LIVE From Astros Spring Training: Altuve Working With Outfielders, Rockets Are Worth How Much!?

Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:01):
Yeah, lunch timers, this is the Matt Thomas Show, a
ten oh.

Speaker 2 (00:07):
One in h Town.

Speaker 3 (00:09):
What's happening lunch timers, and good morning everyone to a
Tuesday edition of The Matt Thomas Show with Ross from
West Palm Beach, Florida. This is Sports Talk seven ninety.

Speaker 4 (00:20):
The one, and Alvarez belts it day to I failed. Yes,
that death by unbelievable man, you're not on the rest.
Alot of three run Homer and the Astros stun the
murders and Gary one in the.

Speaker 5 (00:37):
Division series and field chase him slightlyttle pull and the
first pitch by Ober and I'll two be.

Speaker 2 (00:42):
Rips it Dave till I've failed.

Speaker 3 (00:44):
That ball is hocking. If it stays fair, it's gone
and it.

Speaker 2 (00:48):
Is a Hourrah, I'm laid off Homer.

Speaker 6 (00:51):
For Jose al two man what nothing Astros one pitch
and at the bottom of the first.

Speaker 3 (00:58):
Has twenty four accent. His postseason career now for al
Tuo by second most all time behind Manny Ramirez is
twenty nine. What a way to start. Aye is still
in the box. He's ready, ready to hit a mistake,
perhaps Maldonado's on second, Altu Bay on First, here's the
three one swinging a.

Speaker 2 (01:19):
Drive to left field. It's a rainbow.

Speaker 3 (01:21):
Deep ditty, Diddy Diddy ever, Jeremy Paedo with a free run.

Speaker 5 (01:28):
Jacket anywhere tide a high moonshot down the line.

Speaker 3 (01:35):
Oh, the sounds of summer in the spring or winter technically, yeah,
it's really weird. They call it spring training. It's still
the wintertime. I was in DC yesterday. It's thirty degrees.
It's the wintertime. Another spring about now. It feels nice
out here. I will say this. It's beautiful West Palm.

(01:56):
It's seventy seven degrees right now. It is windy. There
is rain coming. There are clouds up over us, and
we're probably gonna get knocked off the air and a
slight chance of extricution. But other than that, we're gonna
be ready to bring you three days of coverage. I
think we're gonna be great. We're gonna be fine. You're
closer to the elements than I am, so I'm gonna
be okay. Now, I wore shorts today, ladies and gentlemen,
because I have. I want you to go to those

(02:18):
of you that are at home right now. Uh huh,
get your refrigerator. Open your refrigerator door. Look for the milk.
Poor glass out. That's how the color of my legs are.
That's naturally not that far off, which is a little disturbing.
So I wore shorts today to get these bad boys
a little tan to them. Yes, and it's not going
to happen. You'll be fine. The subtill come out tomorrow,
I think. But the shorts are for today. I don't

(02:40):
know what to tell you, Matt. All right, things don't
always go according to plan. Clearly. Nice sunglasses by the way,
thank you. It's like you're what you got them from
the Felm and Louise collection. Uh okay, remember wondering that.
That means they wore they were sunglasses and a hair
bum or something. Then we wore. Then you were that
when we were on our trip to like Charles did, Yes,
I did. It was a class sunglasses. Yes, when we

(03:01):
made our videos. Yeah, those were really good. Next to
our good folks whatever whoever they were, they were there,
they're gone.

Speaker 7 (03:06):
All right.

Speaker 3 (03:07):
We are with you today until two o'clock Central time.
If we give you the wrong time, we're in the
Eastern time zones. We apologize for that. But we will
try to do our best to say in central time zone.
You can already hear the wind on our head on
our microphones. So again, if we perish. It has been
an absolute joy working with you and absolutely enjoy to

(03:29):
have all the city he used to listen to us
for the last fifteen years. As usual, folks, Matt as
being very dramatic. It's supposed to be We're supposed to
rain for a little bit at noon. We'll be fine, okay,
but the lightning you're not concerned with? No, all right,
that's fine, not even you're in concerned. I ain't concerned.
I'm not. It's not like I'm going out there with
a metal pol We're at golfing. Yeah, but we got
metal equipment all around it. All right, let's get to
the radio show. Yes, let's do that. Danna Brown's going

(03:51):
to join us in about ten eleven twenty, so fifteen
minutes from now, yes, take ten to twenty years old.
There's my first Iowa dollar to the tipic. We need
to zap you every time you get the time zone wrong. Yeah,
I will get that. So ten twenty this morning went
in about fifteen minute twelve visit with Dana Brown. I
did the same thing when I told Brian Limata teas
it ahead, I said, eleven twenty oh see, yeah, guiltiest charged.

(04:15):
Also on the radio show today the new Astro First Basement,
Christian Walker is gonna make an appearance. Plus today you'll
hear from a Joe Aspata. We're gonna hear from Joe
each of the next three days as he visits with
the media. Here a varie about a variety of things.
And today is the first day of full squad of workouts. Now,
fifteen twenty years ago, when I first started covering spring training,
that was a big deal because guys really did get

(04:37):
the first walk on. And most the guys have been
here the last handful of days, so it's nothing. It's
officially the first day they have to be here, which
everybody obviously is, but guys come in a lot sooner.
Even the position players will be here some days when
the pitchers and catchers are supposed to report. Yeah, back
in the day, the guys were lazier. They were coming
back from their their jobs at the ducks or the
rail yard or whatever then and now in twenty t

(05:00):
twenty five, they're year round working on their bodies getting
here early and ready to go.

Speaker 7 (05:04):
Okay.

Speaker 3 (05:05):
Uh so, uh yeah, that's what got going on that.
We've got a lot of other things going. I missed
you yesterday. Uh what interesting day in sports, interesting day
in life. Uh. We're just gonna put this out here
right now with obviously what happened yesterday in Toronto. You
and I had significant flight delays yesterday. Yes, we had
zero problems with it. No, take your time. They were
like something, we gotta go reset something on the equipment.

(05:27):
I said, no, that's cool, go ahead, do whatever you
gotta do. I'm gonna sit right here. Just get me
there safe. Yeah, and as far as I was concerned,
I was in DC yesterday and they're adjusting flight patterns
because of what happened at Nashville a few weeks ago.
I got here, happy, safe and sound. Oh good, got
with you. You didn't store too bad last night. We're
a good world. I didn't snore it all. You did

(05:47):
a little diday. Really, that's okay, was it? I'm not
just like one of the team. That's fine. I had
headphones in Oh see, you really I'm usually traveling with Gordy,
so I bring Oh god, Gordy is like a fog
horn ising logs is he okay? I got you as
the as the kids say, all right, we are with
you today until two o'clock. We will take your phone
calls as well. Not a lot of this is kind
of a dead week when it comes to the main

(06:10):
hot piping topics. But I do want to visit a
couple of things that happened over the weekend. I know
you said you barely mentioned the All Star weekend. It's funny.
When I was in d C with my daughter's volleyball team,
I was wearing some rocket stuff and a lot of
people are like, so, what do you think about the
All Star Game? I said, I didn't watch any of
it a because I'm you know, I say no to

(06:31):
the All Star games. But but I was busy with her.
But the resounding notion that I saw on the social
media streets was that the NHL's Four Nations event has
significantly outpaced in terms of interest and intrigue. What the
NBA All Star Game was just on Sunday night. Yeah,
I'm curious to see what the head. No, they weren't
head to head, but with no would be interesting. Yeah,

(06:54):
everybody look everybody loves to complain about the NBA and
the All Star Game was a disaster. They tried a
new format. At least they did something. Players still didn't
seem to care. So it's like, if the players don't care,
why should we. And Draymond Green made no issues about
destroying his league and talking about how bad it was.
And then you know, I don't even know I've talked
about Lebron and not him calling it. He wasn't going

(07:15):
to play like hours before the game started, which I
thought was very disingenuous of him. His ankle has been
an issue for about three years now he said fifteen
years or something whatever, But I mean and the injury
report it always shows up is he's always questionable going
in and then winds up playing. And for that I
give him mass kudos for. But for him to not

(07:37):
either tell the league no or the league said we
know this to tell anybody, it left an opportunity for
somebody to play that All Start game, which is a
big thing for some players not to be able to play.
Off thought, oh, I'm sorry somebody didn't get their participation
trophy All Star selection. When Lebron is a beat you
know that and I know that he's just the greatest
all time player, but he doesn't handle his business properly.
Sometimes I don't know when he was hurt, Maybe he

(07:58):
won't come. He even hurt for us. Hey man, I'm
forty Matts. Sometimes you wake up and that thatt Ekle's
not feeling good. Dude, I'm fifty something and I don't
feel good ever. Yeah, but I said, get here and
do the radio show. Maybe he was trying to stretch
it out and it didn't work out. I'm always questionable
before tip time. He's also got the most All Star
appearances of anyone ever. He knew a week ago he
wasn't gonna play in this and why did he do it?

(08:19):
What's because the league. I think the league was like,
we have to have Lebron out there. So he he said, hey, guys,
I don't want to play, and then the league said, no,
we need you out there. I'm not saying it's for sure,
but certain of the run possibilities, which is bad for
the league. I'm trying to cause I know everybody's crushing Lebron.
He's the worst and all that, but I don't understand
what he has to gain from doing this late. No,

(08:41):
the fact is the reason why there's no there's no
issue with me him missing the game or because again
it's meaningless, but there was somebody that wanted to play
in it that didn't get to play because there wasn't deserving. No,
it's not necessarily true. Yeah, if you're didn't get the
name of the All Star Game, if you're only an
injury replacement, you're not deserving the six years your participation trophy.

(09:02):
I'm sorry, whoever you are All Star X. There's plenty
of guys that deserve the Star Game. There's only a
certain lemit of people on the roster. And if Lebron's
got a spot because the fans voted him in, so
be it. So if you didn't make your Participation Trophy
All Star appearance because Lebron James about out late, I'm sorry,
Nick right, you are such a Lebron lover. Oh you

(09:25):
just raised your brow at me, didn't you. Come on? Now,
you can call me anything. You can call me a scumbag, Oh,
you're a bad brother, sister co host. You can say
I don't deserve to be in this business, and I
don't and I have no business being on the air.
Do not call me so terrible. You know what, one

(09:48):
of those lunches, one of those lunches you owe me.
You don't know I owe anymore. We can knock it
out today if you want to. You call me the
worst human being on earth, just don't call me nick. Right,
all right? We are astro eccentric though. We're here for
the next three days. And when we get to that,
there's a little bit of NFL news, including a franchise
player probably going to stay with his football team, not
because he wants in a long term deal, but a franchiseige.

(10:10):
Will get to that. I don't know if you brought
up SNL's fifty year anniversary. By the way, Channel two,
what are you doing the end you cut off twenty
five minutes of the show or apparently whatever it was.
I was in DC saw all of it because all
the NBC affiliates were told, we're staying, We're going way over.
NBC didn't get past the memo, Longeam didn't forward the

(10:30):
email properly to people. Well, they had to get to
the six murders and then the five whatever else sub
stories around now Channel two and normally shut your bomb
ass up. We'll get more on that tomormorrow. Yeah, we
have got feelings on the radio program today, we do.
I feel like we can make some good spring training ones.
I think we should. But the number one storyline, ladies
and gentlemen, and it's not even close's hose L two

(10:51):
B in left field. No, actually, it's Caleb Ward's recovery process. No,
it's yeah, Sean dubit as well. It's a lot of
Sean doo. Yeah, a lot of Sean Duban reporting about
up here. No, it's Al two bay and left field.
I mean everyone's talking about it, everyone, every player that
gets interviewed, every person in the clubhouse, left field, left
field at two of a I've seen today that he's
working with the outfielders, which makes sense. If he's trying

(11:15):
to get it a go out there, he's gonna be
with the outfielder, right.

Speaker 7 (11:17):
Yeah.

Speaker 3 (11:17):
Well, I mean this is what spring training is about.
It's about trying to get as much time in as
possible because this is the time that you do it.

Speaker 8 (11:25):
You do.

Speaker 3 (11:26):
I mean, you can simulate all you want to when
you're offseason workouts, but you're in a major league baseball
field with major league construction. You've got fellow outfielders out there,
let's give it a go. Yeah, this is what I
feel like you and I would have done if when
Craig Bagel made the move and catch the second base
way back in the day. Yeah, I think he's gonna
be fine with flyballs and these little workouts that they
do and stuff like that. What I'm worried about is,
you know, when there's a screamer coming one hundred and

(11:48):
ten miles an hour out to left field, him playing
those types of ball, it's the live action stuff. So yeah,
him getting some workouts, that's cool. Somebody's out there just
knocking him some fly balls and he's getting some workouts,
and it's it's not like they're going for full bore
out there. So once he's out there, maybe when spring
training games start coming up here in a few days,

(12:09):
that that's what I'll really be able to be able
to get a look at the hose al two van left.
All right, let's talk to Dana Brown. He'll join us
next here on the Matt Thomas Show with Ross. We
are coming to you from West Palm Beach, Florida for
Astro Spring Training twenty twenty five. If you want to
join us. Got feelings certainly coming up lay around the
show as well. Seven one three two one two five
seven ninety seven one three, two, one two five seven
nine eighty is a Matt thomashow with ross with the

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Speaker 5 (13:34):
Go back to Matt Thomas and Ross viareal one on
Sports Talk seven ninety.

Speaker 3 (13:45):
Oh fools, l to Lewis, all right, the voice you
just heard there is a Dana Brown. He's checking his text.
The busy man says at Scott Boris call me. No, no,
don't call don't can't waste your time.

Speaker 2 (13:57):
We're done with that Brown.

Speaker 3 (14:00):
Ask for a general manager where there's all the bad
time show with Ross Daniel. Thanks first of all for
joining us. Secondly, you've used this crutch clutch phrase and
crutch phrase. We all have them internal discussions. Please let
us into one day of those, because I mean, you
had so many internal discussions. Is that like a checklist,
like you walk in with you got your lieutenants?

Speaker 8 (14:19):
Is that what that is of?

Speaker 3 (14:21):
Hey, here's what you all saw. Here's happening at camp
what's an internal discussion. I want to hear about that.

Speaker 9 (14:25):
Yeah, internal discussions are basically, Look, we show up here
every day and you know, we're always thinking of ways
to get the team better, and so we're still having conversations,
you know, about players and what we could do to
make this club even better than it is. Right now,
we feel really good about the club. We feel like,
you know, we could win this division again and get

(14:45):
deep into the postseason. We feel like we got a
good group of position players, a good group of starters
and leavers, and so, you know, we have these discussions
every every day.

Speaker 7 (14:56):
We talk.

Speaker 9 (14:56):
You know, it's amazing that I you know, I'll walk
in saying, hey, what you guys got today? What's going on?
And you talk to any other clubs what's going on?
So that's that's part of what we do, internal discussions.

Speaker 3 (15:09):
I don't remember a whole lot of maneuvering this time
of year. Am I wrong about this? I mean, I
know guys can sign some deals. I think Justin Turner
just signed the day, But in terms of just real
hot action, is there a lot right now?

Speaker 7 (15:22):
I think it is.

Speaker 9 (15:23):
I think what's gonna happen is guys get into camp
and you start seeing your players a little bit. Some
of the guys have been here for a little bit longer,
and you start to get that look at them and
you say, oh, man, maybe we can upgrade here, or
you know, maybe we have enough in this area. And
so you know, those are part of those discussions that
you have and you know, before you know it, you
may make a move. So we're always trying to find

(15:46):
some angle where we can improve this club. But I
think you have to be relentless because if you're not,
that's that day something to slip by you.

Speaker 3 (15:55):
What do you think about I mean, of course bregnant
signing and it going on for a long long time,
and it happening in the last couple years of Jordan Montgomery,
Blake Snell and some guys getting signed early some late.

Speaker 10 (16:06):
Is that it just can you tell me?

Speaker 3 (16:09):
Is that something that's recent? Has it always been like that?
But it feels like things have dragged on a little
bit more and it's just as a whole and a
picture free agency in your opinion, what do you think
about the state of the way things go these days,
especially with the way that Bregman dragging on the way.

Speaker 9 (16:25):
They did Yeah, I just think it's it's it's depends
on the type of year, like how many big boys
do you have on the market?

Speaker 8 (16:32):
You know.

Speaker 9 (16:33):
I think it's one of those things where sometimes you
have so many good players on the market, and you know,
guys are you know, waiting on deals and trying to
do deals and trying to get creative, and you know,
so a lot of things are happening all at one time.
There's a lot of clubs that you have to have
conversations with, and so it seems complicated sometimes. But you know,

(16:54):
I think at the end of the day, guys, you know,
target who they want, they go after them hard, and
if they don't get them, they go to the next guy.

Speaker 3 (17:02):
But how in the world, as a general manager, whether
it's you or anybody else in the big leagues, you
hold a spot out for a guy that may or
may not come that you mean, Dama, let's be brutally
honest here. We love pregnant very much, but your life
had to move on. You had to go fix this
infield right away here, whether he was coming back or not.

Speaker 7 (17:18):
Yeah.

Speaker 9 (17:18):
The one thing I learned when I was in Atlanta
working under alex and Topolis, he used to move really
quickly in the offseason, and he would you know, get
his targets, line him up, and you know, once you
you know, shoot at this one if it didn't work,
and go to the next one. And so I think
what I was trying to do is, you know, hey,
we want Gregman to come back, but you know, we

(17:41):
have to think what if we don't sign him, if
something goes wrong. And so we didn't wait around. You know,
we made the trade right away. You know, we you know,
wanted to put Perettis at third and you know, we
got Walker for first base, and you know, because we
were losing two bats that hit one through five, so
we wanted to add two bats back, and we wanted

(18:02):
to remain competitive.

Speaker 7 (18:03):
And so you can't sit around and wait. You have
to be active, you know.

Speaker 9 (18:07):
And as you know, the owner, Jim Crane says, look,
our windows always open. So we're always looking to win,
We're always looking to make deals, We're always looking to
get better.

Speaker 3 (18:14):
One of the early deals was the Kyle Tucker trade
to Chicago. And look, Cam Smith apparently, I mean everyone's
like this guy's built a granite. Can't wait to see him.
I want to see him in some spring training games.
On the other side of it, what made them want
to get this done because in a year from now
he's not committed to Chicago. I mean, why you have
to battle the I want him now as compared to

(18:36):
I don't want to give a lot of prospects up
so week lose him in an ear. What's it like
on there in and what was it like dealing with
a squad that knew that you were sending him there,
knowing that he's going to be a free agent in
one season.

Speaker 11 (18:46):
Yeah.

Speaker 9 (18:46):
I mean, since some teams, you know, they get to
the point where they're like really trying to get back
to the postseason, and I think they were motivated by
trying to get back to the postseason, and they knew that,
you know, Tucker was, you know, a really good player,
and so that they would use a guy like that
in the middle of their lineup. Good defender, he could
steal bases, so you know, he's one of the better

(19:07):
position players in baseball, and so I think that was
the appeal. You know, you're getting one of the better
positions and one of the better position players in baseball,
and you're trying to get back to the postseason, and
you know that kind of motivated them to do what
they did. And then we felt like, look, if we're
going to trade Tucker, we got to get something really
good bat, you know, and we felt, you know, like

(19:30):
getting those three guys were like really big. You know,
you got two guys that you can put on your
major league team right away. You got another guy and
it's not that far away, and so you know, we
felt like we got impact back.

Speaker 3 (19:42):
Astro general manager Dana Brown is here on Sports Talk
seven ninety and well, at the end of the thing
that we're all been talking about, everybody's talking about, of course,
hose Al Tuova and the left field discussion. How how
did this come about? And how does he fit as
a piece of the puzzle, because of course we know
Chaz Jake maybe do ball on some Zach Dezenzo, maybe
Jacob Melton down the down the line as well. How

(20:05):
does Altuve fit in this left field puzzle?

Speaker 7 (20:08):
Yeah, so it seems to be picking up steam.

Speaker 3 (20:10):
You know, it's all Houston's talk about it due respect,
it's nobody. I mean, there's a lot of things funny
about your squad. Everybody asking us to ask you about
Jose alt.

Speaker 9 (20:19):
Yeah, well, you know, we'll give it to him. So, look,
I think Altuve is having a ball out there in
left field. First of all, he's excited about it. He's
out there like a little kid. It's unbelievable. He's always smiling.
And you know, we wanted to create some versatility and
if you could use him, you know, in left field,
you know, that's going to create some versatility and we

(20:40):
think that could be big. And you know, we needed
a bat in our outfield, so that helps us with
a bat in our outfield. But uh, you know, he's
he's done a great job. He's really taking well to it.
And as long as he's having fun, you know what,
you know, we we don't have to commit to it today,
but as long as he's having fun and getting better,
and we feel like, look, he's got a chance to
be a really good defender, why not. You know, he's

(21:04):
he's doing a good job. I just went out earlier
and watched him take some fly balls and man, he
was getting good jumps and you know, getting the balls
in the gap and coming in. If he wins the
Gold Glove, I mean, our staff, we're gonna look back expert,
you know, I'll take a strong average defender at this point.

(21:26):
If he becomes that that that's that that's outstanding in
our outfloat. So he's for sure taking to it very well.

Speaker 3 (21:34):
And what about Jordan, how does he fit in the
left field pitcher?

Speaker 9 (21:38):
Yeah, I think we'll give him some some time, but no,
ultimately he's our d H. You know, we want him
to worry about hitting and driving it runs and so
we will give him some run in the outfield.

Speaker 7 (21:49):
Joe's made that clear.

Speaker 9 (21:51):
But this all up to Joe and how how many
times he wants to put him out there. But yeh,
he's he's really our d H. And so but he
we'll get some run. And I'm sure Joe's probably talked
to him about it and said, look, we're going to
try to protect you because we want you to play
as many games as possible.

Speaker 7 (22:08):
And the way you could do it at issue just DH.

Speaker 3 (22:11):
So is there a metric for that, because there are
some guys, remember Michael Brantley, he despised being a DH.
He wanted to be in the action. Other guys, I'll
go back to David Ortiz, I mean inventing himself by
getting off of first base. So do you guys look
at numbers of how he batted, how he performed the
day after day before he played in left field.

Speaker 9 (22:30):
No, I just think it's one of those things where
you know he's gonna hit. Whether he's a you know,
a left fielder or a DH you know Alvarez will hit.
So I don't think that really had much to do
with it. I just think if he's in the dugout
thinking about hitting all the time, he can really lock
into what he wants to do, whether he wants to,

(22:51):
you know, figure out what the picture is strong to him, study,
you know, what his patterns are, or whatever the case
may be. Anytime that he could spend on him is
a good thing, and we want to see big results
from him because when he goes, the team goes.

Speaker 3 (23:04):
It feels like the twenty six man roster's just about set.
But if it isn't somewhere, where would that be? Would
it be a decision on a utility infield or an
extra arm in the bullpen? In terms of that, where
do you see as you look for the next month
when you watch these games, where is it?

Speaker 7 (23:21):
Well, I could go.

Speaker 3 (23:21):
Here, I could go here in this particular position.

Speaker 9 (23:23):
Yeah, I think you know obviously the bullpen, you know,
with making a move for Presley, you know, trading Presley
opened up a spot there, right, so we we definitely
have some room to talk about you know, what our
what is our pin gonna look like? And then you know,
outfield wise, you know, how are we going to be platune?
Is McCormick you know, going to really you know, get

(23:46):
back to this twenty twenty three year. So I think
those two you know, spots like you know outfield and
also relief pitching is where the room you know, we
have to make our decisions.

Speaker 3 (24:01):
For Leachuer and I'll get Ross get one more question
one from me. Our audience loves this team and is
with every intricate move, and they'll always bring up the
minor leaguers Melton Matthews and then we'll get to cam Smith.
How much do you think that's gonna be a conversation
piece internally about when they're.

Speaker 7 (24:18):
Going to be ready.

Speaker 3 (24:19):
Look, nobody knows you have to take it. Even if
they're crushing into triple AIRBA, you still to guess how
much will you intently watching those three guys, especially in
the first couple months of the year. If some of
those major leaguers are not performing up to your.

Speaker 7 (24:30):
Expectations, Yeah, I'm locked in on them.

Speaker 9 (24:32):
You know, regardless if the major leaguers are doing well,
and if they're not doing well, I'm still locked in
on those guys. Those guys have a chance to help us.
I really feel confident that they could turn the corner
pretty quickly, and so I'm used to, you know, moving
players fast. You know, I mean, I told these guys
when I got the job, I sat down and I

(24:53):
talked to a lot of the minor league players. I
think it's important that you always have good young players
coming into major leagues. Think it reminds the older players that, hey,
we got good young players in the minor leagues, and
it reminds the younger players that if I do well,
I'm gonna get moved up. And I think you want
that energy throughout your entire organization and until I'm a
firm believer. So I think if these guys are if

(25:15):
they go down there and they're doing well, we will
talk about moving them. You know, I don't know how
fast or I can't put a timeline on it, but
we're not afraid to move them to the big leagues
if they're doing very.

Speaker 3 (25:26):
Well starting pitching question real quick, what was it like
seeing Hayden Wesnsky from Afar now getting him in the
house and working with him, and then as far as
the depth Luis Garcia and Buenz Papolis.

Speaker 9 (25:40):
Yeah, so wesn Netsky, he's fired up, of course, because
he's back home in Houston, right and so he's he's
locked in. You know, I've had multiple conversations with him,
and I think his stuff is gonna play very well.
I think our pitching guys are really good, and so
you know, they're gonna get him, you know, to his

(26:00):
next step in life and in this game.

Speaker 7 (26:03):
And so I think they could.

Speaker 9 (26:04):
You know, our guys have a way of finding out
what you need to do to make you, you know better,
And I think, you know, he's been a sponge and
you know, hopefully we can we could help him to
make those adjustments, you know, Garcia, I think Garcia, you know,
we'll know more as he continues to throw here. But
I anticipate him turning the corner, you know, somewhere in

(26:26):
the early part of this year, and so once he
starts throwing here, we probably have more of a firm
you know, deadline or or target date or whatever you
want to call it, and he could be he's gonna
be some help that we were going to need in
that rotation. So we really feel like we got ten
guys total in depth in rotation, and so we will

(26:47):
feel like we're in good shape. You know, last year
we had that period where we lost the like five
starters at one point they were all out, and so
we feel really good about that. And the mccolors, you know,
he's been thrown off the mound and he's been peyton
and you know the PfP drills.

Speaker 3 (27:02):
And so.

Speaker 7 (27:04):
You know that's a good thing.

Speaker 9 (27:05):
And so once once he starts to throw even harder,
we'll get a pretty much target date or you know,
a timeline on him as well. And so I feel
like both guys should be pitching at some point this season,
hopefully sooner rather than later.

Speaker 3 (27:20):
Dana, thank you very much for the time. We really
appreciate it. And again, we'll take sausage, peppers, bun, whatever
sounds good. Yeah, any of whatever they're cooking, we'll take
us a plate. Yeah exactly.

Speaker 7 (27:30):
Yeah, I could actually smell that.

Speaker 3 (27:33):
It sounds good. That's pretty clue. Frankly better than the
questions we've asked you.

Speaker 7 (27:38):
Yeah, constantly smelling that.

Speaker 3 (27:41):
Thanks then, we really appreci appreciate it.

Speaker 7 (27:43):
Thank you.

Speaker 3 (27:43):
Dana Brown, Astros and our manager with us on The
Matt Thomas Show with Ross More here from West Palm Beach.
At a moment on Sports Talk seven.

Speaker 2 (27:48):
Ninety This is the Matt Thomas Show with Ross On four.

Speaker 3 (28:01):
Our man's softy up in Seattle a kJ RS bit
stealing me, he tweeted out, what was your favorite Justin
Turner as a Mariner moment? Come on, now, can't be
doing that? Do you start that? What was your favorite blank? Blank?
It's a blank moment? Absolutely, I feel I don't know.
I feel like that's been a it's been around for
years now. I don't think so. I think people realize it.

(28:21):
I don't. I feel like you're you're taking credit for it,
just like Crush City when they First of all, I
never knew that was happening. Second of all, I had
a chance to copyright it, and I didn't. Bross, I've
made a lot of mistakes in my broadcast career. You
didn't confront you were talking to Channel this morning. You
didn't confront him about the name of his podcast, that's tomorrow.
Want to do that. It's it's it's it's embarrassing, but can't.

(28:42):
It's not mine. I didn't writ copyright it.

Speaker 7 (28:45):
You'll be fine.

Speaker 3 (28:45):
I'm gonna tell the story for the last time at
least this week. Reid Ryan, who was the president the
Astros the time, calls me up one day and this
is you know this happened because I told you. As
soon as I go, he says, Matt, it's gonna let
you know we've taken the crush City and we're gonna
put it in a bunch of T shirts at a
rat And I'm like, oh, you are because I just
want to give you a heads up, not like hey

(29:06):
we're sorry, or hey we're gonna give you something, or
hey yeah, I didn't take a rick role. I didn't
take anything. At that point, I'm like, are you really
good at that? I said? I said I did that
because I didn't want to be a bad partner. We're
partners with Danster and he's like, man, I appreciate that,
but we're putting it up. Rady like, oh thanks, that's

(29:28):
a shame. And then Space City uses it, people on
T shirts use it I know and Chandler's Chandler Room's podcast,
Channel Room's podcast got it. So if any of you
are using crushing anything in your life wearing a T shirt,
just know that you're my bitch for the rest of
your life. I'm gonna get nothing out of it. Hey,

(29:50):
I appreciate you, Matt. That counts Now.

Speaker 7 (29:53):
I'm depressed.

Speaker 3 (29:54):
I could have I couldn't let you have this show,
and I could have been able to reap the benefit.
I mean, I want you know what. I'm depressed now.
How much money when I made off of that? None?
Probably very little, very Little've probably been very little. All Right,
it is Matt and Rossa. We are here. It's ten
forty we This whole Eastern time zone thing is a
weird bit. You did great, You're doing great. Dana Brown, Yeah,
was great. And if you missed any of that, uh,

(30:16):
where were you when we listening to backup linebacker talk
of the Texans? Come on, now, let's go. We talked
about the relevant things. We're going to replay it later
in the one o'clock hour. If you missed any part
of that conversation, so he said, al Twova's having a
ball out there in left field. Well, it's like a
kid out there. What's he supposed to do? I heard
your comments, I heard the clips you guys play yesterday.
He's sitting double. He wants to sit more doubles, triples

(30:36):
and home runs. You don't care what that's good? Yeah,
And the reality is, as he was saying this, it's
it's minute May Park. It's not a really, it's a
challenge if you've never been out there before, because it's
got some nooks and crannies to it. It's got some
weird bounces. But for a guy that has been playing
baseball since he was five years old, he'll figure it out.

(30:56):
Is it going to be something as electrifying as what
you've seen in previous left yields? No, but again, you're
not replacing them. Jordon never will never win a Gold Glove.
This is two things, preserving Jordan as a DH and
number two, realizing that at the end of the day,
the metrics say that jose Al tube And this is
painful for me to say because I know he's my
great he's my favorite making Yeah, he's a and you've

(31:21):
been pointing out the metrics to it. I didn't realize
what just a truly horrific. I was shocked too when
I saw it because when you look, it's in those
so these things you zone and range and all that
type of stuff. And yeah, if his fielding percentage is high,
it doesn't make a lot of errors, right, But that
doesn't mean that there are other second basemen who are younger, rangier, taller.
Six two makes a difference. It just does, just does,

(31:41):
and they're getting to more balls than than jose Al
Tuo Bay does. And unfortunately you also have the elimination
of the shift, so it's more difficult to put him
in the right place at the right time. It feels
like if you have somebody who with the the the
reality of it is as well. He turned thirty five
on May six. He's he and if the numbers are

(32:01):
there and you can't hide him like you used to
be able to with the shift, you gotta figure out
where to where to transition him. As you mentioned the
Jordon factor, as Dana Brown mentioned, you need a left
field bat, call it josel two Vaga's a left field bat.
You also have Bryce Matthews and Cam Smith on the
cusp of coming up, whether it be later this year
or even next year. That means he's gonna have to

(32:22):
transition at some point, perhaps if they want to keep
the infield intact with those other guys being Christian Walker
and Esk Paratas and Jeremy Pina. So if you need
to get that ball rolling at some point and he's
getting older and you need left field help it as
far as production from left field, you roll that all together.
It kind of makes sense. So who is the second
basement of the Astros? In two years full time one

(32:46):
and forty games, he sucked Paradis with Cam Smith at
left and the third I mean, I don't know or
maris not. Mari'so, Dubond and Dubon's utility guy. I'm gonna
tell you this, Dubon's gonna play a lot of second base.

Speaker 10 (32:59):
He just is.

Speaker 3 (33:01):
And I think that. Look, when Jose broke his hand
was two years ago the Astro did and skip a beat.
Matter of fact, that one of the all time legendary
Tenhenning calls was should the Astros trade al two bay
so to give Dubon and more off or less let
me forget? And that happened. It literally happened. And frankly,
if Dubon plays five day or six days a week.

(33:21):
There's no power, but it's you know, a lot of
the second They're not a lot of power hitting second base.
When you could live with a seven to twenty five
OPS guy playing second base, Yes, as long as the
L two V is gonna give you eight hundred. Again,
there may be pressure for al Tuo Bay to perform
as the most LA fielders do, which are guys that
like to hit the ball in high OPS high slugging number. Yes,
Al two Bays OPS took a dip last year was

(33:43):
a seven to ninety, which is still really good. Yeah,
still better than say Alex Bregman, but it's it's down
from where he has been early in his career. It
was his worst full season, not counting twenty twenty ops
since twenty thirteen. All Right, we are with you from
West Palm Beach, with you today until two o'clock the
same afternoon. It's seven one three two one two five
seven ninety seven one three two one two five seventy.

(34:05):
We're gonna open the phone lines up if you want
to join us. The next segment is yours. Top of
the next hour, eleven o'clock. We're gonna let you hear what.
Some of the opening comments were from a manager, Joe
A spot it. It's today is officially the first day
of full workout. Seven one three two one two five seventy.
Come on, if you want to talk some Astros baseball. Look,
we need to talk some Astros baseball. Rockets don't play

(34:26):
until Friday. Texans are vacationing. We got U of HS
playing Arizona State tonight, huge big game. Oh but how
about the Saturday game against Arizona? Tell me sports already.
Who the hell beats Arizona and Kansas in the same year,
Our Cougars do. That's right, That's why I want to
tell the truth. One of my uh one of my points.
Oh you know what, See, let's see if I can

(34:49):
get it right. Okay, you're gonna give you all four. Yeah,
we come back, We come back, all right? Seven one
three two one two five seven ninety With the word
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Speaker 5 (35:38):
Matt Thomas and rossby a real two guys, extremely passionate
about Houston sports.

Speaker 2 (35:45):
You can tell them to go get a room.

Speaker 3 (35:47):
We've shared a hotel room, but they already have, and
then I've shared a band.

Speaker 2 (35:52):
Thanks for the visual pillow in between, there's.

Speaker 5 (35:55):
No pillow between you and more lunchtime Houston sports talk
and sports talks.

Speaker 3 (36:04):
And just to let you know, Ross and I are
sharing a room here in West Paul Beach and we
were at a Nisent hotel. This time it's compared to
what we were two years ago. We were there for
massive murder scenes on the premises and in our hotel,
there was not that much police. There were exagger there
were there were do not cross yellow strips across our door.
Only one guy had the crack shivers. It was fine.
We had blood on our bathtub permanently stayed. It could

(36:28):
have been feces. We're not sure. We're good. We're in
a nice spot now. By the way, my milky white
legs are now being fully exposed. The sun has come out. Wena.
You know what, should we do it before and after?

Speaker 10 (36:40):
Oh?

Speaker 7 (36:41):
Hell no?

Speaker 3 (36:42):
Oh hell no? Why not? All right? Because I'm so
embarrassed by these things. Granted it's in winter time, so
it's not like I'm it's literally winter. We're in February. Yeah,
I'm gonna. I'm gonna. Let's talk to some people in Houston, Texas. Okay,
we got a couple of people on hold if you'd
like to get in. Seven one three two one two
five seven. Matt is literally suntanning his legs right now, folks,

(37:03):
I'll they burn to a crisp Look at this?

Speaker 8 (37:05):
Do that?

Speaker 3 (37:05):
I mean, we don't know, we don't need a melanoma
situation that's tried Dwayne and al Paso has been holding
what's up, Dwayne? Going gentle?

Speaker 11 (37:14):
Anyway, my first comment I wanted to make was about
our Two Bay Major League Baseball players. They're saying that
it's easier, it's easier to convert an infielder to the outfield,
which it makes it a lot better for that player
because he sees the ball better, he throws the ball
good because everything is done on the infield. He knows

(37:36):
all that, and it makes that player a better player. Now,
the second thing I wanted to say was that Dana Brown.
I'm digging it that that man is back in the
major leagues with the Astros because he's the hell of
a general manager man, and that's my compliment to him.
But the third thing I wanted to talk about was
the player in the NBA who stated that the NBA

(38:01):
is boring. How in the world can you have a
game which you want to call boring when you've got
players that are You've got at least seventy players in
the NBA that are making over a million dollars a year,
and then you've got sellouts by the tons in the NBA,
and then you've got a lot of games in the

(38:23):
NBA that are going on now that are really exciting,
and they're doing a good job in the NBA. And
that's all I wanted to say, gentlemen, God bless and peace.

Speaker 5 (38:32):
Be with me.

Speaker 7 (38:33):
Thank you Dwane.

Speaker 3 (38:34):
Let's tackle all those points, honestly, ross the thing that
I am anxious to see. It's not whether or not
he can catch a fly ball. He's been doing that
all of his life, okay. I am more anxious to
see how he handles the ball off the wall anyway,

(38:55):
whether it's been in a parker somewhere else. Yes, And
how many times runners at third on sack flies we'll
try to run on his arm. That to me is
the storyline. It's not about how much feel he can cover,
because look, when you got if you're gonna have Jake
Myers playing primarily center field, he's gonna cover a lot
of ground in most center fielders don't grab. So I'm
not worried about that. I want to know who's gonna

(39:16):
run on his arm, and that what's in that arm
right now?

Speaker 7 (39:19):
Yep?

Speaker 3 (39:20):
I would definitely say that's gonna be the big question
that not only the strength of the arm, the accuracy
of the arm, like we talk about Jordon being out there.
Jordon can go like throw it like ninety five miles
an hour, but where's it going right? So it's both
of those things. It's the accuracy, it's the arm strength,
cut all half man, it's situational right, as you said
communicating with Jake Myers. The good news is, as you said,

(39:41):
not only does Jake Myers try to he does cover
a lot of ground. He calls for everything. If you
Jake's like, I got it, I gotta get it, Like
people are literally sitting under the ball and Jake's trying
to take it from him left field, stop pole, I
got it. I'm not exactly Yeah, so I think he
knows like his I have a conspiracy theory that he
knows his range metrics are why how he stays in
the field. So he tries to get everything. And that's good.

(40:02):
That's good for Rosel too.

Speaker 6 (40:03):
Well.

Speaker 3 (40:03):
The reality is this his arm is also below average
as well. Yes, you took your best arm in right
field and he moved to the Chicago Cubs can Chaz
And again this number one thing for those of you
that are relatively new to baseball and you want you
want your right fielder to have the best arm, because
you do not want runners taking first that they're on
a base hit. And if you don't have a respectful

(40:25):
arm and right field, that's going to be done all
the time on base hits to right field. Yes, as
far as then is concerned, I mean, you know, he
said a good job. I you know, there have been
a lot of things I think that have been frankly
out of his control. He did have to put together
a deal for Kyle Tucker, and I meant when I
brought this up to him, it was a sign of
respect that ross. This camp Smith kid is supposed to

(40:48):
be pretty damn good and the Cubs gave up him
to get Kyle Tucker. Who you know, Kyle Tucker. My
guess is he's gonna love Chicago, and my guess is
they're gonna have lots of conversations about him staying there
and paying him all of money. But there's no guarantee,
especially if the Cubs don't want to offer a seven
or eight year deal that Kyle Tucker may get in
the offseason. Yeah, so it's good that they made the move,

(41:12):
but you do have outfield questions, and I brought up
I was bringing up the the stat cast arm strength
percentiles for you, Matt, do you want to hear this?
Probably not Chas McCormick percentile fifty first percentile, so basically average,
Jake Myers percentile forty eight. But the good news is

(41:36):
Kyle Tucker's percentile was only fifty two. So you're going
from fifty second percentile and rightfield arms strength to fifty one,
so basically all three of them at this point unless
something changes, opposing teams are gonna run over. You know, hey,
you know how a space any home network they put
on the green light. Let you got three green lights
out there? Yeah, probably is what you're gonna have. All right,

(41:57):
the callers on hold standby will get to you. We
got a spot to get to his comments today, we'll
get to more phone calls. Tell the Truth recap. You're
gonna do to tell the truth threecat, because I want
to see how I would do with yours. Okay, So
we've got a lot going on. We've got to Christian
Walker's going to join us on the radio program today
with the News at noon. If you missed, Dane Brown
will be playing liter in the one o'clock hour. We've
got a lot of things going on today here as
it is the Matt Thomas Show with Ross coming to

(42:19):
you from spring training in West Palm Beach here on
Sports Talk seven ninety seven one three two one two
five seven NINETI is how you reach the show if
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Speaker 2 (44:05):
Lunchtimers. This is the Matt Thomas Show.

Speaker 3 (44:10):
All right, It's eleven o two on Sports Talk seven ninety.
It is the Matt Thomas Show with Ross. We come
to you from West Palm Beach, Florida, where the Astros
are going under day one of full squad workouts. If
you'd like to join our conversation, whether it be about
the Astros, whether it be about uh, the I don't
know if the All Star Game is gonna resonate. I
was gonna say, there's nothing else going on?

Speaker 10 (44:30):
Was it?

Speaker 3 (44:30):
Did I miss what I missed? Yesterday? We talked ninety
percent of the time about jose L two V playing
left field. Yep, whose idea was it? How that this
year some people were very angry a little bit about
the All Star Game. I mean, it's just unfixable at
this point right there, unless barring the winning team each

(44:51):
getting like ten million dollars. I just don't I just
don't foresee a scenario maybe USA versus the world. But
I don't even know what the breakdown is the of
the rosters. Man, I don't know how much how many
are foreign born players versus Americans we're All Stars. I'd
have to go and look at that. But it just
seems like an unfixable product at this point, which the

(45:13):
Pro Bowl basically said it's unfixable, let's go to dodgeball.
So I don't know what the solution would be for
the NBA. I don't know the problem is Adam Sober.
I don't I think he wants He's saying the right things,
but I don't think he particularly cares. He just signed

(45:35):
a multi gazillion dollar television deal ross his players are
making outrageous amounts of money. Their worldwide reach on social
media and international television is through the roof. Do you
think there's a part of him and we're gonna get
to back to the astros a second, or do you
think part of it is a commissioner? And this could

(45:57):
be for all the different sports just says America just
gonna bitch to bitch and that no matter what I do,
it's not good enough. We got rid of the layup
drill that was last year. We did the International versus
Team USA, and people didn't like that. People didn't like
the East versus West. Now we did this first to
forty without a scoreboard, without a timer, and on maybe

(46:19):
we just don't like it and we're just gonna tell
you how much we don't like it, but yet they're
still going.

Speaker 7 (46:24):
To watch it.

Speaker 3 (46:25):
I think there is a part of that. And I
also think, for whatever reason, Matt, I don't know why necessarily,
but it feels like the discourse around NBA, more so
than other sports, is the first reaction to everything is
to be negative. This guy sucks, Jason Tatum sucks, Shay Gildges,
Alexander's trash Jayalen brunsons he's a foul hunting merchant, James

(46:50):
Hardens the worst, Steph Curry can't play defense. It just
feels like, for whatever reason, NBA it's about the negativity
more than maybe the other sports for example. This ties
into actually the the to tell the truth stuff like
you got these guys on T and T. What other
show do you turn it on on NFL Sunday on

(47:12):
Fox or whatever else? And the guys are just talking
about how the players are trash and not every not
very good and aren't like back in your day, and
the product's not good because Chuck and Shaq and Kenny
they do that every single Well. I know that you
get mad at me when I brought this up. This
this was a conversation piece who was at McIntyre on
the Colin Coward schowm and so I know you don't

(47:32):
like him. I don't have an opinion of him, but
he was He said that exact thing a month ago,
and I agreed with him. Yeah, they bash the NBA,
And again I don't need Shaq and Chuck and Kenny
to be mouthpieces for the NBA. There's plenty of that
already out there, but they hate everything. And then they

(47:55):
bring Draymond Green on oh Man and he annihilated the
All Star He said one that he was asked one
to Tenny said zero. I mean, and so you have
to strike a balance. Yes, you want him to be honest, Yeah,
but you also don't want toxicity. You want honest, like

(48:15):
they could have done this better, They could have done
that better, just like generally calling things trash when your
own analysts don't even know who's on the team and
who's playing on that given night, I don't know. That's
why again, you should strictly use it for entertainment purposes,
because when they're funny, they make me howl. They're that funny. Yes,
all right, let's hear from a spot and then we're
gonna to tell the truth from yesterday and we'll see

(48:37):
how I do on this Joe a spot. I met
with the media. He does every day here at the ballpark,
and we'll play some of that for you the next
three days while we're here. Today is the first full
squad workout, and he met with the entire roster that
was here in camp and brought up a couple of things,
including some of the goals for this year. Questions about
Jose ol Tibe were brought up about what Christian Walker's

(48:57):
responsibility were and obviously what else do you expect from
uh Isaka Perettives who is now in camp at least
for now as a third baseman. Here is a manager
Joe A spotted from earlier today.

Speaker 10 (49:10):
You know, a lot of you know, our start twenty twenty.

Speaker 8 (49:13):
You know, there was a lot of injuries, things that
we can't control, but there's some other areas that we
can control. How we play, how we go about our
you know, our offense. Uh there's things that we can
we can address, and I want to make sure that
they hear that from me, and we're going to start
working on that's from day one from today. So I'm
excited about about about about the season. You know, we

(49:37):
we talked in there about leadership, right and you know
I I, you know, I immediately go to him. That's
that's what leaders do, right. They they think of they
put team first, They think about you know, the group,
and and that's what's all about. You know, he could
easily say, hey, Joe second base. Probably not good idea,

(50:01):
but he's open to it. And that's all we wanted
to just consider, Uh, the opportunity to play left, create
some opportunity for all the players, the first utility on
our team.

Speaker 10 (50:10):
There's all the clubs who are doing the same stuff,
and host He's like, let's roll with it, and it's
a privilege for me.

Speaker 8 (50:19):
You could be around Motel two for the last eight
for the last eight season and hopefully we get to
work together for years.

Speaker 12 (50:26):
There's one veteran gone and now.

Speaker 3 (50:27):
Let you know one in if you asked Christian to
do those some of those responsibilities, or is that a
new guy in a block you're trying to get something better.

Speaker 8 (50:34):
Yeah, you know, I think Christian is getting a feel
for the Lamb. I will have more conversation with Christians
in the in the coming days. But when it comes
to leadership, you don't ask to lead. You expect those
guys to step up and lead.

Speaker 10 (50:51):
And he did that in Arizona.

Speaker 8 (50:53):
And once he gets his feet settled here, I'm sure
he's gonna he's gonna find his way.

Speaker 12 (50:58):
He's gonna find his was.

Speaker 3 (51:00):
Albaret said yesterday. Thinks he's got another gear offensively, like
the best is yet to come? How do how does
he get there?

Speaker 8 (51:05):
What is Hecause he had a really good year off
So he told me the same thing, and I'm like, dude,
you know that's how that's how good he is, Like
all are off. You know, we did some good things
the second half offensively, but there's there's ways for us
we can improve, and you know, we highlighted those things
and we're going to concentrate on those things and we're

(51:26):
going to improve in those areas.

Speaker 3 (51:28):
But he wants more.

Speaker 10 (51:30):
He thinks that, you know, I think he's he can
drive the ball more.

Speaker 8 (51:34):
He said at times where he's you know, there were
some singles, zubbles, not really slugging the way he's capable of.
So he identifies some areas and his swing and in
his mechanics that he can maintain that swing throughout the
whole entire season. So when the big boy says that
you get excited.

Speaker 13 (51:51):
Communication in the infield because you've got so many new
pieces in there, potentially, how long could that take? Or
I mean is it something that will just be an
ongoing process? And Christian talked to us a little bit
about yesterday. He needs to get a feel for everybody.
But being a former infielder, does it take time?

Speaker 8 (52:07):
Yes, he does, and and it takes repetitions, you know,
a lot of coaching. You know, I need to put
those guys in games right away just to get a
feel from one another. There's space in between one or another,
the capabilities.

Speaker 10 (52:20):
Of one another.

Speaker 8 (52:21):
Christianity is you guys are going to witness probably the
best first baseman in the in the game the last.

Speaker 10 (52:25):
Three or four years. So there's a lot of there's
a lot of area that he covers.

Speaker 8 (52:29):
So he's got to get you know, the guy too,
he's right, how much how much space that person covers?

Speaker 10 (52:35):
So same thing with Jeremy up the middle.

Speaker 8 (52:39):
So there's there's some things Paradis joining the organization, Jeremy
getting to know Okay, what side, you know what what
areas of the field? Paradis will need me to help
him with and all that kind of stuff. So yeah,
we got some work to do and and you guys
will see it, will see me kind of changing things around.
So we get some familiarity from the from the very beginning.

(52:59):
What is it is?

Speaker 10 (53:02):
You know, we have him as an average defender at
our base.

Speaker 8 (53:06):
You know, very reliable hands, uh strong, armed, accurate. You know,
I think that we identified areas that we can help
him with and he's been very receptive to those areas that.

Speaker 10 (53:19):
We could we could help him improve on.

Speaker 3 (53:21):
What you so we you know we're talking about he's
ranged move.

Speaker 10 (53:25):
You know how he moves potentially.

Speaker 8 (53:27):
You know, look, you know where the area of the
field that he could play or maybe a little bit
off up the up the line covered more more than
five to six hole. Little things like that, but you know,
when he gets to the ball, he's going to catch
the ball.

Speaker 10 (53:40):
He's always done.

Speaker 7 (53:42):
All right.

Speaker 3 (53:43):
So it was interesting how Joe put it an average defender,
But then you talk about all the things he can
do glass half fault clearly well got some work to
do at third base. You're going from how long going
to gold glove to average fantastic. By the way, the

(54:06):
rack faeld Dever stuff in Boston yesterday, Holy smokes, here's ston.
We are so lucky to have jose l TV. He
didn't care put him at catcher. Yeah, he's ready. Devor's like,
I'm not d h. I'm saying at third The general
manager that was here said I was gonna be that. Well,
they got a new general manager and Alex corus A
shuts youbam, mass up, you'll do what I tell you
to do. Can I get an early gut feeling on

(54:28):
that we've got gut feelings in the bottom of the hour?
Shul wait away. But I might forget though, you know
how we forget. Oh, we forget a lot of things.
I know we always tease the head that we're gonna
do something else, like to tell the truth. We swore
to God coming back with the tell the True music.
Because I want to see if I get this right
from y'all's yesterday's program. Did everybody else get it right?
To Dick car it alth of them got it wrong?

Speaker 8 (54:45):
What?

Speaker 3 (54:46):
Oh that's a hint, though I feel like, don't say it.
Don't say it? Seven one three two one two five
seven ninety seven one three two one two five seven
NINTI uh believe it or not? Is coming up next? No,
it's not. We're not even doing the whole week. I
was looking, Oh, I was looking at this guy script. Well,
you know you take one day, one day off, put
all these days off, Matt. Now you're on the Johnny
Carson schedule in twenty twenty five. I worked a full

(55:07):
week last week. I did five days in studio two
five long ass drives you poor baby. You should feel sorry,
but he made nobody put a gun to your head
to make you move it. Well maybe actually somebody, Are
you kidding me?

Speaker 10 (55:21):
Do you know?

Speaker 3 (55:21):
Missus Thomas, I had zero your mind? Thank you? Seven
one three two one two five seven on they gut
feelings the bottom of the hour, we'll do to tell
the truth recap. Next, we got Christian Walker still ahead
of us the news at noon and a replay of
the Dana Brown conversation. All straight ahead after I tell
you about League One Volleyball LVB dot com. They've got

(55:42):
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(56:03):
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(56:24):
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League One Volleyball Houston.

Speaker 2 (56:34):
This is the Matt Thomas Show with Ross on four.

Speaker 3 (56:59):
All right, this is expression you guys did this yesterday,
so I'm gonna see how I would do againsure you
had four takes? Right, Yes, I did, and how many
of myselfs believe one? Okay, here we go. We have
got feelings, got the bottom of the arm. By the way,
if you've got anything sports piction which you want to
get in, let us know at seven one, three, two,
one two, five seven ninety Now a quick Express edition
up to Tell the Truth. To Tell the Truth Express

(57:19):
Take number one, the All Star Game for the NBA
is a disaster. Big money incentives are needed for the
players to get interested. There's no other way to save it.
The NBA needs to institute get a sponsor, whoever it
may be. Okay, big money. I'm not going to stop
right there. That's it. Go ahead, continue on number two.

(57:41):
Alex Bregman's number two, Well, I don't think it should
be retired. Same thing with Billy Wagner. He's been great
going nine years for INSU. We appreciate him. But you
you also believe that number three, the U of H
Cougars have proven enough. And I especially said that. I
would only say this since you weren't there. Yeah, they're

(58:03):
winning the National Championship. Oh, they're too good. They've won
all these games on the road. They beat Kansas on
the road, they neat Arizona on the road. They finally
got something they haven't had, that is the consistent three
point shooting. Calvin Sampson's time is now. The Cougars are
winning the NCAA. I believe all three of the things
you said. Number four. The NBA needs to move on

(58:27):
from Chuck Shaq and Kenny. They're too negative. They bring
down the NBA a start, the fish rots from the head,
the toxicity with the NBA discourses too much. Chuck is
in his sixties, Shaq is in his fifties. He can
go do pitch man stuff. The NBA needs to move
on from Chumpionship. Okay, I believe you believe all four
of those things. Dude, you only literally believe one of them. Correct. Well,

(58:52):
they just signed. They just signed charge Shack to a
new deal. I'm not saying what deal they're on. The
need to you would never saything that nice about you
of Ah Solomon Chuck that the one you do believe
would have to be. It was the very first one
big money incentives needed for I want to say, that's

(59:13):
when you believe Alex Regs's number two is getting retired.
While the Cougars are one of the favorites, I think
Auburn is the favorite. Big money is not even gonna
save the All Star Game. It's beyond repair. NBA has
got to move on from Oh damn, I got it wrong. Well,
so that makes all three. Actually, I believe Lilima picked

(59:35):
two and uh Connor picked three. Mm man, I got
you guys good. It just means my takes are bad, No,
because I believe there's a certain part of me the
believes you believe all four of those things. You could
see the U of H one of that, I mean absolutely,
I could all see the Ubas losing in the second round.
I mean, it's a crap shit. The dancyboy ternament, it's
a crapshit. I still think Auburn and Duke are really good.

Speaker 7 (59:55):
I think.

Speaker 3 (59:55):
I mean it's it's one, two, three to me, Auburn, Duke, Houston,
whatever you want to put in. I think it's a
three headed monster. I think one of those three teams.
If you give me those three, I'll take those three
over the field. What's up? I can't take that. I
will I will not take the field, I know, because
it's a crap shoot. Yeah yeah, yeah, all right. Uh
so you got me nice work. That's a good job.
Because really, if you had to reverse it and said

(01:00:15):
it's hard only one, I don't believe you know. I
always make fun of you your takes. It's hard making
I know it's it's actually a lot harder than I,
than you, than people think. And then then I myself think,
thank you, so you will not crush me next Monday
when I do it's I mean, come on, it's part
of this part. It's the bit it feels it all right?
Uh seven one three two one two five is seven
ninety seven one three two one two five seven nine

(01:00:37):
zero if you want to join us on the show, Connor,
I mean, uh, like Ross, we've been any calls. I
don't have the call screen in front of me here,
so they don't have anyth this point all right, now,
we don't have any right now, want to get in,
which means people can come in and join us wide
open phones, Yeah they can. Uh seven one three two
one two five seven ninetie. What else I'm gonna get
to before we get to the gut feelings I mentioned?

(01:00:58):
Oh the Dever situation she was embarrassing. Yes, Uh, they're
gonna work that out. There's there's singling talented. I'm sorry, Raphael,
he's a gold glover and you're below average. Shut your
bomb ass up, say it for tomorrow. But you're right,
you're right, you're right. Okay. What else a I gonna

(01:01:22):
go to? Uh, there's something else? Spring training I thought
was interesting to me. Oh flat Guerrero Junior, not the
senior one, because he's long retired. Vlack Guerrero Junior basically said, Toronto,
step up your game or I'm gonzo. The deadline, I guess,

(01:01:43):
is either today or is coming gone already Monday night deadline.
It is tuesday. It is Tuesday. Yeah, so it's coming gone.
He's basically saying, be I just I ain't gonna talk
to you anymore. Talk to you in free agency. There's
one reason this upsets me. Well, there's should be another
reason too, because the number one team that is already
being favorite for him going there is the Boston Red Sox.

(01:02:06):
The number one reason is the Kyle Tucker market.

Speaker 10 (01:02:10):
Ah.

Speaker 3 (01:02:14):
By the way, I will tell you that Ross is
getting got some terrible advice on the Alex Bregman deal.
He went to Rander Rome or Randler Boem to get
his bet on and I'm one that see yeah and
then and then so Randler today says, well you should
have gone to av It's been well over. Thanks thanks Randler.
We were never going to make that bet. So, yes,
I'm completely deflecting. I'm taking zero blame for this. My

(01:02:37):
literal MLB insider that broke the news on the deal. Yeah, yeah,
you steered me in the wrong direction, and I may
have strayed my own way wrong on the our bet
for the Kyle Tucker. You are going to be eating
a lot of meals off of me. Well, the reality
is that fast casual lunch today? When can I knock
that out? Because we're no ticking out here. We'll suit
here tomorrow after the show today. Okay, fast casual like

(01:02:58):
a my mise, we wore a we were gonna go.
We're gonna go to Mendy's and get a double stack. Right,
that's fast food. That's not fast casual. That's that's fine.
I'm just I just want something to beat. Okay. I
told you this two weeks ago, and you now it's
about two months ago, and you argue with me, and look,
there's always room for interpretation. I really do believe the
super mega deals are gone. I really do. And all

(01:03:20):
it takes is one off season for me to be
wrong about this, and I'm accepting of that. But well,
wan So got a MEGAO deal next for you get
a big deal, Yes, Snell got a big deal. Not
a mega deal though, But I mean, are we are
we gonna limit that to five players a year? That's
a lot that adds up. I mean, okay, so how
many were snow only five years? But two million, that's
that's a lot of money. It's a lot of Moneys

(01:03:42):
the Dodgers.

Speaker 7 (01:03:44):
Uh so.

Speaker 3 (01:03:46):
Yeah, So Kyle Tucker's got to have an incredible season
because or he or he's gonna be the Alex Brigman
to what Wan Soto was for a national for the
net for the Mets. Yeah, I think people, Yeah, Vladito
would be the bigger get I guess. Yeah, Tucker's at

(01:04:08):
the more premium position. That'll be interesting. It would be
an interesting offseason. But if the deadline's gone, and deadline's gone,
he said, quote they have their numbers, I have my numbers,
Carrero says, and we are nowhere close. Dude's a freaking
four time All Star. We've talked about this. Oh, that's

(01:04:29):
a good question. One of the most feared American League hitters,
but also a junior and a senior like Fla Guerrero
seniors in the Hall of Fame. A junior and a
senior both being that good in major American sports. Oh,
you mean equally good.

Speaker 7 (01:04:49):
Yeah.

Speaker 3 (01:04:50):
Oh, Archie Manning and Peyton and Eli. No, but Archie
wasn't as good as No, that's right, Archie was. Archie
was just a guy. I mean, he was good, but
he was just And part of it was because he
played on some wolful Say teams for much of his career,
and then he went the Orders and was a wolfl
there too. Lad has finished second in the MVP and
sixth in the MVP and a four time All Star.
He's on a Hall of Fame track and his dad

(01:05:10):
is literally in the Hall of Fame. I'm gonna give
you a comp but these are not Hall of Fame players. Oh,
I got one for you, Lebron James and Barney James. Nope,
that was not of the ones. I don't know what
Bob Boone's numbers were, but Aaron and Brett were good
Major League baseball players. Bob Boone was a good Major
League Baseball players, though, but they weren't Hall of famers.

(01:05:32):
So you're looking. You're asking me for a father's son
Hall of Fame duo, yeah, or even very I mean
King Griffey Senior was good, I think, I mean I don't.
I mean in the NBA, you got Tim Hardaway Junior
and Tim Hardaway Senior Senior was better. Than junior, although
Junior has been able to make the Hall of Fame.

(01:05:52):
They put everyone in these days, but they're they're not
gonna be in that situation. Gary Payton a senior in
the second and that's not gonna work. Dell Curry, Steph Curry,
but Dell's that great staff was way better than Dell
was just a guy that moved around a bunch of places.
Who is as good of a dad as he was
a son and son as good as sad. Tweets at
sports RV and at sports say that's right, do that,
That's fine?

Speaker 7 (01:06:12):
All right?

Speaker 3 (01:06:13):
Eleven twenty eight on Sports Talk seven ninety, time for
us to ask for you to give us your gut feelings.
Seven one three two one two five seven Hunty, you
want to make a prediction about how jose L Twovay
is going to do in left field, I'll take that.
Would you like to make a prediction about how or
Alex Bregman's gonna play this year for the Boston Red Sox.
We'll do that. Well. The astro stamp pat in the
outfield is currently put together. Will Jordan Alvarez play more

(01:06:36):
than say, thirty five or forty games in left field.
If you want to make a prediction about the All
Star Games, if you want to make a prediction about anything,
it's now your opportunity. It's seven one three two one
two five seven ninety seven one three two one two
five seven Anti Your gut feelings are next here on
Sports Talk Sevenatti.

Speaker 5 (01:06:53):
The Manta Show with Ross continues on Sports Talk seven ninety.

Speaker 3 (01:07:00):
Set up and.

Speaker 14 (01:07:04):
Tommy, Yo, they got a good dealer.

Speaker 2 (01:07:06):
This is their gut feeling. On the Matt Thomas Show.

Speaker 3 (01:07:11):
By the way, a couple of folks, Wayne sent us
a note, Craig to the same thing, maybe the closest
thing to an awesome dad and son Bobby Bounds, Bonds
and Barry Bonds. That's about as close as I have
so far. Somebody's given me an example of Yeah, three
time All Star, three time Gold Glover for Bobby Bond.
That's pretty good. Yeah, that's really good. In the Hall

(01:07:34):
of Fame. No, but but Glad Junior's done in the
Hall of Fame either, haul good, all very good. Yeah, Yeah,
let's go with that, okay. Seven one three two one
two five seven ninety seven one three two one two
five seven nine zero Rossie, let's shor recap how we
did last week on the Gut Feelings. Uh yeah, I'm

(01:07:56):
having my WiFi sputtering, so can you install for ten seconds?
I would like to stall by telling you that you
may call this radio show at seven one three two
one two five seven on. All lines are available, which
means either you don't love us or you're just afraid
to talk to us, and we're as friendly as it's right.
All right, we're back on line. We're seven one three
two one two five seven on. If you have any
sports predictions you'd like to make, okay, and we had

(01:08:16):
some non sports predictions I'd forgotten about in here as well.
You said, Matt Thomas, we're gonna have to wait a
whole year for this. Next year's Super Bowl winner will
be a first time Super Bowl champion as a franchise,
which put which puts the Texans in that mix. Man,
you got the Texans winning at all Man, that's great,
you're right, you're right. Oh my gosh, you said Red

(01:08:39):
Sox signed Alex Bregman. Nailed it. That's fine. I mean, look,
it was the fifth team you chosen. Yeah, I mean
I had got a feeling on one of them. I
should have just gone field them and claim credit for that.
But yeah, you're right, yep, you Red Sox. That's still
that's a hit, Matty. I think I appreciate that he
still could have gone well, he probably was never gonna
go anywhere else, and then the Red Sox up there

(01:08:59):
on offer in the eleventh hour and he signed there.
That's okay. Then we also made a get feeling about
the JFK documents release. Have they been released yet? No,
you'd have to ask you, would you say that's true.
He's the first person to ask. You said Cuba and
or Fidel Castro, we're gonna be involved. And you also

(01:09:21):
said next year's Super Bowl halftime will involve a country act. Yep,
I'm going a matter of fact, I'm gonna arrow that
down even a little bit more. Jelly Roll will be
the halftime act. Jelly Roll, jelly Roll. Okay, sure you
want to write that, I'm gonna write that down. Jelly
Roll does and then sign my I think I'm gonna

(01:09:43):
give Dan Matthews credit for that because Dan texted it
to us, So it'll be a slight assist to that
assist to Dan. Also, is that thunder Rolling it's under
does roll does strike. That's not good. Uh and okay
that's where we are now. I had forgotten i'd done this,
I said. Stefan Diggs signs back with the Texans. Still

(01:10:06):
some time left on that? Would you see? Who's dating now?

Speaker 10 (01:10:09):
No?

Speaker 3 (01:10:10):
Cardi B? Who's dating Cardi B? Alex pregnant?

Speaker 7 (01:10:13):
Stefan Diggs.

Speaker 3 (01:10:14):
Oh, steph oh Stefan Diggs apparently No, that'd been going
on for a while.

Speaker 7 (01:10:18):
Yeah.

Speaker 3 (01:10:19):
They they had an affair while she was pregnant. I
believe that, which that you don't if you don't believe
internet or no? Do we lose our music? Were we
still in the air? Okay, I don't hear anything here.
It is a little low. I can turn it up
for you. I did it for myself as well. How
is that is? They can hear better?

Speaker 10 (01:10:36):
Now?

Speaker 15 (01:10:36):
Oh?

Speaker 7 (01:10:37):
There it is?

Speaker 3 (01:10:37):
Okay, I got you. Yeah, I still hear Oh, okay, sorry.

Speaker 7 (01:10:42):
You're I.

Speaker 3 (01:10:45):
I'm having difficulty reacting to this Stefan Diggs news.

Speaker 10 (01:10:48):
You gave me?

Speaker 3 (01:10:48):
Well, why do I know that you don't? I'm gonna
stick with him. Maybe I have Cardi B muted. I
have a lot of words muted on my Twitter to
be true, be told uh, Rockets win both games against
the Suns and Golden State. Oh, they lost to Golden State,
but they did beat Phoenix and yeah, that Golden Seid game.

Speaker 7 (01:11:09):
Yuck.

Speaker 3 (01:11:09):
I finally resigned myself to this last week. So this
is a hit for me as well. Alex Bregman signs
a short term deal with opt outs. I just felt
like that was the way that it was trending. Yep, yep.
And my JFK documents prediction is that the mafia is
heavily involved in the assassination of one John Fitzgerald.

Speaker 7 (01:11:28):
Can it?

Speaker 3 (01:11:28):
The mafia don't speak, I know, but maybe they have.

Speaker 10 (01:11:32):
They have.

Speaker 3 (01:11:35):
Circumstantial evidence to where they couldn't take them to trial.
They had enough evidence, but not enough to convict. That's
what I'm going with with the mafia's involvement in the
JFK trial. Connor McGovern went on record saying the Rockets
win the next two as well. He was wrong. He
also said Bregman does not sign, So that's a note

(01:11:56):
for two for one, Connor mcgoverning. And you got to
tell the true wrong yesterday too, huh. And then Dan
Matthews did he text in or call in with post
malone or Jelly roll as the next year a half times,
so he's gonna piggyback off of him. I think post
Malone's a good one. I think that'll happen. He's got
very wide appeal. He's doing Nirvana. So it's the Weekend
strong enough to do a halftime. This Weekend has already
done it. Oh they have Okay, they're not gonna Como.

(01:12:17):
That's one guy. Oh whatever, that's fine. His name is
able Tests Foyer tesa all right, great singer. I'm a
big I'm a fan of the Weekend. Uh My first
gut feeling, Lads and gentlemen, has nothing to do with sports, Okay.
Lorne Michaels will finish out this year as the executive producer,
will do one more year. He will retire after the

(01:12:39):
two thousand and twenty six season of Saturday Night Live.
He's in his eighties. It's about time to hang him
up belong, so it would make sense for him to
do it now, But I think he wants another farewell
season to kind of say goodbye. So I think it
all about Lauren. I mean, you got the fifty years special.
Now next year will be the Laurene Farewell Special. Right
these specials get right, Yes they do.

Speaker 7 (01:13:01):
Yeah.

Speaker 3 (01:13:01):
By the way, I've not watched all of it. I
do watch some of it, Okay, I put together the
top five list of my fans. Debbie Downer is. I
watched Debbie down I was under the late the airport.
I watched Debbie Downer Disney World.

Speaker 1 (01:13:18):
It.

Speaker 3 (01:13:18):
I was crying, absolutely crying at the airport. I'm not
going my flight was late, but because it was still
so funny, I went and found out some stories about it.
Horatio Sands was crying so hard he had to use
the pancakes that were part of the scene to mop
up the tears because he was laughing so hard. Okay,
so yeah, season and a half left for Laura Michaels

(01:13:39):
before he recalls it a career. Okay, okay, that's my
first one. Okay, uh unit sports take for me. Don't
you sure?

Speaker 11 (01:13:47):
Why?

Speaker 14 (01:13:47):
Now?

Speaker 3 (01:13:48):
I'm gonna go. Cougars win by ten to night against
Arizona State in Tempe, Arizona. Arizona State just a mid
level Cougar's by ten by ten, ten, one zero ten
or mole. Go look at that line. See how close
you are? I beg I believe it's notine and a
half something like that. Oh, go, come on, that's a cover.
I'll see it's eleven and a half. Actually, oh h,

(01:14:10):
I'll stay with ten ten or more? U of h
ten or more? Come on, do twelve one bucket? All right,
it's great. Twelve. Yeah, you give the points. Uh, covers
eleven and a half? How about that?

Speaker 7 (01:14:21):
You like that?

Speaker 3 (01:14:22):
I love it? All right, Get off that fence, baby,
let's go. What else you got? Uh, I'm gonna go with.
We don't normally make Red Sox opening day predictions here
on the but the Red Sox opening day third basement
will be Alex Bregman. Oh does Rothfield ever Devers know

(01:14:46):
this yet? Yeah? Maybe I should soft pedal that and
just say by the end of the year, Alex Bregman
will get most time at third base. But they have
to talk him off this. The dude's the gold glover.
They just sign him to a big deal. Apparently the
promises made to Rafael Devers were by the previous regime,
so they don't have to uphold those. Right, Alex kor
Is gonna get this guy in there. They're gonna talk,
they're gonna chat. He's gonna have this hard conversation, Alex

(01:15:08):
Bregman buy the is going to be the everyday first
base third baseman for the Red Sox. Okay, so you're
saying more time than not, Yes, it's gonna be Bregman
over Devers. Okay, that sounds fine. Yes. By the way,
do you think Alex Bregman had this conversation about it
and they're like, whatever Dever says to this going just
shake your head and go, Yeah, you'll play wherever, but
you're gonna be our third basement. Yeah, I think so.

(01:15:29):
You know, it goes back to my point of last week.
You don't remove a third gold glover and put him
somewhere else.

Speaker 7 (01:15:34):
You just don't.

Speaker 3 (01:15:35):
You don't, and you also don't payhim forty million dollars
a year to play second. Now, second and third close,
but third is more premium defensive position. It just is
all right, would you like I want you to put
one for the future. Alex Bregman is not opting out
over for next year, especially if like Roa goes to
the Red Sox. He could Red Sox. Don't worry, Alexpregman

(01:15:55):
is yours in twenty twenty six. For Alex Bregman does
not opt out correct, So I'm going with that would
mean injury to me or or comp numbers. I mean,
he's not a forty million dollars player right now. No,
except the Red Sox made of one.

Speaker 8 (01:16:12):
Man.

Speaker 3 (01:16:13):
Yeah, I'm staying with it. No, he could be right.
He's with the Red Sox in twenty twenty second. I
could see it. Condy, what do you got real quick?

Speaker 15 (01:16:21):
I'll say the Rockets win their next two Oh, I
like it Friday and Saturday, Yes, yeah. And then I'll say,
as much as I kind of want Team Canada when
I think Tosa will win the Four Nations tournament final
on Thursday.

Speaker 3 (01:16:37):
By the way, we need to talk about that when
we come back. That was highly, highly impressive. Whatever they
did to publicize that, whether it was the three fights
in nine seconds or the fact that people that those
players gave a damn. I was in a Washington sports
bar Saturday night. Everybody in DC was watching that. No

(01:16:58):
one gave two blanks about the skills challenge or the
slam dunk competition. Everybody in that bar was mesmerized by
the name. What do they call it? The Nations comes
up with They're calling it Four Nations Face Off? Four
nations face off. Whoever decided that genius move on your part.
All right, more gut feelings coming up next. Seven one
three two one two five seven ninety seven one three

(01:17:19):
two one two five seven NINETI this is the Matt
Thomas Shevil Ross. We're coming to you from West Palm
Beach and you are listening to Astrospring training coverage here
on Sports.

Speaker 5 (01:17:27):
Talk sevn nintimagine Ross return return on Sports Talk seven ninety.

Speaker 7 (01:17:35):
Final.

Speaker 14 (01:17:36):
Let's finally drop this puck, get the action going, and I.

Speaker 3 (01:17:39):
Could chuck brothers around the ice clinking Jack, I.

Speaker 2 (01:17:42):
Could, you're gonna crack the tree away?

Speaker 3 (01:17:48):
Thank you?

Speaker 7 (01:17:48):
Good check?

Speaker 2 (01:17:50):
Brandon Hagel, Wait uncle he.

Speaker 3 (01:17:55):
So Connor, you're you're our hockey analyst?

Speaker 7 (01:17:58):
Real quick? Did they would?

Speaker 3 (01:18:00):
Obviously? They said as soon got the ice, we're gonna
try to kick each other's ass. I mean that that
had to have been a pregame get together in the
locker room. Who are we gonna go after?

Speaker 7 (01:18:09):
Right?

Speaker 3 (01:18:09):
Three three fights in nine seconds? Not even a regular
NHL game does that.

Speaker 15 (01:18:13):
Yeah, there's two brothers on the USA team, Matthew and
Brady Kachuk, And yeah they were to the first two
to fight. So I think they were just pretty amped
up to play for Team USA, didn't They call.

Speaker 3 (01:18:25):
Each other meadhead? And when they were kids and stuff.
That's what their that's what their dad said.

Speaker 15 (01:18:30):
Their dad was a Keith Kichuk, who is a NHL
not a Hall of Famer, but a really good, really
good player back in his day. And he said like, oh,
you can't really control those two like Tasmanian devils out there.

Speaker 6 (01:18:40):
Huh huh.

Speaker 3 (01:18:41):
Wow, Kochuck sounds like a hockey game. Yeah, it sounds
way hockey ish. I mean, Kachuck is not a somebody
that's like a gymnast. Yeah, he Kachuk's got some tooth loose.
Teeth loose, yeah, and brain cells that have been just
destroyed by the way. Uh. Some more people coming in
with a couple of more father son duos. You have
to help me out with us. On Florida, Floyd Mayweather

(01:19:03):
Senior and Floyd Woman Floyd Mayweather Junior. One of the
greatest of all time. Floyd made with a senior, not really,
Roger Mayweather was better. He was the uncle. The Uncle
Roger Mayweather also known as the Black Mamba. He had
that nickname before Kobe Bryant. Okay uh, he was a
multi time champion. Floyd made with his senior was kind
of a decent fighter, but not anywhere the level of
Floyd Weather Weather. John Easy comes in with one. I

(01:19:25):
like it. We don't retally follow auto racing, but Mario
and Michael and Dreddi were fan both fantastic. I yeah,
just trust me, and they called me. They call me
the official motorhead of the Atoms. That's true.

Speaker 7 (01:19:36):
You are all right.

Speaker 3 (01:19:37):
Seven one three two one two five, seven ninety. It
is getting a little windier, which means we get showers
coming the area, which means we're gonna run for cover.
Can't wait James and Alvin on seven ninety James, thank
you for waiting in. Good morning to you.

Speaker 16 (01:19:49):
Good morning man, Thank you for accepting my call.

Speaker 3 (01:19:52):
You guys, you guys are pretty pretty good.

Speaker 17 (01:19:54):
Y'all got some of the most knowledgeable listeners in sports
radio land.

Speaker 3 (01:19:59):
Hold on, oh, James, James, James, James, James, you just
called us pretty good. We've been on the air fifteen years.
We're more than pretty good. We're damn good.

Speaker 18 (01:20:06):
James, to take a job at your matt because last
week you had you had a sound bite that had
crickets sounding in Scott.

Speaker 17 (01:20:15):
Borris camp saying, what's what's the deal with Alex Breddan?

Speaker 10 (01:20:20):
No news is he is?

Speaker 16 (01:20:22):
He tooking Alex Brickman down.

Speaker 18 (01:20:24):
That a fact that nobody wanted. Scott Borris had a
forty million dollars one hundred and twenty million dollar.

Speaker 16 (01:20:31):
Three year contract in Alex Brickman back hock.

Speaker 18 (01:20:34):
I know everybody was looking at one another like what
the heck just went down? And let me say this
here putows to Alex Bridman forbidding on himself. Between Hakeuen
olajah Wan and Alex Brickman, them the only two professional
athletes that ever brought championships to this city.

Speaker 16 (01:20:55):
And Alex Bridman deserved every penny he gets and he
will succeed his two hundred million dollar contract.

Speaker 17 (01:21:05):
Before six years is Overwhere man, listen, you guys are awesome.
And I think if you go back, I think it
was last last Tuesday, last you've had this soundbody with
the cricket sounding they was they was crying in the background,
and you say, where is where is Alex.

Speaker 16 (01:21:25):
Bridman and Scott Borris, Well, I'll tell you where it was.
He had one hundred and twenty million dollar contract for
three years. Jim Crane all be shaming itself. Thank you guys,
myself see your letter, James. He's not ashamed of himself
and Jim Crane, you should be a sh shame, shame, shame,

(01:21:46):
Jim Crane.

Speaker 3 (01:21:48):
Mister Crane on you clown. He could have gone far
over the tax, but he didn't want you. Nope, that's right,
and the next best deal was the six and one
for the Detroit Tigers, which was that twenty six million
a year, twenty and a half short term, big big

(01:22:15):
money early. Now, remember, he can opt out, and just
because you opt out doesn't mean you're going to get
forty million dollars the next two years after that. But
my guess is Ross, if he was to opt out,
is because the streets are whispering, we'll give you that
big deal you were looking for. Yeah, if he's opting out,
he's gonna get. I mean, look, as we discussed to

(01:22:36):
match the Astros deal, he needs to get basically over
the last three years, thirty six million dollars. That's if
he opts in and stays in there, right, So if
he opts out after one year, let's do this. It'll
be five years one sixteen. What is that twenty three,
twenty three and a half.

Speaker 7 (01:22:55):
Yep.

Speaker 3 (01:22:55):
So if he can get more than five years one sixteen,
that's already bigger than the asses we talked about all
last week when the deal came down. H it was
not about the length of the contract. That was the
big uh thing that uh Bregman was aspiring for. It
was the average annual value. And that's what Bandler Bolt
was trying to come in. And so you should have
got with that, like, yeah, you need too late. You
lost to match the Tigers deal. If he plays this

(01:23:16):
year and opts out, he will have to get five
years one thirty basically, which is twenty six a year,
which is what he's turned down to begin with. So right, yeah,
that's why I feel very confident that he's going to
take at least eighty million dollars with him. In fact,
I mean, I don't want to go out and say
he's gonna be the whole three years.

Speaker 7 (01:23:34):
I don't.

Speaker 3 (01:23:34):
I don't know that, but I think he's going to
enjoy ross eighty MILLI for two years was way more
on average than anybody else is willing to pay. He's
gonna he needs to sit back and enjoy that for
the while. I'm not go through this again unless again
he bombs hits thirty five forty home runs ops of
him on nine hundred. He's in a good spot. He needs,

(01:23:58):
he needs kind of a bounce back in some ways.
He did hit the twenty six bombs. Average was very stable,
but that walk rate took a huge dip and I
haven't really dived into it because I saw something like
mid season that he was getting screwed by strike three
calls more than average, But that doesn't necessarily probably shore
up for his walk rate going from thirteen percent to

(01:24:20):
seven percent. No, no, no, I think there were more
head scratching moments because Franklin. The reputation of Alex Pragmant
and I is that he's got a very good eye.
I saw that a lot with when I was covering
Joe Meyer with the Twins back ten fifteen years ago.
Ross is that once you develop a reputation for being
a good pitch selector in terms of being able to

(01:24:41):
have a good eye at the plate, you get benefit
of Thatt Moore and maybe I don't maybe Bragmant last
year didn't get the benefit of the depth that he
maybe have gotten in previous years. Yeah, his walk rate
was as bad. It went all the way back to
where he went he was at rookie. Yeah, so I
expect that to if the walk rate bounce is back
on base bounces back. He can still hit twenty five
bombs play ste he handed to plus plus third base,

(01:25:02):
which he's a gold glove raining gold glover.

Speaker 7 (01:25:04):
Yep.

Speaker 3 (01:25:05):
Somebody could give him five one fifty maybe and then
that'll add up to what six one ninety. It's pretty good.
That's so he's looking for. It just took a little
longer to get to what he wanted. But his average
annual value is over thirty million dollars a year, So
we'll see. We'll see. All right, let's get to the
news at noon. We'll do that next year. On the
Matt Thomas Show with Ross, we are coming to you
from West Palm Beach, Florida. There are guys manicuring the infield.

(01:25:29):
Do you want to get on the thing and go
for a ride with that? Dude? Why not? I'm just saying,
do you want to? I don't think there's a seat
for you, Matt. We could always find a spot you're
gonna have to ride shotgun? Do you think he is,
like I am the luckiest man on earth, Like I'm
making eleven dollars an hour manicuring a spook. He's probably
listening to his favorite album. And it's just kind of
busy work manicuring an infield. I don't know. Do people

(01:25:52):
get really into that He's going to the same spot
between third and short over and I'm mesmerized this, dude. Yeah,
you are the News at noon. To stap out of it,
The News at Noon is next. It's eleven fifty seven
on Sports Talk seven.

Speaker 1 (01:26:06):
All right, lunchtimers, this is the Matt Thomas Show, twelve
o two.

Speaker 3 (01:26:14):
At H Town. What's happening to lunch timers? Welcome to
our number three of the Matt Thomas Show with Ross.
We come to you from West Palm Beach, Florida, home
of Astro Spring Training twenty twenty five. And just reminder again,
if you're coming out here in the next month or
so bringing credit card, that ain't West Palm Living Baby,
it is Orlando. Can simmy reasonable? West Palm not reasonable? Yeah,

(01:26:42):
we're doing all right. We're balling on a budget. We're
balling on a budget. We're gonna go get us a
riggy rag at. Yes, we negotiated at Bendy's. We spent
the entire break negotiating our Bendy's order. Yeah, we did
because we hit the station. And this is not talking
out of school. But we have a certain budget we
can go over, so we're gonna eat cheaply. Yeah, we'd

(01:27:02):
rather go to Dortan's, but we're gonna go to Bendy's. Yeah,
we rather have some steak. We're gonna have some steak
fut time. Now people are like, shut up, bad shut
up Ross seven one three two one two five seven. Hoy,
Christian Walker's gonna join us sometime in the next hour
or so. Here's your new first baseman. Right now, we
present to you the News at noon, and we go

(01:27:27):
to the remote desk of the News at noon. We've
brought it here to By the way, this week, on Friday,
we get to do Florida Stories. We are in the
state of Florida this so the rule is if you're
in the state this week, you get to do the
Florida stories. But you're not gonna be in Florida on Friday.

Speaker 11 (01:27:39):
Are you? No?

Speaker 3 (01:27:39):
Are you okay?

Speaker 10 (01:27:41):
But no.

Speaker 3 (01:27:42):
The rule is I want to do Florida story because
you always talk trash about Florida stories and I think
they're amazing. I love Florida. The rule is, if I'm
in or you're in the state of Florida, we do
Florida Stories. So if we're in this week, so Friday
will be Florida Stories.

Speaker 7 (01:27:54):
Love it.

Speaker 3 (01:27:55):
Right now, we present to you the news at noon. Yes, Matthew,
we are here at West Palm Beach, first day of
full team workouts. We'll be bringing you coverage for the
next three days. Joe A. Spotta will be speaking each
of those days. Hopefully we'll be able to join us
in the next couple of days as well. We did
have Dana Brown earlier on. We'll replace some of that.
You can also find it at Sports Talk seven ninety
dot com. But here is some of Joe Spotta matt

(01:28:18):
talking about the big topic of a spring training Jose
Altuve and left field, Joe Aspata saying, that's how Jose
Altuve showing some leadership that he's willing to play anywhere
on the field.

Speaker 8 (01:28:30):
You know, we we talked in there about leadership, right
and you know, I I you know, I immediately go
to him. That's that's what leaders do, right They they
think of they put teams first, and they think about,
you know, the group, and.

Speaker 10 (01:28:48):
That's what it's all about.

Speaker 14 (01:28:50):
You know.

Speaker 8 (01:28:50):
He could easily say, hey, Joe second bay is probably
not a good idea, and.

Speaker 10 (01:28:55):
But he's open to him. And that's all we wanted
to just consider.

Speaker 8 (01:28:59):
Uh, the opportunity to play left, create some opportunity for
the players, the first utility and our team.

Speaker 10 (01:29:04):
This all the clubs who are dreaming the same stuff.
And Josey's like, let's roll with it. And it's a
privilege for me.

Speaker 8 (01:29:13):
You could be around Moseel two for the last for
the last eight season and hopefully we get to work
together four years ago.

Speaker 3 (01:29:21):
Al two by showing leadership also working out with the
outfielders today, Matt, you're a famous Uh can't wait, might
as well. Nothing against it. Let's go. I'm not expecting
anything super special. I'm expecting him to patrol it like
most players have gone to the outfield after spending their

(01:29:42):
entire lives playing in the infield. As we kind of
talked about this yesterday, Matt, everybody in baseball, for the
most part, makes an error, misplays the ball, miss is
a throw. But he's just gonna be under that extra microscope.
We've seen Jordon or Dubon or whoever misplayed and left.
It's just part of the game. So it'll be interesting

(01:30:03):
to see the very first time he does that. What
the reaction from others is gonna be. I'm not again.
To me, it's not about him fielding, because he's caught
fly balls plenty in his life. It's about the ball
coming off the wall, runner rounding third, Can you make
the play? Can you get a guy out of the plate.
All right, Matt, let's keep it with baseball. Some news

(01:30:24):
around the league. We mentioned this earlier, Vladimir Guerrero Junior
and the Blue Jays failing to reach an extension, Glad
Junior saying, quote they have their numbers, I have my numbers.
By general manager Ross Atkins saying that Jays offers were
quote very very aggressive. I'm confident that we exhausted the communication,

(01:30:46):
the ideas, the thoughts, and communicated every dollar. His deadline
that he set was nine pm on Monday. That has passed.
He's gonna hit the market along with Kyle Tucker, maybe
Ali Bregman as those among the headliners of the next
year's free agent class. So that means Kyle Tucker is

(01:31:06):
moving down a spot, right, and that's why Bregman's gonna
keep fort for debate. I was probably putting vlad Junior
ahead ahead of Kyle Tucker. Okay, but we mentioned this.
How old is blad Junior? He came up pretty young,
didn't he. Yeah, he's been around a long time. This
is his Is this his first twenty five? Oh? Oh yeah, yeah,
he's He's a six year free agent. Yeah, party one.

(01:31:28):
Vlaska will get paid. Probably hits in a very friendly
ballpark too. Unless he's hurt, he's gonna get He's gonna
crush last year thirty home runs, one hundred RBIs three
hundred three, twenty three average, and any ops of nine.
So should be a pretty darn big free agent hitting

(01:31:48):
the market next year elsewhere I'm at, Actually, go ahead
and keep it with baseball. Did you see Buster Only's
top ten first basement in baseball this, Matt? Yeah, I
believe Christian Walker's third.

Speaker 7 (01:32:05):
Am I right?

Speaker 2 (01:32:06):
He is sixth Oh?

Speaker 3 (01:32:07):
I was off by three. Freddie Freeman, Bryce Harper, Vlager Junior,
Matt Olson, Pete Alonzo. Christian Walker placed sixth for your
Houston Astros. The three time gold glover supposed to join
the show later on today. Yeah, hit me here, cant
us down. I don't fairly a very media friendly so
we'd love that. Yeah, absolutely love that should be. We're
looking forward to hearing from Christian Walker later on in

(01:32:30):
the show. Here as we broadcast from West Palm. Let's
go to some basketball news, Matt, did you know that
Kyrie Irving was born in Australia. Did he make this
up himself or is just without this has been verified? Well,
whatever the earth is flat around he was born in Australia.
He says he wants to represent Australia in the twenty

(01:32:50):
twenty eight Olympics, telling reporters there in the process of
getting his nation out in that essonality or whatever you
call it, FEBA rating or FOEBA configuration, I don't know,
but he might represent Australia as he represented the United
States in the twenty sixteen Rio Dejiannaro Games and won

(01:33:13):
a gold medal there. He did not make either of
the past two USA Olympic rosters, so he might be
going to the Great down under and joining the Aussie
So he's trying to find a cheap way to get
a trip to the Olympics. After all, Kyrie irving to
jack Landale, is there a better pick and roll? There's
a lot of Aussie's in the NBA. Jackson Jack McVay

(01:33:36):
as a New Zealander. Josh yet is he Australian? He
is Australian. Yeah, okay, I think Australians have a great accent.
I can't do. Enn Simmons, Patty Mills, Yeah, that's not
a bat, Joe Ingles. They got a squad, bad squad
at all. If he's tyble, if you will, like Jack
landal has already told me. He says, you go to Australia,
I'll set you up in all the places you drop
my name, that you'll be a freaking god. That's okay, yeah,

(01:33:56):
but do we believe him? Not really, No, he doesn't
even know my name. He calls me mate, So that's like, see,
you've been called worse by you. That's fine, all right, man.
Well let's keep it with basketball. Well, let's go to
the college ranks. Huge Big twelve showed out the University
of Houston Cougar's taking on the under five hundred Arizona

(01:34:18):
State Sun Devils. James Harden is rolling over in his graves.
Arizona State just three and eleven in Big Twelve play,
and if you didn't hear it earlier, I got the
Cougars covering eleven and a half. Cougar's favored by eleven
and a half in that one. Man, how crazy is
it that the Cougar has joined the Big Twelve and
then the Premier Basketball Conference becomes the SEC map. By

(01:34:41):
the way, I think the Lenardi bracket has eight Big
twelve teams going to the tournament. Wow. I think the
SEC's got twelve. I think twelve. My goodness, I believe
the long Warns are among that group.

Speaker 7 (01:34:54):
By the way.

Speaker 3 (01:34:54):
By the way, NXT win that big win over the
welth Kentucky was missing some good players, but that's okay,
and it took down game. A win is a win.
Quad one win is a quad one win, folks.

Speaker 7 (01:35:04):
That's right.

Speaker 3 (01:35:05):
That's in the last couple of weeks wins over ranked Miszoo,
ranked A and M and ranked Kentucky. If you guys
are in all at home and Ronnie tearing something new
deal out of this stop, please stop ovey On that note,
let's see what else to get for the News at noon.
I think that's all I got. It's ally was needed

(01:35:27):
unless you want the to hear about the Cubs getting
a one year deal with Justin Turner. And I would
ask you what was your favorite Jessin Turner moment as
a ceiling No, that's a bit steal softy. I got you.
I know where you are, all right, That, my friends,
is the News at noon at twelve twelve here on
Sports Talk seven. If you want to jump in on
the conversation, you may do so at seven one three
two one two five seven nine zero seven one three

(01:35:51):
two one two five seven Hinton. So I'm gonna ask
all of us to put our crystal ball uh in
front of us here? Are we gonna be deliberate reading
about be moved for Altobita left field a little bit
a lot or on the daily thing about that for
a me? Okay, and we'll discuss it when we come back.

(01:36:12):
Seven one three two one two five seven ninety. If
you want to chime in seven one three two one
two five seven ninety, I got a question for you,
and I always ask you this question. Well, Actually it's
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how's your DAT to day? How's your workouts? How's your
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been feeling motivated. Said, you're gonna hit the gym. I

(01:36:32):
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Speaker 5 (01:37:20):
The Mount Thomas Show with Ross continue so on Sports
Talk seven ninety.

Speaker 3 (01:37:30):
Timmy is twelve seventeen The Mot Thomas Show with Ross.
Christian Walker is in a photo shoot right now, so
as soon as he's done with that, he will come
and say hello to us. Wonderful looking forward to that.
If you miss start in le Bron Conversation that's also
on the one o'clock Cowen, I did miss it. We
will check it out that well. I know you checked out,
you were you were literally here, all right, So I've

(01:37:51):
got my crystal ball in front of me. Here, Okay,
here's how I think the outfield is going to go.
Jose will be fine. I'm not saying it's gonna be
a while he reinvented himself. I'm gonna say he looks
like a second baseman career infielder playing the outfield. He'll

(01:38:12):
he'll make the regular catches. He will not go out
of his way to make the catch that wasn't supposed
to be made. I don't think he's gonna have a
terrific rate of return on throwing guys out, scoring on
side flies or anything like that. I also think he's
not gonna be asked to do a whole lot of
that because I think my guess is he'll probably be
playing some of the shorter porches in baseball, which are
quite a few as you go around the National American League.

(01:38:34):
To me, the biggest bone of contention for astro fans
and probably for the organization will be can the outfield
collectively that's Jake, Chazz, Jose, Descenzo Jordan in it? Can
they hit enough? I think we're going to spend ross

(01:38:57):
a lot of time debating what they're going to do
with six through nine in the lineup. That's just my
early season field of it, and that I think we'll
spend more time than on that than we will worrying
about who's playing the left field today? Is this gonna
be a daily well, well, we run to the ballpark
and go, oh, is it now two Bay and left today?

(01:39:19):
Is it Albarez in left today? Is it Dubon and
left today? Is it descends the one left today? I mean,
it could be a it's gonna be a conversation piece,
but I think what will drive the show and drive
astro fans is why don't we have anything in terms
of massive pop out in the outfield, and hopefully that
isn't the case. But I think if we were to say,

(01:39:41):
based off of educated guests, based off of history, I
think that's what we're thinking about. Because they're hoping Chazz
comes back to what he was a couple of years ago.
I'm gonna hopefully catch up with Chas tomorrow and Jake
as well. We know who Jake is offensively, we know
he's defensively. I don't think there's gonna be a massive
amount of change in his game unless he all of
a sudden figures out what he was looking at the
the month of May to say, oh, that's what I
did and I didn't do that rest of the month

(01:40:02):
of the year. That's to me, will be what they
do offensively much more than what their do work is
going to be defensively. Yeah, I think that's what we're
worried about. And then you know, Dana Brown kind of
hinted at when we had them on, like, hey, if
you want to answer we need some left field production
at the plate. Then jose L TV provides that. But
then of course where does the trade off come and

(01:40:23):
what you're gonna get elsewhere? So that's gonna be the storyline,
especially if the pitching can stay healthy and in line
the way that we want it to, and we think
it will. If all of what Brown Blanco arraghetti are
what they were last year, what they were at their
peaks of last year, then you add in Fromberg and

(01:40:43):
then I just got a gut feeling that wasn't Nesky
is going to be very, very good because, as Dana
Brown also said, they bring pictures here and they work
wonders with them. And if you think we're giving you
the company line, now the evidence is Verlinder reinvented himself
even though he was late in his career. Remember when

(01:41:04):
he was trashing the Mets organization for how bad their
analytics were because of how good they were with the Astros.
And if there's no better example, it's what you say
Kakuchi was. You say Kakuchi was a home run machine,
not hitting them, tossing pitches that were hit by other
players out of the ballpark. They went nine and wanted
to start something like that. Yeah, and now I give

(01:41:26):
up the home run the very first game. He ned
to give up a few home runs because that's what
flyball pitchers do. But generally speaking, you had zero worries.
A matter of fact, there were people clamoring, when's U say,
going to pitch in a playoff? In a playoff game, Well,
the seriesly went two games. So whatever the elixir is
they use in the Astros pitching room, video room, whatever

(01:41:47):
the instructions are, there's a lot of evidence in the
last five years, and even before that when we had
what's his name, uh, the old The old guy hadn't
gonna be rude, but uh oh, I'm French Strom. There's
something in the DNA and the Astros pitching Academy that
seems to work and help people out. Charlie Marten Reine

(01:42:08):
been in himself here. It's yeah, it's the it is
the pitching coaches, but it's also the numbers guys and
tinkering with repertoires and adding this pitch or throwing more
of this pitch or whatever it is. Well, so yeah,
I would say the question mark is going to be
production and a lot from the outfield. But that is
the thing. As you mentioned Jake Myers and then't gonna
go out there and hit three hundred and twenty five bombs.

(01:42:29):
He's not gonna happen. So, yeah, you kind of he's
not enough of a sample, says, we kind of know
who he now, can he have a hotspurt? Yeah, but
there was also you know, June and July, the second
half numbers were not even close to what they were
in the first half. Yeah, the numbers he had that
hot May where he was opsing like nine hundred numbers
tumbled so hard. He had a worse year than he
had the year before. That was how that was with

(01:42:51):
that really hot may. You take on that hot May.
You don't want to look at Jake Myers's numbers, Well,
they wouldn't have They would not have been major league
caliber numbers.

Speaker 7 (01:42:58):
Correct.

Speaker 3 (01:42:58):
What he does is he he is a ninth place
hitter that is brought on for his defense. Now again,
nine hitters you need in the world of baseball today
in twenty twenty five, You need something out of your nine.
You need something out of your top nine. You just do.
But you can kind of live with it. If one
through eight are projecting to have the type of power.
The problem is Duba was playing almost every single day.

(01:43:20):
You didn't get any pop from there. Myers was playing
every day, so you had, you know, two nine of
your lineup that they got on base, that was cool,
but one of them wasn't getting on base and one
the other one was it was nothing more than a
singles hitter. Yeah. Oh, that's what you're wondering about. And
that's why I think a lot of the onus is
on Chaz to get back to where he was a

(01:43:40):
couple of years ago, or at least close to it.
He's probably somewhere in between, right, He's not as bad
as he was last year. Maybe he's not as good
as when he had twenty two home runs and a
very smaller, much smaller sample size and everybody was talking
about playing him every day, and Dusty Baker and the
whole bread pudd or banana pudding thing and all that
stuff was going on. So he's probably somewhere in between.
That still means to me, you need some production and

(01:44:04):
you could carry the day. And Das we hadn't really
we've we've hardly mentioned his name all the last season.
He's gonna have to continue to produce because we talked
abou him last year because he was taking he was
going from the part time starter, uh to playing every
single day. All we got to do is get him
out there six days a week, and you did that

(01:44:27):
to batting wise, it was obviously an upgrade. I mean, yeah,
anything over Martinelle Donal was going to be an upgrade.
The defensive work. I still and this is an early
guy feeling we had on the show years ago, which
maybe will change because of Christian Walker's stance. But I
always thought maybe this will still happen. I think is
going to end his major league career or maybe three

(01:44:49):
or years now. If Christian Walker's deal has done it,
He's gonna be a first baseman. I don't think the
catcher that got out of Sam Houston, say, I forgot
the guy's name, but they the advanced right up on
this kid is unbelievable. Yeah, but for for for twenty
twenty five sake though, that's another question mark to me,
because where would you stick your Dias when you want

(01:45:11):
him in the lineup, but you also want to get
Victor Karattini in there. You want some production you maybe
you know, get him off his legs. You'd stick him
at DH. They want your on more dhing more. They
went out two a probably the DH sum this year
as well. So how do you stick you know that
was kind of that relief spot for Joe's spot out
to say, you know what, I'm gonna throw you in
the DH spot. Let's get your on on the left.
They don't want to do that as much. They would

(01:45:31):
also say occasionally it was only a handful of times,
we'll put you on here.

Speaker 7 (01:45:34):
First.

Speaker 3 (01:45:34):
Well, Christian Walker supposed to be uh walking that down
to Christian Walker. And again I don't know him. We're
about to meet him in a few minutes. He's playing
six days a week. You're paying him to play thirty
four years old. You might want to get him off
his feet every now and then. We're with, eh, yeah,
there's there's a lot of guys out their feet days.
And that's the challenge I think for every manje league manager.
We're going to write that down. We need to ask
Joe Spot about that. I actually might I have that,

(01:45:57):
you know a matter of fact, I'm going I'm gonna
let you ask that question. Okay, it's get off that
guy's feet day. How do you balance that? Okay, because
that's a lot of if honestly, it's a lot of work.
Seven one three two one two five seven ninety seven
one three two one two five seven Onty. I hope
you guys are enjoying the Astros conversation because we are

(01:46:18):
certainly getting ready for another season. We'll get back to
the other things in sports, including, uh, the NBA letter
on this week. Uh, we have a little bit of
NFL tidbits to get to real quick before we get
to the break. Did did y'all enjoy that? Did you
watch Saturn out live? The fifty year thing? Did watch
a second of it? Because you just don't don't care.
If you don't care, you don't care. I mean, I

(01:46:39):
kind of forgot. I saw a couple of clips on
I I didn't see it live because I was at
the Black Jeopardy on on Twitter. I saw a couple
other ones on Twitter. Yeah, I thought they were funny,
like Eddie Murphy and Will Ferrell doing the scared straight
thing and yelling at people. I thought I thought Eddie
Murphy was the star of the show. Eddie Murphy doing
Tracy Morgan Black Jeopardy was hysterical. Yeah, I saw Carle laughed.

(01:47:03):
I just did watch the show. Yeah, it's crazy. It's
fifty years and to me, it still gives you one
or two segments a week. I'll tell you know why.
That's that's where social media followed that account. Yeah, that's true.
I mean I feel like if there's something really funny,
I catch it on Twitter. Yeah, like the George Washington
when they've been doing I thought those are pretty funny. Yeah,
and uh, Kate McKinnon is that whatever that woman is.

(01:47:24):
She's in the prison and she's talking about aliens and stuff.
And then her mom came on there for the first time.
Her mom was Meryl Streeps. She had never been on
a Saturday Night Live before. Oh, I didn't catch up.
And then Paul McCartney was fantastic?

Speaker 6 (01:47:35):
Was he?

Speaker 3 (01:47:35):
Except Houston? You didn't get to see it? Sorry about that?
Was he fantastic? Did he sing?

Speaker 7 (01:47:39):
Yeah? Okay, yeah?

Speaker 3 (01:47:41):
Are you sure he was fantastic?

Speaker 7 (01:47:43):
Magic?

Speaker 3 (01:47:43):
He was, No, he was amazing. People. That brought the
house down. So did Adam Sandler saying too about the cast.
It was really really I saw that, all right? Phones
next seven one three, two, one two five seven Hunty,
By the way, the man manicuring the fields now worked
this way towards first base man. He's just having a
ball out there. Do you think he's jamming or do
you think he's like, can I get I need to
hang over time more minutes.

Speaker 2 (01:48:04):
Yeah.

Speaker 3 (01:48:04):
You think it's like like when're you're at work and
you got like an office job, and you're like, all right,
I really only have like two hours of real work.
I gotta stretch this into five hours.

Speaker 7 (01:48:11):
Yeah.

Speaker 3 (01:48:11):
So you get on your computer and you get on
your Facebook like you're typing. You're really just damned going
in circles? Yeah, is the the eighth revolution of him?
Going in circles? Really that much better than adding that
much like he could stop right now, but he is.
He is in the same spot over and over and
over again, actually moving towards second base seven one three
two one two five seven ninety seven one three two
one two five seven with Ross on Matt we are

(01:48:33):
in West Palm Beach for Astro spring training here on
Sports Talk seven ninety more Matt Thomas.

Speaker 2 (01:48:39):
Show with Ross Now, but Sports Talk seven ninety.

Speaker 3 (01:48:49):
Matt Ross with you from West Palm Beach, where we
once again will tell you that are off the air
comments are significantly better than whenever whatever we provide you
on air, And someday we'll tell you we're doing off
the air some day some day name probably when we retire,
Like if we ever have a party like from my
retirement or your retirement, Ross will tell people what we

(01:49:11):
really talking about. Real brutal honesty. Oh yeah, that was yeah,
gloves come off for the like the final show ever?
Oh that may be seven one three, two, one two
five seven niney. Let's go to Jay on The Matt
Thomas Show with Ross. Jay, thank you for holding what's
on your mind?

Speaker 14 (01:49:32):
Uh, Jake, if he doesn't have a good spring, that
means you'll you'll stay in the minor leaves or they
just cut him.

Speaker 3 (01:49:40):
Jake Myers is gonna be your starting center fielder in likelihood? Yep?

Speaker 14 (01:49:45):
Oh no, what about John Singletons? Did they cut him
or they going to give him?

Speaker 3 (01:49:50):
He's I saw him today as the matter if fought
him at center?

Speaker 14 (01:49:53):
No, no, no, he's gonna he's supposed to be backing
up first base.

Speaker 6 (01:49:57):
That is correct?

Speaker 10 (01:49:58):
Eight or one of them?

Speaker 7 (01:50:00):
Okay?

Speaker 14 (01:50:01):
And then and then I heard you say you're gonna
put two V in left field.

Speaker 3 (01:50:05):
I'm not doing the Astros are gonna put him out there.
He's working out now field right now or today?

Speaker 7 (01:50:10):
He did.

Speaker 14 (01:50:12):
Besides playing here? Oh, I've been out working so besides him.
I'm playing here at the park.

Speaker 10 (01:50:20):
How's he gonna jump up the still home loans?

Speaker 3 (01:50:23):
He's not. That's not gonna be a part of the
reference exactly the way. No one in the history of
the world, Jay, no one in the history of Minute
May Parks ever robbed a home run off the Crawford
boxes and it's never happened.

Speaker 14 (01:50:35):
But but I think what they jumped up in there
and grabbed him off the wall.

Speaker 3 (01:50:41):
Hey, legally, could he climb up that scoreboard and get
up there like Spider Man? Yeah, you're why not? Why
why can't he?

Speaker 7 (01:50:48):
Jay?

Speaker 3 (01:50:49):
He can climb up there, he can kick, and he's
rob out there. Wait, man, how many How can do
you see you're not climbing walls and left field? I
didn't remember seeing him do it.

Speaker 14 (01:50:59):
Ever, you're is too bus He's not getting worried about
not getting hurt. That's why they playing in outfield. You
don't need to playing an outfield. You know what, Give
and take the Astros, they probably gonna fire a spotted
before the All Star break. What Yeah, that's my take.

(01:51:20):
They're gonna have a horrible no pitch, no pitch hot take.

Speaker 3 (01:51:24):
Canna stay here or whatever your name is Jay run
through the rotation for us? And who do you like?
And who do you like it among the guys in
the rotation?

Speaker 2 (01:51:31):
Go ahead rotation?

Speaker 14 (01:51:35):
Yeah about this, he's probably gonna get hurt. You got Blanco,
you might get away with him, and then you got
Aric Getty.

Speaker 3 (01:51:45):
Yeah uh, and then you got uh.

Speaker 14 (01:51:48):
Who's the other four guy you ain't got?

Speaker 3 (01:51:51):
How about Hunter Brown?

Speaker 14 (01:51:54):
Hunter Brown might be your only hope.

Speaker 3 (01:51:56):
Haunter Brown.

Speaker 14 (01:51:57):
I forgot about him. But one guy I ain't gonna
win you a hundred games?

Speaker 3 (01:52:02):
So well, they only have one good picture. Why are
you firing Joe spot over it? Why is Joe Spotta
getting the hook so quick?

Speaker 8 (01:52:09):
Oh?

Speaker 14 (01:52:09):
Because that's They're not gonna have a good season. Trust me,
they're not gonna. I won't call you back right before
the All Star breaking, say.

Speaker 3 (01:52:18):
Matt cannot wait.

Speaker 14 (01:52:19):
Tell you so back in February.

Speaker 3 (01:52:21):
I tell your soul callers, Jay gout, zero problem with
you calling us back. But remember if Jay, if they're
doing okay, you have to call and apologize and apologize.

Speaker 14 (01:52:29):
Yeah, you crue, that's right, you cruel.

Speaker 3 (01:52:31):
Right, That's what I'm talking about. Thank you, ship the
phone call, all right, see you later, I feel like
we were giving him news that he had not heard.
And and and look, I look, I know people have
to work, but up out of a coma. This jose
L Tuba thing has been talked about for about what's
four weeks now, has it not? I think Lester Holt
was talking about it, Lester holds, Wait, what's that guy's

(01:52:53):
name on NBC News. I think he was leading the
NBC News. That's a Rando pull. Lester Holt was talking
about it. Yeah, okay, I respected the game. I believe
it was Bill Maher's topic a on This Week with
a Real Time with Bill Maher. I think actually he
was a Donald Trump executive order that hose Al two
bay play left field. Hold up, we're getting word than

(01:53:15):
Anderson Cooper had Josel Twoby on the show a month ago.
Hold up. Barbara Walters before she passed, had him on
twenty twenty. The ghost of Walter Cronkite his way in. Oh,
he's got al two bay left. Excuse me, what did
you say, mister Morrow Edward R. Murrew, what did you say?
You got l two men coming on? Okay, good, well,

(01:53:36):
look it's possible. The win totals eighty six and a
half math. Okay, I want you a realist. As soon
as you told me that this morning, what was my
first first h and what else? That astros overreaction was
going to be in full play this year. Perhaps not,
Perhaps they go eighty six and seventy six the city.
They can't have a top five pitching staff, and this
city's gonna lose its mind. Yourn's gonna be good. You're

(01:54:02):
not gonna have a slow starting. Bregmant here, Now, that's
not nice. By the way, by the way, we got
an I got an email from a listener. Forgot who
it was from, but the listener bring up a good point.
I apologize for those of you did email me. They didn't.
We're gonna do bregmant updates really every couple of weeks.
Men updates. We gotta change on the Matt Toms Show,

(01:54:24):
brag Man update.

Speaker 5 (01:54:27):
Is he no?

Speaker 11 (01:54:29):
No?

Speaker 3 (01:54:33):
Is he wicked?

Speaker 10 (01:54:34):
Good? Or no?

Speaker 3 (01:54:37):
Did Devers let him play third?

Speaker 8 (01:54:39):
Or no?

Speaker 3 (01:54:42):
You gotta bring in Wicked at some point, all right,
you gonna go wicked and awesome, Wicked and awesome, wock
it awesome, wicked? Is he wicked awesome? Or no? That's
not bad? All right, let's try. Well, we got we
got a ton of work about it. What does he
call it? Not a thunderstorm? Brainstorm or something coming our way?
Clouds are looking pretty ominous, but I think we're gonna
be fine. Yeah, it canna be fine at least till

(01:55:03):
three o'clock. Then it's gonna tail Jonas Easy on seven
ninety at twelve thirty eight, Easy, thank you for holding.
Good afternoon to you.

Speaker 6 (01:55:11):
Bob, and welcome back, Matt. We had a good time
listening to Russ and Gordon yesterday.

Speaker 3 (01:55:15):
I'm glad they are good people.

Speaker 6 (01:55:18):
Well, I just wanted to kind of spice up the
thing because Debbie Downer was on record before I was
right now, and I mean the rotation is set and
it's fine. I mean, you guys guys coming off Tommy John.
That will help. So we have a sart plus of pitching, gentlemen,
And I wonder to know if you guys can give
me the timeline of when Garcia and as Latina coming back,

(01:55:39):
and I'll hang up and listen.

Speaker 3 (01:55:41):
Thank you very much. Garcia, who I think he said
a color so it didn't sound like you said, could
you say?

Speaker 10 (01:55:47):
Easy?

Speaker 3 (01:55:47):
Was the second guy?

Speaker 2 (01:55:49):
Garcia or what's.

Speaker 3 (01:55:51):
His name, Okay, Hivier, Christian Hovey, Christian Hovier. I think
Hobvier has done about the entire shit. I would say probably,
if I had to guess, he's not. I don't think
Cabier or France pitching too here. He looks good, of
course he does. I don't know if he's too, Yes,
he does. I would say Louis Garcia, he's not. We

(01:56:12):
haven't heard about him throwing off of a mound recently.
I think McCullers would be first before Garcia. To me,
I think I think in the world today, even though
the Tommy John surgery is revolutionized players, I think you're
looking at two years. If you get anything from Luis
Garcia before twenty six, I'd be considered a win. I
don't know. I mean, I'm just doing something against the wall. Yeah,

(01:56:33):
I don't know either. What kind of how bad was
the setback he had in September because they were trying
to get him up there. Yes, yeah, we were talking
about WHOA that seems fast and you know, it seems
to me that's kind of been the issue Lancing Colors
Junior talked about. It seems like that's what happened withis
Luis Garcia. Is these guys trying to rush back. Lasta
Colors Junior talked about it being a fifteen to seventeen

(01:56:54):
month injury. They told him so when they when he
hit fifteen months, he started to ramp up and he
was ready. So he had a setback. So hopefully he
can be back. And oh, by the way, you can
do And I'm not saying that you're doing this, but
everybody puts timelines on injuries. Yeah, and it's just doesn't
make any sense because everybody's different, damn it. You get

(01:57:14):
the he's got the astros gearing the photo shoot looking good. Man.
It's a clean ass uniform right there. Yeah, Christian Walker's
with us on the show. Yes, we're blown by this breakup.
By the way, uh Ross, I'm mad. By the way,
nice to see you. How are you all right? Christians
Walker is the newest Houston astro wearing the Monday through
Friday whites Man. That's a clean looking look right there.

Speaker 10 (01:57:36):
Good, Yeah, it feels good.

Speaker 3 (01:57:37):
By the way, what the hell are y all wearing
in Arizona last few years? You have want some terrible
ass uniform? Yea, the Colors got weird there for a
little colors everything got weird. I mean, what was that
all about?

Speaker 11 (01:57:46):
It?

Speaker 3 (01:57:46):
I could you couldn't figure out what you were wearing.

Speaker 12 (01:57:48):
Yeah, those uh, those city connects. The Serpientes are lover hate.
It's a it's a tough one.

Speaker 3 (01:57:52):
Yeah, like six different I mean the Diamondbacks changing your uniform.
You must have worn fifteen uniforms while you were there.

Speaker 12 (01:57:57):
Yeah, it makes it tough. I like, I like having
some custom gear season and you never know what colors are,
what color schemes to order during the offseason.

Speaker 3 (01:58:03):
Butright got to get a couple of things knocked out.
Our program director is an SEC fan. He wants to
honor you with your great days at South Carolina. Give
us your great moment as a South Carolina baseball player.

Speaker 7 (01:58:13):
Yeah.

Speaker 12 (01:58:13):
So at the soon without a doubt, the I mean,
easy answer. The National Championships perfect twenty ten, twenty eleven.
We were back to back National champions there. We got
to close out Rosenblatt and then open up that new
stadium with with Natty, so kind of a fun thing there.

Speaker 3 (01:58:29):
All right, Now, we're gotta be honest, and there's a
side of it. You won the National League pen In
a couple of years ago. We hate the Rangers. You
as Americans, let as America, let us down. You know that, right?
Do you see their parade if you would have won it?
You did a nice pray. I've been to Phoenix many time.
I'm the Rockets and aserswio that all the time. Great city.
They were at a freaking Walmart grocery store. One of

(01:58:52):
the champion sad parade in Arlington. So next praye you
need you always want to hear right, make sure it's
here for sure. Yeah, take us through this for agent process.
You had been in Arizona for ninety percent of your
major league career, so a thought or two about what
that was like. Did you enjoy the experience? Did you
were you intimate in conversations with your agent on the
daily or did you just say hey, get back to

(01:59:12):
me when you wanted to hear something you liked. Yeah,
a little bit of both.

Speaker 12 (01:59:16):
There's definitely quiet periods and crazy periods of the off season. Fortunately,
we had a little bit of leverage coming in, so
I wasn't too worried about, you know, if if somebody
was gonna call, it was just a matter of finding
the right fit. And a place that that I wanted
to play there. There's not a lot of chances and
opportunities in the business side of things these days to
get to pick where you play. Yeah, try to pick

(01:59:37):
a place where you want to play. So so were
we wanted to use that to our advantage. And you know,
Arizona was great, but but it was pretty far from
home for us. We live in South Carolina, so so
going into the off season, my wife and I had
Houston circleed. It was a city that we were excited
to be a part of and just super pumped when
when the front office reached out.

Speaker 3 (01:59:58):
And what's it been like for you getting here, getting
acclimated obviously first full team workout here today, but from
the outside looking in and now kind of being here
for a little bit, getting to know the guys that
the the Astros. It's the club clubhouse.

Speaker 12 (02:00:11):
He'll feel for you. Yeah, it's great. It's a you
can tell winning is is at the forefront. But in
the same sense, you know, at this time of the year,
it's just getting back into the swing of things, and
it's it's a pretty lighthearted attitude.

Speaker 3 (02:00:23):
I think.

Speaker 12 (02:00:23):
You know, you see guys working hard and getting their
reps in but also you know, joking around and having fun.
It's it's a it's a good time of year. We're
all we're all got the itch after a long offseason
and uh, you know, being being back in the good
weather and playing playing baseball again is what we want.

Speaker 3 (02:00:38):
Did Judy Ricon about the astros An organization when you
knew they were on the shortlist? For yourself?

Speaker 12 (02:00:43):
A little bit, A little bit other than the obvious things,
you know, It's it's cool, you know, meeting a guy
like Bagwell, getting to have some conversations with him, how
much pride he has for this organization. And you know,
he said something today he's been wearing this this uniform
since nineteen ninety uh so so here and hearing little
things like that really remind you of the culture and uh,

(02:01:05):
you know, the the winning tradition.

Speaker 3 (02:01:07):
Three straight gold gloves for yourself? First of where are they?
I mean, do you have them in your at the house?
Or where where can I find the gold glove of yours? Yeah,
they're they're in the house.

Speaker 12 (02:01:14):
I have a little workout room upstairs with some some gears,
some bats that I've had signed by guys, and some teammates,
and and they're in there, you know, on the on
the the trophy rack, if you will.

Speaker 3 (02:01:25):
Who is your first baseman idol growing up?

Speaker 12 (02:01:28):
That's a good question. So I didn't actually start playing
first base until college. Growing up, high school, middle school,
I was. I was an infielder, but mostly third base.
Loved watching Scott Roland.

Speaker 3 (02:01:42):
He was he was my guy.

Speaker 12 (02:01:43):
I got a chance. I was a Phillies fan growing up,
so he he came through Philly and and you know,
watching him was was a lot of fun. And then
and then Ryan Howard, you know that that first year
he had that rookie year, broke onto the scene. That
was that was a lot of fun to watch too.

Speaker 8 (02:01:57):
I was.

Speaker 3 (02:01:57):
I was in high school for that when we were
growing up, probably you as well. A lot of the
first basemen were biggy guys. Just find a place for him.
First of all, I grew up watching Jeff Bagwell, so
I knew there was intricacies to it. Yuligiel, before a
couple of years before your same situation. The art of
playing first base, thankfully, I think, is no longer just

(02:02:18):
put the fact out there. It's a skill. Holding runners
on fielding your position well tell me the biggest adjustment
for you going from the left side of the to
the right side of the infield and being able to say, yeah,
I want to own this part of the field absolutely.

Speaker 12 (02:02:30):
I think what helped me was was playing on the
other side of the infield at one point and knowing
what it's like to feel like you have to make
a perfect throw, feel like you got to hit somebody
in the chest over there for them to make the play.
And you know, I pride myself on not being that guy.
I want to be somebody that, you know, my shortstop
can lay out in the hole and come up and
throw from his knees and know that if he gets
it close, we're gonna make the out. That that always

(02:02:51):
helped me as an infielder, know when I had somebody
over there, So you know, that's something that's important to
me playing first base.

Speaker 6 (02:02:56):
Now.

Speaker 3 (02:02:57):
Christian Walker, newest Houston astro with us here on the
Rate your program. Uh, very excited that you came here
because we were all anxious about what's gonna happen with
Alex and figuring out with Kyle and whatnot. When you
finally signed on the dotted line, tell me what it
was like get trying to find your teammates, know what
was going to be there, and honestly, this infield is

(02:03:17):
gonna be completely different. How long do you think it's
gonna take? And is there gonna be a magic day
that you're go all right, we as a collective group
know what we're doing in here. Now, that's hard to
pick a data. I think.

Speaker 12 (02:03:27):
I think Tony Perry's cheek is going to do a
great job of making sure we get quality reps out
there together. I think practicing fast is important. Yeah, you know,
feeling out, feeling out each other's range and and you know,
like something little like knowing that you know Juban is
such a great arm Uh but but trying to figure
out his arm action?

Speaker 3 (02:03:45):
Does he does he cut it? Does he does he?
Does he throw it clean?

Speaker 8 (02:03:48):
You know?

Speaker 10 (02:03:48):
Is it?

Speaker 12 (02:03:49):
Is it a true ball? Does it have armside? You
know everybody has the has their tendencies. So so it's uh,
it's fun to get to know, you know, some new,
really really good infielders. How long can that take to
get used to in that climate this time of year,
it happens pretty quick. It's it's never really a struggle,
It's just you know before we know it. Here we're
gonna have hundreds of ground balls together, and you know,

(02:04:10):
hundreds of double plays that we've turned on the backfield.
So it happens quick, i'd say, here, and you know,
about a week or so, we all start feeling pretty
comfortable with each other.

Speaker 3 (02:04:18):
You have a lot left in your career. But once
the clock turns thirty and beyond, did you have to
as getting ready for this season, getting maybe a little
sooner as compared to maybe when you're in your twenties
coming up in the game. I mean, yes, I know.

Speaker 12 (02:04:32):
I think there's there's a side of it where the
more time you spend around the game, the more you
know yourself and you know your routine and you know
what you need to be ready for a season. Sprint trainings,
it can be. It can be a long amount of
time and it can be short.

Speaker 3 (02:04:46):
It's a right.

Speaker 12 (02:04:47):
It's like some years you feel like you just you're
not clicking, you're not clicking, and then all the opening
day comes and it's it's it's it's lightning. And then
other years it's like by ten at bats in you
feel like you're in a good spot and you could
go Opening day the next day. So it's you know,
the the the age or anything like that. That's that's
that's nothing that's on my radar. My body feels good.

(02:05:07):
I spend a decent amount of time in the weight room.
It's something that I pride myself on. It's it's helped
me stay on the field uh for a while. So,
you know, feeling strong, feeling feeling ready to go and
and looking to looking forward to playing a lot of games.

Speaker 3 (02:05:20):
Your overall thoughts about playing it at what Dyke and
Park now you've been there obviously a few times over
your career.

Speaker 12 (02:05:25):
Uh, yeah, yeah, I'm very excited. I like the dome feel.
I think that's cool. I think I think the consistency,
uh in the environment, knowing you know, the the weather
in Houston and the rain I'm sure, I'm sure it
can comes in quick, and the humidity and all that.
So knowing if there's a home game we're playing, I
think that that mental Uh, just just knowing what to expect,

(02:05:45):
getting into a routine. You know, there's there's nothing like
waking up on a on a gloomy day and trying
to figure out if there's going to be a delay
or if you're hitting VP on the field and this
and that, so so I'm looking forward to that. And
then you know, the fans. It's something that's always stuck
out to me coming in as a visiting team. Uh
is playing in front of the fan base.

Speaker 3 (02:06:02):
What was your conversation has been like so far with
Joe's spotted because I mean, as you know, first base
was in flux for the last couple of years. Now,
did you like give you a big hug, say, I'm
happy to put you at first base every day. Any
conversations also about h and can you play left field? Yeah,
we're trying to figure out left field. Everybody their mothers
wants to play left field.

Speaker 12 (02:06:22):
Of Carolan and I actually coming up with a few
different teams. There was a lot of really good first
basement in front of me.

Speaker 3 (02:06:27):
So I have played left field. Oh that's there, we
got fox headline.

Speaker 14 (02:06:30):
Here we go.

Speaker 12 (02:06:32):
Hopefully we just started a controversy to see it because
it's not it's not pretty out there. No, I mean,
I mean, d ah and cool, like if that's something
where you know, it's a way to maybe take a
day and and and get the legs back under me.
But but honestly, I like to be out in the field.
I think it helps me stay in the routine offensively
and you know, stay moving, and it's it's something that

(02:06:52):
I've I've just grown up doing.

Speaker 3 (02:06:53):
I enjoy.

Speaker 12 (02:06:54):
I enjoy being out in the field, for sure, But
but yeah, I think I think there's something too coming
in and feeling valued. You know that that makes you
excited to play and makes you excited to prove everybody,
everybody right, you know that the standards are real, the
expectations are real, and it's it's something that that you
crave as as a big leaguer. You want do you
want somebody to put pressure on you and and and

(02:07:15):
you have to.

Speaker 3 (02:07:16):
Go out and prove it. So you're a South Carolina native.

Speaker 12 (02:07:20):
No, no, no, I grew up grew up just outside
of Philly.

Speaker 3 (02:07:22):
Oh, I was gonna say, because I was like, you
have no accent whatsoever. You do have a Philly accent,
of a South Carolina accent and none of that.

Speaker 12 (02:07:28):
Yeah, yeah, they've they've both kind of disappeared. I I
went to school there obviously, and and just fell in
love with the area and never left. But grew up
just outside of Philly.

Speaker 3 (02:07:37):
Same city as Mike Piazza and Gino Arima. Do your research,
Matt come on, yeah, Tommy Lasorda. By the way, we
know we know your We know your dog's names too.
That's true.

Speaker 12 (02:07:45):
What was it, Dottie and uh Jack Jackson, Milly Milli
we had, we had there's a cat. Yeah, she's she's
a she belongs to the neighborhood, really, the neighborhood cat.

Speaker 3 (02:07:55):
Yeah, she's just So what part of South Carolin do
you in Columbia itself or.

Speaker 12 (02:07:58):
We do just north of Colombia. We're like, we're like
fifteen minutes from campus.

Speaker 3 (02:08:01):
So can you walk around town incognito? Or do you
do people stipe at the grocery store.

Speaker 12 (02:08:06):
They they recognize me for sure. But it's it's it's
more from the Gamecock days than from pro ball. The
Braves are the team there, so so everybody knows knows
the game Cocks more than more than that.

Speaker 3 (02:08:16):
Do they realize how many home runs you've hit in
the last five years? Yeah?

Speaker 12 (02:08:19):
Yeah, Arizona, Arizona was cool. It's a crazy thing getting recognized.
It's it's humbling and all that. But but back home
in South Carolina, it's it's mostly from the from the
national championships.

Speaker 3 (02:08:28):
Okay, I've never been to South Carolina. Apparently quite an experience.
I mean for football basketball, the women's team never loses.
I mean, I don't know that's all about. Yeah, jeez,
they did. They did any s SEC smack talk in
the clubhouse at this.

Speaker 12 (02:08:43):
Point, not yet, not yet.

Speaker 3 (02:08:45):
I'm sure.

Speaker 12 (02:08:45):
I'm sure it'll start once, especially when football season starts
back up. But but nothing, nothing so far.

Speaker 3 (02:08:50):
Well, we're very happy to have you here. Such a
nice surprise when you came here. I mean, I mean,
we're anxious. This is kind of new to us. We've
known Briggs, we've known, uh, you're regularly. A couple of
years ago we had JB and Kyle Tucker. This is uh,
you're actually coming. Not at a bad time because I
think they're all your teammates trying to figure out what
the ViBe's going to be right now.

Speaker 12 (02:09:11):
Yeah, Yeah, it's a it's a fun time. It's it's uh,
you know, if guys, guys come and go, it's it's
part of the business side of things. Unfortunately, you know,
you never want to lose guys, especially people who you
know were staples in the lineup and and a part
of a lot of successful years. But I think there's
a there's a cool opportunity about that of of being
able to keep the success going with a different group

(02:09:32):
of guys, different responsibilities, different roles, And so far the
clubhouse has been great.

Speaker 3 (02:09:38):
And uh, I'm looking forward to you know, continuing to Mesh,
he alluded to the DH for let you run. Do
you like the DH once in a while to get
off your feet a little bit? Or is that you
just I need to be if I'm in the lineup,
I need to be at first base.

Speaker 12 (02:09:49):
So I mean, I would much rather be at first base,
but I would rather be in the lineup than not
at a full day off. Yeah, period, So you know,
if that's a way to get some at bats and
help team on days where you know, maybe we're trying
to rest up the legs or something like that, for sure,
very very interested in something like that. But but if
it was my call, I'd be at first every day.

Speaker 3 (02:10:10):
Thank you so much for coming by again. It's our
pleasure to have you in town. You're gonna love the
city of Houston. Diehard Baseball Group, great Stadium, not one
hundred and fifty five degrees and Feenix like it is
every day, but he meant it. He's gonna suck. I'm
just gonna be honest with you. Yeah, not great.

Speaker 12 (02:10:22):
Yeah, well we just to it a little bit on
this shost I'm sure.

Speaker 3 (02:10:24):
I'm sure it'll be it's a yeah. And we don't
have the dry we just have like just pure heating.
You're conditioning on the five minute walk to the park,
you'd be fine. Yeah, yeah, from the garage. I appreciate
you guys having all right. Christian Walker, by the way,
you get a commedia career ahead of you.

Speaker 14 (02:10:36):
Two.

Speaker 3 (02:10:36):
We're a little scared. We're gonna take our jobs, all right.
Christian Walker with us here on The Matt Thomas Show
with Ross. More coming up in a moment. Here on
Sports Talk seven ninety.

Speaker 2 (02:10:46):
Lunchtimers. This is the Matt Thomas Show.

Speaker 3 (02:10:51):
Final hour, The Matt Thomas Show with Ross. Thanks again
to Christian Walker for joining us. You get a picture
of Christian and Ross talking because I had to take
the picture. But way, my phone's doing a lot better
and happy with me now. I'm proud of you.

Speaker 7 (02:11:03):
Matt.

Speaker 3 (02:11:04):
Make somebody to get my phone. I got the new
phone so here you know, I always it's called constructive criticism.
Nobody's called beat me over the head with it. No,
nobody wants to see your smudged ass photos. So I'm
trying to help you out. Get the quality up. Let's go, baby.
I like Christian a lot, very nice and just Rake,
just just swing really hard. You're gonna get a bunch
of home runs out of the ballpark. Sounds like he

(02:11:25):
wants to be at first base every single name as
I'm gonna play it me at first base. Called a
day so we'll see, we'll see. Yeah, we are here
at West Paul Beach. We had to Danner Brown early
early in the show today. If you missed that, it's
coming up at about ten minutes from now. As oh
your water just I can't control the way. I know,

(02:11:47):
I know, I know we're staying me for that. I'm
not I'm not all right. I'm disappointed. I know I've
disappointed you a lot. We are here in West Fault Beach, Florida,
getting ready, getting ready. Tomorrow's show is already locked and loaded.
Are you ready for the we're gonna do on the
show tomorrow. No, I'm gonna tell you right now, we
got going. We got uh oh number one we got

(02:12:11):
our Wistsky is going to join the show. Word Yeah,
we got uh. Spencer Arraghetty going to join the show.
Spencer Arragetty, he's good. He's good. Cam Smith. The few
guys are gonna take our jobs. Raic Getty's very good.
Cam Smith who is going to bench press me.

Speaker 7 (02:12:29):
During the show.

Speaker 3 (02:12:30):
We're gonna stage in arm wrestling match between you. No,
there's no chance matter if we didn't get a photo.
Pretty fun, actually, that's what I'm saying. It's funny, funny, funny,
funny stuff. And then Matt, maybe Joe a spot it,
maybe joining us live. Don't know that for sure, but
we will hear from Joe tomorrow is part of the
media scrum. And then Wednesday. Don't know yet, but I
can tell you already we're gonna hopefully hear from two
of the outfielders. Uh and uh, we're gonna talk to

(02:12:51):
Hunter Brown on Wednesdays or on Thursday. Excuse I think
we're Dayhead'm about to yesterday off love it spring training, Matt.
It's in the air, baby. This wind is what is
going on. It's it's blustery, as they say, yeah, the
kids will say blustering so that is what we're doing
here and we look forward to bringing you more spring
training coverage again. The Astros start their spring training games
this Saturday. Okay. Now, in years past there have been

(02:13:15):
nights days we've been off the air completely because of
the game starting at noon. Yes, but since we start
at ten o'clock, now you get a snack size actually
better than snack side. It's almost like a light lunch
version of the back tops. So on days where we
have Gay Day games, we'll be on ten to eleven fifty, yes,
and then we'll say goodbye after that, and then those
dead beats Adam and Adam will be on late. Yeah,

(02:13:38):
they're not gonna work much in March. No, that's fine,
that's the reality. No, Actually, some of those games go
pretty quick. No, but too. But they also have four
to fifty first pitches too here too, So there, I mean,
bunch of slackers. Yeah, I don't know where you paying them,
but it's gonna be entirely too much. Plus the day
games coming up to oh, well we're getting half days,
so I am at that's no complaints. Headlines of the

(02:13:59):
day L two A out with the outfielders today, No
surprise on that didn't see any videos of him dropping
a fly ball or throwing his down going on, I'm
not doing this and flipping off the coaches. Let me
tell you all of us, I should tell of us.
A lot of us, either as dads or we ourselves,

(02:14:21):
were little leggers. When we didn't make the play, we
would take our glove and slam it down on the
ground to do that. I'll tell you a concern that
popped up in my head now within the last five minutes,
in the last before Christian Walker. Okay, tell me if
this is concerned, all right, I'm gonna close my eyes.
What is jose L two V's biggest failing as a player?

(02:14:46):
Base running? What does he do when he makes base
running errors? He's too aggressive? Yeah, it's never halfway and
then goes back. He's always he always goes with that
extra Yeah, and it's a blessing and a curse. Sometimes
he can, you know, steal third when he's not supposed
to do. Sometimes he gets thrown. He looks like a fool.

(02:15:08):
Also when now two ways going through it at the plate?
What's going on? Sometimes he swings at everything a little
too aggressive? Is he going to be too aggressive? Sometimes
in left field or is that not going to be
an issue? Just I was thinking to myself, Okay, then
I'm gonna give you the my approach to this answer,

(02:15:30):
because he's my He's the greatest aster of all time.
If you're aggressive, if you're aggressive in one thing, you're
aggressive in everything. So that's what I'm part hold on.
What has made him the greatest aster of all time
is the things we're talking about. Yes, the aggression can

(02:15:50):
be very good. And when he jumps on a first
first pitch and he's aggressive and it goes over the
Crawford boxes, we love it. So I don't think you can.
You can pick and choose your aggressiveness. So do will
there be some throws that will like Look, Jose running
the basis makes you shake your head about once a week,
But he's been doing that for the last twelve or

(02:16:11):
thirteen years, and look where he's developed, ended up as
the greatest after the ball tame after Jeff begwell, well
he'll get there. He better get there in the first bout.
I don't want to. I don't want to. If he
gets the seventy four point eight percent, I will chase
down every chip broke it, He'll make it. He's gonna
get in. Dan Shaughnessy said he's not voting for him, loocus,
Danz a douche and he's got bad perm. That's a

(02:16:32):
different issue at a different time. I'll not letting Dan
Shaughnessy of the Boston Globe tell me who who should
be and it should not be in there's there's gonna
be enough sane people. Even the passes of the world
and the John Haymans and the busterlies are gonna say,
we can't be that stupid. I think as the years
go along, you get defurther distance away from it. The
twenty twenty two championship as well. And oh, by the way,

(02:16:55):
he's been excellent in those years following that scandal. And
as long as he says healthy and the data says
he's productive, he's gonna have a puncher's chance at three thousand,
not saying is gonna get to it eight hundred hits.
I think, okay, that he's five seasons, he's thirty thirty
five this year, Okay, gumptive season. It's gonna be close.

(02:17:21):
Can I tell you how badly I want him to
get it, because at that point it's irrefutable. He's gonna
get in. Yeah, we got wiggle room.

Speaker 10 (02:17:30):
You know what you do that.

Speaker 3 (02:17:32):
I'm just saying that for the for the stats, eight
or nine time All Star, there's not a major leaguer
with three thousand hits. It's not in the major league,
in the in the Baseball Hall of Fame, Rafael pal Marrow,
there's one Barry Bonds, there's two. Any other cheaters did
they ride get to three thousand? I don't think so.
But he not embroiled in a steroids Okay, still put

(02:17:55):
it this way. Let me rephrase not in balld anybody
that's hit three in steroids, it's got fame. Same thing
about three hundred wins too, which I don't know if
it's driving me berliner, But that's.

Speaker 7 (02:18:06):
Not gonna happen.

Speaker 3 (02:18:07):
He ain't getting there. Sorry, No, we appreciate you here
and he won the prize. Pooholes will be in, Mabey
will be in a Rod not in and Paul Marrow.
So Barry Mall has never got the three thousand hits.

Speaker 2 (02:18:18):
Huh.

Speaker 7 (02:18:19):
You know why?

Speaker 3 (02:18:20):
There's how many times when you walk and in the
last five years of his career, it's crazy. His on
base was like five seventy one of those years or
something ridiculous. God, by the way, did you see him
coaching this one of the celebrity games in San Francisco
over the weekend?

Speaker 8 (02:18:36):
No?

Speaker 3 (02:18:36):
I didn't.

Speaker 7 (02:18:37):
Yeah, yeah he was.

Speaker 3 (02:18:38):
There was somebody else that was I don't want to
say it was. It was somebody else that was a
uh Bay Area legend too short stop? Okay, help me out, Barry, No,
help me out. Somebody that watched and this maybe asking
for it. Did somebody watch the celebrity event on this weekend?

(02:19:01):
It was Barry Bonds on one side, and there was
somebody I don't want to I don't think it was
Ronnie Lott. It might have been a forty niner. And
look up celebrity coaches and see if Jerry Rice was
Jerry Rice. That's who it was, Jerry Rice. Jerry Rice.
And you had Barry Bonds coaching the celebrity game. Wow.

(02:19:23):
And I watched the minute and a half of that.
The greatest baseball player of all time and the greatest
football player of all time. It's pretty great. Jerry Rice
greatest football player. You're really gonna narrow down to one person?
I don't think you can come at me, Bro, and
you don't want If you're gonna do that, his name
is Tom Brady. Bro, Jerry Rice.

Speaker 7 (02:19:39):
Bro.

Speaker 3 (02:19:40):
No, Tom Brady better than Jerry Rice. Nope, disagree. We're
gonna have this fight in West Palm Beach. No, it's fine, Okay.
If you're gonna got Tom Brady too, you know I
do that, then I'm gonna go Jim Brown. Oh and

(02:20:01):
Barry Sanders.

Speaker 10 (02:20:01):
Yeah, we go.

Speaker 3 (02:20:02):
Let's get some nuance.

Speaker 8 (02:20:03):
Go.

Speaker 3 (02:20:04):
Guess what quarterback didn't even really have to do anything
to the line, Tom Brady. You can't play wide receiver
at forty four because you Tom Brady's just sitting there
not doing anything. Physical defensive player of all time, Lawrence
Tayler about Okay, let's go. Yeah. I like these arguments.
I don't want to argument any of this. That's okay,
don't hurt yourself. Well, I'm just saying, it's just it's

(02:20:24):
it's too many positions, too many, jerr. There's no right answer.
But if you want to go shortlest Jerry Rice, that's
right there. You know I'll put if you're building an all,
if you're building all twenty two, Jerry, If it's not
about the most the most valuable position is quarterback, Okay,
but the best at one my my, my eleven man
offensive team, Tom Brady is throwing the ball to Jerry

(02:20:45):
Rice and his hand of the ball to uh, Jim
Brown and Barry Sanders, over Walter Payton and over Emmitt Smith.
To me, he's the only one at his position that's inarguable.
You can well, tom Brady's pretty inarguable. But at there
are times people people before this last Super Bowl were
arguing Pat Mahomes, not Peyton Manning. Back in the day,

(02:21:07):
Joe and me, when I took Joe Montana off my
list as the greatest quarterback of all time because the
all you did was win and make great plays, I
replaced him with Tom Brady. Man I could do that.
I felt about doing that. Yeah, all right, Uh one
eleven is our time back to the baseball conversation. Next,
we had Dana Brown in the ten o'clock hour. You're saying, Matt,

(02:21:28):
you guys are on at ten o'clock, Yes, Ross explaining
the audience we're on every day at ten two Sports
Talk seven ninety the new time slot, Live it, love it,
believe in it. All right, Dana Brown visited with us next.
We'll carry most of that conversation straight ahead. Matt and Ross.
We are with you today from West Palm loaded guestless
tomorrow working on Wednesday or Thursday as well. We want
you guys to be a part of the radio program.

(02:21:48):
Seven one three two one two five seven ninety seven
one three two one two five seven nine zero. Ross
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Speaker 5 (02:22:48):
More Man Thomas Show with Ross now on Sports Talk seven.

Speaker 3 (02:22:54):
Ninety timy is one eighteen. It is about Thomas Show.
We take it till Thomas Show with Ross. I forget
that we're here till two o'clock every day time, come
on until come on Now, I'm getting I've been pretty
good about its. Matter of fact, I have our new

(02:23:14):
volleyball court in the backyard Relata venue. We have some
new banners going up with Carly's new school, and I
have a new banner made for the Matt Thomas Show
with Ross. Really yes, all right, I want to show
owe you zero. Okay, gonna give you a couple of shekels. No,
I want you when we put up that one, she
goes man, he really did. So your name is in
the bows in my backyard. Wow, that's weird. That's great,

(02:23:36):
it's a little weird. Just don't make the dog's pee
on it.

Speaker 7 (02:23:38):
Be fine.

Speaker 3 (02:23:40):
They're pin on the old one twelve to three year
and aches. All right, as promise, let's get you some
of the conversation most of the conversation with Dana Brown,
the Astros gentle manager. Now, one of the things you
kept hearing over and over again during the whole Alex
Pregnant conversation was these internal discussions, meaning, I e. Do

(02:24:00):
you An'll want Bregford? Sure you want to get extra money? No,
that was the internal conversation. So I did ask Dana
a little bit of a lighthearted manner, I think exactly.
These internal discussions are every day when he gets the ballpark,
talking with his baseball operation staff about what's ahead for
twenty twenty five.

Speaker 9 (02:24:18):
Yeah, internal discussions are basically, Look, we show up here
every day and you know, we're always thinking of ways
to get the team better, and so we're still having conversations,
you know, about players and what we could do to
make this club even better than it is.

Speaker 7 (02:24:33):
Right now. We feel really good about the club.

Speaker 9 (02:24:34):
We feel like, you know, we can win this division
again and get deep into the postseason. We feel like
we got a good group of position players, a good
group of starters and leievers, and so you know, we
have these discussions every every day, we talk. You know,
it's amazing that I you know, I walk in first time,
I say, hey, what you guys got today? What's going on?

(02:24:55):
And you talk to any other clubs what's going on?
So that's that's part of what we do, internal discussions.

Speaker 3 (02:25:02):
I don't remember a whole lot of maneuvering this time
of year. Am I wrong about this? I mean, I
know guys can sign some deals. I think Justin Turner
just signed the day. But in terms of just real
hot action, is there.

Speaker 7 (02:25:14):
A lot right now? I think it is.

Speaker 9 (02:25:15):
I think what's gonna happen is guys get into camp
and you start seeing your players a little bit. Some
of the guys have been here for a little bit longer,
and you start to get that look at them and
you say, oh man, maybe we can upgrade here, or
you know, maybe we have enough in this area. And
so you know, those are part of those discussions that
you have and you know, before you know it, you
may make a move. So we're always trying to find

(02:25:39):
some angle where we can improve this cloud. But I
think you have to be relentless because if you're not,
that's that day something to slip by.

Speaker 3 (02:25:47):
What do you think about I mean, of course Bregnant
signing and it going on for a long time and
it happening in the last couple of years of Jordan Montgomery,
Blake Snell and some guys getting signed early some late.

Speaker 10 (02:25:59):
Is that it just can you tell me?

Speaker 3 (02:26:01):
Is that something that's recent? Has it always been like that?
But it feels like things have dragged on a little
bit more and it's just as a whole and a
picture free agency. In your opinion, what do you think
about the state of the way things go these days,
especially with the way that Bregman dragging on the way
that they did.

Speaker 9 (02:26:18):
Yeah, I just think it's it's depends on the type
of year, like how many big boys do you have
on the market, you know. I think it's one of
those things where sometimes you have so many good players
on the market, and you know, guys are you know,
waiting on deals and trying to do deals and trying
to get creative, and you know, so a lot of
things are happening all at one time. There's a lot

(02:26:39):
of clubs that you have to have conversations with, and
so it seems complicated sometimes. But you know, I think
at the end of the day, guys you know, target
who they want, they go after them hard, and if
they don't get them, they go to the next guy.

Speaker 3 (02:26:54):
But how in the world as a general manager, whether
it's you or anybody else in the big leagues, the
spot out for a guy that may or may not
come that you mean, Tama, Let's be prutally honest here.
We love pregnant very much, but your life had to
move on. You had to go fix this infield right
away here, whether he was coming back or no.

Speaker 7 (02:27:10):
Yeah, the one thing I.

Speaker 9 (02:27:11):
Learned when I was in Atlanta working under Alex and Toppoless.
He used to move really quickly in the off season
and he would, you know, get his targets, line him up,
and you know, once you you know, shoot at this one.
If it didn't work, go to the next one. And
so I think what I was trying to do is,
you know, hey, we want Gregman to come back, but

(02:27:33):
you know, we have to think what if we don't
sign him, if something goes wrong, And so we didn't
wait around. You know, we made the trade right away.
You know, we you know, wanted to put Perettis at
third and you know, we got Walker for first base,
and you know, because we were losing two bats that
hit one through five, so we wanted to add two

(02:27:53):
bats back, and we wanted to remain competitive. And so
you can't sit around and wait. You have to be active,
you know. And as you know, the owner, Jimm Crane says, look,
our windows always open. So we're always looking to win,
We're always looking to make deals, We're always looking to
get better.

Speaker 3 (02:28:06):
One of the early deals was the Kyle Tucker trade
to Chicago. And look, Cam Smith apparently, I mean, everyone's like,
this guy's built the granite, can't wait to see him.
I want to see him in some spring training games.
On the other side of it, what made them want
to get this done because in a year from now
he's not committed to Chicago. I mean, why you have
to battle the I want him now as compared to

(02:28:28):
I don't want to give a lot of prospects up,
so weeak lose him in the era. What's it like
I'm there in and what was it like dealing with
a squad that knew that you were sending him there,
knowing that he's going to be a free agent in
one season.

Speaker 9 (02:28:38):
Yeah, I mean since some teams, you know, they get
to the point where they're like really trying to get
back to the postseason. And I think they were motivated
by trying to get back to the postseason, and they
knew that, you know, Tucker was, you know, a really
good player, and so that they would use a guy
like that in the middle.

Speaker 7 (02:28:55):
Of their lineup.

Speaker 9 (02:28:56):
Good defender, he could steal bases, so you know, he's
wanted a better position players in baseball, and so I
think that was the appeal. You know, you're getting one
of the better positions and one of the better position
players in baseball, and you're trying to get back to
the postseason, and you know, that kind of motivated them
to do what they did. And then we felt like, look,

(02:29:16):
if we're going to trade Tucker, we got to get
something really good back, you know. And we felt, you know,
like getting those three guys were like really big. You know,
you got two guys that you can put on your
major league team right away. You got another guy and
that's not that far away, and so you know, we
felt like we got impact back.

Speaker 3 (02:29:34):
Astro general manager Dana Brown is here on Sports Talk
seven ninety and well, at the end of the thing
that we're all been talking about everybody's talking about, of course,
hose al Tuv and the left field discussion. How how
did this come about? And how does he fit as
a piece of the puzzle, because of course we know
Chaz Jake, maybe Dubon some Zach Dezenzo, maybe Jacob Melton

(02:29:54):
down the down the line as well. How does al
Tuve fit in this left field puzzle?

Speaker 7 (02:30:00):
Yeah, so it seems to be picking up steam.

Speaker 3 (02:30:02):
You know, it's all Houston's talking about it. Respect it's nobody.
I mean, there's a lot of things funny about your squad.
Everybody asking us to ask you about jose Lt.

Speaker 7 (02:30:11):
Yeah, well, you know, we'll give it to him.

Speaker 9 (02:30:13):
So look, I think al Tuve is having a ball
out there in left field. First of all, he's excited
about it. He's out there like a little kid. It's unbelievable.
He's always smiling. And you know, we wanted to create
some versatility and if you could use him, you know,
in left field, you know that's going to create some
versatility and we think that could be big. And you know,

(02:30:34):
we needed a bat in our outfield, so that helps
us with a bat in our outfield.

Speaker 7 (02:30:37):
But uh, you know, he's he's done a great job.
He's really taking well to it.

Speaker 9 (02:30:43):
And as long as he's having fun, you know what,
you know, we we don't have to commit to it today,
but as long as he's having fun and getting better
and we feel like, look, he's got a chance to
be a really good defender, why not. You know, he's
he's doing a good job. I just went out earlier
and watched him take some fly balls and man, he
was getting good jumps and you know, getting the balls

(02:31:04):
in the gap and coming in. If he wins the goal, loove,
I mean, our staff they're gonna look like experts.

Speaker 8 (02:31:12):
You know.

Speaker 9 (02:31:14):
I'll take a strong average defender at this point. If
he becomes that, that, that's that that's outstanding in our outfit.
So he's for sure taken to it very well.

Speaker 3 (02:31:26):
And what about Jordan, how does he fit in the
left field pitcher?

Speaker 9 (02:31:29):
Yeah, I think we'll give him some some time, but no,
ultimately he's our d h. You know, we want him
to worry about hitting and driving him runs, and so
we will give him.

Speaker 7 (02:31:39):
Some run in the outfield. Joe's made that clear.

Speaker 9 (02:31:42):
It just all up to Joe and how how many
times he wants to put him out there. But yeah,
he's he's really our d H and so, but he
will get some run and I'm sure Joe's probably talked
to him about it and said, look, we're going to
try to protect you because we want you to play
as many games as possible. And the way you could
do at issue just DH it.

Speaker 3 (02:32:02):
So is there a metric for that because there are
some guys, remember Michael Brantley, he despised being a DH.
He wanted to be in the action. Other guys, I'll
go back to David Ortiz, I mean inventing himself by
getting off of first base. So do you guys look
at numbers of how he batted, how he performed the
day after day before he played in left field?

Speaker 9 (02:32:21):
No, I just think, guy, it's one of those things
where you know he's gonna hit whether he's a you know,
left fielder or a DH.

Speaker 7 (02:32:29):
You know, Alvarez well hit. So I don't think that
really had much to do with it.

Speaker 9 (02:32:34):
I just think if he's in the dugout thinking about
hitting all the time, he can really lock into what
he wants to do, whether he wants to, you know,
figure out what the picture is strong to him, study,
you know, what his patterns are or whatever the case
may be. Any time that he could spend on hitting
is a good thing, and we want to see big
results from him because when he goes, the team goes.

Speaker 3 (02:32:56):
It feels like the twenty six man roster's just about set.
But if it isn't unware, where would that be? Would
it be decision on a utility infield or an extra
arm in the bullpen? In terms of that, where do
you see as you look for the next month when
you watch these games, where is it Well, I can
go here, I can go here in this particular position.

Speaker 9 (02:33:14):
Yeah, I think you know, obviously the bullpen, you know,
with making a move for Presley, you know, trading Presley
opened up a spot there, right, so we we definitely
have some room to talk about you know what our
what is our pen gonna look like? And then you know,
outfield wise, you know, how are we going to be platune?
Is McCormick you know, gonna really you know, get back

(02:33:38):
to this twenty twenty three year. So I think those two,
you know, spots like you know outfield and also relief
pitching is where the room you know, we have to make.

Speaker 3 (02:33:51):
Our decisions for latue and all, get went Ross, get
one more question one for me. Our audience loves this
team and is with every intricate move, and they'll always
bring up the minor leaguers Melton Matthews and then we'll
get to Cam Smith. How much do you think that's
gonna be a conversation piece internally about when they're going
to be ready? Look, nobody knows you have to take it.

(02:34:12):
Even if they're crushing into triple AAA, you still to
guess how much will you intently watching those three guys,
especially in the first couple months of the year, if
some of those major leaguers are not performing up to
your expectations.

Speaker 9 (02:34:22):
Yeah, I'm locked in on them, you know, regardless if
the major leaguers are doing well, and if they're not
doing well, I'm still locked in on those guys. Those
guys have a chance to help us. I really feel
confident that they could turn the corner pretty quickly, and
so I'm used to, you know, moving players fast, you know.
I mean, I told these guys when I got the job,

(02:34:44):
I sat down and I talked.

Speaker 7 (02:34:45):
To a lot of the minor league players.

Speaker 9 (02:34:46):
I think it's important that you always have good young
players coming into major leagues. I think it reminds the
older players that, hey, we got good young players in
the minor leagues. And it reminds the younger players that
if I do well, I'm gonna get moved up. And
I think you want that energy throughout your entire organization
and until I'm a firm believer, So I think if
these guys are if they go down there and they're

(02:35:08):
doing well, we will talk about moving them. You know,
I don't know how fast or I can't put a
timeline on it, but we're not afraid to move them
to the big leagues if they're doing very well.

Speaker 3 (02:35:18):
Starting pitching question real quick, what was it like seeing
Hayden Wesnski from AFAR now getting him in the house
and working with him, and then as far as the
depth Luis Garcia and Puance Papolis.

Speaker 9 (02:35:30):
Yeah, so Wesnski he's fired up, of course, because he's
back at home in Houston right and so he's he's
locked in. You know, I've had multiple conversations with him,
and I think his stuff is going to play very well.

Speaker 7 (02:35:44):
I think our pitching guys are really good, and so you.

Speaker 9 (02:35:48):
Know they're gonna get him, you know, to his next
step in life and in this game, and so I
think they could. You know, our guys have a way
of finding out what you need to do to make you,
you know, better, and I think, you know, he's been
a sponge and you know, hopefully we could we could
help him to make those adjustments, you know, Garcia. I

(02:36:08):
think Garcia, you know, we'll know more as he continues
to throw here. But I anticipate him turning the corner,
you know, somewhere in the early part of this year.
And so once he starts throwing here, we probably have
more of a firm you know, deadline or or target
date or whatever you want to call it. And he

(02:36:28):
could be he's gonna be some help that we were
going to need in that rotation. So we really feel
like we got ten guys total in depth in rotation,
and so we feel like we're in good shape.

Speaker 7 (02:36:39):
You know, last year we had that.

Speaker 9 (02:36:41):
Period where we lost the like five starters at one
point they were all out, and so we feel really
good about that.

Speaker 7 (02:36:47):
And the MC colors, you.

Speaker 9 (02:36:48):
Know, he's been thrown off the mound and he's been
participating in you know, the PfP drills and so you
know that's a good thing, and so once once he
starts to throw even harder, we'll get a pretty much
target date.

Speaker 7 (02:37:02):
Or you know, a timeline on him as well.

Speaker 9 (02:37:05):
And so I feel like both guys should be pitching
at some point this season, hopefully sooner rather than later.

Speaker 3 (02:37:11):
And that again, Dana Brown from earlier today will have
more throughout the next couple of days as we broadcast
a full four hours here Wednesday and Thursday from West
Palm Beach. Some mind boggling economic news that we just received,
not like breaking news, but it's just still well a

(02:37:34):
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Speaker 1 (02:38:44):
Lunchtimers, Lunch Timers, It's a Matt Thomas Show show with
Ross on Sports Talk seven ninety.

Speaker 3 (02:38:54):
Thank you again to Danviad. Brown will be joining joined
us earlier today and we've got more coverage coming to
you starting tomorrow. I hear at ten o'clock on Sports
Talk seventy from West Balm Beach. Shout out Christian Walker,
even though that was rood of you to offer him
your co host job. It's good. If you missed the
Christian Walker interview, where were you were you cousin in discussing?

(02:39:16):
Is that what you were doing? Oh no, we'll cousin discussing.
Are you all right? No, I'm starving, God, you'll be fine,
all right, real quick, we're gonna go get the Bendy's
right after this. We're going to Bendy's after to get
a rebel rack and uh and a Megi Man, a
Meggie mound or whatever. We gotta make sure we don't

(02:39:36):
say anything. I know I'm starting to. So we got
we got the greatest tweet ever from a listener yesterday
or maybe it was Saturday, about how it's insanely stupid
what we do, which is really what the show is
and s stupid. But people at their and their house,
at their workplace with their buddies are having to change
names to protect the innocent. Now we do it because

(02:39:58):
we don't give away free plugs on the show. Correct.
We were listening to Sean Salisbury Show with Brian Lehman
today coming in here. Yeah, they were free plugging everybody
like a mouda. Some might say, yeah, we don't free
plug you. All right, you spend money with this show,
You're gonna get great value. Absolutely, spend money you get
Buffcus speaking the money something called at boardroom. It must

(02:40:23):
be a business. Is it a business angle? Let's say
what bro, Yeah, it's an aggregate of business sports, business stuff. Okay.
The most valuable teams and NBA in twenty twenty five
the Houston Rockets coming in at number five. Wow, five
point seven billion dollars. So Houston Rockets are worth. The

(02:40:44):
Bulls are five point eight, the Lakers are seven, the
next or seven point five. The Golden State Warriors are
nine point four. I don't care about the four in front.
I'm caring about the Rockets because that's my team. And
maybe I can use this towards maybe a small increase
in salary next year. Ah, good luck. I that is
interesting though. Oh but here's I'm finish real quick.

Speaker 14 (02:41:02):
Yeah.

Speaker 3 (02:41:03):
So they were valued in two this year five point
seven billion dollars. Tim and for Tita bought the team
in twenty seventeen for two point two billion dollars. In
eight years, not even eight years, seven and a half years,
the value of his franchise has gone from two point
two billion to five point seven billion dollars, basically two

(02:41:28):
and a half times your money in seven eight years
that's pretty incredible. I don't know if there's an Is
there a greater rate of return in anything in the
world than owning a professional sports team. So you're telling me,
I'm telling you nobody likes the NBA. The products watered down,
the it's unwatchable. The All Star Break is a disaster.

(02:41:48):
CORECT star players aren't playing in games, right. I don't
watch the NBA anymore. What is the All Star Game?

Speaker 7 (02:41:55):
What is the NBA?

Speaker 3 (02:41:56):
It's a bunch of guys shooting threes and dunking the ball.
Tilman is nearly triple his money in eight years. All right, Now,
let's talk about where they think the money is coming from.
First and foremost, the international version portion of this is
very very strong people outside of the United States. Frankly,
I don't know if it's Mexico, but they love THEMBA

(02:42:16):
in Canada, they really do. It's not hockey number one there.
But basketball is really, really good. I think it's more
popular than the CFL. I didn't know that. Yeah, basketball
is huge, like British Columbia and whatnot. They can't get
enough of the NBA. They still want to catch their
Memphis Grizzies, though, though they were once Vanka. Uh so
the international pool money. That's why the NFL is going
to go more international because they just know the NBA

(02:42:38):
has been able to capitalize on it, so why can't they? Yes, okay,
that's number one. The number five point seven billion is
that's NFL franchise money. What did the Commanders go for
six billion or something like that? So another part of
the reason why it is so popular and the value
of these franchise are going up is because the new
media rights deal. I want to read, I want to

(02:43:01):
read this and I can't fathom this. I'm gonna read
it as is.

Speaker 6 (02:43:05):
Okay.

Speaker 3 (02:43:06):
With a new seventy six seven six billion media rightes
deals set to kick in next season, the legal scene
every annual payout payment payout excuse me, of six point
nine billion, nearly one hundred and sixty percent more than
its current agreement. So every team in the NBA is
going to split per year six point nine billion dollars.

(02:43:28):
I cannot fathom that ross. Are we sure those This
is all according to CNBC, which they don't make mistakes. Well,
they probably made some, Oh, but we're gonna trust them
because we have no other choice. So the next ten
year media deals where it's seventy six billion dollars in

(02:43:49):
which every team is gonna get six point nine or
the league's gonna split six point nine per season. I'm
blown away by that. So for what every we want
to complete about the NBA, nobody likes it, nobody cares.
It's woke, and there's some issues there. I do believe
there's way too much politics in my sports, but that's
a different issue for a different time. The reality is

(02:44:14):
Adam Silver can walk on water to those thirty NBA
owners because look at the money they have brought in
and look at the increased value obscene amount of money
that these NBA franchise in work now. It takes two
to tango if you want to. If the Rockets wanted
to sell tomorrow, I don't believe that Fertidas will ever
sell because they want to keep it in the family.
Could you get five point seven four I don't know,

(02:44:35):
but c NBC says, at least right now, it's worth
almost six billion dollars. This is insane to me. The
Texans now, the Commander's sold for six point zero five
billion dollars, okay, and that's a franchise been around for
what seventy years? Yes, and they are listed as number

(02:44:56):
ten on the Forbes list. One point four billion that
the Warriors are worth is worth more than every NFL team,
every NFL team except the Cowboys. How is this possible?
Is there any party that thinks that the economists that
are putting this together are highly inflating the numbers? Possible?

(02:45:18):
But it's also I guess it just must be that
that international appeal. Because the NFL is mostly an American sport,
right their international television dollars are not even there. But
the NBA is huge overseas. We're talking about China, we're
talking about Israel, we're talking about Turkey, we're talking about
Great Britain, we're talking about Australia, We're talking about everywhere
in the world. The NBA, because basketball is much more

(02:45:42):
of a global sport than American football. Is it just
is that global impact must just add that many more
dollars to their valuations. Because if you put the Rockets
right now at five point seven billion, they'd be more.
They'd be thirteenth in the NFL, ahead of the Packers, Ronco, Seahawks, Buccaneers, Steelers.

(02:46:02):
Let me ask you this If this is what an
NBA franchise is worth, what about these these uh scott
these uh soccer teams you like to follow, apparently the
oh oh Real Madrid like the big Game. They're they're
around They're less than the Cowboys, I think, but they're
close around seven eight billion dollars I can find it.

Speaker 7 (02:46:21):
I think.

Speaker 3 (02:46:22):
I think Manchester United just is selling for like five
six billion dollars. That's one of the big heritage so
on our teams in our short term that we have
a lot of time in his left segment. What are
we as you and I are basketball fans. I don't
care about the dollars and cents of it. I just don't, Okay,
But Commissioner Silver does. Why does he have to improve

(02:46:43):
on something when he is bringing when everybody is coming
to the table offering more money for what the NBA provides.
When when is it going to level out? And the
answer is it's not gonna level out. We've been hearing
about dying television ratings. We've been hearing about UH politics
and sports. We've been hearing about time game management and

(02:47:04):
taking load time off load management. We're talking about three
three point line. We're talking about all sorts of stuff
in its recession proof. It's economically crushing. Yeah, baseball can't
use these numbers. No football use them because they just

(02:47:25):
but they're only confined to what the United States can
offer in terms of money. As far as soccer, the
most valuable team is Real Madrid at six point six
billion dollars. I'm curious about that. Maybe that'll make as
much as Rice fees. I know that their tickets are
generally cheaper than they are here in America. Corporate driven.
This is corporate driven, all right. Pack to wrap things

(02:47:46):
up here from West Palm Beach in a matter of
moment seven one, three, two two five seven UNTI are
you blown away that the Golden State Warriors, a San
Francisco basketball team that fifteen years ago ROSSI wasn't but god, yeah,
I mean a feudal, feudal team, is now worth over

(02:48:06):
nine billion dollars. You know it's worth also nine billion dollars.
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(02:48:28):
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Speaker 5 (02:48:47):
Good Mornings, Trippers, shower with the Matt Thomas Show, wash
off the glitter and daddy issues.

Speaker 3 (02:49:00):
We're not leaving yet, are we? Yeah, No, we can't.
We gotta say we got two and a half minutes
to hang out with you folks. No we we We
had to, he said, He said, we're out of fifty seven.
It's fifty four. Oh okay, maybe by the way, we're
busy box. It didn't. Are we in the middle of Kansas?
What the hell's going on with this winds? Uh? Gale force?
I believe they call it?

Speaker 6 (02:49:19):
That?

Speaker 3 (02:49:19):
Is that what the kids call it? Gale force? All right. Uh,
thanks to Christian Walker, Thanks to who else we want
to thank? Oh, thank Dana Brown, Well, thank the listeners
that called the show today. Yes, we had got tomorrow.
We gotta shut your ball mass up. We had got
wet good feelings today. We got to shut your mass
up tomorrow. Uh huh, I got a few things you
do real quick on this and we get well, we

(02:49:41):
have two minutes when there's a crowded airport in flights
of delay, meaning not just your flight, every flight. Seats
are a premium. Don't be taking up extra seats to
put your bags and your briefcase. You can have a
little separation with a person. Just suck it up and
let us sit next to you. Oh you're talking about
the uh the separation there waiting here the terminal. There

(02:50:02):
are sixty seats for a reason. They're not They're not
sixty seats for us to be used by thirty people.
I get it.

Speaker 11 (02:50:10):
I know.

Speaker 8 (02:50:10):
I know.

Speaker 3 (02:50:11):
People were afraid about the VID, and people afraid about
germs and stuff. We were We weren't scared about the
VID and Germans twenty years ago. Yeah he should have been.
We didn't. We didn't become more uh, bacteria filled then
now that we did twenty years ago.

Speaker 10 (02:50:25):
It might be.

Speaker 3 (02:50:26):
I don't know, but I mean I was walking around.
I was I was trying to be respectful, but I like,
nine flights and we're all we're in the same gate area,
by the way, schmided stop putting seven flights at one
gate by the way too much. When you fly Schmider Express,
that's what they do. They take the smaller jets and
they say, oh well, let's put it a cram one

(02:50:46):
hundred and seventy five people into one area. There was
a guy literally getting on our plane and he was
and he scanned his boarding pass and the lady's like,
what are you doing. He's like, well, this isn't the
flight to Dallas. Did it go through No, it's yeah, yeah, yeah,
you don't want that. He's like, oh, this isn't to Dallas.
Like dude, look, dude, they're signed everywhere everywhere. Hey, nobody

(02:51:09):
got time for you. Can't be a dufe like that,
can you?

Speaker 10 (02:51:11):
He did? He was.

Speaker 3 (02:51:13):
I gave a loud chuck. I made sure he could
hear me.

Speaker 7 (02:51:15):
I gave him.

Speaker 3 (02:51:17):
I gave him one of those that was that's passive
aggressive chuckle. What do you want me to punch him
in the face. Why as you say, dumb ass, go
to your gate. Up next, Clinton, WEX are gonna entertain
the hell out of you for the next four hours.
We're gonna seek refuge and this gale force wins. It's
by next Talk to tomorrow at ten from West Palm
on seven ninety

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