September 11, 2024 • 39 mins
Roggin and Rodney (Jonas Knox) talk about the Dodgers loss to the Cubs, but 4 dominant innings from Yamamotoand Bill Plunkett joins the show.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Ah, here we go. Fred rgan Jonas notching today for
Rodney on a five seventy LA Sports. You know you
thought it was just delightful watching the Dodgers last night.
Speaker 2 (00:09):
All right, well, let's like, I never do that to you.
I don't try and take one little thing and spin
it out of control and twist it into something that's
that I didn't say. I would never do that to you.
I would never know that I had never done that
to you. I would please expect the same respect in
return when it comes to my commentary.
Speaker 1 (00:28):
Okay, my bad, if you've never done that to me,
I would never do that. Okay, what exactly are you saying?
Speaker 2 (00:34):
You look at last night? Yes, listen, they lost the game.
You know you want to take a short sided view.
That's fine. You lost the game because in the eighth
inning there was a meltdown defensively, which they haven't had
in what like two years? Was the last time they
had an inning like that where everything just sort of
fell apart. It wasn't like you know, their you know,
(00:57):
their reliever got lit up. It just fell up part
bad plays, bad balances, et cetera. And then on top
of that, you had multiple times hits that would have
been hit against any other team in Major League Baseball
and against any other outfielder in Major League Baseball. But
the problem is the guy you hit it near is
(01:18):
named p Crow Armstrong, and he's a superstar in the making,
and he's a local guy from Harvard Westlake, and he
was doing things that you never ever see a center
fielder do. It's like one of the great outfield performances
we've seen by anybody in a long time. That stuff
is not a everyday occurrence, fluky, kind of weird. You
(01:41):
tip your cap on a couple of those plays. But
here's why you walk away long term and you're feeling
great about things. Has ya Momoto ever looked better? Like
I mean, and I know it was a short sample size.
They weren't close to the stuff he had, Like they
couldn't touch him. He had what eights strikeouts and four
innings the last time he had a performance like this, Like,
(02:04):
if you want to go all the way back to
maybe April against Washington, I thought he was tremendous. So
I'm a little surprised that you're as down on them
as you are, considering you were just hoping, Hey, if
he gets lit up. Yeah, not great, But the most
important thing is he comes out healthy. He looked great,
and if you're the Dodgers long term, I think he
had If he's feeling good about things.
Speaker 1 (02:26):
Okay, yeah, Well I take a little different approach. First
I thought, yea, I'm a moto. Did look really good.
And again, the whole key for me is how's he
feeling today? That's it. How's he feeling today? Because they
couldn't touch him early in the game. He had some
help in the umpire, I'll say that, but overall they
couldn't touch him, and he did. Look at what are
(02:46):
you laughing about? It's true?
Speaker 2 (02:47):
Okay, I mean it's true.
Speaker 1 (02:50):
What are you laughing about? He looked great, He looked
really good. Okay. If he's okay today, I'll take that.
That's a major win. Defensively, that was in a backle
borderline embarrassing. They can't make those mistakes. It doesn't matter
what game, who they're playing. You can't make those mistakes.
And they made them. That is not good. Is that
(03:12):
a lack of focus? Is it a lack of bad luck?
I don't know what it was, but you cannot make
those mistakes. Ultimately, that's what doomed them, and you've got
to guard against that and hopefully they got that out
of their system. All right, So they had a bad game.
Speaker 2 (03:26):
I mean, yeah, but you know how often does that happen.
It's not like this happens all the time. They had
a bad game, and you'd rather have these bad games
now than get to the postseason. And next thing you know,
Dodger Stadium is about ready to fall apart because people
can't believe this is happening to them again in the playoffs,
So little reminder. I think they're gonna bounce back. I
(03:47):
don't know why you have to be so negative all
the time. Why can't you just focus and try and
find a smile somewhere in there, somewhere behind just that dark,
ominous look you have, just that silhouette you present of
nothing good happens to the Dodgers at this point in
time during the season. Listen, Yamamoto went out there and
was dealing help from the umpire or not, Maybe he
(04:08):
was due something. Maybe everything evens out in the end,
and maybe yeah he did get the benefit of the
dollar a call on a couple of strikes there that
maybe wouldn't have been called strikes in other places, but
I'll say this, this stuff was there. You've got was
it our Austin Barnes who was saying afterwards, that's like
I didn't expect that. That was the best he's ever looked.
So yes, if he feels good about things, I think
(04:31):
the Dodgers come away from that game feeling great about
the fact they're gonna be in the postseason. And don't
worry about it. You're not gonna see Pete crow Armstrong
the boogeyman again after tonight because the Cups aren't going
to the playoffs, So you kind of leave that to
the side, address that in Japan when they start off
the season with him next year, and then focus on
the current state of play, which is this team getting
(04:54):
to the postseason and trying to overcome the negative perception
that you've thrown on them all already, well before the
playoffs have even started.
Speaker 1 (05:03):
Okay, So anyway, I didn't say anything of a negative
nature about the team because I thought all along they're
going to be just fine.
Speaker 2 (05:09):
Did did I just twist your words out out of proportion?
Did I just do what you did to me?
Speaker 1 (05:14):
Is that what you did? What to me? What you
do to me every day. Okay, that's exactly what you
did again. That's fine. Everything you said defensively, that's unacceptable
and that can't happen again. But the best part of
it really was, aside from watching Yamamoto, you were right,
Pete Crow Armstrong kept the Westlake. He's Wes like Harvard
(05:35):
Wes West like Harvard Westlake's twenty two, twenty two years old. Yeah,
my god, was that fun.
Speaker 2 (05:40):
He's unbelievable.
Speaker 1 (05:42):
That was so much fun to watch. And how fast
is he?
Speaker 2 (05:46):
He's the guy if you go look up. It was
a play that went viral earlier this year, he had
an inside the park home run at Miami and he
got from home to home in like fourteen seconds. Like
he's like, it just blazes. And he's really struggled at
(06:07):
the play throughout most of the season, but lately he's
picked it up and he's one of those guys to
where all you have to do is get him on base.
If you get him on base, he's taken two. It's
like the Eagles have this term where they call it
first to nine because of the brotherly shove. They know
they're gonna get a first down, so they're not worried
about the ten yards. Just get his nine yards. We're
gonna get the extra yard. With Pete krah Armstrong, there's
(06:29):
no such thing as just a single. If he gets
on first, he's taken second. Like you don't have a
say in the matter. He's getting that bag regardless of
what you do. Nobody's throwing him out. And so the
problem has been, well can you get him on base?
The problem's never been his defense. He is, un like
Cody Bellinger, is one of the best defensive outfielders in
(06:50):
Major League Baseball. Ian happ on the other side as
a gold glover, like those are really really good outfielders,
they're not close to him. I have no idea how
he play that ball over the wall that seemed like
it went in between two fans arms.
Speaker 1 (07:04):
Yeah, the fan should have caught the ball. Yes, the
fan should have made the play. It doesn't you give
the fan an error because he should have caught the ball.
But somehow he went up at the end, and by
the way, that would have made it a one run game,
so I wouldn't have tied the game. But he went up,
he looked like the happen. He looked like a kid. Yes,
(07:26):
he just looked like a kid having a great time,
laughing and smiling. Bellinger was laughing and what about those
other defensive.
Speaker 2 (07:34):
I'm telling you, man like and I've been watching it
and going, okay, this this is like happening a lot.
Now he's becoming a superstar. And he was one of
those guys we mentioned with Dave ass yesterday, how you've
seen two different ways that it's gone. Because a couple
of years back, in like twenty sixteen, it was almost
a race to see who was going to be the
(07:56):
dynasty in the National League, and like twenty fifteen, twenty sixteen,
you remember the Mets had that great pitching staff. The
Mets went to you know, they went to the World Series.
I believe they had that. You know, the Dodgers ran
into them a couple of times. And then you had
the Cubs, and then you had the Dodgers. Well, the
team that's had staying power and has lasted as the Dodgers,
(08:17):
like their farm system ended up being better, their players
panned out better at the major league level, and like
the guys that have left, the Cubs have struggled. And
one of those guys was Hobby Bias. Well, when they
traded Hobby Bias to the Mets, one of the pieces
they got back in return was Pete crow Armstrong, And
so when they got him in return, he was one
of these top prospects in Major League Baseball, but the
(08:38):
people just weren't sure. Yeah, maybe you'll figure it out
the plate, maybe, But defensively he's always had it and
he's one of those guys to where you just want
to watch him play the outfield because no balls out
of reach, Like there was another one, who's was it
Tommy Edmonds home run that went over the Look at
how high he got up for that ball.
Speaker 1 (08:58):
I saw that?
Speaker 2 (08:58):
Yeah, click, who is this? I'm telling you know what, Fred?
He gives us hope, you know what I mean. It's
like the first time you and I saw Larry Bird
were like, hey, man, hey, that's us. Like, yeah, Pete
crow Armstrong gives us hope with his speed and the
way he's able to move and fly around in the outfield,
(09:22):
and it just he he looks like the most unassuming
guy ever. He looks like he'd be a skateboarder, like
you would just he looks like a guy that you
would see walking out of Spencer's with like a bag
of gummy worms and like a Depeche Mode shirt and
instead he's out there playing center field or like we've
never seen before. It's crazy. Guy's unbelievable.
Speaker 1 (09:42):
Did you see the catch he made? Kind of the
running he was headed toward the wall and made this
kind of picturesque backhand grasp.
Speaker 2 (09:50):
What was that that he didn't?
Speaker 1 (09:52):
It was like, what are you doing? And did do that?
Speaker 2 (09:55):
And the other thing too, is that he taught like Dodgers,
like fans in the outfield have been get it into
him at Dodger Stadium because every time he makes a play,
he's barking right back at him, like whatever they're saying
to him, he hears it and he's barking right back.
And they showed like a picture of him when he
was five years old because his mom is an actress.
I forget her name, Damn it is it Ashley Crow.
(10:19):
I forget, Like his mom's an actress, but I yeah,
I think they're both in Hollywood somehow, some way, And
so they showed a picture of him out getting no
more Garcia Para's autograph when he was five years old
at Dodger Stadium and they're like, you know, like if
I were to tell you like that you went from
that to this, and he was just like, ah, yeah,
(10:40):
you know, like didn't really even want to address it
or talk about it.
Speaker 3 (10:43):
Now.
Speaker 2 (10:43):
You don't understand that. Like it's one of those things
to where even Dodger fans, like people that cover the
Dodgers are like, yeah, man, like Yamamoto, Man, what the
hell was that that we just saw? And that doesn't
happen a lot, especially on that stage, Like think about
all the star power that was there, Japan was represented,
you got like everybody's really excited about all the matchups.
(11:05):
Max Munsey was mashing the ball, Tommy Edmund had a
couple of home runs, and the guy everybody's talking about
is this little guy from a Spencer store in a
mall somewhere who just lit the field on fire defensively,
Like it wasn't really anything he did offensively, just defensively.
And then if you see him get on base, just
(11:25):
watch him run the bases if you get an opportunity
or look up that video of the inside the park
home run against Miami. The kid is unbelievable, but good
thing you don't have to see him again after tonight
it's over.
Speaker 1 (11:37):
Okay, so your glass is really half full? Yes, really
half full?
Speaker 2 (11:41):
How could you not? You were the ones saying yesterday,
I just want yamamotor to feel good. If he feels
good today, was he not better than you expected in
review one thousand?
Speaker 1 (11:51):
Yeah, he looked good. So and he feels good today.
So that's the good news. Uh. I can't dismiss the era. Sorry,
won't can't allow that. But you're right. The price of
admission last night was Pete crow Armstrong.
Speaker 2 (12:04):
Jeez, he really was.
Speaker 1 (12:07):
And you know, you just wonder to yourself. Okay, the
Cubs made a deal. They traded Hobby Bay as they
get this kid, Pete crow Armstrong. And you have to
remember when teams acquire prospects, there's a reason for that.
Somebody thought they'd be pretty good. Maybe the team that's
selected have gave up on them or didn't think they
(12:29):
would be as good, or they wouldn't have as high
as a ceiling. But that's why even the Dodgers, when
they make these moves, I think David Vasse talked about
it the other day. They trade Michael Busch. All right,
Michael Bush is killing the Dodgers. What did Vassy say?
He didn't even know the guy's name. He said, they
got a picture in return that everybody projects to be
(12:51):
a star.
Speaker 2 (12:52):
It is something fairess, is what it is. Yeah, I
forget something like that.
Speaker 1 (12:56):
They got somebody in return that they project to be
a star, and by all accounts and many evaluators in baseball,
that could really happen. So they had to give up
something in Michael Boyce who torched the Dodgers to get
something that you haven't seen yet.
Speaker 2 (13:12):
Jackson Ferris, All right.
Speaker 1 (13:13):
Jackson Ferris. So the match gave up Hobby Badias for
some kid named Pete crow Armstrong. He's so important. He
has two last names. And this kid when they get him,
you don't know anything about him. But now look at
what you've seen. I mean, the Cubs are going to
be pretty solid in that outfield if Cody Bellinger stays
(13:34):
there for years to come.
Speaker 2 (13:35):
I mean defensively, like the Cubs shouldn't allow and like
there should be zero airs on the score sheet the
entire year. Like if you consider half Bellinger, Pete crow Armstrong,
like Dansby Swanson, Nico Horner, who I know you were
pushing for the Dodgers to trade for before the deadline
because you wanted to play me so Horner if they
(13:57):
acquired him. That's not exactly why. Okay, well I thought that.
That's the way I interpreted it. But okay, the last
thing we need to do here is make accusations of
each other. That would make us sound less professional.
Speaker 1 (14:06):
I mean, you don't need to jump to conclusions.
Speaker 2 (14:08):
Okay, I don't want to do that. Michael Bush is
a phenomenal defensive first baseman out of nowhere, so yeah,
but like all of that is awesome, They're not going
to the playoffs. I mean, they are four games out
of the wild Card. They struggled all year long, so yeah,
they figured it out now, but they're not going to
be anywhere in sight. Yamamoto though, that was a guy
(14:29):
last night, who if that's the version of the of
him you're getting Fred you could roll him out there
game one like somebody hit that, like somebody like that
splitter he throws like. The Cubs were bad. They had
no answers for it, and it was almost like, thank god,
he's only going four and I thought he could have
gone longer. They could have kept him in the game. Longer,
(14:50):
but I understand the idea. Listen, We're just gonna slowly
work him back. Dave was talking about Dave Assay was
saying two to four innings, you max that out at four.
He was tremendous man. So just based on what his
performance last night, you gotta be feeling a lot better
about things. Is approach to playoffs?
Speaker 1 (15:11):
All right, we're off and running.
Speaker 3 (15:12):
Uh.
Speaker 1 (15:13):
Bill Pe will join us next. Bill Pe will join
the show. Jonas knoxon today for Rodney and now let's
bring on the man we referred to as Bill P.
Bill P. From the Orange County Register. It is Bill Plunkett,
and Bill, how are you today?
Speaker 3 (15:35):
Well, I'm apparently not as busy as Bill Plashky, but
happy to be here.
Speaker 1 (15:39):
No, no, no, that's not true. We actually wanted you today.
We didn't even look for Plashky. You know, we're getting
tired of Plashky. We wanted you today.
Speaker 3 (15:47):
Wow, well you'll get tired of me fast enough to
do then.
Speaker 1 (15:51):
That's a fair point. All right. So anyway, Bill, let's
get started. Yam Modo looked pretty good last night.
Speaker 3 (15:56):
No, he looked every bit as good as they could
have hoped, and probably better I mean really sharp pitch
efficient to get through four innings with the limited fits
County had. Splitter in particular, looked really good. It could
not have gone better.
Speaker 2 (16:15):
I was thinking this as well too, just going through
looking at some of his previous starts, like you could
make the argument, and I think maybe Austin Barnes even
said it that he was better than ever, Like, was
that the best you'd seen him look from a stuff
standpoint all year?
Speaker 3 (16:30):
No, he had two other starts earlier in the year
where he looked better. He went eight innings, I want
to say against the Reds. I forget exactly who it
was against.
Speaker 2 (16:41):
There was another one against against Washington as well too,
that was good, I remember.
Speaker 3 (16:45):
Yeah. And then the best, maybe the best start of all,
was at Yankee Stadium. He went seven I think seven scoreless,
two hits allowed in what was really honestly a playoff atmosphere.
It was that weekend series at the time, I think
that both teams had the best records in their league.
(17:06):
Everybody was all excited about a Judge Otani matchup, a
Dodgers Yankees World series. It was a playoff atmosphere. He
went out there, it was fantastic. Now that's probably also
when the shoulder injury started, because it was two starts
later that he was shut down. But he has looked
(17:27):
really good multiple times. I mean, this is a guy
who was the MVP of the Japanese League not once,
but twice, and he knows what big games are about.
He's pitching the WBC, he pitched in the Japan series there.
I think all of those things are why they signed
(17:47):
him for the money they signed him for. And then
to see it last night after three months off was tremendous,
tremendously encouraging, all right, So that.
Speaker 1 (17:57):
Makes the half full. Let's talk about that eighth inning defensively,
I think that makes me last half empty.
Speaker 3 (18:05):
I wouldn't worry about it too much, first of all,
because two of the three errors were by guys who
are not going to be playing those positions very often.
Austin Barnes is not going to be starting on a
regular basis. He made the bad throw that kind of
started things. He k Hernandez. I don't think we'll be
playing a whole lot of second base moving forward. That
(18:28):
was just a start against the left handed pitcher for
the Cubs, so it was a bad inning. It was
an ugly inning. It cost him the game. But I
wouldn't I wouldn't take it to mean anything more than
that it was. It was a one off, a bad
night and a bad loss.
Speaker 2 (18:49):
What do you need to see from them to feel
confident heading into the postseason? Like down the stretch, Like
if you had a wish list, obviously health would be
one of them, but specifically that you I think Dave
Roberts would feel much better about this roster into the postseason.
Speaker 3 (19:04):
Well, last night was one of them, was seeing Amamoto
come back. It's really interesting. This is kind of an
odd combination. Having covered playoffs for twenty years now, postseason
baseball has changed dramatically. Starting pitchers don't factor as much
as they used to. You don't have the Madison Bumgarner
(19:28):
carrying the Giants to a World Series. You don't have
the Strasburg Suzer types that got the Nationals a World
Series title. If you get five innings out of your
starter in the postseason, that's what you want. You get
fifteen outside of your starter, and you ask your bullpen
to get twelve outs every night. That's the way the
(19:49):
game has become in the postseason now. With that being said,
right now, nothing is more important to the Dodgers October
hopes than the health of their starting pitchers. They cannot
go into the postseason with the same kind of setup
they had last year when they had a compromised Clayton Kershaw,
(20:11):
home run prone Lance Lynn, and they experienced Bobby Miller.
They can't go into the postseason and put their hopes
on that kind of a rotation. They need Yamamoto to
be healthy, They need Glass Now to be healthy. They
need Flaherty to be you know, continue pitching the way
he has and then you can you know, fludge the
fourth starter however you have to. But I don't think
(20:34):
there's anything more important than how those three starting pitchers
go into the postseason.
Speaker 1 (20:39):
Well, right now, Yamamoto is going to start, all right,
if that is what we're going to see, he gets
the ball in Game one, Flaherty gets the ball in
Game two.
Speaker 3 (20:48):
I still think you get Flarerty in game one because
of the experience factor. Really yeah, and you also have
to figure in, you know, when are you coming back
with him for a second start. I don't know that
you can count on getting two starts in a five
game series out of Yamamoto, They've been very careful with
(21:09):
his workload all season long. He hasn't pitched on less
than five days rest. With the travel days in the postseason,
maybe you can get him a Game one and a
Game five, But I kind of think they would go
with Clarty first.
Speaker 2 (21:26):
Based on what you've seen from Mookie Betts. His response,
Max Muncy, I mean, I know we're asking to look
into the future when it comes to this, but I
just don't anticipate the top of the lineup struggling in
the playoffs like they did last year. Like it does
feel different this year. I mean, crazy things have happened.
I know people are just assuming the worst. What's your
(21:47):
gauge on how that lineup is, in particular at the
top with out tiny leading things off.
Speaker 3 (21:52):
Yeah, they can't afford to have them go one for
twenty again in a series like Freeman and Betst That
sank them pretty pretty good again. The starting pitching put
him in holes and they just never had a chance
last year. I think they are potentially deeper lineup this
(22:13):
year than you know. They were pretty deep when they
had Trey Turner in that group up top two. But
the key I think you're going to get something out
of Bets and Freeman. What are you going to get
out of show? Heyokhani, I mean, I know he's the
greatest player on the planet and generational talent. He's never
played in the postseason. We don't know what he's going
(22:35):
to be. The WBC was high pressure for him. I
don't think it's the same as a postseason. I don't
think it's the same, isn't it that in the World Series.
So that's still a mystery to me. And I don't
know how he's going to react. He's you know, he
hasn't been the same hitter in the second half that
(22:57):
he was in the first average wise, still hitting for power.
He may be selling out for power a little bit
recently because you know, chasing the record. I think he
is still a mystery in the in the postseason until
we see Until we see it, I.
Speaker 1 (23:16):
Think you've like found in the postseason. Personally, I think
he'll have a big postseason. I like it. If the
pitching holds up for the Dodgers and Bets and and
Freddie hit this go around, I think they're gonna be okay.
If you know, again, if the pitching holds up and
they're healthy. What happened to Bondage?
Speaker 3 (23:32):
Huge question mark there, huge question mark whether the pitching holds.
Speaker 1 (23:36):
Up all right? Then? Yeah, what happened.
Speaker 3 (23:38):
Bond Bonda did not apparently did not see the movie
Bull Durham where Crash Davis teaches Nuklalus that when you
punch somebody, you punch with you don't punch with your
pitching hand. He got frustrated after his outing Monday night
(23:59):
and he hit something man his pitching hand lost.
Speaker 2 (24:05):
Do we know what he hit? Any any guests.
Speaker 3 (24:09):
Don't know specifically, but I would bet a wall, just walls,
walls tend to tend to win that matchup.
Speaker 2 (24:16):
I mean, like, at what point during the time between
you're throwing the punch and hitting the wall, do you
not realize, Yeah, this is a terrible idea. Like a door,
I can understand, you know, like you know, if you
want to like a dry wall, I can understand You're
you're gonna go through it and you're gonna feel a
little bit better about things. I mean, don't they have
like a speed bag or like a heavy bag anywhere
(24:38):
nearby so guys can unload on that as opposed to
punch in a wall. It's a terrible idea.
Speaker 3 (24:43):
Most dugouts do have a punching bag down the hallway.
A lot of a lot of dugouts. Yeah, and guys
will guys will wail on it with their path frustrating
at that. Yeah, it's it's not you're thinking logically. And
in the moment he was clearly not thinking logically. He
(25:05):
was very upset. And I'll say this. I'll say this
about Anthony. They picked him up on the cheap and
he has been a very valuable piece of that bullpen.
Has not pitched as well recently because they have worn
him down. They have used him more than anybody else
in that bullpen since he got here.
Speaker 2 (25:29):
Oh well, listen, if you if you acquire himy as
well use him.
Speaker 3 (25:32):
You know, he got him using it and he was pitching.
He has pitched well for most of that time, so
he was he was a very good option.
Speaker 1 (25:40):
Uh you know frequently, Aybell, what do you hear about Glass? Now?
How's he doing?
Speaker 3 (25:47):
The bullpen session looked really good yesterday he you know,
says that the y elbow has calmed down. He's not feeling
anything there. I think they want to get him into game.
So he's gonna throw a sim game. He's going to
throw the hitters Friday in Atlanta, and I think we
will see him start next week. They're not gonna send
(26:08):
him to a minor league rehab. They want to get
him in major league games, and if they do that
next week, he gets three starts before the postseason. Glasnow
is a big, tall guy, long levers, as they say,
and the timing and the mechanics of his delivery are
fairly complicated as a result, so they want to get
(26:30):
him in major league games so he can smooth as
much of that out as possible before a postseason game.
You also have, you know, the way it looks if
they're going to get one of the top two seeds,
they're going to have that five day break again after
the season and before the start of the DS. I
think you might see some of these guys in as
(26:53):
intense as they can make them interra squad games during
that five day break to you know, build up pitch
counts and smooth out mechanics for guys like las Naw
and Yamamoto who have been out so long.
Speaker 1 (27:10):
Hey Bell, what did you think of Pete prol Armstrong
last night?
Speaker 3 (27:13):
Outstanding? What a good young ballplayer he is.
Speaker 2 (27:16):
Huh, it's exciting man by that's uh. And and when
you get resounding like a credit from Dodger fans, who
you understand, Like, yeah, he called, you know, won a
game for him for the Cubs in Dodger Stadium. He's
a local guy. But some of those plays were unbelievable, like.
Speaker 3 (27:33):
He and he covers so much ground out there. And yeah,
the the one uh, I think it was on Otani
that he caught on the warning track while sliding was remarkable.
And then he steals home run from Muncie to end
the game. Yeah, he's He's gonna be fun to watch
for a long time.
Speaker 2 (27:54):
It was also kind of kind of odd the like
the heart scare that Porter Hodge for the Cubs had
happened that I can't believe they left him in the game,
Like he's got a heart.
Speaker 3 (28:04):
Scare there too. Yeah, we didn't know in real time
when when the trainer was out there, We didn't know
what he was checking on. We just you know, Hodge
took a knee at one point. But apparently this is
something that he had issues with in the past. Uh,
And I guess he talked the trainer and to let
(28:25):
them stay in there, and yeah, it was. It was odd.
And you know, if you followed the Dodgers for years,
we're familiar with this with Kenley Janssen and the problems
that he had with with the irregular heartbeat. And I
don't think he pitches in Colorado when his team goes
there because the altitude has such a such an effect
(28:47):
on him. He was, Yeah, he was pretty scared one year.
I recall when he had had the issue in Denver.
Speaker 1 (28:56):
Bill last night. Was it a heart scare? Was it anxiety?
Do we know exactly what it was?
Speaker 3 (29:01):
As I understand it, he has had I forget how
they described it, but a rapid heartbeat at times in
the past, and when he felt it happening again, it
understandably scared him a little bit and that's why we
(29:22):
had the trainer come out there and eventually things settled down.
But I don't know the whole background on it, but
I do believe this was not the first time he's
experienced it.
Speaker 1 (29:35):
All right, Well, we appreciate experiencing you again today. Thank
you very much Bill for coming on.
Speaker 2 (29:40):
Thanks Bill.
Speaker 3 (29:41):
I hope it makes your your heartbeat get rapid for
good reasons.
Speaker 1 (29:45):
Yeah, all right, there goes our buddy Bill plug into
the Orange County Register. You know, Jonas, you asked Bill
a question. It was a pretty good one. What do
you need to see this season to make you feel
confident about the in the postseason? And maybe what we'll
do next hours we'll open the phone lines and hear
from people.
Speaker 2 (30:04):
Yeah, let's do it, all right.
Speaker 1 (30:06):
Yeah, so you can formulate that we'll do that next hour.
How much money do you think Miller Moss, the USC
quarterback makes this year?
Speaker 2 (30:19):
Uh? Well, I mean it's college those you know, those
athletes aren't getting any money. Fred, I live in the
olden times where you know, everything was on the app
and off.
Speaker 1 (30:27):
Okay, well, uh, how much do you think Jonas Natch
is in today for Rodney? All right? With nil? College
has changed, College sports have changed. Miller Moss, USC quarterback,
How much money do you think he makes in NIL?
Speaker 2 (30:46):
I'll say five hundred grand a year?
Speaker 1 (30:48):
He makes one point two million?
Speaker 2 (30:49):
All right?
Speaker 1 (30:51):
Uh, he's got deals with EA Sports for college football,
twenty five Fraankrance dot Com, and an NIL deal with
Rock and Pro team. Juju Watkins, USC women's basketball player
pretty good. What do you think she gets paid a year.
Speaker 2 (31:08):
Five hundred one thousand dollars a year.
Speaker 1 (31:11):
Very close five hundred seventy six thousand dollars a year.
See wide receiver Zachariah branch usc how much you think
he makes?
Speaker 2 (31:20):
Some really talented not a quarterback though, I'll say seven
hundred fifty thousand.
Speaker 1 (31:26):
Four hundred and fifty four thousand dollars piece.
Speaker 2 (31:28):
It's a bargain.
Speaker 1 (31:29):
Yeap safety Kamari Ramsey, what do you think he gets paid?
Speaker 2 (31:33):
Oh two fifty three forty.
Speaker 1 (31:36):
And defensive tackle Bear Alexander one hundred bucks, three hundred
and one thousand dollars.
Speaker 2 (31:44):
Well, listen a little off.
Speaker 1 (31:46):
Did I mentioned that Moss is I think sixteenth nationally
in uh nil.
Speaker 2 (31:51):
Rank Cavy look man like there is it's it now
would for some of these guys, it would behoove you
to stay in school, like stay in college. Like there's
the guy Cam McCormick for Miami, the guy that started
at Oregon and now he's at Miami. He's like going
on twenty six years old. The guy's been like this
(32:12):
is his ninth year in college. He like he was
part of the Justin Herbert Organ class and he's still
playing college ball at Miami, like cam Rising of Utah,
like some of these guys like you could stay in
and make decent money depending on you know, how you
have things set up through whatever, Nilda, you have so
(32:33):
good for them.
Speaker 1 (32:34):
You think if these guys are getting paid now, they're
open to criticism. You don't treat them like college kids anymore.
Speaker 2 (32:40):
Well, except at Colorado. You gotta be careful.
Speaker 1 (32:42):
Well, that's true.
Speaker 2 (32:43):
Like you cannot listen. You gotta be careful. You cannot
criticize Colorado because if you do, you're a hater. Diann'll
come after you. He'll take away your media credential. You
can no longer ask questions. By the way, have you
ever had your media credential taken away to where somebody
could have said that you can't ask me questions anymore?
Speaker 1 (33:01):
Never?
Speaker 2 (33:04):
I mean so, the fact that it's happening at Colorado
is a little odd.
Speaker 1 (33:09):
Well, it happened here last year.
Speaker 2 (33:11):
Oh yeah, that's right, that's right.
Speaker 1 (33:13):
Yeah, Hey, you can't come to the news conference anymore, great, no.
Speaker 2 (33:16):
Problem, I know good, I love it. Oh ruin my day.
Speaker 1 (33:21):
Right, if you show up after the game, you can't
ask any questions? Okay, I can listen to e free
answer exactly.
Speaker 2 (33:28):
And most of the times, And I'm glad you said that.
I like, I've been to press conferences before. I think
I've maybe asked. Like I sometimes I would go and
not ask any questions because somebody may ask the same
version of a question you were going to ask anyway.
So you just listen and you take down your notes,
you record it with your recorder, whatever you're doing, and
that's the same thing. And you don't even really need
(33:49):
to be there to get all of that information, like
you can get it else. Like, I just feel like
sometimes they think they've got this power over media members
that really you're not impacting the job that much. Like
we could still watch the games, we could still get
the quotes, we can still write the stories or discuss
the topics. You're not really hampering or doing any disservice
(34:12):
to some of the people in the media.
Speaker 1 (34:14):
Yeah, I've always believed the best place to get these
guys is one on one. If you set something up
with them off to the side, then you get asked
the questions and you can conduct the interview you want
in that setting. In the press conference setting, it really
is a free for all. Now, the writers need that
because oftentimes everyone is not available one on one, so
they've got to get in there. But the point is this,
(34:35):
if one guy asked the question, you're going to hear
the answer. And honestly, unless you've got something so incredible
cooked up that you've got this one question that no
one has thought of, then you can listen to the answers.
By the way, you can write your story anyway you want.
At least you have the quotes. So when they pull
(34:55):
your credential, it's like last year and they took the
kids credential. I think he was writing for the daily
News at USCE. Okay, no problem. I don't want to
battle traffic anyway. I'm good. Yeah, I'll just watch on TV.
I'll just watch on TV and they get the press
quotes afterwards, no problem.
Speaker 2 (35:11):
And I mean it's not like Lincoln Riley's dropping doozies
from a quote standpoint to where you got to.
Speaker 1 (35:17):
Be there, Yeah, I mean like Colorado. Okay, And they
do this in some NFL markets too, smaller markets, not
the size of LA that would never work. But in
a smaller market, we're gonna take your credential. Take it,
take it right, go ahead, take it. I'm gonna write
about you taking it. I'll certainly write about that, why
you took it, what you're all about, how you operate.
Speaker 2 (35:41):
Did you hear the story about David Tepper, the owner
of the Panthers. So during the draft, he was driving
into the facility to go be with the team during
the draft. And by the way, he's done a horrific
job with that team. I mean, coach is gone. Bryce
Young's never gonna get off the ground there, and it's
terrible because he's a good player, but he's in a
(36:03):
craft spot. He's on his way to the draft room
for the first round of the draft. He sees a
sign on a sports bar that takes some swipe at
the Panthers, like hey, this time Panthers draft better or
something you know like that, but like whatever, a sign
at a sport He pulls over on the way to
(36:23):
the draft and goes inside and confronts the guy at
the host stand to ask them why that sign was
put up and what their problem was. The guy's wearing
an Eagles hat that goes in there. It's not even
the guy who put the sign up, he just works
at the place. And David Tepper takes the hat off
his head because he didn't like the fact the guy
(36:44):
had an Eagles hat on. I'm like, hold on a second,
you imagine that, Like, hey, Dave, you know the drafts
in like ten minutes, where are you at? Yeah, I'm
at Skip's Bandit bar off the Interstate. I didn't like
some guys sign and then I walked in there and
a dude had an Eagles hat on. I got to
take care of this. I'll be there soon. What Like,
(37:06):
you can't control everything. And so when you see like
Lincoln Riley or you see Dion Sanders, Like the best
part about that exchange that you have with the CBS
reporter is that lost in that was the fact that
somebody asked Dion Sanders a question about why he would
recommend AFLAC insurance to people because that's one of his sponsors.
(37:29):
The whole thing has gone completely off the rails, Fred,
completely off the rails, and we need somebody like you
who's got credential, integrity and somebody who's got a respect
from the media community to step in and put a
stop to this crap.
Speaker 1 (37:45):
Well, see, here's the thing that the teams don't understand. First,
David Tepper, you got bigger issues to worry about. Your
team's awful geez, so what are you worrying about this
guy wearing an Eagles.
Speaker 2 (37:54):
Hat for sorry Adam. By the way, Adam Auslin is
a Panthers fan.
Speaker 1 (37:58):
I'm all that fine, that's fine. They're not very good.
Speaker 4 (38:00):
I mean, it is completely embarrassing where this franchise has gone.
He exemplifies how ownership is the biggest advantage in sports,
because the Panthers are at a great disadvantage right now
with Tepper throwing the drink and the Jaguars fan face
last year. By the way, at a game, the guy
is unhinged by the way.
Speaker 2 (38:20):
We keep up in the andy on what was inside
the drink on the on two pros and Brady Quinn
always asked me, like, what do you think was in
that drink? It started with Dike coke, then it went
up to light beer, then it went up to an ipa.
Now we're at lighter fluid. No perfect, Yeah, like perfect,
I think I read that. Yeah, like whatever, Yeah, just
(38:43):
something along those lines that would just melt somebody's face
if you planned on them.
Speaker 1 (38:47):
Yeah. The thing teams don't understand and look back in
the day. I remember I had done something with the Rams,
and this is when they were still in town. And
then the player said, we're not going to talk to you.
Speaker 2 (38:59):
Was there.
Speaker 1 (39:00):
You know what I did talk about? You know what,
I'll tell you about it when we come back. I'll
tell you about it when we come back. Yeah, it's
a good story. So I'll tell you what happened when
we come back. Why they wouldn't talk to us and
the writers wouldn't talk to us. I'll tell you that
story as well.
Ah, here we go. Fred rgan Jonas notching today for
Rodney on a five seventy LA Sports. You know you
thought it was just delightful watching the Dodgers last night.
Speaker 2 (00:09):
All right, well, let's like, I never do that to you.
I don't try and take one little thing and spin
it out of control and twist it into something that's
that I didn't say. I would never do that to you.
I would never know that I had never done that
to you. I would please expect the same respect in
return when it comes to my commentary.
Speaker 1 (00:28):
Okay, my bad, if you've never done that to me,
I would never do that. Okay, what exactly are you saying?
Speaker 2 (00:34):
You look at last night? Yes, listen, they lost the game.
You know you want to take a short sided view.
That's fine. You lost the game because in the eighth
inning there was a meltdown defensively, which they haven't had
in what like two years? Was the last time they
had an inning like that where everything just sort of
fell apart. It wasn't like you know, their you know,
(00:57):
their reliever got lit up. It just fell up part
bad plays, bad balances, et cetera. And then on top
of that, you had multiple times hits that would have
been hit against any other team in Major League Baseball
and against any other outfielder in Major League Baseball. But
the problem is the guy you hit it near is
(01:18):
named p Crow Armstrong, and he's a superstar in the making,
and he's a local guy from Harvard Westlake, and he
was doing things that you never ever see a center
fielder do. It's like one of the great outfield performances
we've seen by anybody in a long time. That stuff
is not a everyday occurrence, fluky, kind of weird. You
(01:41):
tip your cap on a couple of those plays. But
here's why you walk away long term and you're feeling
great about things. Has ya Momoto ever looked better? Like
I mean, and I know it was a short sample size.
They weren't close to the stuff he had, Like they
couldn't touch him. He had what eights strikeouts and four
innings the last time he had a performance like this, Like,
(02:04):
if you want to go all the way back to
maybe April against Washington, I thought he was tremendous. So
I'm a little surprised that you're as down on them
as you are, considering you were just hoping, Hey, if
he gets lit up. Yeah, not great, But the most
important thing is he comes out healthy. He looked great,
and if you're the Dodgers long term, I think he
had If he's feeling good about things.
Speaker 1 (02:26):
Okay, yeah, Well I take a little different approach. First
I thought, yea, I'm a moto. Did look really good.
And again, the whole key for me is how's he
feeling today? That's it. How's he feeling today? Because they
couldn't touch him early in the game. He had some
help in the umpire, I'll say that, but overall they
couldn't touch him, and he did. Look at what are
(02:46):
you laughing about? It's true?
Speaker 2 (02:47):
Okay, I mean it's true.
Speaker 1 (02:50):
What are you laughing about? He looked great, He looked
really good. Okay. If he's okay today, I'll take that.
That's a major win. Defensively, that was in a backle
borderline embarrassing. They can't make those mistakes. It doesn't matter
what game, who they're playing. You can't make those mistakes.
And they made them. That is not good. Is that
(03:12):
a lack of focus? Is it a lack of bad luck?
I don't know what it was, but you cannot make
those mistakes. Ultimately, that's what doomed them, and you've got
to guard against that and hopefully they got that out
of their system. All right, So they had a bad game.
Speaker 2 (03:26):
I mean, yeah, but you know how often does that happen.
It's not like this happens all the time. They had
a bad game, and you'd rather have these bad games
now than get to the postseason. And next thing you know,
Dodger Stadium is about ready to fall apart because people
can't believe this is happening to them again in the playoffs,
So little reminder. I think they're gonna bounce back. I
(03:47):
don't know why you have to be so negative all
the time. Why can't you just focus and try and
find a smile somewhere in there, somewhere behind just that dark,
ominous look you have, just that silhouette you present of
nothing good happens to the Dodgers at this point in
time during the season. Listen, Yamamoto went out there and
was dealing help from the umpire or not, Maybe he
(04:08):
was due something. Maybe everything evens out in the end,
and maybe yeah he did get the benefit of the
dollar a call on a couple of strikes there that
maybe wouldn't have been called strikes in other places, but
I'll say this, this stuff was there. You've got was
it our Austin Barnes who was saying afterwards, that's like
I didn't expect that. That was the best he's ever looked.
So yes, if he feels good about things, I think
(04:31):
the Dodgers come away from that game feeling great about
the fact they're gonna be in the postseason. And don't
worry about it. You're not gonna see Pete crow Armstrong
the boogeyman again after tonight because the Cups aren't going
to the playoffs, So you kind of leave that to
the side, address that in Japan when they start off
the season with him next year, and then focus on
the current state of play, which is this team getting
(04:54):
to the postseason and trying to overcome the negative perception
that you've thrown on them all already, well before the
playoffs have even started.
Speaker 1 (05:03):
Okay, So anyway, I didn't say anything of a negative
nature about the team because I thought all along they're
going to be just fine.
Speaker 2 (05:09):
Did did I just twist your words out out of proportion?
Did I just do what you did to me?
Speaker 1 (05:14):
Is that what you did? What to me? What you
do to me every day. Okay, that's exactly what you
did again. That's fine. Everything you said defensively, that's unacceptable
and that can't happen again. But the best part of
it really was, aside from watching Yamamoto, you were right,
Pete Crow Armstrong kept the Westlake. He's Wes like Harvard
(05:35):
Wes West like Harvard Westlake's twenty two, twenty two years old. Yeah,
my god, was that fun.
Speaker 2 (05:40):
He's unbelievable.
Speaker 1 (05:42):
That was so much fun to watch. And how fast
is he?
Speaker 2 (05:46):
He's the guy if you go look up. It was
a play that went viral earlier this year, he had
an inside the park home run at Miami and he
got from home to home in like fourteen seconds. Like
he's like, it just blazes. And he's really struggled at
(06:07):
the play throughout most of the season, but lately he's
picked it up and he's one of those guys to
where all you have to do is get him on base.
If you get him on base, he's taken two. It's
like the Eagles have this term where they call it
first to nine because of the brotherly shove. They know
they're gonna get a first down, so they're not worried
about the ten yards. Just get his nine yards. We're
gonna get the extra yard. With Pete krah Armstrong, there's
(06:29):
no such thing as just a single. If he gets
on first, he's taken second. Like you don't have a
say in the matter. He's getting that bag regardless of
what you do. Nobody's throwing him out. And so the
problem has been, well can you get him on base?
The problem's never been his defense. He is, un like
Cody Bellinger, is one of the best defensive outfielders in
(06:50):
Major League Baseball. Ian happ on the other side as
a gold glover, like those are really really good outfielders,
they're not close to him. I have no idea how
he play that ball over the wall that seemed like
it went in between two fans arms.
Speaker 1 (07:04):
Yeah, the fan should have caught the ball. Yes, the
fan should have made the play. It doesn't you give
the fan an error because he should have caught the ball.
But somehow he went up at the end, and by
the way, that would have made it a one run game,
so I wouldn't have tied the game. But he went up,
he looked like the happen. He looked like a kid. Yes,
(07:26):
he just looked like a kid having a great time,
laughing and smiling. Bellinger was laughing and what about those
other defensive.
Speaker 2 (07:34):
I'm telling you, man like and I've been watching it
and going, okay, this this is like happening a lot.
Now he's becoming a superstar. And he was one of
those guys we mentioned with Dave ass yesterday, how you've
seen two different ways that it's gone. Because a couple
of years back, in like twenty sixteen, it was almost
a race to see who was going to be the
(07:56):
dynasty in the National League, and like twenty fifteen, twenty sixteen,
you remember the Mets had that great pitching staff. The
Mets went to you know, they went to the World Series.
I believe they had that. You know, the Dodgers ran
into them a couple of times. And then you had
the Cubs, and then you had the Dodgers. Well, the
team that's had staying power and has lasted as the Dodgers,
(08:17):
like their farm system ended up being better, their players
panned out better at the major league level, and like
the guys that have left, the Cubs have struggled. And
one of those guys was Hobby Bias. Well, when they
traded Hobby Bias to the Mets, one of the pieces
they got back in return was Pete crow Armstrong, And
so when they got him in return, he was one
of these top prospects in Major League Baseball, but the
(08:38):
people just weren't sure. Yeah, maybe you'll figure it out
the plate, maybe, But defensively he's always had it and
he's one of those guys to where you just want
to watch him play the outfield because no balls out
of reach, Like there was another one, who's was it
Tommy Edmonds home run that went over the Look at
how high he got up for that ball.
Speaker 1 (08:58):
I saw that?
Speaker 2 (08:58):
Yeah, click, who is this? I'm telling you know what, Fred?
He gives us hope, you know what I mean. It's
like the first time you and I saw Larry Bird
were like, hey, man, hey, that's us. Like, yeah, Pete
crow Armstrong gives us hope with his speed and the
way he's able to move and fly around in the outfield,
(09:22):
and it just he he looks like the most unassuming
guy ever. He looks like he'd be a skateboarder, like
you would just he looks like a guy that you
would see walking out of Spencer's with like a bag
of gummy worms and like a Depeche Mode shirt and
instead he's out there playing center field or like we've
never seen before. It's crazy. Guy's unbelievable.
Speaker 1 (09:42):
Did you see the catch he made? Kind of the
running he was headed toward the wall and made this
kind of picturesque backhand grasp.
Speaker 2 (09:50):
What was that that he didn't?
Speaker 1 (09:52):
It was like, what are you doing? And did do that?
Speaker 2 (09:55):
And the other thing too, is that he taught like Dodgers,
like fans in the outfield have been get it into
him at Dodger Stadium because every time he makes a play,
he's barking right back at him, like whatever they're saying
to him, he hears it and he's barking right back.
And they showed like a picture of him when he
was five years old because his mom is an actress.
I forget her name, Damn it is it Ashley Crow.
(10:19):
I forget, Like his mom's an actress, but I yeah,
I think they're both in Hollywood somehow, some way, And
so they showed a picture of him out getting no
more Garcia Para's autograph when he was five years old
at Dodger Stadium and they're like, you know, like if
I were to tell you like that you went from
that to this, and he was just like, ah, yeah,
(10:40):
you know, like didn't really even want to address it
or talk about it.
Speaker 3 (10:43):
Now.
Speaker 2 (10:43):
You don't understand that. Like it's one of those things
to where even Dodger fans, like people that cover the
Dodgers are like, yeah, man, like Yamamoto, Man, what the
hell was that that we just saw? And that doesn't
happen a lot, especially on that stage, Like think about
all the star power that was there, Japan was represented,
you got like everybody's really excited about all the matchups.
(11:05):
Max Munsey was mashing the ball, Tommy Edmund had a
couple of home runs, and the guy everybody's talking about
is this little guy from a Spencer store in a
mall somewhere who just lit the field on fire defensively,
Like it wasn't really anything he did offensively, just defensively.
And then if you see him get on base, just
(11:25):
watch him run the bases if you get an opportunity
or look up that video of the inside the park
home run against Miami. The kid is unbelievable, but good
thing you don't have to see him again after tonight
it's over.
Speaker 1 (11:37):
Okay, so your glass is really half full? Yes, really
half full?
Speaker 2 (11:41):
How could you not? You were the ones saying yesterday,
I just want yamamotor to feel good. If he feels
good today, was he not better than you expected in
review one thousand?
Speaker 1 (11:51):
Yeah, he looked good. So and he feels good today.
So that's the good news. Uh. I can't dismiss the era. Sorry,
won't can't allow that. But you're right. The price of
admission last night was Pete crow Armstrong.
Speaker 2 (12:04):
Jeez, he really was.
Speaker 1 (12:07):
And you know, you just wonder to yourself. Okay, the
Cubs made a deal. They traded Hobby Bay as they
get this kid, Pete crow Armstrong. And you have to
remember when teams acquire prospects, there's a reason for that.
Somebody thought they'd be pretty good. Maybe the team that's
selected have gave up on them or didn't think they
(12:29):
would be as good, or they wouldn't have as high
as a ceiling. But that's why even the Dodgers, when
they make these moves, I think David Vasse talked about
it the other day. They trade Michael Busch. All right,
Michael Bush is killing the Dodgers. What did Vassy say?
He didn't even know the guy's name. He said, they
got a picture in return that everybody projects to be
(12:51):
a star.
Speaker 2 (12:52):
It is something fairess, is what it is. Yeah, I
forget something like that.
Speaker 1 (12:56):
They got somebody in return that they project to be
a star, and by all accounts and many evaluators in baseball,
that could really happen. So they had to give up
something in Michael Boyce who torched the Dodgers to get
something that you haven't seen yet.
Speaker 2 (13:12):
Jackson Ferris, All right.
Speaker 1 (13:13):
Jackson Ferris. So the match gave up Hobby Badias for
some kid named Pete crow Armstrong. He's so important. He
has two last names. And this kid when they get him,
you don't know anything about him. But now look at
what you've seen. I mean, the Cubs are going to
be pretty solid in that outfield if Cody Bellinger stays
(13:34):
there for years to come.
Speaker 2 (13:35):
I mean defensively, like the Cubs shouldn't allow and like
there should be zero airs on the score sheet the
entire year. Like if you consider half Bellinger, Pete crow Armstrong,
like Dansby Swanson, Nico Horner, who I know you were
pushing for the Dodgers to trade for before the deadline
because you wanted to play me so Horner if they
(13:57):
acquired him. That's not exactly why. Okay, well I thought that.
That's the way I interpreted it. But okay, the last
thing we need to do here is make accusations of
each other. That would make us sound less professional.
Speaker 1 (14:06):
I mean, you don't need to jump to conclusions.
Speaker 2 (14:08):
Okay, I don't want to do that. Michael Bush is
a phenomenal defensive first baseman out of nowhere, so yeah,
but like all of that is awesome, They're not going
to the playoffs. I mean, they are four games out
of the wild Card. They struggled all year long, so yeah,
they figured it out now, but they're not going to
be anywhere in sight. Yamamoto though, that was a guy
(14:29):
last night, who if that's the version of the of
him you're getting Fred you could roll him out there
game one like somebody hit that, like somebody like that
splitter he throws like. The Cubs were bad. They had
no answers for it, and it was almost like, thank god,
he's only going four and I thought he could have
gone longer. They could have kept him in the game. Longer,
(14:50):
but I understand the idea. Listen, We're just gonna slowly
work him back. Dave was talking about Dave Assay was
saying two to four innings, you max that out at four.
He was tremendous man. So just based on what his
performance last night, you gotta be feeling a lot better
about things. Is approach to playoffs?
Speaker 1 (15:11):
All right, we're off and running.
Speaker 3 (15:12):
Uh.
Speaker 1 (15:13):
Bill Pe will join us next. Bill Pe will join
the show. Jonas knoxon today for Rodney and now let's
bring on the man we referred to as Bill P.
Bill P. From the Orange County Register. It is Bill Plunkett,
and Bill, how are you today?
Speaker 3 (15:35):
Well, I'm apparently not as busy as Bill Plashky, but
happy to be here.
Speaker 1 (15:39):
No, no, no, that's not true. We actually wanted you today.
We didn't even look for Plashky. You know, we're getting
tired of Plashky. We wanted you today.
Speaker 3 (15:47):
Wow, well you'll get tired of me fast enough to
do then.
Speaker 1 (15:51):
That's a fair point. All right. So anyway, Bill, let's
get started. Yam Modo looked pretty good last night.
Speaker 3 (15:56):
No, he looked every bit as good as they could
have hoped, and probably better I mean really sharp pitch
efficient to get through four innings with the limited fits
County had. Splitter in particular, looked really good. It could
not have gone better.
Speaker 2 (16:15):
I was thinking this as well too, just going through
looking at some of his previous starts, like you could
make the argument, and I think maybe Austin Barnes even
said it that he was better than ever, Like, was
that the best you'd seen him look from a stuff
standpoint all year?
Speaker 3 (16:30):
No, he had two other starts earlier in the year
where he looked better. He went eight innings, I want
to say against the Reds. I forget exactly who it
was against.
Speaker 2 (16:41):
There was another one against against Washington as well too,
that was good, I remember.
Speaker 3 (16:45):
Yeah. And then the best, maybe the best start of all,
was at Yankee Stadium. He went seven I think seven scoreless,
two hits allowed in what was really honestly a playoff atmosphere.
It was that weekend series at the time, I think
that both teams had the best records in their league.
(17:06):
Everybody was all excited about a Judge Otani matchup, a
Dodgers Yankees World series. It was a playoff atmosphere. He
went out there, it was fantastic. Now that's probably also
when the shoulder injury started, because it was two starts
later that he was shut down. But he has looked
(17:27):
really good multiple times. I mean, this is a guy
who was the MVP of the Japanese League not once,
but twice, and he knows what big games are about.
He's pitching the WBC, he pitched in the Japan series there.
I think all of those things are why they signed
(17:47):
him for the money they signed him for. And then
to see it last night after three months off was tremendous,
tremendously encouraging, all right, So that.
Speaker 1 (17:57):
Makes the half full. Let's talk about that eighth inning defensively,
I think that makes me last half empty.
Speaker 3 (18:05):
I wouldn't worry about it too much, first of all,
because two of the three errors were by guys who
are not going to be playing those positions very often.
Austin Barnes is not going to be starting on a
regular basis. He made the bad throw that kind of
started things. He k Hernandez. I don't think we'll be
playing a whole lot of second base moving forward. That
(18:28):
was just a start against the left handed pitcher for
the Cubs, so it was a bad inning. It was
an ugly inning. It cost him the game. But I
wouldn't I wouldn't take it to mean anything more than
that it was. It was a one off, a bad
night and a bad loss.
Speaker 2 (18:49):
What do you need to see from them to feel
confident heading into the postseason? Like down the stretch, Like
if you had a wish list, obviously health would be
one of them, but specifically that you I think Dave
Roberts would feel much better about this roster into the postseason.
Speaker 3 (19:04):
Well, last night was one of them, was seeing Amamoto
come back. It's really interesting. This is kind of an
odd combination. Having covered playoffs for twenty years now, postseason
baseball has changed dramatically. Starting pitchers don't factor as much
as they used to. You don't have the Madison Bumgarner
(19:28):
carrying the Giants to a World Series. You don't have
the Strasburg Suzer types that got the Nationals a World
Series title. If you get five innings out of your
starter in the postseason, that's what you want. You get
fifteen outside of your starter, and you ask your bullpen
to get twelve outs every night. That's the way the
(19:49):
game has become in the postseason now. With that being said,
right now, nothing is more important to the Dodgers October
hopes than the health of their starting pitchers. They cannot
go into the postseason with the same kind of setup
they had last year when they had a compromised Clayton Kershaw,
(20:11):
home run prone Lance Lynn, and they experienced Bobby Miller.
They can't go into the postseason and put their hopes
on that kind of a rotation. They need Yamamoto to
be healthy, They need Glass Now to be healthy. They
need Flaherty to be you know, continue pitching the way
he has and then you can you know, fludge the
fourth starter however you have to. But I don't think
(20:34):
there's anything more important than how those three starting pitchers
go into the postseason.
Speaker 1 (20:39):
Well, right now, Yamamoto is going to start, all right,
if that is what we're going to see, he gets
the ball in Game one, Flaherty gets the ball in
Game two.
Speaker 3 (20:48):
I still think you get Flarerty in game one because
of the experience factor. Really yeah, and you also have
to figure in, you know, when are you coming back
with him for a second start. I don't know that
you can count on getting two starts in a five
game series out of Yamamoto, They've been very careful with
(21:09):
his workload all season long. He hasn't pitched on less
than five days rest. With the travel days in the postseason,
maybe you can get him a Game one and a
Game five, But I kind of think they would go
with Clarty first.
Speaker 2 (21:26):
Based on what you've seen from Mookie Betts. His response,
Max Muncy, I mean, I know we're asking to look
into the future when it comes to this, but I
just don't anticipate the top of the lineup struggling in
the playoffs like they did last year. Like it does
feel different this year. I mean, crazy things have happened.
I know people are just assuming the worst. What's your
(21:47):
gauge on how that lineup is, in particular at the
top with out tiny leading things off.
Speaker 3 (21:52):
Yeah, they can't afford to have them go one for
twenty again in a series like Freeman and Betst That
sank them pretty pretty good again. The starting pitching put
him in holes and they just never had a chance
last year. I think they are potentially deeper lineup this
(22:13):
year than you know. They were pretty deep when they
had Trey Turner in that group up top two. But
the key I think you're going to get something out
of Bets and Freeman. What are you going to get
out of show? Heyokhani, I mean, I know he's the
greatest player on the planet and generational talent. He's never
played in the postseason. We don't know what he's going
(22:35):
to be. The WBC was high pressure for him. I
don't think it's the same as a postseason. I don't
think it's the same, isn't it that in the World Series.
So that's still a mystery to me. And I don't
know how he's going to react. He's you know, he
hasn't been the same hitter in the second half that
(22:57):
he was in the first average wise, still hitting for power.
He may be selling out for power a little bit
recently because you know, chasing the record. I think he
is still a mystery in the in the postseason until
we see Until we see it, I.
Speaker 1 (23:16):
Think you've like found in the postseason. Personally, I think
he'll have a big postseason. I like it. If the
pitching holds up for the Dodgers and Bets and and
Freddie hit this go around, I think they're gonna be okay.
If you know, again, if the pitching holds up and
they're healthy. What happened to Bondage?
Speaker 3 (23:32):
Huge question mark there, huge question mark whether the pitching holds.
Speaker 1 (23:36):
Up all right? Then? Yeah, what happened.
Speaker 3 (23:38):
Bond Bonda did not apparently did not see the movie
Bull Durham where Crash Davis teaches Nuklalus that when you
punch somebody, you punch with you don't punch with your
pitching hand. He got frustrated after his outing Monday night
(23:59):
and he hit something man his pitching hand lost.
Speaker 2 (24:05):
Do we know what he hit? Any any guests.
Speaker 3 (24:09):
Don't know specifically, but I would bet a wall, just walls,
walls tend to tend to win that matchup.
Speaker 2 (24:16):
I mean, like, at what point during the time between
you're throwing the punch and hitting the wall, do you
not realize, Yeah, this is a terrible idea. Like a door,
I can understand, you know, like you know, if you
want to like a dry wall, I can understand You're
you're gonna go through it and you're gonna feel a
little bit better about things. I mean, don't they have
like a speed bag or like a heavy bag anywhere
(24:38):
nearby so guys can unload on that as opposed to
punch in a wall. It's a terrible idea.
Speaker 3 (24:43):
Most dugouts do have a punching bag down the hallway.
A lot of a lot of dugouts. Yeah, and guys
will guys will wail on it with their path frustrating
at that. Yeah, it's it's not you're thinking logically. And
in the moment he was clearly not thinking logically. He
(25:05):
was very upset. And I'll say this. I'll say this
about Anthony. They picked him up on the cheap and
he has been a very valuable piece of that bullpen.
Has not pitched as well recently because they have worn
him down. They have used him more than anybody else
in that bullpen since he got here.
Speaker 2 (25:29):
Oh well, listen, if you if you acquire himy as
well use him.
Speaker 3 (25:32):
You know, he got him using it and he was pitching.
He has pitched well for most of that time, so
he was he was a very good option.
Speaker 1 (25:40):
Uh you know frequently, Aybell, what do you hear about Glass? Now?
How's he doing?
Speaker 3 (25:47):
The bullpen session looked really good yesterday he you know,
says that the y elbow has calmed down. He's not feeling
anything there. I think they want to get him into game.
So he's gonna throw a sim game. He's going to
throw the hitters Friday in Atlanta, and I think we
will see him start next week. They're not gonna send
(26:08):
him to a minor league rehab. They want to get
him in major league games, and if they do that
next week, he gets three starts before the postseason. Glasnow
is a big, tall guy, long levers, as they say,
and the timing and the mechanics of his delivery are
fairly complicated as a result, so they want to get
(26:30):
him in major league games so he can smooth as
much of that out as possible before a postseason game.
You also have, you know, the way it looks if
they're going to get one of the top two seeds,
they're going to have that five day break again after
the season and before the start of the DS. I
think you might see some of these guys in as
(26:53):
intense as they can make them interra squad games during
that five day break to you know, build up pitch
counts and smooth out mechanics for guys like las Naw
and Yamamoto who have been out so long.
Speaker 1 (27:10):
Hey Bell, what did you think of Pete prol Armstrong
last night?
Speaker 3 (27:13):
Outstanding? What a good young ballplayer he is.
Speaker 2 (27:16):
Huh, it's exciting man by that's uh. And and when
you get resounding like a credit from Dodger fans, who
you understand, Like, yeah, he called, you know, won a
game for him for the Cubs in Dodger Stadium. He's
a local guy. But some of those plays were unbelievable, like.
Speaker 3 (27:33):
He and he covers so much ground out there. And yeah,
the the one uh, I think it was on Otani
that he caught on the warning track while sliding was remarkable.
And then he steals home run from Muncie to end
the game. Yeah, he's He's gonna be fun to watch
for a long time.
Speaker 2 (27:54):
It was also kind of kind of odd the like
the heart scare that Porter Hodge for the Cubs had
happened that I can't believe they left him in the game,
Like he's got a heart.
Speaker 3 (28:04):
Scare there too. Yeah, we didn't know in real time
when when the trainer was out there, We didn't know
what he was checking on. We just you know, Hodge
took a knee at one point. But apparently this is
something that he had issues with in the past. Uh,
And I guess he talked the trainer and to let
(28:25):
them stay in there, and yeah, it was. It was odd.
And you know, if you followed the Dodgers for years,
we're familiar with this with Kenley Janssen and the problems
that he had with with the irregular heartbeat. And I
don't think he pitches in Colorado when his team goes
there because the altitude has such a such an effect
(28:47):
on him. He was, Yeah, he was pretty scared one year.
I recall when he had had the issue in Denver.
Speaker 1 (28:56):
Bill last night. Was it a heart scare? Was it anxiety?
Do we know exactly what it was?
Speaker 3 (29:01):
As I understand it, he has had I forget how
they described it, but a rapid heartbeat at times in
the past, and when he felt it happening again, it
understandably scared him a little bit and that's why we
(29:22):
had the trainer come out there and eventually things settled down.
But I don't know the whole background on it, but
I do believe this was not the first time he's
experienced it.
Speaker 1 (29:35):
All right, Well, we appreciate experiencing you again today. Thank
you very much Bill for coming on.
Speaker 2 (29:40):
Thanks Bill.
Speaker 3 (29:41):
I hope it makes your your heartbeat get rapid for
good reasons.
Speaker 1 (29:45):
Yeah, all right, there goes our buddy Bill plug into
the Orange County Register. You know, Jonas, you asked Bill
a question. It was a pretty good one. What do
you need to see this season to make you feel
confident about the in the postseason? And maybe what we'll
do next hours we'll open the phone lines and hear
from people.
Speaker 2 (30:04):
Yeah, let's do it, all right.
Speaker 1 (30:06):
Yeah, so you can formulate that we'll do that next hour.
How much money do you think Miller Moss, the USC
quarterback makes this year?
Speaker 2 (30:19):
Uh? Well, I mean it's college those you know, those
athletes aren't getting any money. Fred, I live in the
olden times where you know, everything was on the app
and off.
Speaker 1 (30:27):
Okay, well, uh, how much do you think Jonas Natch
is in today for Rodney? All right? With nil? College
has changed, College sports have changed. Miller Moss, USC quarterback,
How much money do you think he makes in NIL?
Speaker 2 (30:46):
I'll say five hundred grand a year?
Speaker 1 (30:48):
He makes one point two million?
Speaker 2 (30:49):
All right?
Speaker 1 (30:51):
Uh, he's got deals with EA Sports for college football,
twenty five Fraankrance dot Com, and an NIL deal with
Rock and Pro team. Juju Watkins, USC women's basketball player
pretty good. What do you think she gets paid a year.
Speaker 2 (31:08):
Five hundred one thousand dollars a year.
Speaker 1 (31:11):
Very close five hundred seventy six thousand dollars a year.
See wide receiver Zachariah branch usc how much you think
he makes?
Speaker 2 (31:20):
Some really talented not a quarterback though, I'll say seven
hundred fifty thousand.
Speaker 1 (31:26):
Four hundred and fifty four thousand dollars piece.
Speaker 2 (31:28):
It's a bargain.
Speaker 1 (31:29):
Yeap safety Kamari Ramsey, what do you think he gets paid?
Speaker 2 (31:33):
Oh two fifty three forty.
Speaker 1 (31:36):
And defensive tackle Bear Alexander one hundred bucks, three hundred
and one thousand dollars.
Speaker 2 (31:44):
Well, listen a little off.
Speaker 1 (31:46):
Did I mentioned that Moss is I think sixteenth nationally
in uh nil.
Speaker 2 (31:51):
Rank Cavy look man like there is it's it now
would for some of these guys, it would behoove you
to stay in school, like stay in college. Like there's
the guy Cam McCormick for Miami, the guy that started
at Oregon and now he's at Miami. He's like going
on twenty six years old. The guy's been like this
(32:12):
is his ninth year in college. He like he was
part of the Justin Herbert Organ class and he's still
playing college ball at Miami, like cam Rising of Utah,
like some of these guys like you could stay in
and make decent money depending on you know, how you
have things set up through whatever, Nilda, you have so
(32:33):
good for them.
Speaker 1 (32:34):
You think if these guys are getting paid now, they're
open to criticism. You don't treat them like college kids anymore.
Speaker 2 (32:40):
Well, except at Colorado. You gotta be careful.
Speaker 1 (32:42):
Well, that's true.
Speaker 2 (32:43):
Like you cannot listen. You gotta be careful. You cannot
criticize Colorado because if you do, you're a hater. Diann'll
come after you. He'll take away your media credential. You
can no longer ask questions. By the way, have you
ever had your media credential taken away to where somebody
could have said that you can't ask me questions anymore?
Speaker 1 (33:01):
Never?
Speaker 2 (33:04):
I mean so, the fact that it's happening at Colorado
is a little odd.
Speaker 1 (33:09):
Well, it happened here last year.
Speaker 2 (33:11):
Oh yeah, that's right, that's right.
Speaker 1 (33:13):
Yeah, Hey, you can't come to the news conference anymore, great, no.
Speaker 2 (33:16):
Problem, I know good, I love it. Oh ruin my day.
Speaker 1 (33:21):
Right, if you show up after the game, you can't
ask any questions? Okay, I can listen to e free
answer exactly.
Speaker 2 (33:28):
And most of the times, And I'm glad you said that.
I like, I've been to press conferences before. I think
I've maybe asked. Like I sometimes I would go and
not ask any questions because somebody may ask the same
version of a question you were going to ask anyway.
So you just listen and you take down your notes,
you record it with your recorder, whatever you're doing, and
that's the same thing. And you don't even really need
(33:49):
to be there to get all of that information, like
you can get it else. Like, I just feel like
sometimes they think they've got this power over media members
that really you're not impacting the job that much. Like
we could still watch the games, we could still get
the quotes, we can still write the stories or discuss
the topics. You're not really hampering or doing any disservice
(34:12):
to some of the people in the media.
Speaker 1 (34:14):
Yeah, I've always believed the best place to get these
guys is one on one. If you set something up
with them off to the side, then you get asked
the questions and you can conduct the interview you want
in that setting. In the press conference setting, it really
is a free for all. Now, the writers need that
because oftentimes everyone is not available one on one, so
they've got to get in there. But the point is this,
(34:35):
if one guy asked the question, you're going to hear
the answer. And honestly, unless you've got something so incredible
cooked up that you've got this one question that no
one has thought of, then you can listen to the answers.
By the way, you can write your story anyway you want.
At least you have the quotes. So when they pull
(34:55):
your credential, it's like last year and they took the
kids credential. I think he was writing for the daily
News at USCE. Okay, no problem. I don't want to
battle traffic anyway. I'm good. Yeah, I'll just watch on TV.
I'll just watch on TV and they get the press
quotes afterwards, no problem.
Speaker 2 (35:11):
And I mean it's not like Lincoln Riley's dropping doozies
from a quote standpoint to where you got to.
Speaker 1 (35:17):
Be there, Yeah, I mean like Colorado. Okay, And they
do this in some NFL markets too, smaller markets, not
the size of LA that would never work. But in
a smaller market, we're gonna take your credential. Take it,
take it right, go ahead, take it. I'm gonna write
about you taking it. I'll certainly write about that, why
you took it, what you're all about, how you operate.
Speaker 2 (35:41):
Did you hear the story about David Tepper, the owner
of the Panthers. So during the draft, he was driving
into the facility to go be with the team during
the draft. And by the way, he's done a horrific
job with that team. I mean, coach is gone. Bryce
Young's never gonna get off the ground there, and it's
terrible because he's a good player, but he's in a
(36:03):
craft spot. He's on his way to the draft room
for the first round of the draft. He sees a
sign on a sports bar that takes some swipe at
the Panthers, like hey, this time Panthers draft better or
something you know like that, but like whatever, a sign
at a sport He pulls over on the way to
(36:23):
the draft and goes inside and confronts the guy at
the host stand to ask them why that sign was
put up and what their problem was. The guy's wearing
an Eagles hat that goes in there. It's not even
the guy who put the sign up, he just works
at the place. And David Tepper takes the hat off
his head because he didn't like the fact the guy
(36:44):
had an Eagles hat on. I'm like, hold on a second,
you imagine that, Like, hey, Dave, you know the drafts
in like ten minutes, where are you at? Yeah, I'm
at Skip's Bandit bar off the Interstate. I didn't like
some guys sign and then I walked in there and
a dude had an Eagles hat on. I got to
take care of this. I'll be there soon. What Like,
(37:06):
you can't control everything. And so when you see like
Lincoln Riley or you see Dion Sanders, Like the best
part about that exchange that you have with the CBS
reporter is that lost in that was the fact that
somebody asked Dion Sanders a question about why he would
recommend AFLAC insurance to people because that's one of his sponsors.
(37:29):
The whole thing has gone completely off the rails, Fred,
completely off the rails, and we need somebody like you
who's got credential, integrity and somebody who's got a respect
from the media community to step in and put a
stop to this crap.
Speaker 1 (37:45):
Well, see, here's the thing that the teams don't understand. First,
David Tepper, you got bigger issues to worry about. Your
team's awful geez, so what are you worrying about this
guy wearing an Eagles.
Speaker 2 (37:54):
Hat for sorry Adam. By the way, Adam Auslin is
a Panthers fan.
Speaker 1 (37:58):
I'm all that fine, that's fine. They're not very good.
Speaker 4 (38:00):
I mean, it is completely embarrassing where this franchise has gone.
He exemplifies how ownership is the biggest advantage in sports,
because the Panthers are at a great disadvantage right now
with Tepper throwing the drink and the Jaguars fan face
last year. By the way, at a game, the guy
is unhinged by the way.
Speaker 2 (38:20):
We keep up in the andy on what was inside
the drink on the on two pros and Brady Quinn
always asked me, like, what do you think was in
that drink? It started with Dike coke, then it went
up to light beer, then it went up to an ipa.
Now we're at lighter fluid. No perfect, Yeah, like perfect,
I think I read that. Yeah, like whatever, Yeah, just
(38:43):
something along those lines that would just melt somebody's face
if you planned on them.
Speaker 1 (38:47):
Yeah. The thing teams don't understand and look back in
the day. I remember I had done something with the Rams,
and this is when they were still in town. And
then the player said, we're not going to talk to you.
Speaker 2 (38:59):
Was there.
Speaker 1 (39:00):
You know what I did talk about? You know what,
I'll tell you about it when we come back. I'll
tell you about it when we come back. Yeah, it's
a good story. So I'll tell you what happened when
we come back. Why they wouldn't talk to us and
the writers wouldn't talk to us. I'll tell you that
story as well.
Roggin And Rodney News
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