female swimmer in history, with 42 medals across the world championships in the Olympics, including 31 golds. Ledecki has more Olympic medals than any American woman in history, 14, including nine golds. She is aiming at competing in the 2008 Olympics in Los Angeles.

Tony is pretty cool. Both of us have had front row seats to Katie Ladecki's entire life. So yes, her career. And it's so great that she does this and has the presence that she does. It's like Wilton Michael Jordan, though. You could do a Katie Ladecki anniversary to a record every day. Every day in the summer, we could do Katie Ladecki and we'd be happy to do. It's amazing amount of medals.

It really is. Happy trails to the Orioles for Sir Anthony Dominguez. The Orioles dealt the right-hand and reliever to the Blue Jays last night between games of a doubleheader with Toronto. That means that Dominguez suited up for the O's in game one and for the Blue Jays in game two. In fact, he passed his suddenly former teammates on the way to the visitor's bullpen and even made it to the mound against his old team throwing a scoreless seventh. By the way, in today's final game of the series between these two teams, Cedric Mullins, Rob, Ali Sanchez, of extra bases with one of the best catches

of the season. And didn't I read Mullen's could have been one of those guys who gets traded? Man, you see, and that, that catch is no better than the previous one he made. He's doing this every other night now, it seems. It's a very similar catch to the one the National Centerfield, Jacob Young made about a week ago. Young made a great catch. And I know you're very skeptical most of the time of catches because you say, oh, they're all

look the same. But when you see a guy go over the wall, when he's got to plant his foot, in the wall and then go over. It's a thrilling moment. It's great to watch. It is. It's really good. Let's go to the big finish.

The Bray was putting Ronald O'Cunia Jr. on the IL with tightness in his right Achilles. That has to be caused for concern, right? Yes, and the Braves have been undone by injuries to their stars, it seems. Let's just hope it's not as serious as that sounds. Yankee star to Luis Heel. Expected to make his season debut. Four months in,

on Sunday. Is that significant? Yeah, he was rookie of the year last year. Everybody needs starting pitching. Yeah, it's a big deal. Jonathan Cominga has yet to sign a new deal with the Warriors, in part because he reportedly believes the team has stunted and strung

him along for four years. Do you agree with that? Wow, if you feel that way, look, it's not working. For whatever reason, he's a talent. Maybe it'll come out somewhere else, but it's just not working to the degree we thought it would at Golden State, even though he's won a championship. Showe is on the mound in Cincinnati tonight after striking out his first four-plate appearances last night, your thoughts?

I don't worry about his hitting. He's proven what a good hitter it is. I want to see him pitch and go more than one or two or three. I want to see his arm back. Last one. Darry told the athletic most execs don't see the Lakers' bubble title as a genuine championship. Do you? I do. That's hard. Different kind of hard, but hard. Yes, I do. Time, time, Tony. I'm Mike Wilbon, same time tomorrow, knuckleheads. ETII.