Braves-Dodgers preview, Spencer Jones time, Roman Anthony IL’d

00:00:01
Speaker 1: Hey, we've got with Magorfield back on a Friday here on the sea.

00:00:06
Speaker 2: How you been good, guys? What's going on?

00:00:09
Speaker 3: Yeah?

00:00:09
Speaker 1: Living doing a show every day, talking ball, looking at some surprises, looking at some disappointments, getting closer and closer Memorial Day, where I feel like I can actually not use the I know it's early but phrase because if you don't, you get smacked for it. But you know, actually with that, I'm gonna make sure we have plenty of time here to get into the first segment, which includes two of the top teams in baseball. And I'll try and refrain from saying that statement. So we'll do that coming up in just a second here talking about two of the top teams in the National League. Let's jump into it. Shall we charge about? We are charging the mountain. We're talking about the Braves and the Dodgers meeting up this weekend. Kratz, what do you have for us? Twenty six and twelve Atlanta twenty three and fourteen?

00:00:59
Speaker 3: LA.

00:00:59
Speaker 1: I think we expected La La to be in this spot, Atlanta. More of this surprise. It's not like this is the quote playoff preview the Braves, for example, tonight go with Chris Saale against Emmit Sheen. Otani's not pitching in this series this weekend. Neither is Yamamoto, but we get to see two of the better teams in baseball top records through Thursday. Braves and Cubs are twenty six and twelve. Yankees have that same record in the American League, and then the Rays at twenty five and twelve. Dodgers, you know, not far down from that list too. But what are you looking for this weekend, man.

00:01:34
Speaker 4: The same thing I want to see every game. Yeah, I love seeing pitching matchups. And you said, oh, Otani and Yamamoto aren't pitching.

00:01:41
Speaker 3: That's fine.

00:01:42
Speaker 4: I want to see dangers. I want to see the ball getting banged around the yard. And I know, Show Hey's not hitting as well as he as he usually does. He's got a lot on his play. Let's just relax on show Hey. I'm sure he will be fine. But going into this you have the two best offenses in the game, and you have intriguing storylines. Strider's coming back sales continue to add to to his resume.

00:02:07
Speaker 3: Elder is the one for me.

00:02:09
Speaker 4: When you get to the Sunday game, Bryce Elders had an incredible start to the season. How does he do against the vaunted Dodgers. And I'm not saying that this is like a measuring stick and oh this is If the Braves lose two out of three, they're cooked. They're not as good as the Dodgers. No, we saw it last year. I think the Brewers beat the Dodgers six times. They were six to oho for the season. I think it's a measuring stick to just see how these lineups can attack each other. I'm not worried about like Robleski's probably gonna deal so I think the Dodgers win Sunday, but I could really care less. I want to see how these lineups attack each other. I think Freddie Freeman needs to start start getting going because if show he's not getting going, Freddy's got to be there. I think Kyle Tucker needs to like get to his salary status, like he's getting paid one hundred billions of dollars and he's not quite come on yet. And I think Drake Baldwin has come onto the scene after his Rookie of the Year. I think the Braves have been doing all this offense without Acunya, and they're going to continue to do without a Cunya.

00:03:15
Speaker 3: But don't tell.

00:03:16
Speaker 4: Braves fans they won a World Series without Ronald Acunya.

00:03:23
Speaker 1: That's true. I forgot about that. Wait, you know these guys pretty well too. Yeah.

00:03:29
Speaker 2: I think it's a bigger series for the Braves than it is the Dodgers, just because the Braves that's more necessarily projected to be have the record that they have right now. They're playing incredible baseball, and so I think it's I think, if you want to look at it from a who's more important to aspect, I think it's the Braves the Dodgers. It's almost like you kind of got the feel last year they just were just trying to get to the playoffs. They did the regular season was just what it was. They get to the playoffs and they kind of turn it on. It kind of seems like that's that same sort of mantra that they have this year, is we know we're good enough to get to one point sixty two and be where we need to be, and so we're just gonna kind of make sure that we got everything everything going by then. And I just the Braves are They've looked so good, and you're right, Cratzy. It's I think it's this series is more about the players finding some confidence, whether it's Bryce Elder pitching on Sunday, getting these guys out, getting that confidence, whether it's the hitters facing Sasaki and Roblowski and and and seeing these guys and saying, Okay, that's what that pitch looks like and sort of banking it because you don't see these guys too often. You see them twice a year, and you're you're just kind of banking it for those important games in the late fall.

00:04:48
Speaker 4: Wait, are you saying that the Dodgers can't just coast into the playoffs this year or are you saying that it might be a little bit different this year.

00:04:55
Speaker 2: I'm saying they can just coast into the playoffs. Yeah, if there's one team that can just coast, I mean, obviously you'd like to see some guys going. He likes Yotani kind of get going, And you'd like to see Mookie get back and kind of getting into Mookie shape.

00:05:09
Speaker 3: And and but.

00:05:11
Speaker 2: It's it's whably play one sixty two. It's like Austin Reiley struggling with the Braves right now. He's got to get going for this Braves team to make a run. But it's I mean, there's so many times, like you look at Judge back in twenty twenty four, I think about this time, he was sitting two hundred with like maybe five or six homers, but then he goes on to do Judge things. Just the guys that can be consistent and do it year after year are the ones that are the superstars and such a hall of famers. And you just got to be able to not look at the scoreboard and say, man, I'm hitting two hundred and just trust your process, trust that you're doing things the right way and you've done it before. If you've done it before for years and years, you know it's in the bank. And you just got to keep trusting that and not let that mendoz align on the scoreboard and that ops being low and that weighted runs created plus not where you want to be. You just can't look at that, trust your process, and by the end of the season you'll be where you need to be.

00:06:08
Speaker 4: Wait, wait, what if I looked at the scoreboard and I was like, I'm hitting two hundred, Like the same thing as you just said, I'm hitting two hundred, but like maybe that's a good thing. I get it for the stars that you're talking about, but why can't the Braves coast in? They got an eight game lead in the NL East eight games. I get it like coasting at this time of year, but that's a significant lead.

00:06:33
Speaker 3: I don't care who it's over.

00:06:36
Speaker 4: It is.

00:06:37
Speaker 2: It definitely is. They're They're there. They got it on cruise control right now. They got all cylinders firing. So yeah, I mean, they keep doing what they're doing, keep putting on autopilot and just run out there and let Mattio hit a homer every game, a big homer every game. Let's sales trike out nine and go eight innings and and have this bullpen come in and there's just dominate. I mean, it's it's pretty easy money right now for the Braves. But yeah, I guess, I guess going back to looking at the average on the scoreboard, it's it's kind of easier now, right because they don't have averages on the scoreboard. They have ops and the advanced stuff on most scoreboards. Most scoreboards don't have averages anymore.

00:07:17
Speaker 3: Let's talk love, life ft family. I know it's an important part of everyone's.

00:07:21
Speaker 4: Life, but if you need help or if you don't, glue Choo Gold is changing the game and it is turbo charging your love life that.

00:07:29
Speaker 1: Was beautifully delivered. The new arausal boosting formula combines passionate performance into one tablet that dissolves under your tongue for super fast on set. No more waiting for a pill to kick in, no more moments ruined by performance anxiety, just the results you want when you want them. Most dd meds only focus on blood flow, but blue Choo Gold goes further by combining two ingredients for blood flow with two more for mental arausal and connection. So you're not just physically ready, you're actually in the mood. And we've got to deal for our listeners right now, and you buy two months of bluech You Gold, you get the third for free with promo code foul. That's promo code f o u L Visit blue you dot com for more details and important safety information, and we thank blue ch You for sponsoring the podcast. The Dodgers and the Braves of the top two batting averages in baseball right now top two. Nobody knows it, but they do.

00:08:23
Speaker 3: I bet they have.

00:08:24
Speaker 4: They have some of the best on base percentages too, and the best ops is also and the best they're ops plus is a team is really good.

00:08:34
Speaker 2: Who took the Dodgers deep last year? The Blue Jays? What do the Blue Jays do? Put the ball and play? It's important.

00:08:43
Speaker 1: I'll look up some of those other stats while we're chatting about it. Let's get to the pitching for a moment here too. So Krats Saturday is interesting. You have Roki Sasaki who always kind of feels like he's on the edge of falling apart and falling out of the road. Blake Snell should be back what next week? Rookie Betts, by the way, looks like he's going to return next week for the Dodgers as well. And then Spencer Strider on the other side, and he talked about how, you know, he doesn't want a participation trophy for feeling okay and being back on the mound again. I mean, he misses being one of the top starters in the sport. It wasn't that long ago, and then he's been through a number of injury issues. But the quote the other day when he was racking up walks in his season debut, he walked five batters on Sunday, he said, I'd rather be pitching than hurt for sure. I don't want a participation trophy. I'm here to help the team win games, getting paid a ridiculous amount of money to do it. And if I can't, then that's the problem. So let's find a way to be more effective than it was today. I've got a lot of work to do. I mean, I will say this. The Dodgers get the luxury of going through cruise control and figuring things out. For someone like Roki Sazaki, can we get him to a place where he's an effective starter figuring things out When a guy feels men like a little tweak here and there, like a tyler glass, now you know what, skip a start, or often they'll end up ailing a guy like that. They have that luxury because of the lead they have. The Braves kind of have that right now with Spencer Strider to be able to get him right. Not that they were going to boot him out of the rotation, but he wants to get himself on track as soon as possible. The Braves had the luxury of okay, you walked five and you came back. Cool, Let's get you to a good place by mid season, so you're pumping into the playoff race and we can use you as a playoff starter.

00:10:25
Speaker 4: That I think probably revolves around health and reps, and you can't get those if you're on the shelf. So I get what he's saying. Look, I don't care where the Braves were. If the Braves got Strider back and he walked five guys last year and they were whatever ten games out, he would.

00:10:44
Speaker 3: Have gotten all of his starts.

00:10:45
Speaker 4: Like Spencer, Strider is not a guy that they're like, well, you know what, Bryce Hilder's pitching pretty well, we're not bumping him out. We're bumping Strider out. No, like he's in that he's in that area, Roki Sasaki, He ain't in that area. Oki, Susaki's got a lot to figure out more than just like okay, Strider's got to be able to repeat his mechanics, all that stuff.

00:11:07
Speaker 3: Roki. I feel like they're trying to find lightning in a bottle.

00:11:10
Speaker 4: I feel like, you know, ooh, he tweaked his hand position on his splitter on his forkball. Well yeah, now it's a splitter and so he can control it a little bit better. Yes, The miles per hour are up a lot, but it's no longer a knuckleball, so maybe that does help. But to me, it's about executing pitches and for Rokie, and it's about staying on the field for Strider. I mean, everybody talks about, oh, he's a vegan, he's got the biggest legs in the league. You could be a fat turd if you're on the mound every day. I don't care what you look like. And that's where Strider, if he can stay healthy, he can solidify this rotation behind Sale, behind anybody else that they call it from the minor leagues, like they need that for them to make a run. Where you go, Okay, it's September thirtieth right now, who's pitching Game one and Game two for us? And to me, if it's not Strider, I think the Braves are a little bit behind the eight ball.

00:12:11
Speaker 2: No question.

00:12:11
Speaker 3: Yeah.

00:12:12
Speaker 2: With Strider, it's it's it's just a matter of him getting back to his form and that's gonna take time and take reps and take bumps and bruises. At the big league level, you just can't simulate it. You can pitch in Triple A or Double A all you want. It's not the same as peeing in the big leagues, and you could feel good and your stuff could be okay, but until you start striking guys out, getting getting that confidence back, going deep into games, having a clean stat having clean lines. You know, when when you come out of the game, and then doing that and piling that on top of each other like he was doing before he got hurt, it's just you're gonna it's like scar tissue. You just got to work through that scar tissue and get back to where he is and or where he he was before he was hurt. And he will. He's such a hard worker, he cares, he's a student of the game. He wants to get back to what he was, and I don't doubt that he will. Is just gonna take some bumps and bruises along the way. You're not with. The thing that I have an issue with with pitchers in this day and age is everyone feels like they have to be one hundred percent to go out there and throw. Nobody's one hundred percent. Nobody's never one hundred percent. You have to figure out ways to get outs when you're not one hundred percent. You have to figure out ways from a position player side to get hits and to be productive when you're not at one hundred percent, because come late in the year, come dog days of summer, and then into the fall, when you've played all these games in a row, there's nobody that's one hundred percent. So can you figure out how to be successful? Pitching it eighty percent, pitching it eighty five percent?

00:13:47
Speaker 1: Yeah, And we'll have coverage on the weekend of this series. Two Hammer Territory will do a show at least one, maybe two over the weekend for the bravest perspective, and then Dodgers Territory will give you a good recap on Monday, So look out for both of those. Wow, the Nightmare Series is over for the Reds, the dream series for the Cubs. They swept them in four games. Reds have now lost seven games in a row. Three of those losses were walk off, and then they finally didn't lose via walkoff for the last game of the series, the Cap, but they fell eight three and Rhet Louder left the game in the fourth inning. They're calling his shoulder discomfort. Earlier in the series. Pagan out he'll miss one to two months. Like a true nightmare was just experienced, and Michael Confordo's popping off there, like trying to find AB's for me at the walk off home the other day. Then he was raking in the series Clint Or the series ender the fourth game, he's got an NOPs over one thousand. They gave Seya Suzuki a day off. Kratz, you want to just reiterate what the series was for the Reds. What's the word that? What Maryfield should know?

00:14:55
Speaker 3: What's the worst word?

00:14:56
Speaker 1: It starts with a then oh nine, here there you go, nightmare, nightmare. I know.

00:15:07
Speaker 2: You could get there crazy m Yeah, it didn't look good. It was not a good series for the Reds. But wow, the Cubs have it. Have that train rolling right now, and it's almost like it's almost like if you're the Cubs, it's great, you're loving it, but it's like, man, it sucks that we're doing this right now in early May, because you know, you know that it's going to be at some point they're going to scuffle. But it's like, can you get back to what this team is right now late in the year. That's that's what every team wants to do, is they want to peak late the Cubs are peaking right now.

00:15:39
Speaker 1: Just mixing in some injury updates during the breaks here while the TV crowd waits for us to return macutrial. The Kansas City Royals manager said that Cole Reagan's was diagnosed with VEO valgus extension overload aka pitcher's elbow. So they're not sure what the deal is, but he's not necessarily going to be shut down. Way worse news for Carlos Stevez. Remember his velo was down a ton and I think they said it was the ankle initially, right, krats, But now it's the rotator cuff. He's got a strain, so he's shut down for a few more weeks, I mean shut down. Hasn't pitched really for the majority of the year at this point, so you figure this is a second half return.

00:16:18
Speaker 3: I mean, yeah, late. That sucks.

00:16:20
Speaker 4: I hope it wasn't an ankle that created the rotator cuff, because sometimes when you're landing soft or he can't push off, something else takes it. That's why guys pitchers go out with different things like well, why would he go out with that? That's not a shoulder or an elbow, So it doesn't become a shoulder or an elbow, but pitcher's elbow. I'll be honest, I've never heard it. I've never heard that term. I've heard dead arm, I've heard you know, obviously, bone chips. We just had it with Scooble. But Royals can't afford it because they got to They kind of started to get some momentum. The hitters are starting to swing the bats a little bit, but they they need Reagan's back there. I don't know if they need a status because I like Ersig, but man, they need Reagans back in there if they're going to do anything.

00:17:09
Speaker 2: Yeah, they got to get something going they there. I feel like they take like one step four and then two steps back and Reagan's going out. Definitely not ideal.

00:17:25
Speaker 1: Plock corner time. Here comes the big man, Spencer Jones. He is large, He's six foot seven, and he has eleven home runs in a nine to fifty eight ops over thirty three games, with forty one runs driven in at Triple A this season. Now Crat some people think that he would have been up much sooner on many other teams. The Yankees built some depth here. Now the depth is getting tested. Domingo has had an ugly crash, so he hits the shelf for a little bit. John Carlos Stanton's out and they just bring on the next monster monst Look, the Yankees are going to bring up whoever is gonna help the team, not like, Okay, we're gonna hold you down.

00:18:05
Speaker 4: We're gonna they understand that one hundred and eighty strikeouts and the bushes turns into at least two hundred in the big leagues, or let's just be nice, one hundred and eighty strikeouts in the big leagues. And when you're adding in pieces to a lineup that already has, like you said, the Monstars, it already has. You know, it's gone through Greg Byrd who was huge and had homers, and Gary Sanchez who was huge and hit homers like they have homers. Trent Grisham, I think did Trent have thirty last year? I know Jazz had thirty. They're fine, they're finding homers. The Cody have twenty five. Like to me, they don't need they didn't need more homers. I'm glad he's getting called up now. And people say, well, he would have been up if he was on another team. Okay, you know, do you have to learn how to strike out less or command the strike zone more, not strikeout less. I would say command the strike zone more, because he does get his walks, but does he get minor league walks or does he get big league walks? The only way to find out is to throw him in the big leagues. And I hope they don't try to throw him out there one game and then sit them to two games, then sit them three, like I want to see this guy. He's only ever played every single day in the bushes. He can steal you twenty bags in two months if you let him run, because he's not just this freakish six foot seven hitter. He's actually athletic too, and he can play really good outfield. That's why I thought he'd be up sooner.

00:19:35
Speaker 2: I do love how you keep calling up the bushes. I do like that. I think this is the perfect time. I think it's the perfect time for him to come up because he's not coming up as a spark for this lineup, so there's not a lot of pressure on him right now. It's just we're gonna put We're gonna fill you in, You're gonna link in our lineup, and we don't need you to carry this team. We don't need you to go out there and do anything that you're not doing. Just go be you learn, learn the big leagues, get adjusted, and we're gonna put up six or seven of runs frankly without you. So just good, don't have don't have any pressure. Just go and play your game. And so I think it's it's a perfect time for him to come up, get acquainted, get his feet wet, find some success, not worry so much about struggles because the way they're playing, his struggles aren't gonna keep this team from winning games. So it's a great time for a guy like him, who's gonna have a lot of swing and miss, gonna have a lot of strikeouts, to come up and just not feel overwhelmed by the situation. So kudos are the Yankees for finally get him up and looking forward to seeing him play. I've hard a lot about him. Obviously, he's, as you say, a monstar. He's huge, and he's a lefties. So with that right field Porsche, there's a lot of pot flies that he's gonna hit that'll that'll find the seats, and it's just a matter of can he continue to hit those balls can when pitchers adjust to him, can he adjust back? That's really what it comes down to in the big leagues. That's how you become a steady big leaguer. It's you become an All Star and play for a long time. Is continuing to adjust when pitchers are just to you.

00:21:06
Speaker 4: I think he can hit the ball out of Yellowstone based on some of the balls I've seen him hitt. And he can take the ball of the opposite field. As you know, with like bad swings are usually pulled swings. Good swings are you know, where you're driving it the other way too. But the fact that he's coming into a spot where, hey, you know what, like they need him, they need.

00:21:25
Speaker 3: Him to just be who he is.

00:21:28
Speaker 4: If you saw a guy with that was striking out a lot in the minor leagues coming up to the big leagues, you're a guy that didn't strike out much, you put the ball in play, would you have a conversation with him right away, right when he got to the big leagues because you have established sluggers in this lineup, I mean from top to bottom. Even you know, Ryan McCann's a gold glover, so he's taken a lot of big league get bats. Paul Goldschmid's a guy who just figured out to be how to be an MVP, and he's been an elite level player. Do you think they have a conversation with him right away or do you think they say players say, Spencer, just go be six to seven and do some cool things.

00:22:11
Speaker 2: That's a good question. I think it depends. I think it depends on I mean, he's been around for a while now, he's been in camp, and he's worked with some of the big league coaches, and so they're familiar with them to an extent. And I'm sure they see they see a lot of video of him in the minor leagues, and you know, maybe it's it's a thing where he's almost too selective and he's letting too many good pitches go. He might be chasing too much. There's there's something that I'm sure that they see that they can maybe pull them in out I'd pull them in or they want to be Look, man, you got three cracks at getting the ball over that short short Fans of left field, don't give them a strike. If you see a good one, be ready to go from the jump, get three cracks at it. If you strike out, go back and you'll next to about you'll get three more cracks at it. But don't ever give this. They're too good at this level to give them strikes, especially when you have a high swing and misrate. We're not into building the pitch count of the starter up anymore and trying to get to the bullpen. That's not the way of the world anymore. That's not how we play offense. We're trying to do damage when we get a ball on the zone. So get something you like early, put a swing on it. If you don't get it, get another one, put a good swing on it, and try you get three cracks at it. So that's that's that's what I would tell them, And again that's just from me not knowing much about him, just from the outside end. If I was in that Yankee staff, that would be one of the first things that I would tell them.

00:23:36
Speaker 4: As much as everybody wants to say, oh, you know, the New York market's going to eat them up, I promise I have seen the meetings. I never had a set through them because I wasn't I was young. I was older when I got to the Yankees organization. But spring training they have multiple hours, multiple days in spring training of media training until you have a year of big league service. Kylehi Goshi Yuka, he was like, goy, He's like, all right, it might be actually three years of big league service. I'm not sure. He's like, it took me forever. It was like I had like ten or twelve straight years of media training. So Spencer Jones, well, he hasn't been around forever. He's been in big league camp for a long time with the Yankees. He's done all this media training. And I would be hard pressed to find somebody that came up through the system that was not prepared for the New York market. Like I want you guys that came up through the system now got traded to the Yankees and then spent a couple of years in the minor leagues, but came up through the system that isn't prepared for the New York market. So I'd like to put that to bed right out of the gate.

00:24:42
Speaker 2: And if I was his teammate, and I don't, I don't know because I don't follow him and I don't know how active he is, but I'd pull him aside and be like, hey, buddy, we're in New York. You play for the Yankees. Let's let's not be on. Don't check your Twitter or your Instagram, DMS or anything like that for a good while. Let's just leave Goes alone, all right, and.

00:24:59
Speaker 3: You'll I'll tell you hit a homer until you hit a home.

00:25:03
Speaker 2: Do something good. Even then, even then it might not be far enough. You know, people are crazy.

00:25:07
Speaker 4: You never know people are crazy, like, oh, you went three for four with two homers. What happened in the fourth at bat?

00:25:13
Speaker 3: You're not clutch. We won John Carlos Stanton's bad calf back before.

00:25:17
Speaker 2: You don't check it.

00:25:20
Speaker 1: I want to finish with this. He is turning twenty five years old in one week, and he will be making his rookie debut. Just to give you context, here a player who we spoke a lot about a month and a half ago, Connor Griffin, just turned twenty. They're five full years apart. When Connor Griffin gets to Spencer Jones's age, he would be well, he's on an extension, so it doesn't matter. But if he hadn't had that extension, he'd be thinking about free agency a year later. Spencer Jones isn't going to be a free agent until he's a grandpa. Just to give you the difference in the ages between two kies, we're talking a lot about the Judge was an older rookie too. Uh, would I think he was twenty three? I want to say, I can find it if you guys give me one second while you're chatting.

00:26:13
Speaker 2: Seven as a rookie.

00:26:15
Speaker 1: Oh right, you're the perfect person to talk to us. And Judge was twenty four. By the way, twenty sixteen was his age twenty four season. We have the perfect guys on for this.

00:26:25
Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, it's uh, you know, age is just a number. It's just a number. I think we put a little too much stock in age. You know, everyone ages differently. My my thirty four looked different than somebody else's thirty four. And it's just the ages. It all depends on how you age, and so you know, his twenty five could be like somebody else's twenty, or somebody else's thirty.

00:26:48
Speaker 3: Or my forty.

00:26:53
Speaker 1: Yes, Kratz has aged gracefully. He's still committee. Yeah. Hey, so Roman Anthony does end up going on the shelf. He wasn't getting better and technically the injury is something with a finger. So he said, what was it. I'm looking for the tweet. He's wearing a brace on his hand, but it's technically something with his finger. Anyway. Wait, you've gone through this, right, what was it for you? And you haven't been injured much in your whole career, but did you have a wrist injury in the miners?

00:27:31
Speaker 2: Yeah, a little different. It wasn't swinging. I was sliding into third base and jammed my wrist into the ground as I was sliding in feet first. It kind of fell back on my wrist and it blew up like a like a Mickey Mouse hand.

00:27:43
Speaker 3: It was. It was.

00:27:44
Speaker 2: It was gnarly and it was so painful, and honestly, it took about two years before it felt normal again. I'm not saying it it took that long to not be painful, but there was weakness and just didn't feel normal. The mobility wasn't there. So there's so much with the wrist, in the in the feet and the knees, so many little intricacies that go on with it that whenever you hurt something with it, it can linger and it can be something that you're gonna have to deal with for a long time. And I'm not saying he won't be able to play through it, but he'll know it's there and don't know it's there for for a good.

00:28:14
Speaker 1: Bit, so he said. He clarified it's a ligament sprain of his right ring finger.

00:28:24
Speaker 2: That's a little different. Yeah, that's a little different. The lefty holding the bat. Yeah, I mean, I don't know. I can't remember if he's a two in finished guy or a top hand of release guy. But if he's a top haird of release guy holding the bat right there could I mean that that's it's something that he's gonna feel and we'll see if that if it affects him or not. He's such a good player, but it's it's gonna be something he's gonna have to get used to.

00:28:53
Speaker 1: Yeah, you hope it doesn't sap performance for him. I mean the problem very clearly for this team. They've hadded a number of problems, but they need to swing the bats significantly better, especially at home, like there's barely any pop for them at Fenway over the course of the first quarter of the season. For Boston, it does not help when one of your big boys is out and then dealing with something that could affect him when he comes back conspiracy.

00:29:15
Speaker 3: That's not Alice Bragman.

00:29:16
Speaker 4: Here's my conspiracy with fifteen seconds left, coaches in the coaches boxes, oh anything, just saying, just saying conspiracy.

00:29:30
Speaker 1: Knowing the pitch helps.

00:29:38
Speaker 3: Wit. You know wit, Come on, you know, Bobby.

00:29:43
Speaker 1: Hey, this one's a bomber. Luis camp Usano was finding it. It had taken a while. He dominated hitting wise last year in Triple A. He had struggled over the years in the BIGS. He's been one of the best hitting catchers. Fractured toe crats. It wasn't even from catching. He found a ball off his foot. So he's gone on the shelf. And it just sucks when you're in a flow like that. And he said he is famous. Quote a month ago he stopped giving a bleep and that's why he feels like he's better.

00:30:17
Speaker 4: And he's been. He's been really good for him. I mean, I love to see it. I love to see a catcher that, you know, kind of shoot. He came up early and it just didn't happen for him. Everybody matures at different ages. I broke my toe in two thousand and nine at the Triple A All Star Game, and I'm like, there ain't no chance I'm coming out. We tape that John up and I played the rest of the season. You ain't coming out because of a broken toe. Whatever he has, that that must be painful because if it gets up into your foot, then you start like limping a little bit differently. But I think if it's just a tow, I bet he stays in. But if it's not, like something farther down in the joint, then you start limping. Then you get a hip. Just like we talked about with pitchers, you gotta take it. You got to stop it before it gets something else worse.

00:31:11
Speaker 2: Yeah, but you know, all bad things lead to some good things. And can we give a shout out to Ridelfo Durant been grinding down in the bushes, as Crassy would say, and finally gets his shot, So kuduz to him. Congratulations to him, and hopefully he can make the most of it. I know he had no for day one, but hope he's back in there tonight and gets his first knock. Cheering for that.

00:31:33
Speaker 3: He's a big leaguer, Yep, he's a big leaguer. Yees.

00:31:37
Speaker 4: Forever ever, I want to look up what his number is. I always like looking up people's numbers when they when they make their debuts. He was number twenty three thousand, six hundred and eighty seven to have ever made it to the big leagues twenty eight years old. He's looking at Spencer Jones like, hey, what's up baby? You were in his grade when I was a senior in high school. Like everybody, it makes it a different time. Buenos swear today.

00:32:03
Speaker 1: Ridolfo love that, and also, yeah, he's facing a tough opponent. Cardinals have been playing really well. They won two to one in the series opener. Libertor was really good, and five of the twelve teams with winning records in baseball are coming out of the NL Central right now. Not too shabby. I'm always a fan of someone being super candid. Dan Hayes, who runs our Twin City Territory show, said that Royce Lewis is having a difficulty avoiding looking at the big picture and wonders about his future with the Twins. So he said, Royce quote, it can be really hard when you feel like your career is going in a different direction. It's been tougher because obviously we know there's always someone on your tail, there's always someone ready to take your next job. Every day I'm here fighting and working as hard as I can to show that I'm giving it my ab because I love what I do. I've been smiling. I feel fine leaving the game, But I think what scares me most is like, Oh, they might try to get me out of here when I leave the field. That thought does creep into my head. Your thoughts on Royce, who usually is pretty candid with quotes like this, And also they traded away a third of his team at the deadline last year, so it wouldn't be crazy.

00:33:10
Speaker 2: Yeah, it's a real thing, and so I'm glad he said something because it's a lot. It's something that a lot of guys go through, especially when you're on a team like the Twins are right now. I had the that going in my head a lot in Kansas City. There was always talk about me getting traded. And the thing that I had going for me was I dated Moore as a GM who was always available to talk to, was very upfront with me about what was going on, and so I was very fortunate to have that, or I'd have been going through the same thing that that Royce is going through And doesn't sound like he has that that guy he trust in the front office where he can be like, hey man, what's going on.

00:33:46
Speaker 3: Am I going to be here?

00:33:47
Speaker 2: Am I not going to be here? What's the deal? And that's a big thing, and that weighs on you and it's part of the job that we have. But it is hard.

00:33:57
Speaker 4: I think this is something that nobody ever saw coming. Actally, Royce Lewis the one to one pick in the draft, like the fact that he's hitting one seventy, the fact that, yes, a lot of his teammates got sent away. But now he's been healthy and he's been out on the field and it hasn't been going well. Royce, welcome to the majority. You were the minority before in the sense that like you just you would play, you'd be healthy, and you would just bang.

00:34:24
Speaker 3: You just were.

00:34:25
Speaker 4: And he is such a positive person. Every time he talked to him, he's positive. So for him to be vulnerable and honest about where he's at right now, like somebody can take my job. It's no longer like wow, everybody wants Royce Lewis. If you can keep on the field, he's gonna be MVP type of candidate. He's got to figure it out, and that's a tough time to try to figure it out. But you know what, he's still young. We just talked about guys getting called up at twenty five. Like Royce Lewis is twenty six years old. He's going to turn twenty seven soon. He's got time. He's got to figure it out. And fortunately for him, he's on the twins or he can figure it out.

00:35:11
Speaker 1: All right, good stuff today, let's slap. It's Friday. Do you know what Sunday is?

00:35:15
Speaker 3: Crats Mama Day?

00:35:19
Speaker 1: And would you like to say a little shout out to any of the mind I get that you appreciate.

00:35:26
Speaker 4: Yeah, I thought I thought our special guests was I thought our special guest was going first, No Debrah, Happy Mother's Day.

00:35:34
Speaker 3: Thank you mom.

00:35:35
Speaker 4: As much as my mom was a proponent of me, the story I have for my mother is I was afraid when I was eleven to go play at the next level of Little League because there was the twelve year old kids and they scared the absolute crap out of me. And I told my mom I was afraid, and she was like, well, let's just go. Let's go to sign ups. If you're still afraid when you get there, then that's fine, you don't have to play baseball this year, So my mom pushed me. I signed up, and I wasn't afraid until I played with wit later in my career. But also, happy birthday to my wife, Sarah, who is the greatest baseball mom.

00:36:13
Speaker 3: Of all time.

00:36:14
Speaker 4: She's actually at a game today. We went fourteen straight days of going to games between softball and baseball, and not one of them's mine, So I'm not in the doghouse.

00:36:26
Speaker 1: Wow, happy birthday, star legendary, legendary on her birthday at a game.

00:36:31
Speaker 3: Even though crap, did I say happy birthday?

00:36:34
Speaker 1: You said, Oh, it's on her birthday. Happy mother's day, Happy.

00:36:37
Speaker 3: Mother, Happy mother's Day.

00:36:38
Speaker 1: That's brutal by me.

00:36:39
Speaker 3: I was excited about my scared of baseball story.

00:36:42
Speaker 1: Every day is Sarah's birthday at the Crats home. What do you got?

00:36:46
Speaker 3: Yeah?

00:36:47
Speaker 2: Obviously, Happy Happy mother's day to all the mothers out there, especially mine a mom Kissie. Yes her name is Kissy, and yes, that was a difficult time in high school having a mom named Kissy, But I always like to brag on her. She is the best athlete in our family. My dad was a great baseball player. But my mom was the true athlete. She was a five time state champion in tennis in high school at South Carolina, yes five times, not because she failed a grade, but because she won the state tournament as an eighth grader. She was that good, went on to play tennis at wake, and there's just been an incredible rock and support throughout my whole life, especially my baseball career and now that I'm in this young career in fatherhood. She's been a great grandma and so Mom always Happy Mother's Day to you. You're the best. And then my wife, Jordan, who's been just a dynamite rock star when it comes to raising our daughter, and this will be her second Mother's Day as a mom, So shout out to Jordan and my Mom.

00:37:50
Speaker 1: I like that name, Kissy. I think that's cool.

00:37:53
Speaker 3: Not at high school, I get that, although I.

00:37:57
Speaker 1: Mean where I'm doing the show today in Brooklyn. If I say too, the half Burrow will name their kids Kissy. They are always looking for something unique. So I think it's cool.

00:38:07
Speaker 3: I like it.

00:38:08
Speaker 1: Good stuff. Happy mothers say to my Ma. Rarely misses a show, even the ones I did back in the day when I looked twelve and they probably weren't very good. So appreciate you and all the moms behind the scenes for ft you know who you are that helped to you know, make your significant others better or your kids better, the whole deal. We love you, we appreciate you, and our best gift we can give you on our way out on a Friday is whatever Kratz is wearing on his massive dome.

00:38:37
Speaker 4: Wow, the Metropolitans. This is a big weekend for him. They need to step up. Lost a tough one to the Rocks on a controversial Grand Slam, but Caimberll's not your answer.

00:38:49
Speaker 3: The team needs to hit.

00:38:54
Speaker 1: They're playing a Diamondbacks team that wants to get themselves going a little bit too, so it might be difficult, It might be tough sledding. It is a big series. They're all a big series. When you start off super slow. Wait, great stuff, dude, Good to see you.

00:39:07
Speaker 2: Good to see you. You don't look twelve anymore. You look like fourteen.

00:39:09
Speaker 1: Now fourteen. I just shaved the other day, so I just shed like ten years of my life backwards. Good to note it. Good, good little weapon to have later on in life. Happy Friday, everyone, Happy Mother's Day See them Monday. Did you know that if your home run bet comes up short, and if you're using the Betamjam app, you've got the no Sweat home run token that can help you out if your bet doesn't clear the fences. Activate that token when your bet on any player to hit a home run in any MLB game. If that player fails to go yard, you'll get your stick back and bonus bets. Gambling problem or concerned, there's help. Call one eight hundred Gambling