2 Guys Talking Baseball
Dallas Danger and Brian Logan discuss the game of baseball. Two fans, two personalities, Two Guys!
2 Guys Talking Baseball
World Series Preview
What if a pitcher could unite a city, transcend a sport, and redefine the meaning of success? Join us as we celebrate the life and impact of Fernando Valenzuela, whose journey from a small village to a baseball legend is nothing short of remarkable. Through "Fernandomania," a cultural phenomenon that captured hearts worldwide, Fernando became a symbol of hope and pride, particularly within the Latino community. Our heartfelt reflections explore his incredible achievements, including winning the Cy Young, Rookie of the Year, and a World Series title—all in his rookie year. The Dodgers' decision to retire his number 34 was a tribute to his enduring legacy, and we share personal stories of how Fernando touched our lives and those of fans everywhere.
The debate over Fernando's Hall of Fame status takes center stage as we weigh the importance of cultural impact against traditional statistics. With humor and passion, we ponder whether the Hall should recognize players who shaped the game in ways numbers can't measure, drawing comparisons to other baseball figures like Pete Rose and Barry Bonds. Our conversation celebrates the richness Fernando brought to baseball, suggesting a more inclusive approach to honoring legends who changed the sport. As we reminisce about Fernando's unique wind-up and charismatic presence, we express our hope for his recognition alongside baseball's greats.
Anticipation builds for the World Series showdown—Yankees versus Dodgers—in what promises to be a clash for the ages. With historical significance and media frenzy, this matchup is more than just a game; it's an event that captures the essence of baseball's magic. We dissect strategies, analyze ticket prices, and share our predictions as stars like Soto, Judge, Mookie, and Shohei gear up for battle. This episode is a celebration of baseball's past, present, and future, inviting listeners to share in the excitement and passion that make this sport truly timeless.
welcome inside the three crows studios in morristown, tennessee. You are listening to two guys talking baseball. We are back and we are excited because we are finally down to the two teams and it's the two teams that I think, deep down, everybody wanted.
Speaker 2:My name is dallas danger and I'm joined, as always, by my best friend and colleague, brian logan.
Speaker 1:Well, it wasn't a great week. Dallas Danger, which is a little out of ordinary for us, so please excuse my delirium, as I have not had enough sleep in days and yeah, that's just kind of where we're at. But tonight is game one of the World Series. We're going to talk all about that, of course, and then we've got some interesting comments from the commissioner of Major League Base baseball regarding media strategies and, most importantly, the blackouts, the dreaded blackouts.
Speaker 2:We're going to get to the bottom of that.
Speaker 1:Well, these are very interesting comments.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:And I think we might be able to parlay that into something that nobody saw coming and maybe defending Manfred's term as commissioner just a little bit okay, that's, that's gonna be a lot well, you know we'll get into it, uh, but I suppose, uh, we should get the, the sad news out of the way.
Speaker 1:Yes, first and foremost, um, we learned this week of the passing of dodger legend, baseball legend and really just mexican legend. Yeah, fernando valenzuela, uh, at the age of 63, which you know good life, yeah, squeezed a lot of cool shit into 63 years.
Speaker 2:Yeah, but that's not very long.
Speaker 1:No, that's a little young and Fernando is sort of known for being a pretty private person, so I haven't really heard anything definitive on the cause. On the cause, there had been some reports you know recently that you know Fernando was not doing well, had been in the hospital and and things like that. Anyhow, you know this is, this is a. I mean, it's been a. It's been a rough five years for the Dodger community. We lose Tommy Lasorda and then a couple years ago we lost Vin Scully, and they were in their 90s, so not quite as sudden, not quite as unexpected. But now to lose Fernando as well. Somebody put Sandy Koufax in bubble wrap, please.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Because he's no spring chicken either. But, brian, I mean, when you talk about Fernando, there's so much there. I'll let you start. I don't know, we haven't talked about this off air. I don't know if, what, if any memories you have of 1981 and fernando mania because you were alive, I wasn't born yet yeah, and I'll, you know, expound upon that, uh, in a moment, um, but I'm I'm gonna kind of give you the floor first to talk about just fernando and the impact and fernando mania, and and and whatever else you feel the need to say.
Speaker 2:I mean, I think we've, we've turned these, you know, anytime somebody passes away, we've, we kind of don't really plan anything, right, we just sort of put their name on the format and this is almost like you and me processing our own grief about it, right, but with with, like with microphone live on air yeah, so, uh, so yeah, I mean, uh, give me what you got on for now well, I think that I'd like to describe him as the first rock and roll pitcher, because when he would take the mound, it was a happening and there was the big build-up, him getting to the mound and all that and and it just it was a mania, uh, like beetle mania.
Speaker 2:It just he was everywhere and it was just something special and you knew he was going to shut him down, yeah, you know, and it was just the build-up for him to uh, you know, to take the mound and actually get to see him start pitching and that was, that was very special, but he was everywhere. I mean, everybody just took to him and he was. He was an icon. Before there were icons, I mean, before we started putting everybody on these huge, huge, huge pedest, huge pedestals. I'm not saying, you know, your Sandy Koufaxes and some of those other guys weren't on huge pedestals, mickey Mantle and all those guys they were, but this was like a media pedestal.
Speaker 1:Right, and not just a baseball media. Yeah, it's a crossover. It really transcended that. And he was such a drawing card I heard some statistics that I don't remember, but just like when he was on the mound at Dodger Stadium, the bump in attendance, yeah, and it was like double that when he pitched on the road, yeah, I mean he was a touring act basically, and I've got some stats here.
Speaker 2:Okay, Real quick yeah go ahead, it was almost like he was. There's the Dodgers at that point. And then there was Fernando. They were the same thing, but they weren't the same thing. Yeah, you know, like what I was saying, rock and roll man he was. You know, getting started with the 80s, with everything being larger than life.
Speaker 1:He was definitely larger than life and larger than the dodgers yeah, no, he, he sort of stood on his own, you're right. Um so fernando valenzuela, as a 20 year old rookie, in 1981, had a 35-inning scoreless streak, started the All-Star game, won the Cy Young, the Rookie of the Year and the World Series title. No other pitcher in MLB history has accomplished all of those feats over their entire career, whether it was in the same season or not. And he did it all in one year, at 20 years old or not. Yeah, and he did it all in one year, at 20 years old. And you have to remember this is not the current modern developmental path. They literally found him in a small village in mexico yeah and you know he comes to america.
Speaker 1:He doesn't speak a lick of English.
Speaker 2:Which has got to be hard. Well, it's culture shock In the 80s.
Speaker 1:I mean it's hard now. Imagine in the 80s. Yeah, Culture shock, and just you know, was a phenomenon.
Speaker 1:Yeah it's funny. I've always viewed this in terms of Dodger history, but just the reaction to his passing. I've now realized that it was more than that. It's in baseball history. Yeah, there is a clear before Fernando and a clear after Fernando. Yeah, because he changed so much. And when you speak specifically about Los Angeles and Dodger Stadium, this is probably hard to grasp if you didn't live it, or at least get like me, get close enough that growing up, I heard all these stories.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:And I'll get more into that in a minute. Growing up, I heard all these stories and I'll get more into that in a minute. But because of the circumstances of the Dodgers moving to LA and building Dodger Stadium at Chavez Ravine and basically kicking a bunch of Mexican people out of their homes to build this ballpark, the Latino community did not feel safe at dodger stadium. It was not a place they went. It was not a place they wanted to go.
Speaker 1:Yeah, fernando was that bridge because, like you said, he was, he was, he was larger than life, he was a rock star everywhere he went. But in la they saw themselves themselves for the first fucking time and that's what got that community back to Dodger Stadium. And all these years later, that's why the Dodgers lead the league in attendance every single year. That's why they sell that place out on a random Tuesday in the middle of the season. It all goes back to Fernando and again there's a clear before and a clear after and I'm just stream of conscious here. I'm so happy and I've seen a lot of people share this sentiment I'm so happy that the Dodgers finally did the right thing last season and officially retired no 34 while he was still alive and healthy enough to be there and soak it in and enjoy it.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Because you know I don't know how many people listening know this Nobody was issued no 34 after Fernando. He was the last guy to wear it and he didn't pitch for the Dodgers past what? 1990? Yeah, you know, and it just took decades for whatever reason, and a big part of it is the Dodgers sort of have this policy of if you're not in the Hall of Fame, they're not going to retire your number. It's how they keep from being the yankees and having 50 retired numbers and right numbers retired for multiple guys and it just gets. It gets too much and, um, but I'm glad we got that and I'm glad he got that. Um, yeah, this is a tough one. Uh, it's a, it's a really difficult one, you know, um, so my and if I've told this on the podcast, it was back on the uh, the original episodes we did two years ago when we sort of did our introductions of who we were right at the beginning um, patreoncom, slash 2gtb.
Speaker 1:But my dodger story, you know, because I grew up in southwestern virginia, rural virginia, and we didn't have a team, you know a lot of people were braves fans because that was. You know, a lot of people were Braves fans because that was. You know, about the closest place, or at least one of the closest places, and you know the TBS Superstation coverage allowed a lot of people to be Braves fans, the same way that there were Cubs fans because of WGN and the reach of that station, in the reach of that station. And then, you know, a lot of my family were Oriole fans, you know, which I also think I spoke about on that first episode we did, and you know, introducing ourselves. But my aunt, my dad's sister, who is part of the reason I'm named Dallas in the first place, and that's all sports-related, another story for another day. But she had a crush on Steve Garvey and just sort of kept the Dodgers, yeah, and I picked up the Dodgers from her. So as a kid, again, I missed it.
Speaker 1:I was born four years after Fernando Mania but my aunt would tell me stories about fernando and and we're white, you know, we're, we're white southerners, you know, but the impact was still there, yeah, and bridged across cultures, absolutely, because he was an everyman, yeah, yeah, I mean everybody can get behind the kid that came from a shack in a village to the biggest stage and he delivers on the biggest stage, yeah, and he's got that weird wind-up where he looks up. And you know, I mean they made jokes about it in Bull Durham 1988, you know, the impact was just so widespread that it got to me, you know, years later. You know, thousands of miles from dodger stadium, um, I mean, he was for and and it was a brief period, don't get me wrong. But for that brief period he was the guy, yeah, in baseball and um, yeah, it's, you know, and and stuck, you know, after his playing days were done, stuck with the dodgers.
Speaker 1:You know, as a broadcaster, um, in that spanish booth with jaime harine and um booth with Jaime Harine and yeah, just just just an absolute larger than life, as you put it, character man, yeah, I mean just just yeah, I mean just really changed a lot. Oh, you know, in his time with the Dodgers, you know won a couple World Series and you know, in his time with the Dodgers, you know, won a couple world series and you know, obviously, the rookie year, rookie of the year in Cy Young in the same season and and all that.
Speaker 2:You know, just uh which is amazing, to do all that.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:You know, and we look back now, I mean the drinking age was lower than it was 18, but you know, in nowadays terms he did all that before he could buy a beer. You know that says something.
Speaker 1:Or rent a car, or rent a car yeah, I mean he just, I mean he's 20 years old and and and again, it's not a 20 year old from down the street, mean, this is a kid that got thrust from, you know, poverty, basically, yeah, into the bright lights of Hollywood, yeah, and then and took to it. Then he goes on the road and he's the big, like I said, he's the biggest drawing card in the world, at least in the country, yeah, at the time, world, at least in the country. Yeah, at the time. And um, everybody, everybody, you know, and it was just one of those, one of those deals where everybody wanted to get close to it, everybody wanted to feel it. Yeah, that's why, that's why they went to the ballpark he would walk down the street.
Speaker 2:They'd throw babies in the air just to clap I appreciate a little levity talking about this.
Speaker 1:But yeah, so you know, and we're going to get into the World Series a little bit later and there's plenty to talk about there but if this series goes six games, game six at Dodger Stadium will be on what would have been fernando's 64th birthday yeah and trying to script this stuff never works out. You know we talk about that constantly, only baseball, right, but how poetic would it be for the dodgers to win this thing in six.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, and that's actually my prediction we'll get into.
Speaker 1:So yeah, what else do you have? You got anything else on?
Speaker 2:No, I just loved watching him play and the windup was just so different than everything else that was out there, and I mean he's an icon. He'll never be forgotten and he shouldn't be um natalie alonzo, who I don't know.
Speaker 1:Uh, who she is. She? This tweet, just you know, my twitter for two days was nothing but fernando right of course, um, and I thought this was really well put. Um, obviously you can't see what I'm looking at, but it's's a photo of Fernando shaking the hand of a young boy who's in a pretty traditional Mexican outfit, with the sombrero and everything.
Speaker 2:Looks like he's in a mariachi band basically yeah, that's what I was going to say A charro outfit.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and she says, my favorite photo of Fernando Valenzuela, because it captures the joy and the magic of Fernando mania. The boy shaking his hand is proud to wear his Charo outfit, proud to be exactly who he is. Fernando mania was all about the power of representation and the power of authenticity. That's what brought those people back to the ballpark and they're still there. Yes, they're such a big part of that rich, thriving dodger fan base.
Speaker 1:Um, and now that the dodgers are on this run of success and all these people are being rewarded, um, you know, not just the Latino community but every Dodger fan now is being rewarded for toughing it out, because it was cool to like the Dodgers during Fernando Mania, it was cool to get behind the stuntmen and everybody in 88. Then we kind of had this long period where, outside of a few small pockets like Piazza, for a few years, adrian beltre when he was young, you know, and then maybe the 08 team that sort of brought together jeff kent, andrew jones, manny ramirez, joe tory was the manager, sort of sort of was like an all-star team. Yeah, um, outside, outside of those small pockets, it wasn't very cool to be a Dodger fan for a lot of years and that's hard to believe now, because you got people walking around everywhere wearing the Dodger caps. Now, yeah, and I mean being from the part of the country we're from, I think I sort of get. I think people just assume I'm a bandwagoner.
Speaker 2:Right, they don't realize it's an and that's okay, I don't care Like it.
Speaker 1:You know, other people's opinion doesn't really affect me much these days, but I'm here to tell you we suffered through a lot to get to this, this great run, and we're going to talk at length about this and the historical significance, uh, from a couple different angles. When we talk about the, when we do our world series preview here here in a little bit, but yeah, I mean, it's just the cultural impact that fernando had. Um is completely immeasurable. Um, it can't be quantified. It's. It's bigger than the game, it's bigger than any strife. Culturally. It it brought people together. Yeah, that would not have been brought together, naturally, yeah, and I think they're mending fences over there in la during that time.
Speaker 2:They're getting it.
Speaker 1:They're getting it right right and I think you know we talked about this a little bit last night off the air, brian the the way that the dodgers organization now and the ownership now treats the latino community, yeah, um, it's almost like reparations. Yeah, they give back to that community as much as they can. They celebrate that community constantly, and they should, not only because the way that they acquired the land for Dodger Stadium was so fucked up, but because once Fernando got on that mound, they all came rushing back. Yeah, and they've never left. Yeah, you know, and it just um, yeah, I mean, it's, it's. It's similar to when vin passed everybody has a vin story, everybody has a tommy lasorda story, everybody's got their fernando story. Yeah, and yeah, it just uh, he mattered so much.
Speaker 1:I've heard this question posed a couple times online and on other podcasts. Brian, should Fernando be in the Hall of Fame Now statistically? No, okay, didn't have the longevity, was a great pitcher for a few years and then a pretty good one for most of his career. Yeah, turned to really turn into a journeyman, which a lot of people forget because, again, the impact when he was with the dodgers was so high. Um, but just from a, I mean jeff snyder on locked on Dodgers, who I really enjoy listening to every day, made a really good point. It's not the Hall of Numbers, it's not the Hall of Stats, it's the Hall of Fame.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and there was nobody at a time in this country and in Mexico where anybody was any more popular.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so yeah, what say you?
Speaker 2:I think he should be in the Hall of Fame.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I mean, and it would be a little bittersweet to put him in now posthumously.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that's always a tough one.
Speaker 1:It is tough and we broached that with Pete in a very different way, obviously.
Speaker 2:But this one's different because there's no other. He didn't get caught gambling.
Speaker 1:Right, yeah, no, no, no, it's a totally different situation so this, this one would be okay, I think I think so too.
Speaker 1:I don't know that it'll happen. I don't know that it needs to happen. Yeah, I think the dodgers made it, made right by him retiring the number, which is sort of de facto. You're a hall of famer and yeah, we, we understand that. Um, but yeah, I'm inclined to agree and I'm also, and you know, if you've been listening to the show for a while, you know I think the Hall of Fame should have a lot more open door than it does. Yeah, this nitpicky keeping everybody out crap is for the birds.
Speaker 2:Well, I mean, here's the thing name somebody between a pitcher, between 81, and say 85, that was any bigger than him, besides a nolan ryan yeah, nobody nobody, nobody, yeah, I mean so he's.
Speaker 2:He should go in there based on that. I mean based on his fame and his popularity, because the numbers are strong enough. It's not like he sucked, he's not Euchre. You know what I'm saying. Where he's popular, everybody loves him, but when you get down to it, he was a terrible player. Sure, yeah, this guy was good, yep, and everybody loves him. He should be in there. Yeah, you know, yep and everybody loves him, he should be in there. Yeah, you know. Yeah, uh, like I said, I'm inclined to agree. I mean, how do?
Speaker 1:you have a hall of fame and he's not in it. Well, I mean, pete rose isn't there, barry bonds isn't there?
Speaker 2:I mean, I could go on we need to start our own, get the people on the line I'll build it in the backyard I just I say it all the time cooperstown should be the museum, yes, of the history of the game.
Speaker 1:Yes, and I understand the people that are bitter about the steroid stuff. I get it, you know, and I understand the the statistical side of it. I'm usually the stats guy but you know, um, something's got to give, yeah, something's got to give on this hall of fame, yeah, and we're not going to get long-winded about that today. You didn't like my idea for building. Something's got to give, yeah, something's got to give on this Hall of Fame, yeah, and we're not going to get long-winded about that today.
Speaker 2:You didn't like my idea for building it in the backyard. We'll get the people, we'll get them all here.
Speaker 1:I think it's well-established. I'm never going into business with you, ever again, okay.
Speaker 2:Well, it's a nonprofit.
Speaker 1:It's a 501c Even worse.
Speaker 2:Even worse.
Speaker 1:I mean, can you imagine how terrible I can mess that up? I mean that would be the type of shit that people write books about. All right, so, yeah, you got anything else. On Fernando, we love Fernando. Yeah, we love you, fernando. I hope you're up there with Vin and Tommy having a great time and, you know, maybe you can hit the mound in the cornfield.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that'd be cool. That's a good thought.
Speaker 1:I like that For sure. So with that we're going to move on. So if you are a baseball fan, you are probably familiar with the term blackout and the way that blackouts work with Major League Baseball, especially with the TV package where you can watch every quote out of market game. We live in East Tennessee. We are Brian. What's the car ride to Cincinnati? We live in East Tennessee. We are Brian. What's the car ride to Cincinnati?
Speaker 2:Cincinnati is about three and a half four, depending on which route you go. Yeah, chicago is five hours. Yeah, and Atlanta is four.
Speaker 1:Right, so we are. We cannot watch live Braves games or Reds games. Right, so we cannot watch live Braves games or Reds games. Right, the Braves almost makes sense, because if you have live TV or cable of some sort, you can probably get the Braves regional network. Yeah, cincinnati, we don't even have access to.
Speaker 2:No no.
Speaker 1:Cincinnati. We don't even have access to no, no, and it's maddening. Yeah, because we pay a premium price for the yearly package in the hopes of being able to watch, every day, every game. My goal is to watch as close to 162 as I can stomach, and we come pretty damn close.
Speaker 1:Well, yeah, a couple years ago they sent out the stat you know the stat email and I was in the top 7% of viewership on the app period and I was in the top 1% of Dodger viewership, I think. That year it gave me credit for 116 games, and that doesn't count national broadcasts that I didn't watch on the app. That doesn't count games I watched at your place on your app Right. So there's a lot of Cubs games mixed in there too. Yeah, so yeah, we milk every penny out of that subscription every year.
Speaker 2:You might be. If you're in the 1% of the Dodgers viewership, you may be the greatest Dodger fan of all time.
Speaker 1:I'd like to think so, I know, I know, especially, I mean, for a guy who's never been to Dodger Stadium. You know that's pretty damn good.
Speaker 2:I think that's the one thing that's keeping you out of it pal.
Speaker 1:Yeah, well, it's way the fuck over. There it is.
Speaker 2:It's way the fuck over there. It is it's way out there, and shit's expensive in LA.
Speaker 1:Yes, yes, and I'm broke. Patreoncom slash 2GTB. We'll sneak that one in every chance I get today.
Speaker 2:Yeah, We'll plug the heck out of that.
Speaker 1:All right. So Rob Manfred, the commissioner of Major League Baseball much maligned, I think, is a good way to talk about him. A Much maligned, I think, is a good way to talk about him. A lot of heat.
Speaker 1:He was on the Varsity podcast and he sort of spoke about the current media strategy and moving forward. So I'm just going to read a bunch of quotes, what exactly Manfred said and then we're going to discuss it, okay. So, um, here we go, quote as we started to think about the landscape more generally, we came to realize that our broadcast product needs to be more national, like most crises and now he's calling this a crisis. Okay, the difficulties with the RSN's regional sport networks presented an opportunity for us to get into a more centralized media strategy. You know, the RSN's were really good for us from a financial perspective, but they did make the game more and more local and did not give us a full opportunity for reach. Right. And then it goes into basically the fact that, starting next season, the league is going to be in control of six teams, a fifth of the league. Their regional broadcasts are now controlled by Major League Baseball, not a third-party network. Right, we'll go back to some quotes.
Speaker 1:What I'd like to see happen over time is we do our national deals, that we convert some of that local inventory into national inventory deals. That we convert some of that local inventory into national inventory. It increases our reach and at the same time, when you think about it, we own the out-of-market rights already. If we control local rights as well, we can sell anything anywhere. Right, you don't have to just sell in your market. And I'd like to get into a mode where, if it's not in a national package, the consumer has the ability to go in, buy what he wants to watch wherever he is, and we get rid of that really questionable business concept of the blackout, meaning not letting people who want to watch watch. Right, I mean, this is monumental. For those words to come out of Manfred's mouth. He called it a crisis. That is not a flippant comment. That is not something that you that's not a word you just use to describe a situation because it's changing and evolving.
Speaker 2:Right, you don't just whip that thing out willy-nilly.
Speaker 1:I don't think so. I don't think so, and he's right why, if these regional networks are largely failing and he even admitted, he even admitted the reason that we've gone on this long with this system, and it's the money, the. The current model is very lucrative financially for the teams and for baseball as a whole. Right, but we're failing the fans, and that's what he's saying here. We're failing the fan by not allowing them access some way somehow to watch, watch the games that they want to watch. Right, I don't know, and you know, I don't know what it looks like getting out of this, because for the six that have failed, talking about the regional networks, there are some that are going to be tough to get around. You look at the Dodgers and the Cubs, two teams we talk about the most here. They both own their own regional networks. The team, the organization produces the games, yeah, you know. And the cubs, you know, had a pretty good strategy. You can, you can quibble about the execution so far with the marquee sports network well, the app is better on that.
Speaker 1:We'll get into that here in a minute too yeah, but um, I really like hearing this yeah, I too Right from the horse's mouth. Yeah, because the blackouts make no sense, they're ridiculous. And heaven forbid you live in the Midwest, out in the plains, because you're blacked out from like the four closest teams.
Speaker 1:Yeah, you're just in the middle of nowhere and you're screwed, so why not just go watch football, right, or whatever else is on in the teams? Yeah, you're just in the middle of nowhere, so you're screwed. So why not just go watch football, right, or whatever else is on in the summer?
Speaker 2:Yeah, you know, saying that that geographic area isn't important and your revenue money is not important. I mean, that's bad business.
Speaker 1:And beyond the money and the business side of it, it's just shitty.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:You're not allowing people based on where they live, which you know a lot of people can't help. Right, you're, you're. You're basically saying, because of this, you know aspect of your life that you can't control, you can't be a fan of this game or this team or watch this team, or you know it's, it's.
Speaker 1:They've put the money ahead of the fans and I think that's what manfred is trying to get out here. Yeah, is you know what? We're doing? Pretty good, and while the money's been great, we don't need that money. Yeah, we don't need it. We can allocate shit differently and open this thing up so everybody who wants to watch every game can watch every game yeah, did I.
Speaker 2:I don't know if you know this or not. Correct me if I am wrong, which I may be, but isn't bally sports going off air?
Speaker 1:that's, yeah, their bally is largely one. You know one of the culprits of these failed regional networks. Yeah, because that's yeah, their bally is largely one you know one of the culprits of these failed regional networks yeah, because that's where we watch.
Speaker 2:Uh, the braves here, when you have to go on bally and it's just going away. You know what are they going to do? I guess they'll go to fsn1 well, and again it's, it's, it's.
Speaker 1:The league is taking these, these, the responsibility. Yeah, you know they were already doing it for the Padres and maybe the Rockies, I don't remember At the start of next year it's going to be 16. Right, they don't have a network. Yeah, the league is just producing the games and operating it largely like a regional network. Yeah yeah, so you know, yeah, so you know.
Speaker 2:Well, and the thing with the marquee sports with the Cubs was the first year that you only could get it in the Chicagoland area, and that kind of ticked me off, because they ballyhooed this thing to where it was going to be the end-all Cub app, Right. And then they came back and this past year you can now get the app anywhere, but it's like $20-some dollars, so it's like as much as the other MLBTV per month. So you know, what do you do? I can get all of them or I can just get the Cubs. You know, and I watch more than just the cubs, right? So while that is a stride in the correct direction, it is not the solution overall it is not, I agree.
Speaker 1:Um, I see where the cubs were going. It probably was not a bad idea. But, um, yeah, we know, and maybe that is the solution. If we lift the blackouts, yeah, and allow shit like that, maybe that is the solution. Yeah, it's not right now, but I could see where that was part of the solution. Right, because that's the tricky thing is, it's not like it's one contract you've got to redo, it's 30. Yeah, and everybody's is different and some are doing well and obviously some aren't, because they're failing and closing and being taken over by the league, like, like I've reiterated so much, um, here's the bigger question.
Speaker 2:Okay, you would think that, before you start at pose that question, you would think each team would want to control their own destiny with their, with their tv rights I think they do.
Speaker 1:but what do you know what happens when the regional network goes bankrupt? Right, right, it's not like there's regional support networks just waiting for you to call them, right, hey, we, we need somewhere to put our games, yeah yeah.
Speaker 1:Will you pay us all this money? I mean it just the current system is failing, so there's got to be a new system put in place and it can only get better. Yeah, I mean, I say that it could get worse, but this tells me that they're moving in a new direction and it's not gonna be worse. Yeah, they're gonna improve things. Now here's the bigger question I want to get into, and I alluded to this at the at the open. Manford takes a lot of shit. Some of it deserved. Um, the way he handled 2017 was, frankly, an abomination. Yeah, given the players' immunity, letting them keep the distinction of 2017 world champions.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Inexcusable Mm-hmm, not okay. If you put that aside. Look at the health of this game. Look at the growth of this game since Manfred took over as commissioner. Everybody, myself included, was terrified of the minor leagues being restructured a few years ago, right in the middle of the pandemic. It's a dark time anyway and, as we've mentioned several times on this show, we live right in the thick of the Appalachian League and it was an affected league. So for a long time it was just the not knowing right. So there was a lot of speculation and a lot of well, what if this happens? Well, it could be this bad, yeah, so on, so forth. At the end of the day and I get it, there were, there were teams that had to, without affiliation, but I think that already that has shown itself to be a success.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Because without the restructuring, without the new path, I don't know that Paul Skeens gets to the major leagues as quickly as he did. Okay, that's a good point, because we're shortening the path for these players, right, and I use paul skeens as an example. But the reality of the situation is we are opening this game up to young black kids, yeah, in a way that it was not open to them previously. And I'm not saying it's all fixed and it's all better. It's a process, but this process is working. It is improving the health of baseball in this country.
Speaker 1:We've got lightning in a bottle with the level of talent, especially at the top. Especially at the top, I mean back up 25 years and insert Bryce Harper and he's all anybody's talking about. Oh yeah, we rarely talk about Bryce, right, because we've got Shohei Otani and fucking Ronald Acuna Jr and Aaron Judge and all these guys. And then the pitching is so far ahead of the hitters right now, because of the technology and the way that we're looking and analyzing pitching. Right now this game is as healthy as it's been in a very long time. Right, if blackouts come to an end while Rob Manfred is still commissioner, we have to rewrite the fucking narrative on him.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I agree with that, because he has done and his regime, because it's not just him, it's a whole office, it's a whole bunch of people doing a whole lot of different things. His regime needs to go down positively, yeah, especially if he ends blackouts yeah, yeah, uh, he needs to open it up to all the fans.
Speaker 2:I mean that the uh make it available for everybody, um, not just for revenue purposes, but for just entertainment purposes and good for the game. And uh, I think that that sounds like what he's trying to do, or at least wants to do. I like the wording of crisis, because that's what it is. Yeah, and you, you got to address it as such. It's not something you can hem haul around on for four seasons and miss every, because you're going to turn all those fans off.
Speaker 1:Once you lose them, they're not coming back yeah, I mean, I, I fear, I fear that that's true, um, but but yeah, very encouraged by these comments, I think, um, yeah, I just think that this is a little surprising for a lot of people hearing this come from manfred, right, he's not the best public speaker, you know, so he takes a lot of grief for statements he makes and things, but this was, this was coming from a real place. Yeah, you know, I mean the fact that more than once in these, in these quotes, he, he's like looking at the host, going right, like I mean duh, yeah, like obviously right, what I'm saying, you know. And now's the time. Oh, absolutely Now is the time, because the cool thing about the internet is it's not exclusive to America.
Speaker 1:Right, it's everywhere, brian, I know you're not familiar with anime, but there's a very popular anime that's been running for a long time called one piece. Okay, and you, you'd actually dig it, because they do a lot of wrestling references. Okay, uh, very popular. They are delaying the season premiere of one piece to air game, one of the world series in japan yeah, that's huge that's. That's what the Shohei factor is doing. Yeah, that pipeline is only going to keep flowing.
Speaker 2:Well and that's going to allude to points that I'm going to make later when we get to the series talk so that's something we need to remember there. I mean, that's huge. That's a whole country that's going to put one of their major entertainment sources off so you can watch something bigger and better.
Speaker 1:Right, that's going on in America.
Speaker 2:It's going on, yes, across the pond, absolutely.
Speaker 1:So you know and that's another conversation we can have another day you know this Japanese pipeline because the talent pool over there is real. I mean, if you watch the last World Baseball Classic, you know Japan is pumping out some talent, a lot of talent and a lot of talent and a lot of young talent. I mean, look at yoshinobu yamamoto, 25 years old, comes right into the big leagues, skips any development, development, minor leagues, any of that yeah he's, he's, he's thrust into it biggest contract for a pitcher, all that stuff, um, and there's more coming.
Speaker 1:Yeah, roki Sasaki is going to maybe be bigger than Yamamoto. I mean, there are guys over there waiting in the wings for their chance to post and come over here that are going to be franchise-altering talents.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:You know, and it's amazing, it's so cool. Um, yeah, this, this could be big. That's why I wanted to make sure we got we got some discussion on this on the show this week.
Speaker 2:Yeah, we'll just have to wait and see how it pans out, but it sounds like they're dressed for the part and they're heading in the right direction.
Speaker 1:And that's, you know, that's 50 of it right, yeah, that's half the battle the will to do something about it and the and the admission, yes, that while we're making money, hand over fist with this, this model, it's not working for the fans yes exactly, and that is huge yeah, I mean.
Speaker 2:I mean when we come around, so when the cubs play the reds and the braves, I have to wait an hour and a half after it airs to watch if you're lucky, if you're lucky, that's a loose hour and a half and then then we do it again with the the dodgers, because I watch both teams, so we got to deal with that, and sometimes that's back to back. Oh yeah, well, the dodgers, because I watch both teams, so we got to deal with that, and sometimes that's back to back oh yeah.
Speaker 1:Well, the dodgers will go on the road and play cincinnati and atlanta back to back and I don't get to watch for a week yeah, and we can't have that no we, as fans, like we are, we can't have it.
Speaker 2:I mean this we went without it for four days to to get to the big game, and it's killing us.
Speaker 1:It is killing us, so let's. I guess that's a good place to segue.
Speaker 2:I'm watching cartoons, for goodness sake, Not anime cartoons. I almost did the voice American wife.
Speaker 1:More inside jokes that y'all don't get. So I don't know, suck it.
Speaker 2:Whatever?
Speaker 1:We do what we want on this show, all so, let's get into it, man. I mean, we've waited four days, you know. But I'll start with this. I'm glad we got the four days, okay, because you know if, if it's any other year, if, like, if it's last year and it's rangers diamondbacks, I don't think this is important. But this is the juggernaut against the juggernaut. Yep, this is the top seed against the top seed. Yep, this is the two winningest fucking franchises, basically, of all time it was billed as the irresistible force meeting the immovable object and because both teams clinched their league championship series as far ahead of time as they did.
Speaker 1:There's no excuses. Yeah, well, this team had more of a layoff, so they got to line their pitching. Both teams pitching is lined up exactly the way they want it. Yep, nobody can I mean? I mean it's nut-cutting time now.
Speaker 2:I'm going to go on record and say this we discussed it off-air and we can discuss it on-air. I think this is the single most important World Series in our lifetime.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's. I don't know if I'm. Here's the thing I think that's yet to be determined it could be. If this thing is the title fight that everybody's expecting, if this thing is just a dog fight, every run matters so much. We go seven games, it goes down to the wire. The big stars come out the Sotos, the Judges, the judges, the mookies, the shoheys, they all shine and it's it's. It's the yankees best versus the dodgers best, I, I think.
Speaker 2:I think there might be something to what you're saying yeah, I mean you had mentioned the cubs winning, but let me pose this to you had the Cubs not won and the Guardians had won, or Cleveland, whatever they were, then would we be saying 2016 was such a great game? It was a great emotional game. This is a hyped game. This is chess 3D chess. This is all the players on the left is all the players on the left, all the players on the right and uh, they're lined up, they're taking their positions, they're ready to clash. I mean, we have this build up that we haven't had the build up before, like you had the cubs. Can the cubs win? Is this their opportunity? It took them a hundred and some years to get there, but the other team, they weren't hyping.
Speaker 1:This is two teams I don't agree with that, though, because you know you're basically in 2016 and we're getting a little off base here, but that's you know, that's what we do. Yeah, I think it was. It was like the two biggest, the two longest droughts against each other, you know, because cleveland at that, that point, I think it was 60-some years. Okay, so it just you know, and again, I remember watching a lot of that postseason and as we started to see it was going to be Cubs and Cleveland.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:I think it started. That's when the impact started to sink in, because now it's more than who wins the championship yeah, it's. Is the world going to suddenly end before this series is over? Because it doesn't make sense that it's either going to be Cleveland or the Cubs yeah, and then the rain came, and then the rain came. Doesn't make sense. That are that it's either going to be cleveland or the cubs yeah, um, and then the rain came and then the rain came and it proved that god was a cubs fan and jason hayward turned into vince lombardi, apparently.
Speaker 1:Speeches of all speeches yeah, I mean this, this is a, this is a big one. I mean know we can quibble about most important and all that later.
Speaker 2:I just wanted to go on record and say it so that when it comes out I can say I said it, that's right, I said it, that's right, I said it.
Speaker 1:Shout out to Budro yeah, we miss you. Rest in peace. And shout out to Mike Vanik, the fearless leader of pirate flag radio, because he called, uh a while back, yankees dodgers, which might seem like the low-hanging fruit, but we were on this show in the middle of the season and I mean, I'm putting the royals in the world series, yeah yeah, we, we.
Speaker 2:Well, we eliminated the dodgers just to make it interesting.
Speaker 1:But at that point the confidence wasn't there in this Dodgers team. Yeah, yeah, I mean they really cleaned up at the deadline, yeah, and a lot of people, a lot of Dodger fans, were kind of questioning the trade deadline because it's like, wait, that's all we got. Well, you got your closer or or one of your high leverage relievers. I mean the dodgers are really closer by committee at this point yeah and if there is a closer, it's blake trinan.
Speaker 1:Um, but you got kopec, who turned into a really important arm out of that bullpen. And you got tommy edmund, who was the national league championship series mvp. Yeah, in a series, mind you, where two guys, max muncy and shohei otani, got on base more than any other dodger in a postseason series ever. Right, they both set that new record and everybody was like, well, tommy edmund's obviously the mvp. Yeah, that was the offensive production and that that's what. When this team got put together, even even you know, a couple years ago, before shohei, that is sort of what we all as dodger fans were salivating over, the possibility that we could have a team average eight runs a game in the national league championship series yeah average six plus a game through through a postseason run yeah, when nobody else is scoring for a game what's your over under on the number of home runs per per game?
Speaker 2:I think it's going to be up there because I'm going to say six A game, both teams combined that's a lot, I know. I think that's what we're going to get.
Speaker 1:I don't think it'll be that many. I think the pitching's still too good. Yeah, there's going to be some home runs, though. I mean it's the first time in history that 250-plus home run hitters are facing each other in the World Series. It's the first time since, I think, 1956 that the American League home run leader and the National League home run leader are facing each other in the World Series. Also, dodgers-yankees Shout out to the boys of summer yeah, but let's talk a little bit.
Speaker 1:The ALCS was really an interesting series and I know it only went five games, but that game was it? Game three that cleveland won? Yeah, where they're down to their last out in the ninth and noel hits a rocket to tie it yeah, then they're down to their. They're down to their last out in the 10th and dav David Fry hits one to win it. And Sarah Langs who, if you're a baseball fan, especially if you like stats, sarah Langs is an absolute must-follow on the Twitter machine at Slangs on Sports Also does a lot of great work for ALS because she suffers from ALS herself. So she is one of the torchbearers, so to speak, for Lou Gehrig Day every year. Okay, so check that out too. But here's a tweet from her and I've probably got a couple today.
Speaker 1:There were five game-tying or go-ahead home runs in the eighth inning or later in the ALCS the most in a single postseason series ever. In addition, there have been 11 game-tying or go-ahead home runs in the eighth or later in the entire postseason, which breaks a tie for the most in a single postseason. And yeah, we play more postseason games now and you know, go be miserable somewhere fucking else. I'm making a point we predicted all along, because of the parody we had this year, nobody won 100 games. Yeah, everybody was. The pack was all kind of bunched together. We, we, we saw this coming. Yeah, we knew this postseason was going to be a dog fight on both sides and that's what it took for us to get back to dodgers yankees yeah because at the end of the day, we talked all year about the Grimace Mets love that team.
Speaker 1:Um, one of my brothers is a Mets fan. We texted a lot during the NLCS and when the Dodgers clinched it, the first thing I did was text my brother and I said hey, man, that was a hell of a season.
Speaker 2:I really hope y'all get Pete back yeah, and I think we would have rooted for them if it was any of the 27 other teams.
Speaker 1:You know, not the dodgers, not the cubs, and you know they're of course playing so well, if it was them and yankees it definitely, we definitely would have been rooting for grimace and yeah, um, but yeah, so, um, I want. I want to talk about Dave Roberts for a minute Okay. If you are an avid listener to this show, first off, thank you. We love you, we do. But secondly, you know that I do not suffer this constant Dave Roberts hate because the man is playing chess when everybody else is playing checkers. Yep.
Speaker 2:Best coach in baseball.
Speaker 1:And you know, brian, when you and I first sort of became friends, you put him and Joe Maddon on a level, two best minds and now Joe Maddon's name doesn't come up anymore. No, he doesn't, no. He sort of phased out. He's phoning it in. He phased out.
Speaker 2:He's getting his retirement money Ph.
Speaker 1:He phased out he's phoning it in.
Speaker 2:He phased out he's getting his retirement money Phased out, no big deal. I mean, he won the big one and then he went on and he's just getting his years in and getting his money so he can retire and there's nothing wrong with that yeah. We've all been there.
Speaker 1:I want to read a couple tweets here. Okay, first off, fabian Ardaya, great Dodgers reporter Managers to win four or more pennants with one team since the postseason expanded beyond just the World Series in 1969. Listen to this fucking list Earl Weaver with the Orioles, sparky Anderson with the Big Red Machine, tommy Lasorda with the Dodgers, bobby Cox with the Braves, joe Torre with the Yankees, dave Roberts with the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Speaker 2:Yeah, Some pretty good names there.
Speaker 1:There's the fucking ticket prices, which we might talk about in a minute. Okay, where's my thing? Okay, okay, uh, where's my thing? Okay, dave roberts now has the sixth most managerial wins in postseason history. And again I get it more postseason games now. Yada, yada, yada, shut the fuck up. Yeah, jeff snyder again locked on dodgers. He averaged the managerial careers of the five guys ahead of Roberts on that list. Those five guys average 29 seasons, 4,525 regular season games managed. Dave Roberts has managed for nine seasons and has 1,358 regular season games. Yeah, that's the context of that stat that matters. He's 52. Yeah, he's going to manage for a long time. Hopefully, manage the Dodgers. That stat that matters. He's 52. Yeah, he's going to manage for a long time. Hopefully, manage the Dodgers for a long time.
Speaker 2:You told me that earlier and I'm like he's like my age, I mean I'm not 52 yet, but I'm in there. We could have been pals. I mean, Call him up, See if he wants to be my friend.
Speaker 1:I can't put him over enough. He has just done so much in such a short amount of time and he has put this Dodger organization over that hump. Yeah, Because they were knocking on the door for several years and Don Mattingly did a lot of good. I liked Don. I'll be honest, when Don Mattingly was out and we hired Dave Roberts, I kind of went wait, what are we doing? We're moving in the right direction. Why are we changing course all?
Speaker 1:of a sudden Right and it was cool to have Donnie Baseball managing the Dodgers. That was just cool. But second year Dave puts them in the World Series and they should have won that damn thing. They should be the 2017 World Series champions. I'll go to my grave with that.
Speaker 2:Yeah, you're hot about it and you should be.
Speaker 1:Well, it was funny because when the news came out about the cheating scandal in 2020 or whenever it was, everybody thought oh, this will blow over. They're gonna get the hate for a year, maybe two.
Speaker 1:I will never forgive those guys, yeah yeah, no, they shouldn't be in 30 years, if jose altuve walks into dodger stadium, he's gonna get booed out of the building. Uh-huh, it is a life sentence. Yep, you got to keep the ring. You got to keep the distinction of champions. When you cheated, you knew the pitches that were coming. So guess what, if baseball is not going to punish you, the fans will. It is a life sentence, and that's all I have to say about that. All right, you want to talk ticket prices? Sure, brother.
Speaker 1:I bet they're up there 25 grand for front row the world series between the dodgers and yankees is sold out and there are no tickets under a thousand dollars on the secondary market. Wow, the?
Speaker 2:I mean it's a thousand dollar buy-in to get the nosebleeds right, um does it say what road would cost, because I'm telling you it's up there vamp well, yeah, I mean a thousand dollars for tickets. I mean the all-star game tickets were, were than that and you get to see everybody. I mean this is super important. I imagine the tickets are astronomical, just astronomical. He's looking up on the Google machine. I know you guys who listen always love when we Google stuff. But that's all right, we'll get it, we'll find it, we hope.
Speaker 1:I'm working on it.
Speaker 2:Yeah, we'll get it. We hope I'm I'm working on it. Yeah, we'll get it. But uh, I mean it must be nice to go and pay a thousand dollars for a nosebleed seat and have it like that. I mean that that's a lot.
Speaker 1:Okay, so just based on this headline, the Yankee a Yankee home game could cost you five grand.
Speaker 2:Okay.
Speaker 1:I'm doing some digging the average. Okay, five grand. Okay, I'm doing some digging the average okay here. Here's your average. That was your buy-in, that was your cheap seat standing room only thousand bucks. The average price for a world series ticket in the secondary market is three thousand eight hundred eighty seven dollars. Wow, that's according to ticket ticket iq. Ticket iq don't know who they are, but that's their estimate.
Speaker 2:They're very smart about tickets.
Speaker 1:The only. Okay, so the Yankees and Dodgers are second and third for the average ticket price in the last decade. The Cubs in 2016 is the only one higher. Okay, makes sense. Six thousand six hundred dollars was the average ticket for that shit yeah, yeah I mean that, but that again that was.
Speaker 2:That was you hadn't been seen in prep. That's your competition for importance here.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah um, fuck the astros anyways. So, yeah, I mean, this is, this is big, this is. You might be right, man. I hate to say it, but you might be right. Yeah, I think it is.
Speaker 2:This might be the most important of our lifetime I mean, you've got, you've got, uh, it's equivalent to rick flair and sting. It's a clue, uh, to darth vader and luke skywalker. I mean, it's the 250 home run plus guys meeting each other. Can they carry their teams on their back solely? You know? And here's a good question for you how do you think otani does tonight his first world series?
Speaker 1:I bet he's swinging at everything I hope not, because that's what garrett cole is counting on. Yep, because garrett cole needs you to chase and this dodger team.
Speaker 2:They don't swing at bullshit yeah, I bet otani that those low ones he loves to jack out and just knock the cover off, I bet. I bet he swings at all of those. Now, I don't think game two he does that. I think he smartens up, but I think tonight he, he, he just goes wild.
Speaker 1:I don't think that's the case in the first inning. I think they're going to be patient because they have to. Okay, and here's the thing if cole just dots the the edges all night, you tip your cap and hope that your pitching matches him and at least keeps you in the game.
Speaker 2:Well, I mean, he's going to be the first hitter in the bottom half. And see, I disagree with you. I think he's going to swing at everything the first, go around and then smarten up for the second and third appearance.
Speaker 1:Maybe, maybe, but I think the strategy, I think the game plan is going to be patience around and then smarten up for the second and third appearance. Maybe, maybe, but I think I think the strategy, I think the game plan is going to be patience well, yeah, that's what they're telling them.
Speaker 2:But I mean yeah, how can you not? I mean okay let me say this if he does hold back and actually picks his his pitches, what discipline? Because I mean he's waited his whole life for this no, I get what you're saying.
Speaker 1:If garrett cole gives him something juicy, I mean he's, he's, he's trying to hit it out. Yeah, you're, you're not wrong about that for sure. Um, so I mean, let's get into it, man. Let's, uh, let's talk predictions. I mean, yeah, let's, what do you think's gonna happen? Dodgers in six? Yeah, I mean, elaborate, give me, give me more I see a lot of runs.
Speaker 2:I see these so-called pitchers that are going to be so great are not gonna. They may be good for the first couple of innings, but I think they're. The balls are going to launch, I think. I think all these hitters are pumped up and they're ready and I think the pitchers are just going to be surprised when everything's going Maybe like an 8-6 score in the first two games, something like that going with the Dodgers, and then the reverse when we're in New new york, you know I.
Speaker 1:So I think I think the dodgers takes it yeah, um, I'm also going to go dodgers in six, for a couple reasons. Number one I'm not picking against them, it ain't happening. Number two the, the, the poetry of winning it on Fernando's birthday. Yep, when you've got his name and number on your sleeve. And I don't want a game seven on my birthday man.
Speaker 2:Well, I mean okay, so, being on Fernando Day, which I guess that's what they're calling it, that's what I'm calling it I look for the Dodgers to come out strong, the Yankees to rebuke or come back, and they are pumped for Fernando Day. Do it for Fernando and just bring it home. You know, just big time, yeah, because it's kind of anticlimactic. On the seventh game, you know just big time, yeah, because it's kind of anticlimactic on the seventh. On the seventh game, you know, I mean it's, it's, it's. I just think it'll go six, no matter who wins yeah, yeah, well, yeah, I mean I mean, we could be here next week saying hell, they went seven you know?
Speaker 1:Yeah, I mean, here's the thing this is about as evenly matched as a World Series has been in a while.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that's another thing for it being huge.
Speaker 1:It's tough to call. Yeah, it really is. I mean, there are not a lot of weaknesses on either side. It's going to come down to execution yeah, it's king kong versus godzilla yeah, 100 it's.
Speaker 1:It's again, like I said earlier, it's juggernaut versus juggernaut. Yeah, this is the two teams that were supposed to be there. Yeah, and I think people view the dodgers pitching as a weakness and I don't think that is accurate and I think it's just. You know. I mean, I almost at this point, love watching A-Rod pick these games because he just can't fathom he can't. Why would you throw a bullpen game in the playoffs when your only other option is to throw land and knack out there to the Wolves?
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:The Dodgers don't have it.
Speaker 2:You can literally see his mind just boggling. Yeah, you can physically look at him and you can see the wheels turning. I've got to say something and I can't say what I want to say because it's not appropriate for TV.
Speaker 1:Yeah, he just can't wrap his head around it not being done one way. Yeah, well, and I don't like him anyway. Well, that's another conversation for another day.
Speaker 1:But it's just. This is going to be a really good series. Yes, it is no matter who wins, no matter what goes down. This is something people are going to be talking about One for the ages. I think that might be an understatement. Yeah, I mean, it has the potential to really and again, if this thing goes six or seven and it's a dog fight and it's a dogfight and it's back and forth, like I think it's going to be, this could really open the doors wide for the popularity of baseball.
Speaker 2:Oh yeah, I think more people are going to tune into this one. I'm going to make a prediction on that. I think more people watch this World Series than any other series that's ever been seen.
Speaker 1:I mean, it's got that potential.
Speaker 2:Yeah, series that's ever been seen. I mean it's got that potential. Yeah, I think the influence on young kids will not even be appreciated maybe in our lifetime, but will definitely will be old, old men, and these ball players are going to come up and be, you know, 18, 20 years old and go.
Speaker 1:That was my first world series yeah, I wanted to be just like them. Yeah, I. The impact this could have long term is it's hard to even fathom. It is I think at this juncture, because again, we don't know until it's all said and done but I mean, it's got everything.
Speaker 2:The big bullies versus the hungry heroes.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and this is two fan bases that are starving. Yeah, they're starving for one. Yeah, you know the Dodgers won one four years ago. But I think a lot of even Dodger fans get in their head about the shortened season thing. I don't agree with it. I think that season and that postseason presented different challenges. Yeah, and just because they were different doesn't invalidate them. Yeah, and my other thing when anybody tries to invalidate the dodgers 2020 world series, well, two things. Number one is would you be saying that if your team won it all right? And number two, if you believe that the 2017 world series is legitimate and the 2021 is not, I can't take you seriously, right, I can't take you seriously as a baseball fan, Right, and as a cognitive thinker, because you're just wrong. You're just wrong. All 30 teams had the same challenges in 2020. Yeah, and the Dodgers just rose to the occasion.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:And you can't take that away from them. But I think for the Dodgers and the players have echoed this you know and said it in as many words, there was no parade in 2020.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Because of the pandemic, they didn't get the big celebration, they didn't get to do it in front of their fans. Yeah, you know that whole World Series was played in Texas, so it just I don't know, man, this Dodger team is different. Yeah, it's different. This Dodger team is different and I have had a calm about myself this postseason, unlike, unlike any in recent memory'll say that if this was a movie with every, every little storyline playing out in the movie, with the hero arch and all this and everything.
Speaker 2:It would be uh set tech, uh ticket sales records, because it would be a great movie. And here's the thing it's real life yeah, it's, it's.
Speaker 1:It's right in front of us, man, right in front of us, and I'm excited, I'm ready. Yeah, me too, I'm ready. It's uh, you know, because I I've said the whole way I don't want anybody to be able to say the dodgers didn't earn it, that they had an easy path and we were talking about the yankees maybe being viewed as having an easy path. But at the end of the day, you can only play the team that's in front of you. Yeah, you can't control that. Yeah, and, um, I'm glad we got to this, I'm glad we're here, because, um, this is going to be a lot of fun. Yeah, in retrospect, it ain't going to be fun in the moment it's magic versus bird, I mean yeah it's the icons against each other.
Speaker 2:I mean, I think I've pretty much laid it out this whole hour that you know it's epic on the marquee yeah big as it gets. I mean it's, it's just huge. You could literally just put a picture of judge and a picture of otani, nothing else, yep, and people would know. I mean not world series, not tonight, not game, this game that, just two people on a black background and people would know yeah yeah and that's huge.
Speaker 1:It is huge and, um, I'm excited to see. I'm excited to see what happens because we, we can sit here and speculate, we can talk about what we think is going to happen. But that's the beauty of sports, that's the beauty of baseball is anything can happen at this point, anything. Dodgers getting a little healthier, looks like Miguel Rojas is going to be on the roster again. Freddie Freeman has said he's 100% for game one yeah after taking, you know, some time off in the league.
Speaker 1:I mean, that's the other thing. This dodger team won the league championship series without freddie freeman yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2:Well, and here's the thing I I have my doubts about him in the series. I don't know if he'll make it through the whole, the whole thing well, I get why you say that but they're covered.
Speaker 1:They're covered if he can't I get why you say that. I think there's a freddie freeman home run at yankee stadium in a big moment yeah, coming, yeah, could be because I think everybody's not that the Yankees are going to overlook him, but that short porch in right field, yeah, you know, if he gets the right pitch.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:You know he. That's the thing. The talent on both rosters runs so deep that anybody on either side could be the hero at any moment. Yeah, even Freddie Freeman on a badly sprained ankle. Yeah, you know even Miguel Rojas when he needs surgery. You know any of these guys, and and and you know there, and there's just story upon story upon story.
Speaker 1:We haven't even talked about the dogs, the Dodger bullpen and the identity they've now taken as a unit and the fact that the buy-in is 100% all the way with this Dodger bullpen. Yeah, they are. They are relishing in the fact that the Dodgers are leaning on them because of the injuries to the rotation and the fact that this is not the ideal starting pitching to put out there. They're loving it, they're eating it up and they're rising to the occasion. We haven't talked about that at all.
Speaker 1:We haven't talked about the managers, the fact that they are very close, they are good friends aaron boone and dave roberts and yeah, it's so funny because every time the dodgers and yankees play each other, that's that's part of the story is that boone and roberts are are good buddies. There were quotes floating around the other day dave went to ucla, aaron boone went to usc. So there was a quote where dave roberts was basically saying yeah, when we were in college I didn't really like him and I don't think he liked me. Yeah, and I think they were trying to fuel some sort of like animosity and it's just not there yeah, you know anymore trying to tell stories that they don't need to tell.
Speaker 2:Well, there's already so much other life.
Speaker 1:Sure, and that's. You know, this has a Super Bowl feel to it. A Super Bowl feel, that's exactly what it is. And the World Series doesn't always have that Right, absolutely. But this go-round, the media circus, the attention, it's all. It's big, it's bigger. This year's World Series feels a little bigger.
Speaker 2:I'm out of cliches versus versus who. I have no more to say about who could be who, it's just epic, just epic yeah, it's going to be awesome.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's going to be awesome. Yeah, I mean, and obviously I have my vested interest in it and I want the Dodgers to win. Here's what I don't understand. I mean, I understand it, but I don't get it. I guess is a better way to put it.
Speaker 2:It's like Seabiscuit versus Manowar.
Speaker 1:There are a lot of people not maybe. Well, there are some people who are bitching because it's the Yankees and the Dodgers, because outside of their own fan bases they're probably the. If you discount the Astros, which is a different conversation, they might be the two most hated teams, right, but I bet I know what channel those people's TV is going to be on.
Speaker 2:Oh yeah they're going to watch it.
Speaker 1:You know, because they don't. I mean, if you're a baseball fan and you're like I'm not watching because it's those two teams, and you don't have this fear of missing a historical moment that's going to go down in the annals of history. I mean historical moment that's going to go down in the annals of history. I mean there could be calls in this world series that go down with the giants win the pennant the giants, oh yeah.
Speaker 1:And in a year that has been so improbable, the impossible. I mean that those moments are right at our doorstep. Yeah, now yeah and and we might not get them, but but we probably will. Yeah we probably will. We definitely will. There's a judge home run or a Shohei home run, or a shutdown inning from Garrett Cole? I mean there's. I'm salivating, literally salivating, thinking about what's going to happen.
Speaker 2:I mean it could be seven games of two to one. I mean it really could. I mean it could be the flip side of what I predicted. Yeah, I mean it really could. I mean it could be the flip side of what I predicted. Yeah, I mean easily. That's what makes it so good. It's so unpredictable, even though we're trying to make predictions.
Speaker 1:Well, that's what we do here. We're just two guys talking baseball, just two guys talking baseball, and I love it, and I love it. All right, man, you got anything else to say? No, I'm ready for tonight too. It's gonna be a great night for baseball. I know, if you're listening on pirate flag radio, you know games have already happened by the time you're hearing this. But uh, we are ready, we are ready and, uh, I, I can't wait, I can't wait. This is what. This is what dredging through the 162 is all about. Yeah, to get to this point. Yeah, this is what. Sitting on my porch in 2021 and watching people on another porch in my apartment complex celebrate the Braves winning, yeah, and, and stewing with that this is what sitting on my back porch and looking at Twitter and looking at those damn Padre fans who don't respect a damn thing, including themselves talking shit in 2022, was all about. This is what hearing last year that Clayton Kershaw's career was over, going through all that is worth it to get to this.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:This is what it's all about. Yep, the gloves are off. There's nothing left to say. Let's just get to it. Let's just get to it, boys. It's like.
Speaker 2:Tyson versus Ali.
Speaker 1:I mean, it really is, it really is man. So we're ready, we're fucking ready, let's do it, let's World Series baby.
Speaker 2:Let's World Series Go Dodgers, go Dodgers. For sure, all right.
Speaker 1:Well, that's going to do it for us this week. I hope y'all are going to enjoy this World Series as much as we are. Again, in retrospect, I'm probably not going to have much fun in the moment.
Speaker 2:I mean definitely enjoy the game and take it for what it is. I mean just sit back and enjoy the ride because, as fans, we deserve it. We sure do. Yeah, we sure do.
Speaker 1:All right. Well, you can follow the show on Twitter at 2GTBpod. You can follow me at Dallas. Danger Brian is at 3 two GTB pod. You can follow me at Dallas. Danger Brian is at three crows, bri Um, we have a store to GTB dot store. Go take a look. We got a little something for everybody. Great way to support us directly financially. And in that same vein I've said it a few times but patrioncom slash two GTB. I promise we're going to get back to some bonus content at some point. I promise we're going to get back to some bonus content at some point when I find the time in the day. Somebody at work literally looked at me the other day and said how many hours do you have in a day?
Speaker 2:And I said not enough. Definitely not enough.
Speaker 1:Shout out to Pirate Flag Radio. Things are going great over there. We can't say it enough every week how happy we are to be a part of that family.
Speaker 1:Yep, um, it's, it's been a good fit for us and it's, uh, it's making us, it's making us want to get up every week and and and continue to do this. Um, because it's not the glamorous life that it may seem to you listening to this, this show, and, uh, the other, the other stuff we do each and every week you mean sitting on Golden Thrones and going through silver-laced microphones is not as appealing as it might appear to our modern listener. Sipping top-shelf liquor in our chalices yes, drinking what is it?
Speaker 2:Hennessy or Crevasse?
Speaker 1:Crevasse yeah.
Speaker 2:While eating ham and watching games, and all this and doing the radio man.
Speaker 1:You know, brian has off air, pitched an idea similar to this and I just have never fathomed that I would have the time. But we might pop in with a little bonus episode during the World Series.
Speaker 2:Okay.
Speaker 1:We might do it yeah, Just who knows. So you know, keep an eye on the podcast feed.
Speaker 2:Yeah, we might throw one in there.
Speaker 1:We might get a little surprise or two during the World Series. Yeah, absolutely, dodgers, sweep this thing. We're going to pop in.
Speaker 2:Yeah, at the end of that night. We're going to pop in yeah, at the end of that night, at 3 in the morning we're going to pop in Dodgers, get swept.
Speaker 1:This might be our last episode.
Speaker 2:So I hope you've enjoyed the fucking ride.
Speaker 1:But yeah, man, we're ready. That's all I can say. Is it's time, it's time, let's do it, yeah, and with that we'll see you at the ballpark.
