The Tortured Fans Department

Ep. 37 - The Baseball Game Draft

• Shaun Boyle • Season 1 • Episode 37

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Shaun is joined by four guests (Michael Collins, Ryan Amodei, Michael Blum and Mark Manera) for a special draft episode to kick off baseball season. 

With Opening Day here, we talk through the ins and outs of ballpark concessions. The draft features one pick from each of the following categories: main course, side or dessert, beverage, stadium and exciting play or thing you would like to see at a game. 



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SPEAKER_04

Hello, everybody. Welcome back to another episode of the Tortured Fans Department podcast. I am your host, Sean Boyle, as always, and joining me today, we have a quintet of people coming your way for another special draft episode. Today we're talking baseball. Let me introduce the guests. First up, first and foremost, as always, a forefather of the podcast, Mr. Michael Collins, our resident snowbird. MC, how are you?

SPEAKER_03

I'm great. I do feel like I have uh something of a leg up in this uh draft that we're doing. As I unless Mark has been to one, I am the most recent attendee of a baseball game. Just returned back to Flor back from Florida, where I was able to uh hit a Philly spring training. So no excuses for me tonight if I don't come out on top.

SPEAKER_04

And he has been known to make those excuses in the past and claim alleged victories. So that's something to watch. That's something to watch for the listener. Also joining me today, Ryan Amade. You guys know him as the man behind the music. Very happy to have him on. He was an easy victory in the previous draft he's been on, so I'm happy to have him here again today.

SPEAKER_02

Glad to be back. I'll say uh maybe uh haven't been as quite as recently as MC, but it's been baseball season for over a month for me as a college baseball guy myself, having been to several college baseball games already. A little different vibe, but 'tis the season. I've been in baseball mode for a little bit now, so excited to get back into the MLB season. Uh, but yeah, glad to be here.

SPEAKER_04

Also joining me. You guys will know him as a resident golf and NFL expert. But this guy is 6'6 and he throws a mean slurve too. Michael Blum Blum, how are you?

SPEAKER_01

I don't know about the slur, Sean, but I'm very well. Um, while I have not been on the pod recently, uh, I am coming off a six-hour fantasy baseball draft yesterday. So I'm ready to go.

SPEAKER_04

Bona fides and credentials are flowing. I have none of those except for something we'll get into later, defending draft champion. Not to brag. Last but certainly least, are the man the myth the legend, a man who's been referenced on the podcast several times. He lives a life we all dream of, none other than the one and only Pip, Mr. Mark Monera. Mark, how are you?

SPEAKER_00

I am great. Thank you for having me, Sean. I'm honored to be on this prestigious podcast. Uh, really excited to talk baseball. And uh, yeah, let's get into it.

SPEAKER_04

Yeah, Mark is a big baseball guy, so I'm gonna pose the opening question his way first. He is not on the East Coast, but spring has finally sprung for us here. We've finally started to get some nice weather. There's no more snow on the ground. Mark, why don't you tell the listeners a little bit well about where you're coming to us from? And are you ready to talk some baseball?

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, so I am actually coming from uh one of the two lands of spring training. I'm out here in Scottsdale, Arizona. Um, you know, between golf and spring training and 100 degree weather, it's been uh it's been quite the time out here. But yeah, I have not actually partaken in any spring training games uh like our our founding father MC, um, but have been keeping up on the WBC. Um a good run by my Italians into the semis here. And uh definitely definitely excited to talk some baseball, and uh I think we got a great draft lineup ahead of us.

SPEAKER_02

Can I ask a quick question, Sean? Um, how did Ireland do in the world baseball classic?

SPEAKER_04

Uh, first of all, if you think I watched the world baseball classic during March Madness, you're nuts. So I'm just gonna keep it moving. They might they might have won it for all I know.

SPEAKER_03

Ireland plays men's sports like rugby, cricket, double, hurling.

SPEAKER_04

Never heard of hurling?

SPEAKER_03

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04

I just wanted to check it out. Exactly. Yeah, and also, Ryan, last I checked, you were born in Connecticut. So so is Aaron in Louisiana. Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah, it was that great showing by Team USA B squad.

SPEAKER_04

That whole team was a Fugazi, a fake blum.

SPEAKER_01

Are you ready to talk some baseball? I'm ready to go, Sean. Um, like I said, had a big day yesterday. Uh, baseball is on the forefront of my mind. Um, I'm ready for the season and ready for uh for the draft view boys.

SPEAKER_04

And then Ryan, I'll throw it to you and Collins. You guys have said you've already been at games this year, so I think you might have an upper hand. Specifically today, we're gonna be talking about concession stands. So have you guys hit any concession stand items in your games you've been to so far?

SPEAKER_03

Sean, LeBron, let me hop in here. Sean, not only have we uh hammered these concession stands, you actually just addressed two former Aramark employees at a major league ballpark. So we never forget we are never forget the tippy top of the pyramid here.

SPEAKER_04

That is true, and I should I should give the listeners some context too. Collins was always very liberal with the portions he dished out to his friends. Ryan was he ran a tight ship, so that's why that's why I always would go and find my guy MC. Ryan was kind of by the book. You might get a fry or two off of him, but that was about it. Stop it, stop it.

SPEAKER_02

In all seriousness, though, those were some that was an unbelievable job in college working airmarket, Citizens Bank Park. The Phillies were god-awful at that time, so there was nobody in the stands. You'd just run, roam around, eat free food, hang out. It was a great summer job. So uh Collins is right that we have more experience than most, probably in the concessions category. Uh, for as far as having concessions at the games I've been to, uh the variety's not too big at the uh the old Baylor ballpark. So I'm gonna say uh I've had minimal interaction with the concession stands. We're going for the big picture here.

SPEAKER_04

Also, for additional context for the listener, we have Mark, myself, and Michael Blum worked as 50-50 sellers at those same Phillies games. So throughout all of college, we were in attendance for some miserable baseball in some bad weather for several years, and we got more than our fair share of free food. So I think there's not a better panel, probably in America, to talk about ballpark concessions than this squad.

SPEAKER_00

It's a great lineup.

SPEAKER_04

It's a great lineup. Uh, just for some draft context, if you guys are tuning in for your first draft here at the Tortured Fans Department, these seem to be a fan favorite. So we are gonna try to pump out more of these, especially as sports slow down. Really, once the basketball tournament's over and the masters, we have a lot of dead air to fill. So expect some more drafts coming your way. The people like them. We had our first uh poll on Instagram last week. I have to bring it up because I'm the defending champ. I did win the TV series draft. Did any of you guys uh see that or listen to that draft?

SPEAKER_01

And did you agree with the results of the poll? I I did listen to it, Sean. Um, I will say, as a not a big TV guy myself, I want to say of the what 20 or 24 TV shows drafted, I think I have seen five of them by my count. Um, but if your record of drafting is any indictment on these results, then I think it was a fair result, and I definitely trust the the audience's judgment of you coming out on top.

SPEAKER_03

It was a it really was a domination of sorts. I think you got succession in like the fourth or something like that, which is yeah one of the better shows, in my opinion, of all time. So uh yeah, I hope I hope we don't allow that to happen tonight.

SPEAKER_04

No, this draft's a lot stiffer competition than those Bozos.

SPEAKER_02

Black Mirror in the last round is a sneaky, incredible steal at the end. I mean, that is an unbelievable TV show. Yeah, well done, well deserved, Sean.

SPEAKER_04

Thank you. So, needless to say, the bar is set high for myself today. I I really do want to repeat. We talked about it being a baseball draft, specifically the categories we are going to get into is there are going to be five rounds. There is no extending it this time, and it's only going to be five rounds. We are drafting one main course, one side or dessert, one beverage, one stadium, and then one exciting play or thing you hope to see at the ballpark. Do we have any clarifying questions before we begin? Or should we do or should we let the draft unfold and see if anything arises? Let the chaos be chaos. I I I think I air that way as well. Today's lineup, we got a good lineup for you. Leading off Mark Monera, nimble, quick, gets on base. On deck, Ryan Amade, in the hole, Michael Blum, cleanup, of course, myself, and then every great cleanup hitter needs protection behind him, and that's my guy MC. So, Mark, without further ado, a lot of pressure with your first podcast appearance here. Where are you going with the first pick?

SPEAKER_00

You know, I've uh, you know, just like the Las Vegas Raiders and Fernando Mendoza, I've had this uh pick queued up for a number of different reasons, so I'm ready to go. Um, so I'm gonna go with a main course. And having been the one in this group to actually attempt to uphold the 999 challenge, um I'm gonna go with a good old-fashioned hot dog. Yeah, ballpark glizzy, really nothing better than that. They have dollar dog nights. Well, till these are now two for five or something like that, but you know, themed nights around them. It's an all-timer.

SPEAKER_04

Yeah, Mark, I I couldn't have said it any better myself. That just has to be the first pick, in my opinion. Yeah, I I could eat a million of them. Dollar dog nights should that should be a law. You shouldn't be allowed to charge more than that, especially for what they serve you on those occasions. I feel like they dial back the hot dogs quite a bit, and especially the production of the hot dogs, they make them hours in advance. Sometimes you get some wet buns sneaking in, and it's not a good hot dog on those nights. But overall, you can't go wrong with a hot dog. It's the one thing that every ballpark in America always has.

SPEAKER_03

It's actually synonymous with the sport as a whole, I'd say. Like you can't, it's a this was a very clear and obvious one-one, and the draft starts now, really.

SPEAKER_02

Agree, and I'm honestly kind of glad that I didn't have one-one because I wanted to go something a little different. Obviously, the correct pick there, Mark. Um, but with number two, uh, I'm gonna go side with dessert. And this, I don't know, call this a reach, whatever you want. But when I go to a ball game, I want ice cream in a helmet, and that's just what I'm gonna go with at number two. Not a reach. I want ideally soft serve.

SPEAKER_04

An important clarification with the helmet, too. Yeah, you need the helmet. Gotta have the helmet.

SPEAKER_02

I best best case scenario, it's soft serve with some sprinkles in there, maybe a twist soft serve situation. Ideally, you get a little sundae, a little hot fudge, but I digress. Ice cream in a helmet is my number one pick.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, Ryan, I think if I was handed an ice cream cone at a ball game, I would just hand it back. Yeah, no. Yeah, I completely agree, Bob.

SPEAKER_03

Please scoop this in a plastic bowl for me.

SPEAKER_04

Yeah, there is something nostalgic about the helmet, too. As a kid, I used to try to collect them. It's just, it's just a great, great little touch that they do at ballparks and ice cream in the summer, too. I mean, you you really it doesn't get much better than that. Yeah. The best. I will say you gotta eat it pretty quick though, because depending on the weather, that thing will melt. It will melt.

SPEAKER_02

Not a problem for me.

SPEAKER_01

Alright, so I am up at the 103. I am going to go back to the entree well, because let me tell you, boys, it's it's slim pickings after these first two options. And I'm gonna go with just chicken fingers and fries. You need finger foods at a ball game. You need something you can easily balance on your lap as you sit there and watch the game. Nothing's easier than just chicken fingers fries. You know, preferably I'm a honey muster guy who I can't go wrong with ketchup. But uh, that'll be my my first finger.

SPEAKER_02

Please number two entree. Agree, Bloom.

SPEAKER_04

And definitely some positional scarcity there, like you mentioned, Blum. That that is going to be running thin quick, that category.

SPEAKER_05

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04

I might try to get creative, and there could potentially be a veto situation later on with my house plants.

SPEAKER_03

I I might be running into one myself. Great pick, Blum.

SPEAKER_04

A really strong pick. I'm gonna dip my toes in the beverage pool. I just need a cold beer. Uh, I'll take a cold domestic tap beer to be specific. We're not gonna do brand specifically, but I just needed cold domestic on my hands. I'm not gonna get fancy with it. Just play the hits. Just give me a cold beer in the middle of the summer. I love when they stack them at a certain iconic ballpark, which will be drafted later in the bleachers. I think there's not much that goes with baseball, America's pastime, more than some of the picks we just took, which is hey, hot dogs, cold beer, ice cream, and some fried chicken.

SPEAKER_00

On a Friday night. I mean, that's a that's a that's a great one. That's the that is the top beverage choice. Just a crisp draft beer at a ball game. Can't think of anything better.

SPEAKER_04

Yeah, I think it hits better in the summer, too. Obviously, each beer tastes different based on the context, but the ballpark beer is a good one.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah, I was just gonna say the same. A summer, maybe a day game or a little 4.05 in the afternoon. The sun is just beating down on you. There's what's gonna what's gonna cure that but a nice frosty. So that brings it to me in the five spot, and this is really the reason I didn't want to be drafting here in the first place, because everything that I really wanted is kind of gone. I'm worried about the food getting back to me the next wraparound. So I'm going to go ahead and take uh as my main course. Uh growing up nearby Philadelphia, this was an automatic purchase at any Phillies game that you would ever go to, and that's a cheesesteak. Whether it be Tony Luke's, whether it be Campos, or if you want to just hit one of the carts, the the mobiles on the concourse. They are all hits, and uh a cheesesteak is kind in Philadelphia. A cheesesteak really overtakes the hot dog, if you ask me.

SPEAKER_02

Pushing it there, but uh a good pick, a very good pick. I have it on my list. Very regional niche, but like a very, very solid pick.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, that was number three for me when it came to entree, so no arguments there, call.

SPEAKER_04

Yep, it was three for me as well, and it's uh it was a clear three, so I think that's a good pick because four and five, there's certainly a drop.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah. If they're even if a four and five exist. Uh, and then I'm gonna hop over to uh the side, side slash desserts. Um, I really wanted that helmet ice cream, but we're there's a lot of talk about an old classic baseball move, uh, synonymous with the game, the sport as a whole, and what could possibly be better to enjoy during a baseball game than a nice bag of peanuts? The salted shells, you crack those shells with your teeth, you get the salt on there. Oh my god. And you pair that with the cheesesteak, you kidding me?

SPEAKER_04

You're entertained for the whole nine innings with a bag of peanuts. I mean, nobody ever gets through a whole bag, first of all. So great bang for your buck. And also, I like something that's an activity while you're eating it. It's almost like in high school with sunflower seeds, it's like a mindless, hey, let's play a little game with our mouths, you know what I mean? And the peanuts do a great job of filling those nine innings.

SPEAKER_01

And Collins, um, clarifying question: where are you leaving your peanut chills?

SPEAKER_03

Now, I was actually just gonna bring that up, Glum, because they're susceptible to a mess. And if you're if you're slob, then you can make a mess with the with this snack for sure. If you're a respectful person, maybe you maybe you get a plastic cup and you and you put your shells in the plastic cup. Uh, I have once or twice just dropped some shells right on the floor.

SPEAKER_04

And uh looks like he's playing Mario Kart.

SPEAKER_03

I don't know.

SPEAKER_04

I'm not proud of it, but it's dropping shells every two seconds.

SPEAKER_03

So thank you for asking.

SPEAKER_04

You don't want to sit around Collins at a baseball game. He's got he's he's got cheese whiz running all over and peanut shells. Ah boy. I am up here and I think I just have to take my food because I'm scared of any. I don't know if I have another one to even write down in the main course section. So it's not as good as a hot dog, but it is easy to eat, which I think you pointed on, Blum needs to be a finger food or like an easy-to-eat sandwich. So I'm going with an Italian sausage. It's not cool, it's not quite a hot dog, but hot dogs are for kids. And once you hit that refined palette, you you transition into a bratwurst or an Italian sausage, and I think that's a great pick for my board.

SPEAKER_02

A very good pick. There are four good on ferries at a ballpark. All four have now been taken.

SPEAKER_00

So I'm assuming like a grown adult with a palate. Are we going uh peppers and onions on the sausage as well? Of course. Of course, of course.

SPEAKER_04

Yeah, it goes to the good good question, Mark. Yeah, yeah. Have to. I used to not when I was a little kid, I'd be like, oh no way, but now it's load them up, please.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah. Might be just as good as the sausage itself if they're done right. Good call.

SPEAKER_01

Alright, so I am up next, and I'm going to go with a beverage, and I'm going to go with a seltzer. I think give me a hot July game, a nice little iced tea and vodka, a little high noon, goes down easy with my chicken fingers and fries. No friends. Having myself a day. If you want to come on board.

SPEAKER_04

If yeah, if you want to come on board, we love you guys. You do great work over there. And so does what's the stateside. Stateside vodka. I need to reach out to them too, because I think this podcast as a whole pumps through those in the summer.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, yeah, those two. If you guys want to join a rocket ship to the moon on this podcast, um, feel free. We'd love to have you. But uh no, Celsius might be my pick. But very pick.

SPEAKER_02

Uh yeah, it's good.

SPEAKER_04

It's light on your feet. It's not gonna knock you out, blum. You could drink a thousand of them on a hot day and feel just fine. Responsibly, of course.

SPEAKER_02

Yeah, so at the for my for my second pick, I'm gonna need a ruling on this. I think I think we're in different lanes here, but I'm gonna go beverage as well, but I'm gonna need a ruling. So my pick, I would like my pick to be a shandy. Is that different enough from a domestic beer? I think we're in different lanes. Like you you think domestic beer, you think you know, you're heavy hitter, kind of top three or four. Shandy's a little bit more kind of off the radar. There's a couple brands that do them. I'm not gonna say them, but that to me feels different enough.

SPEAKER_03

I don't I don't think you should I'll allow it. Yeah, I think you're good. I think if we're shooting down that stuff, then it's gonna be difficult to get other beverages in.

SPEAKER_04

So yeah, I think that's that's well said. I'll I'll allow it as the owner of uh domestic beers. You better it better not be made in the USA, I'll say that.

SPEAKER_03

But especially especially after Bloem drafted a seltzer and then named uh vodka soda, so I don't know. A variety.

SPEAKER_04

He did go through quite a list of of decent beverages. But I think those are both allowable. Okay, decent pick, Ryan. I think I think maybe a little early shandy on my board, but it's very good. It's not a bad pick, yeah.

SPEAKER_02

My favorite summer beer, personally. If I'm outside in the summer, like that's what I want.

SPEAKER_00

All right, so carrying along with this theme, and we might need a ruling on this one as well. But I'm gonna go with a um a local craft IPA. Um, having tra if I anywhere I travel, I love to just try the local beer that they have there. Um they differ in different parts of the country, in the northeast and the west coast. And um, so when you go to a ballpark, a lot of uh teams now are partnering with local breweries, and there's just always something uh new and different to try. So that would be my pick if we're uh on board with that.

SPEAKER_04

100%. That's why I I clarified domestic, because of domestic and non-craft is what I chose, and I knew craft IPAs were still in play, and I think that was a clear path to go down. I think that's a good pick.

SPEAKER_03

It certainly is not a veto, but I do think it's a bad pick. Uh I I I mean an IPA guy. A craft beer in general, sure. An IPA, man, I couldn't think of many things I would let least like to drink on a hot day under the sun. I have no thanks on the IPA.

SPEAKER_04

I don't hate it. I don't hate it. Um I do enjoy IPAs though, but I I definitely would agree with Collins in the fact that I'm not ordering those first, second, or third. They must be out of the domestics that I was referring to before I get to my get to an IPA. But I think with the beverage, you have to take a beverage. I I don't think it's a bad one.

SPEAKER_00

I don't want to necessarily eliminate the whole craft beer category, but I mean that's why I narrow down IPA, but more or less to get the gist of it.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, Pip, I don't hate the pick. I just took seltzer because again, it's a little lighter, easily mixed with the food. You can maybe more expensive because you're buying more, but I think it goes down better. But I like IPA, so I don't know.

SPEAKER_03

IPAs are are as expensive as they come at a ballpark.

SPEAKER_04

That's coming from that's coming from a man who worked behind the scenes.

SPEAKER_03

Man who poured it. Put a little sweat in there sometimes.

SPEAKER_04

Mark, you are up for the wraparound here.

SPEAKER_00

Okay. I'm torn between two, and I'm gonna have to go with my gut here. Um as um some of you in the room probably know, um, have actually been to all 30 uh active MLB ballparks uh with my dad, Mr. Sr. Mark Monero. And I gotta go with, in my mind, the clear cut number one, great atmosphere, great area around it, and just a fantastic backdrop. And that's good old PNC Park in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Uh, just don't think you can beat it from a ballpark perspective.

SPEAKER_04

A true, uh a guy who's seen it all. I love PNC Park, and I think you did a good job summing it up. It's just when, especially when you sit on the third baseline and you have the view of the skyline in the city behind you. It's just you walk over the Roberto Clemente Bridge to get over there. It's just a beautiful ballpark with a beautiful backdrop and in a great city. So really good, good place to take in a game.

SPEAKER_02

Definitely. Really good pick. Um, I'm going to go with I'm gonna go into a category we haven't touched yet, which is the thing you'd like to see live. Uh, and to me, I mean, there's only been 24 of these ever. I'm gonna take a perfect game. I think it would be incredibly cool to be able to sit through a performance like that uh of a pitcher just absolutely dominating, having their best day, uh, and putting on a show that only 24 games have ever seen. So I'm gonna take a perfect game here.

SPEAKER_04

You should have seen me in the little league.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, that's a that's a good pick, Ry.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah, of course, like cream of the crop, and when it comes to uh rarity, like you said, there's only been a certain amount. Just playing devil's advocate, is it a little bit boring? Do you want to see maybe a little bit of a snoozer?

SPEAKER_04

A little bit of a playing game. Yeah, you want you want a couple dingers and bombs.

SPEAKER_02

If you're a cat, if you're yeah, if you're a casual for sure, definitely.

SPEAKER_03

I very much if casual people scratch.

SPEAKER_01

I will say, in Lions' defense, I think that is it maybe a little boring, yes, but also like being there to tell the story of oh, I was at like a short game, I think is well um worth you know the just the story itself, even though it's not as entertaining as maybe some other events that we'll get into.

SPEAKER_02

And there's a turning point, like maybe it's boring for the first maybe four or five innings, but then once you've realized like the switch flips and you're like, oh crap, like you've realize what's a bug. That's when that anticipation starts, yeah.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah, maybe like an anti-category of this, like worst things to see at a ballpark would be like uh uh 26 out for the game and then and then a hit.

SPEAKER_04

Yeah, that's tough. Yeah, also here's a question: would you guys root against your own team to see the perfect game the last couple innings? It's a no-brainer yes for me, especially if it's a regular season, 162. Chalk that write that off as a loss. I'd see the fans go down.

SPEAKER_03

I generally enter the stadium rooting against my team already.

SPEAKER_04

Spoken like a true Philadelphian.

SPEAKER_00

I think to your point, Sean, it very much depends on the the time of year in baseball season. Like if we're fighting for a pennant or or anything like that, obviously um, no, but April, May, the dog days, I mean, that's history right there, I think. You make it up the next day.

SPEAKER_04

Yeah, I do agree, Ryan. There is a certain turning point where it changes from a snooze fest into oh, goodie, goodie. I don't want to say goodie. And then next thing you know, everybody's standing for the last eight outs. Exactly.

SPEAKER_02

It's electric.

SPEAKER_04

Good pick, no doubting that.

SPEAKER_01

Blum, it is over to you. Yeah, so for my next pick, um, I'm going to join Mark in the ballpark realm. And I'm taking this because I feel like Sean may not let this get back to me. Um we were at a ballpark for the first time over the summer. We were in Boston at Fenway. And as someone that is not like Mark in the sense I travel around a lot, I think I've been to maybe five or six ballparks. Fenway was awesome. It was a great vibe in the ballpark outside. We were walking around all day. It was like a Red Sox Marlins game, so like that game didn't really have any juice to it. It was an early game, Marlins were bad, and Sweet Caroline plays in the seventh inning, the place comes alive. So uh definitely recommend if you've never been to Fenway to check it out because that was probably an easy pick for me with the the ballpark category.

SPEAKER_04

I couldn't have said it better, Blaum, and you were definitely correct that that was where I was going with this next pick, but I was torn between two, and you made the decision very easy for me, which I appreciate. Also, couldn't agree more, just the vibe around Fenway is almost better than the vibe inside the stadium, which I think is so important. A lot of times we see in European soccer, European football, real football, that stadiums are built within the middle of towns, and some of these old MLB stadiums, there's only a few left that give you that same feel where truly right outside the outfield is people's houses. And a lot of times it's commercialized and parking lots now. And Fenway is definitely a place where you get that nostalgia all around and inside the walls. Also, you didn't mention this the special guest who was at the same game we were Gracie Abrams. And it was also Paul Mescal's first Red Sox game as well. So, really just a full cast of characters at that one.

SPEAKER_00

Triple Wammy.

SPEAKER_04

The stars were out for the tortured fans department.

SPEAKER_00

I think Fenway's right, you said the game didn't have any juice, please. It's a fantastic pick, and they've actually done a really good job of being like uh an old school ballpark built in, I think, like 1912 or whenever it was. But you know, nowadays you have ballparks that need some like modern amenities, like different concession stands and bigger scoreboards, and they like were able to mix both that and also keeping the nostalgia of the ballpark and everything around it. And I think the Red Sox did a fantastic job at making that a really great place to see a ballgame in 2026.

SPEAKER_03

You got the old timey scoreboard out there and the monster. You can't beat that.

SPEAKER_04

No, you you really can't. And thank you for mentioning the monster because if we took Fenway and didn't mention the monster once, I think we we should be shut down as a podcast. So that's only no, it's that's on all of us. Also, I forget the name of the bar, but the bar where you could see in the outfield, you could go to it even when the Red Sox aren't playing, but you could see in. Is it bleachers? Bleachers, yeah. Bleachers, yeah. So yeah, that was really cool. Just just a 10 out of 10 ballpark. And I'm gonna, I thought not a 10 out of 10 artist. I will transition to another very similar ballpark in my mind. And I'm gonna take Wrigley off the board. It's right up there with Fenway for me. I was six and one, half dozen the other, so happy to get either on my board. It's a lot of the same notes. It's uh a community ballpark. If you see the overhead, there's this overhead picture of Wrigley in the middle of Chicago where it's just surrounded by people's houses and it looks really cool. It looks like it was built 110 years ago, which it was. And it still has that nostalgic feel to it. The Ivy in the outfield. I think Wrigley and the Bleacher beers, where they stack the cups and build the uh snake, the beer tower snake. I think that's a tradition as old as time. They're also a loser franchise, and I associate with that as a host of this podcast.

SPEAKER_02

I can't. Yeah, I've never good take. I've never been. I'm actually going next month on a tour, so I'm very excited to go see it.

SPEAKER_04

Look at you. Globetrot. Or could I get some thoughts from a man who's been?

SPEAKER_00

Yes, I think Wrigley and Fenway. Wrigley in a similar way to Fenway has also done like a really good job modernizing, but like just the location of it um, you know, within the neighborhood, and it's just it's just a different vibe when you're out there. I think you know, you got to talk about the IV, obviously, as well in the outfield. Like, that is just where where else do you get that in a ballpark nowadays? They've preserved the history. Um, but it you know, being right in the middle of the neighborhood is is fantastic. I think it's a great pick and top tier ballpark for sure.

SPEAKER_04

A stadium so great that they named the whole entire area around it Wrigleyville.

SPEAKER_00

And also, not only that, elite city, especially in the summer. Chicago's amazing.

SPEAKER_04

It's a great summer city, so that's a good point as well.

SPEAKER_00

Might have to do a travel coming up, Sean. Like a city draft.

SPEAKER_04

Yeah, we well, if you're the man for that, we know we know that.

SPEAKER_03

So uh I hate this draft slot.

SPEAKER_04

Um I said the excuses would come, folks, and here they are.

SPEAKER_03

I am uh I'm gonna take a sort of an iteration of Sean's beverage pick, but a very clear uh delineation between the two. I'm gonna take a nice cold beer served in a large plastic bat. A large plastic baseball bat full of beer uh is where I want to be. I'll be eating my cheesesteak and peanuts, and if you know me, I like to have a couple from now and then. What better way than a bat that is full of possibly hundred ounces of ice cold beer? Uh, beer bat is the one I'm going for here with my beverage.

SPEAKER_04

This is definitely a touristy pick. You can't do this in your home ballpark. It's like if you're on a bachelorette trip, sure. Go get yourself a beer bat. But real, real, real hitters here. We're drinking from the cups, I think. But as someone who knows how difficult it is in this uh beverage category, I think I'll allow the pick because it was creative.

SPEAKER_01

I just did not see that comment before on my list.

SPEAKER_04

So I didn't either. I didn't have it on my board, but it's it's innovative for sure.

SPEAKER_03

You're you're picture this. You enter the gate, you're you're a little bit later than you might like to be. Batting practice is over, you enter the concourse, you see a couple people walking around with baseball bats full of beer. Your first instinct is I gotta find me one of those baseball bats.

SPEAKER_04

Oftentimes they're wearing bachelorette on their sash around their waist, too. That's fine.

SPEAKER_03

That's that's kind of people. Um now I'm between a few here. I think I might just I'm gonna just get the the uh exciting play that I want and see what Ryan does in the way of parks and what comes back to me. Uh the uh the exciting thing I want to witness at a ballpark is an old-fashioned classic fundamental baseball play, and that is the relay. Preferably three three, maybe more legs of this relay. We're talking all the way center field fence, relay, perfect turn, turn the shoulders, get the hips square, hit hit the catcher, and yep, perfect. You don't you don't see it anymore. Guys try to just gun straight to home. It never works. Use your teammates, play work as a team, get the relay going. Uh, and that's I've never seen it live. I would love to. Just a proper relay.

SPEAKER_04

Proper relay leading to a play at the plate. I think that takes play at the plate off the board, but that was actually one of that was high up on my list of things to see because I think you get all of it in one there. A true, like you said, an outfield back against the wall, turn quick to the relay, man. Three legs is crazy. You might have to go to the little league level to see three legs, but I think but I think getting a play at the plate out of that too, it's just a true, like it's a rush when you're in a tank.

SPEAKER_03

I don't want the ball touching the ground once. We're not playing, we're not playing it off the hop. You're hitting dudes in the letters, and they're turning and squaring up and and gunning them at home.

SPEAKER_00

For a referee, for a referee and a guy who I know loves defense, this is so on brand, and I think it's a great. Yeah, it's fantastic.

SPEAKER_02

That ball was never gonna take a home run, or it was it had to be something like this.

SPEAKER_03

So it's very called fundamentals and and proper gameplay.

SPEAKER_04

I I love it so much. Also, if you guys like growing up playing baseball, we obviously you practice relays all the time. If that ball hit the deck at any point, that was drop and give 10, everybody, not just those involved. It's three, it's three or polls, yeah, or go hit some polls. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01

Truly horrible stuff. What uh what infielder do you prefer either relay man?

SPEAKER_03

Um, I would love to see uh center field to shortstop to home. That's my team.

SPEAKER_04

Right down.

SPEAKER_03

That's my preferred relay. The stars.

SPEAKER_04

And really, let me tell you this: the pitcher better be backing up home.

SPEAKER_03

Yes. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04

Talk about fundamentals.

SPEAKER_03

That's the fourth leg.

SPEAKER_04

Oh, I love it. Uh it is it, is it my turn again? It is.

SPEAKER_05

Yeah, it is.

SPEAKER_04

Thanks for yeah. Oh boy. I'm torn between an event or thing I'd like to see happen and a side or dessert. I'm gonna go with a side or dessert. I'm gonna go with a personal favorite. I don't think it's gonna be at the top. Maybe it is. I hope it's at the top of somebody's list, but I'm gonna take roasted nuts. Collins, I prefer the peanut variety like you, like you took earlier. That's definitely the more traditional baseball pick. But the roasted nuts you get, you smell them, the aroma across the ballpark. That is yes, and there are a head turner when you get those. It's like, oh, who has the roasted nuts? Everybody wants a few. I think it's more of a they're the only place I see them too, really. I don't know where else you get roasted nuts, but I don't stumble across them in my everyday life, and I haven't seen them since the last time I've been to a ball game. So I'm happy to take those. I dabble in them occasionally and I think they're a nice novelty.

SPEAKER_01

I've personally never had them in a ballpark, so am I alone in that?

SPEAKER_00

No, I I don't think I have either. I've had them on like the streets of New York City, which they are fantastic. But I don't know.

SPEAKER_04

That's the only place I've seen them outside of the ballpark, is the streets of New York City.

SPEAKER_00

They're great. Between them and yeah, they play everywhere.

SPEAKER_04

And I think a big part of this is the aroma.

SPEAKER_00

Yes.

SPEAKER_02

Oh, yes, very good. Love uh love a uh play on a sweet and salty too. That's my favorite, so I'm into that. Shout out Bucky's, they make the best roasted nuts.

SPEAKER_00

What's the nut?

SPEAKER_04

I prefer a pecan, but I'm not gonna I'm not gonna discriminate. No allergies here, so I'm I'm good for any of them. Tree variety, whatever you want to throw me, I'll field all the tree nuts. And I I think they're definitely not my favorite because those are off the board, but I do think there's something about them being so easy to eat, too, that plays in a ballpark setting. You don't want you don't want to get your hands too dirty. You could just shovel those down.

SPEAKER_03

You can shovel them. That's what I was gonna say.

SPEAKER_01

All right, so I'm going to choose an event, and I'm going to go with a good old-fashioned Donny Brook. I want to brawl. I want to see a hitch charge the mount. I've been to, I want to say, 30 to 40 baseball games in my life. I've never seen anything remotely close to this. Everyone's on their best behavior when I go to games. I want to see like when Bryce Harper got hit when he was on the Nationals, charged amount, Fists were thrown. I want to see that. Everyone rises to their feet all at once in the audience. For U and we're on, I think that would be a fun experience that maybe a different than what you guys were thinking for event, but I thought would be cool to see in person.

SPEAKER_03

That's a great pick. It is.

SPEAKER_04

It's great. It's outside the box. I love that you referred to it as a Donnie Brooke. I I think that's good stuff. Boom. Also, if we saw Manny Ramirez throw the traveling secretary down a flight of stairs, something like that. I mean, that's electric. That's why we come to the ballpark.

SPEAKER_00

That is that's so rare nowadays, too. Pun intended out of left field, but love it. That got a reaction on me. That was really good. I'd love to see one.

SPEAKER_04

Classic fisticuffs. Ryan, over to you. Question on ballparks. Does it have to be current? Yeah. We're not entering a time portal here. Okay.

SPEAKER_03

I was gonna ask the same question about food if it if it didn't work out for me. Ryan's gonna hit us with an old Forbes field.

SPEAKER_02

Not for the rest.

SPEAKER_03

No, I was gonna take the old Yankee Stadium.

SPEAKER_04

Yeah, I was. I was gonna take the old cornfield from League of Their Own.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02

Uh Polo grounds, actually. Uh no, I was gonna take the old Yankee Stadium. I can't even say League of Their Own. I can't just take the the new Yankee Stadium. It's not it's not uh it's not up to par. And like Blum, I've really only been to maybe, I don't know, between five and seven ballparks. So that being said, I am gonna take Citizens Bank Park. I do think as far as a ballpark mimicking a city, it does a really good job with that. It it's it's homey, it feels like Philly, it is not over the top, it's well laid out, there's not a bad seat in there. You're on that third deck, you get the skyline view. I spent a lot of hours in that ballpark and I never got sick of it. Um, and so it's one that we're all extremely, extremely familiar with, but I am gonna take that. Uh I love Citizens Bank Park. Interesting.

SPEAKER_04

I'm not a big Citizens Bank guy. I think it's gotten better, but I'm not a huge I've never really I I also I'm not I've not been to as many as Mark has. I've I've been to like 18, I think. So I I have been fortunate enough to see some more. It's definitely not one of the worst. I just don't think there's a ton of redeeming qualities to it that stack up with some of the other ones that were drafted.

SPEAKER_00

I think it's underrated. They've done a really good job having it, having it was built in 2004. I mean, they've done a lot to keep it updated, and I I really like it. Um, you know, there's five of us here and five ballparks to pick from. Do I think it's top five? I don't know. But no, probably not. That's that's fair. But I can't be fraudulent to take somewhere I haven't been. Sentimental pick, I get it.

SPEAKER_04

Yeah, no, definitely the sentimental, and you didn't want to be a fraud, which we respect here, but I would have absolutely pandered, pandered, pandered to the audience in that situation.

SPEAKER_03

Is it fraudulent to take somewhere you haven't been to? In my opinion.

SPEAKER_04

Yeah. I didn't so you didn't. You probably should have.

SPEAKER_03

No, there's more out there that I've been to. All right. I'm up. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04

I've got two. Your last two.

SPEAKER_00

I have one that I'm gonna go with the one that I like more in the fifth round just because I think it's a real good value play um when the when the boards settle. So for my fourth round pick, I'm gonna go with a side. I am gonna get specific. I'm gonna go with crab fries. I think they're a Philly staple. They're a take on the French fries, it's just super unique. And um, we talked about having like finger foods, things are that are easy to eat, and I can just crush a bucket of those at a ball game.

SPEAKER_04

For sure. I mean, there's enough salt in there to to kill you. So I do feel like moderation is key with the crab fries, and I think an important part of the crab fries is the cheese sauce, which you did not mention.

SPEAKER_00

Cheese sauce is a weak juice. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04

Does he get the cheese sauce? Did he draft the cheese sauce? I'm not so sure.

SPEAKER_01

You redrafted it for him.

SPEAKER_04

Well, in does it get a side though?

SPEAKER_03

Does the side in the old days you had to purchase them separately, but they come together now.

SPEAKER_00

So I do think yeah, they come together, probably double the price.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah. Who's to say?

SPEAKER_04

Well, that is, I mean, a great pick. It I don't think it was very much crab fry as good at any other stadium. Yeah. And also, Mark, those are a whole meal. What let's be let's be clear about that. Though I mean, they are for the intents of this draft, they're a side, but I'm not eating crab fries and something else at Citizens Bank. That's I'm sitting down and enjoying crab fries, and that's it for me.

SPEAKER_03

The bucket's so big, you rarely get past halfway.

SPEAKER_04

No way, yeah. That's a shareable size.

SPEAKER_03

You need you need at least three or four tons in your system before that.

SPEAKER_04

And also the salt hitting the roof of your mouth, you're you're in trouble if you try going past half a side. You need a quick brush, seventh inning stretch. Listeners, apologies for having to pop in here. It's the first time this has happened, but we had some technical difficulties and we lost the rest of Mark's audio. A man who works all day online, all across the world, somehow had the worst Wi-Fi connection you could ever imagine. His last pick, he took a walk-off home run. And then, as our baseball expert proceeded to ask whether the home team or away team would be the one that hits that. Not the best look for the kid in his draft debut. He will bounce back, I'm sure. Please enjoy the rest of the episode without any of Mark's audio. He didn't add much. This was his last pick, and we'll jump right in discussing a walk off home run. Yeah, I mean, walk off is a chalk, probably on everyone's board. If I had to guess, I had walk off Yahtzee written down. I will say I think it's important to add that it's better when you're losing the game to outs. A little more context would help there. But I think, yeah, I mean, hey, walk-off home run. Nobody's complaining about that. It's money well spent if you're at that game.

SPEAKER_02

All right, last pick here. Uh, as I mentioned, there are four good traditional entrees at a baseball game. I am now having to pick number five. Uh, and so I mean, it's it's really it's slim pickings. I I'm gonna go with a burger. I think it's a a safe bet. It's always gonna be good. I mean, it's similar vibes to like a hot dog, you know, it's your kind of you know, Batman Robin situation at a good old American barbecue, you know, grilling out of the in the backyard. Um, it's it's not the best pick by any means. Like I said, there's literally only four that I got taken. But I'm gonna stick with it, I'm gonna go burger.

SPEAKER_01

I think it was the best of the worst what you could have gone with. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04

Yeah, I think the only thing I was thinking you should have done, Ryan, is I think you should have gone crab fries ahead of Mark and tried to tell us that was the entree, and I would have allowed it because that's a full meal. And also, I don't think I've ever had a burger at a baseball game. You tried to sneak in the little barbecue cookout line there as if to trick the listeners that that's where we're eating them, but the context here is at the ballpark. No one's eaten burgers at the ballpark, in my opinion.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah, I would have a hard hard time even finding one at a ballpark, but but no, there's there was nothing left.

SPEAKER_01

So yeah, you're yeah, you got screwed with the fifth, you know. So yeah. Alright, so I'm up for my last pick, and I have a side left, and I'm going to go with a good old-fashioned uh Philly soft pretzel. You see it rotating around. You go and grab it yourself with the little uh the paper. Easy to eat. You can eat it in like a minute. It's good every time. So uh soft pretzel will be my side. That's an absolute steal in the last round.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah, such true value on that.

SPEAKER_02

I don't know how that didn't get taken.

SPEAKER_04

The only thing I will say I took roasted nuts over it just because of the hard pick, but also I just feel like pretzels sometimes that you get bad pretzels, not in Philly typically, but a lot of other places you get a bad pretzel, and they are not worth the price of admission. Those are cumbersome to get through.

SPEAKER_02

Yeah, Blum did say something I disagreed with. He said it's always gonna be good, and I could not disagree more. There are bad pretzels out there for sure, so it's a very good point.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, but I think you can visually see the bad pretzels. I I I have a skill for looking at pretzels and knowing if it's gonna be good or bad. I've never eaten that pretzel because I have a good eye for pretzels.

SPEAKER_04

That's funny. I I do agree to your point though. I think you could kind of spot the loser in the in the bunch. So that's a good one. I will wrap up my draft with my event or thing I'd like to see happen. And I've been going back and forth all day on this because there's two little niche ones that I really they tickle my fancy. And I'm gonna go with similar to the Donnie Brook, I would say, I love a good old-fashioned manager ejection. Yeah, you can't chastise balls and strikes. I like when they do. I like when they step out there, and I want them to get their money's worth once they're ejected too. I want the full-fledged kicking up dirt, freak out. Go ahead and grab first base if you want on your way out. Take something with you. Cover the plate. Really, really, the earlier in the game, the better, too. I want a full meltdown from the manager, and I know that they're just going in that locker room, cracking open a domestic cold one, and kicking their feet up for the rest of the game.

SPEAKER_03

Is it in a cup or a bat? No, back in the day, back in the day at Phillies Games for sure, bat. Back in the day at Phillies Games, you if it was the dead of summer, there was maybe a 60 to 70% chance that Chuck Manuel would just get himself tossed for the fans. Uh what an awesome pick in the last round. Yeah, it was good.

SPEAKER_04

I like the pick a lot. The other one I was torn between, I think you guys will appreciate too. I just feel like we don't see them anymore, so I'll I'll save that for honorable mentions.

SPEAKER_03

All right, I guess that would bring it over to me for Mr. or Mrs. Irrelevant. Um, and I was I was between two here. Apparently, you're fraudulent if you pick somewhere you hadn't been, uh, but somewhere I would I was dying to go that I'll bring up in the uh in the honorable mentions. But I will go to somewhere that I have been, and that is Camden Yards, Oriel Park at Camden Yards. Um, often considered one of the most beautiful ballparks. Uh you talk about surrounding areas, it's got a really nice row of bars right uh behind the uh left field gate, I believe it is. Um, a great little uh uh outfield alley um that is just beautiful to walk around in. And uh all in all, a great park. Everyone should everyone who lives within a couple hours of it, like we do, should uh make it a point to visit.

SPEAKER_04

I'm a big Camden Yards fan. I think that's a great pick. I I like it a lot, and it's amazing that they were able to find that gem of an area, like you said, in such a dog shit city. I think the area surrounding Camden's really nice. There's a couple nice bars, it has a good vibe to it. The Orioles colors pop too, and I think that helps with the ballpark's aesthetic. Also, I think it's a warehouse that's in right field, but there's a mark, there's a ball marker on there from where Ken Griffey hit. I mean, just an absolute rocket and where it landed on the warehouse. I think that's a nice little touch. Just a really good spot to take in a game.

SPEAKER_03

Yep. As a as a former facility guy, that's something that I very much appreciate. And you want to talk food and bev. You got all sorts of crab-related items. I got a crab mac dog, I think, when I was there. So uh it's uh something of a paradise, really.

SPEAKER_02

Should have taken that the last round. Do they have burgers? Over burgers.

SPEAKER_03

I couldn't find burgers. I searched far and wide.

SPEAKER_04

All right, let's dive into some honorable mentions and then we will recap our drafts for the listeners so you guys have something to vote based off of. Let's start in the primary food section. Did anybody have anything else on the board or was did we tap that category out?

SPEAKER_03

I uh we we had mentioned at one point potentially time traveling. I if it if it came down to it, I was gonna fight to be able to time travel uh back into the good old days at Citizens Bank Park where you could order the schmitter. Uh similar to uh a cheesesteak, I guess. It's sort of like sliced steak. They throw salami on there, there's some tomatoes. It was a treat, an absolute delight to have. Um was replaced by federal donuts, also a delight. Uh but the schmitter, if it came down, if I was in Ryan's situation, I would have fought tooth and nail for the Schmitter.

SPEAKER_04

I love that. The Schmitter, it was great. I had that, I've had that before, before it became extinct. I I don't know if it was actually in the ballpark though, if somebody just made the Schmitter for me, because I feel like that was like a phenomenon when I was younger. It was like at-home schmitters, so I'm not sure if Dave cooked one up or that was at Citizens Bank. So yeah, well, yeah, well, I don't know about that. But I think that category was by far the thinnest, so I'm happy that we're all able to at least have something on the board there. The sides and dessert category, I think that one was pretty deep. So what else do we have there? I had dippin' dots ice cream of the future just because I feel like that's where they originated was at Citizens Bank Park in my brain. I could be wrong, but that's the first place I remember seeing them.

SPEAKER_03

Uh, nachos are a little low-key, I'd say nice finger food to enjoy.

SPEAKER_02

Uh if I didn't go Helmet Sunday, uh a lot of a lot of stadiums do it now, but I think originally at Yankee Stadium, garlic fries, big bucket of garlic fries, those things are unbelievable.

SPEAKER_01

Fries were a hot topic on the board today. And I know they sing this in this song, and I've never personally seen Cracker Jacks. Am I I've never seen anyone eat them actually at a ballpark.

SPEAKER_04

I've seen them laying around, but I haven't seen the act of somebody putting one in their mouth.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah. They're all I mean, they're always right next to the peanuts. I never get them, I don't bother. Because there's a reason the peanuts are first in that wine.

SPEAKER_04

But I will say, I think they might be yeah, this cracker jacks are an all-time well. You want to talk about hopping in the time machine, but I feel like those things they were selling off the shelves back in the day, and now we've still got boxes of them.

SPEAKER_05

It's a potential wandering, really.

SPEAKER_04

It's a potential wandering. Also, I think that a decent strategy for the ballpark aesthetic is if you want to get an old-timey feel, just start sprinkling around some peanut shells and cracker jack casings just around the ballpark. Just you know what I mean? Just toss up a couple signs, peanuts, cracker jacks. I think that'll play. Did anybody have anything in the beverage category?

SPEAKER_03

Uh a lemonade crossed my line. Um, I was thinking about there was a stateside uh surfside mention, maybe the uh vodka lemonade can. Um, you know, down at beautiful sunny Baycare ballpark, I got a big bucket of margarita uh just last week. So that was pretty great too. But uh that seemed a little off the wall for uh a real life baseball game.

SPEAKER_04

And I'm gonna say one that I almost drafted, but I didn't want to get thrown into the bread and butter category. I think a good old-fashioned water goes a long way in the middle of the summer. I think it's important to stay hydrated, stay vigilant. So I think water should have been drafted, and it's an honorable mention for sure.

SPEAKER_01

I agree, Sean. That was actually on my board, but like you said, I wouldn't have drafted that over my dead body just because of the back push.

SPEAKER_04

Yep, exactly. My thought too. I was like, this is a bet is a what I in my heart, water's the pick, but I just can't do that. So what about ballparks? What did we have here?

SPEAKER_03

The one I was uh debating between at the end that I would love to visit is Oracle Park uh in San Francisco, McCovey Cove would be amazing, but uh I didn't want to be a fraud, so yeah.

SPEAKER_04

No, I think you could have taken that. There's yeah, feel free to pander. You know that's welcomed here and encouraged. I also had Miller Park. I don't think it's called Miller Park anymore, whatever Milwaukee plays in. That's a sweet one.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04

Uh there's a couple others that I enjoyed. Yankee Stadium's pretty cool. I was at the old and the new. I kind of enjoy them both. I'm not a Yankees fan, but they're both cool. They give you the feel of being in the middle of a town, even though it's a little bit of a dump.

SPEAKER_02

Yeah, the the old one, let's say talking middle of the city, uh Houston low-key, uh nice little kind of indoor-outdoor situation, and it is right and grain in the city too, which is cool. I've seen uh a couple of college ball games there as well.

SPEAKER_04

Yeah, I've seen a game there. That's it's I just hate Houston as a city. I think it's a poorly constructed laid-out city, so I just didn't want to mention it. But the ballpark itself is pretty nice.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah. Uh Petco in San Diego.

SPEAKER_04

I was just gonna say that, yeah. Never been, but it's awesome. Yeah, but the weather, I mean, who likes 70 and sunny every day. Last one, last one for me, the event or thing that we'd like to see happen. The one I was torn between, I was gonna take it, was a pickle, just a good old-fashioned pickle. I just feel like you don't get those a lot at the MOB level. There's a lot of uh quit in these guys, for lack of a better word. They just kind of roll over, let them pat their belly with the tag. So I think a good old-fashioned pickle, if you get one of those in like a high school game, those are electric.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, the only other event, the only other event that I had was um we kind of touch on this with Collins' relay, but a guy getting gunned down at home off you know, catching a fly ball. I think seeing that in person is also just a flight of the ball trying to be the runner there. I think that's one of the plays in baseball that doesn't really translate over the TV. It's much better to see in person.

SPEAKER_04

Yeah, same with the stolen base, I would say, to a lesser extent. It's a lot better in person when you see him take off and you get to the whole view. On TV, it doesn't do it justice because you're watching the at bat a lot of the times and then you show up and it's just you see the action of the tag. I think the stolen bass in person is a lot better experience.

SPEAKER_03

How about a robbed home run? Oh, that's a good one.

SPEAKER_04

I didn't think of that. What did can I interest anybody in the Joan Duran light show? No, no, I I uh a little overrated. Yeah, it's a it's a farce, is what that is. And if that is uh happening again in 2026, you could guarantee another losing season for the Phillies.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, can't start.

SPEAKER_03

You could you we could do a worse things about baseball draft, and I think I might dominate that.

SPEAKER_04

There's another couple categories that I think there's some there's some uh meat left on the bone for a potential baseball draft in the future. I think we could obviously talk about uniforms and hats. There's a lot of iconic baseball hats, uniforms out there. Also, walk-up songs. There's some iconic ones of those. I remember cashmere Led Zeppelin from Chase Sutley throughout my childhood. That one sticks out to me. Yeah, that's I mean, a lot of good ones there. So, room for more just baseball discussion in the future.

SPEAKER_03

Maybe why don't we just quickly do the the hat jersey one as just all sports, just sports jerseys, just like just iconic jersey draft?

SPEAKER_04

Yeah. Why don't we all run through now our list of draft picks? We'll start, we'll just go in the order of the draft. So, Mark, we'll start with you.

SPEAKER_03

Why don't you say as you're what as if you're uh actually attending the game? So, for example, I can I can lead us off if we could go backwards. So uh when I head down to uh Oriel Park at Camden Yards, I'm gonna be ordering a cheesesteak. Enjoy my nice whiz, whiz-wit steak. I'll have a side of peanuts, um, and uh of course, of course, a big bat full of beer, which I probably get free refills on, by the way. Um, and then uh on field is just gonna be relays over and over.

SPEAKER_04

What a scummy pick in hindsight that that beer bat was. He just took my exact pick in different method in different vehicles. Oh, I hope there's a hole in it and you spill everywhere. I am going to be attending a game at the iconic legendary Wrigley Field, the hollowed ground of Wrigley Field. I will of course enjoy an early inning manager ejection. We love to see a guy get tossed early. While doing so, I'll have an Italian sausage. Don't mind if I do, I'll have a cider roasted nuts, sure he can. And of course, I'll top it off with a domestic tap beer. It doesn't get much better than that, boys. I uh Blum, I'll send it over to you. Good luck topping that.

SPEAKER_01

That was a good Sean, but um, I'll be in beautiful Boston while you're doing it. I'll be taking a nice stroll around the city, beautiful weather in Fenway Park. Uh first off, I'll get a nice seltzer, nice high noon. Uh, if you want to sponsor us, feel free. Uh on my way to my seat. Not a seltzer.

SPEAKER_04

I will be getting any alcohol, it's not beer. It's all on this board.

SPEAKER_01

I'm keeping up with the bit. So after my seltzer, I'm gonna grab some chicken fingers and fries. Um sit down in my seat, watch a few innings, go back up and get a nice soft pretzel, which I will um examine each thoroughly to make sure I get the best pretzel possible. No bad pretzels under my watch.

SPEAKER_03

I take two or three stands, but he's getting his property soft.

SPEAKER_01

I will wait for the best pretzel. And then in the about seventh or eighth inning, you will see uh Pedro Martinez on the field tossing down Don Zimmer in a massive Donny Brothers. Good stuff.

SPEAKER_03

I might vote for Blum.

SPEAKER_04

Uh could you not? He's got all the alcohol.

SPEAKER_02

All of it, all of it. Uh well, I'm gonna pull up to the city of Brotherly Love, which we all know and love dearly, and uh pull up to Citizens Bank Park. First things first, I'm gonna grab myself a nice cold shandy on a hot day, a little lemon situation in there, super refreshing. Grab a burger to go over the room.

SPEAKER_03

Another domestic, another domestic beer. That's why that's why I let him have.

SPEAKER_04

Play the long game. It's a lemon, and he's got a whole different pick than me. It is. It's a fruity beer.

SPEAKER_02

Uh, then we're gonna have we'll have a burger alongside that. We'll be watching uh, I don't know, uh Aaron Nola just dealing, dealing, dealing, dealing. We're in the seventh inning. I go up, what am I getting? Ice cream in a helmet. Couldn't couldn't be better. Going back to the seats, dealing, dealing, dealing, crowd on their feet, perfect game. Perfect game. Uh nothing better than that. So that's my day.

SPEAKER_04

Right, it's a good board, but you might have just tanked your whole draft by referencing Aaron Nola as the guy to do it.

SPEAKER_02

I was trying to go up with the the quickest. At least be a realistic.

SPEAKER_04

The perfect game was two innings. It's called off. Thunderstorms. So, boys, appreciate you guys coming on. It's been a pleasure. Another draft in the books. A poll will be out next week. We'll give the listeners some time to listen and take in the episode before we rush to a poll that just spoils all of our picks, which is what the poll does. Thank you all for tuning in, and until next time, take care of the hand.