You Asked: the Phillies playoff rotation, the outfield alignment and more!

00:00:04
Speaker 1: Hi, this is Kyle Forber and welcome to the Philly Show.

00:00:08
Speaker 2: Brin tomorrow Junior. Jim Salsbury, Todds a lucky Salberry. Todd's a lucky oh Man. It's Friday, August twenty second, twenty twenty five. We're in a silly mood because we just uh we hung out Thursday night. It's like a little had a little uh little hangout, a little hangout at Parks Casino. Our guy, our buddy, Mike Baldini set it up. Uh Ricky Betalico was there. Joe Conklin, who does a much better aery k than me, Ben Davis, Tommy Green, had a little dinner, talked a little Phillies with some folks. It's a good time.

00:00:48
Speaker 1: I had a nice snake, good times, nice people.

00:00:52
Speaker 2: Nice Jimmy, you went outside the box.

00:00:55
Speaker 3: You had the Chilean sea bass.

00:00:57
Speaker 4: Yeah, it's I'll tell you what it's other than McDonald's fully of fish.

00:01:01
Speaker 5: That's right, That's that's what I usually get my seafood.

00:01:07
Speaker 1: I want to give a shout out.

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Speaker 6: I want to give a shout out to Captain Nicholas du Blesses. He's number five commanding officer in the eighth District of Philadelphia.

00:01:17
Speaker 1: Was there with his wife. Yep, it with his wife. They were both cops. Nice to see the folks from the service.

00:01:26
Speaker 5: Yes, yes, you're sucking up.

00:01:35
Speaker 1: I have sucking up a little bit.

00:01:37
Speaker 4: Them sucking up to the authorities, Well they are.

00:01:45
Speaker 6: I have a great deal of respect for the folks, really do. They have a tough but the toughest job they've ever had right now.

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Speaker 3: Ever, no question, no question.

00:01:58
Speaker 5: That's nice.

00:01:58
Speaker 3: It's nice. You got the chat with those guys. It was fun.

00:02:01
Speaker 2: It was fun chatting with all those guys at Parks Casino. Like I said, we had it. We had a really good time. So while we were there, somebody mentioned, I think somebody mentioned.

00:02:12
Speaker 3: That, you know, the Mets lost to night.

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Speaker 2: The Phillies are up seven in the National League East. They're up seven in the National League East.

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Speaker 1: Seven.

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Speaker 5: That's a lot.

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Speaker 3: That is a lot.

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Speaker 4: But what did I tell you when you said that tonight? Seven's a lot?

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Speaker 1: Sevens a lot.

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Speaker 6: But the Phillies beat up on the Mets.

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Speaker 4: And there was seven actually it was seven and a half back with seventeen to go, so right, you got to keep the.

00:02:41
Speaker 1: Pedal to them metal.

00:02:43
Speaker 2: There you go, that that said, Jim, I did just look at the Fangrass playoff odds, and I'm sure you're gonna want to hear this, but the Phillies have a ninety three point one percent chance to win the Division, a forty three point four percent chance to win a first round by and they have a ten point eight percent chance ants to win the World Series. That's a bit, you say, but that's the third biggest Dodgers, and actually the Yankees had the second highest odds.

00:03:10
Speaker 3: I don't know how that works.

00:03:11
Speaker 2: So I kind of don't believe those us correct correct correct, But we asked you guys for your questions, all of our viewers and our listeners on our various platforms, and so I'm going to start tonight with the park's first pitch. Park's First Pitch is brought to us exclusively by our partners at Parks Casino, Pennsylvania's number one casino, and so I picked the question that we got the most to lead us off for the park's first pitch, and it's a question that we talked about on Thursday night.

00:04:00
Speaker 3: Give me your starting three pitchers for the playoffs.

00:04:04
Speaker 2: That's from Dan PSU nine on Instagram. Another one is postseason starts tomorrow. What is your starting rotational look for games one, two, and three. That's from m Jermino on Instagram. You know, I'll I'll just rip through them. They're all pretty much the same. Sam Woolford on Instagram. If no Wheeler for the playoffs, do you keep lizardro in the rotation? All sorts of Sam Biola eighteen on Instagram pretty much asks the same thing. Who's your number three start in the playoffs? Right now?

00:04:31
Speaker 3: Tea Montgomery ten on Instagram.

00:04:32
Speaker 2: You get the gist, guys, So let's do if the playoffs started tomorrow, who are your three starters in NLDS. Keep in mind, if the Phillies get the buy make the NLDS, or if they don't get the buy and they make the NLDS, you only need three starters in the best of five series in the NLDS this year because I have an extra off day.

00:04:53
Speaker 3: So who are your top three starters?

00:04:57
Speaker 1: You start? Todd you start, I'll.

00:05:00
Speaker 2: Tell you what I'm doing. I'm saying I don't want to I don't care about balance in the rotation, I don't care about right handed left handed.

00:05:09
Speaker 3: I'm going for my best three guys.

00:05:10
Speaker 2: Right now, I'm going for the three guys that pitch this week in Seattle. I'm going Christopher Sanchez, Rangers Suarez, Jesus Lozardo. I'm gonna run three lefties out there, because they're pitching the best, and they're gonna mow him down.

00:05:25
Speaker 1: In that order, in that order.

00:05:27
Speaker 2: I'm gonna yes, I'm gonna go in that Yes, I'm gonna go in that order.

00:05:31
Speaker 3: I'm gonna go in that order. Mix it up a little bit.

00:05:33
Speaker 2: You know, have sworez break up the two heart throwers.

00:05:40
Speaker 4: James, Well, if it starts tomorrow, that is exactly what I would do. Okay, But you know, if you're asking me how I think it's gonna shake out six weeks.

00:05:49
Speaker 5: From now, TB a TBD with Nola.

00:05:54
Speaker 4: I want to see what he looks like over the final six weeks. But tomorrow you go with the three hot hand they're your three best active starters.

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Speaker 5: Sanchez, Suarez, Lozardo.

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Speaker 4: So very unusual to have three lefties in the postseason, but that's the way you'd have to go. If it would have be tomorrow, they'd give you the best chance of winning. And they just did a job on that awful, awful Seattle team, Dodd inside joke inside.

00:06:21
Speaker 5: That inside team, not by any means inside joke.

00:06:27
Speaker 6: I totally agree, and in that order, I would as as Jim stated, I would love to break up the two lefties with a righty, and maybe it's Nola, maybe it's Taiwan.

00:06:40
Speaker 1: Walker, Taiwan On. I just I think that if he finishes out the season.

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Speaker 6: The way he has pitched the last seven games, then I would have to consider him, and then probably piggyback Lozardo.

00:07:07
Speaker 1: For you know, as the fourth. In other words, maybe have maybe.

00:07:13
Speaker 6: Go Christopher Sanchez.

00:07:19
Speaker 1: Taiwan Walker, with.

00:07:23
Speaker 6: Rizardo piggybacking, and then and then Suarez. I would consider that if he finishes off the season pitching the way he's pitching in.

00:07:32
Speaker 1: His last seven.

00:07:33
Speaker 6: Now I also have to see, really who the really hot hand is, and I gotta believe that the hot hand, hotter hand might end up being Aaronola.

00:07:44
Speaker 1: If it's not.

00:07:47
Speaker 6: And none of those neither one of those right handers are really throwing the.

00:07:50
Speaker 1: Ball, well, then I go with the three three lefties.

00:07:53
Speaker 4: But if the question is the postseason starts tomorrow, there's no other answer, then there is the answer. Sure we agree on I don't see how anybody could have a different answer if it started tomorrow.

00:08:06
Speaker 2: Right, And that's interesting, it's interesting, you know, And you're right, Ruben, like, what if Taiwan keeps pitching like he's pitching and we you know Ranger had not been pitching well up until this week, So what if he kind of slides back the other way and he's he's kind of bouncing around and getting hit hard, and you know, that becomes.

00:08:24
Speaker 3: An interesting conversation.

00:08:25
Speaker 2: Then you never know, you never you never never know, never ever know.

00:08:30
Speaker 3: There you go, there you go.

00:08:34
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00:09:28
Speaker 7: Okay, Kratz, I opened up Arena Club, put my own money in there, and I wasn't gonna go big. I know we went over the Ruby pack a week ago. This time I just went for the low level pack where it's an easy entry point. Twenty five bucks. You can get yourself a big Boy card. The Grail has many good options. I slice open the pack. We're looking at it if you're watching us right now, and I pull a card from the nineteen fifties.

00:09:52
Speaker 1: Super cool.

00:09:53
Speaker 7: I enjoyed the experience looking at it. It's Jim Gilliam. It's the top set from the mid fifties. But I got an offer for more than what the Slap pack costs, and I sold it back. Tough times for the Dodgers right now, don't at me, but I got twenty eight bucks instantly, so I can buy another one of those packs and try and get what I.

00:10:10
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00:10:23
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00:10:27
Speaker 5: Get after it. We're back.

00:10:31
Speaker 2: More questions from you are listeners and viewers. Listeners and viewers, Hello, Hello, thank you, and thank you for all the questions. Get We always get so many, and uh, unfortunately we can't get to every single one because then will be like, we'll be three hours into this thing. So Kevin Demico on X says, Rob always stumps for his guys, But is he finally showing some willingness to play Max Kepler and right field?

00:10:57
Speaker 3: More Over, Nick.

00:10:58
Speaker 5: Castianos clearly he's done it.

00:11:03
Speaker 2: Three times in the last eleven games. Now he started Kepler in right field with good results, right.

00:11:11
Speaker 4: And him, you know him, showing a little faith in Kepler everybody wanted to released at the trade deadline, has paid dividends at a big home run to help him close out that Seattle series, and he's had some good games recently he's had some productions. So sometimes you got to stick with a guy and be patient. It's a long season and a long haul, and Rob is not a guy who makes knee jerk decisions. I mean, sometimes he's criticized for being too patient, but you know, they're twenty games over five hundred, aren't they?

00:11:42
Speaker 5: Like twenty one?

00:11:45
Speaker 4: Now, you can afford to be patient for the sake of trying to get the most out of a player and the most out of a team when you're in that situation. So it's paid dividends recently. I don't think he's intimidated by any players. I think he's his own man, and he's a players guy, and he's going to exercise patience. But he gets to a certain point, he's going to start tinkering a little bit. Not drastic, not drastic. He's not benching people, but you know, now and then you sit, not extended benchings, if you know what I mean, but now and then you sit, and he mixes it up and rides the hot hand, And that's the way you get the most out of people.

00:12:25
Speaker 5: Nobody's guaranteed playing time. You got to earn it.

00:12:28
Speaker 6: Yeah, the manager's job is to give the players the best opportunity to have success and to put.

00:12:34
Speaker 1: The players out there that he believes will win the game.

00:12:37
Speaker 6: And I think it's gotten to the point where he sees that Max Kepler can be an addition to this offense, and in particularly he's played well when he's playing right field, and so.

00:12:51
Speaker 1: Hey give him some shots. I don't think that it will be a strict platoon.

00:12:54
Speaker 6: I think it'll'll mix and match when Max Kepler will be out there. I don't think that's going to be, you know, one of those platoons like we saw with West Chamberlain and Jim eisen Reich or Milt Thompson and Pete Incabilia.

00:13:11
Speaker 1: But I do think.

00:13:13
Speaker 6: That he's going to consider in certain situations, under certain circumstances, with you know, hard throwing right handed pitchers.

00:13:21
Speaker 1: That are tough fall on righties.

00:13:25
Speaker 6: Kepler might get some shots there in right field instead of Castianos.

00:13:29
Speaker 2: Well, here's the question that kind of dovetails off this, And this is something I've been kind of wondering and stumping for and believing that should happen, But at one point this season Rob kind of backed off it. And this is from Tom g eighteen on Blue Sky. When the postseason starts, they have to sub defensively for Castianos in the late innings. Do you think the current outfield rotation makes it easier to do it this time?

00:13:51
Speaker 3: For Rob Thompson?

00:13:52
Speaker 2: And he says, I still see Greg Luzinski watching that ball in left field in nineteen seventy seven.

00:13:59
Speaker 3: I think it does. I think it makes it easier for Rob too.

00:14:01
Speaker 2: You know, if they have a two to one lead in the eighth inning or ninth inning and you're trying to put your best defense out there, I think it's easier now to put Max Kepler out there now. Interestingly enough, when that whole thing in Miami happened earlier this season, you know, Nick got subbed out defensively and then it didn't go well. Did not go well. Nick said something to Rob that got him benched in the next game. But then maybe about a week later, Rob kind of saying, you know what, we're gonna kind of just keep running him out there. It didn't really make much sense because listen, I mean, Nick works hard at his defense, we know this, but he grades out analytically and by the eye test is one of the you know, worst defensive outfielders in the game. So I think that having Kepler out there now a little bit more often does open that door, and.

00:14:51
Speaker 3: I hope it does.

00:14:52
Speaker 2: I hope the door is open and he makes that decision because you don't want I know, nobody on this team knows anything about about Black Friday and or you know, Greg Lozinski and Jerry Martin and and all that stuff, but a lot of people here do, and you don't want to have that happen again.

00:15:10
Speaker 4: The fact that he's getting Kepler time in right field now and hadn't had not been doing that until recently, to me as a telltale that that's going to happen in the in the playoffs when they need to protect on defense. Uh, Keupler goes in there when he's not in the game. I think it just makes sense. It's smart, and to me, it's mandatory.

00:15:33
Speaker 5: I mean, you got to.

00:15:34
Speaker 6: You have to put your best defensive team out there when you're winning games or you're a top baiter and center Martian left, Kepler and right that's your best defensive outfield on this ball club right now. And if they're up to or one runs in this in the eighth inning Tossome on out there man.

00:15:57
Speaker 1: And he may be more likely.

00:15:59
Speaker 6: To do it now because s Kepler's actually swinging the bats, swinging the back pretty.

00:16:03
Speaker 5: Well, and he's getting time in right field.

00:16:06
Speaker 6: Even if there's a chance that his turn in the lineup comes forward, he still might be subbing him for that defensive effort.

00:16:16
Speaker 4: I mean, you want the defense is so important in the postseason. Look at that game in the World Series of twenty twenty two, I think it was Game five. The Astros get two defensive gems late in that game, one from Chas McCormick takes away probably a triple from JT. Also, Trey Mansini comes in that game late and makes a great play at first base.

00:16:42
Speaker 1: And he's not a great first basement, but he.

00:16:44
Speaker 4: Made a great play, made a great defensive play. And conversely, Hoskins failed to make a play on a ball that resulted in a run. Those are three plays that were huge that you know, tilted that game in the Astros favor tilted that series in the Astros favorite defense. He is always crucial. It is magnified in the postseason.

00:17:08
Speaker 3: And it's time to put the team first.

00:17:10
Speaker 2: Ask Pat Burrow if he was insulted that he basically got pulled with every late inning lead in two thousand and eight. I'm sure he say it, will say no.

00:17:20
Speaker 5: I'm sure he says that.

00:17:23
Speaker 4: World Series check sort of, you know, solves all the wounds.

00:17:28
Speaker 2: He can show that ring every every whenever he wants to as well. So he got several questions related to this topic. Anonymous on Instagram. Can Jordan Romano help this team in any way? Or should he be d fade Roaring Todd on threads That's not me? He said, why Romano? Just why Romano? Why Romano? Will Romano be DFA? That's from Noah Culp on YouTube. A lot of Romano? Why you know?

00:17:53
Speaker 3: Why is he here? Can he help?

00:17:55
Speaker 9: What's the point I think the Romano here, I'll throw my two cents in.

00:18:00
Speaker 6: I think Romano obviously has struggled at times mightily, but there's also been he's had some stretches where he's actually pitched fairly well.

00:18:09
Speaker 9: He's not going to be pitching in any high leverage situations. He's a thirteenth pitcher on this ball club. He likely will not be on the playoff roster. But he also can strike out a guy if his slider's working. His stuff has not been consistent.

00:18:25
Speaker 6: He goes from anywhere from ninety three mile hour fastball to ninety eight.

00:18:30
Speaker 1: They'd love to see that ninety six, ninety seven.

00:18:33
Speaker 6: Ninety eight more often than that snap dragon slider, but it doesn't happen often enough to make him to be consistently put in situations where.

00:18:44
Speaker 1: Where the game's on the line.

00:18:47
Speaker 6: But he is a quality human being, and he is a guy that's been there and done it. And I like to have veterans around, and I think that's probably one of the reasons why they're keeping him around. And they're hopeful that maybe he can be put in a situation or two where they need him early in the game where he can strike a couple of guys out, stopping inning and then you know, hand it off to the next guy.

00:19:14
Speaker 3: I agree with that.

00:19:16
Speaker 2: Well, so yeah, well said, uh, we just talked about early at the top of the show, how we were at Parks casino, but there's always more to do at Parks. We were walking, I was wat checking out the sports book where I know they had those dollar dogs, Ruben. I was talking to the guy I was sitting next to dinner with, and he was he was ready dollar.

00:19:34
Speaker 5: Dogs that guy. He did. Yeah.

00:19:37
Speaker 1: I asked him.

00:19:37
Speaker 3: I said, if you've been you spend you go to sports book.

00:19:40
Speaker 5: He said, hey, yeah.

00:19:41
Speaker 3: I said, what about the dollar dogs. Oh yeah, dollar dogs. Dollar dogs are great.

00:19:45
Speaker 2: So but they they got a lot of stuff going on, Ruben.

00:19:48
Speaker 6: Yeah, it's all happening this summer at Parks Casino. It's my casino of choice. Had a great time there last night. Parks is Pennsylvania's number one casino, number one action, excitement line entertainment, and great restaurants plus all summer long.

00:20:04
Speaker 1: Swing by the Bett Parks Sportsbook for.

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00:21:12
Speaker 4: It was. I just want to add my two cents. An impressive place, a lot of life, a lot of action, fun place.

00:21:19
Speaker 2: Absolutely, yeah, yeah, I had a great time. I had a great time. So all right, So here's the question from coach Dave huff on X. Can the Phils pull a twenty seven eagle twenty seventeen eagles run and win without their quarterback and then in parentheses, but their ace and Zach Wheeler?

00:21:38
Speaker 3: Can they win it all without Zach Wheeler.

00:21:42
Speaker 5: If they play good? Yeah?

00:21:45
Speaker 1: Exactly, Oh, he certainly can. It makes it more difficult, there's no question.

00:21:49
Speaker 6: I mean, one of their biggest strengths they're starting pitching, and Zach is a huge part of that. One of the best, right handers in baseball when he was healthy, not the best, well on his way to a possible Sayam Award.

00:22:01
Speaker 1: But they have another guy as an ACE in Christopher Sanchez.

00:22:06
Speaker 6: And as long as you have at least one ace and a guy that you can't count on to pitch seven strong, and I think Christopher Sanchez is that guy, then you got a chance.

00:22:18
Speaker 5: They got a chance.

00:22:19
Speaker 4: You gotta get in, you gotta get hot, You gotta play well in all phases of the game. You can't give up extra outs, you can't walk people, you can't make errors, give up ninety.

00:22:30
Speaker 5: Feet here and there.

00:22:31
Speaker 4: You gotta really you know, it's like a pitcher needs to be precise with his location.

00:22:36
Speaker 5: You need to be just play really sharp baseball.

00:22:40
Speaker 4: And the team that plays the sharp baseball out of the twelve teams that are getting in it is gonna win it because there's there's not that one dominant team. I'll say some reasons why I think they can do it without Wheeler. One is Sanchez. I watched the eight team win on the back of twenty four year old lefty Cole Hanils. Sanchez has you know that quality to him. Love what they did in the bullpen, with Duran. I think if Strom and Kirkering can can be a bridge to Duran. I mean, you've got something really quality there. You got you get a game over guy, and then you know, all nine guys in the lineup are important. I think it's crucial to come up with a right handed bat to protect Harper. But one of the big reasons I think they can win it is I think that Kyle Schwarber is one of the biggest winners I've ever seen, and he's having that type of season, so they can win it. Gotta play good. A lot of good things going for him, but you gotta play good. You can't have games like you can't get no hit in the World Series like they did in twenty twenty two. You can't have defensive blunders that give the other team runs, you can't chase, you know, you gotta make it. You gotta be tough outs. And it all falls onto the heading of playing good.

00:23:56
Speaker 2: There's no team in baseball. I mean every fan base right now is looking at their team. I'm trying to think maybe you know, even Brewers fans are sitting there going, how the hell is this team? Can this team possibly get? You know, they got this issue. In that issue, they're playing great team baseball. You know, Blue Jays fans are riding high right now, but you know every other team is sitting there going Every other fan base is watching their own respective team saying, oh my god, we got this and we're not good at that.

00:24:23
Speaker 3: And you know, this is a huge weakness for us.

00:24:26
Speaker 2: There's no team in baseball and I think is like, I don't know if the Phillies can beat these guys. I think the Phillies are just as good as anybody else. They were not the best team in baseball in two thousand and eight, but they played well at the right time and they won. They were the best team in twenty eleven. They did not play well and they got bounced in the first round. Yes, the Phillies can win without Zach Wheeler. The road is more difficult, of course, but they absolutely have the talent to do it. Seems like the offense is more complete since Alec Bohma is back. Thoughts that's from sm lighter It I think on Instagram totally.

00:25:05
Speaker 1: I mean, he's a run producer. He just gives them more depth.

00:25:09
Speaker 6: And I mean, listen, JT's been great and he is posted up to be able to protect those two left handers in that big left handers in the lineup, but.

00:25:19
Speaker 1: Having Alec Bohm there as well as part.

00:25:22
Speaker 6: Of it makes that team so much deeper. He got guys like Bryson Stott making a major adjustment with his hands.

00:25:31
Speaker 1: He's got a different swing path. He's driving the ball to all parts of the field now consistently.

00:25:37
Speaker 6: That all those things are adding up, but Alec Bohuma is an important piece.

00:25:41
Speaker 1: Don't think for a moment he's not defensively, believe it or not. Number one, it's actually a lot better than what you had in out of camp.

00:25:50
Speaker 6: There's no question about that, right and he's actually become very steady defensively and the guy they can't count on now, but also the offense man.

00:26:00
Speaker 1: He's a run producer. He drives in runs. He's done, you know, ninety seven in a row, almost one hundred in a row, two years in a row.

00:26:08
Speaker 6: And that's an important piece of the of the puzzle, along with some of the effort that they're getting from the other guys that are deep in the lineup.

00:26:18
Speaker 4: He's a right handed guy, knows how to drive in a round, has a history of having really good at bats with runners on base. They got to find somebody that's that can really, you know, be sturdy behind harp or I don't know if it's Boem j T Castianos. When he's in there, one of those guys has to emerge, I think, and could end up being bomb.

00:26:40
Speaker 2: H Linda Palulo on YouTube wants you know, will they bring up Andrew Painter with Zach Wheeler out for the rest of the season. Well, you know, Rob Thompson has said they're gonna stick with the five man for now.

00:26:50
Speaker 3: But I think a lot of people.

00:26:52
Speaker 2: In the organization are wondering, you know, is wondering the same thing. It's like, is he is he gonna get called up at some point? Neil.

00:26:58
Speaker 3: I think a lot of people are waiting to see what's gonna happen. I still think. I still think you might get a taste at.

00:27:03
Speaker 2: Some point, maybe in September and one of these long you know, early September, and when they're on a long stretch, maybe maybe throw them in there to give guys an extra day.

00:27:11
Speaker 3: I don't know. I mean, he has to he has to pitch, pitch well and earn it, no doubt, But I don't know.

00:27:17
Speaker 5: I think now they can buy. Yeah, So you know, who do you bring?

00:27:24
Speaker 1: I mean, you're probably going to bring a guy like do you do you bring a guy like Rojas do to get some.

00:27:31
Speaker 6: Speed for a pinch run type situation?

00:27:34
Speaker 5: Do you catcher?

00:27:36
Speaker 6: Bring a catcher? Just Stubby come up and you know, allow you to I don't know, maybe use either JT or Marshaan in a pinch it role, or to pinch it for one of them, because now you have three.

00:27:51
Speaker 5: Lazarre could come back, Kemp could come back.

00:27:54
Speaker 6: It could be could be Auto, could be Lazarre, could be Painter, could be a lot of different guys. I mean, there's Griff McGarry, could be a guy who knows he's pitching his rear end off right now and ready. I doubt that that's gonna happen, but you never know, you never know.

00:28:15
Speaker 2: Let's see a couple more here, and here's here's one. Well, who's going to be the backup catcher in the playoffs? Is Ithawn? That's from Jimmy jam for twenty seven on X.

00:28:29
Speaker 5: That's a good question.

00:28:30
Speaker 6: I don't think there's any question it's going to be Marshawan. And I'll tell you why that son of a gun can catch and throw. He can catch and throw, and oh, Stubb, he does a nice job. He's got to let you know the vibess he's he knows his job, he understands his job. He's done a good job in that role. But I got to believe that the way this team is built right now, that Marshawn is probably going to be the backup.

00:28:57
Speaker 2: I think he's earned it too, He's he's been on the team here. I mean, what a message? What kind of message would that? I mean, I get it, like you know, you're trying to put the best team on, but I just think there'd be something kind of wrong about that. To carry him the entire year, have him play some meaningful games, and then all of a sudden, all right now we.

00:29:15
Speaker 3: Don't have to worry about options.

00:29:16
Speaker 5: Now you're now you're off the roster.

00:29:18
Speaker 6: So and also this, here's a piece of that we make you make a good point.

00:29:25
Speaker 10: Let's say JT doesn't get resigned and he goes to San Diego, he goes to San he goes to wherever he goes, and then you just sent that message to Marshaan and he's not good enough, He's.

00:29:36
Speaker 6: Probably gonna be your number one, right, He's your number one catcher for next year. If JT is gone, unless they sign somebody and the guys they signed, I ain't gonna be better than Marshawan.

00:29:48
Speaker 2: We talked about this on Thursday's episode, went through all the free agent names, and they have a lot of good looking guys out there for catchers.

00:29:56
Speaker 3: If JT elsewhere or not, yeah here, Uh.

00:30:01
Speaker 2: Jimmy jam also wants to know if you guys never got into baseball or sports or sports writing in any way, what do you think you guys would be doing right now.

00:30:16
Speaker 5: I'd probably.

00:30:18
Speaker 4: I probably would be teaching and coaching high school baseball.

00:30:24
Speaker 1: Yeah you would, Yeah, you would.

00:30:28
Speaker 3: I'd probably be teaching too. I feel like I can't. I don't think I'm good at any and.

00:30:32
Speaker 4: My team, my team would be very They would be masterful at the safety squeeze.

00:30:40
Speaker 3: Oh really yea.

00:30:44
Speaker 4: Automatically, and we would play good defense at.

00:30:47
Speaker 5: A baby how about that?

00:30:49
Speaker 1: What about you?

00:30:49
Speaker 5: Reuben?

00:30:52
Speaker 6: So, I studied uh human biology with sports with a sort of a emphasis on sports medicine. I probably would have been involved in and uh some sort of physical therapy or PT. I would say to me, maybe go back and think about studying to become an orthopedic surgeon.

00:31:16
Speaker 3: Wow, you went to Stanford. You are smart enough to do this.

00:31:20
Speaker 11: I'm not that smart, just as a person who studied that wanted to be orthopotic orthopedic surgeon.

00:31:31
Speaker 4: Like when somebody says, oh, he's he tars meniscus, why don't they just say he has a cartilage tear on his knee?

00:31:42
Speaker 1: Are you talking about that? I don't know.

00:31:44
Speaker 3: Why are you talking about, Jim?

00:31:46
Speaker 2: Like when they give a health update and the guy that they say, the guy has a contusion on the left fore arm.

00:31:56
Speaker 1: That was an old that was choosed that.

00:32:00
Speaker 2: That was a great thing when we were working at the inquir Jim. I think the great, late great Robin Smith was one of the copy editors who would say, you're not writing contusion. It's a bruise. Yeah, don't write confusion, it's a bruce.

00:32:13
Speaker 5: Like, Okay, there is a difference between a contusion and a bruce. Is there is there?

00:32:19
Speaker 1: Oh?

00:32:19
Speaker 6: Yeah, I do believe that semantic deal there is. I think contusion actually means that there is swelling underneath.

00:32:30
Speaker 5: Okay, issues, all right?

00:32:33
Speaker 1: I stand corrected, Leave don't quote me on that bad Boy.

00:32:38
Speaker 6: It's been a long time since I studied any of this stuff, but there is a slight difference.

00:32:44
Speaker 1: I do believe.

00:32:45
Speaker 2: Well, Jim, you said, yeah, if you were in your alternate universe and your you would be a baseball coach that would excel in the in the safety squeeze and Alex Hunt forty four on excess. What's your favorite baseball thing? Pop of the gloves, sound of the crack of the bat mine is a well executed suicide squeeze.

00:33:05
Speaker 5: It like them both, like them both.

00:33:07
Speaker 1: I tell you what I like the best. You want to know what I like the best? What do you think it is?

00:33:15
Speaker 3: I don't know.

00:33:15
Speaker 5: A two hit shutout, I do like those.

00:33:20
Speaker 6: What I like the hit and run, a well executed hit and run.

00:33:26
Speaker 1: And I love, love, love, love when a runner goes first to third.

00:33:32
Speaker 5: Oh, I do love that, Yes, I actually love I love.

00:33:38
Speaker 4: I love when a catcher is fearless and fundamentally sound in blocking pitches in the.

00:33:45
Speaker 5: Dirt, the morning run on third. Carlos Ruiz.

00:33:50
Speaker 4: Carlos Ruiz was a history maker in this organization. I'm telling you because you guys traded for brad Ledge. He was coming off a bad year in Houston. He could have gone either way. You didn't know he was going to be a sure thing. You were taking a chance. He came here and he got what is that? He he came to let me finish.

00:34:20
Speaker 5: He came to Philadelphia and.

00:34:22
Speaker 4: He got his slider back, that hard torque that would corkscrew into the ground, that slider back. And the reason he had the confidence to throw that pitch is because he knew that stone wall back there was never gonna let it buy him and Carlos Ruiz. So, Carlos Ruiz's ability to block balls, it was a franchise changer. It allowed them to have that great forty eight for forty eight season from Brad Ledge, and that was a big reason why they won, you know, the World Series.

00:34:51
Speaker 5: So I love that too.

00:34:54
Speaker 6: Cause and effect, Baby, I like that cause effect, I love it.

00:35:00
Speaker 3: I love it.

00:35:01
Speaker 4: Well, maybe they should go on the Wall of Fame together Lydge and Ruiz.

00:35:06
Speaker 2: That actually would make a lot of sense, enough sense, you think Lidge does he did he have on the wall?

00:35:14
Speaker 1: First?

00:35:15
Speaker 5: You only have the one good year? Does he go up there?

00:35:17
Speaker 2: You?

00:35:19
Speaker 5: Does he up there? Well? I think you should, but I don't know what are the rules?

00:35:23
Speaker 3: There are no rules rules.

00:35:25
Speaker 2: I mean, they put pretty much everybody on the nineteen eighty team on there. And I'm not saying that they shouldn't have, but I'm just saying, if you're gonna have every I think every player on the lineup from the eighty team on the Wall of Fame other than Pete Rose who should be on there. And then I think you gotta have Brad Lidge on there. I know he only had that one one year, but I mean that was the year. The year.

00:35:51
Speaker 5: What a year? You got any more questions?

00:35:53
Speaker 2: Uh?

00:35:54
Speaker 5: Well, I just wrote.

00:35:55
Speaker 2: Someone wrote the first person who invented the clock? How did that person know what time it was?

00:36:03
Speaker 1: Call a sun dial?

00:36:06
Speaker 5: Jim, you don't wait, Jim, do you not know what we're talking about? I do, I do. John he was wondering about clocks. Yeah, he was one of one of John's many.

00:36:17
Speaker 2: Random moments in the boot.

00:36:20
Speaker 5: Those were Larry Anderton used to do. Those. They were called miss Mystery Questions Alive.

00:36:26
Speaker 1: Yeah, something like that.

00:36:27
Speaker 4: Why do you uh, why do you drive on a parkway and park on a driveway?

00:36:34
Speaker 1: Well?

00:36:34
Speaker 2: I got one, last one, I got last one. If you guys want to answer, it's it's a deep thinker. It's Paul pause Emino.

00:36:41
Speaker 3: On Blue Sky.

00:36:42
Speaker 2: I'm probably butchering that what do you each think makes baseball the best game there is? Give me the romantic, sappy heartfield stories that are reasons why you love this game.

00:36:52
Speaker 1: Is the reason why you love this game?

00:36:55
Speaker 6: For me is that they're On any given night, you can see something you've never seen in the game, And.

00:37:01
Speaker 1: On any given night, there's no two games that can ever be remotely the same.

00:37:08
Speaker 6: You literally can see so many there are so many different permutations and combinations of things. It's infinite what can happen in a game of baseball, from pitch to pitch, to play to play, back to it, bat inning to inning. There's so many different things that can happen in a game that are so unpredictable, and yet so many different things cause and effect that can affect.

00:37:40
Speaker 1: You know, one thing can affect so many others.

00:37:43
Speaker 6: You don't turn a double play when you should, and the next guy gets a hit and the game is lost.

00:37:48
Speaker 5: You beat out the double play by that much.

00:37:50
Speaker 6: Beat out the double play by that much, and it creates the winning run because that guy from third scores there's so many different things. We can talk about them till the sky turns dark, and I think that's the beauty of the game.

00:38:09
Speaker 1: You just never know what can happen that day.

00:38:13
Speaker 4: I think it's also so unique because so many sports kind of mimic a battlefield, you know, where you try to get into enemy territory and score a goal, whether it's a basket or a goal, or get in the end zone or a soccer. You know, they all kind of have that same concept where this is completely unique, and you know the romance. You know, I used to ride around the neighborhood with my glove dangling from the handlebars. My glove was always on my handlebars in case I ran into a pickup game and you know, or somebody wanted to play catch, and that, you know, that was great.

00:38:54
Speaker 1: Can I just say one thing about on a personal level, I.

00:38:57
Speaker 12: Have to say this because the the thesis and or the the thing that I wrote to get into Stanford had a lot to do with my personal relationship with my glove. Huh, with my baseball glove and how much it meant to me and whyatt how important it was to me and what.

00:39:22
Speaker 6: And that was one of the reasons why I got in because I thought it was a pretty I wish I had it. I have no idea where it would be, probably in the archives at Stanford, but I wrote about how important it was to me and how much how meaningful it was.

00:39:38
Speaker 3: Do you still have the glove?

00:39:41
Speaker 1: Uh no, not that same glove.

00:39:43
Speaker 3: I don't. I actually have the glove I had ever since I was a kid.

00:39:47
Speaker 2: In this thing it is, it is disintegrated, and I'm like, I just can't bring myself to throw it away. It just cannot bring I mean it is you put your hands and you could like that the leather is so dried out and like it's just in millions of pieces. You probably, but I can't bring myself to throw it away. I'm like, this is the glove I had was on the you know, playing Little League outside of Milwaukee when I was a little kid, you know, and yeah, yeah that's uh so I still got that, and I end up getting a new glove just so I can't if I play catch with my kids, I gotta be able to have something that could actually put my hand on. And then so well that was great, A lot of great questions, everybody, Thanks a lot, We do well, I mean just you know, thanks again to all of our viewers and all of our listeners. We really do appreciate the support.

00:40:43
Speaker 1: You know.

00:40:43
Speaker 2: We run into people all the time saying how much they enjoy the show, and that makes us feel good, you know, to know that people are watching and listening and really enjoying it. And you know we we love getting together three times a week, at least three times a week and doing it for everybody.

00:40:58
Speaker 3: So we'll be back on one. They do have some more.

00:41:02
Speaker 5: Smell you later, boys, Smellia James.

00:41:06
Speaker 2: The Philly Show is brought to you by the Foul Territory Network. Subscribe to The Philly Show on YouTube and wherever you get your podcasts.