On this week’s edition of Inside the (Rob) Parker, Rob reacts to an explosive first week in MLB, capped off with Shohei Ohtani's walkoff home run to keep the Dodgers undefeated. However, the Dodgers are not the only unbeaten team in the NL West! Rob is done with all the torpedo bat talk. Rob chats with Braves OF Michael Harris II and catches up with Reds Beat Writer Gordon Wittenmyer to see if Hunter Greene can put together Cy Young numbers this season. Plus, the latest editions of Foul or Fair, Weekend Wagers, Rob's latest appearance on MLB Network, and much more!
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:01):
From the Burkeshars 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 seven.
Speaker 2 (00:17):
You have another hot take, will not not make the playoffs? Show?
Speaker 3 (00:21):
Hey me the money, Rob Parker.
Speaker 4 (00:25):
Come on, I've been covering Major League Baseball for almost
forty years now, in New York, in Cincinnati.
Speaker 3 (00:32):
In Detroit, in LA. I love this game. Let's go.
Speaker 4 (00:42):
Welcome into the podcast. I'm your host, Rob Parker, and
what a show we have for you today. Coming up,
we're gonna talk with Atlanta Bury center fielder Michael Harris
the second also Cincinnati Reds beat writer for the Cincinnati Enquirer,
Gordon Wittenmeyer.
Speaker 5 (01:00):
He drops by plus foul or fair? Let's go better.
Speaker 1 (01:08):
Up to lead off. It's getting rocked to keep them
und Rob's hot take on the three biggest stories in
Major League Baseball. Number one, the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Speaker 4 (01:19):
Oh my goodness, are they gonna go one sixty two
to Oh they're off to an eight no start, had
no business winning Wednesday Night, down five, nothing early and somehow,
some way they win it. Of course, show Hal Toddy
with the walk off home run in the ninth to
stun the Atlanta Braves. It's the Dodgers' best start since
(01:42):
nineteen fifty five.
Speaker 5 (01:43):
Double Nichols has been a long time. And here's the
other part.
Speaker 4 (01:48):
No defending World Series champions ever started the next season
eight to no.
Speaker 5 (01:54):
So again the Dodgers off.
Speaker 4 (01:55):
Everything's clicking, and this is amazing when you think where
uh Wookie Betts was and the big home runs he's
come up with since not feeling well in Japan and
not playing, and he's been big show hey, a big
night Wednesday Night, batting over three hundred and now three
thirty three, three home.
Speaker 5 (02:17):
Runs all solo. So there's a lot of stuff to
like here.
Speaker 4 (02:21):
Obviously, the Dodgers are not going to be judged on wins.
We saw the Seattle Mariners win one hundred and sixteen
games in a regular season and come up without a
World Series.
Speaker 2 (02:31):
This will be about a World.
Speaker 5 (02:32):
Series for the Dodgers.
Speaker 4 (02:33):
Anybody who tells you that it's not so is not
being honest with you, especially since no team has won
back to back World series since the Yankees did it
in two thousand and no one in the National League
has done it win back to back fall classics since
the nineteen seventy five seventy six Reds.
Speaker 5 (02:55):
So so far, so good for the Dodgers.
Speaker 4 (02:58):
They are as averts eight and oh going into Thursday
night's action.
Speaker 3 (03:04):
Number two.
Speaker 4 (03:06):
Enough already with the torpedo bats. Can we stop this?
First of all, they've been around for a while. Number two,
they make don't make you a home run hitter. Whoever's
pedaling knows that bill of goods is not doing you
as doing you a disservice and telling you that information.
And we saw Elie de la Cruz have the big
(03:27):
night two home runs a few nights ago and said
that he used the torpedo bat, and then, of course
the Reds lost the next two nights, won nothing, and he.
Speaker 5 (03:37):
Didn't do anything with it.
Speaker 4 (03:38):
And even the Milwaukee Brewers who were belly aching about
the Yankees, I get it. They hit nine home runs,
a franchise record in a game against the Brewers.
Speaker 5 (03:48):
But let's be honest. They're called the Bronx Bombers for
a reason.
Speaker 4 (03:52):
The Yankees have always hit home runs and everybody wasn't
using a torpedo bat. Aaron Judge had four home runs
in that three game series, and guess what did not
use a torpedo bat. Is not using a torpedo bat
and is not going to change what he's been doing.
Here's the other thing. Major League Baseball has already put
out a statement. The bat is legal. It's about the
(04:15):
person swinging a bat and about the pitcher pitching to
the bat. It has nothing to do with the bat
that makes you a hitter. So can we put it
to rest? I want to put a torpedo through that?
Speaker 5 (04:27):
How about that number three?
Speaker 4 (04:30):
Don't give the Los Angeles Dodgers the NL West crown
just yet. At least that's what the San Diego Padres
are saying. The Dodgers are off to an eight and
oh start. The Padres are off to a seven and
oh start, the first time in Padre history that they've
started a season with seven consecutive victories. And let's not
(04:52):
forget the Padres were a really good team last year.
Should have beaten the Dodgers. Took a big three to
one lead and then base choked down the stretch and
the Dodgers not only won that series, wind up winning
the World Series. I expect the Padres to be around
all year. I think they have a really good team. Yesterday,
Jackson Merrill, their rookie centerfielder from a year ago who
(05:15):
was outstanding. They signed him to a new contract for
one hundred and thirty five million, making that commitment. We
know about Machado, we know about Tattoos. This is a
really good team, explosive, fun to watch, and they're going
to be in the race. So this will be fun
to see the Dodgers and Padres duke it out all year.
Speaker 5 (05:36):
It'll be good for baseball.
Speaker 4 (05:38):
We don't want the Dodgers to not have a foe,
not to have somebody that they have to worry about.
Speaker 5 (05:43):
That's what baseball is all about.
Speaker 4 (05:45):
You don't want divisions to be where teams are just
running away with it and it's sealed up by June
or whatnot. We have a long baseball season ago and
at least out of the game. Can you imagine the
Dodgers saying they started eight the No eight to no,
but only have a half game lead in the division.
That doesn't happen very often coming into Thursday, So.
Speaker 3 (06:08):
Here comes the big interview. Listen and learn cool.
Speaker 6 (06:12):
It's so good.
Speaker 7 (06:14):
All right, now, let's welcome in Michael Harris, the second
centerfielder for the Atlanta Braids.
Speaker 6 (06:18):
Thanks for joining the podcast. Oh yeah, no problem, Mike.
Speaker 7 (06:22):
Baseball as we know, is a marathon out as frit
You guys lose your first six games, what's the mindset
of the team on just trying to figure out how
to get this thing turned around and not to you know,
feel sorry for yourself.
Speaker 6 (06:35):
We'll get buried this early in the season.
Speaker 8 (06:37):
Yeah, it's only been six games so far, and we
face a tough pitch from out of spring training, off
of rip. So just knowing that we faced probably the
two top fitch and staffs in baseball this early season
on the road, it's gonna be tough.
Speaker 6 (06:50):
Uh.
Speaker 8 (06:51):
I guess once we get a phonas to get the
best run a little bit, then I think we'll be fine.
But just knowing that we face them and we had
some opportunities we still should have came through on. But uh,
just knowing it's really in the season, we still got
a hundred fifty sething for more games.
Speaker 3 (07:06):
You have to to.
Speaker 7 (07:07):
Play team like Uh, the Braves have had a lot
of success. You guys over the last few years. You know,
you also have some injuries polling years out, Strider is out,
couple other guys. You know you'll get your full team back.
Is that something that you know in the back of
your mind, knowing you're not at full string.
Speaker 6 (07:25):
Yeah, we're we're excited to get some of those guys
back during the season.
Speaker 8 (07:31):
Uh, we wanna kind of figure it out before they
get here, so they care in antimon in baseball and
I guess, uh mold injury that.
Speaker 6 (07:41):
Yeah, we're happy to get those guys back.
Speaker 8 (07:43):
To two players that are I guess top of the
league and their positions and even getting a Murphy back
even and they aren't really experience training so uh seeing
him doing those rehab start so we couldn't.
Speaker 6 (07:55):
Get him back to How about you after played?
Speaker 7 (07:57):
How are you feeling up off the box just not
in your stride yet or you know what I mean,
a little loft?
Speaker 6 (08:04):
What what's happening for you?
Speaker 9 (08:06):
Uh?
Speaker 6 (08:06):
For most of it, I feel pretty pretty normal. Uh.
Speaker 8 (08:09):
Like I said, they were facing pretty tough pitching rightffs
spring training. I guess you come from from spring training
and you are now you're playing nine innings and then
you're not facing the same picture maybe two times around,
and that we're facing them uh at their at their best.
So it's really just I guess it's stressing what you
can do.
Speaker 6 (08:26):
And you know what's.
Speaker 8 (08:27):
Also kind of come around in at some point, let's
talk about the NL least and man, you know a
lot of good teams.
Speaker 7 (08:33):
The National League has a lot of good teams. But
I think you guys are still stack up the match.
You saw what they were able to do getting one sodo,
what do you think.
Speaker 6 (08:42):
That adds to their team?
Speaker 7 (08:43):
And then of course the Phillies in that division, that's
a tough division.
Speaker 6 (08:47):
All three teams could make the play that.
Speaker 8 (08:49):
Yeah, uh, I think it's a pretty good, pretty good division.
And with the with the Nationals kind of being a
sleeping big there, I kind of like they're a team
and how they constructed it, so it's a pretty front division.
It'll be very competitive and that I think that's good
for us to kind of get the field for those
games they that can kind of feel like a playoff
game atmosphere during the season. They obviously got the talent,
(09:11):
they added the pieces and we're just trying to stick
with 'em and and compete.
Speaker 7 (09:16):
Our guest is Michael Harris, the second set of fielding
for the Atlanta Braids. Uh, the Dodgers off to a
great start. We know what they have. They spending money
like it's going out of stock. Would you see the
off season and what they're doing now, I mean, do
you look at it and be like, wow, is this
over the top or do you shake, you know, tip
your cap to 'em that they going out and trying
(09:37):
to get the best team they can put together.
Speaker 6 (09:39):
Yeah, I think they're I think they're doing it the
right way.
Speaker 8 (09:40):
They're going out and getting guys that are gonna help
them win to continue to help them win.
Speaker 6 (09:44):
They just want it so they wanna keep winning.
Speaker 8 (09:46):
And I think they're just using their resources to their advantage, just.
Speaker 6 (09:50):
Paying you guys and and.
Speaker 8 (09:51):
Knowing they're gonna get out of the guys that they played.
So Uh, I think they're doing it the right way.
And I guess everybody else has to pitch up too.
Speaker 7 (09:58):
I've gonna have to ask you about, of course, the
torpedo bat, which is uh, everybody's going crazy with in
in uh baseball after the Yankees hit all those home
runs in that game, set of c UH s franchise
record nine home runs in the game against Milwaukee.
Speaker 6 (10:14):
Have you ever experimented with the bat?
Speaker 3 (10:17):
Uh?
Speaker 6 (10:17):
Anybody here? You use the bat in Atlanta?
Speaker 8 (10:20):
Um No, I've never uh never an experient?
Speaker 3 (10:24):
Man?
Speaker 6 (10:24):
What it? Uh? I just found out about it. I
guess it's opening of the O series.
Speaker 3 (10:29):
You know.
Speaker 6 (10:30):
I don't think any of other team has I think Drake.
Speaker 8 (10:32):
Walgin said he used it in colleague one time or anything.
Uh No, nobody else is really Uh, I haven't used
it there?
Speaker 6 (10:40):
After seeing those home runs, are you intrigued at all?
Do you know what I mean?
Speaker 7 (10:43):
When and then el eh ellie da La Cruz the
other day use it in Cincinnati, had.
Speaker 6 (10:48):
Two home runs. Would you take some swings with it?
Or you're happy with you know what you've done and
you don't wanna mess with that. Feel like it's I
guess the same other normal.
Speaker 10 (10:58):
But we still got a final way to hit the
world kind of like the h the girl has a
bat and this is still putting on good wings with
gishing back and feel like you can do the same
thing with.
Speaker 6 (11:10):
The knowing that we don't and and but.
Speaker 7 (11:14):
As you said, it's still about the player, not about
the equipment.
Speaker 6 (11:17):
I'm yeah, yeah, it's I guess they still have between
the bat and make contact.
Speaker 8 (11:23):
It's not like I just put it in their hand
in the batso uh right, they just they're doing a
good job and found on the barrow and you getting
under that.
Speaker 6 (11:31):
It last thing.
Speaker 7 (11:32):
Just the National League and all the good teams and
h Prodrigs are good Dodgers.
Speaker 6 (11:39):
You know, I talked about that at least. Uh.
Speaker 7 (11:42):
Also, you got the Cincinnati people are expecting big things
with Terry Francona and.
Speaker 6 (11:47):
Guys getting older and better. Uh huh expect a dog fight,
yeah for sure.
Speaker 8 (11:52):
Uh.
Speaker 6 (11:52):
And that was pretty competitive right now. And I know
I promised love it. We played a lot of those teams,
but we played all the teams. Go, it's pretty competitive
right now. I just want to go there and feeding
those teams. All right, Best of luck in the season.
I appreciate your time.
Speaker 5 (12:06):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (12:07):
Fox Sports Radio has the best sports talk lineup in
the nation. Catch all of our shows at Foxsports Radio
dot com and within the iHeartRadio app. Search FSR to
listen live. In case you missed Rob Parker on the
MLB networks, here's his latest appearance on Mlbina.
Speaker 9 (12:27):
Rob Braves lose again last night. They're owing six jerks
and Profar fails at drug tests. He's out. How cooked
are the Braves?
Speaker 3 (12:35):
They're not cooked.
Speaker 7 (12:36):
As you know, teams have bounced back from bad starts.
Speaker 2 (12:40):
We could go back to last year.
Speaker 4 (12:42):
I think it was the Astro that started seven and
eighteen and.
Speaker 7 (12:46):
They made the playoffs. Of a number of years back.
I remember the Twins got off to a bad start
something like nine and twenty or nine in eighteen, and
again they wound up winning ninety six games that year.
Speaker 9 (13:00):
However, right, you're being very tempered on this, and you're correct. However,
the Phillies are in the division, the Mets are in
the division, and then they're gonna be battling a wild
card that could be the Padres or Giants. On the
other side, there's a lot of good team. Can they
afford to drop this far back? I think that's the trouble.
I think they're in a bit of trouble. That kind
of trouble.
Speaker 7 (13:21):
No, I get it, but I still think baseball, as
you know, I know it's a cliche, BK.
Speaker 2 (13:26):
It's a marathon.
Speaker 7 (13:27):
And if you think the season is one in the
first week or ten days.
Speaker 2 (13:32):
Come on, that's just not baseball.
Speaker 7 (13:34):
This is not the Detroit Tigers thirty five and five
and they played you know, five hundred the rest of
the way. But you know what I mean, I'm saying,
like baseball, they'll have your streaks and you have your
dead spots. I'm not gonna bury the Braves. They have
a really good team and I think they'll be in
the mix. The Mets haven't lit the NL East on
(13:54):
fire one of they two and to start, I mean,
they're not out of the woods, not yet.
Speaker 9 (13:58):
By the way, I love that Robins just drops in
a nineteen eighty four reference in there. It's very mad
dog of you. I appreciate that. The wire to wire Tigers.
All right, Jackson Merrill gets a big contract extension. You
did a drop in, as it turns out, on top
ten right now for our center fielder. Top ten with me,
you missed the boat on him. I had him number one,
you had him number nine. That's a bad job by you.
Speaker 4 (14:19):
Well in this case, I think I told you my
reasoning was that it was just the rookie one year
and I want a little more.
Speaker 2 (14:26):
I want more in the resume, and I don't blame
the Padres were cashing him out. You notice, BK, it
only caught you more money the longer you wait.
Speaker 6 (14:35):
That's right. If you believe you've got.
Speaker 7 (14:37):
Something special, pay the guy now and you'll get a
way cheaper than if you wait.
Speaker 5 (14:42):
So the Padres are rich now.
Speaker 2 (14:43):
Yeah, yeah, and I'm lessay.
Speaker 9 (14:45):
Yeah, he's quite sold. No, I get it, but you
weren't quite sold. I thought I saw like a special
player and not just the results. But we've been talking
about with Alex Savila, Tiro was talking about it earlier.
There is something very smooth and a good action and
instincts on this kid all around. That just it says
winner moving forward.
Speaker 7 (15:06):
Yeah, I'm not going to disagree with that, but I
don't crown people after one or two years in baseball.
Speaker 2 (15:12):
We have seen people. Can I bring up the old name.
Speaker 7 (15:15):
I'm not saying that he's Joe Sharbonneau, but Joe Charbonneau
was Rookie of the Year in the American leagueeaue.
Speaker 9 (15:23):
You again, you get you're consistent. You pump the breaks,
that's your expression. Pump the breaks on Elie de la Cruz.
Eventually you're gonna have to just not hit the brakes
on him. But early on you pumped the breaks. Sorry
last thing, Padres. Dodgers still unbeaten? Where are you on
the NL West?
Speaker 4 (15:38):
I still like the Padres. I know, did Dodgers look unbeatable?
Speaker 2 (15:42):
But last year.
Speaker 9 (15:45):
Did you last year that the Padres had them dead
and somehow let them, you know, live on and win
a title? But did you pick the Padres at the
start of this year?
Speaker 2 (15:53):
I did.
Speaker 6 (15:54):
I picked the Padres.
Speaker 2 (15:55):
I have the Padres going to the World Series.
Speaker 7 (15:57):
In fact, that's a different thing.
Speaker 9 (16:01):
Like rob in the playoffs, they Dodgers get knocked out
in the first round. It's easy, it happens. But winning
the West, see, I would say, as good as the
Padres look right now, the Dodgers are a monster. I
gotta go Dodgers in the West. I disagree with you
on that, but they haven't run away.
Speaker 7 (16:17):
If you start seven and oh and you haven't even
separated yourself from the division, it tells you that you're
going you're in for a battle.
Speaker 2 (16:25):
Could you can't play one thousand ball the rest.
Speaker 9 (16:28):
Of the way the other guys, the other guys can't
do it.
Speaker 2 (16:33):
After a seven and oh start and you have a
one game lead.
Speaker 9 (16:35):
I don't think the Dodgers. The Dodgers are so crazy deep.
I don't think they're discouraged. Last year was the year
to pick them off, and they won the title.
Speaker 5 (16:43):
They won.
Speaker 9 (16:44):
They win a measly ninety eight games. This year it's
going to be a bigger number. But I appreciate that.
You go out on a limb again. You don't ground
out week to short. You take a big, big swing,
and sometimes you're Joe DiMaggio. Sometimes you're Joey Gallo.
Speaker 3 (16:56):
I get it.
Speaker 1 (16:57):
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 4 (17:07):
Now, let's welcome in one of the best baseball writers
out there, a friend of mine, Gordon Wittenmeyer, who covers
the Cincinnati Reds for the Cincinnati Inquire, a place I
work back in the nineties.
Speaker 5 (17:19):
Gordon, welcome to the podcast.
Speaker 11 (17:21):
How are you, buddy, I'm doing great. Thanks for having
me on. Man, good to see it.
Speaker 4 (17:26):
Always Man, always, we gotta get you on the podcast.
Cincinnati Reds coming into Thursday. Two and four back to
back one nothing losses, and they have a game Thursday
night in Milwaukee, just give me a vibe for the Reds.
Speaker 5 (17:43):
What's going on? Because they had a big night a
couple of nights ago. But now the bats A.
Speaker 11 (17:47):
Yeah, so the bats weren't necessarily alive the first series
against the Giants either. That's gonna be a storyline all season.
They're not fully healthy. You know, they're good hitting. Catcher
Tyler Stevenson's on the ill. They got the left fielder
Austin Hayes, a former All Star they were expecting something
out of he's still on the il. Spencer Steers had
a shoulder problem. I mean, you can make excuses, but
(18:09):
this wasn't a great lineup last year, and we don't
think it's going to be a great lineup when they're
fully healthy. But the fact that they're not. Man, they
lose back to back one nothing games to the Rangers
at home. How do you lose one nothing back to
back a great American ballpark?
Speaker 5 (18:24):
Do you know his par.
Speaker 11 (18:27):
There was one out every four fly balls goes out.
I mean, it's ridiculous, and so that's not In fact,
it's never happened. They've never lost back to back one
nothing home game since they opened up at that park.
So that's a concern, and it will be what's not
a concern, and that what has shown early and is
(18:48):
something to have a little faith in is what you've
seen from the starting pitchers, none more than Hunter Green.
He goes out and he didn't have his best stuff.
He got through five innings, gave up a couple of
runs in in the opener, they had a lead into
the ninth, they blew it. That's not on him. Then
he's one of the victims of the one nothing losses.
(19:10):
So yesterday he goes seven innings, gives up three hits,
two of them happen to come in the same inning,
gives up the only run in the game in the fourth,
retires to the next ten and they can't get a
run to pull that one out. But if you're getting
that kind of pitching from your ace, and they're getting
good starting pitching behind him, and they've got more coming
(19:32):
with Andrew Abbott expected off the il pretty soon, then
you're gonna be in these games. Now, you got it. Now,
Terry Francona, one of the best managers going, has got
to figure out how to do something with that.
Speaker 5 (19:44):
Let's get back to Hunter Green.
Speaker 4 (19:46):
Here, he had his five hundredth career strikeout, the fastest
to five hundred from any Cincinnati Reds pitcher. Just we
just got to live a low bar, i know, because
there's not a lot of great starting pitch from the
Cincinnati Reds in their history. It's kind of weird considering
that it won a number of World Series. But we
know Hunter Green has great stuff. It's about staying healthy
(20:09):
if you can get through a full season with him.
Last year he got back into the cy Young Award
winner a race Young Award race because he pitched well
down the stretch.
Speaker 11 (20:20):
Yeah, yeah, and then he got a little elbow banged up.
I mean literally banged up. He banged it into something, bruised.
It wasn't sure it was right, got a couple of
opinions on it. Wind up missing like six weeks. But
this is that was a big key for him because
he came back at the end of the season. He
showed his teammates that he was there for him. He
came back. That was big for him, It was big
(20:42):
for them. The organization talks behind the scenes about how
important that was in his development, because you remember, he's
still a real young pitcher and he's done most of
his development at the big league level and the grind
of the big leagues, the messiness of every day and
putting failure behind you and answering the bell the next time.
(21:03):
All of that is what makes baseball what I think
is the hardest game to succeed in. And if pictures too,
for pictures too, and pictures of that talent level. But
he's had to learn all this at the big league level,
and so the fact they did that last year. In fact,
he's off to what I think is a good start
this year, even if he hasn't gotten the results yet.
(21:25):
This is a big year for him. And if it's
if it turns, if he turns it into a big year,
that's a huge year for the Cincinnati Reds and to
your point, the Cy Young Race, he'll be in a
lot of Cy Young races going forward if if he,
if he just keeps up this this this mentality, this
learning curve, where he's at in his career right now, All.
Speaker 5 (21:47):
Right, let's turn here.
Speaker 4 (21:48):
I guest is Gorin Wintenmeyer, the Cincinnati Reds beat writer
for the Cincinnati Inquirer. I want to go to Ellie
da Cruz, who you know a lot of people are
high on this year. Even Brian Kenney, my cohort at
MLB Network, is picking Ellie to win the National League MVP.
Speaker 5 (22:06):
That's how high he is on Ellie Dela Cruz.
Speaker 4 (22:09):
I'm like, Wow, he had a big night using that
torpedo bat, But what do you expect out of Elie
Dela Cruz on a daily basis?
Speaker 11 (22:17):
Yeah, Well, the whole key to him. We've seen this
now for a year and a half plus. The talent
is just it's just off the charts. I mean, there's
just really no comp for what he does in the
game right now. It's funny because sho Haes the other
guy that's not a comp for an entirely different reason.
But I think these two guys are the two guys
(22:38):
with no comps. And the thing about it is the strikeouts.
Right He led the league in strikeouts last year and
it was fourth all time in a number of strikeouts. Wow,
his success growth will be entirely in direct proportion to
how those strikeouts come down. If they come down one percent,
(23:00):
he's gonna get one percent better at everything else he does.
And that's a lot, by the way, because he already
does things so well. If he can bring it down
five percent and gets five percent better, then we are
talking about m vps. So that's that's what Uh, that's
what has to happen. You gotta watch for that. I mean,
you know, he had that big four four hit game
(23:21):
with the double and two homers the other night with
the with the torpedo bat and and then he used
the torpedo bat and and didn't really do all that
well the next two games, you know, and he was
you know, they lost one to another. He was in
the lineup both times. So a lot of strikeouts too.
So I it just it's just gonna be if he
(23:42):
stays healthy and he cuts those strike as down a
little bit and he's done a few things to adjust
to maybe do that, and uh we'll see if you're
if your boy Kenny's right.
Speaker 5 (23:51):
All right?
Speaker 4 (23:51):
One last thing here, Terry frank Cone of course, who
had retired from Cleveland, Uh, is he does He seemed
you know, energized, re energized, Uh, you know, up to
the task for this coming back as manager of the
Reds big time.
Speaker 11 (24:10):
I went down to his place and met with him
for a couple hours in Tucson back in January, and uh,
he was just he's got this chair in his living
room that he calls his rocking chair. It looks it's
it looks like a lazy boy, right, except I don't
know that it has the thing that kicks up you
can put your feet on or not, but it it
(24:30):
rocks back and forth and it swivels, and man, the
more he talked about the upcoming season and getting back
in the game, the more that chair moved. And this
is so, this is a guy who he's clearly recharged
and clearly charged up to be back in the game,
kind of like Boachie. He's younger than Bochie and uh
(24:51):
probably doesn't move any better than boach does, but uh,
same kind of thing. Right, was out of the game
and just realized how much he needed to be back
in the game. So he's revitalized right now. And I
don't see a drop off in energy level from what
we've seen all those years in Cleveland, for instance. I
think if anybody's gonna figure out how to get a
(25:11):
little more out of that lineup and get a little
more success, get a little more results out of this
pitching they're getting, it'll be him, all right.
Speaker 4 (25:19):
Gordon Wentenmeier, one of the best in the business covering
the Cincinnati Reds for the Cincinnati Enquirer. We'll see you
on the road, of course, somewhere down the line, our friend,
Take care and thank you for all right.
Speaker 11 (25:31):
Thanks man, good to see it.
Speaker 1 (25:33):
Fox Sports Radio has the best sports talk lineup in
the nation. Catch all of our shows at Foxsports Radio
dot com and within the iHeartRadio app. Search FSR to
listen live. It was a big week in the Big
Leagues a live believe.
Speaker 3 (25:55):
Is it foul or Is It Fair?
Speaker 1 (25:58):
And now from mlbro dot com Here's Jr.
Speaker 5 (26:02):
Gampbell Jr.
Speaker 4 (26:06):
The Red Sox wasted no time locking up rookie second
basement Christian Campbell to an eight year, sixty million dollar contract.
Speaker 5 (26:16):
Is it foul or fair? To both sides?
Speaker 12 (26:21):
Fair? The Red Sox will be forever cursed letting Mookie
Betts go over supposed money. With Christian Campbell showing the
potential to be the most talented player that the franchise
has seen since Mookie Betts and smoking the ball early
in the season, the Red Sox want to pay him
(26:42):
early rather than later. And why not if Campbell, who
like Bets, is from Tennessee, has all of the tools
offensively and defensively that he appears to have early.
Speaker 6 (26:57):
In his career.
Speaker 12 (26:59):
Then in three years his salary, which doesn't even clear
eight million per will be a bargain and the Red
Size will definitely have to negotiate for now. Campbell took
a similar deal to the one Key Brian Hayes signed
with the Pittsburgh Pirates in twenty twenty two. An eight
(27:19):
year contract worked seventy million dollars, giving the second generation
third baseman the richest contract in club history. But that's
not even ten million per for a supposed franchise player money.
Mike Harris of the Atlanta Braves signed an eight year,
seventy two million dollar deal a while back. So a
(27:44):
baseball career can be over in one bad season. So
to take those early deals with less money, that works
because you're still getting generational wealth. The fact that these
bros are getting paid is a great thing and guarantees
one Navy representation in these lineups and to cross the league,
(28:05):
So for sure, fair, fair for Christian Campbell, Fair for
the Red Sox.
Speaker 3 (28:13):
Make way for weekend wagers.
Speaker 9 (28:17):
Yo, it's shine bo with fire up those bed naps,
let's go.
Speaker 6 (28:23):
Week one was a little up, a little down.
Speaker 10 (28:25):
The down we lost on Friday, but the up was
we won easily on Saturday.
Speaker 6 (28:30):
So let's keep that up in week two.
Speaker 12 (28:31):
But let's get a week started off with a couple
of picks hotter than Robs takes.
Speaker 6 (28:35):
Go ahead and take the Detroit Tigers for that mattne game.
On Friday, they take on the White Sox that with
black jack clarity on the mound. You know that is money.
Saturday is game.
Speaker 2 (28:45):
We're gonna stick to the hotness.
Speaker 12 (28:46):
Go ahead and take the Los Angeles Dodgers minus one
and a half against the Phillies.
Speaker 6 (28:51):
You know how the Dodgers have been. The Phillies have
been a little up, a little down, still trying to
find their path.
Speaker 12 (28:56):
And you know that our patches straight to the green
stick and shape inside.
Speaker 3 (29:00):
The Parker MLB fans.
Speaker 1 (29:03):
When it comes to Major League Baseball, no.
Speaker 3 (29:06):
One covers it better than the odd cover fast.
Speaker 5 (29:08):
I am the baseball kid first.
Speaker 7 (29:11):
Second, third, and then we're leading shows with baseball.
Speaker 4 (29:16):
Watch it all in one place right here on Fox
Sports Radio.
Speaker 5 (29:20):
I love baseball.
Speaker 4 (29:28):
In the words of New York TV legend the late
Bill Jorgensen, thanking you for your time, this time until
next time.
Speaker 5 (29:35):
Rob Parker out. He can't, given this could be an
inside of Parker.
Speaker 3 (29:39):
See you next week, same bad time, same Matt station,
From the Burkeshars 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 seven.
Speaker 2 (00:17):
You have another hot take, will not not make the playoffs? Show?
Speaker 3 (00:21):
Hey me the money, Rob Parker.
Speaker 4 (00:25):
Come on, I've been covering Major League Baseball for almost
forty years now, in New York, in Cincinnati.
Speaker 3 (00:32):
In Detroit, in LA. I love this game. Let's go.
Speaker 4 (00:42):
Welcome into the podcast. I'm your host, Rob Parker, and
what a show we have for you today. Coming up,
we're gonna talk with Atlanta Bury center fielder Michael Harris
the second also Cincinnati Reds beat writer for the Cincinnati Enquirer,
Gordon Wittenmeyer.
Speaker 5 (01:00):
He drops by plus foul or fair? Let's go better.
Speaker 1 (01:08):
Up to lead off. It's getting rocked to keep them
und Rob's hot take on the three biggest stories in
Major League Baseball. Number one, the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Speaker 4 (01:19):
Oh my goodness, are they gonna go one sixty two
to Oh they're off to an eight no start, had
no business winning Wednesday Night, down five, nothing early and somehow,
some way they win it. Of course, show Hal Toddy
with the walk off home run in the ninth to
stun the Atlanta Braves. It's the Dodgers' best start since
(01:42):
nineteen fifty five.
Speaker 5 (01:43):
Double Nichols has been a long time. And here's the
other part.
Speaker 4 (01:48):
No defending World Series champions ever started the next season
eight to no.
Speaker 5 (01:54):
So again the Dodgers off.
Speaker 4 (01:55):
Everything's clicking, and this is amazing when you think where
uh Wookie Betts was and the big home runs he's
come up with since not feeling well in Japan and
not playing, and he's been big show hey, a big
night Wednesday Night, batting over three hundred and now three
thirty three, three home.
Speaker 5 (02:17):
Runs all solo. So there's a lot of stuff to
like here.
Speaker 4 (02:21):
Obviously, the Dodgers are not going to be judged on wins.
We saw the Seattle Mariners win one hundred and sixteen
games in a regular season and come up without a
World Series.
Speaker 2 (02:31):
This will be about a World.
Speaker 5 (02:32):
Series for the Dodgers.
Speaker 4 (02:33):
Anybody who tells you that it's not so is not
being honest with you, especially since no team has won
back to back World series since the Yankees did it
in two thousand and no one in the National League
has done it win back to back fall classics since
the nineteen seventy five seventy six Reds.
Speaker 5 (02:55):
So so far, so good for the Dodgers.
Speaker 4 (02:58):
They are as averts eight and oh going into Thursday
night's action.
Speaker 3 (03:04):
Number two.
Speaker 4 (03:06):
Enough already with the torpedo bats. Can we stop this?
First of all, they've been around for a while. Number two,
they make don't make you a home run hitter. Whoever's
pedaling knows that bill of goods is not doing you
as doing you a disservice and telling you that information.
And we saw Elie de la Cruz have the big
(03:27):
night two home runs a few nights ago and said
that he used the torpedo bat, and then, of course
the Reds lost the next two nights, won nothing, and he.
Speaker 5 (03:37):
Didn't do anything with it.
Speaker 4 (03:38):
And even the Milwaukee Brewers who were belly aching about
the Yankees, I get it. They hit nine home runs,
a franchise record in a game against the Brewers.
Speaker 5 (03:48):
But let's be honest. They're called the Bronx Bombers for
a reason.
Speaker 4 (03:52):
The Yankees have always hit home runs and everybody wasn't
using a torpedo bat. Aaron Judge had four home runs
in that three game series, and guess what did not
use a torpedo bat. Is not using a torpedo bat
and is not going to change what he's been doing.
Here's the other thing. Major League Baseball has already put
out a statement. The bat is legal. It's about the
(04:15):
person swinging a bat and about the pitcher pitching to
the bat. It has nothing to do with the bat
that makes you a hitter. So can we put it
to rest? I want to put a torpedo through that?
Speaker 5 (04:27):
How about that number three?
Speaker 4 (04:30):
Don't give the Los Angeles Dodgers the NL West crown
just yet. At least that's what the San Diego Padres
are saying. The Dodgers are off to an eight and
oh start. The Padres are off to a seven and
oh start, the first time in Padre history that they've
started a season with seven consecutive victories. And let's not
(04:52):
forget the Padres were a really good team last year.
Should have beaten the Dodgers. Took a big three to
one lead and then base choked down the stretch and
the Dodgers not only won that series, wind up winning
the World Series. I expect the Padres to be around
all year. I think they have a really good team. Yesterday,
Jackson Merrill, their rookie centerfielder from a year ago who
(05:15):
was outstanding. They signed him to a new contract for
one hundred and thirty five million, making that commitment. We
know about Machado, we know about Tattoos. This is a
really good team, explosive, fun to watch, and they're going
to be in the race. So this will be fun
to see the Dodgers and Padres duke it out all year.
Speaker 5 (05:36):
It'll be good for baseball.
Speaker 4 (05:38):
We don't want the Dodgers to not have a foe,
not to have somebody that they have to worry about.
Speaker 5 (05:43):
That's what baseball is all about.
Speaker 4 (05:45):
You don't want divisions to be where teams are just
running away with it and it's sealed up by June
or whatnot. We have a long baseball season ago and
at least out of the game. Can you imagine the
Dodgers saying they started eight the No eight to no,
but only have a half game lead in the division.
That doesn't happen very often coming into Thursday, So.
Speaker 3 (06:08):
Here comes the big interview. Listen and learn cool.
Speaker 6 (06:12):
It's so good.
Speaker 7 (06:14):
All right, now, let's welcome in Michael Harris, the second
centerfielder for the Atlanta Braids.
Speaker 6 (06:18):
Thanks for joining the podcast. Oh yeah, no problem, Mike.
Speaker 7 (06:22):
Baseball as we know, is a marathon out as frit
You guys lose your first six games, what's the mindset
of the team on just trying to figure out how
to get this thing turned around and not to you know,
feel sorry for yourself.
Speaker 6 (06:35):
We'll get buried this early in the season.
Speaker 8 (06:37):
Yeah, it's only been six games so far, and we
face a tough pitch from out of spring training, off
of rip. So just knowing that we faced probably the
two top fitch and staffs in baseball this early season
on the road, it's gonna be tough.
Speaker 6 (06:50):
Uh.
Speaker 8 (06:51):
I guess once we get a phonas to get the
best run a little bit, then I think we'll be fine.
But just knowing that we face them and we had
some opportunities we still should have came through on. But uh,
just knowing it's really in the season, we still got
a hundred fifty sething for more games.
Speaker 3 (07:06):
You have to to.
Speaker 7 (07:07):
Play team like Uh, the Braves have had a lot
of success. You guys over the last few years. You know,
you also have some injuries polling years out, Strider is out,
couple other guys. You know you'll get your full team back.
Is that something that you know in the back of
your mind, knowing you're not at full string.
Speaker 6 (07:25):
Yeah, we're we're excited to get some of those guys
back during the season.
Speaker 8 (07:31):
Uh, we wanna kind of figure it out before they
get here, so they care in antimon in baseball and
I guess, uh mold injury that.
Speaker 6 (07:41):
Yeah, we're happy to get those guys back.
Speaker 8 (07:43):
To two players that are I guess top of the
league and their positions and even getting a Murphy back
even and they aren't really experience training so uh seeing
him doing those rehab start so we couldn't.
Speaker 6 (07:55):
Get him back to How about you after played?
Speaker 7 (07:57):
How are you feeling up off the box just not
in your stride yet or you know what I mean,
a little loft?
Speaker 6 (08:04):
What what's happening for you?
Speaker 9 (08:06):
Uh?
Speaker 6 (08:06):
For most of it, I feel pretty pretty normal. Uh.
Speaker 8 (08:09):
Like I said, they were facing pretty tough pitching rightffs
spring training. I guess you come from from spring training
and you are now you're playing nine innings and then
you're not facing the same picture maybe two times around,
and that we're facing them uh at their at their best.
So it's really just I guess it's stressing what you
can do.
Speaker 6 (08:26):
And you know what's.
Speaker 8 (08:27):
Also kind of come around in at some point, let's
talk about the NL least and man, you know a
lot of good teams.
Speaker 7 (08:33):
The National League has a lot of good teams. But
I think you guys are still stack up the match.
You saw what they were able to do getting one sodo,
what do you think.
Speaker 6 (08:42):
That adds to their team?
Speaker 7 (08:43):
And then of course the Phillies in that division, that's
a tough division.
Speaker 6 (08:47):
All three teams could make the play that.
Speaker 8 (08:49):
Yeah, uh, I think it's a pretty good, pretty good division.
And with the with the Nationals kind of being a
sleeping big there, I kind of like they're a team
and how they constructed it, so it's a pretty front division.
It'll be very competitive and that I think that's good
for us to kind of get the field for those
games they that can kind of feel like a playoff
game atmosphere during the season. They obviously got the talent,
(09:11):
they added the pieces and we're just trying to stick
with 'em and and compete.
Speaker 7 (09:16):
Our guest is Michael Harris, the second set of fielding
for the Atlanta Braids. Uh, the Dodgers off to a
great start. We know what they have. They spending money
like it's going out of stock. Would you see the
off season and what they're doing now, I mean, do
you look at it and be like, wow, is this
over the top or do you shake, you know, tip
your cap to 'em that they going out and trying
(09:37):
to get the best team they can put together.
Speaker 6 (09:39):
Yeah, I think they're I think they're doing it the
right way.
Speaker 8 (09:40):
They're going out and getting guys that are gonna help
them win to continue to help them win.
Speaker 6 (09:44):
They just want it so they wanna keep winning.
Speaker 8 (09:46):
And I think they're just using their resources to their advantage, just.
Speaker 6 (09:50):
Paying you guys and and.
Speaker 8 (09:51):
Knowing they're gonna get out of the guys that they played.
So Uh, I think they're doing it the right way.
And I guess everybody else has to pitch up too.
Speaker 7 (09:58):
I've gonna have to ask you about, of course, the
torpedo bat, which is uh, everybody's going crazy with in
in uh baseball after the Yankees hit all those home
runs in that game, set of c UH s franchise
record nine home runs in the game against Milwaukee.
Speaker 6 (10:14):
Have you ever experimented with the bat?
Speaker 3 (10:17):
Uh?
Speaker 6 (10:17):
Anybody here? You use the bat in Atlanta?
Speaker 8 (10:20):
Um No, I've never uh never an experient?
Speaker 3 (10:24):
Man?
Speaker 6 (10:24):
What it? Uh? I just found out about it. I
guess it's opening of the O series.
Speaker 3 (10:29):
You know.
Speaker 6 (10:30):
I don't think any of other team has I think Drake.
Speaker 8 (10:32):
Walgin said he used it in colleague one time or anything.
Uh No, nobody else is really Uh, I haven't used
it there?
Speaker 6 (10:40):
After seeing those home runs, are you intrigued at all?
Do you know what I mean?
Speaker 7 (10:43):
When and then el eh ellie da La Cruz the
other day use it in Cincinnati, had.
Speaker 6 (10:48):
Two home runs. Would you take some swings with it?
Or you're happy with you know what you've done and
you don't wanna mess with that. Feel like it's I
guess the same other normal.
Speaker 10 (10:58):
But we still got a final way to hit the
world kind of like the h the girl has a
bat and this is still putting on good wings with
gishing back and feel like you can do the same
thing with.
Speaker 6 (11:10):
The knowing that we don't and and but.
Speaker 7 (11:14):
As you said, it's still about the player, not about
the equipment.
Speaker 6 (11:17):
I'm yeah, yeah, it's I guess they still have between
the bat and make contact.
Speaker 8 (11:23):
It's not like I just put it in their hand
in the batso uh right, they just they're doing a
good job and found on the barrow and you getting
under that.
Speaker 6 (11:31):
It last thing.
Speaker 7 (11:32):
Just the National League and all the good teams and
h Prodrigs are good Dodgers.
Speaker 6 (11:39):
You know, I talked about that at least. Uh.
Speaker 7 (11:42):
Also, you got the Cincinnati people are expecting big things
with Terry Francona and.
Speaker 6 (11:47):
Guys getting older and better. Uh huh expect a dog fight,
yeah for sure.
Speaker 8 (11:52):
Uh.
Speaker 6 (11:52):
And that was pretty competitive right now. And I know
I promised love it. We played a lot of those teams,
but we played all the teams. Go, it's pretty competitive
right now. I just want to go there and feeding
those teams. All right, Best of luck in the season.
I appreciate your time.
Speaker 5 (12:06):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (12:07):
Fox Sports Radio has the best sports talk lineup in
the nation. Catch all of our shows at Foxsports Radio
dot com and within the iHeartRadio app. Search FSR to
listen live. In case you missed Rob Parker on the
MLB networks, here's his latest appearance on Mlbina.
Speaker 9 (12:27):
Rob Braves lose again last night. They're owing six jerks
and Profar fails at drug tests. He's out. How cooked
are the Braves?
Speaker 3 (12:35):
They're not cooked.
Speaker 7 (12:36):
As you know, teams have bounced back from bad starts.
Speaker 2 (12:40):
We could go back to last year.
Speaker 4 (12:42):
I think it was the Astro that started seven and
eighteen and.
Speaker 7 (12:46):
They made the playoffs. Of a number of years back.
I remember the Twins got off to a bad start
something like nine and twenty or nine in eighteen, and
again they wound up winning ninety six games that year.
Speaker 9 (13:00):
However, right, you're being very tempered on this, and you're correct. However,
the Phillies are in the division, the Mets are in
the division, and then they're gonna be battling a wild
card that could be the Padres or Giants. On the
other side, there's a lot of good team. Can they
afford to drop this far back? I think that's the trouble.
I think they're in a bit of trouble. That kind
of trouble.
Speaker 7 (13:21):
No, I get it, but I still think baseball, as
you know, I know it's a cliche, BK.
Speaker 2 (13:26):
It's a marathon.
Speaker 7 (13:27):
And if you think the season is one in the
first week or ten days.
Speaker 2 (13:32):
Come on, that's just not baseball.
Speaker 7 (13:34):
This is not the Detroit Tigers thirty five and five
and they played you know, five hundred the rest of
the way. But you know what I mean, I'm saying,
like baseball, they'll have your streaks and you have your
dead spots. I'm not gonna bury the Braves. They have
a really good team and I think they'll be in
the mix. The Mets haven't lit the NL East on
(13:54):
fire one of they two and to start, I mean,
they're not out of the woods, not yet.
Speaker 9 (13:58):
By the way, I love that Robins just drops in
a nineteen eighty four reference in there. It's very mad
dog of you. I appreciate that. The wire to wire Tigers.
All right, Jackson Merrill gets a big contract extension. You
did a drop in, as it turns out, on top
ten right now for our center fielder. Top ten with me,
you missed the boat on him. I had him number one,
you had him number nine. That's a bad job by you.
Speaker 4 (14:19):
Well in this case, I think I told you my
reasoning was that it was just the rookie one year
and I want a little more.
Speaker 2 (14:26):
I want more in the resume, and I don't blame
the Padres were cashing him out. You notice, BK, it
only caught you more money the longer you wait.
Speaker 6 (14:35):
That's right. If you believe you've got.
Speaker 7 (14:37):
Something special, pay the guy now and you'll get a
way cheaper than if you wait.
Speaker 5 (14:42):
So the Padres are rich now.
Speaker 2 (14:43):
Yeah, yeah, and I'm lessay.
Speaker 9 (14:45):
Yeah, he's quite sold. No, I get it, but you
weren't quite sold. I thought I saw like a special
player and not just the results. But we've been talking
about with Alex Savila, Tiro was talking about it earlier.
There is something very smooth and a good action and
instincts on this kid all around. That just it says
winner moving forward.
Speaker 7 (15:06):
Yeah, I'm not going to disagree with that, but I
don't crown people after one or two years in baseball.
Speaker 2 (15:12):
We have seen people. Can I bring up the old name.
Speaker 7 (15:15):
I'm not saying that he's Joe Sharbonneau, but Joe Charbonneau
was Rookie of the Year in the American leagueeaue.
Speaker 9 (15:23):
You again, you get you're consistent. You pump the breaks,
that's your expression. Pump the breaks on Elie de la Cruz.
Eventually you're gonna have to just not hit the brakes
on him. But early on you pumped the breaks. Sorry
last thing, Padres. Dodgers still unbeaten? Where are you on
the NL West?
Speaker 4 (15:38):
I still like the Padres. I know, did Dodgers look unbeatable?
Speaker 2 (15:42):
But last year.
Speaker 9 (15:45):
Did you last year that the Padres had them dead
and somehow let them, you know, live on and win
a title? But did you pick the Padres at the
start of this year?
Speaker 2 (15:53):
I did.
Speaker 6 (15:54):
I picked the Padres.
Speaker 2 (15:55):
I have the Padres going to the World Series.
Speaker 7 (15:57):
In fact, that's a different thing.
Speaker 9 (16:01):
Like rob in the playoffs, they Dodgers get knocked out
in the first round. It's easy, it happens. But winning
the West, see, I would say, as good as the
Padres look right now, the Dodgers are a monster. I
gotta go Dodgers in the West. I disagree with you
on that, but they haven't run away.
Speaker 7 (16:17):
If you start seven and oh and you haven't even
separated yourself from the division, it tells you that you're
going you're in for a battle.
Speaker 2 (16:25):
Could you can't play one thousand ball the rest.
Speaker 9 (16:28):
Of the way the other guys, the other guys can't
do it.
Speaker 2 (16:33):
After a seven and oh start and you have a
one game lead.
Speaker 9 (16:35):
I don't think the Dodgers. The Dodgers are so crazy deep.
I don't think they're discouraged. Last year was the year
to pick them off, and they won the title.
Speaker 5 (16:43):
They won.
Speaker 9 (16:44):
They win a measly ninety eight games. This year it's
going to be a bigger number. But I appreciate that.
You go out on a limb again. You don't ground
out week to short. You take a big, big swing,
and sometimes you're Joe DiMaggio. Sometimes you're Joey Gallo.
Speaker 3 (16:56):
I get it.
Speaker 1 (16:57):
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 4 (17:07):
Now, let's welcome in one of the best baseball writers
out there, a friend of mine, Gordon Wittenmeyer, who covers
the Cincinnati Reds for the Cincinnati Inquire, a place I
work back in the nineties.
Speaker 5 (17:19):
Gordon, welcome to the podcast.
Speaker 11 (17:21):
How are you, buddy, I'm doing great. Thanks for having
me on. Man, good to see it.
Speaker 4 (17:26):
Always Man, always, we gotta get you on the podcast.
Cincinnati Reds coming into Thursday. Two and four back to
back one nothing losses, and they have a game Thursday
night in Milwaukee, just give me a vibe for the Reds.
Speaker 5 (17:43):
What's going on? Because they had a big night a
couple of nights ago. But now the bats A.
Speaker 11 (17:47):
Yeah, so the bats weren't necessarily alive the first series
against the Giants either. That's gonna be a storyline all season.
They're not fully healthy. You know, they're good hitting. Catcher
Tyler Stevenson's on the ill. They got the left fielder
Austin Hayes, a former All Star they were expecting something
out of he's still on the il. Spencer Steers had
a shoulder problem. I mean, you can make excuses, but
(18:09):
this wasn't a great lineup last year, and we don't
think it's going to be a great lineup when they're
fully healthy. But the fact that they're not. Man, they
lose back to back one nothing games to the Rangers
at home. How do you lose one nothing back to
back a great American ballpark?
Speaker 5 (18:24):
Do you know his par.
Speaker 11 (18:27):
There was one out every four fly balls goes out.
I mean, it's ridiculous, and so that's not In fact,
it's never happened. They've never lost back to back one
nothing home game since they opened up at that park.
So that's a concern, and it will be what's not
a concern, and that what has shown early and is
(18:48):
something to have a little faith in is what you've
seen from the starting pitchers, none more than Hunter Green.
He goes out and he didn't have his best stuff.
He got through five innings, gave up a couple of
runs in in the opener, they had a lead into
the ninth, they blew it. That's not on him. Then
he's one of the victims of the one nothing losses.
(19:10):
So yesterday he goes seven innings, gives up three hits,
two of them happen to come in the same inning,
gives up the only run in the game in the fourth,
retires to the next ten and they can't get a
run to pull that one out. But if you're getting
that kind of pitching from your ace, and they're getting
good starting pitching behind him, and they've got more coming
(19:32):
with Andrew Abbott expected off the il pretty soon, then
you're gonna be in these games. Now, you got it. Now,
Terry Francona, one of the best managers going, has got
to figure out how to do something with that.
Speaker 5 (19:44):
Let's get back to Hunter Green.
Speaker 4 (19:46):
Here, he had his five hundredth career strikeout, the fastest
to five hundred from any Cincinnati Reds pitcher. Just we
just got to live a low bar, i know, because
there's not a lot of great starting pitch from the
Cincinnati Reds in their history. It's kind of weird considering
that it won a number of World Series. But we
know Hunter Green has great stuff. It's about staying healthy
(20:09):
if you can get through a full season with him.
Last year he got back into the cy Young Award
winner a race Young Award race because he pitched well
down the stretch.
Speaker 11 (20:20):
Yeah, yeah, and then he got a little elbow banged up.
I mean literally banged up. He banged it into something, bruised.
It wasn't sure it was right, got a couple of
opinions on it. Wind up missing like six weeks. But
this is that was a big key for him because
he came back at the end of the season. He
showed his teammates that he was there for him. He
came back. That was big for him, It was big
(20:42):
for them. The organization talks behind the scenes about how
important that was in his development, because you remember, he's
still a real young pitcher and he's done most of
his development at the big league level and the grind
of the big leagues, the messiness of every day and
putting failure behind you and answering the bell the next time.
(21:03):
All of that is what makes baseball what I think
is the hardest game to succeed in. And if pictures too,
for pictures too, and pictures of that talent level. But
he's had to learn all this at the big league level,
and so the fact they did that last year. In fact,
he's off to what I think is a good start
this year, even if he hasn't gotten the results yet.
(21:25):
This is a big year for him. And if it's
if it turns, if he turns it into a big year,
that's a huge year for the Cincinnati Reds and to
your point, the Cy Young Race, he'll be in a
lot of Cy Young races going forward if if he,
if he just keeps up this this this mentality, this
learning curve, where he's at in his career right now, All.
Speaker 5 (21:47):
Right, let's turn here.
Speaker 4 (21:48):
I guest is Gorin Wintenmeyer, the Cincinnati Reds beat writer
for the Cincinnati Inquirer. I want to go to Ellie
da Cruz, who you know a lot of people are
high on this year. Even Brian Kenney, my cohort at
MLB Network, is picking Ellie to win the National League MVP.
Speaker 5 (22:06):
That's how high he is on Ellie Dela Cruz.
Speaker 4 (22:09):
I'm like, Wow, he had a big night using that
torpedo bat, But what do you expect out of Elie
Dela Cruz on a daily basis?
Speaker 11 (22:17):
Yeah, Well, the whole key to him. We've seen this
now for a year and a half plus. The talent
is just it's just off the charts. I mean, there's
just really no comp for what he does in the
game right now. It's funny because sho Haes the other
guy that's not a comp for an entirely different reason.
But I think these two guys are the two guys
(22:38):
with no comps. And the thing about it is the strikeouts.
Right He led the league in strikeouts last year and
it was fourth all time in a number of strikeouts. Wow,
his success growth will be entirely in direct proportion to
how those strikeouts come down. If they come down one percent,
(23:00):
he's gonna get one percent better at everything else he does.
And that's a lot, by the way, because he already
does things so well. If he can bring it down
five percent and gets five percent better, then we are
talking about m vps. So that's that's what Uh, that's
what has to happen. You gotta watch for that. I mean,
you know, he had that big four four hit game
(23:21):
with the double and two homers the other night with
the with the torpedo bat and and then he used
the torpedo bat and and didn't really do all that
well the next two games, you know, and he was
you know, they lost one to another. He was in
the lineup both times. So a lot of strikeouts too.
So I it just it's just gonna be if he
(23:42):
stays healthy and he cuts those strike as down a
little bit and he's done a few things to adjust
to maybe do that, and uh we'll see if you're
if your boy Kenny's right.
Speaker 5 (23:51):
All right?
Speaker 4 (23:51):
One last thing here, Terry frank Cone of course, who
had retired from Cleveland, Uh, is he does He seemed
you know, energized, re energized, Uh, you know, up to
the task for this coming back as manager of the
Reds big time.
Speaker 11 (24:10):
I went down to his place and met with him
for a couple hours in Tucson back in January, and uh,
he was just he's got this chair in his living
room that he calls his rocking chair. It looks it's
it looks like a lazy boy, right, except I don't
know that it has the thing that kicks up you
can put your feet on or not, but it it
(24:30):
rocks back and forth and it swivels, and man, the
more he talked about the upcoming season and getting back
in the game, the more that chair moved. And this
is so, this is a guy who he's clearly recharged
and clearly charged up to be back in the game,
kind of like Boachie. He's younger than Bochie and uh
(24:51):
probably doesn't move any better than boach does, but uh,
same kind of thing. Right, was out of the game
and just realized how much he needed to be back
in the game. So he's revitalized right now. And I
don't see a drop off in energy level from what
we've seen all those years in Cleveland, for instance. I
think if anybody's gonna figure out how to get a
(25:11):
little more out of that lineup and get a little
more success, get a little more results out of this
pitching they're getting, it'll be him, all right.
Speaker 4 (25:19):
Gordon Wentenmeier, one of the best in the business covering
the Cincinnati Reds for the Cincinnati Enquirer. We'll see you
on the road, of course, somewhere down the line, our friend,
Take care and thank you for all right.
Speaker 11 (25:31):
Thanks man, good to see it.
Speaker 1 (25:33):
Fox Sports Radio has the best sports talk lineup in
the nation. Catch all of our shows at Foxsports Radio
dot com and within the iHeartRadio app. Search FSR to
listen live. It was a big week in the Big
Leagues a live believe.
Speaker 3 (25:55):
Is it foul or Is It Fair?
Speaker 1 (25:58):
And now from mlbro dot com Here's Jr.
Speaker 5 (26:02):
Gampbell Jr.
Speaker 4 (26:06):
The Red Sox wasted no time locking up rookie second
basement Christian Campbell to an eight year, sixty million dollar contract.
Speaker 5 (26:16):
Is it foul or fair? To both sides?
Speaker 12 (26:21):
Fair? The Red Sox will be forever cursed letting Mookie
Betts go over supposed money. With Christian Campbell showing the
potential to be the most talented player that the franchise
has seen since Mookie Betts and smoking the ball early
in the season, the Red Sox want to pay him
(26:42):
early rather than later. And why not if Campbell, who
like Bets, is from Tennessee, has all of the tools
offensively and defensively that he appears to have early.
Speaker 6 (26:57):
In his career.
Speaker 12 (26:59):
Then in three years his salary, which doesn't even clear
eight million per will be a bargain and the Red
Size will definitely have to negotiate for now. Campbell took
a similar deal to the one Key Brian Hayes signed
with the Pittsburgh Pirates in twenty twenty two. An eight
(27:19):
year contract worked seventy million dollars, giving the second generation
third baseman the richest contract in club history. But that's
not even ten million per for a supposed franchise player money.
Mike Harris of the Atlanta Braves signed an eight year,
seventy two million dollar deal a while back. So a
(27:44):
baseball career can be over in one bad season. So
to take those early deals with less money, that works
because you're still getting generational wealth. The fact that these
bros are getting paid is a great thing and guarantees
one Navy representation in these lineups and to cross the league,
(28:05):
So for sure, fair, fair for Christian Campbell, Fair for
the Red Sox.
Speaker 3 (28:13):
Make way for weekend wagers.
Speaker 9 (28:17):
Yo, it's shine bo with fire up those bed naps,
let's go.
Speaker 6 (28:23):
Week one was a little up, a little down.
Speaker 10 (28:25):
The down we lost on Friday, but the up was
we won easily on Saturday.
Speaker 6 (28:30):
So let's keep that up in week two.
Speaker 12 (28:31):
But let's get a week started off with a couple
of picks hotter than Robs takes.
Speaker 6 (28:35):
Go ahead and take the Detroit Tigers for that mattne game.
On Friday, they take on the White Sox that with
black jack clarity on the mound. You know that is money.
Saturday is game.
Speaker 2 (28:45):
We're gonna stick to the hotness.
Speaker 12 (28:46):
Go ahead and take the Los Angeles Dodgers minus one
and a half against the Phillies.
Speaker 6 (28:51):
You know how the Dodgers have been. The Phillies have
been a little up, a little down, still trying to
find their path.
Speaker 12 (28:56):
And you know that our patches straight to the green
stick and shape inside.
Speaker 3 (29:00):
The Parker MLB fans.
Speaker 1 (29:03):
When it comes to Major League Baseball, no.
Speaker 3 (29:06):
One covers it better than the odd cover fast.
Speaker 5 (29:08):
I am the baseball kid first.
Speaker 7 (29:11):
Second, third, and then we're leading shows with baseball.
Speaker 4 (29:16):
Watch it all in one place right here on Fox
Sports Radio.
Speaker 5 (29:20):
I love baseball.
Speaker 4 (29:28):
In the words of New York TV legend the late
Bill Jorgensen, thanking you for your time, this time until
next time.
Speaker 5 (29:35):
Rob Parker out. He can't, given this could be an
inside of Parker.
Speaker 3 (29:39):
See you next week, same bad time, same Matt station,
Host
Rob Parker
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