Randy BLASTS Raleigh, Ken Rosenthal joins from WBC, Hunter Greene out until July, Jesús Luzardo's deal

00:00:01
Speaker 1: Let's charge about.

00:00:02
Speaker 2: We are charging the Mound. It's presented by Fox one.

00:00:05
Speaker 3: That's where you can watch every single World Baseball Classic game. We did a postgame show after watching Team USA against Mexico last night, and we actually didn't I don't know if we covered this or maybe we did for five seconds, but to me, the story really escalates when you do get an answer from Randy a Rosina after Kyle Riley says not, I don't want to shake your hand. So Kratz, let me get your perspective asap. Please, What did you think when you saw it? And what did you think of Randy's reply afterward? I'll drop that in there pretty early on here, but first let me get your reply just from the on field perspective before we find out Randy is pissed off. Unless he's just completely putting on his best WWE heel performance, it did sound like he actually felt as if his teammate with the Mariners should give him a little love before his ab and Cal said, hell no, there's also some out there that are trying to throw like the whole oh don't want to get any like pine tar on their hand kind of situation, and you're a former catcher, and that felt like eyewash.

00:01:06
Speaker 2: So just help us out with everything here.

00:01:09
Speaker 1: I'll tell you exactly where I'm at with this. I loved it from both sides. Randy doesn't need to be happy about it. Maybe he felt like he was disrespected, shown up, whatever it is. Cal doesn't need to shake his hand like there's there's so many examples. I was in that room. I was in the Team USA room, not for WBC. But when you put that jersey on, you have conversations for the week two weeks leading up to the games, and the conversation is not about oh man, it's gonna be so great to swap jerseys and and oh man, you know we're gonna go play Mexico and guys, it doesn't matter, it's just gonna be fun. No, they want to win. They want to sweep through the pool play. They want to win every game after that and raise the trophy at the end. Like that's the conversation. And so you do have to have a certain mindset as a catcher. And he didn't do anything harmful to Randy. Maybe Randy's pissed off about it based on his comments, which we'll get to. But to me. It reminds me a lot of and maybe Kp'll hit it a little bit because we talked about a pre show Kobe Bryant ran through Paul I think it was Paul Gasol in a one of the Team USA basketball games. Now he ran like he ran over on a pick and people were like, whoa, you do that to one of your teammates. Cal just did that to one of his teammates. He didn't physically harm him, but it was definitely a show of no, like it's fine that we're teammates during the regular season. That's not what this is. And this shows me. This event and I wish AJ was on today, shows me it's more than next an exhibition. The guys take it more importantly than an exhibition because they want to win. They want to win ultimately at the end. But they also understand and respect the history of playing for Team USA, and they also know Mexico's freaking beating him the last three times. So I definitely see this as something that was premeditated, not malicious, but also understanding that the rest of the team understands this is fun, this is time to lock in. I think Will Smith did it maybe last year last WBC. If I'm not mistaken with Randy, Yeah, they don't need to. It doesn't mean that Calla hates Randy, doesn't mean that they're going to have a terrible club auise in Seattle. No, not at all. That's not what it means.

00:03:40
Speaker 3: I'm good with everything you've said, except when you do get a player emotionally voicing his displeasure after the game, you do feel like there's more to it. So let's run that and then we'll get KP's thoughts. Randy A Rosearin A postgame translated and written by Master Flip has been great covering the WBC.

00:03:59
Speaker 2: Here's Randy.

00:04:00
Speaker 3: How do you think I should respond to cal Riley? How should I put it to him? I want to say it in four languages, first in Spanish. The only thing he should be thankful for is having such great parents. He's very well educated.

00:04:09
Speaker 2: Thank God.

00:04:09
Speaker 3: I was lucky enough to see them a few days ago at the hotel. They came over to greet me, gave me a big huggin virginualy proud to see me again.

00:04:15
Speaker 2: After that, I went to give it to him straight Cuban style.

00:04:18
Speaker 3: What he has to do is f off Mexican style, go to hell English, that fake ass. Good to see you. He hit me with he can shove it straight up his ass. I'm out kp to me now, it's on. I mean, if you get called out like that, unless you think he's completely kidding, wouldn't you be like, hey, dude, we got a problem.

00:04:42
Speaker 2: Yeah.

00:04:42
Speaker 4: Randy's a hard guy to read because he's very charismatic on the field and he likes to have fun.

00:04:48
Speaker 5: Is this serious? I don't know.

00:04:50
Speaker 4: I think we need to kind of wait and let Cal kind of respond to what's going on. And obviously when he gets to the field today, there's going to be reporters there are going to ask him this question. We're going to figure out at what Cal's side of the story was. But I do want to touch base on what Kratzy was talking about because obviously huge Kobe Bryant fan. Let me paint the picture a little bit. This is a two thousand and eight gold medal game. Before that, the Lakers, Pau Gasol, and Kobe Bryant just want an NBA title together, much like this scenario where this happened three years ago when Randy rose Aina tried to shake Willis Smith's hand. The team probably talked about this very scenario with Caw and said, hey, look at we are no longer teammates. Go back to that two thousand and eight Olympic game. Kobe Bryant and his teammates have talked about obviously watching film, they knew the first play of the game was going to be this. You know, this high pick and roll pow was going to set the screen. Kobe talks about it. He said, I'm going to run through his fucking chest because I'm going to set a tone that we are no longer teammates. We are no longer brothers. I'm wearing the USA on my chest. My brothers are the guys that are wearing this uniform. You know, after this tournament is over, we can be brothers and family again. But I think it is so great for the sport that, like Kratzy said too, this is no longer exhibition. These players want to go and represent their countries and they want to win. I think we have seen it from so many other countries throughout this tournament. You know, the Dominicans, the Venezuelans, the Puerto Ricans, team Japan. They've typically put their best foot forward. And it means so much to them. I think everything that's happened to the USA over the last couple of WBCs and being able to kind of unite the super team led by Aaron Judge going out and recruiting the best players in the game, and the Pulse Games and the Trek Scoobles, this means a lot to them, and for them to go out and have that moment just shows how competitive these guys are.

00:06:40
Speaker 5: Is this something that's gonna linger hopefully not.

00:06:42
Speaker 4: I just think so much in today's game is yes, we are a fraternity of brothers. No matter what team you play on in Major League Baseball, we understand how fortunate we are, how lucky we are. Do we have friends on other teams, and a lot of us come from different organizations and play different organizations.

00:07:00
Speaker 5: Out the entirety of the season.

00:07:01
Speaker 4: It's very easy to go out there and want to catch up with your friends because the baseball season is so long. You see that a little bit less in the postseason in the major leagues, because that's when the intensity really turns up and in pool play and then ultimately an elimination.

00:07:16
Speaker 5: I don't think you're going to see a lot of fraternizing moving forward.

00:07:19
Speaker 2: Cool, great points.

00:07:21
Speaker 3: The only thing I'll correct you on is apparently the Lakers lost to the Celtics before that too, that game and then they won the next two years, so it seems like they got along just fine afterward. Some people are already in code red mode crats like, oh, do they have to trade Randy? How's it going to be? Like how will they ever.

00:07:40
Speaker 2: Get along coming up for this season? So what do you think?

00:07:45
Speaker 1: I mean? Randy had a four war from last season. He was a major part of that team. Moving forward, he's going to be in his last year before free agency. No, this isn't like you can play, you can, you can talk, smack, you can you know, maybe CALCN feels like, hey, he went too far, But you can do all those things and then you can come back together and you can have a amicable relationship for the season. Like just like he's putting, both of those teams are putting their heart and effort into their team right now. Randy with Mexico Cal with us, they're going to do the same thing when they go back to the Mariners. To me, it's immature and sophomoric if they both hold out. Did you hear what he said about me. Oh, that's unbelievable. And the real man, the real people who step up, the great teammates. If they're offended, they go to each other and they have that conversation. Once the WBC is over. Benji Heal, the manager, already said it. He's like, we want to see us again, and I think it's gonna be a different outcome. Mexico's not afraid of the big bat the United States in the United States isn't trying to be friends with Mexico. So I love it. I love it because it's a good look into actually what goes on, and those conversations are definitely being had. Col's not out on an island and his other teammates are going, oh, I can't believe he did that. They're like, yeah, yeah, cal.

00:09:23
Speaker 3: I got one comment that came to me. Cole said, you can be competitive without being a dick. Sam said, do you speak Spanish? Scott, seems crazy to me. You're making all these assumptions when you have to get his response translated to you.

00:09:35
Speaker 2: He's smiling in the interview.

00:09:36
Speaker 3: It's clearly a bit I've said multiple times, unless he's kidding, And yes, I do not speak fluent Spanish.

00:09:42
Speaker 2: I speak Spanglish.

00:09:44
Speaker 3: There is the comment, by the way, the only thing I will say in today's world, if you are kidding, usually you want to.

00:09:50
Speaker 2: Just give us at least a.

00:09:52
Speaker 3: Little bit like a And I say that in jest or I'm messing around. But do you think he's in his game mode right now? Like, Noah, this is the enemy, enemy territory right now. And he said he's the enemy.

00:10:07
Speaker 2: So now I'm gonna say he's the enemy. Is he trying to get traded?

00:10:10
Speaker 1: Really?

00:10:10
Speaker 2: Now? I don't think so.

00:10:12
Speaker 1: He's not getting traded.

00:10:13
Speaker 3: No, Well, maybe he's like, you know what I want to get traded to? Uh, I don't know, a team with an easier ballpark for him to hit in. I'm joking. It's clearly serious from Julie, and he gave four responses. There was no room for misinterpretation, all right. And now, also, if you'd like tickets for the World Baseball Classic, Sea Geek is this spot. You can use territory ten for ten percent off tickets. They've got the one to ten scale so you can make sure that you're getting hooked up with the right deal in the right section. I'm actually also going to hit an Orlando Matchic game coming up soon, so we'll head over to Sea Geeke for a little bit of that as well. Kratz and I know it's not getting as much love for a week here, but there are spring training games that you can get a hold of, and after the World Baball Classic, if you're feeling a little bit low, there are still spring training games that you can get a hold of for about a week. They'll be about a week and then that dips into the exhibition games at the ballpark, which is a good opportunity to find some good seats, and then of course opening Day if you're looking for your sold out opening day seats, that's the spot too.

00:11:19
Speaker 1: Seek Seek you go help you because going to spring training is like an event, like you're going down to spring training and you rarely go to just one game. So you're like, Okay, I want to go Tuesday here, I want to go beach Wednesday if you're in Florida, and then you can figure out where you're going to games Thursday Friday, and you figure it out based on based on how close you are. You go to Need and you go clear Water, you go Tampa, so it's super easy and seek Geek has it. You just change the queue on which day Bang rang, and.

00:11:49
Speaker 3: Of course to recap the code for you, it is Territory ten ten percent off your next set of tickets at tea Geek ten percent off any tickets with that promo code. Make sure you click the link in the description to download the app and have the code automatically added to your account so you can use it later. Surgery for Hunter Green. He's going to have bone chips removed from his elbow on Wednesday. He is not expected to make his season debut until July. The Reds have been able to gather a very strong collection of arm talent, led by Hunter Green and Krats.

00:12:33
Speaker 2: He's going to miss half the season.

00:12:35
Speaker 3: How much does this hurt a team that feels like it needs to have the little things go right to win at the margins and make the playoffs, Like, let's be real, this is not a projected ninety five win team. This is a team that you feel like is borderline for postseason, just like they were last year. They have some depth, but this is a huge blow for them to lose Hunter Green for a huge chunk of time to start the year.

00:13:06
Speaker 1: They're not losing some of their depth, they're losing their number one guy. And I believe truly that some of the other guys will step up. I've always looked at Nickelodoldo and said, wow, like this guy is going to do things. I think Andrew Rabbitt has had some spurts of like ridiculousness, but you look the rest of it there, Brady Singer is going to make all thirty two of his starts. Reet Louder and Chase Burns. If those are the two guys that they go with, because they were kind of in competition for that fifth spot before, and if they both make the team, there's just not a lot of experience. Does it mean that they won't do well. No, it just means that a team that I felt like last year was going to take the next step and win the division. I thought the division was up for grabs and they still made the playoffs. But you know, you just take you take Hunter Green out of that mix for longer than he missed last year. I think he missed eight starts last year. You're looking at almost half of his starts this year. So if you're looking at Brady Singer makes thirty two, so possibly sixteen starts. That's tough. That is tough, and it puts a lot of pressure on Red Louder and Chase Burns to step up and just give you quality innings right out the jump unless they have somebody else, unless they have another depth piece that they feel I could step up, but then that person would have also been in the running with the other two guys. Basically, that's why you wanted a Zach Lyttel to go back to the Reds. I mean, teams will constantly be picked up, you know, we'll tossantly talk about teams that, oh, well, this could have been a case where you don't have two rookies essentially making their first full season debuts, or you know, Lucas Giolito who's still out there on the market. Now you don't. Now you can kind of push just one of those guys and if they both do well, great, that's a great problem to have. But with Hunter Green out, this is massive for the Reds.

00:15:05
Speaker 2: Yeah, and he was feeling this KP going into the end of last season. So when he.

00:15:10
Speaker 3: Spoke about it a week ago, he said, final five or six starts, he had just pushed through it for the playoff push and they needed it, and then he got an injection and so he was just buying time and it did not react well here in spring training. So it's not TJ, which he's had already, it's not UCL damage, but still bone Chip's not gonna pitch her like this out.

00:15:33
Speaker 2: Really sucks for this team.

00:15:36
Speaker 4: Yeah, it's just always unfortunate timing because you know what the Reds were able to do down the stretch last year and get in the playoffs. He obviously wanted to be a part of that, get a chance to experience the playoffs and start in those games, especially back home in Dodger Stadium where he grew up. But it's just unfortunate timing, you know. If this is something that and it's hard because these guys take so much time off from pitching after that last game, and their arm probably feels pretty good, and they start to build up a little bit and it feels pretty good, and then they throw their first bullpin and it feels okay, and then a couple of days later like oh man, and a lot of people at home, a lot of fans like why didn't he get it done in the off season, and in a perfect world he probably would have, but it didn't really show up until you know, recently, and it's really unfortunate for them. But on Cratsey's point, I faced Nick Lodolo in twenty three when I was with Chicago White Sox, or sorry, twenty four when I was with the Chicago White Sox. That is the closest thing I've seen to Chris Sayle in terms of uniqueness and arm angle and size. I think the sky's the limit for him. I think it's only a matter of time. We're talking about this guy as being one of the better upper tier left handed pitchers in our game.

00:16:51
Speaker 3: Yeah, that's high praise, but it makes sense. I mean this season or this past season, we really saw it right because he had troubles staying on the field. That was the knock he was on his way. Yeah, one hundred and fifty six two thirds innings. It's pretty close to what you're gonna get these days from a starter.

00:17:09
Speaker 5: Yeah, when healthy, When healthy, it is very unique.

00:17:12
Speaker 4: You talk about the uniqueness factor of facing guys and how the technologies changed and traject I guarantee you I've been on the traject There's no preparing for a guy like him, it's something that it's hard to recreate. Yes, when you see him a little bit more much like the Chrisales of the world, there's a little bit more comfort. But when you're talking about him showing up to a team that's never seen him before, it is a nightmare of it. At bat, I think he hit me in the back foot on a slider and it much like Chrisale, it feels like it's almost starting in the other's batter's box and the next thing you know, it's off your back foot. Like it is that unique. It can be that special. He just needs to stay healthy. And I think I don't know him personally. I don't know anything about him, but when he really starts to believe he can become a version like Chrisale, I really do have. I do think very highly of him, and I think he's a guy. At some point this year we're talking about being an elite left handed starting pitcher.

00:18:08
Speaker 3: Yeah, and the three three ERA three three three ra last year pitching for the Reds. Some fans in the chat also mentioning how they're excited to see the next step for Rhet Louder. Okay, yeah, you certainly would love to see that too. Saw thirty innings from him last year. A lot more on this crats no no.

00:18:28
Speaker 1: I love his own Yeah. I just hate to see two rookies essentially. I know they're not tech. I don't know what their rookie status is, but two young guys needing to solidify two of the spots. The best lane is that both of those guys can fill one spot. Not that somebody's gonna get hurt, not that somebody's gonna do bad, just that it gives them a different leeway in to having success for the entire season for the whole team.

00:18:58
Speaker 3: You're talking about Rhet Louder and Chase burn Now filling rotation spots most likely for the Reds to start the year.

00:19:04
Speaker 2: Yep, that's fair. That is fair.

00:19:06
Speaker 3: The division should be tough. I mean, the Pirates should be better. The Cubs I think will be better, and they were pretty good last year. The Brewers should still be the Brewers. They have not been affected too much by turnover over time. They're certainly not going to be a bad team. The Cardinals are one team where you're like they're going to take a step back. How much of a step back, though, I'm not sure, right, how different will they be from last year's team.

00:19:26
Speaker 2: I'm not sure.

00:19:27
Speaker 3: So you're gonna have to find wins somewhere in that division, and this certainly hurts the Reds.

00:19:37
Speaker 1: Here.

00:19:37
Speaker 2: It is the inside scoop with FT senior insider Ken Rosenthal. Ken, great to have you on and how was the game?

00:19:43
Speaker 1: So?

00:19:43
Speaker 3: To me, it was like the tune ups and then the real stuff, the good stuff, starting with US and Mexico and ended up only being a two run win for Team USA.

00:19:51
Speaker 2: What were your takeaways, Scott, You're absolutely right.

00:19:55
Speaker 6: It was as if last night was the first real game.

00:19:58
Speaker 7: They had two exit against the Rockies and the Giants, then they had the first two WBC games against Brazil and Great Britain. They outscored their opponents by fifty three to eleven in those games. So those were the tune ups. And Mark de Rosa told his players before last night's game, listen in Phoenix in twenty three, the crowd was against US when we played Mexico. Get ready, it's game on and it was now. It was five to nothing for quite a long time in this game, but Mexico rallied. It got quite intense toward the end, and my biggest takeaways were just the absolute star quality.

00:20:35
Speaker 6: On Team USA.

00:20:36
Speaker 7: It's on a nightly basis kind of astonishing to see this team in action.

00:20:41
Speaker 6: Aaron Judge with a two roun homer in the.

00:20:43
Speaker 7: Throw, Roman Anthony with the big homer, Bobby Wick Junior all over the field offensively, defensively, on the basis, it can be a different guy every night, and that is what is so special about this team. Oh and I forgot the starting pitcher, Paul Skeins.

00:20:59
Speaker 6: He was pretty good too.

00:21:00
Speaker 7: So just a great effort all around from Team USA last night. And we might see a line change again tonight. We might see Gunner Henderson and Pete Crow Armstrong and some of the other players who were not in the lineup last night.

00:21:13
Speaker 6: Because that's how deep they are and that's how good they are.

00:21:16
Speaker 7: It's just kind of a cool thing to see these guys all together as one. And it's also cool from other team's perspectives too, to see the Dominican Republic and the star quality that they have. So I love this tournament and so far it's been a lot of fun and it's only going to get better from here.

00:21:33
Speaker 1: We can see what they're doing on the field, what are you hearing in the locker room the conversations, Like do the guys sound different? You interview these guys throughout the years leading up to this, but do you hear a different type of conversation on Team USA. Yes?

00:21:50
Speaker 7: And it's interesting, Eric, when you talk to the players. They are all not only excited to wear USA on their chest. That is a given, and of course we're all proud of our country. But what really gets these guys going is the ability to have high level baseball conversations with each other. It is what Trek Schoobil cited in saying how difficult it was to leave this team go back to Lakeland. He may come back for the semifinals and finals in Miami, but his point was these conversations were having are amazing. Now. Last night, I don't know exactly what happened after the game, but the players did not come out for the longest time.

00:22:31
Speaker 6: In fact, they pushed back their buses, Eric, so they were in there. It seems to me.

00:22:36
Speaker 7: I don't know this for a fact yet, but what else could they have been doing but talking baseball?

00:22:41
Speaker 1: Now?

00:22:41
Speaker 7: Years ago, when you guys played, when you started your careers. Anyway, players routinely did that. They'd hang in the clubhouse after a game. There was no rush to go home, but over time that has changed. Now players kind of leave, go back to the rooms, play video games. They're sort of afraid to go out because social media and all the things that they might encounter. So last night, I don't know again the details yet. I have to find out when I get to the park, but it seemed like it was throwback Monday at the WBC with the guys kind of just hanging with each other, including the coaches, and it was quite amazing. The reporters hung there and hung there and hung there, and eventually most of us just left.

00:23:21
Speaker 4: Hey, do you think they could have been talking about, maybe potentially how to handle handshakes at home plate?

00:23:28
Speaker 6: Kevin, I don't know.

00:23:29
Speaker 7: I didn't see that last night, to be perfectly honest. I didn't catch it until aft of the game when I saw on the social media channels all the different people speculating on what happened. And I know it's been a talking point today and I imagine I'll be asking and others will be asking cal Raley about that when we get to the park. There was a situation the other night in one of the other games where it was very similar where the catcher did not shake the hitter's hand and it looked like the catcher was simply or he said afterward that it was simply he was in competitive mode and he wasn't into it. But maybe something else happened there. So someone speculate that cal Raley didn't want to get pine tar in his hand. Who knows, but it's something that will be probably asked tonight.

00:24:12
Speaker 4: Do you think it will be easier to get the entirety of the story once Cal is actually interviewed, and what do you anticipate kind of that lineup looking like when Cal shows up to the field today. Because it's a huge story in baseball. We're here at race camp. We asked the guys, you know, some of the guys we're talking about. It seemed like a WWE script that people are talking about in the clubhouse right now. Obviously, I think it's great for the game. I think it shows that it's more than an exhibition game. But I think we'll have probably some more clarity once Cal answered some questions.

00:24:42
Speaker 7: Yes, I'm sure we'll get more clarity once we hear from cal and obviously it's a talking point.

00:24:48
Speaker 6: And in this day and age.

00:24:50
Speaker 7: It's just always amazing to me how these things become big talking points when there's a lot else going on. But I do understand it too, and it was unusual. These guys are teammates with the Seattle Mariners. But again it's kind of pointless to speculate until we hear from Ralli what actually happened.

00:25:07
Speaker 6: And I don't know what happened. We'll have to find out.

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00:26:14
Speaker 1: Did you hear Randy's reply to what happened?

00:26:18
Speaker 7: No?

00:26:18
Speaker 1: What was that? Randy's reply was that he basically said to f Off and he said it in three different languages. He said Mexican, Spanish, English, and oh. And he first said, yeah, I know that was his that was his words. Basically, he told him to go to hell, and he said he can shove it straight up as ass I'm out giving you yeah cliff notes version.

00:26:45
Speaker 3: Yeah, Ken, Sorry, this part got added in late here as we talked about it during the show. So so to me, it's like not that big a deal. And then Randy kind of you know speaks and lays.

00:26:56
Speaker 2: This all out.

00:26:58
Speaker 6: That changes the whole story.

00:26:59
Speaker 7: And if indeed that was what he said, Yes, we have to find out from cal what prompted that and what that exchange was rooted in.

00:27:09
Speaker 6: I don't know.

00:27:10
Speaker 2: Yeah, because he did go ahead, That's what I was saying. I was like, bring me, tap me back in.

00:27:17
Speaker 3: Coach, you got to give Ken the context because otherwise I'm like, Eh, it's not that big a deal.

00:27:22
Speaker 2: It's like whatever.

00:27:23
Speaker 3: But then Randy says stuff postgame and Ken, you've covered Randy for years. Emotional guy, entertaining guy. Some some people are like, I don't I can't tell if he's kidding, But he definitely laid it out pretty good. Buddy's smiling, he was giving credit to Kyle's family, So it was kind of all over the place, and people just want to know, like, are we good?

00:27:41
Speaker 2: Are they good? Or did he actually blast him?

00:27:44
Speaker 6: Well again, this is something we have to find out today.

00:27:47
Speaker 2: Yeah, exactly.

00:27:47
Speaker 1: Have you seen any difference in the coaching staff mark Deros's second chance? Has he has he been able to navigate or or even just more because you're on the inside with the conversations with him, do you feel like there's a difference in the sense that he has a little bit more confidence or ability to navigate the difficult pitching that he wasn't able to totally navigate the first time through.

00:28:13
Speaker 6: He's definitely more relaxed.

00:28:15
Speaker 7: He has said that it's easier the second time as far as the speed of the game and all the things that new managers always face when they take over, and he's more accustomed as well to the pitching restrictions and those conversations that are taking place with the players major league clubs.

00:28:31
Speaker 6: Not that it's any easier for him. There are certain challenges that come with that. We've discussed it. But on the whole, he seems in a better place than he was last time. Not that he was in a bad place. He was fine, but he just seems more relaxed. That's probably the best way to put it. And you can see even in the interviews I do with him during the games, he's not tense. He's confident.

00:28:54
Speaker 7: I remember in the Great Britain Game they were down one nothing and he basically told me, fine, we're hitting.

00:29:00
Speaker 6: Some balls hard, we're gonna get our runs.

00:29:02
Speaker 1: And A. J.

00:29:03
Speaker 6: Prazinski, who was in the.

00:29:04
Speaker 7: Booth that night said afterwards, well, he's got to be nervous a little bit.

00:29:07
Speaker 6: They're down, but he did not let on.

00:29:10
Speaker 7: And Mark de Rosa, when he acts like he's not nervous, he's not nervous.

00:29:14
Speaker 6: If he's nervous, we would probably know.

00:29:18
Speaker 4: There's no denying that Aaron Judge is the captain of this team. Is there someone on the pitching side that you feel like is kind of the leader of the pitching staff. Is a guy like Paul Skins, who was kind of the first guy to be asked, even though he's a young guy, he's kind of the you know, the the leader of the pitching staff.

00:29:36
Speaker 6: Yes, it's definitely Skeens.

00:29:37
Speaker 7: And DeRosa has said more than once that the whole idea here was to get Judge to be the point man for the position players in Skins to be the guy that has that same kind of quality for the pitching staff. And once those guys committed, and they committed early, then other players were interested in joining the team as well, perhaps more interested than they might have been otherwise. I want to play with Aaron Judge, I want to play with Paul Skeens, So I don't know that Skeens is a vocal leader per se, but he certainly is someone others look to. And as I said, these baseball conversations that are taking place all the time, it's something that these guys cherish and they've had a great time with So definitely Skeens would be that guy.

00:30:23
Speaker 1: What has been your interaction with Schemes and Griffin Jacks and their military background. We saw them buy the tickets for the servicemen and women. What has been your interaction when you talk with those guys while they're on Team USA about what it means to be in this USA uniform.

00:30:44
Speaker 7: There's definitely a different feeling for them than there is for other players, simply because of their military background. And Skeens has said from the beginning that he's doing this for the servicemen and service women around the world. He talked about this last night on the broadcast, how this is bigger than baseball, It's bigger than them. He knows that people in the armed services around the world are watching and he's well aware of that and he wants to represent properly. And Griffin Jack's the same And as you said, Eric, those guys combined to buy something like fifty tickets for the Air Force Baseball team's traveling party, which includes military officers. By the way, and those guys were at the game last night. They obviously had a great time. So for both those players this has a special meaning, a meaning even beyond what it would mean, say, for Bryce Harper and Kyle Schwarber and Aaron Judge. They have that sense, that feeling from being at the Air Force Academy that it just gives you a different perspective.

00:31:45
Speaker 6: Put it that way.

00:31:46
Speaker 1: It's good to terror Scooble, who decided not to come back for another start. There was some speculation that he might, and his exact quote from the beginning was, I tried to make it work, but I just couldn't. You got me more insight on that in the sense of what has tried to make it work actually mean.

00:32:05
Speaker 7: What it means is that he tried to figure out a way with his schedule where he could stay on his normal routine or something close to his normal routine and still be able to.

00:32:16
Speaker 6: Pitch in the WBCA.

00:32:17
Speaker 7: Final, which was what he was slated for if he stayed with the club and opening day, and it just didn't work out for him, and he was definitely torn by it. I remember after the Great Britain Game when we talked to him, you could see and hear just how torn he was in yesterday the same he said he hated that he made this decision, but at the same time he felt, because this is the time of year where the data shows that pitchers are much more susceptible to injuries than at other times of the year, that he had to take care.

00:32:52
Speaker 6: He's entering his free agent years.

00:32:53
Speaker 7: So the way it worked Eric, if he had pitched on four days rest in Lakeland after his last outing, and if he had pitched then again on four days rest in the WBC Final, it could have worked that way.

00:33:05
Speaker 6: Then it would have screwed him up for Opening Day.

00:33:07
Speaker 7: And the other part of this is the Tigers don't want him pitching on four days rest at this time of year, and he doesn't want to be pitching on four days rest at this time of year. That's not how these guys ramp up for the season. So I understood this from the beginning, and I guess.

00:33:22
Speaker 2: If Schooble knew.

00:33:25
Speaker 7: Then what he knew now when he made the decision to join the team, then maybe he would have set his schedule differently, and maybe it all could have lined up better. But he is in a very unusual position. Like we've talked about guys, it's his free agent year. He stands to max perhaps four hundred million dollars, and you can understand why he would want to take care of himself. And I know people are criticizing him and questioning this, and I wrote the other.

00:33:50
Speaker 6: Day, I don't see it. I don't see why he should be criticized. He did pitch once.

00:33:54
Speaker 7: I know it was against Great Britain, but he did something that very very few pitchers. In fact, I couldn't find any who were from the US. We're entering their free agent years and pitching the WBC before.

00:34:09
Speaker 6: It hasn't happened.

00:34:10
Speaker 1: He did it.

00:34:11
Speaker 7: So to say he should have done this, this, and this, we're talking about one more start, I don't know that that's necessarily fair given all the nuance here, in all the circumstances surrounding it.

00:34:22
Speaker 3: Ken, let's finish with this. I want to spin it forward. What do you have for us tonight? So we'll get again on Fox the US, this time taking on an Italy team that has plenty of big leaguers. Sure, it's not the same talent level as the US team. But this was I want to emphasize what I said to you at the beginning. This ended up just being a two run win for the US. They did not blow out their opponent in their first test. This could be another test where they'll face big league pitching, and it's a lineup that has plenty of big leaguers who can match. So what do you think about this one? Could it be a tough test and a potential upside opportunity.

00:34:56
Speaker 6: Absolutely it can be.

00:34:57
Speaker 7: Now it's going to be a challenge in Italy is starting Michael Lorenzen. Michael Lorenzon, of course, is a major league veteran of eleven seasons. He is or has been teammates with a number of players on Team USA. He's not going to be afraid, but it's going to be a challenge for him, There's no question about that.

00:35:14
Speaker 2: Now.

00:35:15
Speaker 7: The lineup is, in my view, not what Mexico's lineup is. Mexico's lineup was full of major leaguers. Italy's is younger. This Pasquentino, there's Master Boni, there's a few others. But there's some interesting young fast players that they have on their team. Dante Nori Philly's prospect is one, Andrew fisher Brewers prospect is another. These guys can play, They're interesting for sure.

00:35:38
Speaker 6: Can they beat the US? Any team can beat any other team.

00:35:42
Speaker 7: We know this on any given day. It just seems to me that what we've seen so far is eventually the US talent just wears the opponent down, and their ability to take pitches and just grind through opposing staffs, it's what defines this team.

00:35:59
Speaker 6: And for that reason, I would expect that they're going to win.

00:36:02
Speaker 2: Now.

00:36:02
Speaker 6: If they don't win and then Mexico beats.

00:36:06
Speaker 7: Italy tomorrow, you have three teams tied at three to one in Pool B and we'll go to the tie breaker, that would be interesting. I just don't expect.

00:36:15
Speaker 2: It to happen. Yeah, and again we would look back at the US winning by two runs here. So it's crazy scenarios, but just preparing everyone just in case you never know. There have been upsets in the WBC.

00:36:26
Speaker 3: Ken enjoy the night the later game two at nine o'clock Fox one, Fox as well, appreciate you have fun. Thanks guys, money money, money, This one's knuck under the radar. But don't let it get past Eric Kratz, who is reporting live from Pennsylvania right now for more on the Phillies and Jesus Lozardo reaching an agreement on a five year extension worth one hundred and thirty five million dollars, and Jeff Passen along with the Phillies show host Jim Sous on the scene to report that one what do you think Kratz, Jesus Lizardo swiped off the market.

00:37:07
Speaker 2: Now this deal will start in twenty twenty seven.

00:37:10
Speaker 1: I mean we did it. We did our own like preview or guessing who's going to be an extension candidate. And I had actually heard that with them not bringing Ranger back, there was conversations before about possibly extending Jesus Lizardo, and then it was like, well, okay, how amicable he is to a extension will kind of be whether or not they bring or really push for Ranger. And then Ranger obviously went away to Boston and the Phillies keep their guy. Hajzus Lozardo showed he was healthy. You know, I think there's a there's any kind of stigma on pictures that frow that hard from that from that size of body, you go, okay, is he gonna stay healthy? He proved so much that he is the next valuable piece for the Phillies, which I think a team that's built to want to win the World Series, they need depth, but they need quality depth because you're not sure what you're gonna get from Nola, You're not sure what you're gonna get from Wheeler, so you need a guy right behind Christopher Sanchez. But also, in a normal year, haysus Lozardo might be the third best pitcher on this team, but he may may need him to step up. And the fact that he's gonna be here for the next there be here in Philly for the next five years is tremendous and I love that they did it in what would be his free agent year next year.

00:38:44
Speaker 2: That's right.

00:38:45
Speaker 3: If he has a banger year, he would have gotten I think a good amount more, probably closer to the two hundred range, but you eliminate some of that risk.

00:38:51
Speaker 2: He had some ups and downs last year.

00:38:53
Speaker 3: There was all the pitch tipping conversations that we had going on, but yeah, there's no doubt the stuff is there, and the Phillies want to make sure they've got the rotation in gear for this run that still includes Harper and Schwarbur and Turner for a while. Hey, the ft spring training tours engineered by fasten All. Learn more information about the company at Fastenall dot com, FA, S T E n a l dot com. This has been an awesome spring training tour and props to Fastenall for helping to support us to make it happen. By far the biggest, bestest, longest one we've done.

00:39:27
Speaker 2: This is week four out of five.

00:39:29
Speaker 3: After we're done at Raise Camp, we head to Sarasota Orioles Camp, then Fort Myers for two days at camp, the Twins and the Red Sox. AJ's back tomorrow at Orioles Camp. Next week we'll finish up with the rest of the Florida teams besides the Yankees.

00:39:45
Speaker 2: The Yankees are.

00:39:47
Speaker 3: Being a little stubborn, so we're not heading over there anyway. Let's get back to some news topics. So we talked about Jesus Lozardo. There's a signing that happened about twenty four hours maybe forty eight at this point ago, a pitcher who I like, I think is going to be a valuable member of the Nationals for a little bit and then probably another team. Starting in July, Zach Lttel signed a deal. I mean, it is what it is. The Nats are in a rebuild. They're going to sign this guy, trade him at the deadline if he looks like he did last year, and he looked really solid last year. Era was three eight to one for the Rais and then the Reds. He chucked one hundred and eighty six and two thirds innings last season. His deal with the Nats seven million guaranteed incentives can bring that up to nine and a half. So Kratz, everyone kept mentioning him and Lucas Giulido Giolito has not signed yet. But here's a guy who really struggled to find a job, and.

00:40:57
Speaker 2: To me, it's a little bit confusing.

00:40:58
Speaker 3: I mean, the money's okay, but it took a really long time for him to land in a spot that ends up being a non contender.

00:41:07
Speaker 1: Yeah, I mean, you joked about it, but it's the best case scenario, like you put together whatever it is, twenty I think it's usually twenty two, starts by the trade deadline and then you move on again. But I'm just confused and I'm not sure why Zach Lutel one has to wait that long because he ended up ultimately getting a seven million dollar guaranteed contract. So what were teams Teams were like, Yeah, we're good, Like we're definitely, we're good with our five guys. To me, that's where the mistake is. If a team is good with the five guys that they have. Look at the successful teams, they're going six to seven deep right now. Maybe Zach didn't want to be the sixth guy on a team. He wanted to make sure he was in that five, in one of those five pitchers because he has to continue to build his value. Even though he had a three last year. He made all his starts the last two seasons. I'm confused at where the disconnect for him was, because he clearly wasn't like, oh, I'm holding out for a two year deal, but I just I have a Yeah, I'm confused at some of the teams that are really a little bit on that thin depth line that they couldn't have gotten Zach Hotel for ten million.

00:42:28
Speaker 3: Yeah, he's thirty years old and KP. I guess some teams not loving the stat cast page. I mean, he's one of the best in baseball on the control side. He doesn't walk anybody. The chase percentage numbers are really good. There is a lot of blue on the rest of the page, so obviously he's not a vlow guy. His fastball below is a tick under. It's ninety one point nine. It's a little under ninety two exit vl barrel percentage with and K percentage. Those are some of the numbers where he's on the lower end on the percentiles. So to me, that's the more basic way of looking behind the scenes and under the hood for how teams evaluate pitching talent and project them going forward. To me, that's the only thing I could come up with here. But he's done a really nice job two years now. Sub for era eating up innings.

00:43:20
Speaker 4: Yeah, I mean, honestly, Scott, I tuned you out after I read the headline he started talking about under the hood and the analytics. I see one hundred and eighty innings pitched. I see a sub four era, and I think about the place we were at yesterday in the Atlanta Braves, a team that probably needs more starting pitching. You don't think they would value a guy that can go out there and keep a ball game close and eat innings and turn it over to the bullpen. I don't think this is a guy too. He doesn't strike me as a guy who was probably going into free agency asking for a six or seven or eight year deal. You know, when the hundreds of millions of dollars for this guy to have to wait this long to sign a deal, I think probably has something to do with what is looming next year potentially, But it's crazy to me that you just see the numbers on paper, you know, one hundred and eighty innings pitched, three eight one. Ear how this guy has to wait till the middle of spring trading to find a job, and to find a job with a team that's not really eving a contender. He's now just going there to perform and get traded and hopefully be flipped for prospect. It is crazy that in this day and age, we don't value things.

00:44:29
Speaker 5: That should be valuable.

00:44:31
Speaker 4: I know that we have these you know, analytics and this entire other part of the game that we can try to project out. Hey, he doesn't throw hard enough, or he doesn't miss bats, or he doesn't get chased. What he does is get it done, So good for him for finally you know, getting some money and finding a home. But I expect this guy to be someone you know, in a couple of months from now, we're talking about is maybe the most covenant starting pitcher free agent moving. We're not free agent trade deadline acquisition, because it's going to happen a couple of months from now. He's going to continue to get out, he's going to continue to eat innings, he's going to put his team in a position to win, and he's going to be very valuable at the trade deadline.

00:45:10
Speaker 1: From the player's point of view, the frustration for me, if I was in Zaclytel's shoes, I would say, what else do I need to do? Like, I'm not going to be a guy that's going to come out and throw one hundred for one hundred and eighty innings like he's good. He's a guy that's going to throw a ton of strikes. He's going to get contact. Clearly based on his numbers it was weaker contact, and you just you get frustrated going through free agency saying I can't change who I am, I can't get taller, I can't throw it that much harder, And you say, well, is this really? Like is this what I have to keep dealing with every every free agency period. I saw it in I saw it in position players that were some of my buddies, Like, dude hits a dude hits two with fifteen homers and fifty RBI is coming off the bench and you can't find a big league job the next year, And he's like, how frustrating? How frustrating is this that I put together what is considered a good season and then you don't find a big league job. And it's it's something that's like, I can't change who I am. So what's Zach Lytel supposed to do? He's gonna make some good money and he's gonna get traded to a contender. But that's just it. Can it can weigh on a player for a little bit.

00:46:36
Speaker 3: Boo boo bet MGM, locks sucks. I got hooked yesterday Kratz Venezuela by four.

00:46:44
Speaker 2: Damn it tried to get cute.

00:46:46
Speaker 3: I know we all lost our first locks of the year, beautiful, you know, you know I felt keen closest was actually.

00:46:54
Speaker 2: KP Bobby Wird pull pull little juice on that one.

00:46:59
Speaker 4: Yeah, he didn't quite win me the bet, but I think the idea behind the bet was, Hey, these guys are competitive, right. You see Gunner Henderson come in play short step get four hits. I mean, what a game. And I think he just missed hitting a home run in that game too, But that was an unbelievable performance by Bobby Witt. So although I put the money out there and I didn't receive any back, I think the idea behind the bet was I had good intentions.

00:47:25
Speaker 1: Okay much basically you said, well, That's what I meant to say was he was gonna do good. So we'll check with bet MGM see if we can have a do good over under.

00:47:36
Speaker 5: Even money, even money on do good.

00:47:38
Speaker 3: Or hey he's going to hit the ball over three hundred feet today.

00:47:44
Speaker 1: I mean, yeah, yeah, yeah.

00:47:47
Speaker 3: Let's see what you have for us tonight. So we have another few games tonight in the WBC. You don't have to pick the Team USA game, but you certainly can. Where are you going tonight, KP.

00:47:56
Speaker 5: I took Team Israel.

00:47:58
Speaker 4: It was kind of slim picking in turn of individual bets at this point, so I just took Team Israel to win today. I know they've kind of already sort of accomplished your goal of winning a game in this pool and not having to qualify for the next one. But I do like their lineup. They do have a mixture of big leaguers on that lineup. I think they go out and they play hard today and they find a way to get a win.

00:48:22
Speaker 1: I think the Netherlands are hungry, so I think the Netherlands are going to win. And I parlayed that with the home team in Puerto Rico. I don't know if they're actually the home team, but they're playing in their home country and they are feeling it right now. So I'm going against both of you guys, but I'm parlaying that for a plus one twenty eight.

00:48:40
Speaker 2: I'll take Canada.

00:48:41
Speaker 3: I think they've got some nice platoon advantages tonight. I think the plus two hundred piece for me looks intriguing. This team actually had a little more hype than they've delivered on the field heading into the tournament. There's still a chance for them to prove that, so I think Canada has a shot tonight to handle Puerto Rico. Puerto Rico team that's certainly been playing well, but they're prety advanced too, so that's part of it, right yes, doesn't that change.

00:49:12
Speaker 1: Things a little bit?

00:49:12
Speaker 2: I mean Edwind Diaz isn't pitching tonight.

00:49:15
Speaker 1: It does, It does, And I think Canada is hungry they need I think they need this win. If I'm not mistaken, I think they need to win, and I think they need some I think they need a run differential too.

00:49:28
Speaker 4: So you know with Puerto Rico, Yeah, I mean I think Canada needs to win obviously, but I also think they need to go out and score a lot of runs in order to have a chance to advance.

00:49:40
Speaker 1: Yeah.

00:49:40
Speaker 3: So so Puerto Rico, like I mentioned, they already are in. They beat Cuba last night four to one, and like I mentioned, Diaz pitched already, so he's not going to pitch, you know, he's got some restrictions to it, as all of them do. So for Canada, they're won in one in pool play. They lost to Panama. That was the big issue for them is they lost to Panama. They were favor to win that one. They beat Columbia. So tonight against Puerto Rico, you've got let me see what the scenario is. I'm trying to find it on MLB. I guess they have to win. That would put them in a tie. I believe with Cuba then they'd both be two and one, and I think they still have one game left to go, so there's more to go there. I'm not going to spend ten minutes trying to figure out the qualifying situation right now, but all you have to know is things do get crazy. Korea had to win by five runs yesterday. We talked about that yesterday. That was cool. All right, there's our locks for the day. Check them out. Also, make sure you go to your bedmgm account to get yourself a little odds boost token. There it is you can score a bigger payout that way. About a week left of World Baseball Classic, and you can bet on all of those games on betmgm dot com or on the app. Gambling problem or concern, there's help called one eight hundred Gambler.

00:51:06
Speaker 2: Hey, here we go. Let's lap KP.

00:51:08
Speaker 3: Great two day stint for you down in Florida at the spring training camps. You were awesome and we'll have you back obviously soon on FT. But also I want to give a shout out to the show that just launched a couple of weeks ago for everyone to remember to press subscribe right now.

00:51:25
Speaker 2: Actually would be nice.

00:51:26
Speaker 3: Everyone in the live chat, you know, hundreds in the live chat right now, if you could just go to Bluebird Territory KP.

00:51:33
Speaker 4: Yeah, please subscribe. Being Ricky and Mitch but having fun doing it. I finally got a chance to go see the new complex in dun Eden.

00:51:40
Speaker 5: It's amazing.

00:51:42
Speaker 4: Got a feel for what the guys are going through in spring training right now, and I expect them to get back to where they were at last year, and it's going to be We're just gonna ride their coat tails throughout the season. Man, We're gonna get very consistent once the season starts. But we've been enjoying ourselves very much.

00:51:57
Speaker 2: There.

00:51:58
Speaker 3: It is Bluebird Territory QR code on the screen to subscribe for free Apple, Spotify.

00:52:03
Speaker 2: YouTube the whole deal. On our way out here, Kratz hats.

00:52:07
Speaker 1: I mean, I got to wear my raised hat this year's spring training. Obviously the sick insignia that which everybody sees on the side, but don't miss the underneath. There's a little things there. Right now, you're in Charlotte County, that's where they're at and they have the hat. New era killed it this spring training. We'll be seeing quite a few more very nice.

00:52:28
Speaker 2: I like it.

00:52:29
Speaker 3: You'll be seeing Krats, me, Todd Father Tonight late night we'll be recapping postgaming the World Baseball Classic USA game against Italy. Late espresso shots for Krats and Todd Father and definitely me after USA against Italy, all on the FT YouTube channel. Thanks everyone. And then tomorrow will be at Orioles camp with AJ back there.

00:52:53
Speaker 2: See you then,