On this week’s edition of Inside the (Rob) Parker, Rob discusses the impending return of Detroit Tigers ace Tarik Skubal, how the return of Paul Goldschmidt has helped the New York Yankees weather the storm without Aaron Judge, and the 2026 MLB All-Star ballot. Plus, Los Angeles Angels MVP outfielder Mike Trout swings by, and AM 570 LA Sports Dodgers reporter David Vassegh checks in. Finally, we drop Rob's latest appearance on MLB Network and the latest edition of Pocket Protector Central with analytics maven Anthony Masterson, and reveal the tenth installment of Rob’s Memory Lane series.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:01):
From the Berkshars to the sound from wherever you live
in MLB America. This is inside the Parker. You give
us twenty two minutes and we'll give you the scoop
on major League Baseball. Now, here's Baseball Hall of Fame
voter number fifty six, Rob Parker.
Speaker 2 (00:19):
Come on, I've been covering Major League Baseball for almost
forty years now, in New York, in Cincinnati, in Detroit,
in LA. I love this game.
Speaker 1 (00:31):
Let's go.
Speaker 3 (00:36):
Welcome into the podcast. I'm your host, Rob Parker. What
a show we have for you today. Coming up, we'll
talk with Mike Trout, the Angels center fielder, he'll stop by.
Plus we'll do a little in depth on David Vasse.
He's the Los Angeles Dodgers reporter who works for AM
five seventy in LA.
Speaker 4 (00:59):
That plus much more. Let's go better.
Speaker 1 (01:03):
Up to lead off. It's getting runned and keep him mind.
Rob's hot take on the three biggest stories in Major
League Baseball. Number one, the return.
Speaker 3 (01:14):
Of Tark School Bowl, the back to back Cy Young
Award winner in the American League making his return. He
is scheduled to pitch on Saturday tomorrow in Cleveland against
the Guardians, which is incredible just thirty eight days after surgery.
Remember they removed some loose bodies in that left elbow,
(01:38):
and this will be interesting to see the Tigers rush.
Speaker 4 (01:42):
Him back because he fully healthy.
Speaker 3 (01:44):
How effective will he be and will he stay at
Tiger And the Tigers have a real big decision to
make Tark school will wants at least four hundred million dollars.
Are the Tigers willing to pay that kind of money,
you know, for a mid market or will they have
to trade. I'm telling you, if they're not going to
sign the guy and give him what he wants, they
shouldn't do what if Angels did with shoe Hey Otani,
(02:06):
which was hold him the whole season and then basically
get nothing for him. So targ schoobl can wind up
being like CC Sabatia when Cleveland traded CEC to Milwaukee.
He helped them make the playoffs and then he went
on and signed a big contract with the Yankees. So
targ Schoobo could be a rental for some team uh
and get them through this second half of the season
(02:29):
into the postseason.
Speaker 5 (02:30):
So this will be the We're on the.
Speaker 3 (02:31):
Schoolbol watch now as he makes his returns tomorrow Saturday
in Cleveland against the Guardians number two. Obviously, when Aaron
Judge went down, people were fretting about the Yankees and
what they're going to be able to do, you know,
without their captain, without their big bat. The Yankees raised
some eyebrows when they brought back Paul Goldschmidt, who has
(02:55):
been like the backup first baseman and DH and man.
He has had a really good season for the Yankees
as they continue to win coming into Friday, coming off
the sweep in Cleveland. But let me just give you
some gold Schmidt numbers and what he could do here
and what he's been doing.
Speaker 4 (03:14):
At age thirty eight, he has.
Speaker 3 (03:17):
Eight home runs and an eight ninety OPS.
Speaker 4 (03:21):
And here you go, look at this.
Speaker 3 (03:23):
He can join these other players with an over eight
p fifty OPS plus ten home runs are more at
age thirty eight or older, Carlos Beltran, Jorge Pasada or
Babe Ruth who did it twice in nineteen thirty three
and nineteen thirty four. That's the kind of numbers that
(03:44):
Goldschmid is putting up at age thirty eight. The OPS
is through the roof and obviously eight home runs a
great chance to get double digits leading on. So the
Yankees brought him back and it was a good thing
they did. Stanton's out a right handed bat out a
right handed bat, and gold Schmidt filling in very admirably
(04:05):
for those Bronx.
Speaker 5 (04:06):
Bombers number three.
Speaker 3 (04:10):
The twenty twenty six All Star ballot is out and
available for fans to vote on. The twenty twenty six
All Star Game will be in Philadelphia July mid July,
the Midsummer Classic. I'll be there in Philadelphia Citizen Citizens
Bank Ballpark, looking forward to it. Obviously, Aaron Judge probably
(04:32):
won't be there with the injury, and there'll be some
other players that will miss. But the ballots are out,
and obviously it'll be interesting to see who's there. We
got a couple of names of course, America League. Pete
Alonso first base is somebody who's doing well. Ben Rice
(04:52):
from the Yankees first base. A couple other people going
in obviously, you know Show Hey in the National League.
C j Abrams Washington. I think he has a great shot.
What a great year he's having. Also, James Wood could
be a starter in the outfield, having another great season
(05:16):
for the Washington Nationals, so they could have a couple
of players uh in the All Star Game, so this.
Speaker 4 (05:23):
Will be interesting.
Speaker 3 (05:24):
Bobby Witch Junior is having an MVP season. There's a
lot of really good players, so this will be interesting
as fans get to vote for who they want again.
Judge is injured, so it'll be interested to see what
the outfield and how fans stop voting for him and
maybe make a change as they move forward. But the
Midsummer Classic in Philadelphia on the in mid July. Can't
(05:49):
wait for that. Always a great time. The Major League
Baseball All Star Game is still has withstood the time
test of time.
Speaker 6 (05:57):
The Pro Bowl in the.
Speaker 3 (05:59):
NFL's fall by the way sides, the NBA All Star
Game is awful, but we still look forward to the
Baseball All Star Game every summer. So I just can't wait.
And you know what, it's the fans game. They get
to decide who gets to play in it. I've never
been one to want to take that vote away from
the fans because it's your game.
Speaker 1 (06:20):
Here comes the big interview. Listen and learn.
Speaker 5 (06:23):
It's so good. Let's welcome into the podcast.
Speaker 3 (06:27):
Mike Trout, of course, centerfielder Los Angeles Angels, Mike, I
just want to talk about the season and the team
and you been the frustrating season obviously, expectations. How do
you play through this as you go forward still the
expectations of trying to get this together.
Speaker 7 (06:47):
Yeah, no, I mean you got to look at it
as you know, we still have you know a lot
of games with We gotta take it one game at
a time, you know, personally, unless you know we can
half two weeks.
Speaker 6 (07:00):
It's uh, you know, things that having, you know, going
my way to plate.
Speaker 7 (07:04):
But uh, you know it's why we're coming in here
every day, work hard, try to get better, and you
know we can't. I feel like I've been hitting a
few balls hard, just not find the holes.
Speaker 6 (07:15):
But uh that's how base all this.
Speaker 3 (07:16):
You've been in this game a long time, had a
lot of success. What do you say to yourself? You
just like, keep doing what I'm supposed to do, you
know what I mean, keep hitting the ball hard and
then it will just kind of work out for you.
Speaker 5 (07:28):
Yeah, I got the.
Speaker 7 (07:29):
Approach, just uh, you know, coming in every single day,
you know, keeping my routine, you know, knowing that the
results will be there if you know, not trying to
change much. You know, obviously you got to make adjustments
when when things you know, you know, feel off a
little bit, but uh, you know, just keep coming in
and working, you know, putt your head down and uh,
you know, trusting your your work pre game too, you know,
(07:50):
show results in the game.
Speaker 5 (07:52):
How about this year?
Speaker 3 (07:53):
Just the idea back in the center field, playing healthy?
Speaker 5 (07:57):
How about that part of it.
Speaker 3 (07:58):
Even though maybe the hit isn't where you want it,
But just to be back out there, how does that feel?
Speaker 7 (08:03):
It's a big confidence booster to be able to go
out there and just you know, you know, feel comfortable,
you know, play defense, and yeah, it's been fun out
there all right.
Speaker 3 (08:12):
A lot of people say, all right, Mike Trialt, is
time that he should move on. He deserves better, he
should be on another team.
Speaker 5 (08:19):
You know, you hear that stuff.
Speaker 3 (08:21):
You've been around and all that were you are you
an angel?
Speaker 5 (08:24):
You're you're good here? Would you be open to that?
You know you hear that.
Speaker 7 (08:29):
I don't even I didn't even thought about any of that.
So I've at that.
Speaker 3 (08:32):
Okay, this is this is uh your career and the
time that you spend here. But as you as we
go forward with the change of manager and some of
the other stuff here, does it.
Speaker 5 (08:44):
Feel like it's going in the right direction?
Speaker 3 (08:46):
I mean not the wins and losses, but like the
structure here that you have.
Speaker 7 (08:49):
I mean, if you look at if you look at
this season right now, it's not the way we wanted
it to go. So, like I said in the beginning
of the beginning of this, we got a lot of
games left and hopefully turn this thing around.
Speaker 5 (09:00):
Okay, the last thing for yourself.
Speaker 3 (09:05):
Are in numbers that you're looking for or just to
continue to put him good at bats?
Speaker 5 (09:11):
Like what what do you think? What's your motivation?
Speaker 6 (09:13):
No, you know, just being out there every single day.
Speaker 7 (09:16):
And I know that if I'm out there playing, you know,
my numbers is gonna be up there.
Speaker 5 (09:21):
So okay, yeah, thank you so much, Matt, pray for you.
Speaker 6 (09:24):
No problem.
Speaker 1 (09:27):
It's time for the pocket Protector Centrum. The analytic numbers
you need to know.
Speaker 2 (09:32):
Well, maybe Anthony Masterson is his name, BS, analytics is
his game.
Speaker 4 (09:39):
What do you got for me, Anthony?
Speaker 8 (09:40):
We've seen big time injuries derail the potential races for
MVP and cy Young this season, though Trek School might
still have something to say about that in the al
But the news of Aaron Judges' prologed absence will be
felt around the league. Where does it lead the Yankees.
The last time Judgements significant time was twenty twenty three,
where the Aks went twenty five and thirty one without him,
scored or four runs a game and missed the playoffs
(10:01):
for the first time in seven years. However, in twenty nineteen,
Judge missed two months and the team went forty two
to eighteen. So who's to say? This obviously erases Judge's
chances of winning a third straight MVP in the AL.
But who are the next best candidates? According to Vegas,
of the top four, only one is currently on a
winning team. That would be Judge's teammate Ben Rice, who
(10:22):
finds himself in the top five and nearly every offensive
category in the AL, including second in OPS. He's right
behind the Astros Jordan Alvarez, who is mashing for the
fourth place Astros leading the ALE and home runs and
all of baseball and slugging ops and ops plus. The
Royals might find themselves in the cellar of the AL Central,
but that has not stop Bobby Witt Junior from having
(10:43):
another standout season, leading the league in wins above replacement
thanks for being one of the league's top defenders at
a premium position. Then there's the A's Nick Kurtz, who's
taking advantage of his triple A home parks along with
an eagle eye at the plate to lead the league
in OBP and RBI. Now, thanks to the Angels and
show Hey Tani and Mike Trout, four of the last
(11:03):
ten al MVPs have been on losing teams, and it's
entirely possible we'll see another in twenty twenty six.
Speaker 1 (11:10):
When Rob was a newspaper columnist, he lived by this motto.
If I'm writing, I'm ripping. Let's bring in a writer
or broadcaster, old or new.
Speaker 5 (11:20):
Now let's welcome into the podcast.
Speaker 3 (11:22):
David Veasse, Dodgers reporter AM five to seventy in Los Angeles.
Speaker 4 (11:27):
Dave, how are you.
Speaker 9 (11:28):
I'm doing great, Rob, Always great to have you at
at Dodger Stadium on a Sunday.
Speaker 5 (11:32):
No doubt.
Speaker 3 (11:33):
But let me tell you this is about you, not
about the Dodgers, and I don't want to time talk
about your career covering the Dodgers. You do TV work, obviously,
you do stuff on the radio as well. Pregame postgame
all that. How many years has it been now?
Speaker 9 (11:47):
Yeah, this is my fifteenth season hosting Dodger Talk and
traveling with the team, and it's been an incredible ride.
And certainly the players that I've been able to cover
are the best in the game over the course of
that time, and it just seems to.
Speaker 4 (11:59):
Be getting better.
Speaker 3 (12:00):
I was gonna say, you know, people looking to go, oh,
we've got a great job. Everything's great, It's not as
easy being a reporter, and you have to be delicate
because you're so close to the team, but you also
have to tell the truth and be honest when things
all going well.
Speaker 9 (12:14):
Yeah, and that's that's instilled in me rob growing up
in Los Angeles because I grew up with the best,
Vince Scully first.
Speaker 4 (12:22):
And foremost the best. He never chose a side.
Speaker 9 (12:25):
You knew that he was invested in the Dodgers, but
it never came across in any broadcast. I grew up
a Laker fan listening to Chick hern He was a
little bit more emotional, but he.
Speaker 4 (12:36):
Always tried to play it down the line, but.
Speaker 9 (12:38):
You always knew he was pulling for the Lakers. And
that's the way I approach the way I do it
here on Dodger Talk because everybody's watching the games. Everybody
sees what's going on. Once you become too much of
a fan and a homer, people start to tune you out.
And that's not something I ever grew up on, and
that's what I respected, and I feel like that's the
(12:59):
way LA fans have a standard for their broadcasters.
Speaker 3 (13:02):
Has your job gotten easier or harder with all the
success back to back World series? They've been in five
World series of recent you know what I mean? Is
it a little easier or harder because they've had a
lot of success.
Speaker 5 (13:17):
Maybe they don't want to talk as much. Maybe Yeah, I.
Speaker 9 (13:20):
Will say this on that side of things, I'm very
lucky that a lot of them do give me the
same amount of access and opportunity. But the reality is
there's so many more people coming after them and for
their time, and there are certain days where they just
are worn out or they're pressed for time and they
(13:40):
don't have time even for one question.
Speaker 4 (13:42):
So you can't take it personal.
Speaker 9 (13:45):
You have to understand that there's so much of a
crush of the media. And I'll even say this, rob
this year more than last year, there's more demand for
these Dodger players times and for Dave Roberts after coming
off back to back championships. But as far as talking
about the team, I mean, it's a lot easier. I
could be doing Rockies Talk or Angels talk, and it
(14:06):
would be really hard. When you're hosting Dodger Talk coming
off back to back World Series championships and they're going
for a three peet, you just along for the ride
and enjoying every second of it.
Speaker 3 (14:18):
Our guest is David Vasse, of course, Dodgers reporter AM
five seventy LA Sports. The big question in the room
is Old Tani and you being able to interview him,
his access the language, you know, like, how is that
having the biggest star in the game and he doesn't
really speak English.
Speaker 9 (14:38):
Yeah, well he does understand, but obviously he doesn't feel
comfortable enough to do the interviews in English himself. The
one thing I'll say, Rob, is that a lot of
people want to try to force themselves on Otani, and
that's not something that he really wants.
Speaker 4 (14:52):
So I never try to force myself on him.
Speaker 9 (14:55):
When I do need an interview on the field after
a game, he does it. He speaks to the entire
media group once a week now that he's pitching, and
you know, when I see him in the clubhouse, there's
like a small, playful interaction once in a while, But
this guy has his whole day set minute by minute.
(15:16):
Even his teammates realize the difference this year with him pitching,
So there's really not a lot of time for small talk.
And you know, it's just it's something that you have
to take a step back and realize you're witnessing something
that nobody will ever see in their lifetime. Again, this
type of guy doing at this level.
Speaker 3 (15:34):
I was going to ask you, what's the most impressive
thing about him? Just observing you know what I mean,
since you're around them all the time, what is it?
Speaker 9 (15:42):
Well, Rob, I'll tell you this, if you ever get
close to Otani, I know on TV, you know, you
don't realize how big and strong these guys are. If
you're as close to Otani as you are right now
to me, you would be impressed and may be surprised
just how big of a person he is.
Speaker 3 (16:00):
I totally agree with you, Like, like he is ripped,
he's in great shape, he's got a.
Speaker 4 (16:05):
Great body structure.
Speaker 5 (16:07):
He really is an athlete.
Speaker 9 (16:08):
Yeah, he's not small in stature. He may look like
it at times on television, but when you're up close
and next to him, he is a big human being,
strong human being.
Speaker 5 (16:19):
Last thing in your career.
Speaker 3 (16:21):
Best interview and the worst interview will leave the worst
for last, just like fun or just somebody you enjoy
talking to.
Speaker 9 (16:29):
Now, my two favorite I've always been Clayton Kershaw and
Freddie Freeman because they just see the game differently than
so many and can express themselves and really teach you
the game as well when you talk to them. You know,
I can't tell you like who the worst one is,
but you know, guys that give two word answers, they're
not really going.
Speaker 5 (16:48):
To do a lot for you. Where you go? All right,
I'll guess once again.
Speaker 3 (16:52):
David Vasse joining us here on Inside the Parker Dave Man,
we appreciate you.
Speaker 5 (16:56):
Thank you.
Speaker 4 (16:57):
Hey did I hit it out of the park?
Speaker 5 (16:58):
He sure did. To Parker, my man, thank you.
Speaker 4 (17:01):
Thanks a lot. Rob.
Speaker 1 (17:04):
In case you missed Rob Parker on the MLB. Next words,
here's his latest appearance on Mlbina.
Speaker 10 (17:13):
I usually get Rob Parker a little box. Now he's
here in the flesh Baby let's say if I talk
smack with Rob Parker right in front of me, Oh,
it's good to see you.
Speaker 1 (17:20):
Yes.
Speaker 10 (17:21):
So, like the Giants were down nine to one in
the eighth, I saw the score.
Speaker 5 (17:25):
I couldn't believe they came back to beat.
Speaker 10 (17:27):
The Nationals had a Grand Slam walk off. But it
happens on the same night the Knicks, down twenty nine
in the NBA Finals, come back and win.
Speaker 1 (17:35):
Like I don't know what the.
Speaker 10 (17:35):
Equivalent is, you know, in baseball, but like that, You've
covered some NBA right, That's the most unbelievable thing I've
ever seen.
Speaker 5 (17:42):
No, that was incredible.
Speaker 3 (17:44):
There's no way you could look at that game and
think that they would be able to come back from
that many points. But when you up twenty five points
and shoot nine straight three pointers and you're not making them, yeah,
you give a team a chance to come back. And
the Knicks got everything that they needed.
Speaker 5 (17:58):
You know what.
Speaker 10 (17:58):
I came back to the be because I'm doing all
baseball now, But I have to say that's a good product.
College basketball leads me cold, Am I wrong?
Speaker 5 (18:05):
Not at all?
Speaker 10 (18:05):
Because we were in the Big East in the dead.
Speaker 5 (18:07):
To day, I used to cover Saint John's.
Speaker 3 (18:09):
When Mark Jackson was on the team, lu Conoseca was the.
Speaker 5 (18:13):
Coach Walter Berry. So I'm filled with all the day.
Oh yeah, it was really good, so great.
Speaker 10 (18:17):
It's not as good as NBA, though, that's a ton
of fun. All right, you've thrown this out before and
I haven't taken the bait, but I will.
Speaker 5 (18:23):
Now you're going to take the bay finally.
Speaker 1 (18:25):
That's it.
Speaker 5 (18:26):
Look, I'm really you are.
Speaker 10 (18:27):
Kyle Schwarber is the new Dave Kingman. That's wrong, No,
that's not wrong.
Speaker 1 (18:32):
Wrong.
Speaker 3 (18:32):
You know what if you if Dave Kingman had Kyle
Schwarber's stats, people will still be like, we're not putting
it in the Hall of Fame. He has a two
thirty one lifetime batting average. Hey, Kingman had no shot.
Kingman might have been the first guy to actually hit
five hundred home runs.
Speaker 1 (18:49):
Who would not have gotten into all that was? That
was the talk about, right.
Speaker 10 (18:52):
Because the culture said that guy cannot be in the
Hall of Fame, no matter how many homeses, no matter
how many and what is he He's the modern player
like Dave Kingman is the modern player, right, But.
Speaker 1 (19:00):
Schwarber is a better at bat. He's a more impactful.
Speaker 3 (19:04):
What I'm looking I'm looking at like even the war seventh.
Kingman's like seventeen to three, Schwarber's twenty one three somewhere
around there.
Speaker 1 (19:12):
It's not that big at Warlock.
Speaker 10 (19:14):
Yes, I'm looking at Wark and now I've won a battle.
I had no idea.
Speaker 5 (19:18):
But no, I'm just looking at it.
Speaker 3 (19:19):
And I'm not trying to disrespect Schwarber, but I'm just saying,
how can we go from Kingman?
Speaker 1 (19:25):
No way, no, how culture are.
Speaker 3 (19:27):
Were putting him to the Hall of Fame to a
guy who's batting two thirty one lifetime.
Speaker 10 (19:32):
If I may, I ran their peak and I got
Kingman's great.
Speaker 5 (19:36):
Kingman had a.
Speaker 10 (19:36):
Great year nineteen seventy nine. I think it hit two
eighty eight, so he's the batting average. The batting average
of KINGMANO was actually two fifty two and Schwarber's two
thirty two. But the batting average now is much lower.
Now you can hit more home runs now the environment
has changed, but it's on basis three fifteen three to
three fifteen. The ops plus is better total basis, Schwarber
plays more games. Kingman was sporadic, so no, Schwarbur's how.
Speaker 1 (20:01):
Much more impactful.
Speaker 10 (20:02):
I mean when you watched them, what was your feel
that Kingmin was as good as Swarburn.
Speaker 3 (20:06):
Now, no, no, no, I'm just saying I'll agree with
you in Kingman, King Kong, Kingman and all that. At
one point, remember we had thirty five home runs at
the All Star break.
Speaker 5 (20:17):
Broke his thumb.
Speaker 1 (20:18):
That was the year.
Speaker 3 (20:19):
I think that had he not broken his thumb, think
he wand up with thirty seven total for that year
because he got hurt. But that might have been the
year that pushed him over had he had fifty or
sixty that year.
Speaker 5 (20:29):
But he never got there.
Speaker 3 (20:30):
Schwarber and the other part that goes with him is
that he plays for a good team and that they won,
so you feel better about him. If he was on
a bad team that didn't play any that didn't win
any games, would you buy that, because that's.
Speaker 5 (20:42):
What Kingman walked down on him. I'll give you that'd
be down on I.
Speaker 10 (20:45):
Feel if I done the plate discipline is better for Schwarbur,
he gets deeper into counts.
Speaker 1 (20:49):
He's a valuable guy.
Speaker 10 (20:50):
But no, no, Kingmin was ahead of his time. Last
two nights, I flip over to your mets right and
I'm watching the Mets, and then the first it was
four nothing cards. They lose seven nothing last night, Nick's
getting blown out. I flip off, like, all right, let
me see where the Mets right. They're losing seven nothing,
They're losing quiet night after night. Are they able to
come back this year?
Speaker 5 (21:08):
No season's over.
Speaker 3 (21:10):
I know people don't want to hear it, they don't
want to hear it, but.
Speaker 1 (21:13):
I'm not arguing.
Speaker 8 (21:14):
I'm not arguing with it.
Speaker 3 (21:15):
And I told you early on, you know that they
needed to do something here, and they didn't do it.
They said that they're going to stick with Mendoza.
Speaker 5 (21:23):
And whatever was going on.
Speaker 1 (21:24):
I don't and I know it's just the problem.
Speaker 3 (21:26):
Okay, you say that problem, you say that, and I
just this is my problem when people push back on
the manager. If the team is playing well, the manager
gets a new deal, and you say he's doing all
the right things, pushing all the right it's hard politically, Okay,
change that, okay, But but if he doesn't, if the
team doesn't play well, then you say, well, it's not
his fault.
Speaker 5 (21:44):
I'm sorry.
Speaker 3 (21:45):
A lot of the lacklusters played that I've seen from
the Mets, and you can go over the roster and
blame David Stearns. Partly I agree with that, but the
Phillies made a change manager for a guy who took
a team to a World Series and guess what, there's
season is turned around and you're looking at the Mets
and with the first week of June and the season's over.
Speaker 10 (22:06):
The Phillies took it as a slap to the face.
I think it's a shock to the system because they
love Rob Thompson. But Don Mattingley's great too. I don't
see anybody suddenly whipping these Mets into shape. That's that's
not happening. By the way, you were at the game
last night. You honored at the game.
Speaker 3 (22:19):
Well, celebrated my fortieth anniversary of covering Major League Baseball,
believing or I know, the gray hair and pretty nice.
My friends and family were out there at city Field.
Speaker 10 (22:31):
Hometown Kent from Jamaica.
Speaker 3 (22:32):
You know we had a special had to have one
for you, BK.
Speaker 5 (22:36):
I know all my friends were there. It was a
great time.
Speaker 10 (22:39):
And look at that me and was the celebrities were out.
Speaker 3 (22:42):
My friends always told me I had a bigger head
than mister matt proof that I.
Speaker 10 (22:45):
Don't so you were a Met fan out of a
Yankee fat doesn't.
Speaker 3 (22:48):
From Jamaica, Queen. I used to take the number seven.
I was a Mets fan growing up. Not anymore, but.
Speaker 10 (22:54):
You plus, when you were rooting for the Mets, they
had like Tom sever back.
Speaker 5 (22:57):
In the day.
Speaker 3 (22:58):
My favorite player of all time number seven, Steady Eddie Cranepoole,
because back then the only time nay one was when
he got to pinch.
Speaker 1 (23:06):
Hit original good stuff.
Speaker 10 (23:08):
Good to see it.
Speaker 1 (23:09):
It's time for a trip down memory lane here on
inside the Parker.
Speaker 10 (23:18):
Rock Parker has covered Major League baseball for forty years.
Speaker 1 (23:21):
Now, let's relive a memorable moment of his career.
Speaker 3 (23:25):
In nineteen eighty six, my first year covering major League baseball,
I covered my first World Series and it might be
the most famous World Series of them all, the Red
Sox and the Mets. Here I am a staff reporter
for the Daily News in New York. I'm five months
(23:48):
on a graduating from college at Southern Connecticut State University,
and the assignment is writing sidebars for the home games
at Chase Stadium for the nineteen eighty six World Series.
Speaker 5 (24:04):
Talk about a thrill. Talk about a moment.
Speaker 3 (24:08):
When I had to pinch myself for a moment in life.
Moment you can never forget. Take Game six of the
nineteen eighty six World Series, being in the ballpark when
the ball went under Bill Buckner's legs and the Mets
(24:28):
forced a Game seven. I can still remember the roar of.
Speaker 2 (24:34):
The crowd, the shaking of Shea Stadium after the Mets
had secured a tenditning win, and Ray Knight had scored, jumped.
Speaker 3 (24:52):
On home plate and all help prove.
Speaker 5 (24:56):
It was like a movie.
Speaker 3 (24:57):
There was drama, there was sheer floating throughout the air,
and here I am taking it all in at age
twenty two. When you cover a sport for forty years,
you will have seen so much experience, so many moments
that you can't forget.
Speaker 5 (25:17):
Still, the nineteen eighty six.
Speaker 3 (25:20):
World Series, my very first World Series as a writer,
breaks number one.
Speaker 5 (25:27):
Without question. It's etched in my memory.
Speaker 4 (25:31):
Hey, this is Rob Parker.
Speaker 3 (25:33):
Come back all season long, every week as I chronicle
my forty years of covering Major League Baseball. And if
you missed any episodes, go to mlbbro dot com and
catch up. In the words of New York TV legend
(25:58):
the late Bill Jorgensen, thank you, thank you for your
time this time.
Speaker 5 (26:01):
Until next time. Rob Parker out.
Speaker 6 (26:04):
He can't, Gavin.
Speaker 4 (26:05):
This could be an inside of Parker.
Speaker 3 (26:07):
See you next week, same bat time, same Matt station,
From the Berkshars to the sound from wherever you live
in MLB America. This is inside the Parker. You give
us twenty two minutes and we'll give you the scoop
on major League Baseball. Now, here's Baseball Hall of Fame
voter number fifty six, Rob Parker.
Speaker 2 (00:19):
Come on, I've been covering Major League Baseball for almost
forty years now, in New York, in Cincinnati, in Detroit,
in LA. I love this game.
Speaker 1 (00:31):
Let's go.
Speaker 3 (00:36):
Welcome into the podcast. I'm your host, Rob Parker. What
a show we have for you today. Coming up, we'll
talk with Mike Trout, the Angels center fielder, he'll stop by.
Plus we'll do a little in depth on David Vasse.
He's the Los Angeles Dodgers reporter who works for AM
five seventy in LA.
Speaker 4 (00:59):
That plus much more. Let's go better.
Speaker 1 (01:03):
Up to lead off. It's getting runned and keep him mind.
Rob's hot take on the three biggest stories in Major
League Baseball. Number one, the return.
Speaker 3 (01:14):
Of Tark School Bowl, the back to back Cy Young
Award winner in the American League making his return. He
is scheduled to pitch on Saturday tomorrow in Cleveland against
the Guardians, which is incredible just thirty eight days after surgery.
Remember they removed some loose bodies in that left elbow,
(01:38):
and this will be interesting to see the Tigers rush.
Speaker 4 (01:42):
Him back because he fully healthy.
Speaker 3 (01:44):
How effective will he be and will he stay at
Tiger And the Tigers have a real big decision to
make Tark school will wants at least four hundred million dollars.
Are the Tigers willing to pay that kind of money,
you know, for a mid market or will they have
to trade. I'm telling you, if they're not going to
sign the guy and give him what he wants, they
shouldn't do what if Angels did with shoe Hey Otani,
(02:06):
which was hold him the whole season and then basically
get nothing for him. So targ schoobl can wind up
being like CC Sabatia when Cleveland traded CEC to Milwaukee.
He helped them make the playoffs and then he went
on and signed a big contract with the Yankees. So
targ Schoobo could be a rental for some team uh
and get them through this second half of the season
(02:29):
into the postseason.
Speaker 5 (02:30):
So this will be the We're on the.
Speaker 3 (02:31):
Schoolbol watch now as he makes his returns tomorrow Saturday
in Cleveland against the Guardians number two. Obviously, when Aaron
Judge went down, people were fretting about the Yankees and
what they're going to be able to do, you know,
without their captain, without their big bat. The Yankees raised
some eyebrows when they brought back Paul Goldschmidt, who has
(02:55):
been like the backup first baseman and DH and man.
He has had a really good season for the Yankees
as they continue to win coming into Friday, coming off
the sweep in Cleveland. But let me just give you
some gold Schmidt numbers and what he could do here
and what he's been doing.
Speaker 4 (03:14):
At age thirty eight, he has.
Speaker 3 (03:17):
Eight home runs and an eight ninety OPS.
Speaker 4 (03:21):
And here you go, look at this.
Speaker 3 (03:23):
He can join these other players with an over eight
p fifty OPS plus ten home runs are more at
age thirty eight or older, Carlos Beltran, Jorge Pasada or
Babe Ruth who did it twice in nineteen thirty three
and nineteen thirty four. That's the kind of numbers that
(03:44):
Goldschmid is putting up at age thirty eight. The OPS
is through the roof and obviously eight home runs a
great chance to get double digits leading on. So the
Yankees brought him back and it was a good thing
they did. Stanton's out a right handed bat out a
right handed bat, and gold Schmidt filling in very admirably
(04:05):
for those Bronx.
Speaker 5 (04:06):
Bombers number three.
Speaker 3 (04:10):
The twenty twenty six All Star ballot is out and
available for fans to vote on. The twenty twenty six
All Star Game will be in Philadelphia July mid July,
the Midsummer Classic. I'll be there in Philadelphia Citizen Citizens
Bank Ballpark, looking forward to it. Obviously, Aaron Judge probably
(04:32):
won't be there with the injury, and there'll be some
other players that will miss. But the ballots are out,
and obviously it'll be interesting to see who's there. We
got a couple of names of course, America League. Pete
Alonso first base is somebody who's doing well. Ben Rice
(04:52):
from the Yankees first base. A couple other people going
in obviously, you know Show Hey in the National League.
C j Abrams Washington. I think he has a great shot.
What a great year he's having. Also, James Wood could
be a starter in the outfield, having another great season
(05:16):
for the Washington Nationals, so they could have a couple
of players uh in the All Star Game, so this.
Speaker 4 (05:23):
Will be interesting.
Speaker 3 (05:24):
Bobby Witch Junior is having an MVP season. There's a
lot of really good players, so this will be interesting
as fans get to vote for who they want again.
Judge is injured, so it'll be interested to see what
the outfield and how fans stop voting for him and
maybe make a change as they move forward. But the
Midsummer Classic in Philadelphia on the in mid July. Can't
(05:49):
wait for that. Always a great time. The Major League
Baseball All Star Game is still has withstood the time
test of time.
Speaker 6 (05:57):
The Pro Bowl in the.
Speaker 3 (05:59):
NFL's fall by the way sides, the NBA All Star
Game is awful, but we still look forward to the
Baseball All Star Game every summer. So I just can't wait.
And you know what, it's the fans game. They get
to decide who gets to play in it. I've never
been one to want to take that vote away from
the fans because it's your game.
Speaker 1 (06:20):
Here comes the big interview. Listen and learn.
Speaker 5 (06:23):
It's so good. Let's welcome into the podcast.
Speaker 3 (06:27):
Mike Trout, of course, centerfielder Los Angeles Angels, Mike, I
just want to talk about the season and the team
and you been the frustrating season obviously, expectations. How do
you play through this as you go forward still the
expectations of trying to get this together.
Speaker 7 (06:47):
Yeah, no, I mean you got to look at it
as you know, we still have you know a lot
of games with We gotta take it one game at
a time, you know, personally, unless you know we can
half two weeks.
Speaker 6 (07:00):
It's uh, you know, things that having, you know, going
my way to plate.
Speaker 7 (07:04):
But uh, you know it's why we're coming in here
every day, work hard, try to get better, and you
know we can't. I feel like I've been hitting a
few balls hard, just not find the holes.
Speaker 6 (07:15):
But uh that's how base all this.
Speaker 3 (07:16):
You've been in this game a long time, had a
lot of success. What do you say to yourself? You
just like, keep doing what I'm supposed to do, you
know what I mean, keep hitting the ball hard and
then it will just kind of work out for you.
Speaker 5 (07:28):
Yeah, I got the.
Speaker 7 (07:29):
Approach, just uh, you know, coming in every single day,
you know, keeping my routine, you know, knowing that the
results will be there if you know, not trying to
change much. You know, obviously you got to make adjustments
when when things you know, you know, feel off a
little bit, but uh, you know, just keep coming in
and working, you know, putt your head down and uh,
you know, trusting your your work pre game too, you know,
(07:50):
show results in the game.
Speaker 5 (07:52):
How about this year?
Speaker 3 (07:53):
Just the idea back in the center field, playing healthy?
Speaker 5 (07:57):
How about that part of it.
Speaker 3 (07:58):
Even though maybe the hit isn't where you want it,
But just to be back out there, how does that feel?
Speaker 7 (08:03):
It's a big confidence booster to be able to go
out there and just you know, you know, feel comfortable,
you know, play defense, and yeah, it's been fun out
there all right.
Speaker 3 (08:12):
A lot of people say, all right, Mike Trialt, is
time that he should move on. He deserves better, he
should be on another team.
Speaker 5 (08:19):
You know, you hear that stuff.
Speaker 3 (08:21):
You've been around and all that were you are you
an angel?
Speaker 5 (08:24):
You're you're good here? Would you be open to that?
You know you hear that.
Speaker 7 (08:29):
I don't even I didn't even thought about any of that.
So I've at that.
Speaker 3 (08:32):
Okay, this is this is uh your career and the
time that you spend here. But as you as we
go forward with the change of manager and some of
the other stuff here, does it.
Speaker 5 (08:44):
Feel like it's going in the right direction?
Speaker 3 (08:46):
I mean not the wins and losses, but like the
structure here that you have.
Speaker 7 (08:49):
I mean, if you look at if you look at
this season right now, it's not the way we wanted
it to go. So, like I said in the beginning
of the beginning of this, we got a lot of
games left and hopefully turn this thing around.
Speaker 5 (09:00):
Okay, the last thing for yourself.
Speaker 3 (09:05):
Are in numbers that you're looking for or just to
continue to put him good at bats?
Speaker 5 (09:11):
Like what what do you think? What's your motivation?
Speaker 6 (09:13):
No, you know, just being out there every single day.
Speaker 7 (09:16):
And I know that if I'm out there playing, you know,
my numbers is gonna be up there.
Speaker 5 (09:21):
So okay, yeah, thank you so much, Matt, pray for you.
Speaker 6 (09:24):
No problem.
Speaker 1 (09:27):
It's time for the pocket Protector Centrum. The analytic numbers
you need to know.
Speaker 2 (09:32):
Well, maybe Anthony Masterson is his name, BS, analytics is
his game.
Speaker 4 (09:39):
What do you got for me, Anthony?
Speaker 8 (09:40):
We've seen big time injuries derail the potential races for
MVP and cy Young this season, though Trek School might
still have something to say about that in the al
But the news of Aaron Judges' prologed absence will be
felt around the league. Where does it lead the Yankees.
The last time Judgements significant time was twenty twenty three,
where the Aks went twenty five and thirty one without him,
scored or four runs a game and missed the playoffs
(10:01):
for the first time in seven years. However, in twenty nineteen,
Judge missed two months and the team went forty two
to eighteen. So who's to say? This obviously erases Judge's
chances of winning a third straight MVP in the AL.
But who are the next best candidates? According to Vegas,
of the top four, only one is currently on a
winning team. That would be Judge's teammate Ben Rice, who
(10:22):
finds himself in the top five and nearly every offensive
category in the AL, including second in OPS. He's right
behind the Astros Jordan Alvarez, who is mashing for the
fourth place Astros leading the ALE and home runs and
all of baseball and slugging ops and ops plus. The
Royals might find themselves in the cellar of the AL Central,
but that has not stop Bobby Witt Junior from having
(10:43):
another standout season, leading the league in wins above replacement
thanks for being one of the league's top defenders at
a premium position. Then there's the A's Nick Kurtz, who's
taking advantage of his triple A home parks along with
an eagle eye at the plate to lead the league
in OBP and RBI. Now, thanks to the Angels and
show Hey Tani and Mike Trout, four of the last
(11:03):
ten al MVPs have been on losing teams, and it's
entirely possible we'll see another in twenty twenty six.
Speaker 1 (11:10):
When Rob was a newspaper columnist, he lived by this motto.
If I'm writing, I'm ripping. Let's bring in a writer
or broadcaster, old or new.
Speaker 5 (11:20):
Now let's welcome into the podcast.
Speaker 3 (11:22):
David Veasse, Dodgers reporter AM five to seventy in Los Angeles.
Speaker 4 (11:27):
Dave, how are you.
Speaker 9 (11:28):
I'm doing great, Rob, Always great to have you at
at Dodger Stadium on a Sunday.
Speaker 5 (11:32):
No doubt.
Speaker 3 (11:33):
But let me tell you this is about you, not
about the Dodgers, and I don't want to time talk
about your career covering the Dodgers. You do TV work, obviously,
you do stuff on the radio as well. Pregame postgame
all that. How many years has it been now?
Speaker 9 (11:47):
Yeah, this is my fifteenth season hosting Dodger Talk and
traveling with the team, and it's been an incredible ride.
And certainly the players that I've been able to cover
are the best in the game over the course of
that time, and it just seems to.
Speaker 4 (11:59):
Be getting better.
Speaker 3 (12:00):
I was gonna say, you know, people looking to go, oh,
we've got a great job. Everything's great, It's not as
easy being a reporter, and you have to be delicate
because you're so close to the team, but you also
have to tell the truth and be honest when things
all going well.
Speaker 9 (12:14):
Yeah, and that's that's instilled in me rob growing up
in Los Angeles because I grew up with the best,
Vince Scully first.
Speaker 4 (12:22):
And foremost the best. He never chose a side.
Speaker 9 (12:25):
You knew that he was invested in the Dodgers, but
it never came across in any broadcast. I grew up
a Laker fan listening to Chick hern He was a
little bit more emotional, but he.
Speaker 4 (12:36):
Always tried to play it down the line, but.
Speaker 9 (12:38):
You always knew he was pulling for the Lakers. And
that's the way I approach the way I do it
here on Dodger Talk because everybody's watching the games. Everybody
sees what's going on. Once you become too much of
a fan and a homer, people start to tune you out.
And that's not something I ever grew up on, and
that's what I respected, and I feel like that's the
(12:59):
way LA fans have a standard for their broadcasters.
Speaker 3 (13:02):
Has your job gotten easier or harder with all the
success back to back World series? They've been in five
World series of recent you know what I mean? Is
it a little easier or harder because they've had a
lot of success.
Speaker 5 (13:17):
Maybe they don't want to talk as much. Maybe Yeah, I.
Speaker 9 (13:20):
Will say this on that side of things, I'm very
lucky that a lot of them do give me the
same amount of access and opportunity. But the reality is
there's so many more people coming after them and for
their time, and there are certain days where they just
are worn out or they're pressed for time and they
(13:40):
don't have time even for one question.
Speaker 4 (13:42):
So you can't take it personal.
Speaker 9 (13:45):
You have to understand that there's so much of a
crush of the media. And I'll even say this, rob
this year more than last year, there's more demand for
these Dodger players times and for Dave Roberts after coming
off back to back championships. But as far as talking
about the team, I mean, it's a lot easier. I
could be doing Rockies Talk or Angels talk, and it
(14:06):
would be really hard. When you're hosting Dodger Talk coming
off back to back World Series championships and they're going
for a three peet, you just along for the ride
and enjoying every second of it.
Speaker 3 (14:18):
Our guest is David Vasse, of course, Dodgers reporter AM
five seventy LA Sports. The big question in the room
is Old Tani and you being able to interview him,
his access the language, you know, like, how is that
having the biggest star in the game and he doesn't
really speak English.
Speaker 9 (14:38):
Yeah, well he does understand, but obviously he doesn't feel
comfortable enough to do the interviews in English himself. The
one thing I'll say, Rob, is that a lot of
people want to try to force themselves on Otani, and
that's not something that he really wants.
Speaker 4 (14:52):
So I never try to force myself on him.
Speaker 9 (14:55):
When I do need an interview on the field after
a game, he does it. He speaks to the entire
media group once a week now that he's pitching, and
you know, when I see him in the clubhouse, there's
like a small, playful interaction once in a while, But
this guy has his whole day set minute by minute.
(15:16):
Even his teammates realize the difference this year with him pitching,
So there's really not a lot of time for small talk.
And you know, it's just it's something that you have
to take a step back and realize you're witnessing something
that nobody will ever see in their lifetime. Again, this
type of guy doing at this level.
Speaker 3 (15:34):
I was going to ask you, what's the most impressive
thing about him? Just observing you know what I mean,
since you're around them all the time, what is it?
Speaker 9 (15:42):
Well, Rob, I'll tell you this, if you ever get
close to Otani, I know on TV, you know, you
don't realize how big and strong these guys are. If
you're as close to Otani as you are right now
to me, you would be impressed and may be surprised
just how big of a person he is.
Speaker 3 (16:00):
I totally agree with you, Like, like he is ripped,
he's in great shape, he's got a.
Speaker 4 (16:05):
Great body structure.
Speaker 5 (16:07):
He really is an athlete.
Speaker 9 (16:08):
Yeah, he's not small in stature. He may look like
it at times on television, but when you're up close
and next to him, he is a big human being,
strong human being.
Speaker 5 (16:19):
Last thing in your career.
Speaker 3 (16:21):
Best interview and the worst interview will leave the worst
for last, just like fun or just somebody you enjoy
talking to.
Speaker 9 (16:29):
Now, my two favorite I've always been Clayton Kershaw and
Freddie Freeman because they just see the game differently than
so many and can express themselves and really teach you
the game as well when you talk to them. You know,
I can't tell you like who the worst one is,
but you know, guys that give two word answers, they're
not really going.
Speaker 5 (16:48):
To do a lot for you. Where you go? All right,
I'll guess once again.
Speaker 3 (16:52):
David Vasse joining us here on Inside the Parker Dave Man,
we appreciate you.
Speaker 5 (16:56):
Thank you.
Speaker 4 (16:57):
Hey did I hit it out of the park?
Speaker 5 (16:58):
He sure did. To Parker, my man, thank you.
Speaker 4 (17:01):
Thanks a lot. Rob.
Speaker 1 (17:04):
In case you missed Rob Parker on the MLB. Next words,
here's his latest appearance on Mlbina.
Speaker 10 (17:13):
I usually get Rob Parker a little box. Now he's
here in the flesh Baby let's say if I talk
smack with Rob Parker right in front of me, Oh,
it's good to see you.
Speaker 1 (17:20):
Yes.
Speaker 10 (17:21):
So, like the Giants were down nine to one in
the eighth, I saw the score.
Speaker 5 (17:25):
I couldn't believe they came back to beat.
Speaker 10 (17:27):
The Nationals had a Grand Slam walk off. But it
happens on the same night the Knicks, down twenty nine
in the NBA Finals, come back and win.
Speaker 1 (17:35):
Like I don't know what the.
Speaker 10 (17:35):
Equivalent is, you know, in baseball, but like that, You've
covered some NBA right, That's the most unbelievable thing I've
ever seen.
Speaker 5 (17:42):
No, that was incredible.
Speaker 3 (17:44):
There's no way you could look at that game and
think that they would be able to come back from
that many points. But when you up twenty five points
and shoot nine straight three pointers and you're not making them, yeah,
you give a team a chance to come back. And
the Knicks got everything that they needed.
Speaker 5 (17:58):
You know what.
Speaker 10 (17:58):
I came back to the be because I'm doing all
baseball now, But I have to say that's a good product.
College basketball leads me cold, Am I wrong?
Speaker 5 (18:05):
Not at all?
Speaker 10 (18:05):
Because we were in the Big East in the dead.
Speaker 5 (18:07):
To day, I used to cover Saint John's.
Speaker 3 (18:09):
When Mark Jackson was on the team, lu Conoseca was the.
Speaker 5 (18:13):
Coach Walter Berry. So I'm filled with all the day.
Oh yeah, it was really good, so great.
Speaker 10 (18:17):
It's not as good as NBA, though, that's a ton
of fun. All right, you've thrown this out before and
I haven't taken the bait, but I will.
Speaker 5 (18:23):
Now you're going to take the bay finally.
Speaker 1 (18:25):
That's it.
Speaker 5 (18:26):
Look, I'm really you are.
Speaker 10 (18:27):
Kyle Schwarber is the new Dave Kingman. That's wrong, No,
that's not wrong.
Speaker 1 (18:32):
Wrong.
Speaker 3 (18:32):
You know what if you if Dave Kingman had Kyle
Schwarber's stats, people will still be like, we're not putting
it in the Hall of Fame. He has a two
thirty one lifetime batting average. Hey, Kingman had no shot.
Kingman might have been the first guy to actually hit
five hundred home runs.
Speaker 1 (18:49):
Who would not have gotten into all that was? That
was the talk about, right.
Speaker 10 (18:52):
Because the culture said that guy cannot be in the
Hall of Fame, no matter how many homeses, no matter
how many and what is he He's the modern player
like Dave Kingman is the modern player, right, But.
Speaker 1 (19:00):
Schwarber is a better at bat. He's a more impactful.
Speaker 3 (19:04):
What I'm looking I'm looking at like even the war seventh.
Kingman's like seventeen to three, Schwarber's twenty one three somewhere
around there.
Speaker 1 (19:12):
It's not that big at Warlock.
Speaker 10 (19:14):
Yes, I'm looking at Wark and now I've won a battle.
I had no idea.
Speaker 5 (19:18):
But no, I'm just looking at it.
Speaker 3 (19:19):
And I'm not trying to disrespect Schwarber, but I'm just saying,
how can we go from Kingman?
Speaker 1 (19:25):
No way, no, how culture are.
Speaker 3 (19:27):
Were putting him to the Hall of Fame to a
guy who's batting two thirty one lifetime.
Speaker 10 (19:32):
If I may, I ran their peak and I got
Kingman's great.
Speaker 5 (19:36):
Kingman had a.
Speaker 10 (19:36):
Great year nineteen seventy nine. I think it hit two
eighty eight, so he's the batting average. The batting average
of KINGMANO was actually two fifty two and Schwarber's two
thirty two. But the batting average now is much lower.
Now you can hit more home runs now the environment
has changed, but it's on basis three fifteen three to
three fifteen. The ops plus is better total basis, Schwarber
plays more games. Kingman was sporadic, so no, Schwarbur's how.
Speaker 1 (20:01):
Much more impactful.
Speaker 10 (20:02):
I mean when you watched them, what was your feel
that Kingmin was as good as Swarburn.
Speaker 3 (20:06):
Now, no, no, no, I'm just saying I'll agree with
you in Kingman, King Kong, Kingman and all that. At
one point, remember we had thirty five home runs at
the All Star break.
Speaker 5 (20:17):
Broke his thumb.
Speaker 1 (20:18):
That was the year.
Speaker 3 (20:19):
I think that had he not broken his thumb, think
he wand up with thirty seven total for that year
because he got hurt. But that might have been the
year that pushed him over had he had fifty or
sixty that year.
Speaker 5 (20:29):
But he never got there.
Speaker 3 (20:30):
Schwarber and the other part that goes with him is
that he plays for a good team and that they won,
so you feel better about him. If he was on
a bad team that didn't play any that didn't win
any games, would you buy that, because that's.
Speaker 5 (20:42):
What Kingman walked down on him. I'll give you that'd
be down on I.
Speaker 10 (20:45):
Feel if I done the plate discipline is better for Schwarbur,
he gets deeper into counts.
Speaker 1 (20:49):
He's a valuable guy.
Speaker 10 (20:50):
But no, no, Kingmin was ahead of his time. Last
two nights, I flip over to your mets right and
I'm watching the Mets, and then the first it was
four nothing cards. They lose seven nothing last night, Nick's
getting blown out. I flip off, like, all right, let
me see where the Mets right. They're losing seven nothing,
They're losing quiet night after night. Are they able to
come back this year?
Speaker 5 (21:08):
No season's over.
Speaker 3 (21:10):
I know people don't want to hear it, they don't
want to hear it, but.
Speaker 1 (21:13):
I'm not arguing.
Speaker 8 (21:14):
I'm not arguing with it.
Speaker 3 (21:15):
And I told you early on, you know that they
needed to do something here, and they didn't do it.
They said that they're going to stick with Mendoza.
Speaker 5 (21:23):
And whatever was going on.
Speaker 1 (21:24):
I don't and I know it's just the problem.
Speaker 3 (21:26):
Okay, you say that problem, you say that, and I
just this is my problem when people push back on
the manager. If the team is playing well, the manager
gets a new deal, and you say he's doing all
the right things, pushing all the right it's hard politically, Okay,
change that, okay, But but if he doesn't, if the
team doesn't play well, then you say, well, it's not
his fault.
Speaker 5 (21:44):
I'm sorry.
Speaker 3 (21:45):
A lot of the lacklusters played that I've seen from
the Mets, and you can go over the roster and
blame David Stearns. Partly I agree with that, but the
Phillies made a change manager for a guy who took
a team to a World Series and guess what, there's
season is turned around and you're looking at the Mets
and with the first week of June and the season's over.
Speaker 10 (22:06):
The Phillies took it as a slap to the face.
I think it's a shock to the system because they
love Rob Thompson. But Don Mattingley's great too. I don't
see anybody suddenly whipping these Mets into shape. That's that's
not happening. By the way, you were at the game
last night. You honored at the game.
Speaker 3 (22:19):
Well, celebrated my fortieth anniversary of covering Major League Baseball,
believing or I know, the gray hair and pretty nice.
My friends and family were out there at city Field.
Speaker 10 (22:31):
Hometown Kent from Jamaica.
Speaker 3 (22:32):
You know we had a special had to have one
for you, BK.
Speaker 5 (22:36):
I know all my friends were there. It was a
great time.
Speaker 10 (22:39):
And look at that me and was the celebrities were out.
Speaker 3 (22:42):
My friends always told me I had a bigger head
than mister matt proof that I.
Speaker 10 (22:45):
Don't so you were a Met fan out of a
Yankee fat doesn't.
Speaker 3 (22:48):
From Jamaica, Queen. I used to take the number seven.
I was a Mets fan growing up. Not anymore, but.
Speaker 10 (22:54):
You plus, when you were rooting for the Mets, they
had like Tom sever back.
Speaker 5 (22:57):
In the day.
Speaker 3 (22:58):
My favorite player of all time number seven, Steady Eddie Cranepoole,
because back then the only time nay one was when
he got to pinch.
Speaker 1 (23:06):
Hit original good stuff.
Speaker 10 (23:08):
Good to see it.
Speaker 1 (23:09):
It's time for a trip down memory lane here on
inside the Parker.
Speaker 10 (23:18):
Rock Parker has covered Major League baseball for forty years.
Speaker 1 (23:21):
Now, let's relive a memorable moment of his career.
Speaker 3 (23:25):
In nineteen eighty six, my first year covering major League baseball,
I covered my first World Series and it might be
the most famous World Series of them all, the Red
Sox and the Mets. Here I am a staff reporter
for the Daily News in New York. I'm five months
(23:48):
on a graduating from college at Southern Connecticut State University,
and the assignment is writing sidebars for the home games
at Chase Stadium for the nineteen eighty six World Series.
Speaker 5 (24:04):
Talk about a thrill. Talk about a moment.
Speaker 3 (24:08):
When I had to pinch myself for a moment in life.
Moment you can never forget. Take Game six of the
nineteen eighty six World Series, being in the ballpark when
the ball went under Bill Buckner's legs and the Mets
(24:28):
forced a Game seven. I can still remember the roar of.
Speaker 2 (24:34):
The crowd, the shaking of Shea Stadium after the Mets
had secured a tenditning win, and Ray Knight had scored, jumped.
Speaker 3 (24:52):
On home plate and all help prove.
Speaker 5 (24:56):
It was like a movie.
Speaker 3 (24:57):
There was drama, there was sheer floating throughout the air,
and here I am taking it all in at age
twenty two. When you cover a sport for forty years,
you will have seen so much experience, so many moments
that you can't forget.
Speaker 5 (25:17):
Still, the nineteen eighty six.
Speaker 3 (25:20):
World Series, my very first World Series as a writer,
breaks number one.
Speaker 5 (25:27):
Without question. It's etched in my memory.
Speaker 4 (25:31):
Hey, this is Rob Parker.
Speaker 3 (25:33):
Come back all season long, every week as I chronicle
my forty years of covering Major League Baseball. And if
you missed any episodes, go to mlbbro dot com and
catch up. In the words of New York TV legend
(25:58):
the late Bill Jorgensen, thank you, thank you for your
time this time.
Speaker 5 (26:01):
Until next time. Rob Parker out.
Speaker 6 (26:04):
He can't, Gavin.
Speaker 4 (26:05):
This could be an inside of Parker.
Speaker 3 (26:07):
See you next week, same bat time, same Matt station,
Hosts And Creators
kelvin washington
Rob Parker
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