The Herd with Colin Cowherd - HOUR 3 - Culture, Wilson, MLB

Episode Date: October 12, 2022

Why culture matters so much in sports Why did the Russell Wilson injury leak? Thoughts on the MLB playoffs so far   Guests: Mark Schlereth, Alex Rodriguez See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed Human. Another podcast from some SNL, late-night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smygel and friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest,

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Hey, this is Robert from the Stuff to Blow Your Mind podcast. Joe and I are both lifelong Star Wars fan, so we're celebrating May the 4th with a brand new week of fun, thought-provoking Star Wars-related episodes. Join us as we tackle science and culture topics from a galaxy far, far away, such as the biology of tauntons and wampas on the ice planet hot, or the practicality and corporate business sense of the Sith rule. of two. Listen to Stuff to Bole Your Mind on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win.

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So A-Rod into the show talking baseball, Mark Schler at today and J-Mack, obviously. I do think I led the show with it today two hours ago with a Draymond Green because they have elected not to suspend him just fine. And it's fascinating because everybody's got one of the reasons I like this story is because it's a story that has a lot of different angles. You can have a lot of different opinions. I can have an opinion. Nick Wright just had an opinion. You have an opinion. I don't like doing stories where there's like one opinion.

You know, sometimes stuff gets on the Internet and you have to take the safe opinion. Everybody feels like you get, this is one where you can have like a lot of different opinions. My opinion has been as ugly as this was, and it was pretty ugly, there's been a lot of fights. Steve Kerr mentioned, I've seen 20 of them. Dame Lillard came out and said, I saw stuff worse than college. It happens a lot. Sports is mostly sanitized for TV networks and advertisers. Even the UFC, if you go back to Dana White and the Fratita family, take

over UFC. I remember, that's like 20 years ago. I don't even remember when it was. It was 20, 25 years ago. I watched the bar was called the Condor in San Francisco. I was there with friends for a weekend. From Portland, Brian and Nancy. And we went into late night nightcap. We went into a sports bar in San Francisco and watched UFC. And this was before the Fertita family and Dana White were involved. There was eye gouging. It was brutal. And of course, there's the element that loved it. And then Dana White and the Fertita family, bought it and said, we got to clean this up to get Budweiser as a sponsor and to get Mountain due. And so the eye gout, they took it out. UFC 20 years ago was repulsive and the bottom feeders loved it. But in the end, we have all sorts of regulated violence in sports, football and

hockey and boxing in UFC. So this version of it, I mean, when a boxer goes down or a UFC fighter goes down, that referee is on it immediately. They don't want multiple shots. You've got big Fortune 500 companies advertising and the UFC is a wildly successful financial machine, but it cleaned it up. It sanitized it for advertisers. That's why what the Warriors were furious about is this got out because there is a sanitized version of sports that you get. Now this is on the harsher end. This is a clean shot.

But there have been multiple people that have come out executives I've talked to and read on the internet that have said, yeah. that doesn't rise to PJ Carlissimo, Spreewell, the choke. So yes, it's ugly. It's uglier than most. But they're not suspending them. So let's start with that premise that sports does have a darker side, an uglier side, yelling, it's not your job, folks.

You know, if this happened to your workplace, people get fired, the HR comes in. That's not what happened here. You circle the wagons, the coach and GM sit down. They made a decision. Here's Steve Kerr on the decision they made to let it. them play Friday and not suspend him. We feel like we have a great feel for our team. We've got a lot of continuity on this team, so Bob and I know our players extremely well.

We feel like this is the best way after assessing everything for us to move forward. It's never easy. No matter what decision you make in a situation like this, it's not going to be perfect. Now, the Warriors are in a very unique space. So they've got three young players who are all crazy gifted. Jordan Poole, well, I'd say four. Jordan Poole, who got hit there, they're going to assign him to an extension. He's kind of, Steph goes to the bench, Jordan Poole comes in, he's a shotmaker.

A kid named Moses Moody, who's terrific, 6-5 can defend, Jonathan Cumminga, James Wiseman. These guys outside of Jordan Poole, you didn't see in the playoffs. because the Warriors are so good and so deep, they would start for 90% of the teams in the league. For the Warriors, they don't even play them in the playoffs. They're all legitimate starters in the league. Wiseman was the number two pick. Cumminga is crazy.

67-2-20 defender Twitchy. Moses Moody, a brick, tough kid. They love him. And then there's Jordan Poole who got hit. So they're in a situation now where, okay, Wiggins, Wiggins is now as good. as any elite wing defender they have. And here comes Cuminga.

And not to pay Cummega anything. So now Draymond's out of his prime window. He's not quite as valuable, though he was great in game six of the finals. He's struggled in three other games. So now what this organization worries about is not replacing Draymond as much. They've got Cominga and Wiggins defenders on the wing, and they have sighs coming in with Wiseman. so Draymond was wildly valuable in the Draymond green era because he was more athletically in his prime and he was their best wing defender but now Wiggins has been outstanding here comes

Wiseman here comes Cumminga and so this punch though Kerr acknowledges this stuff happens now you worry about older guys supporting Draymond younger guys like whoa whoa whoa whoa whoa you're going to let that happen and that's where Kerr said this. This is the biggest crisis that we've ever had since I've been coach here. It's a really serious stuff. We're not perfect. You know, our team isn't perfect. Bob and I have definitely made our share of mistakes over the years, but we're going to lean on the experience that we have together over the last nine years and trust that this is the best decision for our team. So when Steve Kerr says that, they lost KD. And he's saying, now, this is the biggest crisis. What? What? This is bigger than losing KD. So if Steve says that publicly,

you've got a lot of things to weigh here. You've got four tremendous young players. A couple of them great defenders. And Wiggins, do you need Raymond as much? These are questions they're asking. And, you know, and then Nick, and here's what happens. I got a bunch of kids. When you have kids, And they act up. All kids do. And then they do something again and again and again. And the fear is, as Nick Wright said about 20 minutes ago, is, is this now something that Draymond struggles to control?

I thought this was a very interesting take. I don't think he has adequate control over his impulses. I think he's demonstrated that over five, six years. And I think that if there's a real chance that this is. is a moment for the Warriors where the veterans side with Draymond and the younger guy side with Poole and that could be a very,

very big problem. Okay, so J. Mack had said this earlier. I have a relationship with Draymond, but I can be honest about it. I love if you go back to the Bulls Rodman, Pistons Lamb Beer, Bruce Bone and Rodman Spurs, Eudanus Haslam, Draymond Green.

Most of our dynasties have a tough guy. The bouncer in the bar. And this has been, this is a, This team plays pretty good defense, but Draymond has always been wildly important. In fact, the stat that was amazing last year, when Draymond was on the floor in the regular season last year, this was the best defensive team since the Duncan Warriors, Duncan Spurs. When Draymond was off the floor last year, they were 13th best in the league defensively. So he has been a catalyst on both ends of the floor for them.

But again, now they're loaded with these four young players. Wiggins, I think any reasonable person would suggest that Wills, Wiggins now is their most athletic wing defender. Andrew Wiggins has been an absolute fine. A lot of people thought he was a bust. He was so good and he was great in the finals. So now the question is, what do you do? And I think it's one thing when somebody thinks something.

But when Steve Kerr, one of the smartest people I've ever covered in sports, says something publicly, this is the biggest crisis we've had. So he's saying that publicly. What are he, Joe Laca, Bob Myers saying privately? And to your point, you would just move off him. I would move off of him, but I know that's going to sound crazy to a lot of Warriors fans. Colin, just remember what makes this dynasty special, right? Their culture is built on unselfish basketball, right?

Pace and space. We're going to set screens. Everybody's part of the offensive operation as opposed to dump it down on the blocks at the big center or Michael Jordan ISO. Very much a selfless. But with Drainmond Green, it's always me, me, me. It's always about him, whether it's in the finals, taking a swing at LeBron in 2016, getting ejected, whether it's him not wanting to deal with Kevin Duran on the bench and getting in a huge argument with him.

For whatever reason, Dremont, even during the finals, I know the podcast thing is a big deal. He's doing his podcast like every day, he doesn't want to talk to the media, doing his podcast. And it was like causing friction. Like, Dremont, what are you doing? Like, why are you doing this? And to throw a punch at Poole, remember, a lot of players in that video had their back to it. They did not actually see it. At the end, you just see, oh, Dremont hit him, but you don't think he clocked him.

And then you go back to your room. You're like, what the hell? Like, Jordan Poole, when he pushed him away, like, kind of put his head outside. Like, come on, man, get out of here. Dremont, like, went forcefully. Like, I don't like this guy. He's the bodyguard of the team, and he's knocking out one of the players. Colin, I just, I couldn't stand for it.

No, no. Listen, I think this stuff happens more than fans think. But this does feel like it is, it is. is a culture, a fabric tear. Remember, Curry got paid, Clay got paid, Jordan Poole's about to get a huge contract, generational wealth. Dremont has not gotten paid and he's waiting. Is there part of him saying, what about me?

Why are you paying all these guys? No, I mean, there's a lot of speculation out there. And Dremont was apologetic, but to Nick's point is you put up with more stuff pre-ring in a player's prime. Like Randy Moss found a lot of teams in his prime. The Patriots are like, we're going to bring you on. May risk our culture. Randy was out of his prime.

People don't want to take chances. So, you know, does your talent outweigh your headaches? There was no question for years, Draymond, the talent and his importance outweighed some stuff. It's pro athletes. Nobody's perfect. I think you're getting to a point between Wiggins, the young players, and his expense. There's, you know, my dad said this years ago, be a good person because your employment will

largely be decided by people raising their hands in a room you're not in. Should we keep the kids? Should we get rid of them? You're not in that room, right? So you need allies at companies. Some people can drive you crazy. There are employees you don't like or bosses you don't like. Your employment will be decided largely when you're not in the room.

You got Joe Laca, Bob Meyer, Steve Kerr, and Steph Curry. Those are the big four. They're going to go to a room. and the owner's going to be the tiebreaker. So my question, you know, Steph Curry is going to defend him. I'm not sure the owner's going to defend him. In the tiebreaker of the four people in a room,

you know, Curry's going to be in the room, Bob Myers, Steve Kerr, and Joe Lakeup, the owner. When he was cheap, the owner's going to raise his hand for him. Now he's expensive with Wiggins. I'm like, I'm paying Wiggins and Dremont. So this is going to come down to it,

a moment in a room with four big people and there's going to be, okay, owner gets the tiebreaker, raise your hands. And my guess it's going to be a two-two split and the owner's going to be like, I can't have that out there with my property that I own. I don't care who leaked it. This is literally hurts our value, our culture. This is bad video. It turns off advertisers and fans.

Do you know what the extreme example of this is? Antonio Brown. Tom Brady gets to Tampa says, I want Antonio Brown. Well, the owner's going to say Tom Brady wants them. Let's bring him in. They win the Super Bowl. Antonio Brown freaks out on the sideline, loses the coach. Tom still wants him.

At this point, Brady wants him, but the coach is like, we can't have this guy. And the owner's also, this is bad for business. This is bad look. Yeah, exactly. Yeah, no, I think all this stuff is really interesting. Mark Schlereth, A-Rod today. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific. On Fox Sports Radio, FS1, and the IHeart Radio app. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal, but encouraged

It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the I-Hard Radio app, Apple Podcasts,

or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what I'm saying. Yep, that's me, Clifford Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media.

Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined. And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand-new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. One week, I'll take you behind the scenes

of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment. And the next we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even music. The Clifford Show isn't just a podcast. It's a space for honest conversations, stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger. So if you've ever supported me or you're just chasing down a dream, this is right where you need to be. Listen to the Clifford show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your

podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. Do you remember when Diana Ross double-tapped Little Kim's boobs at the VMAs? Or when Kanye said that George Bush didn't like black people. I know what you're thinking. What the hell does George Bush got to do with Little Kim? Well, you can find out on the Look Back at it podcast. I'm Sam Jett.

And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick a here, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. Including a recent episode with Mark Lamont Hill, waxing all about crack in the 80s. To be clear, 84 is big to me, not just because. of crack. I'm down to talk about crack on day, but just so y'all know.

I mean, at this point, Mark, this is the second episode where we've discussed crack. So I'm starting to see that there's a through line. We also have AIDS on the table right now. Thank you finishing that sentence. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Really? Yeah. For me, it's one of the most important years for black people in American history.

Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your Podcasts. Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hard Way with me, your host, and your favorite therapist, Kear Games. And in recognition

of mental health awareness month, I'm bringing over a decade of my own experience in the mental health field and conversations with so many incredible guests. I'm talking. Tripp Fontaine,

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And we don't know when we've done enough. Because people scoreboard watch. Life becomes about wins and losses. Steve Burns, Dustin Ross, because you find it important to be a good person while you hear on earth, or are you a good person because you're afraid? Because that's two different intentions, bro.

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Search, learn the hard way, and listen now. It is the Phillies and the Braves. Can't wait for this ride to begin. Castiano. It's down in front of Acuna. Phillies on the board. Suarez fires. Got him with a high fastball.

On comes Castiano. He lays out. That's the ball game. It's the Dodgers and the Padres. Turner lifts one to deep left field. And it's a 1-0-0 start for the Dodgers. Julio Urius. He has become the man for the Dodgers.

And it is a strike fast track. Game 1 Dodger win in this NLDS. The NLDS continues today, starting with game two between the Phillies and Braves at 4 Eastern on Fox. Then it's Padres Dodgers at 8 Eastern 5 Pacific on FS1, and it's all streaming on the Fox Sports app. Padres are so talented. They just, you know, it's just like they just ended up. I always felt bad for Phil Mickelson. His prime was Tiger Woods Prime.

You know what I mean? Like, you know, there's these players, like the Utah Jazz, Malone in Stockton. They're unbelievable. They just happen to land in MJ's prime. That Padre team is so good. But the Dodgers batting order, maybe the best since the like mid-70s Reds. It's an all-star team.

Mark Slareth, three Super Bowl rings, two-time Pro Bowl, and a Fox broadcaster's got the Niners Falcons this week. I was saying this. It's one thing to be beat up. You know this. You're losing, you get cluster injuries. And like the Rams, for instance, on their offensive line,

they do not look like the same team. The Niners are missing nine. starters, and they're still rolling over people. And I said this yesterday is, I think they're the best roster in the league. I cannot believe. They're missing. And off, by the way, Jimmy Ward, Trent Williams, Elijah Mitchell, like stars. What's the film say when you look at the Niners?

They just, they go out and try to physically thunder punch you in the face. I mean, they are so physical at the point of attack. And you mentioned it. They've been without their two stars. defensive lineman inside interior guys and Eric Armstead and Javon Kinlaw. And they haven't missed a beat. They just physically wear you out on both sides of the ball. And that's really what they do.

I would argue with you, I think maybe Philadelphia has the most talented roster. But just when you're talking about depth and ability to plug and play another guy and not change the system, not have to alter what you want to do, I mean, everybody, you either play that style of football, you either come out there and just ask. absolutely role dudes, or you don't get to play for Kyle Shanahan. So they've got this unbelievably deep roster with unreal physical kind of, just physical dominance, and then they execute well. So, I mean, it is a combination.

They are fun to watch on film, and there is no question. They're a much better team with Jimmy Garoppolo at the helm than they were with Trey Lance at the helm. So I picked the Vikings to, you know, come close to doubling their win total. They lost so many close games. I said, give him an offensive coach. Kirk Cousins feels supported. They're going to be a 12-13 win team.

I also can acknowledge they have a lower ceiling. I like Kirk, but you got to play in prime time a lot if you want to be a great team. And he's not great there. He shrinks a bit. So you called the Vikings Bears, again, to classic example. J. Mack is saying to me, literally the Bears gave you fits. And I keep arguing they keep winning all these games this year. There's value in it.

tell me what is your belief this morning on what the Vikings are and what they can be. Well, right now they're inconsistent and you're right. I mean, they come out and score 21 straight points. And then all of a sudden, you know, they're in a dog fight and give up the lead late at the end to a Chicago Bears team. That's really not very good. You know, they don't protect their quarterback. It's hard to analyze or hard to project what a quarterback's going to be in Justin Fields when he's not protected. you know, your top receiver probably should be a number two.

You know, I mean, there's issues there. So that notwithstanding, I think the Vikings have the potential to be exceptional, but they have to be able to put the puddle in the gas at all times. You know, when you get a team down like they had the bears down, I think it was 21 to 3, you need to step on them. And they weren't able to do that. Now, at the end of the game, they put together a 17-play drive, went in, scored a touchdown.

But I'll tell you this, when they start to get on the same page, critical situations. So let me explain what I'm talking about. When Kevin O'Connell and Kirk Cousins are thinking the exact same way, Kevin O'Connell is an incredibly smart, I mean, he is an incredibly smart offensive mind. And so when they start to get critical situations where Kirk Cousins understands and knows the play that's coming in before the coach calls it, that's when you really sink up as an offense. And they're not there yet. They are still apart right now in those critical third down situations, second down and long

situations, red zone situations. And so when they start to get on the same page and start to have the same feel for the game and Kirk can stand in the huddle and go, oh, I know what's coming in now. I know what we're going to run. Like I'll tell you from experience playing for Mike Shanahan, I knew when we got into certain situations, I knew beyond the shadow of it out, one or three plays is going to get called here. And as a player, that's so confident because you're just like, all right, set my jaw, here's what's coming. He's going to put it on our shoulders.

We're on a 19 handoff, you know, 19 handoff. We're running 18 handoff force. We're going to run quarterback sneak. I know what's coming right now. And you sit your jaw and you get ready for that. Offensively right now, they're not in sync as quarterback play caller. But I do believe that's going to happen. And when it does, I think they have the potential to be very special.

Okay. So my staff, this is so unfortunate, very cynical. when Russell Wilson came out and the story came out that he got a shot for his lat. And I know where a lat's at. I just don't have one. So the point being is the team here is like, oh, it's PR. They're just trying to cover their butt. And my takeaway is this. He was one of the great, accurate deep ball throwers in the NFL for five years.

Now he's awful. He has no touch on a deep ball. Misses badly, under throws. He didn't get that bad in six months. something has happened. So I looked at that story and thought, that's why he's lost his accuracy on the deep ball. I mean, Mark, you watch these games for years. That was his juice.

That was his play. Now he's terrible at it. But there are a lot of cynics out there that say, this is just a guy trying to make an excuse and save face. Where do you land as a popular Denver host on radio? You hear from the fans every day. Do you think that shot that leaked out is real, contrived? Where do you land with it? No, I think it's real.

I know it wasn't something that was just spur of the moment. It was planned right after the Raider game for after the game that they played last week or last Thursday night in Denver against Indianapolis. So this was planned a week and a half, 10 days in advance. So that was something that has been bothering him. That said, Colin, and you're right about the deep bowl. But that said, Russell Wilson maybe played the worst game he's ever played in his career Thursday night against Indianapolis. He was awful. It had nothing to do with shoulder pain.

In my imagination, I look at that and I say, you missed four, five golden opportunities. You miss three throws should have been 21 points. Things you don't miss. And you're missing reads. You're late with reads. You're just not very good right now. So that to me is more, I am not in sync and I am not totally sole. or totally, you know, in tune with my head coach and with this offense in general.

And I have said this forever, and I think it's true about Russell. You have, I do believe that Russell wants to be that prototypical drop-back pastor and thinks that, hey, man, if I'm going to play into the 40s like I've said I was going to play into, I need change the style of my game a little bit. And so I think that's part of what they're doing in Denver right now. And frankly, Russell's not, he's not playing a lot. a high enough level. You need to go back to some of the stuff you did in Seattle. You need to get back under center. You need to create play action stuff, eliminate half the field, use your

bootkeep game, use your throwback game. Those are things they did very effectively in Seattle when he was at his best. They're not doing a lot of that stuff right now. And I think it's a mistake. So I think now this takes humility from Russ. I don't know if he has it. Like I, I elected or I announced myself this morning on my radio show calling as the director of authenticity. Okay. And what Russ needs is me to when he's about ready to send out a tweet about these new hats, he's going to release after playing the worst game of his career. I would say, Russ, that's stupid.

No, you're not going to do that. Right. Wait until you start playing well. Like he needs somebody to manage him and to let him know this is really dumb and you have to start playing better. No, that tweet is, that tweet is not authentic. Stop it. You know what? Have a press conference where you look humble and then walk away and go, okay, Denver, let's ride. No, stop. We're not going to play that game anymore. And you've got to get back to what you were good at, right? You can expand as you become comfortable in the offense, but don't just try to, you know,

expand right off the bat. You have to squeeze this thing down. You have to become more myopic in your focus of what you can do, who you are, and lean on that. stuff and then slowly expand into what you want to become. But you've gone the opposite way and you play probably four or five games of the worst football you have in your entire career. All right, Mark. He's got the Niners at the Falcons, one o'clock window, Sunday, Eastern. Good seeing you, bud.

You too, man. Talk, yeah. Yeah. Now, again, I think Monday night, Russell gets an extra day for that extreme pain he's playing through. and I think they're competitive. But if it's another dog performance,

what can I say? You are out in him already. I am giving him... I'm definitely not out on him. I'm out on Hackett. Yeah, but we agree on that. Yes. All right.

J-Mack with the news. No, no, no, no. Turn on the news. This is the herd line news. All right, Colin, first up, the situation in Miami with Tua, it is not looking good. He did return to practice today

and we'll do some throwing as he progresses through the concussion protocol, but he's been ruled out for this weekend. Teddy Bridgewater, also in concussion protocol. Mike McDaniel has named Skyler Thompson, the starter. Now, is Bridgewater... There's a chance he could come out of protocol and be the backup.

He will not start. I mean, you can't go into a game with... He's going to be very limited in practice. Who are they going to get off the wire? You're going to go to a game with one quarterback? Well, I think they're confident that Bridgewater will come out and be the backup. But again, he's not going through the practice and getting the reps, really. Right, right, right.

Now, the line has moved from Vikings 3 to Vikings 3 and a half. Is it too rich for your blood? Kirk Cousins laying over a field goal on the road. I would stay away from it. But I do think Minnesota wins. And I like Minnesota more than anybody in America that doesn't live in Minneapolis. So with the Jets beating the Packers and the Dolphins losing. Come on.

Just kidding. All right. All right. Next up, Baker Mayfield. Boy, the news is not good for your guy, Baker Mayfield. Out two to six weeks with a high ankle sprained suffered in that loss of the 9th. Niners, according to reports, Baker wants to play on the injury as soon as possible, but it's an uphill battle.

PJ Walker will get to start against the Rams this weekend. Do you think that's a good job now that Matt Rule's been fired? I don't. Well, where are you picking in the draft? If you're picking number one, I don't think it's a bad job. Because they got some talent there. Now, there is some scuttle butt. Not from, like, Rappaport or any of the other networks,

about Christian McCaffrey being on the trademark. Oh, I'd move him in a second. I'm not moving Derek Brown from Auburn the D-Line. I'm not moving. No one. They got a good cornerback.

No, no. You've got to be able to sell this job to the next coach. And if you can tell the next coach, our front seven, we got two pro bowlers. McCaffrey, how about we learning this

with running backs? You sell a year early. Like, I like Christian McCaffrey. I would sell them in one second. I would, and by the way, if I would, let's say, let's say I'm a team, Let's go the Buffalo Bills

who have massive running back situations. Absolutely. I would take Christian McCaffrey and Buffalo. By the way, what doesn't work for you works for me. What Carolina needs is draft picks. What Buffalo needs is a 7 to 8 spurt playmaker in the back for you. Can you imagine

what Josh Allen could do with McCaffrey? He'll float another team. He's a great receiver. Another team that's struggling with playmakers, the L.A. Rams, who don't like the draft. And can you imagine Christian McCaffrey is a weapon with Cooper Cup as well on that team? I'm just talking about playoff teams. No, I think it's...

No, I think it's... I'm not going to sell all my pieces. I think what you have to do is get your quarterback right. But I think McCaffrey is the classic trade deadline dump, and if I'm the Rams, I'm absolutely interested. He's a West Coatley. I mean, he went to Stanford, West Coast kid. He's a Swiss Army knife guy that can do a ton for you.

All right, Colin. Finally, last night we had that incredible ending in the ALDS between the Astros and Mariners. Not good for your Seattle guys. Yordana Alvarez hit a three. run blast. Just a walk-off. Like, the scene was pretty cool in Houston. Crazy.

Just bedlam and chaos. Here is the call from the Astros Radio Network. The 0-1. And Alvarez belts it. Deep to my field. You're insinkable. The Astros will walk-off win. You're on Alvarez.

A walk-off three-run a homer. And the Astros stunned the Mariners and Gary won in the division series. That's crazy. That's pretty. Have you ever hit a walk-off home run? I've never hit a home run. How about a game-winning touchdown pass? I wasn't very good at quarterback.

You were the quarterback of the team. I had a game winning jumper or two. That felt good, didn't it? I hit one in a league in New York. He carried me off the court. He mentioned it. He remembers. Thank you.

Well, somebody has my back on this show. I had one great moment in high school basketball, and it was against, I'm not going to get into it. Was it against a future NBA player? No, I'm not going to get into it. You know, this isn't about me, this show. It's not at all about America. There's no reason.

But it was a great moment. I would like to get, wish. we had an iPhone back then and recorded it all over the internet. J-Mac, are you done? I think that's it. I mean, we can keep going. I got other stories. I got other stuff. Well, that's the news. I lost myself talking about my

high school. I'm going. All right. A. Rod's around the corner. No, the baseball stuff. You know, it's like baseball playoffs. It's a different sport. I mean, it feels, it's like hockey and baseball feel like different sport. The NFL's always pretty competitive. But you get into the postseason baseball.

and you're using starters in the bullpen. You're literally situationally. You're not, in the NFL, you're not moving your quarterback and using a minute corner. You know, I mean, you are what you are. But in baseball, you know, if Kershaw has to come out of the pen, a guy has to go on short rest, you do whatever you do to get the out or get the run. The energy and the vibe is going to be like Utah, USC this weekend for you, huh? It's the best college football weekend of the year.

Easily. I'll take, but I will take Bama to beat Tennessee, Michigan to beat Penn State. I think I like Utah over USC. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific. What do you get when you combine a three-time manager of the year at a three-time national sports writer of the year? It's the Book of Joe podcast. Hey, this is Tom Verducci from Fox Sports, MLB Network, and Sports Illustrated. And I'm Joe Madden, and we're going to be around to talk a little bit about managerial decisions, playoff games,

and what may have occurred in the dugout, maybe in the 1980s. I can't wait for this, Joe. we're going to dive into what goes on in the dugout and behind the scenes in Major League Baseball. Cars, whined, whatever else we want to talk about. Listen to the Booker Joe podcast on the IHeart Radio app, on Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque.

Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the I-Hard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care which I'm saying. Yep, that's me, Cliver Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way,

this platform became bigger than I ever imagined. And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. One week, I'll take you behind the scenes of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment, and the next we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even music. The Clifford Show isn't just a podcast. It's a space for honest conversations, stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger. So if you've ever supported me or you're just chasing down a dream, this is right

what you need to be. Listen to the Clifford show on the IHeart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. Do you remember when Diana Ross double-tap Little Kim's boobs at the VMAs? Or when Kanye said that George Bush didn't like black people. I know what you're thinking. What the hell does George Bush got to do with Little Kim? Well, you can find out on the look back at it podcast. I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick it here, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. Including a recent episode with Mark Lamont Hill, waxing all about crack in the 80s. To be clear, 84's big to me, not just because of crack.

I'm down to talk about crack on day, but yeah, yeah, literally. But just so y'all know. I mean, at this point, Mark, this is the second episode where we've discussed crack. So I'm starting to see there's a through line. We also have AIDS on the table right now. So. Thank you for finishing that sentence. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Really? Yeah. For me, it's one of the most important years for black people in American history.

Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hard Way with me, your host, and your favorite therapist, Kear Games. And in recognition of Mental Health Awareness Month, I'm bringing over a decade of my own experience in the mental health field and conversational. with so many incredible guests. I'm talking. Tripp Fontaine, Ryan Clark. Sometimes when we're in the pursuit of the thing, we get so wrapped up in the chase

that we don't realize that we are in possession of the thing and we're still chasing it and we don't know when we've done enough. Because people scoreboard watch. Life becomes about wins and losses. Steve Burns, Dustin Ross, because you find it important to be a good person while you hear on earth,

or are you a good person because you're afraid? Because that's two different intentions, bro. Absolutely. And that's two different levels of trust. I want you to just really be a good person. Join me, Keer Gaines, is we have real conversations about healing, growth, fatherhood, pressure, and purpose on my new podcast, Learn the Hardway. Open your free, Our Heart Radio app. Search Learn the Hardway and listen now. We all have different ideas about success, achieve it at different times in different ways. If you're going to retire, can't go about it alone. check out a Steeful Financial Advisor, Midwest Bay, Steeful Nicholas and Company Incorporated member SIPC,

and the New York Stock Exchange. A-Rod is around the corner, 22 years in the sport, 14-time All-Star, part of the Fox Broadcast baseball team. Baseball playoffs start after our show. The big story today, the Devante Adams video, this was on Monday night. Really, he dropped a ball late. He collided with Hunter Renfro.

It's no excuse. He walked off the field. the initial video from above, looks like he sort of targeted a cameraman and pushed him. When you get the secondary view of it, and that's why you take a deep breath on this stuff, when you see Devante walking and a guy walks right in front of him, he's got his head down, so does the cameraman. It looks much different. It wasn't as forceful. The cameraman now, he wanted to file a charge. He said he had concussion symptoms, and he has been charged with a misdemeanor assault. So, you know, my takeaway is,

Kansas City Metro Police probably has, you know, bigger issues here. I'm not a big fan of this. I think what has happened in professional sports in my lifetime is networks, Fox, ESPN, NBC, CBS. We've got more cameras. There's more people on the floor. You see this in the NBA all the time where you've got 38 photographers. To me, it's like, can you have five pool photographers from Associated Press? I don't, I think the media has gotten incredibly invasive.

And so I think we get in the players way, way too much, but you can't push people. There's your story. Alex Rodriguez, Fox Sports Baseball is joining us after a wild day yesterday of baseball playoffs. He is joining us in the herd. Here he comes. So great to see you. Good to see you. We'd love to get you in studio.

So, you know, let's talk Yankees first. So I was looking at something yesterday on the Internet that was fascinating. Aaron Judge was a high school basketball star, a high school football star, a high school baseball star. He was unbelievable. And he's had this, he really is, I went and looked at the stats about a month ago. He leads in everything. I mean, it's unbelievable.

Power on base. So, and I think to myself, oh, this is perfect. But baseball is a long season. It's not the NFL. Is he been so crucial and so important? And I mean, he's literally carried the franchise. They've had some pitching issues. Can you get like, look, we always talk about pitchers.

You hit an innings barrier. Do you run out of juice as a hitter? Do you run out of power? Are you exhaust? Aaron's been so much. Does he have another 20 games in him? Yeah, I think he does. And I remember when the Bulls were going, was it for 72?

They were going for, there's a part that everything relaxes at the playoffs because you've been chasing Maris. I think the last three weeks were incredibly difficult for him. He even struggled a bit at the plate. And it's very stressful. And you have the Maris family going out. and you have, you know, when are you going to put? And is Aaron Boone going to give him a day off?

And Michael Kaye setting up for the big call and it doesn't come and it doesn't come. Once you hit that, you get to the playoffs. Aaron Judge can go, oh, for October, he's still going to get $45 or $50 million a year and be the highest pay player in the game. I actually think he gets a chance to relax now in the postseason. For years and years, and you've always been good with the analytic stuff and kind of seeing around corners, for years is we loved home runs, but they weren't necessarily the driving force to championships.

Then analytics are introduced five years ago, and now it feels like if you can't hit home runs, like Milwaukee, you're going to have a good roster. You're not going to win. But are the Yankees almost too home run reliant? I don't think that the issues with the Yankees are going to be about offense. I think they're going to be about pitching. I think they have enough

offense. I hate Judge hit in the leadoff spot. I think you should be hitting third or fourth. Any time you can hit a three-run homer in the first inning, Reggie Jackson would always say, Alex, I get the game out of hand in the first inning because they'll get a three-run homer. Well, you need that. I remember of my 696 home runs, I bet you more than 100 were probably in the first inning and we're able to win the game in

the first at bat. You can't do that as a lead-off hitter. So I have an issue with that. But besides that, I do think they have enough to win? The question is, do they have enough pitching and are they healthy enough? It is interesting that for years and years, good Minnesota teams could never win in the Bronx. It's just what it is. I can remember as a kid, my lousy mariners gave the Yankees fits. Reggie, the Billy Martin teams. They would come to Seattle. Maybe they had too many oysters, and Seattle owned them in the kingdom. And so I look at this Padre team, and I'm like, oh, I love the talent. I mean, I'm watching that. I'm three minutes in. I'm like, first inning. Were you ever in a series where you thought he has good of players, and there's just a cycle

a lot for years, the Red Sox. I thought had as good a talent as the Yankees. Can the Padres win this series, or do you think that they just are too dominated in the regular season by the Dodgers? I think they can, but they have their hands full. And when you read their body language, Colin, New York Mets just last week versus what we saw yesterday is a little different. And they got to get over the top of them.

They are playing the big brother. Poppy called them. They're their daddies. And ultimately, you have to do something disruptive. I'm not sure what that is, but it has to be a guy like Soto to play like the 2019 Soto with the Nationals. He hasn't had an extra base hit in seven days in seven games. So Soto and Machado need to take him to the next level. Well, Darvish and Kershaw.

So we were talking about this in the hallway. Kofax is considered the most unhittable pitcher, but his career was very succinct. Kershaw's, it's literally forever. I mean, he was great 12 years ago. I think it's kind of, I've always felt it's a little unfair. in baseball to kind of drag a legend because of postseason struggles. Everybody's struggle. Bond struggled.

You've struggled. Kirshah's struggle. The greats have struggled. Sandy Kofax is an outlier. If I said Kershaw at his peak and Kershaw like tonight, is he still about 90% of it? What doesn't he have that he had six years ago without all these innings? Kershaw reminds me of Michael Jordan. Well, Michael Jordan was great in his first 10 years.

I actually think the last four or five years, take Washington away. I think Jordan was better because he came with that mid-range game. He started doing the little bit of a turnaround jump shot, started to learn his body better. Tim Grover got him stronger. When I look at Clayton Kershaw, the Jordan part is when he was pitching in his early days, he was very predictable. He threw 95, 96, but every pitch to a right he was in, hard. It was very predictable.

Today, he's like wine. He's getting better because he pitches, four pitches to all four quadrants, but he's very unpredictable. So he's a much better poker player. So as a hitter, I think he's a much tougher about today than he was 10 years ago. Much like Andy Petit got better at the end of his career.

Jamie Moyers, another guy who was very average for the first 10 years and became a savant pitching the last 10 years. They said he was done at 36. He went to win another 150 games. So I want to talk to Bryce Harper. I met his dad one time. He's a Nevada kid.

So I always had a soft spot for him. And he's one of those four or five athletes. Griffey was this. Tyson was this. Tiger was this. Where like LeBron, 16. You're like, oh yeah, he's going to be a legend. And most of the time, those kids do become great when somebody's that dominant.

I think sometimes we don't give him the credit for what he's become. Yesterday's three for three. How do you view his career? Because baseball, there's just so many. good young players right now that it's almost like he's taking a back seat, but he's still, to me, an elite player in the game, but you know, you're in the Northeast. The Yankees and the Mets stole all the coverage. I mean, because Steve Cohen buys the Mets, they're literally dominate the coverage. I still view Harper is, I mean, like a guy that could change a series.

There's no question. And look, like Aaron Judge, he has the it quality. He's a star. If they go game five, he'll celebrate his 30th birthday. It feels like he's 40. He's been around forever. He was celebrated as a 15-year-old, but he can do it all. He's got the star power. He has a star power of the NFL, of the NBA, and we have to celebrate him. And by the way, he's been hurt all year.

He hasn't said a word. He walked on a very naive walk that led to them rallying in the ninth against the cards. Then he had a first pitch home run on game two against the cards that hasn't landed. and yesterday's three for three, he's getting hot. But I think he's a guy that's poised to bring a championship to Philly. By the way, you're on something that I totally agree with. Football's always been so strategic in their schedule. It's really, and by the way, even the NBA, Christmas Day.

That's when we kind of introduce our league to the country. NFL literally these Thursday night games, its rivalry games, baseball hasn't done that as much. Now, I think the game out in the Iowa was great, but you have an idea about kind of a national day for baseball. I think it's great. Yeah, look, I was sitting around July 4th and with my family having barbecues with the girls, and all I can see on television is a hot dog eating contest. And nothing against hot dogs, I think it's pretty entertaining.

It was in the other station. But I'm sitting here saying Major League Baseball, NBA is Christmas Day, football owns Thanksgiving. Yeah. In July 4th, there's no basketball, there's no football. It is tailor-made for the national TV partners, Fox, ESPN, TNT. Biggest brands, back-to-back-to-back. And put four games all dynamic. So whether that's the Yankees and Dodgers, that's the Mets and Philly,

Cubs and Cardinals, starting at 12 o'clock, it should be all-day baseball and come out with your dancing shoes because that's an opportunity to really take the game to the next level. it should also preview the All-Star game and then the playoffs. Wide open space for baseball. 45 seconds left. You started your career with the Mariners. I grew up in Seattle. You were a skinny kid.

Big smile, skinny kid, a lot of potential. Give me your greatest mariner memory. I just think it was flying across the country with Griffey, Buneer, Edgar Martinez. Edgar has a Ph.D. in hitting to Harvard. and as a 20-year-old, as a 19-year-old, they'll be in the back of the plane, and he's telling me how to lay off split fingers and how to recognize the spin as it tumbles, and then taking that onto the field,

again, I always think that the five people that surround these young players are going to make a big impact in their future, and Edgar Martinez, Griffey, and Buehner did for me. Great stuff. Great seeing you. Great seeing you. Alex Rodriguez stops by. Over 31,000 businesses have the confidence they need because of net suite, one-of-a-kind, flexible financing.

net suite.com slash H-E-R-D. So is Dodgers, Padres, Kershaw, Darvish, are they playing? Yep, game two tonight. Absolute must-win for the Padres. Dodgers have absolutely owned this series.

If you just took those two teams and made an all-star team, Dodgers Padres. It's insane. Insane the level of, it's almost a two-team all-star team in the National League. All right.

A-Rod, want to thank him, Joel Clatnick, right? Mark Slareth, baseball playoffs all day long. for the next three weeks. Live in Los Angeles, appreciate you stop by. See you tomorrow for Ryan

and Jay Mack. It's the hurt. Another podcast from some SNL late night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smygel and friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman

help make you funnier. This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer Streeter Seidel help an a cappella band with their between songs banter. Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes.

Those people are starving for bands. Listen to Humor Me with Robert Smigel and Friends on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds.

I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the I-Hard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, this is Robert from the Stuff to Blow Your Mind podcast. Joe and I are both lifelong Star Wars fan, so we're celebrating May the 4th with a brand new week of fun, thought-provoking Star Wars-related episodes. Join us as we tackle science and culture topics

from a galaxy far, far away, such as the biology of tauntons and wampas on the ice planet hot, or the practicality and corporate business sense of the Sith rule of two. Listen to stuff to bowl your mind on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what I'm saying.

Yep, that's me, Cliver Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, my basketball and college football journey, or my career in sports media. Well, now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, the Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversation, with athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. So let's get to it. Listen to the Clifford show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast.

And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok podcast network on TikTok. This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed human.