Don Mattingly & Brad Keller join FT @Phillies camp + Season Preview

00:00:00
Speaker 1: M let's welcome USA, but one of the newest Phillies draft Capter is on with us. You're live from clear ooters shirts around here.

00:00:17
Speaker 2: Have you gotten used to the accent? I haven't.

00:00:21
Speaker 3: Yeah, no, I mean I was only here for two weeks before we took off.

00:00:24
Speaker 4: But now it's I've got a chance to talk to a couple of.

00:00:27
Speaker 3: Them when I was up in Philly, and it's it's a it's a funny one.

00:00:32
Speaker 2: Yeah.

00:00:33
Speaker 1: Yeah, he's not a strong though some of the deep Philly people.

00:00:39
Speaker 5: No, it's not. I mean you have to really like almost like complain about every word that you're saying if you're gonna have a good Philly accent and waater and tournament. So it's really it's not a big deal. It's just it's just perfect. It's just a perfect way to talk.

00:00:57
Speaker 6: That's great, all right, let me let me get all right degree but okay, yeahs as much as I'm learning right now, Brad, let's start with the WBC experience. You just came back. So first off, what's it like to come back from that? There was so much juice, so much energy, so much star power. You basically found new friends for a couple of weeks and now you're here, so we'll get into the tournament and what it was like in the last game. But what is it like for you to now be here? Is it kind of weird?

00:01:28
Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean it's just different, right.

00:01:29
Speaker 3: You go from such high energy games, you know, every single day preparing for basically a playoff game, to you know, get back to the swing of things of spring training. So it's definitely weird, but excited to be back here and uh, you know getting ready for the season.

00:01:43
Speaker 2: What were the what was the environment you were there? You were you were in the biggest games so far this year. What was the environment? What would the atmosphere like when you took them out.

00:01:54
Speaker 4: Of those Yeah, I mean it was, I mean it was energy filled.

00:01:58
Speaker 2: I mean it was loud.

00:01:59
Speaker 3: I think, you know, by far the loudest game I've ever pitched in, even been a part of it, just like being there for the Dominican Republic game as well, like just you know, just adrenalinepact, you know, energy filled from the start, I mean, the build up all day.

00:02:14
Speaker 4: I was in the playoffs last year for the first.

00:02:15
Speaker 3: Time my career, I kind of felt that I felt like it was even more so during those games, you know this year so far, I mean it was it was awesome. I mean, it's it's hard to describe it as like one of those been asked a question a bunch like what was like?

00:02:28
Speaker 2: But like it's hard to describe.

00:02:29
Speaker 3: Because it was just just to be able to experience it and feel the energy and feel the fans is like hanging on every single pitch was awesome.

00:02:36
Speaker 1: You know, I hear you say the Cubs fans have no energy, because I.

00:02:39
Speaker 4: Never wouldn't said that. No, really it was pretty electric last year.

00:02:46
Speaker 3: But no, but just like I think being in a you know, a domed environment like that with with Marlin Stadium and I think thirty thirty nine I think was the count that they said for that Venezuelan game was just I mean it was crazy.

00:02:58
Speaker 4: They have the light show going and you could see everyone. It was just it was awesome.

00:03:01
Speaker 2: What was the best part? I mean, I think Harper's home run.

00:03:05
Speaker 3: Obviously I wish it was, uh, you know, the go ahead homer or something like that, but you know, Harper's home run just placed erupted.

00:03:11
Speaker 4: It was it was awesome, Like it's the whole game, the whole experience.

00:03:15
Speaker 3: I mean from the open festivities, like, I mean, all of it was just it was so fun to be a part of and and getting to know those guys like obviously it's you know, pretty start studied lineup and starts at a team. Just like being in the little clubhouse picking those guys' brains, I mean, having kersh all around, Like it was awesome to be a part of all that and just you know, get to explain it.

00:03:34
Speaker 5: Everybody talks about, oh, it's a playoff environment. I remember after the playoffs, I was exhausted. Whether it was how much you were focused, how you know, the effort you put in is similar to the regular season, but just everything I felt like I was exhausted. Did you have that same feeling after this two week tournament?

00:03:52
Speaker 3: Yeah, I'm feeling it right now. I'll be honest with you. It was it was hard to come down from that game. I mean, it was just you know, so many ups and downs of that of that final game that I honestly don't think I slept afterwards.

00:04:03
Speaker 2: We all hung out after the game a little.

00:04:05
Speaker 3: Bit and just kind of you know, our last our last time together, and you know, I went back to my room and just I felt like I was just.

00:04:11
Speaker 2: Staring at the ceiling all night.

00:04:13
Speaker 3: And yesterday got in the car and me, Harper and Shortberd drove back from Miami, and we were all saying the same thing. It's like, I swear I don't I didn't. I don't think I slept the night before. So it's just it's it's pretty tough. And then obviously six am wake up call this morning was really rough. But yeah, just just so much adrenaline, you know, even going back to the pool play games, because like it mattered so much. It felt like every single game like mattered. We could feel like we were, you know, doing something for bigger than just us and bigger.

00:04:39
Speaker 2: Than just the team. It was for the country, you know.

00:04:41
Speaker 4: And yeah, I definitely definitely feel exhausted.

00:04:44
Speaker 2: Right now, What are you gonna do with the silver metal? I don't know. I want to get a gold one.

00:04:50
Speaker 3: Obviously, right now I haven't just you know, it's still just stashed away in the bags. I haven't really unpacked anything yet. But I mean, I don't know, I don't know. A couple of guys, yeah, I mean I get it. Yeah, but I mean it's still cool to have a medal and and all that stuff, But yeah, I don't know, probably probably hanging up until you get a gold one.

00:05:10
Speaker 1: Okay, that's well did uh you guys don't have any Venezuela and guys right on the Venezuela team.

00:05:17
Speaker 3: I think here with us, I think so, I think, uh, I think I'm not sure if I'm not tirely sure, because.

00:05:23
Speaker 1: I was gonna say, are they walking around with their gold you don't have the know no one was on the team, because I was gonna say, yeah, they can walk around.

00:05:34
Speaker 2: Ye look at Michael medal. Back to your medal.

00:05:37
Speaker 4: Yeah, Hey, it was still cool though.

00:05:41
Speaker 2: What else?

00:05:42
Speaker 6: What else did you guys talk about in the car ride? You're with two of the more respected guys in the game in Harper and Schreber. What kind of combos do you have when you get those guys? For whoever long? The ride was about a couple of hours.

00:05:55
Speaker 3: Yeah, you know, a lot of it was just about the tournament and things like that, like, you know, how he thought it went, and you know, obviously you know the energy and things like that. But you know, obviously being teammates with him now we're a lot of the second half of the car ride was talking about you know, the upcoming season, you know, coming back to spring, getting ready for all this stuff, and you know, getting to Philly and heard it snowing up there, so getting ready for that and things like that. You know, yeah it's it's chilly today. But yeah, I mean it was just a lot of random conversation.

00:06:25
Speaker 2: Harper Joe.

00:06:28
Speaker 3: Yeah, so we we were offered, we were offered, uh, the car service, and he's like, I'm down to drive. So we got a rental car and what kind of car do you just Bryce Harper random drive?

00:06:40
Speaker 2: Well, we rent it.

00:06:41
Speaker 3: We had a lot of stuff, so we got a was like a Wagoneer, like the bigger. I mean, we had that bag, suitcases, the whole nine. Like I was sandwiched in the back of my hand, up on my arm, up on all the suitcases and everything. Put you in the back. Well, I volunteer to get back there. Okay, yeah, I let those guys get the front seats. But yeah I wasn't. I offered a drive too, And Harper's like, I got it.

00:07:02
Speaker 5: So that show. I mean, you should offer to drive. But he should have taken somebody. He should have had somebody drive you guys. But my question is they talked about changing the tournament you just finished, you just got it done, possibly a mid season tournament, or yesterday we had Max Schurzer on said, hey, maybe we should have it at the end of spring training so everybody's totally build up and then bang, you go right into the regular season.

00:07:29
Speaker 2: Yeah.

00:07:29
Speaker 3: I mean, I think I honestly like that idea better. I feel like if it's at the All Star break, it's tough because I altar break. You need the All Star break, right, you need those four days to kind of recoup for the for the second half push and to.

00:07:40
Speaker 2: Get into that environment.

00:07:42
Speaker 3: And let that be like a mid season thing and like just knowing that you're gonna you know, come down from that and then go try to finish out, you know, through the dog days of July and August.

00:07:52
Speaker 2: It would be a little bit tougher.

00:07:53
Speaker 3: I agree with the whether it be the second half of spring training or even just like the last two weeks.

00:07:58
Speaker 4: That way, you do have guys built up.

00:08:00
Speaker 3: Position players are used to playing nine innings, getting you know, four or five at bats in the game.

00:08:05
Speaker 2: I like that idea.

00:08:06
Speaker 3: I think after experiencing it, you do have quite a bit of off days, which I don't think going into it, I didn't really realize like how many off days we did have. But yeah, it's just it's just so much early on with guys, Like some guys are only allowed to throw those many pitches you know, only could throw, you know, mandatory have a certain amount of days off in between pitches or in between outings, and so I feel like towards the end of spring, like pitchers are.

00:08:32
Speaker 2: You know, we're kind of we have to go back to back.

00:08:34
Speaker 3: We do the one pluses and things like that, which will give you know, d Ro a little bit more, you know, leeway to get out there and.

00:08:40
Speaker 2: Be able to study. Said he was exhausted. Oh man, yeah, is he gonna catch nine innings? Yeah? I caught like four inning. When I go out there and catch nine, that's like talking to you know, Will Smith and and Cale.

00:08:51
Speaker 3: About there's just like for our first game out in Arizona, they went and caught nine, and they're like, we were catching you know, four or five innings at a time, and now we're catching nine for game and then cotton nine the whole way through.

00:09:02
Speaker 4: So yeah, I can only imagine how those sketches you're feeling for sure.

00:09:07
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00:11:07
Speaker 3: Honestly, I feel like the pitcher participation would probably be the same, like it would be.

00:11:11
Speaker 4: You know, some guys would say yes, they'd be down.

00:11:13
Speaker 3: The other guys would say no, just because the rest need needing those off days in July, especially for starters. You know they're packing on the innings. You know that that four day break is it always seems to hit like right at the exact time when you're starting to really grind. So it'd be hard to say if many guys would say yes or no just because it is, you know, getting into the dog days of the season. But as far as like cleaner base I mean, I feel like you'd have to say yes just because at that point you played one hundred in some games. You know, like you're kind of your season right, You're you're kind of into the swing of things, You're in a routine. I think, just more reps, more more at bats under your belt. I feel like you're just a little bit maybe better quality. But I mean it would be the same. I mean, I feel like we played you know, good this whole time. I didn't, you know, I mean, it's it's hard to say that we played bad baseball. It's just you know, there's a lot yeah it's baseball, like yeah, yeah, So I mean it's just how the game goes, you.

00:12:15
Speaker 1: Know what were the did you have any restrictions because all we heard about Mark de Rosa was restrictions, restrictions, And then you hear from Omar Lopez and he says, well, I called the Cubs and said plenty is pitching. Punch was basically I'm pitching no matter what. What was it like for you? Did you have restrictions? And then obviously the Mason Miller thing where they brought I mean, yeah, he's a dog, so but people were why was Mason Miller not? And then De Rosa at oh I had to honor the padres. Did you have any restrictions on you from the Phillies?

00:12:47
Speaker 4: Yeah, I mean there was a couple.

00:12:48
Speaker 2: Uh.

00:12:49
Speaker 3: I went into it knowing that I was gonna be more of like the one plus guy, and so with that they're based called you throw one plus, you got to have like three days down. But we had so many off days, so realistically I was up for most of the time, just because the off days we counted as as down days.

00:13:06
Speaker 4: So but no, I mean it was uh.

00:13:10
Speaker 3: I feel like they did a really good job with with how they managed all of us. I feel like that was obviously de ro has his hand tie with a lot of the stuff, especially you know, obviously you want to do right by the player because it is spring training, right and you don't want them to be hurt doing this, you know, and missing out on the season. So yeah, I feel like it's for me personally, like it kind of worked out well just you knowing that I had, you know, or that I got all the rest that you know I had going into Childing. I don't think that was planned bomb, So I just think that's how it worked out for me. But you know, obviously, having you know, Bednard and Woodlock and Mason as there seven eight nine, it's that's pretty hard to beat, you know. I mean that's some of the best best arms in the games. So you know, it's obviously we want to ride. Then we wrote them the whole tournament, and again you want to look out for the safety of the player going into the season. So I feel like just you know, Deo essentially had his hands tied in a way. But I mean those guys, I mean, like you said, I mean, Woodlock's unreal.

00:14:06
Speaker 2: This stuff is unbelievable. I mean he.

00:14:08
Speaker 3: Had some of the best change up swinging misses I've ever seen, like and especially you know, right on riot things like that. Just I mean, it's again, it's baseball, right, like, yeah, it's part of it.

00:14:21
Speaker 5: What's the difference between like a safe situation or the game tied in the ninth inning and you're the closer to come in. What's what's it? Because we heard all about the fact that Mason Miller was gonna come in if the team had the lead. Well, you were the home team, if you were the lead, you guys were slapping hands, you guys, weren't you guys weren't needing somebody to pitch the bottom of the ninth or the bottom of the tenth. So essentially Mason Miller was never gonna pitch.

00:14:45
Speaker 3: Yeah, I mean I don't really know all the all all that stuff, like what the rules behind that and stuff was, But no, I mean I think we had plenty of plenty of guys that could do the job. And you know, obviously you know Wdlock is very capable of doing the job as well. I mean, it's just again like I feel like, unfortunately baseball happened, and you know, I swears put a good swing on the ball and unfortunately run scored.

00:15:09
Speaker 2: All right, let's move on from that before we let you go. We gotta ask a Phillies question.

00:15:12
Speaker 1: We don't even ask about that because the WBC is just just commanded the headlines for the last couple of weeks, and obviously it was a huge success with the ratings and and the fans that were there.

00:15:24
Speaker 2: But now you're in Philly.

00:15:25
Speaker 1: Are you excited to go to Philadelphia and see what this Philly craziness is all about?

00:15:29
Speaker 2: I am, I'm really excited about it. I mean, even with those guys, everyone.

00:15:32
Speaker 3: Talked about Philly and how fun it was, and everyone that I've you know, talked to that played here and all said it's their favorite place, and it's it's so funny get out there in front of those fans and and such a fan base that it was very passionate about, you know, the Phillies.

00:15:46
Speaker 2: And and you know wants to succeed well.

00:15:48
Speaker 1: As Kratz knows Kratz lives outside Philly. If you do really well, I mean, they'll just do you louder. So if you get dude right crabs, then that means you're doing it all right. And isn't that how it works in Philadelphia.

00:15:58
Speaker 5: Philly fans never to a player who's not booing themselves inside.

00:16:04
Speaker 6: Wow, that's that's really.

00:16:07
Speaker 1: Yeah, it is true. That is a that's T shirt stuff right there. Thank you very much, really appreciate you. Looking forward to what you can do in Philadelphia. Hopefully we see you in the playoffs and make a deep run and get some excitement.

00:16:18
Speaker 2: Sir. I appreciate it. Excited for it. Thank you. I appreciate it.

00:16:21
Speaker 6: Hey, the ft spring Training Tours engineered by fasten All. Check out more information about Fastenall at f A S T E n a l dot com. Look at those beautiful vending machines and thanks to them for supporting the Spring Training tour. While look at all of the check marks, all of the green, and it comes to an end. Today, we're finishing up with Phillies Camp. Normal show on Friday, Normal shows the rest of next week, of course too, when we get flown again on Monday. Our shows will be still at eleven a m. Eastern Time through spring training and then either opening day or the day after it might be the day after is when we'll flip back to one pm, and then we'll be one pm for good. After that, let's season preview, shall we. Let's talk Phillies krat to get to watch this team a lot. You live in Pennsylvania. What's the vibe this year. It's not like there's been nothing in terms of additions and subtractions. We can show that as you're chatting. But you do get the narrative of running it back. It's a narrative for the Yankees, it's a narrative recently for the Phillies. Do you feel like they're running it back or do you feel like things will look differently with a couple names crossed off the list, a couple names added, and some prospects that could be entering the fold.

00:17:36
Speaker 5: Let's buy this way. If they didn't run it back with the Kyle Schwarber, with the JT. Real Muto, with the fact that you know they they I guess they have a Lizardo's on the list there. But that was an extension to me. If those two guys, and that's where they're saying, oh, they're just running it back. If they don't bring those guys in, who did they bring in? Like if they move bom over to first and they definitely take Bobachet to the finish line. They tried, they tried their best to me this is a different looking team. Is it a better team? I don't know. To me, I feel like the Phillies right now are like that time when you're in the middle of a long running race and you're halfway there and you're like, well, I guess I can't turn back now, Like I gotta finish the race, Like I'm halfway to thirteen miles, I gotta get six and a half miles back that way, or six and a half miles to the finish line mine as well, finish it out. Can they do it? Yes, they can definitely do it. Who's gonna need to step up? You're gonna need a rookie and Andrew Painter to step up. You're gonna need to hope that Zach Wheeler makes it back. You're gonna need to hope that a guy like Adolice Garcia is brought in to not have the last two years that he had the last two years or exactly what they got rid of in Nick Costiano's but they had to eat twenty million, So essentially a Dolees has cost them. I'm not sure. I think Adolis was like ten or twelve million dollars. Adules is technically costing them thirty two million dollars unless he has the type of year that they hope he is gonna have.

00:19:14
Speaker 1: Listen, I think the Phillies are still a good team. I have in addition some tractions, whatever you want to say, I think the Phillies are still a good team, and I think they have a great nucleus of guys that can win again. They're then you're gonna need some things to go right because do the Mets improve, Yes, we think the Braves will be better than last year.

00:19:30
Speaker 5: Yes.

00:19:31
Speaker 2: Do we think the Marlins could be better than last year? Possibly?

00:19:33
Speaker 5: Yes.

00:19:34
Speaker 1: So I think the phillies stranglehold on this division might be loosening a little bit. But I still think they have a good team, and I still think they have a group of guys that can go out there and win. They're a little bit older now, but they still are solid guys that know how to play in big games, know how to do things in big situations, and their starting rotation is still strong. Wheeler is going to be back probably the end of April early May. You still have Nola, you still have Lozardo, and you still have Sanchez, Christopher Sanchez, So you still have the makings of a good rotation. You had Keller to the back end Alvarado's back, you have Deron, and then you throw in and Andrew Painter in the rotation as the fifth guy. Possibly they still have the makings of a really good team. So just because they made some subtractions, they also made some additions and I still think this team has a chance to be pretty darn good.

00:20:24
Speaker 5: The tired or not tired. But the lazy narrative is, well, you know last year, like this team, like everybody feels different. Guys work on things, Guys get a year older. Sometimes that's good, sometimes that's bad. It's all the narrative like last year is behind this team this year? How are they going to do a lot of the really good things that they did last year but then take it to the next step. And the next step isn't making it to the NLCS. The next step for this team is a World Series. I think is a failure of a year. Probably even last year they would have said that, the players would have said that if they don't win the World Series. So I think it's a it's high expectations and something that Aj said about stranglehold on the division, I don't know that they need a stranglehold on the division. I don't know, you know, I guess we lean on what the Dodgers have done and they get into the postseason and they're healthy and hitting on all cylinders. While it may look differently than the last year when they won the World Series, the Phillies need to be able to do that. And I think that every year that Topper spends another year in a managerial seat because he's been in a dugout for I think two decades now, it's something that he's learning how this team needs to win in big situations. This Phillies team needs to win in big situations in October. They don't need to win all the games during the season. So do they want to win the division? Absolutely? Do they need to make sure that they do better in the postseason. Absolutely, That's what this team is built for. And will they do it?

00:22:08
Speaker 6: I don't know.

00:22:09
Speaker 5: I don't know.

00:22:09
Speaker 2: They have a good team though.

00:22:13
Speaker 6: When you look at the rest of the division. To me, the Mets are tough to predict. Last year ended up being a disaster finish for them. They should be better, but there's a lot of variants there. There are a lot of new faces, they really switched it up. They went the other way, like, Okay, some teams are running it back. We're just gonna scrap this. Let a bunch of dudes leave, enter a bunch of new names. When it comes to the Braves, AJ the Phillies offensively, I think are right there with Atlanta, if not a little better. And pitching wise, I feel much better about Philly than I do about Atlanta. So when we're looking at an alas projections, here fangrafts, they've got eighty nine point seven for Mets, eighty nine point three for Braves, eighty seven point nine for Phillies. For me, the Phillies are the safest bet to be a playoff team in the division. I feel really confident about that. If there's one team where you're like, I feel like a lot would have to go wrong for this team to not make the playoffs. For me, it's Philly, right the variant of the match.

00:23:14
Speaker 2: I can't believe, right, I kept their third on that list apparently.

00:23:20
Speaker 1: I don't know when those were put out, but that can't be before Schwellenbach and some of the other guys for the Braves started going down. I can't imagine that it is, so I don't know how the Phillies are third on LS. For me, I think Phillies in the match maybe switch because the Mets, to me, still have a lot to prove, especially in their starting rotation and their pitching with some of the moves that they made. So it's gonna be an interesting division. But those three teams all can make the playoffs. And like you said, Scott, I think Philly is the surest bet just because they've been there and done that, and they know what they're going to get and they have a guy in Dave Dombrowski that is not afraid to go make the move that he needs to make.

00:23:55
Speaker 5: Yeah, I like that. You're right, that's always the wild card that will give you a few extra wins. Where you're talking about projections. But is the same narrative said about the Braves when teams said were when people say, oh, they're running it back? Are the Braves just running it back? Well, they have to run it back. Everybody's on the everybody's on an extension. They added Robert Suarez to the end of their bullpen. Like yeah, like I think teams, I think good teams that run it back. I don't think it's a big deal. Did they fall short of their goal? Yes, I think they were fifth or sixth in the league and hitting. So you run that same lineup back, I feel like that's pretty decent. You know the Yankees, that narrative is happening. They had the highest wins weighted runs created plus in the league. So I'm pretty sure that was a good lineup. You run it back, I'm pretty sure it's going to be good again.

00:24:49
Speaker 2: Yeah.

00:24:50
Speaker 6: It also helps when you're bringing the same players back on a year to year basis that all know each other.

00:24:55
Speaker 2: And I know you.

00:24:56
Speaker 6: Can overrate the chemistry factor AJ, but when have the same mix and there's some star power, now you think do you do you think that it can get stale or do you think it's it's easier the guys that have right, it raises the floor in my mind. Right, you know what you're getting with a lot of the guys. And then here's the thing, one or two of the young guys could break out. Andrew Painter, Justin Crawford, maybe Aiden Miller at some point later in the season. They have some blue chip prospects, and I would venture that at least one of them is going to be a major contributor this year, and up to three could.

00:25:32
Speaker 2: Crawford for sure.

00:25:34
Speaker 1: I mean, I talked to Kevin Long and he's he's he loves this guy. He loves his back to all skills, he loves his barrel awareness. He absolutely loves Crawford, So I think he's going to be a major factor. And Painter is probably going to be in the rotation breaking camp. So I think at least two of those guys will be major factors for the Phillies this year, and they're both ultra talented. We saw glimpses of Painter before he got injured, but what he can do not as many what is I think Crawford's won batting title of two of the three league years he's played, so that dude can hit, he can run, he can play center field. So I think the Phillies are in good shape prospect wise.

00:26:08
Speaker 2: Yep.

00:26:09
Speaker 6: Hey, if you're watching this later on, drop a comment. Let us know your thoughts on the Phillies for the upcoming season. Anything you liked or didn't like about what we said, go for it. And again thanks to fast Maall for sponsoring the tour and this segment. You can find out more information about fast ball at F A S T E n A L dot Com. Industrial Supplies Innovative solutions at Fastenall dot com.

00:26:31
Speaker 1: Here at Phillies Camp with bench coach for the Phillies Don Mattingley, who was one of my favorite players growing up, being from New York, you know, cratzy. He was kind of in my prime growing up as a kid in New York. Don Mattingly was the man hitting homers every night, not quite every night, it was there was a stretch there, a little scretch, yeah, small.

00:26:49
Speaker 2: Scretch, nice little run.

00:26:53
Speaker 1: I'll play a little bit, a little bit, a little bit, and I fight for you. I think you should be in the Hall of Fame. I'll thank you, I'll fight. I'll fight you, and for kind of it's my two favorites growing up. I think, yeah, I appreciate that. Being in merchhed class, that'd be. That's a good that's a good guy to be with. Are two of the nicest human beings I've ever met in my life. That's where you live, right. You treat people with respect, hopefully get it back you don't.

00:27:16
Speaker 2: It's no problem. How was it over here in Philly Land. It's good. It's good.

00:27:20
Speaker 1: Yeah, I got a chance to to work under my son is your boss. He's my boss officially. Yeah, I am an hr nightmare for him. I will not watch the dog or anything else. So yeah, here's boss.

00:27:38
Speaker 6: Right.

00:27:39
Speaker 2: Wow, So you can't ground here. They're grounded.

00:27:43
Speaker 1: He's been gone for a while. At least he's off the payroll. That's the way I look at it. Is it Is it different?

00:27:49
Speaker 2: Is it strange? It's gotta be awesome day. No, it's it's it's it's great.

00:27:56
Speaker 1: But when you come from the era that I came from, you know, the locker room is sacred. You don't want anybody to feel like you're a messenger to the top or whatever. Today's game is a lot different because the front offices are down in the locker room all the time talking with guys. So it's probably a lot more comfortable now than it would have been fifteen.

00:28:16
Speaker 2: Twenty years ago.

00:28:18
Speaker 1: Yeah, it's weird for me when I walk in there, right right, I'm all, yeah, how fast.

00:28:24
Speaker 2: Can I get out of it? Yeah?

00:28:25
Speaker 1: Once you leave the locker room, it's funny. Even going back into New York a couple of years after I played, I didn't want to be in there, you know, especially anywhere close to game time, because I felt like I was infringing upon her space and where they want to get ready, and that's their place, right There's not too many spaces for players to be able to hang out, talk talk shop or talk you know, talk bs and feel.

00:28:50
Speaker 2: Comfortable doing it.

00:28:51
Speaker 1: So I was never comfortable going back in there if I wasn't a part of it.

00:28:55
Speaker 5: What do you bring to this staff? What do you don manning all your experience, all the years bring to this staff that has had success and gone to the playoffs the last few years.

00:29:06
Speaker 1: Now, this is a team that's had tons of success. So I think the one thing that I bring is a different set of eyes, some questions for TOMPs during games, but ability hopefully to be able to connect with players and what's that next little step, that next detail that we have to take care of to win a championship or to move on into playoffs. As you get into the playoffs, we know over one sixty two the best team is usually gonna win, But when you get into a.

00:29:37
Speaker 2: Five game set or a seven game set.

00:29:40
Speaker 1: It's who plays best, and momentum is a big part of that and small plays mean something. So hopefully I'm just another set of eyes and a conversation within during.

00:29:52
Speaker 2: The season, what was the proving touch to you? Because you're in Toronto.

00:29:55
Speaker 1: You guys were four inches away from winning the World Series last year. Ye did they recruit you over here to Philly or was it just something once you decided to leave Toronto, if your son came to you and gave you some nil money.

00:30:09
Speaker 2: I don't know about nil money.

00:30:10
Speaker 1: But I went into the season last year knowing that, you know, thinking that that was going to be my last season of kind of on the field, travel and doing all that, and so I kind of enjoyed that last year. And obviously the run that Toronto went on was was a lot of fun and those guys were a lot of fun. And as that season ended, you know, I mean, you've been in those situations. Once the season ends, it's like crash and you're just like exhausted. And a couple of days later, Dave calls me. Preston had called me a couple of days after and said, hey, Dave wants to talk to you, and then we talked about the situation. And at that point I felt like I needed time, Like I wasn't I really didn't plan on it. The one positive that happened during all that, I think as far as me continuing was like an eleven year old now that's into baseball and just loved last year, and he was kind of like, Dad, you got to keep going, and I was kind of like, I don't know, and we kind of kept thinking through it and talking about it as a family, and then Dave's you know what, Dave thought I brought to the table. That's something that they needed, and it was like, Okay, let's go. And Preston being here a granddaughter in Philly, so it makes it feels.

00:31:26
Speaker 2: Like family in it.

00:31:27
Speaker 1: And it's nice to be on the same team, honestly with Preston because as we've talked over the years, he was in San Diego, Miami, he's over here when I'm in the Blue Jays, and it's like he's always telling me what I should be doing or what we should be doing. But now to be on the same team, kind of fighting for the same thing, it's kind of cool.

00:31:48
Speaker 5: Were you part of the bo Nil pitch getting Boba Schett to come over because you were already on staff here with Philly and it just came so close to getting him.

00:32:00
Speaker 1: Well, you know, obviously I'm not part of making a decision that they want to, you know, look into Bow or try to bring Bou here. But it was on a zoom call with Bou. I knew what kind of player he was. I knew how good he was, what he brought to the table. So I guess in a sense I was part of it. But you know, obviously when New York comes with that kind of what they did with him is like you can't hardly you know, you can't fall to the player, right. I know, Philly's Pitchel Shiege, but that was was was something different when you when you see the money, it's being thrown around to it and obviously as a player, I'm one players to get every dollar thing you get, right, You ever look back because I think, man, what could I have done? I know it's a weird thing, but sometimes people say if you would have played it to me, if you would have played now like much, I don't know if I would have made that much right, right, but you were super Yeah, I think you in a since you go, you know you were that guy or at one point I was kind of in that tier right where I think I signed a five year deal at nineteen something, and that the highest paid at that point, right, And guys kept jumping in obviously.

00:33:13
Speaker 2: Over the years.

00:33:16
Speaker 1: But I look at it a little differently because I looked at Mickey mannon I play in New York. I came in, I was making decent money of the time there, and they talked about Mickey never made over one hundred grand, And that's just the way the game goes, right.

00:33:29
Speaker 2: Your timing in the game is where it happens. And I'm with you. You want players to make money and you want the game to grow. You feel like.

00:33:37
Speaker 1: They're not giving money out that they don't have. Obviously, we're walking into a situation next year. There's no agreement yet. We'll see where it goes. Hopefully it's something for baseball that because you want to continue. The game's in a great spot, I mean as far as fans and people at the games and things like that.

00:33:57
Speaker 2: So you want the game to continue. You don't want to see stop bitch.

00:34:02
Speaker 5: Yeah for sure. And and as a player who has gone through all those things, how hard is it for you to hear lockout strike all that stuff?

00:34:13
Speaker 2: Well? I was, I was.

00:34:15
Speaker 1: I was part of the ninety four, you know Strike that ended up missing the World series.

00:34:19
Speaker 2: So you know what guys have fought for.

00:34:23
Speaker 1: I've just been you know, when I came into the game, it seemed like every year, every couple of years there was there was conflict and guys were fighting. So I always looked at it like, I know a lot of guys fought for me, right, and I wanted to continue that fight, you know, to continue to go the game and help players as I was in it. And so it's it's it's it's one of those things, right. You want the game to grow, you want it to be good. But I've also been part of the fights over the years for guys' rights. Basically agreed, Yeah, ninety four, I signed my first spring to the place players right. I tried to explain to this the guys that I played with twenty years later, you guys don't understand what people before you went through to get to the point where you guys are making the money you're making. So I totally agree with what you just said. Remember the people came before you, what the sacrifices that they gave. Right when you're here in camp, you have Kevin Long next to us, in the batting cage. Do you ever go in there and say, Kevin, no, it's not launch angle. I swing down on the ball. I want to let it get on top of the ball. I go in there, and I don't talk to Kevin like that. Kevin is one of the obviously one of the best, if not the best guy in the game, if one of the best, and Kevin also doesn't go in there and go you know, I know angle, but you know I do like I love going in the cage.

00:35:48
Speaker 2: It's one of my favorite places to hang out.

00:35:50
Speaker 1: No, I don't hit, and I probably can't yet, but I like to think I could, right, you know, it's like the old boxer that that tries to block a punch me after he got hit. So those reactions are gone. But I love going into cage in that area of the game. I really believe that hitting has not changed that much.

00:36:12
Speaker 2: The swing.

00:36:13
Speaker 1: The guys that hit in the past and the best hitters today are doing a lot of the same stuff.

00:36:19
Speaker 2: Our language just changed, as far as you know.

00:36:22
Speaker 1: You know, we're talking vert, we're talking horizontal, we're talking spin rate, things like that, the same things.

00:36:29
Speaker 2: Those terms.

00:36:30
Speaker 1: All they meant to me was this guy's ball jumps at the top, you got to push him down right and things like that was a simpler way of going about it. But the swing itself, to me, still works the same way with guys that are.

00:36:42
Speaker 2: The best hitters.

00:36:44
Speaker 5: All right, Do you guys have a limit on the amount of Yankee stories that you guys are allowed to tell with Topper k Long you like, I remember when George was like this, or I remember when Tory was like this.

00:36:59
Speaker 1: Well, if you're in locker room with Bow, uh, Charlie Manuel, there's lots of stories flying from all different organizations, so the Yankee stories are all just part of it. Yeah, yeah, but I would love to sitting there when you crouch and just listen to the Yankee stories between from that, from those times between.

00:37:19
Speaker 2: Charlie Man, Charlie's Charlie is the best.

00:37:22
Speaker 5: I want to hear. I want to hear Charlie talk about stories about hitting. And then Larry Bow is like the little Chilua ones like yeah, Charlie say all, tell all you want, and Toppers just sitting back there, just relaxing, kicking on his fingernail.

00:37:34
Speaker 2: It's like not listening and kind of listening. That's the way it is.

00:37:40
Speaker 5: You got it.

00:37:40
Speaker 1: You got to see now you don't have to be in there because you already know what's going on.

00:37:46
Speaker 2: Well, Donnie, thank you.

00:37:47
Speaker 1: By the way, I have to say this, the poster you had is still probably the best poster.

00:37:52
Speaker 2: Of all time. Oh the hit man, Oh my gosh, are you kidding me? The suit? Yeah? You know, a quick story.

00:37:58
Speaker 1: I did a little meniscus in between eighty four and eighty five, and i'd won the bat and title in eighty four. So I come back and I'm in camp and they're shooting that and George I got this suit on in there and they're shooting this commercial and George walks by, and I'm like going, ah, man, this looks so bad.

00:38:17
Speaker 2: With him walking through me in this suit. But it ended up being really cool. I'm sure George probably didn't say anything to you.

00:38:24
Speaker 1: He didn't say anything then he may have been thinking of though you just looked at you, just kind of looked at you this guy.

00:38:28
Speaker 2: Yeah, And I'm like like, ugh, it's not good. Donnie. Thank you very much. We appreciate it. We'll be right back, all right.

00:38:42
Speaker 6: That's a fun one today. Bet MGM futures and we're looking at the most bet players to hit forty plus home runs. This doesn't mean that a fan thinks, or you know, a better thinks that this is the player that's the most likely. It's the combination of having a good feel and liking the odds. Okay, Colson Montgomery at plus sixteen hundred, this will be his first full season. He's getting a lot of love on tickets. So is Murakami at plus one thousand. Third most bet in terms of tickets Spencer Torkolsen at plus sixteen hundred, Kyle Tucker four at plus nine hundred, and Fernando Tatis Junior at plus six hundred. Anything to pick out here from the trends, AJ, we got to go to you first. The two most bet tickets are White Sox players.

00:39:34
Speaker 2: Duh be surprised.

00:39:36
Speaker 1: Well, Montgomery had a monster second half last year with the home runs, and they're hoping Murakami comes in and hits forty. So I think that, you know, I think it's awesome. And Kyle Tucker is the one on there.

00:39:48
Speaker 2: I don't know. He hit forty in LA. That's different than Houston. I don't know.

00:39:52
Speaker 1: I don't know about that one. Tatisas in San Diego. I don't know, but two on the top of the list. They definitely can do it if they continue to do what they done in the past and continued to grow more Commedy's done in Japan. I know Montgomery with the way he had a second half last year, but White Sox, Dude, White Sox, this.

00:40:11
Speaker 5: Will be This will be quite a summer if if either of those top two guys hits forty home runs. AJ will just be beaming on the show. He'll be like, Oh, the Cubs suck. The White Sox are the best.

00:40:24
Speaker 4: To me.

00:40:25
Speaker 5: I think more Kami. I think Mori Kami has the opportunity to because of the fact that the league will try to still learn him. Coolson Montgomery, I mean if he gets five hundred bats based on the pace that he hit him last year, Yeah, I have forty two and I think he's gonna get more than five hundred at bats. But both of them are easily the best two choices that tatis come on, you know, you know who's sweating forty homers. That's gonna be tough in San Diego.

00:40:54
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00:41:20
Speaker 2: Be right back.