I Love Mondays-Ep67, June 3, 2026

It was a fun show with a couple of guests.  The Athletic's Matt Schnedman put "to bed" any conversation of the Packers trading for Josh Sweat...also talked about Green Bay's biggest concern 7-weeks before training camp, and the return of Josh Jacobs.  JS online's Todd Rosiak on the Brewers winning environment and "not surprising" run of success under Pat Murphy.

Transcript

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I love Mondays with Mike Heller. Broadcasting live from an undisclosed bunker in the Badger State. This is I Love Mondays with Mike Heller. Powered by determination and a little bit of duct tape. Here's your host, Mike Heller. Hey, here we go on a Wednesday. Looking forward to this one. We've got a couple of great guests. I love it when I get a chance to visit with Matt Schneidman, uh, who is tied in. He is locked in on what the Green Bay Packers are doing at the OTAs. He'll join us second on the show today. Matt Schneidman at about 10.35. I appreciate him jumping in to share his thoughts. Josh Jacobs at practice yesterday. Might not have been his first OTA practice. They're not all open to the media. So we'll get some details there and first player reaction yesterday. So Matt will join us at 10:35. Uh, out of the gate, well, sort of out of the gate at 10:15, Todd Rosiak. The Brewers are baseball's hottest team. They have been now for more than a month. It is an amazing run what this team has done. I'm going to remind you that they woke up on the morning of April 26th at 13 and 13. And in last place in the NL Central. Not by a lot, but at 13 and 13. I think there were five games out. They were in last place. Since then, they have gone 24 and 8. That is 750 baseball essentially. That is an amazing run. And it's not a small sample set. When you're talking about 32 games, where it's not there, but it's it borders on being a quarter of the season. And they have been that good. They were again last night. Last night they they get uh add-on runs. They got a great start from Kyle Harrison. They get add-on runs in the eighth when the game snugged up and put it away. And it's just so impressive to watch what they do on an everyday basis. Just super impressive. All right, a couple of notes. Mike and Merrill says, good morning, all sunny, maybe a little bit of clouds uh going on, but a gorgeous day. Our guy Dan says, good morning, go brew crew. Thank you, Dan. Uh, it is there is so much good, and I I I I want to caution because this is human nature. We get bored with really good play consistently. It's a checkout. Hey, they're really good. I can't wait for October. Uh I I would only add this just enjoy each of the opportunities that you get, whether it's going over to the ballpark or watching with Levering and I think it's Levering and our guy Vinny uh this week. Uh Brian Anderson, by the way, is killing it at the French Open. If you're not a tennis watcher, uh jump in there because he has jumped into that fray. Uh one good uh one more good morning from Zach. Uh he says, I love, uh love, I love Mondays after a Brewers win. Uh I saw Zach's dad briefly this morning. Um so I appreciate that, Zach, and thanks for being a regular here. Uh last night, I was uh I was lucky enough to be asked to MC the pairings party for the Ampfam Championship, which they did at University at which they did at the University of Wisconsin at Camp Randall Stadium. Um that has been at the Edgewater uh in Madison, which is a gorgeous site. Many times last night they moved it to the South End Zone Champions Club at Camp Randall Stadium. And I got to be on the stage with uh Steve Stricker and Mark Toucher and Ron Dane, and just ask them each uh a few questions about, you know, for Dane, he's not a golfer, but for Dane, his uh Heisman Trophy and his time at Wisconsin, and for Steve, obviously, about the tournament, and for Toucher, a little bit about the tournament. And, you know, playing with Ron Dane in those years. So very cool, a lot of great people, people uh from a Madison perspective, kind of the movers and shakers of the Madison business community, and as it relates to golf, because many of them are going to play in pro-ams that are going on today, this morning and this afternoon, and then tomorrow morning and afternoon. Friday is round one of the tournament. It this is a uh a fun tournament, great tournament. One of the best tour stops on the Champions Tour, is voted by the players consistently. They moved from University Ridge to TPC, Wisconsin last year. So this is the second year at TPC, and it's also a format change when they came over here. They play a two-man game. So um Mario Tiziani, which is Steve's brother-in-law, uh, he and Steve Stricker are partners. Uh Thomas Bjorn and Darren Clark won it as partners a year ago. They play a best ball, which a lot of non-everyday golfers confuse as a scramble. Uh, they will play a scramble on Saturday, two-man scramble. But best ball is you both play your own ball through the hole, and the best score of your TUSOM is the one that gets recorded. So they're gonna play best ball on Friday and Sunday, and a scramble in between. So Saturday scores will be extraordinarily low. You play a two-man scramble with these guys, and you're gonna shoot 10, 11 under par is gonna be the lead score. Somebody's gonna shoot 61 or 60 because that's just how good they are. So it'll be a fun format to watch. Steve is gonna be a really interesting watch tricker is this week. He had hip replacement surgery and was progressing very well, and then had a muscle issue in the hip, and he he's not been swinging the club uh much. And in fact, when I talked to him a week and a half ago, almost two weeks ago, he was only hitting nine irons and not full. So we'll see how that plays uh when they get to the golf course on Friday. So Friday is the start of the tournament. It's a three-round tournament on the champions tour, other than their majors. So, and no cut. Uh, this will be a lot of fun to watch how they go through the process here this weekend. And uh, if you're coming out to the Amfam, um tomorrow, weather permitting, and Friday weather permitting, I'll take this deal and go over to TPC and set up outside to do the show. If the weather is not permitting, it'll stay right here. Uh I can walk across the street. So, but you know, it it we'll we'll just see what the weather does. But if if you are coming and you see me out there, uh jump on over. Hey, by the way, uh another um two other items of note. We are finalizing, and in fact, we've got to finalize our uh hotel room bookings for our bourbon trail trip. We have to do that Friday. Finalize the hotel room bookings. We have four spots left. We can bring 24 people. We have 20 going on our bourbon trail trip July 8th through the 12th. Give you a little update on what we're doing, where we're going. Um, we're gonna leave from Red and White Wine Bar and Bourbon Bar on Main Street in Wana Key. We're gonna leave on Wednesday morning, July the 8th. We will bust to Nashville, Indiana, home of Hard Truth Distillery, and we will stop there for lunch and a tasting and a tour on Wednesday afternoon, and then finish the last hour and 15 or so to downtown Louisville, where we will stay at a beautiful hotel called the Port Bone. It is literally a parking lot half a block away from Whiskey Row in Louisville, near the river. And so we'll we'll have Wednesday night there, which should be great. Thursday, we're gonna go to Frankfurt, Kentucky. We will open at Buffalo Trace in the morning. We will go to Woodford Reserve in the afternoon and come back to Louisville. On Friday, the morning is preservation distillery. The afternoon uh is fluctuating right now. Uh I was hoping it was gonna be Heaven Hill. That may not happen, uh, but we'll find an afternoon spot to go there and then uh dining, dinner, whatever, or drinking uh in Bardstown into the evening, and then we'll return back to Louisville. And then on Saturday, we will go to Mickters in Louisville and Sunday come on back. So here's what you do: you can email us at Hellerpods2, the number, Hellerpods2 at gmail.com. We have four spots left. On Friday, if we don't fill the four spots, we uh cancel out of those last couple of hotel rooms and we'll be done. Either way, when we get to Friday, uh we we will cut it off. But I'd love to fill the final four spots on this bourbon trail trip. There are couples going, Kari is going along with me, and there are also just you know buddies going or individuals on this trip. So don't feel, you know, hey, I don't have somebody to go with. If you want to go alone, uh you you you can go alone. You can either match up on a roommate or uh do single occupancy uh cost on it. Heller Pods 2, the number, Hellerpods2 at gmail.com. Friday is the cutoff. We've got to finalize hotel rooms. All right, so that's number one that I wanted to share. Last four spots available. Love to fill it. We're gonna have a blast. Uh, I think Treadmill's gonna have to do the shows that Wednesday, Thursday, Friday. I don't think I'm doing a show from the bus or the hotel, because I think we'll be on our way to distilleries on Thursday and Friday at that time of day. We'll see. Uh, because I don't think I'm taking the show on the road, but maybe, I don't know. Anything's possible. Number two, next Thursday night. So one week from tomorrow, what is that date? That would be the 11th, June 11th, next Thursday night. We're gonna do uh an I Love Mondays night at red and white wine bar in Wanakee. I always say wine bar. It is a red and white wine bar. That's what we're legally, that's that's our DBA. But it's a wine and bourbon bar and beer. We have beer on tap. We got about 45 bourbons that we pour neat and on a rock. On Thursday nights, we call it old-fashioned Thursdays. So we make old fashions, bourbon or brandy old fashions. On the bourbon, it's four roses. On the brandy, it's um it's Barron's brandy, Charlie, Barron's brandy. We make them old-fashioned sweet, old-fashioned sours, old-fashioned press, and we raise money. Next week, it will be for UW Cardiology, kind of close to my heart. So next week, Thursday night, we open at four, but the event kind of starts at six. We'll have a DJ. Old-fashioned Thursday, celebrating I Love Mondays. Uh, come see Treadmill will be out there. I think Courtney will be out there. Uh, I'll get, you know, some of my regulars hopefully will be there next Thursday, June 11th. Red and white wine bar in Wannaky uh to kind of celebrate a little bit and raise some money for UW Cardiology, but also uh to bring you out. We may even go live. Depends on how much I've added. It depends on whether I consume starting at four o'clock or not. But I'll maybe I'll bring the gear and uh and jump on with a special live sometime prior to the event getting underway at six. We'll see. Next Thursday. Make a note, come to Red and White uh for uh a fundraising old-fashioned Thursday. Uh James jumps into the fray. Uh James, Elizabeth, good morning, Mike. Good morning to you. Uh Mike and Merrill jumped in as an all-sports Wisconsin fan. We always have to remember that they're always one or two injuries away from season unraveling. It's a thing. Yeah. I mean, there's no doubt. When I talk about the Brewers being 13 and 13, when they woke up uh on the morning of April 26th and in last place in the division, uh Kristen Yelich was on the IL. Jackson Churio hadn't had a uh an in season at bat, and Andrew Vaughn had played the opening day, and that was it. So yeah. Injuries, and when they returned, this team started to take off because their lineup is whole. And since then, their lineup has been whole, and that's a big important part of what it is they do. Uh very few people know it better than Todd Rosiak. So let me bring Todd Rosiak of the journal Sentinel into the fray. Hey, Todd. You're much too kind. To what? Nobody knows it better than me. I'm just faking it. Well, yeah, I mean, and then I mean Kurt Hogue probably does, and Jack Stern, and then Adam McCalvey and Spencer. Um, they might get carried away. Don't don't throw Spencer in the mix there. I stole his pen the other night. He thinks I stole it. I borrowed it. I'll I'll bring it back. But he immediately called me out when I borrowed and then didn't return. Wow. Well, as long as long as you uh invite him to dinner on time, I think everything will be okay. Well, they they said the dinner plans, you weren't there, but they said the dinner plans on Monday, and we had to go eat at five. I was like, why are we eating so early? But yeah, he he's uh he coordinates dinner planning. Yeah, he's Stern even uh will text him uh before he gets there with the menu, and on the days that he's not there, lets him know what he's missing out on. So it's uh it's quite a gambit. So what is it about this team as you've watched them develop that uh impresses you the most? I've kind of run out of superlatives, and you don't want to go too crazy on doing that anyway on June the 3rd. But since April 26th, they're 24 and 8, and they're just they impress pretty much every night out. And I'm wondering what you see, what impresses you? It's it's weird because when you're immersed in it and you're going day day by day like this, there's nothing that really I don't know. I I mean, I guess you get kind of numb to it a little bit, you know. Like, is this surprising anybody really? I feel like national media is is jumped on board the bandwagon finally. Um I think we're all kind of getting spoiled and used to spoil by it, used to it. Uh, to to me, the the biggest story out of all of it is just with all the moving parts on the pitching side, what they're doing is is incredible, amazing. Yeah, you know, no woodruff for basically the whole year. Um you got yeah, no priester, you've got guys moving in and out, almost all young, unproven guys, and everybody's delivering every night. You know, the bull channel was a little bit shaky early. Trevor McGill, Abner Uribe, they seem to have uh you know kind of righted the ship a little bit there. You know, Ashby's always gonna be really reliable. Um it does, it's like it doesn't matter what part of the roster you're looking at, who it is, they're delivering. Now, I'll I'll throw the caveat in the left side of the infield. Yes, or Ortiz, Ringhefo. You know, we can talk about that, but uh yeah, um, it's it's really, really amazing. And again, to me, it's it's the pitching, it's the job they've done on the pitching side. I mean, what what more can you say about Ms. News just came through. I see he did miss out on pitcher of the month. So Christopher Sanchez won that. That's not a surprise. I mean, he obviously had a great year too, but to me, Phillies, East Coast bias, all that, it's not totally surprising. Um, but you know, he he had a terrific, he's had a terrific start to the season. Kyle Harrison, who who saw this coming, you know, he's like this year's Quinn Priester plus. So uh it's it's just been it's been fun to watch. It's really been fun to watch. Yeah. So let me let me go to Kyle Harrison. The Brewers make that deal with Durban going to Boston and and Kyle Harrison. And I think I looked at it, many fans looked at it. I don't know how you looked at it, but we Kyle Harrison is a guy who boy, he certainly has upside, but it's not happened. And you're wondering, okay, so this is the deal. They they're just working on a placeholder at third base anyway for the young stars coming up. But Kyle Harrison, unheralded in the trade, even though he has some upside, has been ridiculous. And I could argue with you, I think it's a fair point to make, as you were talking about pitching, that a year ago, their one, two, and three were Freddie, Woody, and Priester. One, two, and three. And then Miz, you know, arrived on the scene. Those one, two, and three are all essentially non-factors right now. One's in New York, and two have been on the IL. And yet, this pitching staff, you could argue with when you go Miz and Harrison back to back, that there's not a better one, two in all of baseball. Yeah, it's crazy. I mean, they're they're shoe-ins to be all-stars right now, and it it goes again to Chris Hook, Jim Henderson, as Murph calls them, the H H car wash. It's it's I keep saying it, it's it's an incredible story. These guys have the the the pixie dust, whatever you want to call it. They these guys come in. It's interesting because you know, these new pitchers come in, they have these conversations, and it's not immediately the pitching coaches, Chris Hook, Jim Henderson saying, Hey, this is what we like, this is what you're gonna do. They let the guys talk, you know, come in, hey, what you know, like this is this is how this is what I'm comfortable with, this is what I've done in the past, you know, and then Hook and Henderson throw in their two cents, and they kind of come together and and formulate a plan. And how can you argue with anything that's happened here over the X last X number of years? Uh it it doesn't matter who they roll in, how bad the numbers were beforehand, you know, what part of the the career they're in, you know, older guys, younger guys. Uh, it just always seems to work. So with Miz and Harrison, uh anchor in that rotation now, they're young, you know, again, controllable. It's ridiculous. It's ridiculous. And you've got other guys coming through the pipeline. I I do not undersell Shane Drollen. I think he's gonna be really good too. We've seen flashes of it as well, but he's right in that mix, too. Another lefty, you know, got some funk to him, got some different stuff. Um, it if the Boston Red Sox ever consummate another trade with the Brewers, I'll be amazed. Yeah, and now this one on the deal. And and you you've been around and players will talk uh about this, and I'm wondering what uh what you've gleaned, gleaned from them about is Milwaukee just an easier market also to play in? Is it more relaxed? That might not be the right phrase. Um, the media intensity and pressure in Boston uh affects players differently as it does in New York. Milwaukee seems to be friendlier for players to find their groove and maybe press a little bit less. Is that a fair way to look at it? Oh, I I think so for sure. It's always interesting when you see players being being trade, players who've never played in a small market or players who have never played in Milwaukee before. You know, they they come in like the the one thing I remember uh several years ago at the trade deadline, Mark Canna coming over from the Mets. Yeah, and his first game is with the Brewers uh in DC. And I don't remember exactly who it was, but I think it was it was Adam and me. That's the media core on the road, you know. And we're interviewing him, and he's like, This is it? Like, really? And you come, you know, you're playing your home games, and granted, it's it's a small, it's a bigger group, but it's still small, comparatively speaking. It's not the East Coast, you know, sharks in the water mentality and everything. And yeah, I think I guys are comfortable, and it's easy to acclimate in this clubhouse. We were talking to Rob Z the other day in Houston the day he got called up, and um he made mention of that of you know, this is a guy that's been in countless clubhouses around baseball, uh, you know, 10, 12 different organizations, triple A, everything. And he made mention of the fact that this is the most unique, easiest to meld into, meld yourself into clubhouse and baseball. And it starts at the top. It starts with Murph and you know, the veteran guys and everything, and it and it trickles on down. You know, I can't, I can, you know, I can speak to Brewers' clubhouses from the past. Um, you know, I've never necessarily Felt like there were any bad clubhouses or anything, but the ones under Murph just seem to have this, I don't know, loosey goosey kind of feel. You know, you know, you know, Murph's in charge, you know, Murph's not going to take any grief, but he leaves it to those guys to just go out and play every night. They know what they have to do, and they kind of set the tone, you know. So it's it's it's a it's a fun group, it's an interesting group. You got uh, you know, different guys from different walks of life and everything, but it just seems like immediately once they join the organization and walk in, they're at home. Todd, you're you're a part of it uh most every day for a ton of spring training, and then uh you share a little bit of the beat, but I don't know, out of the 162, how many you've got. But you're it suffice it to say you're at the ballpark a lot. Have you noticed now in his third year? Do they do things? What have you noticed that's different under Murph? As and he was there when counsel was the manager, but is there something of note that they do differently? How they go about their work, what that clubhouse is, whatever that might be. Is there something tangible you can point your finger at and say, this is different when Murph took over? The thing that jumps out to me is Murph is certainly not, you know, Murph and the players are not friends. Let's you know, let's get that out in the open. But the relationship between Murph and the players, I believe, is much different than it was with council. Sure, and that's not to denigrate council or to say you know what he was doing was wrong or anything. Everybody's got different, you know, everybody has their own style. And you know, any day that you're in the clubhouse, you you go from the clubhouse, there's a long hallway, you take a left, and that's the tunnel that goes down to the dugout. You always pass by Murph's office, the door is always open, and it's not uncommon to see Christian Yellich in there just hanging out, just sitting in the chairs talking with them. You know, back when Wade Miley was on the team, I think Wade Miley was in Murph's office more than he was in the clubhouse. Sure. Um, you know, there's there's a total open door policy, and I don't I think players are very comfortable talking to Murph, you know, and it it's interesting in that regard, um, that guys feel that that comfortable. And you know, again, don't don't get it twisted. You know, like Murph has no qualms about going and going in the clubhouse and saying, you know, what you're doing is is not good enough, or this is what we need, or you know, calling a guy in there. But that that to me is the biggest thing. You know, like that that those relationships between manager and player seem different, they seem um, yeah, you know, very very genuine to me. To kind of illustrate that point that you were just making, I I asked the question the other night about in the blowout on Monday night that the relief core covered five innings and only gave up one hit. And I said, you know, it might be easy for them to relax in that setting when you're leading by 12 runs. And he said, Well, they're not gonna relax because they know that their nameplate can be taken off their locker at any time. And that's not just manager speak. That I think Murph and the players have that understanding that if you're not locked in, it won't be tolerated, which is it should always be that way. But it seems more apparent here that he functions that way, maybe like a college coach where he spent most of his career would function. Yeah, very much, very much so. And that's another thing that you hear from players coming in from outside the organization is that college coach mentality. If they don't know Murph coming in, they quickly learn his background and they learn how he operates. And you know, these guys aren't going to be, you know, necessarily scared or intimidated. And Murph himself has said it, you know, back in the day when he was coaching in college, you know, he ruled by fear. He knew he had those guys, and you know, not only was he a father figure kind of, but you know, he was the guy in charge of the scholarships. Well, you know, these guys are making you know so much money and they got guaranteed contracts, that that kind of mindset isn't going to work, but they also know that you know, beyond the joking and uh and everything and the you know the pocket pancakes and whatever else, the shtick, you know, this is a hard driving, hard charging guy with very high expectations. And you know, don't think for a second that what has happened the last two years, you know, is not putting pressure on Murph to keep this ball rolling. I mean, you know, great you can talk about the playoff failures and everything, but still two two of the best years in franchise history, back-to-back, two manager of the year awards, you know, that that that's setting the bar super high. And as a competitor and a professional, you want to keep pinching that bar up. So it's it's a high bar to get across, and he's he's not gonna expect any less than than uh you know excellence all the time. Well, I'm gonna get to the left side of the infield in a minute, but let me one more on Murph. Do you maybe uh hopefully you'll recall this? When they made when council made the the move to go to Chicago, how quickly did you think that Murph might indeed be next? Or did you think at the time, in the immediacy of it, did you think they go outside? Or when did you believe that hey Murph is gonna be next year? It it was so the dominoes fell so fast that day, if you if you remember that. And um, you know, I remember having conversations with people, you know, I'll just say inside, sure. You know, before all this played out, it was toward the end of that season. You know, do you think council's gonna be back? If he's not, who's gonna, you know, who's gonna replace him? And you know, I can remember everybody to a man. And when you bring up Murph, they're like, no chance, he he's not gonna be a manager, no way. You you just you know, you figure they're gonna bring somebody in from the outside, a name, whatever, whatever the case may be. And then that whole you know, that whole sequence of events occurs. Council goes to Chicago, Cleveland hires Stephen Vogt, and then Murph. I believe I you know, I don't I'll just say I I believe that Stephen Vogt would have been the guy, honestly. Like if things wouldn't have happened the way they did so quickly and Cleveland wouldn't have moved so fast. I I think Stephen Volt would have been the manager of the Milwaukee Brewers, honestly. You know, super high, well regarded within the organization, obviously, in the time that he was there. Uh, I know everybody loves him, still loves him. Would have been an awesome fit, and it's just amazing to see how their Murphs and Volt's careers have like parallel each other since they've taken over, you know. And again, Cleveland's, you know, dominating in the division again this year. It's like the same thing, mere images of each other. So I I I will just say that I think I think Stephen Vogue would have been the manager of the Milwaukee Brewers had the Guardians not acted quickly and gotten him in there first. Todd, it it might be, in my view, it is the most impactful decision that Mark Atanasio has made as the the owner of the Milwaukee Brewers was that and the shrewdness of organizing it so Chris Hook would stay, and you know, the the coaching staff would stay because counts wanted to bring them all, right? I mean, counts likely would have brought a lot of them, yeah. The majority, the the vast majority of them. And I mean, Murph was Murph was on the way. I mean, he was he was going to Chicago, and Mark, you know, stepped in there and and got it done. But you're right. I mean, you know, aside from Murph, hook hook was the other key piece to that whole deal. And coaches generally, you know, go year to year on their contracts. I mean, it's very smart to lock up Hook to a multi-year deal because this guy is uh the real deal for sure. What what he's done, and he's been, you know, sometimes people people forget, you know, this is a guy that's been the organization for you know years and years and years. You know, his background is as a minor league pitching coach, and um, you know, he knew and was familiar with so many of these guys that cycled through and came through. You know, he coached Woody in the minor leagues, and you know, as a minor league pitching coordinator, he had his hands on all these guys and their development um coming through the system. Obviously, not so much now because there's so much young talent, but you know, this was a guy that was just intimately familiar with everybody, and he he's pushed all the right buttons for sure. Last few minutes, uh, let's talk a little bit about the left side of the infield. We're true. Uh is the trade deadline the third of August this year. Is that a little bit later this year? All right. So that that is two months from today on the calendar. Uh a lot of people think that uh that the Brewers might be in that mode on a rental because they've got their guys coming um to to have a rental at third base. And Cooper Pratt plays into the equation too. Crystal ball, you think that they'll be impactfully active when we get to the trade deadline, or a little bit like last year where they added Brandon Lockeridge and I mean pieces that weren't you know super headline making. What are your thoughts two months out? I think a lot of it is going to depend on what kind of what the tenor of the race is at that point, where they are, what they what they need. I mean, I don't think there's any question by then, you know, the brewers will have called up Pratt, you know, maybe it will have called up Jet Williams, probably will have called up Jet Williams. You know, what are those guys doing? What's it looking like at that point? Um, I don't they're they're never closed off to making a bigger deal that makes sense, but you just always have to remember that the brewers are so they covet their pipeline so much because it's the it's the lifeblood of this organization. We know how they operate. You you you know, you you draft well, you develop, you plug in the holes at the major league level, god willing, they turn out to be really good players, and then once they hit free agency, you bid ado, and then you plug the holes with the next guys coming through. You know, those guys have tremendous, tremendous value in in the in the farm system, these prospects. And you I think you have to be ultra, ultra sure that if you're gonna be moving any of those guys, you're getting a guy that's going to be just incredibly impactful for you, the CC Sympathias of the world, you know, and and how often does that happen? So it makes for a great conversation. Um, you know, I I find it interesting that uh the Tarek Scubel to Brewers, you know, like, well, who's his agent, Scott Boris? Who's great about you know throwing that stuff out there to the media? Scott Boris. Well, yeah, you know, he and Mark Adenazio have consummated a number of deals together, uh, together over the years, and um, I'm sure he's he's putting that chum in the water to try to you know get Mark to start thinking, hmm, you know, maybe you know that will look pretty good, you know, a one, two, three with him and uh Miz and Harrison. So, you know, I'm kind of going around and around, but I I think the Brewers will always consider making a big move, you know, maybe a big bad is it. They've all they've almost always erred on the side of pitching, and that's never a bad move either, you know, trying to bolster the bullpen, you know, if you can pick up another guy who you think can make some starts for you, whatever. But um, you know, if the brewers continue on the route that they're on, continue to be leading the division in a good position again, um, you know, in a position to position themselves well heading into the postseason. Yeah, I think many things could be on the table, but it's it's it's fun to talk about, right? I mean, again, yeah, the start of the season, all the injuries, you know, the losing streak and everything. You're like, oh well, you know, maybe this isn't gonna be the year. Well, now it's looking like yeah, it's really good again, doesn't it? Yeah, wash, rinse, and repeat, right? Yeah. Uh, are you on the road in Colorado or Vegas against the A's on this new tour? Uh going to Vegas. Kurt's got Colorado. So I'm interested. Uh I always like to knock out new ballparks. I've never been to uh that triple A ballpark in Vegas. So weather should hopefully cooperate. I see it's only going to be like 98 while we're out there, 97, 98. That's why they play their games at 11 o'clock at night, jokingly. Um, but yeah, so we'll be out there looking forward to uh seeing uh seeing Sin City. There you go. Well, all right, stay out of trouble. Uh Todd Rosiak, I always appreciate it. Thanks for jumping in with me. Always a pleasure. Mike, good seeing you, man. Thanks for having me on Todd Rosiak, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel JS online joining us. Uh, let me tell you about our sponsors. Um, we we have great partners on this show. I'm so blessed to have partnerships with uh this group of sponsors, um, our partners. So let's start with one community bank this June. You can beat the heat with one community bank in celebration of June. Dairy Month. One community bank is offering our wonderful clients free ice cream treats every Friday and Saturday during the month of June. Visit it online at onecommunity.bank, feel good banking member FDIC. Also presented by M3. M3's commitment to small business runs deep. They're passionate about helping small businesses grow and stay strong by reducing the friction that comes with protecting their operations and their people. Go to M3INS.com. Also presented by the Neuroscience Group, a concussion can change everything in an instant. Car crashes, work injuries, sports-related concussions. Their team provides one of the most comprehensive concussion programs in the state with specialized care designed to help you recover and return to life safely. Neuroscience Group, go to neurosciencegroup.com. Also presented by our friends of Pottawatomi Sportsbook and Casino. You know, it's not just about betting and the great hotel stay at Pottawatomi. There's a big food menu filled with a bunch of new items. Check them out every day. Must be 21 to enter the casino. And also brought to you by our friends at Habish, Habish, and Rotier. 13 locations to ensure you get a hometown attorney who understands your life and the impacts of your injury on your life. Personally committed to your recovery. Habish, Habish, and Rotier. All right. So we we roll forward, and I always look forward to a chance to visit with Matt Schneidman. He's been busy. OTA is going on, and we welcome in from the Athletic Matt Schneidman. Matt, how are you? Thanks for doing this. I appreciate it. I'm good. How are you, Mike? Very good. So Josh Jacobs back on the practice field yesterday. But I got a sense in perusing through uh some of the locker room interviews that you and others did that maybe it wasn't his first practice. Did you get that sense that maybe he was part of OTA's Saturday? Yeah, well, it wasn't his first practice. Um we during OTAs, we are just allowed to attend and watch one practice, whereas in training camp, we're allowed to watch every practice. So as Xavier McKinney said, um, Josh Jacobs has been there for a little bit now. It was just the first time we saw him on the field. So it was the first player availability. What was your sense of the reaction? They probably from a Packers organizational standpoint, wisely uh took player availability away last week. What was your reaction to their reaction to uh having microphones and cameras in front of them? Regarding the Jacobs stuff. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, I I think I was maybe a little surprised that they expanded upon it more than Matt LaFleur did. When we heard LaFleur address it last week, he declined comment and said he was just gonna stick to the team statement. Well, Xavier McKinney said we support him no matter what he's got going on. Jaden Reed said we're always gonna support him. Jordan Love said it hasn't been awkward, just knowing the kind of guy Josh is. Yeah. Love said it has been discussed internally. He obviously and understandably wouldn't get into specifics. My guess, and I I haven't been told this, I'm literally just guessing, is that Jacobs addressed the team in some regard. Um now I don't know if the players defending him is because they're just defending a guy who's been great for them in the locker room or because they actually think he should be found not guilty. Uh we obviously are at a point where the only fair way to address this is to say we got to let the legal process play out because Josh Jacobs is still under investigation for alleged domestic abuse, which is a very serious matter. But uh we'll see how this whole thing plays out. But yeah, I was a little not taken aback, but I wasn't expecting maybe players to go beyond just a decline comment yesterday. Yeah, I always find it interesting. Uh I I don't want to cover uh police matters or the legal system. Do you have any sense of a calendar on when we might know something more? It's not what you want to do either, but uh, how do you answer that? What do you know? Yeah, I I I don't know how long this takes. I'm not a legal expert, and I don't even know if a legal expert would know how long this takes. Because, you know, as the Brown County DA's office said last week, they felt they had reason to believe there may be more evidence that had yet to come to light that could change their decision on whether to pursue criminal charges or what criminal charges to pursue. So, how long will it take them to uncover that oops, sorry, how long will it take them to uncover that evidence? Um, how long will it take them to reach a conclusion? All they said was a formal charging decision will come at a later date. And and I don't think this isn't like uh the NFL where, well, it is the NFL, but it's not like okay, we know roster cuts are going to come at this day. We know the Packers have to call up guys from the practice squad on this day. Like, I don't think there's a set timetable for when they have to make a decision by. Matt, the it maybe running back depth might have been one of the weak links or biggest question marks coming into camp, coming into the OTAs, not you know, we get to camp at the end of next month. But what would if I took running back off the table, because we don't know the Josh Jacobs scenario, what is the biggest concern when they begin, whether you look at it that way or they do, I can't discern that, but what do you think the biggest issue is or weakness, weak link for the Packers when they begin camp at the end of next month? Um I think right now it is their edge rusher depth behind Micah Parsons. Yeah. And that's obviously a bigger concern if you feel that way to start the season because Parsons is not expected to play. I mean, uh, we haven't talked to Micah since Locker Cleanout Day. We're actually talking to him in about an hour here at Lambeau. Um so I I think it's a group of guys who the Packers are confident in that can confident that they can make that jump. Whether it's Lucas Van Ness now that he's healthy, Barron Sorrell, Colin Oliver, Brenton Cox now that he's healthy, uh deny Dennis Sutton their their rookie fourth round pick. But you have those guys going into the season, and you don't say, Oh, yeah, I'm confident we can we can you know tread water while Micah's out. I know there's a lot of this Josh Sweat talk online. Yeah. I'm just gonna ask you about that if there are legs to it. Sure. Uh I'll I can I'll let you ask that question. But with regards to the biggest concern right now, I would say it's the edge rusher depth. But look, it might not be a concern by week six or seven when we see that Sorrell has taken a jump and deny Dennis Sutton is great for a rookie, and Lucas Van Ness is you know making sure that he he is not considered a bust finally. So it's just more of an unknown than something where, okay, these guys are proven bums. It's like we just don't know if they're gonna be good in in their elevated roles after uh Gary and Kingsley and Igbari left. Well, uh certainly the Rams cemented their position as favorites in the NFC on the deal for Miles Garrett. Then there were some rumblings that the Packers are in conversation with Josh Sweat. You may or may not agree with the Rams. They're the betting favorite. How about that? Um, what about the Sweat conversation? Are there legs to that? Is it something that is real? No. Um, at least from what I've been told, and I don't know uh where those reports, rumors, whatever you want to call them started. Um, but from what I was told, there is no validity to them. Okay. I know there was a report today that uh Josh Sweat is likely going to be traded today to the Packers or the Eagles. Brian Gudukins has not had a conversation with anybody about trading for Josh Sweat. So uh yeah, no, that's not a thing. Okay, so when I alluded to the Rams maybe cementing their position as favorites in the NFC, are you on board with that or do you have a different view? No, I I I think they they certainly could be on paper, but I don't think you can discount the Super Bowl champions. I know they've they've lost some players, Reek Woolen and Kent Kenneth Walker, but you gotta give some respect to the Super Bowl champions. On paper, you can make an argument for the Los Angeles Rams, but uh I'm still putting the Seahawks up there as the defending champs, and the Rams can be kind of like a one B. So it's it's not that it matters in the grand scheme of things, but uh Uh, Caleb Williams on the cover of Madden um with his uh with his jump throw, uh uh jump man throw against the Packers. Uh what do you see from him? Because we uh I've I've asked you this, and we've talked about this in the past with other guests. Uh certainly the most highlight-driven quarterback at the position is do you think he is poised to take the step and maybe become one of the elite quarterbacks in the league, which I would argue he is not today, but certainly has the upside to be? And if this is clipped anywhere, what I'm about to say, people will just accuse me of being a Packers homer. I think people who have followed my work over my last seven years covering this team realize I'm not a Packers homer. Um, I'm not a Packers fan, which people, some people still don't know. Uh just from and and do I watch every throw Caleb Williams makes? No. I watch most throws Jordan Love makes, and I watch every throw he makes during games. I still think Jordan Love's the best quarterback in this division. Caleb Williams is a is a good quarterback, but there the ability to make wow plays is is there. It's the consistency of everything else, I think. And again, this is just a casual observation based on the games I've watched him hit of him against the Packers, and you know, whenever else I happen to watch him play. I'm not granularly studying him on a down-by-down basis, but um I I certainly think uh he can rise up into that top ten level. I don't think he's there yet, but he certainly has the ability to make magic happen, and you can't discount that if you're if you're looking at quarterbacks. Matt, the you and I haven't visited since the schedule came out. We already obviously knew the opponent's home and away, but was there anything advantageous or dissit advantageous when we saw the dates, the times, those things? Is the Packers okay as the schedule plays? Sorry. Uh yeah, I I was just looking at something Ian Rappaport tweeted. This has gained some steam on social media. So just to provide some clarity, Arizona Cardinals edge rusher Josh Sweat is not being traded, not to the Packers or anywhere. Carry on. Okay. That takes care of that for now. That uh reaffirms your point that there's nothing there. I'm gonna reply to that. Hold on, go ahead. Yeah, you do this. We're live. You you you you work. That's a day job thing right there. So sorry, say say your say your say your question again. So it's just you and I hadn't visited since the schedule came out. I wondered if you saw anything advantageous, advantageous or disadvantageous about the dates, times, did anything matter there or stick out to you that would be plus or minus? No, I don't think in in particular. I mean, you you can make an argument that three or four on the road to start the season isn't great, but then you get four or five at home to end the year, so it kind of balances out. You know, you can make the argument they don't have a true bye week because they have a couple mini buys, and it and I'm talking about the uh mini buy before the Wednesday night Thanksgiving game. You can't really enjoy that full bye week. But no, I I don't see anything that really sticks out as oh, the league screwed the Packers. Sure. I don't think that was there on the schedule this year. Anything else to learn from these OTAs uh or what you have picked up in in the limited access that that you've had so far? There's not really much to glean from watching practice. Um I am interested to hear what Micah has to say today. We haven't talked to him, like I said, since Locker Cleanout Day. Has his expectation for a return timetable changed? How is he feeling in rehab? Like he's he's the team's best player, he's one of the best players in the NFL and coming off a major injury. So uh I think there will be more of substance to take away after we talk with him today. But you know, we've had good chats with guys like Xavier Franklin, Jaden Reed, Xavier McKinney, uh, all the guys in the locker room yesterday, and then locker rooms open again today in less than an hour. So um looking forward to touching base with some guys. Tyrod Taylor is supposed to talk today. We haven't talked to him yet, so looking forward to that as well. Yankees have the fifth best record in Major League Baseball, Brewer's third best in Major League Baseball. How are you feeling about the your Yanks? They're in good position. I I feel good. There's always something to nitpick, but if you've got the fifth best record in baseball, the Rays aren't gonna last to the top of the division. I think the Yankees are gonna win the division. You could argue most likely the best starting pitching staff in the league. Garrett Cole hasn't given up a run in his two two starts back from Tommy John. So I am uh very pleased with where the Yankees are. Aaron Judge currently hurt, has a bone bruise, so would like to get him healthy, but uh overall pretty solid. Did you take in any of the games in Milwaukee on that? Yeah, all three. That was awesome. Damn it. Yeah, I was there. I was there for all three. Well, yeah, a little bit a little bit different than last year in New York to open it. Great experience. Yeah, well, it it it matters for them. It's gonna matter in October for both, it will. Uh hey, uh, thanks for doing this. I appreciate it. Uh enjoy what is today. Uh, hopefully uh we'll catch up soon. We appreciate you being here. All right, thanks, Mike. Always appreciate it. Appreciate it. Matt Schneidman, the athletic, joining us on the program. Um so interest you know, certain certain people in the media on the beat know stuff. They don't know everything, but they know stuff. So the Josh Sweat stuff, even even on the Ian Rappaport tweet just a little bit ago, that he's not getting traded to the Eagles or the Packers or anybody today. The the concept and and I I mentioned this yesterday on Super Fan Tuesday that here, I'm gonna look in a different camera for this. That those who believe that the Packers needed to respond to the Rams trade for Miles Garrett to me was silly. If the Bears had traded for Miles Garrett, I don't think that the Packers would have needed to respond. Now, the Bears' fortunes had they done something like that, likely change. It's it's a it's a significant deal, it's a significant deal in LA. But if you're gonna play reactionary, hey, they did this, we need to do something concept, then I think you're already losing. In in pro sports, if you're reactionary, I think you're playing from behind. So that the Rams go ahead and they have this concept of what it is that that they're gonna do. Okay. The Packers made this move ten months ago to get Micah Parsons. They don't need to respond to the Rams going out and getting Miles Garrett. Yes, you will play the Rams in LA back half of the season this year, but you are not competing with the Rams until you get to January. One game during the regular season in LA, and then if you're in that position, and hopefully you are, you will compete with them in January, but you don't compete with them in June. You don't compete with anybody in June, except for you. And I think the Packers made this move 10 months ago. So I don't think they need to respond to what the Rams did in getting Miles Garrett. It is a significant addition to the LA Rams. Makes them a really good, it adds one of the great pieces on defense in the entire league to a defense that was, you know, pretty good and at times better than pretty good. And they're trying to unseed Seattle as the best in their division and the best in football. And that's why Matt said, you know, he kind of shook his head a little bit when I said the Rams, the the favorites should have quantified betting favorites in the NFC off of this move. And, you know, Matt was more along the lines of not so fast. The reigning Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks are in the division, and that defense was extraordinary. I thought that Seattle might fail down the stretch because of Sam Darnold in a big moment might let them down. He didn't need to. He didn't need to carry them. Their defense was the story. So just wanted to play that part of the conversation. Still, as far as the last time I checked, still no word on who the Brewers starter is tonight. I know that there was a roster move that was sort of pending on um on the Brewers front. And I do did want to point out that the uh, as Todd Rosiak did, Christopher Sanchez edged out Ms. for National League pitcher of the month. So not a significant surprise, I don't think. I thought it might be shared. Uh I don't know exactly the process that they go about that, but it didn't happen that way. And Christopher Sanchez had one fewer start, but uh uh, I think two-thirds of an inning more pitched as a starter in the month of May and didn't give up an earned run. Hard to not win the award when you don't give up anything. Miz gave up one. So uh it certainly could have gone either way. I was just trying to see if there was anything on my uh Twitter feed in the live version of the show that indicated who the Brewers were going to start tonight. Uh, don't have that because it's not out there. Logan Webb starts for San Francisco. He's two and four with an ERA just under five. Bryce Tarang is lifetime four for nine. He's the best Brewers hitter against Webb. Uh Churio has the only homer in the Brewers lineup. He's one for six with a home run. So I've got uh a little new thing. Pottawatomi, my bet of the day on Pottawatomi, and it's going to go to the Brewers. I'm going to go Bryce Tarang three plus total bases at plus 300, which all that means if theoretically I'm putting a $100 bet on this and I'll track it. So in theory, I'm putting a $100 bet every day. So this $100 bet would win $300 back. So I'd get the $100 back plus $300 more. So I'm going to take as my Pottawatomy wager bet Gamble of the Day. I'm going to take Bryce Tarang, who has a really good lifetime uh success rate against Brandon Webb at four for nine. I'm going to take the three total bases, three or over at plus 300. So that's my uh Pottawatomy that of the day. Do with that what you want. I mean, if you want to make money, go ahead and follow me. If you just want to pretend that you made money, go ahead and follow me. If you want to fade me on it, go the other way. It's up to you. Tomorrow on the show, this will be interesting. Tomorrow on the show, uh, I'm going to walk across the street to the Am Fam Championship. The tournament doesn't begin tomorrow. It's another pro-am day, but I'll see if I can wrangle a guest or two in uh the hour across the street. Might go a little bit longer. We'll see. Uh also Vinny Rettino, he's on the show tomorrow, but we're going to record his version of it just a little earlier because he's going to be at the ballpark. So uh even though the show will go live at 10, I'll have a uh segment with Vinny that I will have done, you know, an hour and a half earlier before he leaves to go to the ballpark. So Vinny Rettino on the show as he is on Thursdays. That's tomorrow. And then we'll have some golf conversation uh at uh TPC Wisconsin, home of the Amp Fam Championship, a champions tour senior tour event on the PGA tour that Steve Stricker is the host for. So we've got that going on tomorrow. Hey, don't forget, put this in your notes. You can email me Hellerpods 2, the number two, Hellerpods2 at gmail.com. We've got four spots remaining on our bourbon trail trip that we will take with red and white wine and bourbon bar July 8th through the 12th. Motor coach, plenty of room on that motor coach, because we're only going to have 24. Right now we have 20. So there'll be plenty of room to spread out. We're going to leave from Wannakkee, Wisconsin. We'll go to Louisville on the first day. We will stop at the Hard Truth Distillery in southern Indiana and do a tasting, have lunch and get our first shot of bourbon. Not literally, but tasting. And then because some might have it on the bus because you can do that too. And then we're going to go to Louisville on Fry on Thursday. We're going to go to Frankfurt, Kentucky, and we will go to Buffalo Trace first thing in the morning, 10:30 on Thursday morning, then Woodford Reserve in the afternoon. On Friday, we'll go to Bardstown. We're going to preservation in the morning, and the afternoon is a changing. We'll find something, but right now, thought it was going to be Heaven Hill. It might not be. Working on that, but we'll have something great to go to. We'll spend a little bit of Friday night, uh, dinner on your own in Bardstown, Kentucky, uh, one of the centers of the Bourbon Trail. Then go back to Louisville, and on Saturday, we'll go to Mickter's in Louisville before we bus home on Sunday. We can get you all the details. There are four spots left. We're closing it on Friday because Friday we have to finalize the hotel stay and room allotment. So it's going to be a great trip. There are couples and individuals going, there are buddies that are uh that are going on this trip. If you'd like to go, email Hellerpods2 at gmail.com, but we'll need commitment by Friday, by the end of day, Friday. And then next Thursday night, June 11th, we're going to take this stuff. And uh the I Love Monday show is gonna take itself out to red and white wine bar on what we call Old Fashion Thursday. It's a fundraiser for UW Cardiology. We do it every week for somebody's charity. Next Thursday it will be for UW Cardiology. But the I Love Monday crew, that's talking about Treadmill and hopefully Courtney and maybe some of our regular emailers, texters, call we don't have callers, you know what I mean. Uh at Red and White Wine Bar next Thursday night for old-fashioned Thursdays. We got wine, we've got bourbon, and on old-fashioned Thursdays, we make old fashions, whiskey or brandy old fashions. And then we have tap beer and uh yingling in, you know, we we got stuff. Come see us if you haven't before. Next Thursday would be a great one to come out to. All right, we're done. Uh what'd we do? Oh, look at that. 59 minutes and 30 seconds. We'll be back and we'll do this uh tomorrow. Again, we'll do it tomorrow across the street at the Ampham Championship. Vinny Rettino and some golf guys will be the guests. We look forward to that. Enjoy the rest of the day. And don't forget, Brood Daily tonight after the Brewers game goes final against San Francisco. We're 3-0 since Brood Daily launched. And you can find that right here on the I Love Mondays YouTube page or on my Twitter account at Heller Sports. We'll talk to you tomorrow. Thanks for being here. Always appreciate you and uh and being here for this. We'll talk to you again tomorrow. I love Mondays with my hell.