June 23, 2025 • 19 mins
Austin talks Reds, Andrew Abbott, and Chase Burns with The Cowboy Jeff Brantley on ESPN 1530!
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Sincy three sixty of About Cincinnati from Cincinnatis, spontered in
part by Pennstation East Coast Subs. Handcrafted hot grilled subs,
fresh cut fries and lemonade. It's all about good taste.
Pennstation East Coast Subs order online today. This is ESPN
fifteen thirty Cincinnati Sports Station.
Speaker 2 (00:20):
Hi, Hello, welcome in our number three of Cincy three sixty.
Here on ESPN fifteen thirty. We've talked a little bit
of everything. Let's switch gears back to the Cincinnati Reds,
coming off of a tough, hot, sweaty weekend in Saint
Louis where Andrew Abbott was magnificent Sunday, and now the
anticipation of a big series with the New York Yankees,
(00:42):
including the MLB debut of Chase Burns. There's no better
person to talk pitching with than the cowboy Jeff Brantley.
And Jeff was nice enough to give me some time today. Jeff,
Welcome to the show. I think the first time you've
been with us.
Speaker 3 (00:56):
How are you?
Speaker 2 (00:56):
Man?
Speaker 3 (00:57):
Glad to be here? Man, I'm doing good little bit
under the weather, but I'm making it.
Speaker 2 (01:01):
All right, playing hurt. We appreciate you Andrew Abbott, Why
is he so good?
Speaker 3 (01:09):
I think Andrew Abbot is good because he's not afraid
of any situation number one, and he has the ability
to change speeds within the striking zone with three different pitches.
And I think when you combine those those two issues, now,
let's also remember his his stuff's pretty good as well.
But I think the biggest issue for Abbot is he
(01:31):
just he takes the fight to the hitter. He's not
he's not one to back off. He's not one to
kind of pitch around the edge if it's a big
hitter or a big name at the plate. He just
continues to make pitches and he throws fastball, curveball, and
change up. It's not anything super fancy. It's just the
fact that he knows how to use it, and he
(01:52):
uses it well, and he doesn't use it in a fearful,
fearful manner.
Speaker 2 (01:56):
You mentioned stuff, and I hear stuff talked about a
lot with pitching today. What is your definition of stuff
and how that can be applied to a pitcher based
on you know, different guys have different stuff.
Speaker 3 (02:11):
Well, I think in our world today we talk about
spin rate, we talk about revolutions, and trying to trying
to make the ball spin. That's that's what the description is.
Now from a player's perspective, does the ball move late
when it gets to the plate number one? And which
way does it go is? Does it appear to hot
(02:34):
like a like a four seam fastball, does it appear
to sink like a like a two seamer, or does
it appear to cut like a slider or a hard
cutter off of that fastball. The closer that you can
make the ball move to the hitter, the better off
you are, regardless of how fast you're throwing it. The
faster obviously, the less amount of time that the hitter
has to judge before he slings.
Speaker 2 (02:55):
Talk with Jeff Brantley a little bit of pitching, and
let's talk about this team as a whole, Jeff, forty
and thirty eight. There's been a roller coaster, to say
the least. How would you describe where this team is
at as we get ready to go in this stretch
before the All Star Break?
Speaker 3 (03:13):
Well, I think they've continued to keep themselves in a
pretty good competitive spot. The last thing that you want
to do is get to the All Star Break and
be totally out of it. Nobody wants to see that
because we have already seen what that looks like, and
it's not pretty. I think for this club to be
at a position to where they're right around five hundred,
(03:33):
getting themselves into the All Star Break and being able
to make a run, I think that's a pretty good
opportunity for this club. Still a young team, still trying
to figure out their way, and by the time we
get to the break will have done this entire at
least half of this first half without Hunter Green, and
you got to hope that maybe he'll be back, and
(03:56):
maybe the debut of Chase Burns tomorrow night goes really
well and there'll be a lot of buzz around this
club because then you can move one of those starters
to the bullpen and hopefully that will help you lengthen
that out, because right now the bullpen is they're pretty
much worn out.
Speaker 2 (04:14):
I can tell you that, yeah, without a doubt. I
want to get to Chase Burns in just a minute,
but before we do, Matt McClain has been playing some
good baseball in the month of June. One thing I've
learned from listening to you talk about baseball a lot
is being able to judge a player's swing. What about
Matt's swing? Has he adjusted that's led to the success
(04:36):
so far in the month of June that you can.
Speaker 3 (04:37):
Tell, well, Austin, I don't know that he's changed his
swing per se. I think his swing has been relatively
the same in all of the ups and downs. I
think the key for Matt McClain is allowing the ball
to get closer to the play before he swings. You
(04:57):
hear so much like when we're growing well Son, you're late.
You've got to swing quicker, you're behind the ball, you're
fouling it over the first base that well, Matt is
too quick, he's swinging too early. And a lot of
that is because of his stature. He's got shorter arms.
But that's also what allows him to kind of feel
at home. When a guy's throwing the ball one hundred
(05:18):
miles an hour, I mean he can catch it. He's
very quick. Now, if you're real quick and you have
short arms and everybody's pitching you away with fast balls
and sliders, a lot of times if you're even a
split second early, you hit the ball off the end
of the bat or you pop it up, and that's
where Matt was the first couple of months of the season,
and once he got to a point where he was
(05:39):
letting the ball really get deep, really get closer to
the catcher before he pulled the trigger, you're starting to
see those shots down the first base line. Then pitchers
have to come back close to him to try to
speed him back up, and that's when he's starting to
hit the ball out of the ballpark.
Speaker 2 (05:54):
As a whole, the team has struggled for the last
few years against left handed pitching. What's the explanation for
why they struggle so much against lefties?
Speaker 3 (06:03):
From your viewpoint, right handed hitting consistency. I mean, that's
the bottom line. You can you talk about it and
you know, turn it anyway that you want to, But
in order to be successful against left handed pitchers, you've
got to have right handed hitters in the lineup that
do their job. And if they don't, then you're gonna
you're not gonna have a lot of success because everything
(06:25):
that's out there has some left handed hitters and they
have some right handed hitters. When the left handed hitters
are smoking against right handed pitching, everybody's real happy. But
when the left handed hitter, when the left handed hitters
aren't hitting lefties. Then everybody starts talking, well, maybe we
should platoon this and that. It's really not about that.
It's about your right handers doing their job against left
handed pitching. That's it.
Speaker 2 (06:46):
Let's talk about Chase Burns. Red's expected to call them up,
gonna make the start tomorrow against the Yankees. You've spent
a little bit more time around him than most people are.
What are the Reds getting in Chase Burns?
Speaker 3 (07:00):
Well, we do know they're getting a twenty two year
old that's never made a major league start. That's pretty
much academic. That's the easier dalysis of the situation. I
think what they're getting is a kid that's got some moxie.
He's got a heck of a lot of confidence. I
think he's shown that through his quick drive through the
minor leagues. You look at some of those numbers in
(07:21):
the minor leagues and you compare them to what we
saw with the Pirates right hander Paul Schemes. They're very similar.
I mean, he is come in a hurry, he throws
a lot of strikes, he is pounding the strike zone,
he is not afraid of anybody, and he's not afraid
of any situation. And I think that he is one
of those kids that is a polished college pitcher, So
(07:44):
he understands how to locate and where to locate. And
he's throwing the ball one hundred miles an hour. His
slider is better than his fastball, even though his fastball
is one hundred. So that ought to tell you a
little something about the kid right there. Yeah, you are
not that. Not only that, though, Austin he he has
he has gotten some understanding as he as he started
the year, and I think that just comes from the
(08:07):
the guys in our minor leagues that just made it
known to him he needs to throw a change up
and he's gonna need that change up, not right now,
but when he gets to the big leagues. And so
when he started, you know, at the beginning of the
year in a ball, he was throwing a change up.
It was not his best pitch is still not even
close to his best pitch, but it has gotten leaps
and bounds better from when he first started cutting it loose,
(08:29):
and it's actually a viable pitch, especially to left handers.
He doesn't throw it much to rieties, but he throws
it to lefties, but his I think it's gonna be
fun to watch him take them out against the Yankees.
I think he is going to be super amped, may
have a few walks there in the first inning, but
but I tell you, it's gonna be fun to watch
(08:50):
him compete because in all of the video and the
time that I saw him throw in spring training, there's
a there's a special quality about a kid that takes
the mound and says, Okay, I'm here. And when you
can do that, when you can do that and have
that kind of presence, it really gets you a leg
up on the competition.
Speaker 2 (09:11):
Yeah, I was saying earlier, I think it says a
lot about him that the Reds are, like, you know,
obviously the Reds are a little bit desperate right now
with the injuries, but also they're not afraid to put
this dude at Great American Ballpark up against the New
York Yankees. I feel like that says a lot about
his mentality as a pitcher, as much as it has
to do with how good he is with his different pitches.
Speaker 3 (09:33):
Well, I think when you have a kid that has
proved to everyone around him, I'm ready, and no mistake
about it, he has proved that he is ready. Now
is he ready for the Yankees? Whoever is? And would you,
I mean to be honest with you, would you say
that Hunter Green is ready for the Yankees? He's been
up here for three or four years. Will know, Yeah,
(09:55):
But what we do know is that the kid has
sailed through the minor leagues. He's throng strikes, he's been
on the attack. He's done everything that anyone has asked
him to do, and he's done it with a competitive
nature that is second to any to nobody else. So
with that in mind, why wouldn't you run him out
there against the Yankees? Because if and this is a
(10:18):
big if, but if he does roll out there and
he walks the dog, guess what, You've got another ace
in the naking.
Speaker 2 (10:24):
Yeah, that's right. Let's turn the clock back before I
let you go, Jeff. Let's turn the clock back to
nineteen ninety six, when Jeff Brantley had forty four saved
for the Cincinnati Reds. Let's say he can pitch tonight
against Aaron Judge. How are you Jeff Brantley from nineteen
ninety six attacking Aaron Judge?
Speaker 3 (10:44):
Well, I would have to say, first pitch, breaking ball,
because my fastball was not good enough to challenge the
likes of a guy like Aaron Judge. But I would
get ahead and I'm I'm either gonna punch him in
the mouth or he's gonna punch me in the mouth.
But we're gonna do it on the and then and
then after that that I'm going at the top of
the strike zone because he's got a little bit of
(11:06):
that uppercut swing and if I that was always my
pitch at the top of the zone. And after that
you just kind of let the chips fall where they may.
Speaker 2 (11:13):
I love it, Jeff, Thank you so much for the time.
Hope you're feeling better. We'll be listening tonight on the call.
Appreciate it, man, all right, lot to kick you. That
is Jeff Brantley, the Cowboy. Good stuff, man. Love that
going right at Aaron Judge. Nothing better going right at
Aaron Judge.
Speaker 3 (11:29):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (11:29):
Man, you go back to nineteen ninety six, the Cowboy
Jeff Brantley forty four saves a two point four to
one era for the Red Legs, seventy one innings, pitched
seventy six strikeouts, just throwing some some gas striking dudes out.
But that's cool. You know. You know I learned something
(11:50):
right there about Chase Burns. I didn't know that the
slighter many believe is better than the fastball, and the
importance of developing a change up and the way that
the has improved over the course of his minor league career,
developing it young once he got here and in the
program to the point where he's able to throw that
(12:11):
pitch against left handers at the minimum, against left handers.
That's good. You know, we've talked a lot about development
with this organization, right, developing players, can you get them
from point A to point two point b? And some
dudes are just unicorns, right, Like some guys are just like, hey,
this guy has got it and he's going to get
(12:31):
to the big leagues and we'll figure the rest out.
I think Hunter Green is one of those guys. Paul
Skeen's one of those guys. Maybe Chase Burns is that too,
and to go through the rise that he has, and
I understand they are desperate, But to me, as I
said earlier, not being afraid to put him in this
(12:54):
situation coming up against the New York Yankees and not
being afraid to say, all right, we're not gonna get
some schmuck off the scrap heap. We're gonna go get
our best prospect because we need him to help us
win games. Tells me that the Reds are telling you,
(13:15):
and telling the team and telling the organization. Yes, we're
trying to win these games. We're trying to put ourselves
in a position. You look at this next couple of
weeks for the Red Lags. I've mentioned a lot three
against the Yankees, three against the Padres, and then you
turn around and go to Boston for a three game
set with the Red Sox and then three at Philadelphia.
(13:37):
I mean, come on with it. That's tough. You need
your best players in these moments to be able to
put yourself in a position going into the All Star Break. Now,
going into the All Star Break, there's four at home
against Miami and three at home against Colorado. Now, those
(13:59):
two teams from a record standpoint are obviously not very good.
But we've seen the Reds lose a series already this
year to Miami, and so you want to put yourself
in a position to have your best team available in
that seven game stretch going into the All Star break
to where you say, Okay, are we in this thing
(14:20):
or not? And you can't get to that seven game
stretch if you don't get through this stretch right now
with the Yankees, Padres, Red Sox and Phillies and so again.
To me, the decision to bring Chase Burns up instead
of going to one of those other guys, one of
those other below average guys that we've seen them turn
(14:43):
to over and over and over again in recent years,
to me, is indicative of the organization's desire to put
themselves in a position to be in it at the
All Star Break, and what happens then if you're in
it at the All Star Break, surely they won't go
through another month of July with this team and with
(15:05):
these players and being in the conversation in contention and
not be more aggressive at the deadline. Right you gotta
be aggressive quick too, because you come out of the
All Star Break you have the Mets, the Nationals, the Rays,
and the Dodgers and the Braves. I mean, the Nationals
(15:26):
are not what everybody you know. They've got some dudes
that can hit, is what I'm trying to say. Offensively,
They've got it. The Mets have one of the best
records in baseball, though they've fallen off a little bit
as of late Tampa still formidable. The Dodgers are the Dodgers,
and the Reds already lost a series of the Braves
this year. This is a critical stretch, and as much
(15:48):
as I have criticized this organization, I think they're making
the right move with Chase Burns, and I'm not worried
about them potentially screwing him up or whatever. I'm in
the business of winning baseball games. I want to win.
When when When when win? If Chase Burns gives you
(16:09):
the best opportunity to win, the hell yeah, bring him
up here. Let's see what he can do. Phone lines
are open five point three seven, four nine, fifteen thirty.
If you want to call in and be a part
of the show. You can tweet it me as well
at Audiel Moore A U T Y E L M
O r E. Let's go to Cincinnati. Dennis is standing
by Dennis. You're on ESPN fifteen thirty. What's up? Hey? One?
Speaker 3 (16:34):
I got on about the Dangels and how Joe Burrow
is the in the team president. Think they signed t
Higgins without Joey's intervention.
Speaker 2 (16:43):
I don't think so. No, Yeah, okay, okay, Dennis, thank you,
that was simple enough. Yeah, I really I think I
think it's kind of twofold. Number one. Joe pounded the
table for T Higgins. Number two. You go down the
stretch in the way that he performed. You know, the
(17:06):
game in Dallas when Joe was basically saying we need tea,
the game against Denver when a really good secondary took
away Jamar Chase with the defensive player the year and
Patrick Sartan and a good defensive game plan, and then
the way that T Higgins basically single handedly beat the
Denver Broncos that night. And you look at the way
(17:29):
Pittsburgh has built their defense, Cleveland has built their defense,
and most notably, the way Baltimore has retooled their defense.
There is going to be a defensive coordinators are gonna say,
all right, whatever happens, Jamar Chase is not going to
beat us, They're gonna make life hell for him. So
it's gonna be on you know, Dan Pitcher and Zach
(17:52):
Taylor and Justin Roscotti to come up with ways to
get Jamar open and moving around. But also, if you
have a six foot six monster on the other side
by the name of t Higgins. That's a matchup nightmare,
good luck, And he got Mike Gasiki down the middle
of the field, and all of a sudden, if Chase
burns or Chase Burns, if Chase Brown can be the
(18:14):
player we all think he's going to be, that opens
up the offense. But teams are gonna do everything in
their power to take Jamar away. And in the event
that he gets hurt, or in the event that you
do go up against a corner who has his number
on that night or a safety who's locking it down,
can you turn to somebody else? Can they make the play?
I think the Bengals realize that over the course of
(18:37):
this season, and on top of that, I think they
got some peace of mind on how to like properly
keep Higgins on the field. There were adjustments to his
stretching routines, to treatment that he gets, to how he
practices and when he practices, And I feel like the
Bengals are more comfortable with that moving forward, especially with
that hamstring that's nagged Tea at times, say Okay, we're
(19:00):
willing to invest in this guy moving forward. Your phone
calls five P one three seven four nine fifteen thirty
tweeted at me as well at Audielmore a U T
y E L. M Ori About twenty twenty five minutes
from right now, Moegger returns. He's back from Florida load management.
June is wrapping up. We'll see what he's got coming
up on his show, and so much more. This is
(19:22):
since E three sixty ESPN fifteen thirty Cincinnati Sports Station
Sincy three sixty of About Cincinnati from Cincinnatis, spontered in
part by Pennstation East Coast Subs. Handcrafted hot grilled subs,
fresh cut fries and lemonade. It's all about good taste.
Pennstation East Coast Subs order online today. This is ESPN
fifteen thirty Cincinnati Sports Station.
Speaker 2 (00:20):
Hi, Hello, welcome in our number three of Cincy three sixty.
Here on ESPN fifteen thirty. We've talked a little bit
of everything. Let's switch gears back to the Cincinnati Reds,
coming off of a tough, hot, sweaty weekend in Saint
Louis where Andrew Abbott was magnificent Sunday, and now the
anticipation of a big series with the New York Yankees,
(00:42):
including the MLB debut of Chase Burns. There's no better
person to talk pitching with than the cowboy Jeff Brantley.
And Jeff was nice enough to give me some time today. Jeff,
Welcome to the show. I think the first time you've
been with us.
Speaker 3 (00:56):
How are you?
Speaker 2 (00:56):
Man?
Speaker 3 (00:57):
Glad to be here? Man, I'm doing good little bit
under the weather, but I'm making it.
Speaker 2 (01:01):
All right, playing hurt. We appreciate you Andrew Abbott, Why
is he so good?
Speaker 3 (01:09):
I think Andrew Abbot is good because he's not afraid
of any situation number one, and he has the ability
to change speeds within the striking zone with three different pitches.
And I think when you combine those those two issues, now,
let's also remember his his stuff's pretty good as well.
But I think the biggest issue for Abbot is he
(01:31):
just he takes the fight to the hitter. He's not
he's not one to back off. He's not one to
kind of pitch around the edge if it's a big
hitter or a big name at the plate. He just
continues to make pitches and he throws fastball, curveball, and
change up. It's not anything super fancy. It's just the
fact that he knows how to use it, and he
(01:52):
uses it well, and he doesn't use it in a fearful,
fearful manner.
Speaker 2 (01:56):
You mentioned stuff, and I hear stuff talked about a
lot with pitching today. What is your definition of stuff
and how that can be applied to a pitcher based
on you know, different guys have different stuff.
Speaker 3 (02:11):
Well, I think in our world today we talk about
spin rate, we talk about revolutions, and trying to trying
to make the ball spin. That's that's what the description is.
Now from a player's perspective, does the ball move late
when it gets to the plate number one? And which
way does it go is? Does it appear to hot
(02:34):
like a like a four seam fastball, does it appear
to sink like a like a two seamer, or does
it appear to cut like a slider or a hard
cutter off of that fastball. The closer that you can
make the ball move to the hitter, the better off
you are, regardless of how fast you're throwing it. The
faster obviously, the less amount of time that the hitter
has to judge before he slings.
Speaker 2 (02:55):
Talk with Jeff Brantley a little bit of pitching, and
let's talk about this team as a whole, Jeff, forty
and thirty eight. There's been a roller coaster, to say
the least. How would you describe where this team is
at as we get ready to go in this stretch
before the All Star Break?
Speaker 3 (03:13):
Well, I think they've continued to keep themselves in a
pretty good competitive spot. The last thing that you want
to do is get to the All Star Break and
be totally out of it. Nobody wants to see that
because we have already seen what that looks like, and
it's not pretty. I think for this club to be
at a position to where they're right around five hundred,
(03:33):
getting themselves into the All Star Break and being able
to make a run, I think that's a pretty good
opportunity for this club. Still a young team, still trying
to figure out their way, and by the time we
get to the break will have done this entire at
least half of this first half without Hunter Green, and
you got to hope that maybe he'll be back, and
(03:56):
maybe the debut of Chase Burns tomorrow night goes really
well and there'll be a lot of buzz around this
club because then you can move one of those starters
to the bullpen and hopefully that will help you lengthen
that out, because right now the bullpen is they're pretty
much worn out.
Speaker 2 (04:14):
I can tell you that, yeah, without a doubt. I
want to get to Chase Burns in just a minute,
but before we do, Matt McClain has been playing some
good baseball in the month of June. One thing I've
learned from listening to you talk about baseball a lot
is being able to judge a player's swing. What about
Matt's swing? Has he adjusted that's led to the success
(04:36):
so far in the month of June that you can.
Speaker 3 (04:37):
Tell, well, Austin, I don't know that he's changed his
swing per se. I think his swing has been relatively
the same in all of the ups and downs. I
think the key for Matt McClain is allowing the ball
to get closer to the play before he swings. You
(04:57):
hear so much like when we're growing well Son, you're late.
You've got to swing quicker, you're behind the ball, you're
fouling it over the first base that well, Matt is
too quick, he's swinging too early. And a lot of
that is because of his stature. He's got shorter arms.
But that's also what allows him to kind of feel
at home. When a guy's throwing the ball one hundred
(05:18):
miles an hour, I mean he can catch it. He's
very quick. Now, if you're real quick and you have
short arms and everybody's pitching you away with fast balls
and sliders, a lot of times if you're even a
split second early, you hit the ball off the end
of the bat or you pop it up, and that's
where Matt was the first couple of months of the season,
and once he got to a point where he was
(05:39):
letting the ball really get deep, really get closer to
the catcher before he pulled the trigger, you're starting to
see those shots down the first base line. Then pitchers
have to come back close to him to try to
speed him back up, and that's when he's starting to
hit the ball out of the ballpark.
Speaker 2 (05:54):
As a whole, the team has struggled for the last
few years against left handed pitching. What's the explanation for
why they struggle so much against lefties?
Speaker 3 (06:03):
From your viewpoint, right handed hitting consistency. I mean, that's
the bottom line. You can you talk about it and
you know, turn it anyway that you want to, But
in order to be successful against left handed pitchers, you've
got to have right handed hitters in the lineup that
do their job. And if they don't, then you're gonna
you're not gonna have a lot of success because everything
(06:25):
that's out there has some left handed hitters and they
have some right handed hitters. When the left handed hitters
are smoking against right handed pitching, everybody's real happy. But
when the left handed hitter, when the left handed hitters
aren't hitting lefties. Then everybody starts talking, well, maybe we
should platoon this and that. It's really not about that.
It's about your right handers doing their job against left
handed pitching. That's it.
Speaker 2 (06:46):
Let's talk about Chase Burns. Red's expected to call them up,
gonna make the start tomorrow against the Yankees. You've spent
a little bit more time around him than most people are.
What are the Reds getting in Chase Burns?
Speaker 3 (07:00):
Well, we do know they're getting a twenty two year
old that's never made a major league start. That's pretty
much academic. That's the easier dalysis of the situation. I
think what they're getting is a kid that's got some moxie.
He's got a heck of a lot of confidence. I
think he's shown that through his quick drive through the
minor leagues. You look at some of those numbers in
(07:21):
the minor leagues and you compare them to what we
saw with the Pirates right hander Paul Schemes. They're very similar.
I mean, he is come in a hurry, he throws
a lot of strikes, he is pounding the strike zone,
he is not afraid of anybody, and he's not afraid
of any situation. And I think that he is one
of those kids that is a polished college pitcher, So
(07:44):
he understands how to locate and where to locate. And
he's throwing the ball one hundred miles an hour. His
slider is better than his fastball, even though his fastball
is one hundred. So that ought to tell you a
little something about the kid right there. Yeah, you are
not that. Not only that, though, Austin he he has
he has gotten some understanding as he as he started
the year, and I think that just comes from the
(08:07):
the guys in our minor leagues that just made it
known to him he needs to throw a change up
and he's gonna need that change up, not right now,
but when he gets to the big leagues. And so
when he started, you know, at the beginning of the
year in a ball, he was throwing a change up.
It was not his best pitch is still not even
close to his best pitch, but it has gotten leaps
and bounds better from when he first started cutting it loose,
(08:29):
and it's actually a viable pitch, especially to left handers.
He doesn't throw it much to rieties, but he throws
it to lefties, but his I think it's gonna be
fun to watch him take them out against the Yankees.
I think he is going to be super amped, may
have a few walks there in the first inning, but
but I tell you, it's gonna be fun to watch
(08:50):
him compete because in all of the video and the
time that I saw him throw in spring training, there's
a there's a special quality about a kid that takes
the mound and says, Okay, I'm here. And when you
can do that, when you can do that and have
that kind of presence, it really gets you a leg
up on the competition.
Speaker 2 (09:11):
Yeah, I was saying earlier, I think it says a
lot about him that the Reds are, like, you know,
obviously the Reds are a little bit desperate right now
with the injuries, but also they're not afraid to put
this dude at Great American Ballpark up against the New
York Yankees. I feel like that says a lot about
his mentality as a pitcher, as much as it has
to do with how good he is with his different pitches.
Speaker 3 (09:33):
Well, I think when you have a kid that has
proved to everyone around him, I'm ready, and no mistake
about it, he has proved that he is ready. Now
is he ready for the Yankees? Whoever is? And would you,
I mean to be honest with you, would you say
that Hunter Green is ready for the Yankees? He's been
up here for three or four years. Will know, Yeah,
(09:55):
But what we do know is that the kid has
sailed through the minor leagues. He's throng strikes, he's been
on the attack. He's done everything that anyone has asked
him to do, and he's done it with a competitive
nature that is second to any to nobody else. So
with that in mind, why wouldn't you run him out
there against the Yankees? Because if and this is a
(10:18):
big if, but if he does roll out there and
he walks the dog, guess what, You've got another ace
in the naking.
Speaker 2 (10:24):
Yeah, that's right. Let's turn the clock back before I
let you go, Jeff. Let's turn the clock back to
nineteen ninety six, when Jeff Brantley had forty four saved
for the Cincinnati Reds. Let's say he can pitch tonight
against Aaron Judge. How are you Jeff Brantley from nineteen
ninety six attacking Aaron Judge?
Speaker 3 (10:44):
Well, I would have to say, first pitch, breaking ball,
because my fastball was not good enough to challenge the
likes of a guy like Aaron Judge. But I would
get ahead and I'm I'm either gonna punch him in
the mouth or he's gonna punch me in the mouth.
But we're gonna do it on the and then and
then after that that I'm going at the top of
the strike zone because he's got a little bit of
(11:06):
that uppercut swing and if I that was always my
pitch at the top of the zone. And after that
you just kind of let the chips fall where they may.
Speaker 2 (11:13):
I love it, Jeff, Thank you so much for the time.
Hope you're feeling better. We'll be listening tonight on the call.
Appreciate it, man, all right, lot to kick you. That
is Jeff Brantley, the Cowboy. Good stuff, man. Love that
going right at Aaron Judge. Nothing better going right at
Aaron Judge.
Speaker 3 (11:29):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (11:29):
Man, you go back to nineteen ninety six, the Cowboy
Jeff Brantley forty four saves a two point four to
one era for the Red Legs, seventy one innings, pitched
seventy six strikeouts, just throwing some some gas striking dudes out.
But that's cool. You know. You know I learned something
(11:50):
right there about Chase Burns. I didn't know that the
slighter many believe is better than the fastball, and the
importance of developing a change up and the way that
the has improved over the course of his minor league career,
developing it young once he got here and in the
program to the point where he's able to throw that
(12:11):
pitch against left handers at the minimum, against left handers.
That's good. You know, we've talked a lot about development
with this organization, right, developing players, can you get them
from point A to point two point b? And some
dudes are just unicorns, right, Like some guys are just like, hey,
this guy has got it and he's going to get
(12:31):
to the big leagues and we'll figure the rest out.
I think Hunter Green is one of those guys. Paul
Skeen's one of those guys. Maybe Chase Burns is that too,
and to go through the rise that he has, and
I understand they are desperate, But to me, as I
said earlier, not being afraid to put him in this
(12:54):
situation coming up against the New York Yankees and not
being afraid to say, all right, we're not gonna get
some schmuck off the scrap heap. We're gonna go get
our best prospect because we need him to help us
win games. Tells me that the Reds are telling you,
(13:15):
and telling the team and telling the organization. Yes, we're
trying to win these games. We're trying to put ourselves
in a position. You look at this next couple of
weeks for the Red Lags. I've mentioned a lot three
against the Yankees, three against the Padres, and then you
turn around and go to Boston for a three game
set with the Red Sox and then three at Philadelphia.
(13:37):
I mean, come on with it. That's tough. You need
your best players in these moments to be able to
put yourself in a position going into the All Star Break. Now,
going into the All Star Break, there's four at home
against Miami and three at home against Colorado. Now, those
(13:59):
two teams from a record standpoint are obviously not very good.
But we've seen the Reds lose a series already this
year to Miami, and so you want to put yourself
in a position to have your best team available in
that seven game stretch going into the All Star break
to where you say, Okay, are we in this thing
(14:20):
or not? And you can't get to that seven game
stretch if you don't get through this stretch right now
with the Yankees, Padres, Red Sox and Phillies and so again.
To me, the decision to bring Chase Burns up instead
of going to one of those other guys, one of
those other below average guys that we've seen them turn
(14:43):
to over and over and over again in recent years,
to me, is indicative of the organization's desire to put
themselves in a position to be in it at the
All Star Break, and what happens then if you're in
it at the All Star Break, surely they won't go
through another month of July with this team and with
(15:05):
these players and being in the conversation in contention and
not be more aggressive at the deadline. Right you gotta
be aggressive quick too, because you come out of the
All Star Break you have the Mets, the Nationals, the Rays,
and the Dodgers and the Braves. I mean, the Nationals
(15:26):
are not what everybody you know. They've got some dudes
that can hit, is what I'm trying to say. Offensively,
They've got it. The Mets have one of the best
records in baseball, though they've fallen off a little bit
as of late Tampa still formidable. The Dodgers are the Dodgers,
and the Reds already lost a series of the Braves
this year. This is a critical stretch, and as much
(15:48):
as I have criticized this organization, I think they're making
the right move with Chase Burns, and I'm not worried
about them potentially screwing him up or whatever. I'm in
the business of winning baseball games. I want to win.
When when When when win? If Chase Burns gives you
(16:09):
the best opportunity to win, the hell yeah, bring him
up here. Let's see what he can do. Phone lines
are open five point three seven, four nine, fifteen thirty.
If you want to call in and be a part
of the show. You can tweet it me as well
at Audiel Moore A U T Y E L M
O r E. Let's go to Cincinnati. Dennis is standing
by Dennis. You're on ESPN fifteen thirty. What's up? Hey? One?
Speaker 3 (16:34):
I got on about the Dangels and how Joe Burrow
is the in the team president. Think they signed t
Higgins without Joey's intervention.
Speaker 2 (16:43):
I don't think so. No, Yeah, okay, okay, Dennis, thank you,
that was simple enough. Yeah, I really I think I
think it's kind of twofold. Number one. Joe pounded the
table for T Higgins. Number two. You go down the
stretch in the way that he performed. You know, the
(17:06):
game in Dallas when Joe was basically saying we need tea,
the game against Denver when a really good secondary took
away Jamar Chase with the defensive player the year and
Patrick Sartan and a good defensive game plan, and then
the way that T Higgins basically single handedly beat the
Denver Broncos that night. And you look at the way
(17:29):
Pittsburgh has built their defense, Cleveland has built their defense,
and most notably, the way Baltimore has retooled their defense.
There is going to be a defensive coordinators are gonna say,
all right, whatever happens, Jamar Chase is not going to
beat us, They're gonna make life hell for him. So
it's gonna be on you know, Dan Pitcher and Zach
(17:52):
Taylor and Justin Roscotti to come up with ways to
get Jamar open and moving around. But also, if you
have a six foot six monster on the other side
by the name of t Higgins. That's a matchup nightmare,
good luck, And he got Mike Gasiki down the middle
of the field, and all of a sudden, if Chase
burns or Chase Burns, if Chase Brown can be the
(18:14):
player we all think he's going to be, that opens
up the offense. But teams are gonna do everything in
their power to take Jamar away. And in the event
that he gets hurt, or in the event that you
do go up against a corner who has his number
on that night or a safety who's locking it down,
can you turn to somebody else? Can they make the play?
I think the Bengals realize that over the course of
(18:37):
this season, and on top of that, I think they
got some peace of mind on how to like properly
keep Higgins on the field. There were adjustments to his
stretching routines, to treatment that he gets, to how he
practices and when he practices, And I feel like the
Bengals are more comfortable with that moving forward, especially with
that hamstring that's nagged Tea at times, say Okay, we're
(19:00):
willing to invest in this guy moving forward. Your phone
calls five P one three seven four nine fifteen thirty
tweeted at me as well at Audielmore a U T
y E L. M Ori About twenty twenty five minutes
from right now, Moegger returns. He's back from Florida load management.
June is wrapping up. We'll see what he's got coming
up on his show, and so much more. This is
(19:22):
since E three sixty ESPN fifteen thirty Cincinnati Sports Station
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