August 5, 2025 • 28 mins
It’s time for a ballin’ round-up.
With the second half of a spicy WNBA season well underway, today’s episode of The GIST of It has the on-court news you need to know, with co-hosts Steph Rotz and The GIST’s Associate Managing Editor Lauren Tuiskula breaking down the top headlines around the league. From an alarming injury trend to the Connecticut Sun’s possible move to Boston, this episode is packed with tea. Put that kettle on.
Show notes:
More on The GIST:
☎️ Leave us a voicemail! Call us at 1-437-564-5579 or hold down on this link
🎧 Subscribe: thegistsports.com/subscribepod
✉️ Email: pod@thegistsports.com
📷 Instagram: @thegistca @thegistusa
🐦 X: @thegistpod
With the second half of a spicy WNBA season well underway, today’s episode of The GIST of It has the on-court news you need to know, with co-hosts Steph Rotz and The GIST’s Associate Managing Editor Lauren Tuiskula breaking down the top headlines around the league. From an alarming injury trend to the Connecticut Sun’s possible move to Boston, this episode is packed with tea. Put that kettle on.
Show notes:
More on The GIST:
☎️ Leave us a voicemail! Call us at 1-437-564-5579 or hold down on this link
🎧 Subscribe: thegistsports.com/subscribepod
✉️ Email: pod@thegistsports.com
📷 Instagram: @thegistca @thegistusa
🐦 X: @thegistpod
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:08):
Hello, Hello jisters, Welcome or welcome back to another episode
of The Gist of It. Today is Tuesday, August fifth.
We're your co hosts. I'm Lauren Tuscala filling in for
Ellen today.
Speaker 2 (00:16):
So happy to have you here, Lauren.
Speaker 3 (00:18):
I do feel like today's well timed, and that's a
little bit of foreshadowing for the folks who do know Lauren.
And of course I am Steph Rotz. I almost said
I am Ellen his loob once again, but I am
Steph Rotz, Steph Roz.
Speaker 1 (00:29):
You are Steph Rotz. I am so excited to be
with you. We love foreshadowing. That's a nice little tease
of some of what's to come. But the bulk of
today's episode will be a WNBA headline roundup. Steph and
I actually both joined. We didn't plan this. I'm wearing
a new WNBA T shirt, new to me. It's an
old one, but it's new to me. I got a
nice black one with the orange logo, and Steph is
rocking her WNBA hat, so we are well prepared for
(00:50):
this moment without planning.
Speaker 4 (00:52):
We'll be taking a peek at some.
Speaker 1 (00:53):
Of the biggest stories as the second half rolls on
we'll be talking about the reason and pretty alarming injury
trend in the league, spend some high profile stars that
are facing injuries. And of course we also have to
talk about the Connecticut Sun possibly being up for sale
and relocating to Boston. There's been rumors, there's been reports,
a little bit of he said, she said, going back
and forth. So we're gonna pack all of it today,
(01:15):
and I'm really excited to talk about that storyline in
particular because it will affect me personally.
Speaker 3 (01:18):
And then also in our personal training set, we will
be talking baseball, which also affects you personally.
Speaker 4 (01:23):
Yes.
Speaker 1 (01:24):
Fun, I'm so excited to be here. I always love
seeing you and I love talking about these stories with you.
Speaker 2 (01:28):
This is so well timed.
Speaker 3 (01:29):
Yeah, you're the one Boston person that I know, and
therefore the one Boston person that gets a pass.
Speaker 2 (01:36):
Wow, it's kidd is kidding.
Speaker 3 (01:39):
I love all of you people in Boston. I love Boston.
It's a very beautiful city. I've been there once as
a child, and I need to go back at some point.
Speaker 4 (01:46):
Yeah, come back and maybe take in a WNBA game.
Speaker 3 (01:49):
Perfect maybe maybe maybe. But before we get into that
one big story that we'll focus on those multiple headlines
in the WNBA as we go into the second half
of the season. Do you want to quickly call in audible.
Speaker 2 (02:01):
Because it is. It needs to be said.
Speaker 3 (02:03):
We need to talk about Tritany Rodman's return to the pitch.
And then also in the same breath of that is
the major goal that she scored. So on Sunday watching
it in spirit and of course US women's national team
star Trinity Rodman made her long awaited return from injury,
coming in as a second half sub against the Portland Thorns.
(02:24):
The game was tied one one when she came on
the field, and then she scored an absolute banger. This
stoppage time goal would stand as the game winner, and
that's what she did. And she was extremely emotional after
the game, as were.
Speaker 2 (02:37):
All of us. I feel she.
Speaker 3 (02:39):
Has been dealing with lingering back issues at date back
to twenty twenty two and most recently, Rodman was sidelined
for the last four months.
Speaker 2 (02:48):
Can you believe it?
Speaker 3 (02:48):
And this injury is one of the hardest things, she
said she's had to go through, and it is so
awesome to see her return and to see her return
so triumphant.
Speaker 4 (02:58):
It's so awesome.
Speaker 1 (02:58):
Well, we put the link video of the goal on
our Instagram page, So I highly recommend going to look
that up because just the emotions at that moment. The
announcer has such a good call for the goal too,
like you just can't help but be overwhelmed by emotions
during that call. So everyone go check that out. But
like you said, she's been through so much, and I
think anyone who's dealt with injury can kind of relate
to what she's feeling and that emotion of coming back
(03:20):
to be able to do what you love. And she's
got a lot of hate online for like attending her
boyfriend's tennis matches, which she's doing all to recover. There
was a lot of hate because they're like she should
be training. It's like she's training behind the scenes. You
don't see everything she's doing. And like just because she's
supporting her boyfriend, she's putting in the work like she
doesn't it's not like she doesn't want to be back
out there. So she went through Yeah, it's insane.
Speaker 2 (03:41):
Yeah, Lauren's confirming.
Speaker 1 (03:43):
Confirming that it's crazy. So just everything she's been through
on and off the pitche and the work she put in,
it was so awesome to see her score that goal
and she's back.
Speaker 3 (03:52):
And even if you're go okay, knowing how hard it
is for any normal human being to deal with an injury,
for an athlete to be dealing with an injury from
a mental health perspective, to be able to show up
for other people in your life would be so important
I think for your recovery too.
Speaker 2 (04:04):
So people are ridiculous.
Speaker 3 (04:05):
People will say anything online.
Speaker 1 (04:08):
It's so true. I'm happy that, Yeah, this was her
coming back. We can focus on this moment, put them
to the side, and everyone go check out that video
because you will be overwhelmed with joy for the rest
of the day.
Speaker 3 (04:16):
True, this segment was about her, not that. Thank you,
Thank you as always, thank you, Lauren.
Speaker 4 (04:30):
Hey, justters.
Speaker 1 (04:31):
This is Lauren here, popping in before we get into
today's one big story on the WNBA. After Steph and
I recorded, we got the unfortunate news that Nefisa Collier
will miss at least two weeks with a sprained ankle.
As you'll hear us discuss in the segment, we had
previously said that Collier was a game time decision for
tonight's game. So this is the update that of course
nobody wanted. It's a really tough blow for the Links
(04:52):
and we're wishing Afeasa Collier a speedy recovery. Hopefully she'll
be back well in time for that Links playoff push,
but our conversation on injuries across the league is still
very much top of mind. Of course, we just wanted
to quickly share this update as you listen into today's segment.
As always, you can check out our newsletter and follow
us on social for all of the real time updates,
and without further ado, we will send it to today's
(05:14):
One Big Story. All right, As we promised, we are
rounding up the top WNBA headlines. For today's One Big Story.
We'll talk about the growing injury issue. We'll talk about
the Connecticut Sun and their potential move to Boston in
the future. But before we talk about those two things,
we do have to talk about the Minnesota Links in general.
They are leading the league right now, top team in
(05:34):
the league, best record, and they just made an absolutely
major trade. They acquired Djna Carrington from the Dallas Wings
and in exchange for some later picks a couple players.
So Dallas Wings had Page Beckers, they seemed like maybe
she'd turned that franchise around immediately, but they're struggling a bit.
So now dj Na Carrington gets traded again to a
contender and she's in the mix for a ring so
(05:56):
huge trade. We had to kind of get that up
off the top because we have a lot of storylines
to get to, but we didn't not want to mention
the DC make karringteam trade.
Speaker 3 (06:04):
You know that sound that happens at a WNBA draft,
and I think it's all drafts when the decision comes in,
it's like a little chime tone, little.
Speaker 2 (06:10):
Chime, perfect perfect word.
Speaker 3 (06:12):
And whenever I see a trade get announced on Instagram,
I hear that chime in my head when I'm reading.
Speaker 4 (06:16):
Oh that's that's like main character. You're living a movie
and you're hearing that soundtrack. I love that so much.
Speaker 1 (06:21):
I'm going to hear that now every time I get
to push notification about a trade.
Speaker 3 (06:24):
I would love for everyone, Yeah, you see you to
come across your screen on your phone, just just to
make your life a little bit more animated.
Speaker 2 (06:31):
Just picture that or listen to that in your brain.
Speaker 3 (06:33):
I thought that was that that happened to me this
past weekend when I saw this come across the gest beet.
Speaker 4 (06:37):
Wow, that's beautiful.
Speaker 3 (06:40):
Okay, we have to talk about something that's not so beautiful,
and that is that Minnesota Link superstar. So we're talking
about injuries here and their star and a FISA Collier
is joining that growing injury list.
Speaker 2 (06:55):
So Collier rolled her ankirl in a major way.
Speaker 3 (06:59):
It was very setting in the Lynks's major win over
the Las Vegas Aces on Saturday. And Kalier is a
huge contender this year and is largely considered for MVP
front runner this particular season, and she is so beloved
your talk. We were talking about the Trinity Rodman clip earlier,
but what I saw before I saw that over the
(07:21):
weekend was the clip of her getting injured, Collie or
getting injured, And not only did her teammates show up
for her around that moment, but also the Las Vegas
Aces came and surrounded her and held up towels to
block her from the camera view, and everyone was just
physically there for Collier because she is so beloved in
the league and she's such a leader for those players
(07:42):
that obviously it sucks when anyone gets injured, and you're
never wishing that upon anyone, but it was just such
a moment to kind of articulate how beloved she is
across the league.
Speaker 1 (07:53):
There's such love in the league for her, like you're saying,
and she's a leader in the WMBPA with all the
CBA negotions that are going on, she's a leader of
unrivaled the league that we've talked about a lot, and
the way that's changing women's basketball, and of course on
the court, she's an MVP front runner. So yeah, that
was a really lovely moment. Obviously, it doesn't want to
happen in that type of situation, but for players in
the entire league to rally around her is amazing. Luckily,
(08:16):
she is listed as a game time decision ahead of
tonight's game against the Seattle Storm, so we don't know
the severity of the injury just yet. Maybe she'll get
back out there, but it is prompting this larger discussion
of the increased injuries in the league. Were at the
halfway point, so a couple weeks ago, there were one
hundred and sixty four documented injuries across the league, and
that's to compare last year there were only two hundred
(08:38):
and three total injuries. So we still have over ten
games to go, and we're already approaching that total league number,
so it's really rising and skyrocketing. And the thing that's
calling a lot of attention to it too, is because
it's a lot of superstars. It's Anfisa Collier, it's Branda Stewart,
it's Caitlin Clark, which we'll get to next, So it's
all these superstars and that's really sparking this conversation around
it too.
Speaker 3 (08:57):
And there were one hundred and seventy five and twenty
twenties three total for that whole season too, so for
it to go from that to two hundred and three
and now we're already at one sixty four does seem
like a lot. And it seems odd to me because
the more time that we're going into the WNBA, you
would think there would be less injuries because there would
be less playing overseas in the offseason than there was previously.
(09:19):
And like, obviously people played it unrivaled, but I think
it was a shorter season than it would have been
if you were going abroad to play another whole season.
So it is a bit odd to me. So let's
try and speculate why this could potentially be happening. Of course,
now there are more regular season games than there had
been in the past. This year, each team will play
(09:39):
at least forty four games per season, and that's up
from forty so an increase in four games. So not
a wild increase, but that's one reason you could speculate
why injuries are going up. Maybe the game itself is
getting faster, more intense, the pace is increasing.
Speaker 2 (09:56):
I don't know.
Speaker 3 (09:56):
I would love to hear your theories, so right into
us DMS at the just pod or sorry, email us
pod at the gist anyho you know how to get
in contact with us.
Speaker 2 (10:06):
You would love to hear your theories.
Speaker 1 (10:07):
Yeah, I want to hear what people think. And part
of it too, it could be scheduling. I know there's
been a lot of back to backs and then there's
long breaks off, so it's definitely an issue. It'll probably
come up in the CBA negotiations as we talk about
how many games in the season when they're scheduled rest days,
all that stuff. And speaking of injuries, we do have
to get to our next big headline, which is the
Indiana Fever rolling on without Caitlyn Clark. So the Fever
(10:30):
have won five straight games, and that is without superstar
Kaitlin Clark, who has been sidelined since before the All
Star Game with a groin injury. Head coach Stephanie White
commented on Clark's absence and the team success, and she said, quote,
while we don't like it, sometimes it can be a
blessing in disguise because everybody else finds themselves end quote.
So what she's referring to there is players around Clark
(10:50):
who maybe don't get that superstar shine in other moments,
they really have to step up because there's a scoring
drought that they have to factor in. They have to
really step up to make that offense run. And we're
seeing them ball out with Caitlyn Clark on the sideline.
So they're on that five game win streak, and people thought,
what are they going to do without her, and it
looks like they're carrying on just fine.
Speaker 3 (11:09):
That is something that I've personally experienced as someone who
plays that sports is sometimes like you're always so upset
obviously if your star player or one of your stars
doesn't make it or show up or is injured. But
then everyone else has to play, you know what I mean,
They have to I feel like there's more passes. Sometimes
(11:29):
there's more connections. This isn't in particular with the Caitlin
Clark issue at all, but I feel like we can
kind of all resonate with the well at least there's
more development happening across the floor for all players. So
it's not it's not a good thing that Kaitlyn Clark
is injured, but maybe it'll help them in the long
run for have a deeper run in the playoffs. Maybe.
But Caitlyn Clark is reported to be back sometime around
the third week in August, which is coming up soon,
(11:52):
so hopefully we will see her in that week come back.
Speaker 1 (11:56):
Yeah, and that'll be before the playoffs. Two were but
just over a month out from w playoffs starting up.
And the other thing about Caitlin Clark too, it has
been a down year for her. People talk about the
sophomore slump all the time, and maybe part of it
is those injuries, and she's battling through these injuries, but
her shooting numbers are down. So to see that Fever
offense really click without her, like you said, they're building
up that depth for potentially a deep playoff run.
Speaker 4 (12:17):
And yeah, they've They've gotten through it.
Speaker 3 (12:19):
Just fine, and we need to talk. We're talking about
the main thing now for you, Lauren, I feel as
a Bostonian, we definitely need to talk about the other
headline that was circulating for the WNBA this past weekend,
which is on Saturday night, a report broke and this
was through the Boston Globe, So we're talking official sources
(12:39):
here that Boston Celtics minority owner Steve Pagliuca purchased the
Connecticut Sun for what would be a record three hundred
and twenty five million dollars with intentions to move the
team from Connecticut to Boston in twenty twenty seven. So
that came out on Saturday, but by Sunday, both the
Connecticut Sun and the wn they refuted this report.
Speaker 1 (13:01):
It's so fun when your friends like totally understand you
and the number of I was on vacation over the weekend,
but I got so many texts sending me this article
and it was just so nice. I was like, Wow,
my brand is so strong, Like I have great friends,
so that this is a weird brag for me to
be talking about here, but it was just nice to
get those guys. Yeah, it was really cool, but yes,
(13:22):
so I was like overjoyed, so hyped about this news
coming to Boston. But like you said, the connectuts on
and the WMBA refuted the report. So Sun Team president
Jennifer Zodi said the sale has not been finalized and
reiterated that the Sun will play in Connecticut through the
twenty twenty sixth season, So she's not saying like the
sale didn't have like it's not happening, but she's saying
they're staying there through twenty twenty six. The w also
(13:44):
released a statement to The Globe that that was the
source that initially reported the news, and they're talking about
Boston not submitting a bid for an expansion team in
the most recent expansion process. So we've talked a lot
about this on the pod and the record setting fees
for expansion in the entire process. We know there's more
teams coming out in the coming years and it's going
to be a long process. So the WAMBA is basically
(14:05):
like Boston didn't go through these channels and that's what's
happening here.
Speaker 3 (14:09):
It's so weird to me that it might not be approved,
because that's what part of the statement was saying that
it might not go through the Board of Governors to
essentially say that Boston can't cut the line in the
expansion process. But it's not an expansion. It's a relocation.
That's what I personally am having a hard time wrapping
my head around is the fact that this is so
clearly a relocation and not an expansion, but somehow it's
(14:31):
being talked about in the sense that it is an expansion.
Speaker 4 (14:35):
I don't.
Speaker 1 (14:35):
Yeah, it might be a long drawn out battle for
that reason of they don't they want that expansion fee.
Like these expansion fees are so high that the w
wants to cash in on that. And as you're saying,
this guy, he's going to own the team, so he
gets to do whatever he wants with that team, again
pending board approval. But it is a relocation, and that's
not new. Relocation happens quite often in sports. Happened in
(14:56):
the w it happened with the Sun. They weren't originally
in Connecticut, so it happens all the time.
Speaker 3 (15:02):
Trying because he would be paying the owners of this team, not.
Speaker 1 (15:06):
The WNBA exactly, he's paying he's buying the team from
the Mohegan tribe, not there's the league will be involved,
of course, but it's not. I don't think there's any
money being exchanged with the league.
Speaker 3 (15:16):
Okay, yeah, I was on I'm on long weekend mode personally, Yes,
my brain did not connect those dots, so thank you,
Lauren Tuskla.
Speaker 1 (15:25):
So yeah, that's kind of unpacking. And I know that
back and forth happened over the weekend. We did cover
in our newsletter and we'll be covering this closely, especially
in the Boston section. But we'll see what happens. And
again it's a couple of years down the line. For
some further context too, There's been a lot of rumors about.
Speaker 4 (15:39):
This relocation to Boston.
Speaker 1 (15:41):
They've played two games at Tide Garden, which is where
the Celtics play. They were both completely sold out, huge
fan base, people showing out, people hyped about potentially having
this team. I remember the both before each game they
had hype videos, of course, and it was Sun clips
spliced with Celtics clips, so it would be like Jason
Tatum cut away to DJ Carrington when she was on
(16:01):
the Sun at this time, and just it seemed like
it was imminent.
Speaker 4 (16:05):
There were all these rumors.
Speaker 1 (16:05):
They had shirts that said the Sun will rise in Boston.
There was also news about potentially inadequate facilities in Mohegan
So this was last year, but players had to practice
in gyms because Mohegan is kind of in a remote area.
They play at Mohegan Sun Arena, which is in the casino,
but the practice facilities around that aren't really up to
(16:27):
par with what else is happening in the league. So
there's been these rumblings for a while, and then this
news broke which caused that massive explosion.
Speaker 3 (16:34):
And in that initial report where it was being said
that the team was bought, the owner said he'd kick
in one hundred million dollars for a practice facility in
the city in Boston. But it's not clear, of course
where they would play their day to day games, but
to promise that practice facility would mean a lot to
the league and to these players who have themselves said
(16:54):
that they would want to play in a top notch
facility rather than playing Connecticut Sun and players to have
said that.
Speaker 1 (17:01):
Right, and that's that's huge too of where they're going
to play. So there's been some reports that TD Garden
again home of the Celtics and the Boston Bruins. The
NHL team would be their home. They also have there's
an arena in Providence, which is Providence, Rhode Island. It's
about an hour commute. It's also accessible by public trands
that you can take the commuter rail to get there,
so they might play some games there because there would
(17:22):
be some overlap if the Bruins and Celtics crossing my
fingers were both in the playoffs, it would interrupt the
schedule a little bit for WNBA, but they have so
basically I'm just yeah, putting out my boss manifesting.
Speaker 2 (17:34):
It's okay, I understand, Yeah.
Speaker 1 (17:35):
Yeah, but they have that backup plan of if there's
that conflict, So hopefully TD Garden for much of the
summer and then if not, they'll play the games in Providence.
Speaker 3 (17:44):
Yeah. I really want to know what happens with all
of this, So, if not in the podcast, because we
have talked about this potentially location before. If not in
the podcast, certainly in the newsletter and on socials, we
will keep you posted with what the heck is happening.
With all of these headlines, it's time for our personal
(18:07):
training sesh. This is where we would absolutely love to
answer any of your questions, your comments. Love to respond
to anything you would like to tell us, and we
mean literally anything in the sports world.
Speaker 1 (18:18):
If you'd like to be featured on a future episode,
please call and leave us a voicemail at one four
three seven five six four five five seven nine, or
you can email us at pod at the gissports dot com,
or send stuff a little DM on Instagram, send Ellen
a DM on Instagram. DM the Gist Instagram. We're available.
It'll all be linked to the show notes too. If
you're doing something else while you're listening to this podcast
(18:39):
and can write that down. But let's kick it over
to today's question.
Speaker 3 (18:43):
Hi.
Speaker 5 (18:44):
My name is Taylor from Long Island, New York. I'm
a huge fan of the Gist. I listen to your
podcast weekly at the gym, which makes my list my
list feel stronger every time, so thank you for that.
I'm a huge sports girl and I love summer baseball.
Speaker 1 (18:55):
Let's go mess.
Speaker 5 (18:56):
One thing that bothers me and my family and has
become more and more pronounced over the last for years
is that the home plate umpires consistently called balls and
strikes that are directly contradicted by the strike zone box
on the broadcast right now, Major League Baseball is considering
moving to a more automated ball strike challenge system, and
I'm wondering if you have thoughts on that generally, or
the possibility of the strike zone box taking over for
(19:17):
the umpires in determining balls and strikes entirely. Personally, I'd
rather have the box eliminated from the broadcast because it
really only starts to make fans mad at the umpires
for the miscalls. And I like the traditional aspect of
the umpire's role in the game, but I don't see
it going that way. I'm excited to hear your thoughts.
Thank you so much.
Speaker 3 (19:36):
Thank you so much, Taylor for your voicemail, for your
support of the gist, and for this really amazing question.
And I think before we let Lauren specifically who is
our baseball person, respond to your question, I think let's
break it down a bit for everyone who is quote
unquote on the call, so let's give some context here.
(19:56):
So my first question for you, Lauren is can you
outline what the strike zone box is that she was
referring to.
Speaker 1 (20:03):
Definitely, Yeah, thank you so much for your question, Taylor.
Your Mets are having a great year, so happy for you,
that's really fun for you over the summer. But yeah,
so Taylor's referring to the strike zone on the broadcast.
So this is a graphic that's overlaid. If you're watching
a baseball game on TV, you'll see a little box
right over the plate, and that's where the suggested strike
zone is. So strike zone it varies. People will debate,
(20:26):
but typically it's the letters on your jersey, So if
you've got Boston across your chest, it's about the letters
on the jersey. To the top of the kneecaps is
the strike zone that height, and then across the plate
is that the strike zone as the Empire's calling it.
So the strike zone box she's referring to is just
a graphic that different broadcasts use. Pretty sure, almost every
Major League badcast has this on there, so the viewer
(20:46):
at home can see where the pitch is. But she's
referring to the umpire calling the actual pitch in the
game that's not aligned with that zone. So we're referring
first to just a graphic that doesn't mean anything. It's
just a visual aid for the viewer.
Speaker 3 (20:59):
It's a tea you're a TD two D representation of
what is a three D concept really, right? Like that
is part of what's happening here with quote unquote miss calls.
Is what we see on TV cannot be the reality
when it's a moving three D situation.
Speaker 1 (21:15):
Right, Yeah, And it's not intended to be perfect either.
It's really just assisting the viewer so you can see
what's happening because we're you're looking behind the pitcher, so
you can't fully see what's there. So it's really not
intended to be It should be accurate, but it's not
impact in the game at all. It's kind of like
if you're watching an NFL broadcast and you see that
yellow line projected down, it's kind of like that. It's
(21:36):
just helping enhancing your viewing experience.
Speaker 3 (21:38):
Right, Roger and the contails that very briefly appeared on
the NHL. Anyhow, Okay, one other thing I want you
to explain before we go into your opinion. Taylor also
mentioned a automated ball strike challenge system, So that would
be different from what we currently have with umpires.
Speaker 1 (21:56):
Right, that's right. So Taylor set it up really well.
So automat ball strike system it's referred to as ABS
more commonly, so I'll just refer to it as that
from here on out. So it's a system that's being
tested in Triple A, which is one step below the
major leagues. It was also used at the MLB All
Star Game this year, so they're really rolling this out.
They want to make it happen. And it's essentially a
system where a pitcher, or a catcher, or a batter,
(22:19):
it's only those three can challenge a baller strike. So
right now in Major League Baseball, you cannot challenge balls
er strikes. A manager can go out and yell at
the umpire all he wants. They're not going to overturn anything.
You're not allowed to do that. But this ABS system
would make it so that a pitcher, catcher, or batter
could tap their helmet or tap their hat and it
would challenge the call on the field. So I went
(22:40):
to a couple Triple A games and you see it
in action. The batter just taps his helmet and it's
pretty quick too. It happens really quickly. That was one
concern is how long is this going to take? And
it happens almost instantaneously, and they can challenge if they
thought it was off the plate, they can challenge that
call and we'll get the review, the call will happen,
and it'll happen right away, whereas right now it's just
the umpire's discretion making that call ball or strike.
Speaker 3 (23:02):
Hmm. When you said tap, you know that thing where
you have to test how coordinated here you are and
you tap your and rub your belly. Yes, imagine that's what.
Speaker 2 (23:11):
I had to do.
Speaker 1 (23:11):
Yeah, you have to get both before you can make
a challenge.
Speaker 3 (23:16):
Okay, now to the question that is on plate here,
if you will, so, what are your thoughts on the
possibility of the strike zone box taking over for the
Empires and determining balls and strikes entirely?
Speaker 1 (23:29):
So that was the question as to you, Lauren Taylor.
I am so aligned with you. I hope it doesn't happen.
And I say that now I consider myself a baseball purist.
When they introduced the pitchclock a couple of years ago,
I was like, this is going to ruin the game.
I love my long playoff games where it's that building,
that atmosphere. And now we're a few years into the
(23:50):
pitchclock and I actually, unfortunately love it and I think
it's good. It's got more fans into the game. So
as a baseball purist, I'm like, I don't love this idea,
but I do think this slow rollout that they're doing
and seeing it work at a Triple A game and
it didn't take too long for them to make the call,
I do like it.
Speaker 4 (24:07):
I don't want them to.
Speaker 1 (24:08):
Go full robo ump. I like having the umpire there.
And again they're still making those close calls. So they're
making a call on a play at the plate, they're
calling the catcher's interference like the umpire is still doing
the work, and this is only for challenges, so the
umpire is still important here. It's we're not going robo
ump and it's not like a light is going to
shine and say ball or strike. There's still someone doing it.
(24:28):
So right now I'm like, oh, I don't love this,
and it's up for discussion whether or not it will
be implemented in twenty twenty six. It feels like it's
happening because of this slow rollout. So as the baseball paarison,
I am I am skeptical, but I have seen it
work and I think it's it's coming and we probably
have to get used to it.
Speaker 3 (24:46):
Do you agree that you would rather have the box eliminated,
that strike zone box eliminated from the broadcast so that
it decreases the anger towards umpires for miss calls.
Speaker 1 (24:55):
So if they do go with this ABIs system, it
has been said that reported that they going to try
to eliminate it from all broadcasts. So as a viewer
right now, I do kind of like seeing the box
there because I'm sitting on my couch.
Speaker 4 (25:07):
I'm not at the game.
Speaker 1 (25:08):
It's the view is kind of tough, and I do
like it, And I'm with you, Taylor. If they miss
a call for my team, I'm like, what are they doing?
They're horrible and molbi umpires are actually quite good despite
some of the miscalls, and if it goes my way,
I'm like, hey, we got away with one there. But
I think that if they do implement this for next year,
they will take that away so that it isn't that
questioning And we don't have too many factors there of
(25:28):
the ABS, so it seems like they will do away
with it once this ABS gets implemented.
Speaker 3 (25:34):
But yeah, so just for the record, umpires are pretty accurate, right,
like X percentage of the.
Speaker 1 (25:39):
Time, right, It's I don't have the exact numbers on hand,
but it's like mid ninety percent accuracy, and it's improved
over the years. They go through extensive training, they're watching
the same tape that we're watching. Umpires are actually quite good.
There's a I'm not sure if it's still active, but
there used to be a Twitter account umpire scorecard and
they would score games and it was really cool to
see the guys who were like really close to one
(26:01):
hundred percent, and you're like, I want him umpiring my
game because they are quite good overall. There are of course,
high stakes calls that go the wrong way, and if
if your team is adversely impacted, you're going to be upset.
Speaker 4 (26:13):
But generally they're pretty accurate.
Speaker 3 (26:15):
And I was always just relating this to other things
we've talked about in the Personal training SASH, the robo
version in tennis, where they took away the sideline people,
which again I shouldn't know the names of those people,
and they had it just completely automated. That sucked, and
it's always terrible to have people removed from the game.
So I'm not even a baseball peeris and I say
keep the mpires whole.
Speaker 4 (26:37):
We're with you Taylor, thank you for the question.
Speaker 3 (26:39):
Thank you so much, and with that the Marx the
end of Toenday's episode. Thank you Lauren so much for
being here, and thank you listener for tuning in. We
will be back in your feed with the new podcast
on Thursday. In the meantime, if you enjoyed today's episode,
we would absolutely love you to rate, review, and subscribe
and want to be on the personal Training SASH. Go
to the show notes to figure out.
Speaker 2 (26:57):
How you can do that.
Speaker 4 (26:58):
Yes, we would love to hear from you.
Speaker 5 (27:00):
You.
Speaker 1 (27:00):
This episode was edited by Savannah Held and produced by
Alexandra Puccio and myself Again, I'm Lauren Tuscola and
Speaker 3 (27:06):
I'm Seph Ratts, and we will be back in your
feeds on Thursday.
Hello, Hello jisters, Welcome or welcome back to another episode
of The Gist of It. Today is Tuesday, August fifth.
We're your co hosts. I'm Lauren Tuscala filling in for
Ellen today.
Speaker 2 (00:16):
So happy to have you here, Lauren.
Speaker 3 (00:18):
I do feel like today's well timed, and that's a
little bit of foreshadowing for the folks who do know Lauren.
And of course I am Steph Rotz. I almost said
I am Ellen his loob once again, but I am
Steph Rotz, Steph Roz.
Speaker 1 (00:29):
You are Steph Rotz. I am so excited to be
with you. We love foreshadowing. That's a nice little tease
of some of what's to come. But the bulk of
today's episode will be a WNBA headline roundup. Steph and
I actually both joined. We didn't plan this. I'm wearing
a new WNBA T shirt, new to me. It's an
old one, but it's new to me. I got a
nice black one with the orange logo, and Steph is
rocking her WNBA hat, so we are well prepared for
(00:50):
this moment without planning.
Speaker 4 (00:52):
We'll be taking a peek at some.
Speaker 1 (00:53):
Of the biggest stories as the second half rolls on
we'll be talking about the reason and pretty alarming injury
trend in the league, spend some high profile stars that
are facing injuries. And of course we also have to
talk about the Connecticut Sun possibly being up for sale
and relocating to Boston. There's been rumors, there's been reports,
a little bit of he said, she said, going back
and forth. So we're gonna pack all of it today,
(01:15):
and I'm really excited to talk about that storyline in
particular because it will affect me personally.
Speaker 3 (01:18):
And then also in our personal training set, we will
be talking baseball, which also affects you personally.
Speaker 4 (01:23):
Yes.
Speaker 1 (01:24):
Fun, I'm so excited to be here. I always love
seeing you and I love talking about these stories with you.
Speaker 2 (01:28):
This is so well timed.
Speaker 3 (01:29):
Yeah, you're the one Boston person that I know, and
therefore the one Boston person that gets a pass.
Speaker 2 (01:36):
Wow, it's kidd is kidding.
Speaker 3 (01:39):
I love all of you people in Boston. I love Boston.
It's a very beautiful city. I've been there once as
a child, and I need to go back at some point.
Speaker 4 (01:46):
Yeah, come back and maybe take in a WNBA game.
Speaker 3 (01:49):
Perfect maybe maybe maybe. But before we get into that
one big story that we'll focus on those multiple headlines
in the WNBA as we go into the second half
of the season. Do you want to quickly call in audible.
Speaker 2 (02:01):
Because it is. It needs to be said.
Speaker 3 (02:03):
We need to talk about Tritany Rodman's return to the pitch.
And then also in the same breath of that is
the major goal that she scored. So on Sunday watching
it in spirit and of course US women's national team
star Trinity Rodman made her long awaited return from injury,
coming in as a second half sub against the Portland Thorns.
(02:24):
The game was tied one one when she came on
the field, and then she scored an absolute banger. This
stoppage time goal would stand as the game winner, and
that's what she did. And she was extremely emotional after
the game, as were.
Speaker 2 (02:37):
All of us. I feel she.
Speaker 3 (02:39):
Has been dealing with lingering back issues at date back
to twenty twenty two and most recently, Rodman was sidelined
for the last four months.
Speaker 2 (02:48):
Can you believe it?
Speaker 3 (02:48):
And this injury is one of the hardest things, she
said she's had to go through, and it is so
awesome to see her return and to see her return
so triumphant.
Speaker 4 (02:58):
It's so awesome.
Speaker 1 (02:58):
Well, we put the link video of the goal on
our Instagram page, So I highly recommend going to look
that up because just the emotions at that moment. The
announcer has such a good call for the goal too,
like you just can't help but be overwhelmed by emotions
during that call. So everyone go check that out. But
like you said, she's been through so much, and I
think anyone who's dealt with injury can kind of relate
to what she's feeling and that emotion of coming back
(03:20):
to be able to do what you love. And she's
got a lot of hate online for like attending her
boyfriend's tennis matches, which she's doing all to recover. There
was a lot of hate because they're like she should
be training. It's like she's training behind the scenes. You
don't see everything she's doing. And like just because she's
supporting her boyfriend, she's putting in the work like she
doesn't it's not like she doesn't want to be back
out there. So she went through Yeah, it's insane.
Speaker 2 (03:41):
Yeah, Lauren's confirming.
Speaker 1 (03:43):
Confirming that it's crazy. So just everything she's been through
on and off the pitche and the work she put in,
it was so awesome to see her score that goal
and she's back.
Speaker 3 (03:52):
And even if you're go okay, knowing how hard it
is for any normal human being to deal with an injury,
for an athlete to be dealing with an injury from
a mental health perspective, to be able to show up
for other people in your life would be so important
I think for your recovery too.
Speaker 2 (04:04):
So people are ridiculous.
Speaker 3 (04:05):
People will say anything online.
Speaker 1 (04:08):
It's so true. I'm happy that, Yeah, this was her
coming back. We can focus on this moment, put them
to the side, and everyone go check out that video
because you will be overwhelmed with joy for the rest
of the day.
Speaker 3 (04:16):
True, this segment was about her, not that. Thank you,
Thank you as always, thank you, Lauren.
Speaker 4 (04:30):
Hey, justters.
Speaker 1 (04:31):
This is Lauren here, popping in before we get into
today's one big story on the WNBA. After Steph and
I recorded, we got the unfortunate news that Nefisa Collier
will miss at least two weeks with a sprained ankle.
As you'll hear us discuss in the segment, we had
previously said that Collier was a game time decision for
tonight's game. So this is the update that of course
nobody wanted. It's a really tough blow for the Links
(04:52):
and we're wishing Afeasa Collier a speedy recovery. Hopefully she'll
be back well in time for that Links playoff push,
but our conversation on injuries across the league is still
very much top of mind. Of course, we just wanted
to quickly share this update as you listen into today's segment.
As always, you can check out our newsletter and follow
us on social for all of the real time updates,
and without further ado, we will send it to today's
(05:14):
One Big Story. All right, As we promised, we are
rounding up the top WNBA headlines. For today's One Big Story.
We'll talk about the growing injury issue. We'll talk about
the Connecticut Sun and their potential move to Boston in
the future. But before we talk about those two things,
we do have to talk about the Minnesota Links in general.
They are leading the league right now, top team in
(05:34):
the league, best record, and they just made an absolutely
major trade. They acquired Djna Carrington from the Dallas Wings
and in exchange for some later picks a couple players.
So Dallas Wings had Page Beckers, they seemed like maybe
she'd turned that franchise around immediately, but they're struggling a bit.
So now dj Na Carrington gets traded again to a
contender and she's in the mix for a ring so
(05:56):
huge trade. We had to kind of get that up
off the top because we have a lot of storylines
to get to, but we didn't not want to mention
the DC make karringteam trade.
Speaker 3 (06:04):
You know that sound that happens at a WNBA draft,
and I think it's all drafts when the decision comes in,
it's like a little chime tone, little.
Speaker 2 (06:10):
Chime, perfect perfect word.
Speaker 3 (06:12):
And whenever I see a trade get announced on Instagram,
I hear that chime in my head when I'm reading.
Speaker 4 (06:16):
Oh that's that's like main character. You're living a movie
and you're hearing that soundtrack. I love that so much.
Speaker 1 (06:21):
I'm going to hear that now every time I get
to push notification about a trade.
Speaker 3 (06:24):
I would love for everyone, Yeah, you see you to
come across your screen on your phone, just just to
make your life a little bit more animated.
Speaker 2 (06:31):
Just picture that or listen to that in your brain.
Speaker 3 (06:33):
I thought that was that that happened to me this
past weekend when I saw this come across the gest beet.
Speaker 4 (06:37):
Wow, that's beautiful.
Speaker 3 (06:40):
Okay, we have to talk about something that's not so beautiful,
and that is that Minnesota Link superstar. So we're talking
about injuries here and their star and a FISA Collier
is joining that growing injury list.
Speaker 2 (06:55):
So Collier rolled her ankirl in a major way.
Speaker 3 (06:59):
It was very setting in the Lynks's major win over
the Las Vegas Aces on Saturday. And Kalier is a
huge contender this year and is largely considered for MVP
front runner this particular season, and she is so beloved
your talk. We were talking about the Trinity Rodman clip earlier,
but what I saw before I saw that over the
(07:21):
weekend was the clip of her getting injured, Collie or
getting injured, And not only did her teammates show up
for her around that moment, but also the Las Vegas
Aces came and surrounded her and held up towels to
block her from the camera view, and everyone was just
physically there for Collier because she is so beloved in
the league and she's such a leader for those players
(07:42):
that obviously it sucks when anyone gets injured, and you're
never wishing that upon anyone, but it was just such
a moment to kind of articulate how beloved she is
across the league.
Speaker 1 (07:53):
There's such love in the league for her, like you're saying,
and she's a leader in the WMBPA with all the
CBA negotions that are going on, she's a leader of
unrivaled the league that we've talked about a lot, and
the way that's changing women's basketball, and of course on
the court, she's an MVP front runner. So yeah, that
was a really lovely moment. Obviously, it doesn't want to
happen in that type of situation, but for players in
the entire league to rally around her is amazing. Luckily,
(08:16):
she is listed as a game time decision ahead of
tonight's game against the Seattle Storm, so we don't know
the severity of the injury just yet. Maybe she'll get
back out there, but it is prompting this larger discussion
of the increased injuries in the league. Were at the
halfway point, so a couple weeks ago, there were one
hundred and sixty four documented injuries across the league, and
that's to compare last year there were only two hundred
(08:38):
and three total injuries. So we still have over ten
games to go, and we're already approaching that total league number,
so it's really rising and skyrocketing. And the thing that's
calling a lot of attention to it too, is because
it's a lot of superstars. It's Anfisa Collier, it's Branda Stewart,
it's Caitlin Clark, which we'll get to next, So it's
all these superstars and that's really sparking this conversation around
it too.
Speaker 3 (08:57):
And there were one hundred and seventy five and twenty
twenties three total for that whole season too, so for
it to go from that to two hundred and three
and now we're already at one sixty four does seem
like a lot. And it seems odd to me because
the more time that we're going into the WNBA, you
would think there would be less injuries because there would
be less playing overseas in the offseason than there was previously.
(09:19):
And like, obviously people played it unrivaled, but I think
it was a shorter season than it would have been
if you were going abroad to play another whole season.
So it is a bit odd to me. So let's
try and speculate why this could potentially be happening. Of course,
now there are more regular season games than there had
been in the past. This year, each team will play
(09:39):
at least forty four games per season, and that's up
from forty so an increase in four games. So not
a wild increase, but that's one reason you could speculate
why injuries are going up. Maybe the game itself is
getting faster, more intense, the pace is increasing.
Speaker 2 (09:56):
I don't know.
Speaker 3 (09:56):
I would love to hear your theories, so right into
us DMS at the just pod or sorry, email us
pod at the gist anyho you know how to get
in contact with us.
Speaker 2 (10:06):
You would love to hear your theories.
Speaker 1 (10:07):
Yeah, I want to hear what people think. And part
of it too, it could be scheduling. I know there's
been a lot of back to backs and then there's
long breaks off, so it's definitely an issue. It'll probably
come up in the CBA negotiations as we talk about
how many games in the season when they're scheduled rest days,
all that stuff. And speaking of injuries, we do have
to get to our next big headline, which is the
Indiana Fever rolling on without Caitlyn Clark. So the Fever
(10:30):
have won five straight games, and that is without superstar
Kaitlin Clark, who has been sidelined since before the All
Star Game with a groin injury. Head coach Stephanie White
commented on Clark's absence and the team success, and she said, quote,
while we don't like it, sometimes it can be a
blessing in disguise because everybody else finds themselves end quote.
So what she's referring to there is players around Clark
(10:50):
who maybe don't get that superstar shine in other moments,
they really have to step up because there's a scoring
drought that they have to factor in. They have to
really step up to make that offense run. And we're
seeing them ball out with Caitlyn Clark on the sideline.
So they're on that five game win streak, and people thought,
what are they going to do without her, and it
looks like they're carrying on just fine.
Speaker 3 (11:09):
That is something that I've personally experienced as someone who
plays that sports is sometimes like you're always so upset
obviously if your star player or one of your stars
doesn't make it or show up or is injured. But
then everyone else has to play, you know what I mean,
They have to I feel like there's more passes. Sometimes
(11:29):
there's more connections. This isn't in particular with the Caitlin
Clark issue at all, but I feel like we can
kind of all resonate with the well at least there's
more development happening across the floor for all players. So
it's not it's not a good thing that Kaitlyn Clark
is injured, but maybe it'll help them in the long
run for have a deeper run in the playoffs. Maybe.
But Caitlyn Clark is reported to be back sometime around
the third week in August, which is coming up soon,
(11:52):
so hopefully we will see her in that week come back.
Speaker 1 (11:56):
Yeah, and that'll be before the playoffs. Two were but
just over a month out from w playoffs starting up.
And the other thing about Caitlin Clark too, it has
been a down year for her. People talk about the
sophomore slump all the time, and maybe part of it
is those injuries, and she's battling through these injuries, but
her shooting numbers are down. So to see that Fever
offense really click without her, like you said, they're building
up that depth for potentially a deep playoff run.
Speaker 4 (12:17):
And yeah, they've They've gotten through it.
Speaker 3 (12:19):
Just fine, and we need to talk. We're talking about
the main thing now for you, Lauren, I feel as
a Bostonian, we definitely need to talk about the other
headline that was circulating for the WNBA this past weekend,
which is on Saturday night, a report broke and this
was through the Boston Globe, So we're talking official sources
(12:39):
here that Boston Celtics minority owner Steve Pagliuca purchased the
Connecticut Sun for what would be a record three hundred
and twenty five million dollars with intentions to move the
team from Connecticut to Boston in twenty twenty seven. So
that came out on Saturday, but by Sunday, both the
Connecticut Sun and the wn they refuted this report.
Speaker 1 (13:01):
It's so fun when your friends like totally understand you
and the number of I was on vacation over the weekend,
but I got so many texts sending me this article
and it was just so nice. I was like, Wow,
my brand is so strong, Like I have great friends,
so that this is a weird brag for me to
be talking about here, but it was just nice to
get those guys. Yeah, it was really cool, but yes,
(13:22):
so I was like overjoyed, so hyped about this news
coming to Boston. But like you said, the connectuts on
and the WMBA refuted the report. So Sun Team president
Jennifer Zodi said the sale has not been finalized and
reiterated that the Sun will play in Connecticut through the
twenty twenty sixth season, So she's not saying like the
sale didn't have like it's not happening, but she's saying
they're staying there through twenty twenty six. The w also
(13:44):
released a statement to The Globe that that was the
source that initially reported the news, and they're talking about
Boston not submitting a bid for an expansion team in
the most recent expansion process. So we've talked a lot
about this on the pod and the record setting fees
for expansion in the entire process. We know there's more
teams coming out in the coming years and it's going
to be a long process. So the WAMBA is basically
(14:05):
like Boston didn't go through these channels and that's what's
happening here.
Speaker 3 (14:09):
It's so weird to me that it might not be approved,
because that's what part of the statement was saying that
it might not go through the Board of Governors to
essentially say that Boston can't cut the line in the
expansion process. But it's not an expansion. It's a relocation.
That's what I personally am having a hard time wrapping
my head around is the fact that this is so
clearly a relocation and not an expansion, but somehow it's
(14:31):
being talked about in the sense that it is an expansion.
Speaker 4 (14:35):
I don't.
Speaker 1 (14:35):
Yeah, it might be a long drawn out battle for
that reason of they don't they want that expansion fee.
Like these expansion fees are so high that the w
wants to cash in on that. And as you're saying,
this guy, he's going to own the team, so he
gets to do whatever he wants with that team, again
pending board approval. But it is a relocation, and that's
not new. Relocation happens quite often in sports. Happened in
(14:56):
the w it happened with the Sun. They weren't originally
in Connecticut, so it happens all the time.
Speaker 3 (15:02):
Trying because he would be paying the owners of this team, not.
Speaker 1 (15:06):
The WNBA exactly, he's paying he's buying the team from
the Mohegan tribe, not there's the league will be involved,
of course, but it's not. I don't think there's any
money being exchanged with the league.
Speaker 3 (15:16):
Okay, yeah, I was on I'm on long weekend mode personally, Yes,
my brain did not connect those dots, so thank you,
Lauren Tuskla.
Speaker 1 (15:25):
So yeah, that's kind of unpacking. And I know that
back and forth happened over the weekend. We did cover
in our newsletter and we'll be covering this closely, especially
in the Boston section. But we'll see what happens. And
again it's a couple of years down the line. For
some further context too, There's been a lot of rumors about.
Speaker 4 (15:39):
This relocation to Boston.
Speaker 1 (15:41):
They've played two games at Tide Garden, which is where
the Celtics play. They were both completely sold out, huge
fan base, people showing out, people hyped about potentially having
this team. I remember the both before each game they
had hype videos, of course, and it was Sun clips
spliced with Celtics clips, so it would be like Jason
Tatum cut away to DJ Carrington when she was on
(16:01):
the Sun at this time, and just it seemed like
it was imminent.
Speaker 4 (16:05):
There were all these rumors.
Speaker 1 (16:05):
They had shirts that said the Sun will rise in Boston.
There was also news about potentially inadequate facilities in Mohegan
So this was last year, but players had to practice
in gyms because Mohegan is kind of in a remote area.
They play at Mohegan Sun Arena, which is in the casino,
but the practice facilities around that aren't really up to
(16:27):
par with what else is happening in the league. So
there's been these rumblings for a while, and then this
news broke which caused that massive explosion.
Speaker 3 (16:34):
And in that initial report where it was being said
that the team was bought, the owner said he'd kick
in one hundred million dollars for a practice facility in
the city in Boston. But it's not clear, of course
where they would play their day to day games, but
to promise that practice facility would mean a lot to
the league and to these players who have themselves said
(16:54):
that they would want to play in a top notch
facility rather than playing Connecticut Sun and players to have
said that.
Speaker 1 (17:01):
Right, and that's that's huge too of where they're going
to play. So there's been some reports that TD Garden
again home of the Celtics and the Boston Bruins. The
NHL team would be their home. They also have there's
an arena in Providence, which is Providence, Rhode Island. It's
about an hour commute. It's also accessible by public trands
that you can take the commuter rail to get there,
so they might play some games there because there would
(17:22):
be some overlap if the Bruins and Celtics crossing my
fingers were both in the playoffs, it would interrupt the
schedule a little bit for WNBA, but they have so
basically I'm just yeah, putting out my boss manifesting.
Speaker 2 (17:34):
It's okay, I understand, Yeah.
Speaker 1 (17:35):
Yeah, but they have that backup plan of if there's
that conflict, So hopefully TD Garden for much of the
summer and then if not, they'll play the games in Providence.
Speaker 3 (17:44):
Yeah. I really want to know what happens with all
of this, So, if not in the podcast, because we
have talked about this potentially location before. If not in
the podcast, certainly in the newsletter and on socials, we
will keep you posted with what the heck is happening.
With all of these headlines, it's time for our personal
(18:07):
training sesh. This is where we would absolutely love to
answer any of your questions, your comments. Love to respond
to anything you would like to tell us, and we
mean literally anything in the sports world.
Speaker 1 (18:18):
If you'd like to be featured on a future episode,
please call and leave us a voicemail at one four
three seven five six four five five seven nine, or
you can email us at pod at the gissports dot com,
or send stuff a little DM on Instagram, send Ellen
a DM on Instagram. DM the Gist Instagram. We're available.
It'll all be linked to the show notes too. If
you're doing something else while you're listening to this podcast
(18:39):
and can write that down. But let's kick it over
to today's question.
Speaker 3 (18:43):
Hi.
Speaker 5 (18:44):
My name is Taylor from Long Island, New York. I'm
a huge fan of the Gist. I listen to your
podcast weekly at the gym, which makes my list my
list feel stronger every time, so thank you for that.
I'm a huge sports girl and I love summer baseball.
Speaker 1 (18:55):
Let's go mess.
Speaker 5 (18:56):
One thing that bothers me and my family and has
become more and more pronounced over the last for years
is that the home plate umpires consistently called balls and
strikes that are directly contradicted by the strike zone box
on the broadcast right now, Major League Baseball is considering
moving to a more automated ball strike challenge system, and
I'm wondering if you have thoughts on that generally, or
the possibility of the strike zone box taking over for
(19:17):
the umpires in determining balls and strikes entirely. Personally, I'd
rather have the box eliminated from the broadcast because it
really only starts to make fans mad at the umpires
for the miscalls. And I like the traditional aspect of
the umpire's role in the game, but I don't see
it going that way. I'm excited to hear your thoughts.
Thank you so much.
Speaker 3 (19:36):
Thank you so much, Taylor for your voicemail, for your
support of the gist, and for this really amazing question.
And I think before we let Lauren specifically who is
our baseball person, respond to your question, I think let's
break it down a bit for everyone who is quote
unquote on the call, so let's give some context here.
(19:56):
So my first question for you, Lauren is can you
outline what the strike zone box is that she was
referring to.
Speaker 1 (20:03):
Definitely, Yeah, thank you so much for your question, Taylor.
Your Mets are having a great year, so happy for you,
that's really fun for you over the summer. But yeah,
so Taylor's referring to the strike zone on the broadcast.
So this is a graphic that's overlaid. If you're watching
a baseball game on TV, you'll see a little box
right over the plate, and that's where the suggested strike
zone is. So strike zone it varies. People will debate,
(20:26):
but typically it's the letters on your jersey, So if
you've got Boston across your chest, it's about the letters
on the jersey. To the top of the kneecaps is
the strike zone that height, and then across the plate
is that the strike zone as the Empire's calling it.
So the strike zone box she's referring to is just
a graphic that different broadcasts use. Pretty sure, almost every
Major League badcast has this on there, so the viewer
(20:46):
at home can see where the pitch is. But she's
referring to the umpire calling the actual pitch in the
game that's not aligned with that zone. So we're referring
first to just a graphic that doesn't mean anything. It's
just a visual aid for the viewer.
Speaker 3 (20:59):
It's a tea you're a TD two D representation of
what is a three D concept really, right? Like that
is part of what's happening here with quote unquote miss calls.
Is what we see on TV cannot be the reality
when it's a moving three D situation.
Speaker 1 (21:15):
Right, Yeah, And it's not intended to be perfect either.
It's really just assisting the viewer so you can see
what's happening because we're you're looking behind the pitcher, so
you can't fully see what's there. So it's really not
intended to be It should be accurate, but it's not
impact in the game at all. It's kind of like
if you're watching an NFL broadcast and you see that
yellow line projected down, it's kind of like that. It's
(21:36):
just helping enhancing your viewing experience.
Speaker 3 (21:38):
Right, Roger and the contails that very briefly appeared on
the NHL. Anyhow, Okay, one other thing I want you
to explain before we go into your opinion. Taylor also
mentioned a automated ball strike challenge system, So that would
be different from what we currently have with umpires.
Speaker 1 (21:56):
Right, that's right. So Taylor set it up really well.
So automat ball strike system it's referred to as ABS
more commonly, so I'll just refer to it as that
from here on out. So it's a system that's being
tested in Triple A, which is one step below the
major leagues. It was also used at the MLB All
Star Game this year, so they're really rolling this out.
They want to make it happen. And it's essentially a
system where a pitcher, or a catcher, or a batter,
(22:19):
it's only those three can challenge a baller strike. So
right now in Major League Baseball, you cannot challenge balls
er strikes. A manager can go out and yell at
the umpire all he wants. They're not going to overturn anything.
You're not allowed to do that. But this ABS system
would make it so that a pitcher, catcher, or batter
could tap their helmet or tap their hat and it
would challenge the call on the field. So I went
(22:40):
to a couple Triple A games and you see it
in action. The batter just taps his helmet and it's
pretty quick too. It happens really quickly. That was one
concern is how long is this going to take? And
it happens almost instantaneously, and they can challenge if they
thought it was off the plate, they can challenge that
call and we'll get the review, the call will happen,
and it'll happen right away, whereas right now it's just
the umpire's discretion making that call ball or strike.
Speaker 3 (23:02):
Hmm. When you said tap, you know that thing where
you have to test how coordinated here you are and
you tap your and rub your belly. Yes, imagine that's what.
Speaker 2 (23:11):
I had to do.
Speaker 1 (23:11):
Yeah, you have to get both before you can make
a challenge.
Speaker 3 (23:16):
Okay, now to the question that is on plate here,
if you will, so, what are your thoughts on the
possibility of the strike zone box taking over for the
Empires and determining balls and strikes entirely?
Speaker 1 (23:29):
So that was the question as to you, Lauren Taylor.
I am so aligned with you. I hope it doesn't happen.
And I say that now I consider myself a baseball purist.
When they introduced the pitchclock a couple of years ago,
I was like, this is going to ruin the game.
I love my long playoff games where it's that building,
that atmosphere. And now we're a few years into the
(23:50):
pitchclock and I actually, unfortunately love it and I think
it's good. It's got more fans into the game. So
as a baseball purist, I'm like, I don't love this idea,
but I do think this slow rollout that they're doing
and seeing it work at a Triple A game and
it didn't take too long for them to make the call,
I do like it.
Speaker 4 (24:07):
I don't want them to.
Speaker 1 (24:08):
Go full robo ump. I like having the umpire there.
And again they're still making those close calls. So they're
making a call on a play at the plate, they're
calling the catcher's interference like the umpire is still doing
the work, and this is only for challenges, so the
umpire is still important here. It's we're not going robo
ump and it's not like a light is going to
shine and say ball or strike. There's still someone doing it.
(24:28):
So right now I'm like, oh, I don't love this,
and it's up for discussion whether or not it will
be implemented in twenty twenty six. It feels like it's
happening because of this slow rollout. So as the baseball paarison,
I am I am skeptical, but I have seen it
work and I think it's it's coming and we probably
have to get used to it.
Speaker 3 (24:46):
Do you agree that you would rather have the box eliminated,
that strike zone box eliminated from the broadcast so that
it decreases the anger towards umpires for miss calls.
Speaker 1 (24:55):
So if they do go with this ABIs system, it
has been said that reported that they going to try
to eliminate it from all broadcasts. So as a viewer
right now, I do kind of like seeing the box
there because I'm sitting on my couch.
Speaker 4 (25:07):
I'm not at the game.
Speaker 1 (25:08):
It's the view is kind of tough, and I do
like it, And I'm with you, Taylor. If they miss
a call for my team, I'm like, what are they doing?
They're horrible and molbi umpires are actually quite good despite
some of the miscalls, and if it goes my way,
I'm like, hey, we got away with one there. But
I think that if they do implement this for next year,
they will take that away so that it isn't that
questioning And we don't have too many factors there of
(25:28):
the ABS, so it seems like they will do away
with it once this ABS gets implemented.
Speaker 3 (25:34):
But yeah, so just for the record, umpires are pretty accurate, right,
like X percentage of the.
Speaker 1 (25:39):
Time, right, It's I don't have the exact numbers on hand,
but it's like mid ninety percent accuracy, and it's improved
over the years. They go through extensive training, they're watching
the same tape that we're watching. Umpires are actually quite good.
There's a I'm not sure if it's still active, but
there used to be a Twitter account umpire scorecard and
they would score games and it was really cool to
see the guys who were like really close to one
(26:01):
hundred percent, and you're like, I want him umpiring my
game because they are quite good overall. There are of course,
high stakes calls that go the wrong way, and if
if your team is adversely impacted, you're going to be upset.
Speaker 4 (26:13):
But generally they're pretty accurate.
Speaker 3 (26:15):
And I was always just relating this to other things
we've talked about in the Personal training SASH, the robo
version in tennis, where they took away the sideline people,
which again I shouldn't know the names of those people,
and they had it just completely automated. That sucked, and
it's always terrible to have people removed from the game.
So I'm not even a baseball peeris and I say
keep the mpires whole.
Speaker 4 (26:37):
We're with you Taylor, thank you for the question.
Speaker 3 (26:39):
Thank you so much, and with that the Marx the
end of Toenday's episode. Thank you Lauren so much for
being here, and thank you listener for tuning in. We
will be back in your feed with the new podcast
on Thursday. In the meantime, if you enjoyed today's episode,
we would absolutely love you to rate, review, and subscribe
and want to be on the personal Training SASH. Go
to the show notes to figure out.
Speaker 2 (26:57):
How you can do that.
Speaker 4 (26:58):
Yes, we would love to hear from you.
Speaker 5 (27:00):
You.
Speaker 1 (27:00):
This episode was edited by Savannah Held and produced by
Alexandra Puccio and myself Again, I'm Lauren Tuscola and
Speaker 3 (27:06):
I'm Seph Ratts, and we will be back in your
feeds on Thursday.
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
The Joe Rogan Experience
The official podcast of comedian Joe Rogan.
24/7 News: The Latest
The latest news in 4 minutes updated every hour, every day.