Rahimi, Harris & Grote Show - 5 On It: Were Cubs' bats or temperatures hotter at Wrigley Field on Wednesday?

Episode Date: July 2, 2026

Leila Rahimi and Chuck Swirsky discussed a variety of sports topics in the 5 On It segment.

Yeah. It's time for five. Oh, Brian Harrison Rooney. Bring you five topics on their minds today. On 104-3, the score. I got five on it. Number one.

What was hotter Thursday at Wrigley Field? The temperature or the Cubs bats? I mean, I did not see that coming. I did not see the 23-run outburst coming. I mean, I thought it might be a 9-to-7 special again. And I mentioned this, Ray Diaz, Tyler Fieringle, Chuck Swirsky. I mentioned that there were two fans in front of us in our booth at Gallagher Way yesterday. And one of the guys goes, what do you think the score is going to be?

And he's with a buddy of his. And I said, I don't know, probably another 9 to 7 game. And then the buddy goes, I don't know, man. What about 15 to 3? And then he goes, the other guy goes, yeah, 15 to 3. And I was like, I didn't say that. Well, I should have taken credit because he was way closer to the correct score than I was. The temperature was hot.

And I don't recommend for those of you who don't like the hot weather. You don't like the heat. Just stay inside. This isn't even a challenge. It's just the right thing to do. But 23 runs. Do you think the Padres went out the night before? I don't know.

I'm just saying. A day game after a night game? You lose two games. One in the Ivy. And then the next day you give up 23 runs. If I'm the new owners of the Padres, I'm calling a team meeting. Where were you last night? That was ridiculous.

And you know, the normally solid Walker Bueller gave up nine run runs over four innings. I mean, and that's how you knew that the wheels were off. But here's the funny part, Chuck is... No, the wheels were off at about three in the morning when they went back to their hotel. An allegation by Chuck Swarsky. I mean, come on. You can't give up 23. You just lost two tough games.

Yeah. And you come back. You've got to be kidding me. 23 runs. That is an embarrassment. It offended your baseball. sensibilities? It did. And then the third home run hit by Swanson, I get it. You know, it's major league baseball and all that stuff. That was a lollipop. Well, that was a position player pitching.

It was like wiffle ball. There should be an asterisk. Do you know what Dustin Rhodes in our first hour said the same thing? And what's funny is I don't know that Danesby Swanson would disagree. Like he understands. But when he was circling the bases you saw. I love Swanson. I think he's, you know, I've never met the guy. I don't know him. Right. But I, I've heard the interviews, and I've seen him. I think he's a class act. But he was circling the basis. When he got around the third, he put, like, the Michael Jordan two hands up in the air.

Shrugging. You know, against Portland with MJ, with, you know, beating Cliff Robinson with the three ball, right in the grill, and then Cliff Robinson's, look at the heaven saying, come on. Well, Danesby Swanson did the shrug. I mean, because what are you going to do? Your job is to hit. It's not your fault that there's a position player out there. And it's kind of the fault of the team, if you will,

for being so good that a position player is out there. That's like the guys across from us in the studio. And when they have a bad day at the office, and it happens to all of us. But when they hit the wrong button, they give the shrug. Hey, it happens. It does happen. It does.

See, they're shrugging respectfully right now, Tyler and Ray. I think we should do a segment called The Shrug. The Shruggy. Like, who gets the shrug today? So who gets the shrug then? You think Dan Zby Swanson, gives it or do you think the Padres receive it? Oh, the Padres.

Okay, then. Yeah, that was brutal. And how about the fact that the Cubs score 23 runs? And then, oh, last week, don't forget, the White Sox had 22. Yes, they did. Now, for those of you seamheads out there, there is a question that is being asked by Levi Weaver and Andy McCullough of the athletic, and I think they do tremendous work, asking if Major League Baseball is changing the balls again. And those two games would give you an indication that that might be the case.

Because you know they're in charge of that. They're in charge of ball production. So they are able to do that with Rawlings. And that is at their discretion if they so choose. So what was major league baseball's response? Well, this is just a, they've never actually, they only respond about the process. They never, like, give an indication as to whether or not the ball changes.

And then all these other people will collect samples where they can. Meredith Wills is a astrophysicist who will collect balls to see what the difference is What you majored in, right? Oh, yeah. Yeah, that's definitely where I'm in sports talk radio. I'm terrifying, the astrophysicist. I have a cousin who's a physicist. What do you do for a living? I saw baseballs. Yeah, exactly. But so they measure them, but yeah, it's just, right now they're doing this based on data and runs per game. But the 23 and the 22 might indicate that the ball has changed. I mean, you're happy about it because it's us, but, you know.

Yeah, listen, the weather is changing around the country, around the globe for that matter. And when it gets hot, balls fly out of the ballpark. But 23 runs, come on. So here's another nugget since we're here, Chuck. You're talking Denver? No, we can, but yeah. Who did we see Bagley resigned? No, so how about this?

In the humidity, the ball is more likely to travel far. The humidity will aim to run. So there you go. There you go. We solved nothing. Absolutely nothing. Number two. Come shortstop, Dansby Swanson had his first career three homer game on Wednesday,

which included a grand slam. This capped off a 10-game span in which Swanson has hit a total of eight homers and 26 RBI. Here's a multiple choice question for you, Leila and Chuck. Do you believe Dansby Swanson's offense is a sustainable, B, a flash in the pan, or C, somewhere in the middle? I think it is somewhere in the middle. Yeah. Now, Dansby has not had the best average in the years that he has been the Cubs shortstop,

but I do think that he wants to make adjustments, and it sure sounds like there's been some real intent, Chuck, when it comes to him trying to be his best self offensively. And I think that looks a little more like the numbers he had in Atlanta before he left for Chicago. So while I don't think it is necessarily sustainable because you don't expect Danby Swanson to hit for power, that was never part of the expectation.

I do think that we are starting to see a guy putting good swings on the bat, being more consistent. And then, yeah, when you do that, a home run will come to you. And I feel like that's what we're seeing. The RBIs are as good a vacation as any, though, as to the success he's had over the past few weeks. Well, the quote, Bill Parcell's different sport. Bill Parcells, you are who you are.

Yeah. And sooner or later, those numbers are going to reflect what Swanson is done throughout his career. Mm-hmm. So I would agree with you. I think somewhere in the middle. If not, put him in the hall. Put him in the Hall of Fame. I mean, he is on his terror.

We got a Chuck call for baseball for Hall of Fame? Unbelievable. I did not see that coming. I wonder if Danes v. Swanson is a Hawks stand. Oh, yeah, that's a good question, because he's an Atlanta guy. Yes. Yeah, I guess we should ask him. Yeah.

The Hawks have had an interesting run recently. I like actually what they're doing. But anyway, we digress. No, that's kind of the idea. It's a talk show. We got time. We got time to digress. Yeah.

So, you know, that would be the first question. You come in, like, he, three home runs. Danzby, Chuck Swirsky with the score. Are you a Hawks fan? See, this is why we need more crossovers. Because none of us have asked Danesby Swansden. He's a Hawks fan? What?

Hawks, what? You know, the Atlanta Hawks. Oh, yeah. I just hit three home runs. Have we even asked? question about the Falcons. Like we've never, have we as a collective

ever asked Danesby Swanson about, you know, the other sport of focus in the South, a.k.a. football. Who is your favorite all-time Atlanta Falcon?

Oh, is it Andre Reisen? Is it Julio Jones? Bad Moon Arison. Yep. Why am I only naming receivers? I feel like I'm missing

a running back in there somewhere. I have a running back. Dirty Bird. Junior coffee. Dang. Yes. And when he would make a,

first down, a little cream in the coffee. I love that. Is that the call? Is that the call that you would use? No, junior coffee was with the expansion ball club way back in the day. But they had a linebacker by the name of Tommy Nobus. Yeah. It was a great player at Texas. Texas Longhorn, yep. Yes.

Yeah, that's a good call as well. You know, we try to. Jamal Anderson probably is up there. You know, dirty bird. But yeah, it might be Hunter Rising for me. Is that crazy? How about Dion Sanders? Dion.

I think of him as a cowboy, though, because of me being from Dallas. There you go. Julio Jones is up there. Yes, excellent player. Yeah, yeah. And he was a beast at Alabama. He was.

Falcons talk on the score. Number three. This is five out and a 104. The score with Lailorheamy and Bulls Radio Network Play-by-Play announcer Chuck Swirsky. Onions, baby, onions. Here's question number three.

is your pick to click for the White Sox series against the Guardians. I've taken the first two questions first, Chuck. I would like you to go. Well, yeah, but, remember, who's your individual? I was on your show. Who's your pick to click? Who's going to lead the way in order for the, uh, the socks to get a series win? Yeah, if you had to pick one guy in the lineup that you think is going to do well, who's it

going to be? I'm talking Vargas. I like Vargas. Solid choice. Usually one of mine, frankly. You know what? I think this. There are a lot of feel-good stories in sports to me in baseball this year.

Again, we have a lot to be played. But I think the White Sox are the story in baseball, period. They got what, the third best record in the American League? With all due respect to Tampa Bay. They're right now first in the AL Central, so there's that. So do you have the standings in front of you? Let me get them right now. MLB.com slash savings.

I think they've got the third best record in the American League. The problem is the American League is just not good. I get it, but somebody has to win. Amen. So I would have said the Yankees, but I forgot they had a bit of a slide. Yeah, they're at seven in a row. So, yeah, right now, the Braz are 50 and 33. Yankees are 48 and 38.

Rangers are 44 and 43, which is basically the entire record of the A.L. West. Like Seattle's 44, 43, Astros are 43 and 46. The A's are 41 and 46. And then your Chicago White Sox. Yes. I'm not going to try. Sometimes I try to do the Gene Honda, but Gene is, Gene is irreplicable.

Yes, he is. The socks are 45 and 40. So, yeah, that would indicate the third best record. I mean, really, think about where this club has been and where they're going. I mean, they've got a really good farm system. They've got the number one picking the draft with the kid Chalewalsky from UCLA. They might pick Rock Chilowski. I feel like there's been some discussion as to whether or not they want to,

but that's kind of the idea of the 1-1, right? It depends. It depends because they got the shortstop that's going to go number two in the draft. the high school kid. And then they got the catcher from Georgia Tech. Those are the top three players. They're going one, two, three, or three, one, two, whatever you want to say it. It's kind of reminiscent of the 2019 draft in that way to me.

You know, like Adley Rushman and Bobby Wood Jr. Yeah. Now, who would you rather have right now? Bobby Wood Jr. Thank you. Yeah. So that's why I think there is some discussion there, you know? That's why I don't think it's a, it's not necessarily a lock for rock.

But I did a show just before. that draft and they asked me who would I take and I love Oregon State players. Yeah, great program. Great program in Corvallis, Oregon. But I love Witt. And you know what? They signed him to a really good contract for KZ. Yeah, the fact that they gave him that contract was really notable and then he's he's played into the contract and more. Yeah, absolutely. Okay, so there you go. The White Sox are going to be Guardians. Chuck is picking the white socks as his pick to click, but specifically Miguel Vargas. So I have to now pick a pick to click. And in the spirit of the midday show, somebody's got to take Sam Antanachi. And that girl is me. There you go. So I will take Sam Antanachi

is my pick to click because Chuck Swirsky took Vargas. Well, you know Alyssa Bergamini very well, right? Yeah. She's a part of our Bulls broadcast. Her dad has even called into our show. Really? Yeah, Jim. See, Alyssa lives and dies because she works for the entertainment package in game. She's the arena host. She is. And does a great job. She lives and dies, along with her mother, by the way.

Rhonda. They love the White Sox. They do. Now, my mom actually taught a former White Sox player. Which one? And there's a little history to this. His name is Bruce Howard. Bruce Howard pitched for the White Sox in the 60s.

He was, here's the story. And it's true. so it came down to an intra-squad game in spring training. They had to take one pitcher, Bruce Howard or Denny McLean. And Bruce Howard got the call from the White Sox and said, you're staying with us. Denny McLean, who won 30 games last 30-game winner in baseball, was released and he signs with Detroit. Incredible. And my mom taught Bruce Howard in high school.

Well, shout out to Chuck Spursky's mom. Mama Swirsky. Lover. Number four. United States men's national soccer team striker, Flo Bowlagan, will miss the team's round of 16 match against Belgium after being red-carded in last night's 2-0 win against Bosnia and Herzegovina. Is this a World Cup injustice?

Yes. I don't know a person who watches sports who thought that that was the right call on the red card. The fact that it was a possible red card and even. being discussed. When it happened with Messi and did Messi get a red card? No, he did not. No, but I want to state right here. And now he's out for the Belgium game.

I want to give that referee the red card. He should never, ever do it again. Man, it's just nobody knows corruption like FIFA. You know? Yeah. I mean, let's just state the facts. That was ridiculous. That changes the whole World Cup.

Did you know that that was Team USA's first win out of the knockout stage in 24? years. And we can't even get to enjoy this because of the ridiculous red car call. Do you know who agrees with me, by the way, other than everybody? Caleb Williams. Did you see he posted about it? Because even he thought it wasn't, this is a ridiculous call. It was a bad call enough to put that guy, the referee, in a one-way flight to Siberia. I mean, that's where, you know what? It might be nicest time of year, though, actually, given the heat and everything. But you know what else? The fact that it was a VAR situation, too. The whole thing just reeks of it. It was. Poor decision making.

It was very, very bad. Merga. That is... What do we think? I think we can do it, guys. Real quick. I believe in us. Yesterday, friend of the show,

Brandon Pope, who is the president of the Chicago chapter of the National Association of Black Journalists, took to X to share the following summertime shy experience. Quote, my Chicago summer nightmare is sitting on a CTA bus in sweltering hot temps with no AC going 25 plus stops. And I just lived it, unquote. I ask you, Layla and Chuck, what is your summer nightmare? Okay, first of all, shout out to El Presidente, Brandon Pope, who is always a storyteller. And this is an excellent and yet unfortunate example of that being the case. Ray Diaz, not to be outdone, didn't you get on a train where the heat was on yesterday?

Coincidentally, my morning commute to Wrigley Field yesterday, including getting on the blue line. And the train car I got onto had the heat blasting. So I had to remove myself out of that train car. to another one and the AC was fine. But that was not the way I wanted to start my morning, Chuck. That is my summer nightmare. Is that scenario right there with the heat on? Bus with no 25 stops and no AC is also pretty bad. One of those is probably up there for me. Do you have a summer nightmare, Chuck? Well, my summer nightmare is because I take the red line a lot. Yeah, we're CTA people, Ricky and I take the red line and it's wall to wall. And it doesn't matter. It doesn't matter.

whether it's eight in the morning or eight at night, a lot of people smoke weed and the whole thing, just the aroma in the train car. I mean, it's like too strong, too much. Hey, if you want to smoke weed, that's your prerogative. But you know what? Just don't come into a red line and everyone's like gagging. It's bad weed a lot of the times too.

It just smells bad. I mean, don't they have gummies for that? that stuff? I think that is an option for people. Okay. Yeah. So, you know, but there's a lot of people out here publicly, confidently smoking some very bad weed. Wouldn't you guys say so? Oh, no doubt about it. Okay. So, so, I mean,

I wouldn't know good weed from bad weed, but by the smell is how you know? I think the closer to a skunk, I think, the more it's bad. That's how I feel. That's just me. One more quick CTA, PSA. Just saying. Please, please, please remove your backpacks when the train car is crowded and you walk in with your backpack.

Take your backpack off, you jerk. Yeah, you just, You just hold it and you set it down so that way you take a less space standing. Common decency, people. And you know what? I was on the red line two days ago and a guy was hitting on a young lady. They had never met. On the train? On the train and I'm listening.

Game. I mean, I can't, I mean, I'm watching this. I'm saying, hey, you know, like, what are you doing? You're stalking somebody. No. And the other thing is like, I don't get it. I just don't get it. Why people are on their phones having a private conversation.

and 30 people are listening. Yeah, that's inconsiderate. Is it that important? Sometimes, but not always. Not always. I agree, Chuck. All of CTA etiquette, who knew that that would be the topic of the day on Rahimi Harris and Grody? Megan Montemarrow, the Cubs beat writer for the Chicago Tribune, who has been covering the offensive outburst that is the Chicago Cubs.

Next.