Will Benson on prepping for Rōki + Seth McClung talks Best Ballparks

00:00:04
Speaker 1: Our buddy, Red's big leaguer Will Benson joining us now getting ready for hoop season to kick back and watch while he's training hard all off season. Two, Will, good to see you. How you doing. I can't quite see the number? Is that a three?

00:00:17
Speaker 2: Yes? AI nice?

00:00:20
Speaker 1: I like that a lot?

00:00:22
Speaker 3: Yes?

00:00:22
Speaker 1: Bringing me back.

00:00:23
Speaker 2: I'm good, I'm blessed man. How are y'all doing?

00:00:26
Speaker 1: We're good, We're good. I mean I want to start with because we haven't talked to you since. How was the end of the season, the postseason? I know it was quick in terms of getting bounced by a team that's headed to the World Series most likely soon, But what was that like for you guys to crack the postseason and all that craziness in the last week.

00:00:46
Speaker 4: It was an incredible experience, especially for our group, right, Like we've been kind of itching to get in there the past two years and in twenty three we really had a chance, but to really come through in twenty five and just experience that, I think we'll pay the dividends, you know, in the future. Obviously, playing against the Dodgers who are current playing credible, we saw the best of the best, so we know what it's going to require to advance.

00:01:16
Speaker 3: I want to ask a little bit about you.

00:01:17
Speaker 5: You started off in triple A, got brought back up, you were a player of the Week in May, went back down in August, and then brought back up for a September run. Just talk a little bit about the people can understand how hard that really is, the toughness and the mental fortitude you really have to have, and you know how you have to build your mind in the right right way thinking, knowing like, hey man, I'm a big leaguer of what is going on here. To just talk a little bit about that and how you fought through it.

00:01:45
Speaker 4: Yeah, man, I'm very thankful that I'm grounded in my faith. I wouldn't be where I am if that weren't the case. Like you said, it takes a It already takes a missile fortitude of play in the big leagues, but then too, you know, ask the player to get bounced up and down, and honestly, at times you you didn't even know what the reason was for.

00:02:08
Speaker 2: That's tough and and the.

00:02:10
Speaker 4: Hardest part of it all was seeing it how it affect affected my wife. She's so strong, and you know, she was doing a lot you know, just to just to come see me, uh see me play, and so to experience that. It was honestly a blessing in disguise because I saw the business side of things. And also it is dry. It drives me, you know, to to be the best player that I can possibly be. I'm very thankful for the opportunity, you know that I'm always giving and and what whatever form of fashion that is. And so it also helps me keep my perspective, you know, as as I go along in this journey.

00:02:53
Speaker 6: Looking back on how would you have handled it differently? All the ups and downs? Because I went through the same thing, ups and downs, success, no success. My faith was what grounded me, so that was like a huge way to go through it. But how would you have handled it all differently?

00:03:10
Speaker 2: You know, I actually reflected on this a couple of days ago, and I'm grateful to say, man, I don't I don't really think I would have handled it any any differently. I would say potentially maybe.

00:03:22
Speaker 4: And uh, you know some of my interactions when I was getting sent down, I wish I was just more quiet.

00:03:28
Speaker 2: I wish I didn't say anything at all. I think there is power and silence, So.

00:03:34
Speaker 4: That'd be like the only time that that's probably only thing I would do because.

00:03:38
Speaker 2: I was so routined.

00:03:41
Speaker 4: And I was just so you know, locked into like the preparation and the process of things.

00:03:47
Speaker 2: And I feel like as I was.

00:03:48
Speaker 4: Going up and down, I maintained that, you know, regardless if I was in a big leaguer of triple A, and that's the most important thing, right to be able to say, hey, I prepare for you know, prepared for for the day.

00:03:58
Speaker 2: And I was very consistent with that.

00:04:00
Speaker 6: You said there's power in silence. There's power and results too. So when you win Player of the Week, you know you know what you gotta That speaks loud enough for yourself. But I want you to I want you to take to I want you to take me to the series against the Dodgers. Like when people looked at it, when we looked at it ahead of time, it was like, whoa, this is lopsided. But the Reds got Hunter Green going ooh. You know, looking back at it, man, that was kind of lopsided. But the eighth inning, you guys were making a run. What was that feeling like in the moment before you guys got into the series I've never met a big leaguer who's like, this team's better than us. We got no chance. So I'm not expecting that from you, but I'm expecting like, what did you guys look How did you guys look at it beforehand? And then also take me to like when you guys were making that run and you were showing the rest of the world, Hey, the Dodgers have a little bit of a shaky underbelly of their of their bullpen.

00:04:58
Speaker 4: Yeah, I think one like you're saying, we kind of exposed some things I feel like with that bullpen in that series. But you know, I think when we went into it, it was like we're playing with house money, right, Nobody had even expected us to be here, and we had an incredible run at the end of the year to put us in that position that we were in. And so I know that when we were going into it, we full whole hardly knew that when we played our type of baseball, it didn't really matter who we were playing.

00:05:34
Speaker 2: We had a fair shot to win. And like you said, we had h G on the mal.

00:05:38
Speaker 4: You know, our guy who is who've been you know, posting, putting up all season, and so we went into that whole series very much confident, you know, and our ability to to shake the world, you know, and actually take that series.

00:05:53
Speaker 2: As you saw what had happened.

00:05:56
Speaker 4: Uh that that wasn't necessarily the case unfortunately, but we we got we got, we got it going, you know in both of those games. I feel like later in the in the game. Also outstanding performance by Yamamoto on that second game. But even when he came out, we started to really get some things, you know, cracking in the later innings and you know, we started to smell blood in the water, but they just found their way to trickle out of it, and uh, and take the series.

00:06:28
Speaker 5: Drum us Roki Sazaki man, talk a little about him.

00:06:33
Speaker 3: Did you prepare for him? This guy?

00:06:35
Speaker 5: I mean absolutely listen absolutely filthy picture talk talk a little bit about that situation.

00:06:44
Speaker 2: Yeah, you know, I.

00:06:45
Speaker 4: Really had only seen him maybe once or twice you know, on MLB network or whatever, throwing, So I wasn't too familiar with his arsenal and until that, until that game, you know.

00:06:59
Speaker 2: We faced him and Jesus that was impressive.

00:07:05
Speaker 4: And then, uh, I've actually been pretty tuned into the the postseason this year as opposed to other ones, And I've been particularly watching the Dodgers and uh to see him come into these games. I think he had a little bit of a scuffle. I want to say it was his last one or second to last out there, but he's he's good and and dominant with his secondary and then his fastball is one hundred, so you got you know, if you got to go up there on an approach, if you're anywhere hands a taint on what you want, you're out.

00:07:40
Speaker 2: If he's honestly, even if you are aggressive and he executes, you're probably out. So you know you're you're.

00:07:46
Speaker 4: Gonna have a tough at bat that I'll just leave it, leave it at that. I mean, he's he's incredible. I mean shooting you could really you know, Dave Robertson, he just has so many cars to play with, right, I mean, this guy was a starter and he's closing games with ease. So if I was, you know, if I'm Dave, Dave, I'm like, man, I really have so many tools and so many options to use, and it's really neat when you have, you know, in your bullpen.

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00:09:15
Speaker 6: You said neat, kind of like, oh, that's neat. They get all these guys. Do you feel like it's kind of like. I don't want to say unfair because that's misleading or that's leading you. But do you feel like it's like, man, why do these guys just keep getting all this stuff out here? Because you guys got a great pitchy stad You guys, your team pitches really well. I thought your offense should have been better than they were this year. It didn't come around like I thought. But like, do you look over at the Dodgers in a series like that before the game, before the series or even after and go, that's kind that kind of sucks. I just kept bringing dudes out of the bullpen.

00:09:55
Speaker 4: You know, this is why I love baseball as opposed to any sport there is. You can have the best players and still lose. It's just it's just they were playing at all ceiling, like they were playing at the peak of their ability. And obviously when they do that, they are the best. But again, like I said, when when we play at our best, we can really beat anybody. And that's why I love baseball. Do't matter how big you are, how small you are, how strong you are, how little you are, how fast you throw, you have an opportunity to win. Obviously when you have an incredible skill set and incredible talent, those chances are.

00:10:42
Speaker 2: Slightly higher.

00:10:43
Speaker 4: Yeah, but any any day of the week, you could lose like or you could win.

00:10:48
Speaker 2: So I don't ever look over at the.

00:10:51
Speaker 4: Other dugout in any type of intimidation or why do they get all of these players? I think those players earn that right, earn that money, get that bread before you, and uh yeah, they're gonna be good for a long time for sure.

00:11:07
Speaker 6: What do you got for us? We just had Kevin Pollar on here. He's like, dude, nothing's crazy about this series anymore. Blue Jays are gonna finish in six the Dodgers. You know, what do you have? What do you see from this postseason that you're like, I love that? And what do you see going forward?

00:11:25
Speaker 2: Honestly, I love what the game is just because of how like, you know, competit.

00:11:30
Speaker 4: Like I said, this is my first time really watching it just because I was in it, and I love how competitive it is. I love honestly the it's a little bit more offensive if you guys can see.

00:11:41
Speaker 2: And it's incredible because I feel like the pitching is so good.

00:11:44
Speaker 4: But yet we see these like the game last night where Toronto put up, you know, an incredible amount of Honestly, the last three games, I think that they've outscored their team the Seattle like twenty one to six or something crazy like that.

00:11:59
Speaker 2: I just love and I love the ends and outs of.

00:12:03
Speaker 4: The games and and and the approaches, and so it's cool to see, especially from Toronto these past two games. It's just to see how they've been able to execute their approach against really good pitching. It's something that you know, I'm learning, and you can see the consistency from it at bats of how it really is. I think Springer said it in his interview last night. It's it's the next man up mentality. But within that you can see how they really are working at bats, you know, to to collectively get you know, a certain plus of runs in one inning. And the other series is with Dodgers and Brewers. Honestly, I I want I want to see the Brewers do it to be, to be honest, and and they're getting kind of smacked around a little bit rightfully. So, I mean, the Dodgers are playing credible and and and and they and they you know how it is in the playoffs if you're hot and you're hitting all silver. Everything is going right for you. That's what looks like for the Dodgers too, everything is going right for them. And I think in the end, and in the end, I do believe it'll it'll be. I do believe it'll be Blue Jays and and the Dodgers in the end. There's no way to Bruce come back, right, that'll be that'd be history, right, if I'm not mistaken.

00:13:15
Speaker 1: Yeah, it's happened once. Oh four red sizes. You were probably a little tyke, but yeah, forty one opportunities. It's happened one time with a comeback, and that was the two thousand and four Red Sox. You were probably quite young.

00:13:29
Speaker 2: At that time. Yeah, I don't even know what years that.

00:13:33
Speaker 1: Two thousand and four. What way year were you oring?

00:13:36
Speaker 2: Yeah, I was nineteen ninety eight, so yeah, I was a pub.

00:13:38
Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, you were a year a little six year old. But otherwise that's never happened.

00:13:43
Speaker 4: So yeah, yeah, yeah, it's canned for them ggs. So it's gonna be the Dodgers for sure. And then, like I said, it's gonna be tough on between. I mean, cause Seattle's really good, right, Their pitching is excellent. But like I said, even with the with the great pitching man, I've just seen the Blue Jays really just put together.

00:14:03
Speaker 2: Good at bad after good at bad after good at that.

00:14:06
Speaker 4: So and and I think, I see what was stroting last night, and that's that's their guy, right, that's their that's their number one, and they put it on him. So I do think Seattle will answer back. I think they put a night right.

00:14:19
Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, Max one tonight, Yeah, it's too too Game five, they keep going. Bryce Miller is is pretty good. They got four good starters, technically five if if Brian Wu is healthy and might appear for them.

00:14:31
Speaker 4: So exactly, exactly, exactly exactly, I do think Seattle will take tonight. I mean, that'd be incredible if the Blue Jays Quinn three straight in Seattle. But again, they have to go back to Toronto in this tough environment. Fun environment for sure, but it's a tough one. So they have their their hands full.

00:14:52
Speaker 1: Well, when you so, you said, you're watching a lot of postseason games. When you watch like approach, why certain players, what do you see and do you say, okay, what do the Reds need to do to get to that point?

00:15:04
Speaker 3: Right?

00:15:05
Speaker 1: Because now the team got to the postseason, what do they need to do to be you know, a Final four type team.

00:15:10
Speaker 4: Yeah, I believe it. It has to be. I think when pitching is so good in the postseason, right, you have to teeth and claw for runs because defense is gonna win championships. And I do think we played I think we had a few eras, but I think we had Yeah, I think.

00:15:29
Speaker 2: We had an era that might have cost us.

00:15:30
Speaker 4: But think about Taoska's era that he had the first game, right, we have got to capitalize on that situation and put up you know, three from that mistake, because you can never get comfortable with just one run or two runs. And I believe I'm I don't think we ever took the lead in any of those games, but.

00:15:54
Speaker 2: As you can see, it was a shootout.

00:15:56
Speaker 6: Man.

00:15:56
Speaker 2: It was who could put up, you know, the most runs against pitching.

00:16:00
Speaker 4: And like I had mentioned already about the Blue Jays, I mean, even if the Dodgers are doing it as well, like you can see, they tack on runs you know, you know, and bunches low key, right, I mean they had a tight one, I think it was Game two, but they put up five runs. You gotta answer back, and so how do you answer back? You collectively put together grade at bat after grade at bat against a plus pision.

00:16:26
Speaker 5: I'm gonna give you a little praise, but I'm also gonna give myself a little praise here. I was a thousand point scorer in high school basketball. I'm sure you were too. I might I want to ask you a question because I know you're supposed to go to Duke to play baseball and basketball, like you still got a little b ball skills? Any of you play in the offseason anything? Can we meet up and try and get a little five on five going?

00:16:45
Speaker 2: Kids?

00:16:45
Speaker 3: Let's go?

00:16:46
Speaker 2: Yeah, no one. I would love to.

00:16:49
Speaker 4: I need it because I feel like the agility that you get from just playing is the best you know for your body. Yeah, it's I still it's funny. My son is starting to get the basketball. So we got a little little hoop in the backyard. I shoot all the time.

00:17:03
Speaker 3: You can.

00:17:04
Speaker 4: You can raise it up and lower it down whenever you want. So, look, man, have you ever out here in Arizona or i'me ever where you are?

00:17:12
Speaker 2: Just hit my phone. I'm I'm itching to play.

00:17:15
Speaker 5: They used to call me the Mountain Round of rebound. I'm just saying, I'm just sir, ch'all's that's all.

00:17:21
Speaker 2: I'm just letting you know well and in my in my competitive spirit, that strikes no fear.

00:17:26
Speaker 3: Of me, so nor should it should. I'm here.

00:17:31
Speaker 2: I'm here.

00:17:35
Speaker 6: Nobody ever called him, no nicknames other than the Todd father or.

00:17:40
Speaker 4: My father or yo, crazy story, crazy stort, not really crazy. But when you won the home run derby, I was there. I was in that junior home run dirty watching. Yeah, that's incredible. That's my first time hearing the top fall the chance on all that. It was crazy, man, I was there.

00:18:01
Speaker 3: Yeah.

00:18:01
Speaker 2: Yeah, So we're linked in a unique way.

00:18:04
Speaker 3: That's cool.

00:18:05
Speaker 1: That's during the breaks. That's always fun too, when they do the high school kids battling in the in the breaks during the dirty Yeah cool.

00:18:12
Speaker 3: Yeah, that's cool. Now he's playing well.

00:18:17
Speaker 6: Last one. Now there might not be Papa shot there. So if you want to play basketball, I can play basketball against you. I'll beat you and Papa shot, but playmakers classic, Like can you talk a little bit about that, what that means and to you and like just some of the stuff that goes on. I think the one year were there, there was Papa shot, but maybe I'm maybe I'm mistaken.

00:18:38
Speaker 4: Yes, So the Players Trust next year is actually the their thirtieth anniversary of you know, the establishment, and it's been such a blessing because because not only myself, but other players in the league benefit from the Players Trust. It is where they help us with our in isituatives in our hometowns and our nonprofits and things that we do.

00:19:01
Speaker 2: And they also have events of their own.

00:19:03
Speaker 4: You know that we attend and we have an impact in the communities in the cities that they visit. So yeah, like you see on the screen there, the Playmakers Classic is on the eighteenth, and it's really just an opportunity for you to meet people within the Trust, meet up the players who have nonprofits and actually, cool story, there was somebody from Georgia that I didn't even realize that they were so closely knitted to people I knew in Georgia and we did an event together and it was incredible. So it's a great networking opportunity if you ever want to explore, you know, those nonprofit adventures. And it's cool too because it's not just for us players. There's an opportunity for fans philanthropists and even business leaders who want to get involved, you know, with the players trust.

00:19:50
Speaker 2: So it's a great event as well. If you guys want to.

00:19:52
Speaker 1: Attend, that's a great call because we often talk about the entertainment component. Hey, you get to hang with players. They're there, they're enjoying the night, right, It's very casual for everybody to have conversations. But the networking part too, right, if you have you know, if you're charitable, you have initiatives, you want to talk to the guys about what they're doing. Like that is the form to do it. So good call. Well, great to see you, man. Really appreciate the insight and enjoy the off season. It goes quick as you know it.

00:20:20
Speaker 4: Of course, y'all have a good rest of your day, great weekend. I'm glad say a special times you guys today.

00:20:25
Speaker 1: It was fun. Yeah, yeah, this was fun. You're the man. Thanks Will We'll talk to you soon, all right, peace. This episode of Foul Territory is brought to you by Fox One. Fox one is now live stream all of your Fox favorites together in one place, from MLB postseason games to the NFL on Fox to Big Noon Saturdays with Fox one, you get it All live. Start your seven day free trial today. Offers are subject to change. Go to Fox one for complete terms and conditions. We have the website in the description of this episode. It's Fox one. It's streaming now for the baseball fans here on fteen. We know you love baseball. If you're listening to the show. You get LCS games right and the entire World Series every year is on Fox. So if you don't have normal cable or you can't get the channel, Fox one is the solution for you. Now, the app that solves it all again. Go to Fox one and start a seven day free trial to see for yourself how money it is. Former Big leaguer Seth McClung joining us right now on Foul Territory, pitch for the Rays Brewers and putting out some really cool content on Twitter at seth Underscore three seven seven three. Seth, First off, how you doing and are you enjoying being a content creator these days?

00:21:56
Speaker 3: I'm great, guys, Thanks for having me. I don't know about content.

00:22:00
Speaker 7: I feel like I'm just an old, washed up ball player who puts stuff on social media. So kids, I don't think I'm so old I don't know what I'm getting out there, but I'm having a good.

00:22:09
Speaker 1: Time with It's good. So I want to give everyone an example right off the jump. So you did a series about your favorite ballparks, So can you give us some context on what you put together on Twitter and maybe mix in a few of your favorites and what stood out?

00:22:25
Speaker 3: Sure?

00:22:25
Speaker 7: So basically, you know, I have people ask me all the time, where did I enjoy playing and things like that, and you know, you see the ballparks, but you don't really see some of the inner workings of at the clubhouse and the city. And you know, when you're in the minor leagues, I know, now it's different. I think they take care of the kids a little better than they took care of us. We were kind of on our own to find living situations. So I was kind of putting all that together in the score and talking about which were my favorite and some of the experience I had in some of those cities, you know, And it wasn't one to one, like I guess Charleston was like number three and uh, Tampa was like number five. Well, obviously I wanted to be in Tampa more than I wanted to be in Charleston because that.

00:23:05
Speaker 3: Was the big leagues.

00:23:06
Speaker 7: But during the time that was that was uh in at the level, that was a better place to be, if that makes sense.

00:23:15
Speaker 6: Yeah, for sure. So do the kids think you're cool now or are they? Like, jeez, nobody does the top five list.

00:23:21
Speaker 7: Bro, No, I'm just fat coach sets and I don't have hair anymore. So it's getting worse by the day. So yeah, so.

00:23:28
Speaker 6: Your only redeemable trade is that you were a big leaguer.

00:23:32
Speaker 3: They don't even care about that, man, they don't they you know, kids, they don't.

00:23:36
Speaker 7: They don't give a crap. I have no idea. I mean, I just tell them. I'm like, look, you don't look up my stats. Just I threw one hundred and three miles an hour, Derek Jeter's oz for five off of me, and I hit two for two as a lefty off Randy Johnson.

00:23:48
Speaker 3: Don't look up anything else.

00:23:51
Speaker 5: There.

00:23:51
Speaker 3: You know that.

00:23:53
Speaker 6: That's definitely what you need to That's what you need to tell them because they want they want the eleven second highlights. But as you do this stuff, no, go ahead, go ahead.

00:24:02
Speaker 3: I was gonna say.

00:24:03
Speaker 7: They go When I say that, they say, who's Randy Johnson, So I just I lose it.

00:24:08
Speaker 6: So that's fair, that's fair. As you're as you're doing this, as you're you're helping, because I've seen I've seen you on Twitter, how you're you know, you're coaching, you're kind of you buck against some of the things that are just like general norms in the game that you're like, wait wait, wait wait wait, And you come from a different era, what's the one thing that you would say you can help youth baseball players to be the best that they can be to get to the big leagues, Because I assume all of them want to get to the big leagues, even though most of their parents just want them to get like some like po Dunk scholarship that probably is going to get decommitted in a year anyway.

00:24:47
Speaker 3: Well, you know, getting getting to the big leagues, I mean that's one in a million. You guys know that.

00:24:54
Speaker 7: But what I try to tell kids is, you know, baseball is a team sport, play black group individuals. And you guys have heard that before. But I want less me and more we if you can celebrate your teammates and instead of just being all about yourself, you're gonna have more help along the way. Less people will feel separated from you and enjoying your own success, and you just kind of enjoy the game a little bit better. I know that that's not necessarily a secret to making it to the big leagues, but what it is is it makes the game better as a whole. I don't know when it became really fashionable just to make the other team look really bad or just to kind of be a jerk on the field. Just go out there and have fun and do it the right way, because it's such a grind to be great.

00:25:41
Speaker 3: You know, it's an everyday thing.

00:25:43
Speaker 7: And if it's it's constant drama and constant aggression as far as towards the other teammates, that's tough. I mean, you guys know, when we would play in the big leagues, after the game, we'd all go out together. It didn't matter if we were yelling at each other each other. We were all at the same places after the game. So it is a brotherhood and I think more of that needs to be for the forefront.

00:26:04
Speaker 5: Yeah, it's harder to do now with the social media out there. As we all know and enjoy, it's a gift and a curse. You know, you go out and next thing you know, people are you know, they're you know, blah blah blah whatever. You can't get away with a lot of the things with hanging with your buddies and just trying to enjoy a night out. But my question to you is, what do you think about the game now? What like along those lines you were talking about a little bit. You like all the changes to the game. You see all these new rules being put out the ABS system. Talk to me a little about what you like and what you don't like about the you know, the new game of baseball going on.

00:26:38
Speaker 7: I think we have to be careful and speeding it up and kind of dumbing it down a little bit. The game is the game special and it can be as intricate as you want. Right now, you know, we're asking hitters to hit the ball a long way and swing hard, and we're asking pitchers to throw hard and spin the ball. We're not asking them really to throw strikes, and we're not asking batters to get on base. It's really kind of the two easiest things you want professionals to do. You know, guys can throw hard. We're profession we're talented so you're not really asking them to.

00:27:12
Speaker 3: Do something.

00:27:12
Speaker 7: I always say the game is more talented than it's ever been right now, but it's not as skilled. I know when I was pitching and and I was coming up as a twenty two year old in Tampa when we were terrible playing the Yankees, who Alex Roder making more money than our whole our whole team, we got to break at nine in the order with Miguel Cairo hitting three zero six.

00:27:37
Speaker 3: Everybody else was just a monster.

00:27:38
Speaker 7: They were hitting home runs, high batting averages, Guys were taking second bases and things like that, and so the game was The game was definitely different, and I do think some changes.

00:27:47
Speaker 3: Because you do have to continue to evolve.

00:27:49
Speaker 7: But I don't, you know, it's kind of one of the things like you tell teenagers, don't don't just fall into the traps of what everybody's doing, because then you use your identity. I don't think major League Baseball should lose its identity by trying to to just make itself more sexy at this moment. I think there's a lot more ways that we could do a better job. Is maybe market our players a little bit better on the on the social medias and things like that.

00:28:12
Speaker 3: I think the NFL does a.

00:28:13
Speaker 7: Really good job of marketing their players, and I think more along the line of that, you know, we do have to give in a little bit. I know a lot of older guys don't like the endgame interview and things like that, but we're gonna.

00:28:22
Speaker 3: Have to give in a little bit on that.

00:28:24
Speaker 7: But I really just don't don't like the loss of identity and the loss of the skill of the game.

00:28:30
Speaker 6: All right, I want to hit back on what you're talking about the stadiums. I've visited quite a few more stadiums in you so I loved. I loved how you just kept, like, you know, you kept showing everybody a different stadium. Get a little more detail into it for anybody of our audience that didn't read it or didn't follow your tweets when you were talking about all the different stadiums.

00:28:51
Speaker 3: So we kind of we I think me, me and my team.

00:28:55
Speaker 7: Of my buddies, we broke it down into how how the playing service was, how the front office was, and then how the coaching staff was.

00:29:07
Speaker 3: Then your living situation.

00:29:08
Speaker 7: So for for example, you know you're in Triple A Durham, the living situation is usually for me, I was up and down a lot. So for me, it was some holiday in or days in or whatever, seven extended stay, so it wasn't that bad. But then the front office was amazing because they understood your situation. They try the best to help them out with you know, if they needed to get your hotel or whatever they wanted to do, or if they you need some extra appearances for some extra money, they were great. And then you know, you kind of ranked how how that was because a lot of people don't understand. It's you know, we're people too, and we have lives and we have feelings, and you know, if there's no good place to eat and you're out of comfort in some city, you don't know where you are, it's really hard to you know, shut it down and be ready to play the next day or just kind of get in your comfort zone. So some of these cities, you for instance, Charleston's one of my favorite cities in the country, and I just loved everything about it, and I still go there and visit.

00:30:06
Speaker 3: But for a.

00:30:10
Speaker 7: Twenty year old who's making nine hundred dollars a month trying to get an apartment where I get an apartment for eight hundred dollars a month in a town or in a part of town where you know. Every now and then I just get a knock on the door from a nice working lady to see if I was wanted anything, and I was like, get out of here, my girlfriend's coming over.

00:30:28
Speaker 3: So you know, you.

00:30:30
Speaker 7: Helping these situations where you live in the lower minor leagues that you're really just kind of struggling to get by, and these cities, in these different places that have different people can either help you or make it harder.

00:30:44
Speaker 6: All right, Now we got to go to your team that Actually I would have said your picture on Baseball Reference would have been a raise hat, but your Baseball Reference picture is Milwaukee, so I was kind of I was surprised at that, but I remember playing against you in Durham and and not again, I wasn't when you played against played for the Rais and the big Leies, but more in Triple A. So my question to you is one the Brewers, where are they? Where are they at? How do you feel about this postseason? But also the fact that your nickname I think was the janitor because you'd pitch in any situation. Now I think everybody's a janitor.

00:31:23
Speaker 7: Yeah, yeah, I was out there cleaning up masters. I threw kind of whenever wherever, and uh that that's kind of what they kind of call me. I like big Red better, but you know, at least the janitor was getting paid a little bit. So yeah, Milwaukee for me is my favorite place. I loved it there. I got to start a little bit. But then kind of in that eight season when we broke, you know, kind of the streak of not making the playoffs, that had a real magical run and I had a big role, and I really related well with the blue collar city be in from West Virginia myself and really just kind of the same kind of people and just having big moments.

00:32:06
Speaker 4: You know.

00:32:06
Speaker 3: I have a game one sixty one, I came in for Jeff Soupon. I threw four innings. I think I threw like, I don't know.

00:32:12
Speaker 7: Sixty four pitches and fifty nine of them were fastballs, and I blew everybody away and just kind of locked us up to where we ended up tying the Mets for the playoffs. And then the next day is where you you know, I'm Eric, I've seen I'm sure you've seen the home run where Braun hits the home run and I don't you might even notice. I'm the guy in the bullpen who is jumping up and down catching the ball with Mota. But that was just really kind of one of those those special seasons that you know, I love being the Milwaukee Brewer. I still go back to the park every now and then. And you know, my my my wife, who wasn't around during those times, she goes, will anybody recognize you? And I said, probably not. And as we're walking through the parking lot, somebody yells out, yo, big Red, and I was like, I couldn't have paid somebody to do that better on her.

00:33:01
Speaker 3: It was good.

00:33:02
Speaker 7: I still fuying a beer down on Water Street. So it's it's people people, People really care. And you know, Eric, you played there during a big, big year that it was.

00:33:11
Speaker 3: It was nice.

00:33:11
Speaker 7: But as far as this year, it's it's it's really kind of disappointing down to the Dodgers.

00:33:17
Speaker 3: But you know, the Dodgers are really good. There's not really much you can say.

00:33:20
Speaker 7: I mean in milwaukee's really good too, but I mean you face you face them starting pitching, like like the Dodgers are throwing at them right now.

00:33:26
Speaker 3: It's really tough.

00:33:28
Speaker 1: Yeah, I'm with you there, they're out match right now. In the series, we'll see if things turn around. But either way, that is cool. That's smooth too, uh for wifeh where you're like, yeah, I don't know if anyone will recognize me big Red with um.

00:33:43
Speaker 3: Anyway. Anyway you want to go get dinner. That's good. Good. I like that.

00:33:48
Speaker 1: Well it worked, it worked out.

00:33:52
Speaker 3: Yeah, Yeah, that's good.

00:33:53
Speaker 1: Uh, well's that? It was awesome having you on man, great talking shop doing your thing. Love what you're putting out there on Twitter and Paul.

00:34:00
Speaker 3: Thanks for joining us, Thanks for having me. You guys appreciate it. Yeah.

00:34:07
Speaker 5: I