The Herd with Colin Cowherd - HOUR 3 - MLB playoffs, NBA

Episode Date: October 20, 2021

The MLB playoffs have been great so farThe start of the NBA seasonGuests: Chris Broussard, John Smoltz Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee 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, 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 banter. 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 IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, what's good, y'all? You're listening to Learn the Hard Way with your favorite therapist and host, Kear Games. This space is about black men's experiences, having honest conversations that it's really not safe to have anywhere, but you're having them with a licensed professional who knows what he's doing. How many men carry a suit or armor? It signals to the world that you're not to be played with. And just because you have the capability that does not mean that you need to.

Listen and learn the hard way on the AHA radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what you're 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 Clifers 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 IHeard 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. Thanks for listening to The Heard podcast. Be sure to catch us live every weekday from 12 to 3 Eastern, 9 to noon Pacific on Fox Sports Radio and FS1. Find your local station for the herd at Fox SportsRadio.com or stream us live every day on the iHeart Radio app by searching heard

you're listening to fox sports radio sunday on fox chase young leads Washington against Aaron Rogers and the Packers or other regional action check local listings for the game in your area only on Fox and the Fox Sports app good things come to those who wait 2021 Mercedes-Benz SUV family proves

otherwise it takes no time at all to test drive a local Mercedes today go to mvusa.com all right chris broussard co-host now first things first they're doing a Great job show is a laugh out loud funny this morning as I listen to it. And Bruce Sard is our NBA duties joining us live now. So when you watched the Lakers last night, I already had my say, what was one thing that jumped out to you that appears to be like a problem? I know it's just one game, but that doesn't mean you can't spot problems that will

last at least until the trading deadline. What jumps out to you with the Lakers that you go, wow, that's an issue? Well, I spotted a few things, to be honest. Number one, I was stunned when DeAndre Jordan was in the starting lineup. Because I was like, wait a minute. Now you have four non-shooters out there. And I know AD can hit some threes. LeBron was on fire last night.

But good luck if you think he's going to stay like that the rest of the season. I think he's going to come back to the mean, shoot about 36, 37 percent from the three-point line. So you didn't have any shooters at Westbrook. Kent Bazemore was the only guy out there. So I thought that was odd. And they obviously thought their size would be a problem for Golden State. And it was and could be. But the problem was that I don't think they play big.

They go big with a big lineup. But they didn't really play big and try to punish Golden State inside. And that size presents some problems for them, the Lakers, as well, Colin, because you saw it. Golden State's players were moving all over the court. Yep. They were passing the ball and the big Lakers couldn't guard them. That's right. And they were lucky for the first three quarters that the Warriors were just missing shots.

It wasn't like the Lakers were locking them down. They were just missing shots. Steph never got hot and that gave a problem. The second thing the big lineup does, Colin, is if Dwight Howard or DeAndre Jordan or sometimes even Anthony Davis, if they're in them paint, then guess who doesn't have a lot? room to get in there, Russell Westbrook. And so now he's not a good shooter. Even if he gets hot, it's not going to last long. And so he didn't have the driving lanes that he usually has in his, you know, throughout his career. And so that presented some problems for the Lakers. Yeah. No, I mean,

I think it's interesting. They're not going to shoot threes particularly well. And I'm not sure if they're going to defend threes particularly well because they're old. Even their bench is old when you're playing Rondo and Carmelo. And this league now is a lot about spacing. You've got to get out and run guys off the three-point line, and they're not a young athletic team. Now, the Westbrook thing is interesting. Well, I defended the move because they just need minutes.

They need 37 minutes a night. LeBron's numbers are coming back, and you've got AD who doesn't play. But I will say this. I could make the argument, Westbrook was really a regular season get, that he's not going to get huge minutes in the playoffs. I mean, can you make an argument that we've over? overvalued, there's no proof he's a playoff contributor, that we don't know that. Could I make the argument is he's really a regular season player for this team?

Well, here's what I'll say. He's going to have to adjust to being the third fiddle because they need to run through LeBron and AD. All right. And everybody else, including Westbrook, including Carmelo, they're going to have to figure out how to play off of those two because those should be the guys. Westbrook can play with that second unit. He's going to start, obviously,

but in the second unit, stagger his minutes with LeBron, let him do his thing with the second unit, right? And then when LeBron's out there with him, when he gets a rebound or an outlet pass, he can push it in transition and try to get some early offense. But in the half court,

it's going to have to be LeBron's show. So there's that. But when you say not, like, he's not going to play a lot in the post. season, I think that would be a problem. Like, I think it's going to be challenging enough for Russ to adjust to maybe being like a 15 to 17 points score. Like, I think his numbers are coming way down.

All right. So if he averages somewhere between 15 to 17 points and he doesn't have the ball in his hands, he's going to have to adjust to that and accept that and not try to do too much to get his numbers, but play the winning ball that they need. But then if you're telling me he's not going to play a lot in the playoffs or he's not going to be on the court during the stretch, I don't know if he's willing to accept it. I think he'll say that, but it's going to be tough for him because he's a superstar. Let's face it. And I think he's expecting to play like a superstar.

So I think they're going to have a child. He's going to have to be on the court during the playoffs. And they're going to have to figure out a way to best utilize him when he's not playing the way. way he always had. You know, LeBron and Frank Vogel were saying, hey, last night, we want Russ to be Russ, to be aggressive. Russ being Russ is him having the ball, everybody playing off of him. Right. That's not best for the Lakers. That's right. So they got to, they have to do it. They have to figure that. I was glad though. If you're a Lakers fan, Colin, you had to be glad to see the ball in LeBron's hand. Basically like it always has been. Because the talk about, oh, Russ is the point

guard. That was scary. All right? Because it was like, Hold on. LeBron is the best decision-maker. He needs to be the one with the ball in his hands. Yeah, no, that's a great point. You know, I said when Milwaukee won the championship, I said they remind me of the Spurs. They've got a great, humble star

whose game is built largely on rebounding defense and not his brand and offense. They have the same system, Pop and Boodenholzer. They've got other players who are undervalued by many people, Manu Genoobli's second round. Tony Parker, Chris Middleton, the number two guy, a little chip on the shoulder, a little undervalued by the league. And then they play real defense. They've got size.

They're not glamorous, but they just wear you down. The Spurs had bad nights. But man, it was hard to beat them four times in two weeks. And I look at Milwaukee and Brooklyn last night. And I'm like, Brooklyn's not, they're not built to beat that team four times in two weeks. They don't have the rim protector. They don't have the defense. They don't have the, they don't have the, what they're basically good at at Brooklyn, they got three guys who can shoot.

But I looked at that Milwaukee team and I'm like, oh, they're a handful. They are San Antonio. They are built for a seven game series. And I don't think Brooklyn's close to beating them with this constitutional players. Well, first of all, that's an excellent comparison to the Spurs. I mean, you're right on the money. The only difference, really, is that Yonis is far more. of an exciting player than Tim Duncan.

Right. Which is good for all of us, right? Because as much as good as the Spurs were, you didn't love watching them, you know, except that one year in 2014 where they ran Miami off the court. They played, they shot the ball a lot at the three that year and we're exciting. But yeah, you hit it on the head. Their guys are low maintenance. Look at what's going on around the league.

Look at Philadelphia. Look at Brooklyn. You got Westbrook in L.A. And then you've got Chris Middleton, Drew Holiday, and Yonnell. Like just calm, peaceful waters there in Milwaukee, and that's what you had in San Antonio. So that's a great call. I do think Brooklyn could beat them, though. Because remember last year, and I get it.

And I agree that Milwaukee has a championship swagger that makes them better. You saw it last night. Like, they're going to be better this year just because they have the confidence of winning, right? I thought the Lakers would have that too, but AD didn't want to play ball with that. I think you'll be better this year. But there's that. But Brooklyn should have beaten them last year if Duran. I know it's an excuse, Durant's foot was on the line.

But also James Harden was playing with a bad hamstring and they still were close to beating them. I like Brooklyn. Now, you're right. They might have to go out and add some size. They got to see can Lamarcus Alders get better, keep improving to the point where maybe he can match up with some of the size in Milwaukee. But James, I thought last night. a big part of the story was that the nests are disjointed at this point. They, you know, five of their six players off the bench were new.

Hardin and Durant, that was only their seventh game together without Kyrie Irving. And that game Hardin played, kind of passive, 20 points, 8 to 6, 8 rebounds, would have been great with Kyrie on the floor because he would have been the distributor and Kyrie were to put up 27 points. But without Kyrie, Hardin's got to kind of go a little bit back more to what he did in Houston a little bit and be more aggressive. Don't defer as much to KD and play like the superstar he is, which I think they'll adjust to and he'll be better.

So I give Brooklyn a great shot. In fact, Brooklyn's my pick to win at all. But Milwaukee's going to be a load. You're right. But I think Brooklyn can up in them. Great stuff. We're going to let him go. He works in the morning.

First things first. He's crushing it. He's got a radio show with Rob Parker. He's only off the air like four minute today. The rest of it, he's on the air. Good seeing you, buddy. Chris Broussard. Thanks, Colin. You bet.

You're enjoying. One more herd? The herd streams 24 hours a day, seven days a week, within the IHeard radio app. Search Herd to listen live or on demand whenever you'd like. 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'll say. 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 where 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. Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hardway 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 middle health field and conversations with so many incredible guests. I'm talking. Trip 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. 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, Kear Gaines, is we have real conversations about healing, growth, fatherhood, pressure, and purpose on my new podcast, learn the hard way. Open your free, I Heart Radio app.

Search Learn the Hardway and listen now. 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 a little camp? 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 is big to me, not just because of crack. I'm down to talk about crack all day, but just so y'all know. I mean, at this point, Mark, this is the second episode where we've done. discuss crack. So I'm starting to see that there's a through line. We also have AIDS on the table right now. So.

Now you're finishing that sentence. Yes. 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 IHeartRadio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your

podcasts. Weather is changing. Stay comfortable. Tommy John underwear. 20% off. It's what I'm wearing now. Tommyjohn.com HARD. Check out the site for merch and details. Joy Taylor with the news. No, no, no, no, no. Turn on the news. This is the herd line news. Well, it was reported in September that Zion had been frustrated with the Pelicans organization, dating back to his rookie season. Leachie reports, Jake Fisher said today that NBA executives are monitoring Williams' situation with the Pelicans, but his weight issues might become a red

flag. One concern has always been that Zion's weight and size would increase his likelihood of getting injured. According to sources, he reached north of 300 pounds this offseason, which obviously would be a cause for concern. If true, on the team's recent trip to Minnesota, several league personnel were struck by his heavier appearance. Last season, he listed playing at 284, and one source said I know Zion at 280 and he was not 280. Now, we saw the pictures. He definitely looked more, he looked like he had lost the baby fat. Muscle weighs more than fat, so maybe he's just bigger. Also, you do lose weight during a season because, A, you know, it's a lot of cardio. And you're also sleeping more because the travel in the NBA is ridiculous where you're getting on

planes at 10, arriving in Cleveland at 3 a.m. So you end up. But also, if you're rehabbing, you're not doing cardio. Right. So, I mean, to me, in the NBA, I've seen so many NBA players put weight on when they retire. Yeah. Because you literally are on a treadmill for five months. So, you know, Hardin was really big last year,

and then suddenly he wasn't. But I think this has always been a little bit of a concern. Oliver Miller was a really good NBA player who just struggled with weight. Well, it's not so much that Zion struggles with weight to me. I mean, it's not really a far. fetched concept that if you weigh more, it's heavier on your joints. Therefore, it might lead to more injuries. Or maybe he's just a big, powerful player that plays like that. So that adds to injuries as well. But the injuries you have to be concerned about are, as a Western Conference Executive said,

a foot injury for a guy with noted weight issues. Like when you have lower extremity injuries and you weigh a lot, that's going to be more difficult. Like, it's just, That's how all this works. But Zion had off-season surgery to repair Broken Foot and hasn't participated in practice their preseason games. So tonight is the second time in three seasons that Zion will be sidelined for his team's opening stretch of games due to injury. They open their season tonight.

The Pelicans do against the 76ers, and the Sixers are favored by four and a half, according to Fox Bet. But this is all leading towards the bigger conversation of, like, we know what Zion is capable of when he's healthy and he's out there. Like, we know what he is. He has the potential to be a superstar. He's extremely efficient. He is a star right now when he is obviously healthy.

Well, no pick and league history has chosen the qualifying offer with a one-year path to unrestricted, unrestricted free agency over a maximum contract extension that would eclipse $200 million over five years. And that is really what the question is, because that's coming up. Is he going to do that? We've talked about this before, that he's maybe one of those players if he is that unhappy with the Pelicans that could pass that because he might, he would probably get that in endorsements. But you're not going to make up that kind of money. So that's why no one ever passes it up.

Right. But the question is he was reportedly upset with how he was managed when he came back from injury. And they're talking about him possibly being on a minute's restriction when he comes back from injury. So obviously a very nuanced situation there with Zion Williamson and the Pelicans. So Tom Brady is maybe having the best season of his career. People are thinking he's going to play forever. He recently joked about playing till 50 or 55, and he went on his podcast to clarify the answer that he gave to Hannah Sorm and Andrea Kramer. I'm not going to play for another six to ten years.

And I think my point was physically it's, I feel like I've done a great job in order to put myself in a position to play as long as I want physically. But emotionally, I realize, you know, there's a lot of things that take away from my time and energy. And I think, you know, spending time with my family and I'm going to play as long as I can. And, you know, when I feel like I'm not a championship level quarterback and I'm able to prepare at a championship level, then I'll try something different. He's under contract with the Bucks through 2022. It's funny to hear him say that the way he does because every time we talk about someone retiring, it's generally not that they can't handle the, you know, behind the scenes, studying and the preparing and like they know how to do all that. It's that physically they're not able to do it or they check out from wanting to do the, you know, the mundane daily things.

He's saying he's physically able to do it and he mentally is able to do it. It's just as he going to have the energy when he wants to pay attention to his kids and family, which is completely reasonable when you've played for as long as Brady has. That, I think, is what's going to be the deciding factor. It's not so much that he's physically able to do it because he's just phenomenon. They host the Bears on Sunday and are 12.5 point favorites, according to Fox bet. I'd probably take Tampa. That is quite the number.

Yeah. So the Bucks got their championship rings last night in the season opener against the Nets. We always like to check these things out. So they're massive and they have lots of unique features. One is a special loop that can turn the ringtop into a necklace, a QR code on the inside that takes you to a highlight video of the title run. 360 diamonds on the top representing the number of victories since the current ownership group took over. 16 emerald-shaped diamonds for the number of playoff wins. 4.14

carrots of emeralds for the 414 area code 50 round stones there's a lot of stones on this thing and it is massive it's pretty much the size of my fist and they have the bucks logo and green stones

and Fear the Deer and Bucks and 6 that's pretty cool but they got them last night and they beat the nets last night and face the heat in Miami tomorrow I mean they're like this big yeah and it's like the size of my fist a baseball

yeah a little over the top Joy with the news well that's the news And thanks for stopping by. The Herd line news. Braves Dodgers, NLCS game four is your Discover card key matchup. They match all the cash back you earn automatically end of the first year.

No limit. That is cool. Learn more at Discover.com slash yes. Limitations apply. Discover.com slash yes. 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. Hey, I'm Doug Gottlie.

The podcast is called All Ball. We usually talk all basketball all the time, but it's more about the stories about what made these people love their sport and all the interesting interactions along the way. We talk to coaches. We talk to players. We tell you stories. You download it.

You listen to it. I think you like it. Listen to All Ball with Doug Alib on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhancement. 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 you're saying. Yep, that's me. Cliver Taylor the fourth. 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. Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hardway 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, 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? 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, Kear Gaines, as we have real conversations about healing, growth, fatherhood, pressure, and purpose on my new podcast, learn the hard way. Open your free, our heart radio app.

Search Learn the Hard Way and listen now. 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 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 all 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 for finishing that sentence. Yes. 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. Well, the San Francisco Giants would probably disagree, but it does feel like we have the four best teams in baseball right now. John Smoltz, who, by the way, has the second most postseason wins in Major League Baseball history with 15. It's a perfect guy to have on our show today. Game 5 Red So, Astros, ALCS starts in about an hour in FS1. So these games are crazy. First of all, they're nuts.

And it's interesting. we're seeing, let's address the umpiring situation in Fenway. So I was talking about this earlier, John, with joy, is if I was a pitcher and a hitter and an umpire had a loose strike zone, I would just adjust to it. If I was a pitcher, I'd put it off the plate. If I was a hitter, I'd have to swing a little more freely. But do you believe last night, John, that the home plate umpire was, it affected the outcome. Did you feel it was that significant?

Well, I felt it definitely affected the outcome when you call strike three, when you don't have a chance as a hitter, right? I mean, when you make a call with strike three, being a little egregious, that is where a hitter feels like, hey, give me a chance. And I think you're right in your perception. Look, I always wanted to know where are we stealing an inch or two and then stay there and make the hitter adjust. And I think there has to be some, you know, credence to having no chance with a third strike call. that's uncharacteristic. If a guy keeps giving that call, then it's on the hitter, right? If you know the consistency, the randomness was a little bit interesting, and I know it's not an easy task to call balls and strikes, and I know there's going to be this kind of quest to get to

the automatic strike zone. We do not want that in baseball. We do not. And as general rule, most of the guys who are behind the plate do a really good job, you're never going to get 100%. But it does stand out from time to time when you have both sides. complaining, and you're talking about elite hitters that know the strike zone better than most. This is not a wild swinging kind of group where you could just chalk it up to they're going to swing outside the strike zone. These hitters know the strike zone, and when they're complaining, it's usually for good reason. Now, Chris Sale goes for the Red Sox, so I'd probably take them today. That's a good spot for him. But it is interesting. I think a lot of people, there's questions about

Boston because a lot of people felt that Tampa matched up with them well. If I see, said to you, hey, we've never seen the Red Sox play. What is their secret sauce? How did they get here? What is it? It's been timely parts of their team getting hot. I, along with every so-called baseball expert in the predictions, had no way put Boston in the postseason come spring training, right? Same thing with San Francisco Giants. So it's a great story. But when you think about what they did in the second half, their bullpen got hot. They got three different guys that they could go to. Their offense was their offense. That was always going to be a strength. But the starters did enough in the regular season to give them a chance to be a complete team. Now, they had the COVID

situation, which is really hard to overcome. This is a team that when they're just about kicked down, they get back up. And it's really because of Alex Cora and his leadership. He has a heartbeat for this team. It is not overplayed to say the manager has a huge impact in this sport where you could make the claim that it doesn't in general, but I think Alex deserves a lot of credit for keeping the team together in crucial parts during the season when it looked like, uh-oh, they're done and they're going the wrong way. Yeah, I mean, I do think managers matter in postseason.

It's situational baseball, and there's a chemistry component we have to acknowledge. So I want to go over to the National League where, and I'm telling you, people are getting on the Dodger fans for leaving. It did feel like the season was over. Two losses in Atlanta. I mean, Charlie Morton's doing what Charlie Morton does in the postseason. like you, some guys are almost better in crisis. Atlanta's bullpen's usually good enough with a lead.

You'd think it's over. But it is interesting. Cody Bellinger was a rookie of the year, an MVP, and then everybody talks about he changed his stance, and he struggled, John. I mean, really was a bad hitter. Are you a little surprised at his bounce back in the Cardinal game, the Giant Series, and now here, a little surprised by it?

I'm a little surprised just because the work, throughout the season didn't give you any indication of the postseason. Now, I understand guys can flip a switch, but he had to make a change, and he made a change in his mechanics that give him a chance. Look, every hitter's got a hole. Some have bigger holes than others, and right now, there were a lot of spots you could go to with Cody Bellinger, and out over the plate was not one of them, of course. He hit a pitch so high that most people are going, how do you hit that? And I think for all the analytics and information that's out there in baseball, sometimes you can get lost in it and you try stubbornly to get to that one area that you can't get to and you make the one

mistake that a hitter can hit. Look, the Dodgers are resilient in the fact that, look, they won 109 games or 106 games in a regular season and then they won their series, but they've been pushed to the limit in every way. And that is a credit to been there, done that. I mean, maybe you can question sometimes the strategy, but their roster does seem to find a way to overcome things that may not go their way. Defensively in the first two games wasn't great. Their season, was on the line yesterday, and that is a huge, huge eighth inning. And you'll see and wait to see how Atlanta responds because they were up three games to one last year. And you don't want to start having, though, here we go against stories.

It's only two to one, but you've got to have some veteran leadership that understands it's just a narrative of one game. Don't make too much of it. Yeah. You know, it's funny. We got starters in the bullpen. Now we've got the Braves bullpen. They got a start tonight. And I don't know how much experience, John, you have on this.

I would think it'd be incredibly hard to ask a bullpen guy to start. I could see Max Scherzer or John Smoltz in their prime saying, dude, you're rested, go get three outs. But the Braves today are, they've got to use their bullpen. You tell me how hard is that to go from a bullpen guy to win the game or the series is in jeopardy. Yeah, look, I know we're in a different era. And I'm really trying to get just to it and understand that, you know, starters don't go as long.

and you're asking more people to get 27 outs, but when you've got a lot of innings under your belt, to your point, you can do multiple things. But when you haven't had a lot of innings under your belt, and you're asking these kind of things in the most crucial of times, you're really kind of not tossing it to the win, but you don't know what you're going to get. That's the hardest part of this postseason for a lot of managers

when they've got to use seven guys. You don't know what you're going to get. On paper, it looks good. When you pre-plan it looks good, but it only takes one guy to come out of that pen to not have his stuff, and it flips the game. That's why the most common and easy things to do in this game is know that the starter you have going, when he's got it, he's got it, ride them as long as you can.

That's just not the case, even yesterday. I know why it happened, but 65 pitches, Povetta moving along, and then you go to the pen, and we saw how it worked out or didn't work out in the case for the Red Sox. That is the state. That is driven the game, and you've got to get used to it and hope that every guy you put in the game has their best stuff for that moment. By the way, about a minute and a half left, Mookie Betts, let's be honest here. Atlanta can't get him out. So it is, I don't know who to compare him to.

It's, I just don't, it's just he is so good. I don't know if he has a way to manipulate the strike zone. He always feels like he gets the pitch in the biggest spots. Like Ricky Henderson could manipulate the strike zone. Can you compare Mookie to anybody? I mean, I just find him to be, he is the guy, he and Justin Turner, Game on the line and the bigs. Put him at the plate.

Who do you compare Mookie to? What do you see? This may not be fair, but it's the first person that came to my mind, a slender Kirby Pucket, right? I mean, the guy that can command the strike zone, get the big hits, hit for power. He get hits when he needed it. And I think that's what Mookie's doing. That's why the roster of the Dodgers has so many opportunities for somebody to carry a ball club. That's why they won 106 games.

But Mookie is finally looks like he's healthy. The regular season, maybe not so much, but the timing is perfect for the Dodgers. right now. All right. Great stuff. Red Sox, Astros, Joe Buck, John Smoltz, can't wait, Dodgers, Braves, later in the afternoon. As always, we appreciate you stopping by. We know you're busy, man. Thank you. My pleasure. Yep. I always said this one. I remember sitting on the couch one time with a friend and watching Michael Jordan play the Phoenix Suns in the finals. And I said to my friend, I said, there's a million guys in this league that are six-six. Michael's not, he didn't have a vertical like Dominique. He wasn't the best ball handler. He wasn't the best pure shooter. And I'm like,

It just looks so easy. Why aren't there more Michaels? Because Michael was so much better than the second best player in the league. Like forget the average guy. He was so much better. And you're like, he's not ripped. He's not. Monkey bets, I swear to God, every time he comes up for a bigot bat, he gets his pitch.

And a lot of guys don't. I mean, a lot of guys swing at bad pitches. And you're watching last night, you're like, oh, they got to get him out. It's just right in his wheelhouse. It's just whether he, I don't know if it's a stance. He manipulates the plate. Maybe he doesn't really have a weakness, so you've got to just throw your best stuff. But it's like, I was sitting there last night watching it and was like,

Bet you'd drink. Atlanta can't get him out. He'll get a hit. Next pitch. Bang. Just always gets the pitch he needs. Man, he's a tough out. Great baseball.

Love talking it. Been so much fun last week. Escape QuickBooks, Quickstand with NetSuite by Oracle, the number one financial system. One-of-a-kind financing. Go to netseweet.com slash herd right now, H-E-R-D. Nick Wright, Joel Klatk, Chris Broussard, John Smoltz. When we go home, you know what? It may be a cigar night.

If the Dodgers win, we live in Los Angeles. It's good for our business. Maybe at 8.39 o'clock Pacific cigar night. It just, you know, those are special. Maybe a special night. See you tomorrow with the herd. 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, S&L'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 banter. 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. 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 IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, what's good, y'all? You're listening to learn the hard. way with your favorite therapist and host Kear Games. This space is about black men's experiences, having honest conversations that it's really not safe to have anywhere, but you're having them with a licensed professional who knows what he's doing.

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Yep, that's me. Clifford 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 Clifers Show. This is a place for raw, unfills of conversations with athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. So let's get to it.

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