The Herd with Colin Cowherd - Parker – Inside the (Rob) Parker - Stanton returns; Yordan Alvarez's monster arrival; Trout never stops; Guests: Cubs OF Jason Heyward; Analyst Chris Singleton

Episode Date: June 19, 2019

Listen to Inside the (Rob) Parker in Podcasts. https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/inside-the-rob-parker/id1460750158 This week on Inside the (Rob) Parker, Rob makes a major announcement; Gio Stanton returns to the Yankees lineup, Astros rookie Yordan Alvarez's monster arrival in the big leagues, and Mike Trout's unrelenting excellence. He also runs down his Top 3 MLB Teams of the Week, names this week's 'Twitter Trash Talk' Winner, and gives the Analytic Stat of the Week. Guests: Cubs OF Jason Heyward on how the game has changed during his 10 years in the league, from analytics to the home run explosion, ESPN Analyst Chris Singleton on the Yankees adding Edwin Encarnacion, and Cody Bellinger's breakout season.Check out Rob's debut on Fox's MLB Whiparound coverage (June 26th)! 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. Last night, a blown call changed a game. This morning, the internet lost its mind, and nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where Sports Slice comes in. I'm Timbo, and every episode, we're cutting through the noise,

breaking down the biggest moments in sports and giving you the real story behind the headlines. And we're going straight to the source, the athletes themselves, their locker room stories, their reactions in the moment, and the stuff nobody gets to hear. Listen to Sports Slice on the Iheart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Sliced Life 12 in the TikTok podcast network on TikTok.

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 acapella 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 I-Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. What's up, guys? This is Clivert Taylor the Fourth. And on my podcast, The Cliverts show, I'm bringing you conversations about all kinds of stuff. Like being an internet famous referee. We're in the middle of a game. This linebacker, this linebacker walks up to me. He goes, hey, ref, my mom wants you to wave at her.

What? Time out. Quarterback on office blue with 42. Hey, Wreck, my mama want you to weigh better. What? Hey, Ms. Parker. Listen to the Clifford Show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast.

What's up, fam? It's Isaiah Thomas. And I'm C.J. Toledano. It's our favorite time of the year on our podcast point game, the playoffs. We're digging into the biggest surprises of the season. And I'm looking back on some of my greatest playoff moments. If we didn't talk ever again, I was harmed. you just understood. That's how personal it got.

Wow. Then after that game seven, Mark keep coming to her. He's like, you know, I love you, dog. You know, it's all love. This was just playoffs. This was just basketball. So listen to Point Game on the IHeart Radio app,

Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode is brought to you by Royal Caribbean, an award-winning global cruise line. A vacation is what you make it. So are you ready to make the most of it? A Royal Caribbean Adventure is the perfect opportunity to not just take a vacation, but to take it for all its worth. We know you're eager to get back out there,

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CareerBuilder gives you the competitive edge to get the job you want, at the salary you want, with the benefits you want. We even send job alerts so your perfect job lands right in your inbox. Go to careerbuilder.com today. or get left with whatever jobs are left. Find your next job fast at careerbuilder.com. Millions of Americans are getting back to work. CareerBuilder calls it the great rehire.

And we want to help you get the best jobs before everyone else. CareerBuilder gives you the competitive edge to get the job you want, at the salary you want, with the benefits you want. We even send job alerts, so your perfect job lands right in your inbox. Go to CareerBuilder.com today or get left with whatever jobs are left. Find your next job fast at CareerBuilder.com. From the Berkshires to the sound. From wherever you live in MLB America, this is Inside the Parker.

You give us 22 minutes and we'll give you the scoop on Major League Baseball. Now here's Baseball Hall of Fame voter number 103. Rob Parker. Welcome to the latest edition of the Inside the Parker podcast. I am your host Rob Parker. And coming up on the program, Cubs outfielder Jason Hayward will join us. Also from ESPN, their baseball radio color man. Chris Singleton, he'll also stop by.

Plus so much more. Let's go. Better up. To lead off, it's getting robbed. And keep them up. Rob's hot take on the three biggest. Stories in Major League Baseball. Number one.

We start the podcast on a personal note. Next week, Wednesday, June 26th, I make my debut on FS1's MLB Whipparound. I'm so excited and thankful to be a part of the show and be given such an opportunity. You know I love sports, but anybody who really knows me knows that baseball is my number one. So to be able to be a part of this show is just thrilling for me as a baseball Hall of Fame voter and a baseball fan. So check out the show, Rob Parker on FS-1s MLB Whip Around next Wednesday and Thursday. We're talking about June 26th and June 27. Number two.

Start spreading the news. That's right. Gene Carlos Stanton, the Yankee Star Outfield. and slugger returned to the lineup, batting fifth and playing right field on Tuesday night. It is about time to see him back. He was reinstated from the 10-day injured list on Tuesday. The 29-year-old slugger has been out since April 1st with a left bicep strain. And you know what?

Then in his rehab, he suffered a left shoulder strain that has kept him out of the lineup. So it'll be great to get this guy back. What's unbelievable is that the Yankees have gone 34 and 17 without Stanton and Judge. He's out with it all bleak. He should be back coming back soon. So the Yankees' power is returning, and the studs are back, starting with Stanton Tuesday night.

Number three. The only way you haven't heard about the Astros left fielder, Jordan Alvarez, is you'd have to be under a rock. This guy debuted with the Astros on June 9th and hit four home runs in his first five career games. No wonder he's wearing number 44. That's a sluggers number. He's a six foot five lefty, 21-year-old Cuban slugger. And he is bashing.

He was bashing down into minor leagues. They finally bring him up. And man, oh man, what a start to his career. and as of Tuesday in his first 26 Major League at Bats, he had nine hits, eight RBIs, the four home runs, and batting a sweltering, 346, and he has been, what a player right out the box. The Astros already have a potent lineup,

and it just seems like they just keep adding to it. It is unbelievable where the Astros are, and if this guy can continue to play, obviously not exactly the same level, but be this home run hitting machine, they will be tough to stop come to postseason. Number four. Another season, and yes, Mike Trout continuing to destroy the record books, and he continues to cement his status as the best player of his generation.

Since the beginning of 2012, Trout leads the AL with a 1.096,000, OPS and a 0.461 OBP and is on track for a 44-homer 38 double 142 walk season. In seven seasons, he has been the ALMVP twice and finished second four times. And don't forget, Trout is now, as of Tuesday, just four steals away from being the fastest player to the 250 and 200 Steel Club. And remember, he's the one trying to chase Barry Bonds, who is the only player to be in the 500-500 club, which is 500 home runs and 500 stolen bases. So if you haven't tuned in to watch Mike Trout, you need to, he's one of those players, a generational player, and he continues to play at a very high level.

And I know he might not have the personality that most people would love him to have. and stand out in the crowd, but his play on the field right now in Major League Baseball is second to none. Here comes the big interview. Listen and learn. Oh, it's so good. All right, let's welcome into the podcast, Jason Hayward from the Chicago Cubs. How did you get into baseball? You know, a lot of kids, basketball, football, how did you get into baseball?

I was born in Ridgewood, New Jersey in 1989. My mom's from Queens, and my parents were living up in New York at the time. Dad was working out of New Jersey. And, you know, 1986 Mets. They won the World Series that year. But they had a fun team to watch. They had some exciting players. But, you know, Dwight Gooden and Dale Strawberry to be standing out, players.

You know, African-American baseball players are that as well. My pops, it's like, man, I want my son to be a part of this. You know, he played baseball growing up. He played all sports, football. basketball, whatever. Played basketball at Dartmouth in college, but he wanted me to have a shot at baseball. And it was kind of a no-brainer when you got to see a team like that one, of course, and overcome the adversity they overcame.

And, of course, there's a spectacular comeback against the Red Sox, whatnot. But also just have an opportunity to be an individual and the own thing. Yeah, nowadays I think here's my issue with my kids not playing baseball, but with the other sports, I think the AAU coaches and whatnot have limited the kids. athletes, if you're good, you should play more than one sport. And everything's specialized now. They want you to play basketball all year round. They want you to practice football all year round.

Do you know what I mean? So you get kind of some of the better athletes aren't playing baseball. I mean, I play the only baseball. I play basketball maybe like 10 through 12 with some of my boys to play baseball. But when I got to high school, my pops gave me an option. He said, you can do what you want? You can play basketball, but do you want to go to these showcases and get exposure? And I was like, yeah, let's do that.

for baseball so I stuck with that but I mean just being honest it helped it helped doing one sport but you see Kyla Murray this year was the first guy ever you know here's that new era and he got the first guy to every address the first round of NFL and first round of major league baseball which is an incredible thing no it's incredible but I mean you just got to see how stuff pans out I mean you don't know how it would have went if he played baseball I mean he's doing football I feel like he made a good choice for himself. Obviously, whatever, you know, he stands in his heart, and he's got to go with that, whatever he has the most passion for.

But you win the Heardtrophy. It's tough for me to say you're not going to go play football in the NFL and give that a shot. Because that's something that not everybody does, of course. That's a different company. But just picking one sport, bro, it just, it helped. It helped a lot, I'm telling you. But the only thing I say, and I get your point on, like, practicing or whatever, but there's a lot, you know, the NBA, there's only 400 jobs, and only 30 guys get a guarantee.

Do you know what I mean? So I'm not saying that, yes, you should put all, but if you put all your eggs in a basket and you're good athlete, you might be able to get another opportunity somewhere else. That's the only thing I'm saying. I could have played football. I could have played basketball. I mean, and that's not, you know, taking away from, you know, how hard it is to go play those sports. But you talk about being one of the better athletes, I definitely could have done that.

But I just feel like baseball is a different breed of sport. And don't get me wrong, some people play other sports and then come out and excel really well in baseball. But I just know for me growing up in Georgia, the kind of competition you're going to face, just the exposure you need to have, just the things you need to learn. It helped me a whole lot. Just focusing on baseball, playing in the fall, playing in the summer, playing high school, of course, and just getting that exposure from different areas, different situations to help me get ready for this. Baseball is going through a lot of stuff, a lot of changes.

Do you like the game the way it's played now and what I mean by, see, a lot of home runs or strikeouts, a lot of shifting, which is taking a lot of hits away from people, not as many guys on the base pass, you know, not as many stolen bases, that type of game. Is it fun to play this game the way it is now or not? I mean, it's different. It's different.

This is year 10 for me. So it's definitely different from what I watched growing up. different from what I came up in the minor leagues and different for what it was. I mean, probably like five or six years in the game. But you just got to understand the game's going to change. Things are going to change. It has from, like I just said, 10 years ago to even 30 or 40 years ago, the game's changed. And we just got to kind of adapt to it and be ready for what it brings.

How about the home run element? People thought, okay, steroids, error was over, end of the home runs. But in actuality, the more home runs. being hit today, is it because guys aren't fearful of striking out and they can get up and take a big cut and striking out ain't the end of the world? Is it that? Some people say the ball's funny. You know, there's all kinds of reasons why. Why do you think home runs are as big as they've ever been? I don't know. Pick one. Pick one. Pick any reason. Could be a number of things. Could be one. How about the strikeout factor? Do you think about strikeouts anymore? Like when you first came up 10 years ago,

Maybe it was frowned upon the strikeout? Well, as far as strikeouts go, I mean, you got people, the average velocity now is harder than probably harder than it's ever been. And that's, I mean, guys got good stuff. Relievers now, I feel like they try to match them up even better out of the bullpen. And, I mean, rightfully so, you want to bring a guy in. You know, it used to be, you knew who's going to go a full inning, sometimes maybe two, and that still happens.

but I feel like also, like, they play the matchups quickly. You know, they bring a guy in, he faces a couple, then the other, and they try and do the lineup. So I feel like there's a lot of computer stuff going on in general. Last night, a blown call changed a game. This morning, the internet lost its mind. Highlights are trending, opinions are flying, and nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where Sports Slice comes in. I'm Timbo.

Every episode, we're cutting through the noise, breaking down the plays, the controversies, and the stories behind the headlines. We go straight to the source. their locker room stories, their reactions, the stuff nobody gets to hear. The laughs, the drama, the triumphs, the moments that never make the highlight real. From viral moments to historic games, from buzzer beaters to controversial calls, we break it down, give you context, and ask the questions everybody wants answered. Sports Slice brings you closer to the action with stories told by the people who live them.

Listen to Sports Slice on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Slicel Life 12 in the 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, 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, 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. iHeartRadio app search learn the hard way and listen now what's up guys this is clivert taylor the fourth and on my podcast the clivert show i'm bringing you conversations about all kinds of stuff like being an internet famous referee we're in the middle of a game this linebacker walks up to me he goes hey ref my mom wants you to wave at her what time out look

quarterback on office blue 42 hey rep my mama want you to wave at her what Hey, Ms. Parker. Listen to the Cliffer Show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. What's up, fam? It's Isaiah Thomas. And I'm C.J. Toledano, and our podcast Point Game is about defying the odds. Like LeBron heading into the playoffs without Luca and Austin Reed. And finding ways to win no matter what.

He's the smartest player to ever play the game. His IQ is at a level that we've never seen before. And he knows. Without Luca and Austin Reeves, I got to manipulate. the game. We get a player's perspective on the challenges of the playoffs. I think Joker's going to be exhausted this series because when they don't have Rudy in the lineup, he has to really guard guys like Nasree.

He has to guard Julius Randall. And then he has to give us everything he gives us on the night-to-night basis on offense. And when IT's friends stop by, like Quentin Richardson, we dive into some playoff history too. Steve Nash would get that thing. That man, hell get the flying. He running up the court, licking his fingers, why he got the bar like, I think. After you go through a training camp with that, I said, you figure it out real quick. Get your ass up and down the court, and you're going to get the ball.

So listen to Point Game on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I would say that's probably responsible for most of anything that's changing. Are you an analytics guy, a big analytics guy? I understand it. I understand where it fits in, but I think sometimes it's gone too far. there was a situation last year in the playoffs. I'm just giving you a scenario where the Dodgers went to play Boston in the World Series and their top four home run hitters weren't in the lineup.

You know what I mean in game one? I mean, that's a perfect example of where maybe you're taking analytics too far and taking some of the best players out the game. Yeah, I mean, I'm all for analytics, but then when you take the feel out of the game, then in this game, of all games, you take the fill out of it, then you're kind of setting yourself up. for a different route to trying to win the game.

You're trying to match everything up perfectly and when you don't win championships by matching shit up perfectly. You know, you go out there and one team beats the other. One team out hustles another team. One team plays better defense. One team gets luckier. No, all those things.

But just look at it this way. Regardless of what kind of season these guys had, they earned the right to be there. And next thing you know, they're not starting, they're not in the starting lineup. But at the same time, I mean, I feel like you just said top four homers. I mean, it's like 250 homers on the bench right there.

So at the end of the day, what is the other team going to feel like? And like, oh, they're sitting these dudes, well, let's go. You know, so there's all kind of advantages and all kind of, you know, momentum shifts in playoffs. And, you know, I feel like there's going to be less pressure when you have certain players sent on the bench as the guys we're talking about. I mean, Baling just to name one. But, yeah, I mean, that could be the part of taking it too far. Now I look at this year, they're trying to play certain guys more, but that's just what baseball is doing.

They're trying to predict the future. These days, it can be hard to find and hire the right candidates for your small business. That's why LinkedIn jobs made it easier to find the people you want to talk to, faster and for free. Create a job post in minutes on LinkedIn jobs to reach your network and beyond to the world's largest professional network of over 770 million people. Focus on candidates with the skills and experience you need. Use screening questions to get your role in front of only the most qualified people.

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What do you got for us, Anthony? All right, Rob, well, we all know about batting average, but that's a little bit outdated. How about expected batting average? That could tell you more about a player. Expected batting average measures the likelihood that a batted ball becomes a hit using what advanced metrics we have at our disposal. On this podcast, we talked about exit velocity and launch angle, an expected batting average puts them all together.

each batted ball is assigned an expected batting average based on how comparable balls in terms of exit velo and launch angle become base hits. Like a batted ball with expected batting average of 800 means a similar batted ball falls for a base hit 8 out of 10 times. Now, how can you use expected batting average? A player with a higher XBA has a stronger quality of contact. Now, unsurprisingly, Cody Bellinger leads all of baseball in XBA this season with a 372 mark, which, remarkably, is even higher than his league-leading three-eating three-esquise. 55 batting average. You can argue he's been unlucky

based on the quality of the contact he's been having this season. Now a higher XBA than batting average can also tell you if a slumping player is about to break out or on the other end if a red hot player is about to fall off a cliff. Expect a batting average. Come on board. Anthony, I'll stick with

batting average until further notice. It was a big week in the big leagues. Or is it And now, here's shadowleague.com, MLB insider, J.R. Gamble. With some of the early returns in on the baseball all-star game voted by fans, some people aren't happy with what the fans have voted, and there's now a buzz about maybe taking the vote away from fans

and letting players vote for their favorite all-stars. J.R., is that foul or fair? That is foul. That is a foul ball. Come on, Rob. There's always a problem with these baseball players. The All-Star game is more for the fans than the players. Even though All-Star appearances weigh heavily when a player comes up for...

Last night, a blown call changed a game. This morning, the internet lost its mind. Highlights are trending, opinions are flying, and nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where Sports Slice comes in. I'm Timbo. Every episode, we're cutting through the noise. Breaking down the plays, the controversies, and the stories behind the headlines.

We go straight to the source, the athlete themselves. Their locker room stories, their reactions, the stuff nobody gets to hear. The laughs, the drama, the triumphs, the moments that never make the highlight real. From viral moments to historic games, from buzzer beaters to controversial calls, we break it down, give you context, and ask the questions everybody wants answered. Sports slice brings you closer to the action with stories told by the people who live them. Listen to Sports Slice on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Sliced Life 12 in the 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 rapid. 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 All healing, growth, fatherhood, pressure, and purpose on my new podcast, Learn the Hardway. Open your free iHeartRadio app. Search Learn the Hardway and listen now. What's up, guys? This is Clivert Taylor the 4th. And on my podcast, The Cliverts show, I'm bringing you conversations about all kinds of stuff.

Like being an internet famous referee. We're in the middle of a game. This linebacker, this linebacker walks up to me, he goes, hey, ref, my mom wants you to wave at her. What? Time out. quarterback on office blue with 42. Hey, Brett. My mama want you to weigh better.

What? Hey, Ms. Parker. Listen to the Cliverts show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. What's up, fam? It's Isaiah Thomas. And I'm C.J. Toledano, and our podcast Point Game is about defying the odds.

Like LeBron heading into the playoffs without Luca and Austin Reed. And finding ways to win no matter what. He's the smartest player to ever play the game. His IQ is at a level that we've never seen before. And he knows without Luca and Austin Reeves, I got to manipulate the game. We get a player's perspective on the challenges of the playoffs. I think Joker's going to be exhausted this series

because when they don't have Rudy in the lineup, he has to really guard guys like Nas Reid. He has to guard Julius Randall. And then he has to give us everything he gives us on the night-to-night basis on offense. And when IT's friends stop by, like Quentin Richardson, we dive into some playoff history too. Steve Nash will get that thing

That man, hell get the flying He ran up the court Licking his fingers why he got the ball Like, after you go through a training camp With that Isaiah, you figure it out real quick Get your ass up and down the court And you're gonna get the ball So listen to Point Game on the IHeart Radio app

Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts All the Fame consideration It really shouldn't The All Star game is a chance of fans To vote for their favorite players You know, usually the favorite players are the best players, but sometimes fans want retiring players, popular players, or players with a cultural connection for some to be featured in the game.

MLB has enough rules and enough guys changing the rules and erasing authenticity from the game. Let's keep the all-star voting in the hands of the fan, that people will pay for the tickets, fund the salaries, and keep the game alive. The starters should remain in the hands of the fan. Rarely does a All-Star get totally snubbed. He can always be a reserve.

The fans will tell you openly and honestly who's hot, who's not, and why. All right, J.R., I'm with you. It's foul. Leave it to the fans. Fasten your seatbelt. Give you fuel, give me fire, give me that what I desire. Here comes Parker's top three MLB teams this week. Number three. The Houston Astros.

coming into Tuesday, 48 and 24, they're still rolling, despite all the injuries, which is unbelievable. But Altuvae and Springer are coming back soon, and then Correa will be back around the All-Star game. But still, they're able to hold their own and continue. We talked about Alvarez. He's the guy that has been a masher and has helped him stick in the top three.

Number two. The New York Yankees, 43 and 27 as of Tuesday, and now they're starting to get their big stars back. Stanton came back on Tuesday. Judge will be coming back soon. They've been able to hold it together, and then they went out and added the AL leading home run hitter

and Edwin and Conaccion to the lineup. Man, that lineup's going to be unbelievable when you think about it With Voigt, the Yankees are the second best team in baseball. Number three. The Los Angeles Dodgers, they continue to win and roll. As of Tuesday, they were 48 and 24. The Cubs were red hot when they came into L.A. to play the Dodgers for a set. And the Dodgers were able to beat up on the Cubs, win some big games.

Their pitching continues to be unbelievable. as of Tuesday, the Dodgers rotation in its past 40 games had an ERA of 2.27, 253 strikeouts, only 36 walks, and opposing teams were only batting 210. I mean, are you kidding me? The Dodgers are the freaking best team in baseball. Take out for Trash Talk Twitter.

Your chance to trash anyone or anything in Major League. Baseball. This week's winner comes from at Willie Wayne, and he is trashing Miguel Cabrera from the Tigers. Miguel Cabrera, he's made nearly 280 million. He's in an empty ballpark on a bad knee. He's only a DH and has a bad relationship with our fans. All his comments are about, quote, the fans don't appreciate me, end quote, are ridiculous.

As a Tiger fan, Miguel Cabr, is Persada non-Grada. And if you want a chance to win a new era snapback, send us your trash to at Rob Parker FS1 on Twitter. There's a recipe for getting your car running just right. And whatever you're cooking up in the garage, you'll find what you need at eBay motors.com. They have over 122 million car parts and accessories

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at events and adventures.com. When Rob was a newspaper columnist, he lived by this motto. If I'm writing, I'm ripping. Let's bring in a writer or broadcaster, older new. Let's welcome in Chris Singleton, of course, from ESPN Radio, the color analyst to the podcast. How you doing, Chris? Hey, good to see you, man. You know, we're just joking off here that, you know, you're a baseball fan. People don't realize that. They see you on television talking about all things football, all things basketball.

But I know you, man. I know you're true. The Yankees have been staying afloat despite all the injuries to their big boppers. And now they go out and add Edwin Encarnacion. Yeah, I was surprised by that with those guys both playing rehab games and expected to, I think John Carlos is expected to rejoin the team next week. Stanton, you know, obviously a little bit longer

when you're dealing with an intercostal muscle and just how big a man he is, you know, to make sure everything's right. And then there's no guarantee that once they do return, that they will get into, you know, mid-season form very quickly or that there won't be a recurrence of the injury. So I think the Yankees have done extremely well,

exceeded expectations by mixing and matching playing, you know, guys stepping up and playing. whether it's Giovanni Urchila, Luke Void at first base, Glaibre Torres, and we knew that he's a star type of player, but he's been great, and it's a team that's performed very well in the absence of their sort of budding iconic stars in Aaron Judge and Jarlene-Carrholl of Stanton. But I think that along with the return of those guys

that the team has played so well, there are other teams and managers that are looking forward to Stanton and Junk Harv. John Carlos Stanton and Aaron Judge returning because it changes the dynamic of that team, and they're able to pitch to that team better, believe it or not. No, I understand what you're saying right. Because you're not having all the big boppers swinging big. These other guys haven't done it totally with the long ball.

They've manufactured right. Right. So there are teams that are looking forward to those two guys getting healthy, and you wouldn't think so because they're such intimidating forces offensively. But I think the Yankees and Aaron Boone and their coaching staff and their analytics team and all those folks have done a really nice job. And they've also been able to benefit from a Boston Red Sox team that has just not been able to really make it click and utilize the talent they have on the field on a consistent basis. How about National League? There's a lot of really good player. Who's the best player in the National League?

Cody Bellinger, is it? I mean, who is it? You know, both those guys are great. and they're good kids. I guess since we're here in L.A., I'm going to just go ahead and lean towards Cody Bellinger. I love Cody Bellinger because he is one of the most athletic guys in the major leagues. A lot of times you look at a big player. He's a first baseman.

He's got power. All right. He's kind of gets type cast. All right, he's a first baseman left-handed with power. Cody Bellinger last year, even with Pueg and some of the other guys, Jock Peterson was their best center fielder. He was perhaps their best outfielder. He throws well.

He can track it down. He runs the base as well. He's got power. It was surreal when Cody first got to the big leagues and when I go down to the clubhouse and see him because it's like, hadn't seen him in years. And you're thinking yourself, I remember this kid at two years old

coming to the clubhouse with this little plastic bat crying for his dad after his dad maybe went over four with three strikeouts to take him in the cage or down on the field. to flip to him. I mean, Clay would take his son down on the field. I'd have kids at the time, so I didn't understand it, but the love of a father, and, you know, it was Father's Day, right? So it's easy to kind of think about that, but would take his kid down there, and who knew at the time, who he was flipping to, you know, that this kid would be a superstar and perhaps the National League MVP.

So I'm a big fan, but hey, you can't go wrong with either one of those guys in the National League. How about the surprise team of the season? Got to be the Minnesota Twins. I mean, they are tremendous. They've been doing, they look like they could run away with the Central, or at least really take it away from the Indians. Yeah, well, Cleveland, things aren't clicking for Cleveland, obviously. And when you're looking at times, I don't know exactly what the standings are today, but double digits back of the twins in that division, you know, if you were four or five games back, you're not really, you're going to be all right.

But when you're looking at nine, ten games back and you're seeing the, struggles to score runs offensively at times, arguably the best rotation in terms of guys, whether it's, you know, win healthy, Cluber, Bauer, Carrasco, Bieber. That was Chris Singleton, of course, from ESPN Radio. Thanks for joining us on the podcast. Appreciate you. Hey, thanks, man. Now bring in the closer. Track one, strike two, right three.

Here's why MLB is better than the NFL or NBA, and it isn't even close. It was games like Monday night that bang home the idea that baseball is better than football, better than basketball. There's no question about it. Masahiro Tanaka put on a performance for the ages. Imagine a beautiful June night sitting out at Yankee Stadium in a game played against Tampa Bay. He has a two-hit complete game. Shutout. A gem.

A masterpiece. to be able to watch a guy do that. He had 10 strikeouts. They were playing for first place, the Yankees and the Rays. And best of all, he did it in two hours and 34 minutes. Are you kidding me? I would have felt cheated that the game was over that quickly. Yankees win 3-0.

It again, another moment to tell you why baseball is the king of the world. Before I say goodbye, I want to salute Shohay Otani, who became the first Japanese player in the history of Major League Baseball to hit for the cycle. What's shocking is that each year old never did it with all the hits that he got into major leagues and what a stellar Hall of Fame career he had. But instead, it's Otani who's the one who becomes the first Japanese player to ever reach that plateau. In the words of New York TV legend the late Bill Jorgensen

thanking you for your time this time until next time. Rob Parker, out. He can't get it. This could be an inside of Parker. See you next week. Same bad time. Same bad station. Sponsorship for this podcast is brought to you by Ford. Built Ford Proud.

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Journey into the future with Ford's lineup of electric vehicles with many affordable options to choose from. Head over to Ford.com to learn more. Built Ford Proud. Hey, Singles. Do you feel like a tourist in your own town? Too busy to enjoy all your city has to offer? Events and Adventures organizes up to 30 unique get-togethers around town each and every month.

We do all the work, so you have all the fun. On your schedule, visit places you didn't even know were places, and get to know the fellow singles you didn't know you needed in your life. Fall in love with your hometown all over again by joining events and adventures. Get started by visiting events and adventures.com today. That's events and adventures.com. Last night, a blown call changed a game. This morning, the internet lost its mind, and nobody's telling you exactly what happened.

That's where SportsSlice comes in. I'm Timbo, and every episode, we're cutting through the noise, breaking down the biggest moments in sports and giving you the real story behind the headline. And we're going straight to the source, the athletes themselves, their locker room stories, their reactions in the moment, and the stuff nobody gets to hear. Listen to Sports Slice on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Slices Life 12 in the TV. TikTok podcast network on TikTok.

Another podcast from some SNL late night comedy guy, not quite on Humor 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 I-heart radio app. Apple or wherever you get your podcasts. What's up, guys?

This is Clever Taylor the 4th. And on my podcast, The Cliverts Show, I'm bringing you conversations about all kinds of stuff, like being an internet famous referee. We're in the middle of a game. This linebacker, this linebacker walks up to me. He goes, hey, ref, my mom wants you to wave at her.

What? Time out. Quarterback on office, Blue, 42. A rep, my mama want you to wave at her. What? Where's he at? Hey, Miss Parker. Listen to the Clipper Show on the IHeart Radio app,

Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. What's up, fam? It's Isaiah Thomas. And I'm C.J. Toledano. It's our favorite time of the year on our podcast point game, the playoffs. We're digging into the biggest surprises of the season. And I'm looking back on some of my greatest playoff moments. If we didn't talk ever again, I was harmed.

You just understood. That's how personal it got. Wow. Then after that game seven, Mark keep coming to, he's like, you know I love you, dog. You know, it's all love. This was just playoffs. This was just basketball.

So listen to Point Game on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed Human.