May 15, 2025 • 26 mins
In the second hour, Dave Softy Mahler and Dick Fain chat with Bill Krueger about the Mariners recent stretch and poor offense, the pitching injuries and AL West, then head down to Denver to preview game six for the Nuggets facing OKC with Mark Bertagnolli.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
It's time for our weekly conversation with Bill Krueger, brought
to you by the brand new Occidental Hall next to
Lumenfield on Occidental Seattle's newest hot spot for sports fans,
with massive HD screens and a menu backed with Seattle's
best smash burger, wings and the best local craft beers
in town. Now with Bill Krueger, here's Suffian.
Speaker 2 (00:21):
Nobody trust me.
Speaker 3 (00:22):
Nobody does smash burgers better than the Occidental Hall and
the Queen Anne Beer Hall. And I assume by default
the lumen Field location.
Speaker 2 (00:32):
The new Occidental Hall opening up soon.
Speaker 3 (00:33):
We'll have killer smash burgers as well, wings, TVs, lots
of TVs, incredible beer menu as well. Go check out
the Queen Ann Beer Hall on Queen Ann Hill, Moss
Bay Hall and Kirkland And he's soon to be opened Occidental.
Speaker 2 (00:48):
Hall near lumen Field.
Speaker 3 (00:49):
Here he is our friend who's going to join us
now every Thursday at four excellent because Brett Boon quit
to go be the Rangers hitting coach. Our friend, Bill Krueger,
how are you pal?
Speaker 4 (01:00):
It's good to have a spot, even if it's by default.
Speaker 2 (01:02):
Well, technically I will say this.
Speaker 3 (01:05):
Technically your spot opened up when Steve and Susa took
a job with the Rays.
Speaker 2 (01:09):
Oh yeah, and then when Booney.
Speaker 3 (01:11):
Went to Texas, we just moved you from Susan's spot
to boone spot.
Speaker 5 (01:15):
So the question is what team is Bill Krueger going
to be the pitching coach of next year?
Speaker 2 (01:19):
Marlins?
Speaker 5 (01:20):
Because they stick because all of our guests always move
on to baseball teams.
Speaker 4 (01:24):
I don't want that kind of team. I don't know
if I want.
Speaker 6 (01:28):
Jacksonville what I did, the Jacksonville Golf Shrimp, because that's
about what they're rolling out there for the Marlins. You
know what, none of those gus listen. I have thrilled
to be hon with you guys. You build it open
for me. I feel like humble and excited.
Speaker 4 (01:41):
Thank you.
Speaker 3 (01:41):
Let me ask you this if you got that call,
because you're still fairly young, you know, forty two years old.
If a baseball team called you up and said, hey,
we want you to be our pitching coach or maybe
even like an assistant pitching coach, and you're going to
be hitting the road like you did when you played
for the next five months, traveling hotels. Do you even
have any interest at all and doing something like that
right now, at this stage of your life, you know.
Speaker 6 (02:04):
It would have to be a pretty unique set of circumstances,
I'm afraid.
Speaker 4 (02:07):
Yeah.
Speaker 6 (02:07):
You know, the thing is it's probably not going to happen,
but it's fun, I guess, fun to talk about. There
was probably a time in my life post baseball that
it would have made sense, but you know, I've enjoyed
my life in media.
Speaker 4 (02:21):
It's allowed me to do a lot of things locally.
Speaker 6 (02:23):
It's allowed me to be close to my family and
you guys know a little bit about our journey with
our daughter, and she's doing beautifully now.
Speaker 4 (02:31):
And that was the decision I.
Speaker 6 (02:33):
Made at the time that I wasn't going to chase
the baseball over the country, whether it was on the
field or in the broadcast.
Speaker 4 (02:38):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (02:38):
Well, this line of questioning just delays the inevitable, which
is talking about what happened against the Blue Jays and Yankees,
where I mean, the offense kind of fell apart. Man,
let's face it, you know, disappointing because here we have
a baseball team that in general terms has been pretty
good offensively, second on the road in batting average, but
second to last at home.
Speaker 2 (02:57):
So I don't know, how much did you.
Speaker 3 (02:59):
Take from that Blue Jays Yankees six game stretch that
leaves you slightly concerned, if not more than slightly about
the offense.
Speaker 6 (03:07):
Well, I think there's certainly we're reverting a little bit
to the mean. Where the mean is is yet to
be determined. But they proved over that stretch of what
was it twenty five games that they could really score
and a lot of that was done by putting the
ball in play and cutting down on strikeouts. It was
(03:28):
also with the home run ball, though, question, I think
this team is going to be. The aim for this
team is to be slightly above the midpoint offensively, but
they have to become an elite pitching staff and that's
the part that the club is waiting on.
Speaker 4 (03:45):
We saw it the last two games.
Speaker 6 (03:46):
But then you have Miller going on the disabled list
and they probably need another reliever. That's something we can
talk about as they move forward. But they still could
get back to being an elite pitching team. That's the
answer for this team is to take the advantage that
they've run up, be a big point offensive.
Speaker 4 (04:02):
Team and get back to being a top six pitching team.
Speaker 6 (04:06):
Well, you mentioned I don't think it's fair to measure
them against what they did on the road and through
that nine game series stretch.
Speaker 4 (04:12):
That's not I don't think that's who they are.
Speaker 5 (04:14):
Well, which is more real then, because you said getting
back to the met I mean we were seeing two extremes.
We saw last year's extreme of just awful offense and elite,
elite pitchings, particularly from starting pitching, and then this year
really shaky pitching for the most part because of the injuries,
and well above average offense. So which is closer to
what you think we'll see from here on out once
(04:34):
everybody gets healthy.
Speaker 6 (04:37):
Better pitching, average, hitting, hopefully a little bit more opportunistic
because we're putting the ball and they're putting the ball
in play more. They're not going to be a top
six home run team, but they can by approach put
more balls in play. And of course I could have
all the sabermetric people chasing me down telling me that
(04:58):
I'm wrong, but I'm a rope putting the bone in play.
Speaker 4 (05:01):
So I think that leads to good things.
Speaker 6 (05:04):
And you know, look, when you put this team together,
and we could go back in the way back machine
and talk about some of the egregious choices they made
when they had elite players they could have controlled. Even
though they would had to spend a little bit of money,
it would have beat the pants off of trying to
go to the market over the winner. And they got
left with what they got left, and they'd got an
incredible start from someone that looked like their career was
(05:26):
over and hopefully he can keep it going. And Jorgete Polanco,
but that was just found money. That's like coming down
the street and finding a you know, a thousand dollars billy,
just pick it up and put it in the pocket.
I mean, nobody could have predicted that his career was over.
And look what he's done. So I don't know if
he can keep expecting that. He looks like he's gonna
be much better than he was. You know last year.
(05:48):
For certain, they're gonna need more production from their key players,
and you know they they're gonna be a little bit
on the want. They're gonna have to hamm an egg
a little bit to be good.
Speaker 3 (05:59):
Yeah, Polanco last twelve games, hitting a buck ninety four
with a six to z eight ops. He was going
to cool off eventually, obviously, but clearly a guy that
belongs in the lineup, no question, as much as he
can get in it with his injury situation. But Bill,
go back to the pictures for a minute. You know,
this was the concern that a lot of us had that, man,
they are just not going to be able to recreate
(06:19):
the injury luck they had a year ago with that rotation,
and it took a month and three fifths of your
rotation is on the injured list. So even when Gilbert
and Bryce Miller and Kirby do come back as a former,
picture yourself.
Speaker 2 (06:34):
How concerned are.
Speaker 3 (06:35):
You about those guys for the rest of this season
considering what they've already dealt with.
Speaker 6 (06:43):
You know, I'm pretty optimistic, I really am.
Speaker 4 (06:48):
I don't quite understand what's going on with Bryce Miller.
Speaker 6 (06:51):
I think they air hugely on the side of caution
with Kirby having a little shoulder swords and he should
have come out guns of blaze when he pitches next
week against Houston. And I think Gilbert, you have to
give him some amazing credit how he could step outside
of himself, turn the compete button off and realize that
(07:13):
he was dealing with something that he should pull the
plug on himself to get a grade one flexer strain
out of that, and he's still not out of the woods.
But I think he's going to be fine too. Miller
is a little bit of a head scratcher. It sounds
like it's been an irritant but already an injury.
Speaker 4 (07:30):
So I don't see that as a problem.
Speaker 6 (07:31):
I think some of this is, you know, he's he's
struggling with that, and that has been a hurdle for
him because there's other mitigating factors that are that he's
struggling with a little bit, and that's all part of
the maturation of pitching. You know, understanding who you are
as a pitcher. Am I a top level upstairs pitcher?
I'm a downstairs pitcher? Am I a spider pitcher? Am
I a curveball pitcher?
Speaker 3 (07:52):
Who?
Speaker 4 (07:52):
Am I?
Speaker 6 (07:53):
You can't be everybody Gilbert tries to, And honestly, I
think as I look at Gilbert, and I think he's
in an an amazing young man with great tools and
a great attitude and a hard worker. But when you
got ninety seven with late release down the hill at
six foot six, you better be throwing more than twenty
eight percent fastball and throwing that bevy of breaking stuff
(08:16):
is part and part, in my opinion, why he's having
a little bit of an elbow problem. He needs to
come back and throw his fastball for a strike. Take
a page out of what Brian wu is doing. And
it's not just because Wu is tricky. He's got the
low rebef point in the upshoot and all that. It's
because he has elite command with his fastball and he
understands where the fastball needs to go. And if you
(08:38):
do that, guess what happens? You pitch deep in games. Gilbert,
even though he was pitching well, not pitching deep in games.
This pitching around the strike zone. That's part and part
what we're talking about here. Way too many pitches, not
enough fastballs, and some of this is resultant in some
of the little micks that they're having right now in
their arms.
Speaker 5 (08:58):
Well, Bill, with these injuries are the we've seen a
lot of young arms come in now. Any of these
young relievers, you see some potential end that you think
could be high leverage guys in the very near future.
Speaker 6 (09:11):
Bargas has been impressive, even though he gave up the
home run yesterday. You know, he made a big mistake
with the slider. You know, he's got great stuff and
he's gone from I don't know where it's going to
I'm I'm in the game now. But now he has
to be able to take it to another level because
when you're pitching at the end of games against elite hitters,
(09:32):
you have to understand a little bit more situation. And
you can't just like I'm letting it rip slider, I'm
letting it rip fastball. You've got to be a little
bit more intentional. And he hung a slider to Judge
and you can't be in the middle of the plate
with a slider with Judge in a game like that.
Speaker 4 (09:47):
You can't. So the lesson's learned, okay, but I like it.
Speaker 6 (09:51):
He's got explosion with fastball ninety seven, with movement, a
really good slider, got some talent, and he's found the
plate and he's pitched with confidence. And there's another kudo
to the meritors for finding him underneath the rock where
they've been able to find a guy or two every year, right,
and that's to their credit. They found underlying pitching that's
(10:11):
really helped this team, particularly in the bullpen, and he's
he was a great find.
Speaker 3 (10:16):
I'll tell you what if Baseball had it set up,
and I don't know why they don't do this. I mean,
maybe they some team would think about doing it. Bill
Bill Krueger is with us again courtesy of the Queen
Anne Beer Hall, Moss Bay Hall, and seem to be
open occidental Hall President of Baseball Operations, and one for
each side. One guy takes pitching, one guy takes the offense.
Because the POTO would be the executive of the year
(10:38):
if he was only judged on pitching right every single
year he's been phenomenal. But going back to yesterday's game,
and somebody mentioned this, and it sounds ludicrous obviously because
it was a tie game in the eighth inning and
Aaron Judge is leading off the inning. But naturally people
come back and say, well, why even pitch to the guy? Well,
because you're putting the go ahead run on base. It's
(11:00):
a tie game and he's leading off the eighth.
Speaker 2 (11:02):
So can you.
Speaker 3 (11:03):
Think of any reason in a tie game yesterday, leading
off the eighth why you would just put Aaron Judge on.
Speaker 2 (11:10):
No.
Speaker 6 (11:11):
Yeah, I agree, you gotta pitch him. You got to
pitch with confidence. Uh, you have a guy in Vargas.
It's got great stuff. It's right on right. And you
know he hasn't had a big series. I mean he was,
he's he's playing at the breaking ball and chasing away.
They've done a good They do a good job to
pitch it to him the whole series. So I don't
see any reason that you would pitch around him right there.
Speaker 5 (11:31):
No, well, he said, all your building. Oh, the AL
West is terrible. Als is terrible. And you look at
the AL West and there's four out of five teams
that are over five hundred. So yes, there's no great
team in the in the AL West. But handicap it
for us, at least through the first quarter of the season.
Speaker 2 (11:45):
We've gotten to the quarter pole.
Speaker 5 (11:47):
Handicap what you've seen thus far and how you see
it play out at this point.
Speaker 6 (11:53):
Mariners one as, two heats in, three Texas, four Angels.
Spot Wow, And I think that's I think that's about right.
I mean, how many times how many great players from
Houston lose before they eventually fall. You keep sip sipping players,
you keep these surping players out of their line up.
Eventually they're gonna fall. And the Rangers are just you know,
(12:14):
two years ago they swung the bat and everybody did.
And now they're hit and miss and they don't have
enough pitching. So I don't see them making a move.
And Astros will be okay. They have a winning culture.
Speaker 4 (12:26):
But the A's are decent, I mean incredible as it
may seem.
Speaker 6 (12:30):
They're pretty good. And you saw that the four to
three series of Marriage hold the edge, but those games
all close. So yes, it's gonna be a tidy played division.
I don't think anybody's gonna run away and hide. The
Angels are terrible. I'm gonna put them in last place
and the trout doesn't come back. They're gonna lose one hundred, okay,
which is pretty shameful for a big market team like that,
(12:51):
But such is life. But you know, in general, and
I've never said this for upteen years, I'm an American
League guy, played American League most my career. I think
the American League has been the superior league, and the
numbers have played that, played that out for a long
period of time.
Speaker 4 (13:06):
Look at All Star Games, look at World serieses et cetera.
The National League is better this year, They're better. Yeah,
the league is down.
Speaker 6 (13:15):
The League is down, The Ale West is down, even
the Ale East is down. The better teams are in
the National League, particularly in the in the in the
ANL West, we saw the Giants, they're good. We know
the Dodgers are good. We know the Padres we're gonna
see them next are good. And the Diamondbacks are good.
That's a great division. And you look across there and
(13:36):
the Mets are pretty good, the Cubs are good, the
Phillies of course will be good. And right now in
the American League, you've got the Yankees. They're good. We've
seen them. Detroit is good, Okay, I.
Speaker 4 (13:48):
Mean they're winning. I don't know if they're good.
Speaker 6 (13:50):
And that's it, right, I mean the Nation League is
just better, not so I think that as you handicap it.
So the good news what the Mariners is, even though
they kind of punted the last couple of off seasons,
they're still sitting in the CAF or Sea right right.
If they get their starters back, what do they look like?
Five yond premium starters, an elite young closer, a shortstop
(14:11):
of centerfielder to catcher.
Speaker 4 (14:12):
That's Gatzi. That's good. They're good. All they have to
do is fill in the cracks.
Speaker 6 (14:16):
And they've had a little bit of injury around those
but they haven't really tried hard. But you know, Ben
Williamson has been a nice little replacement. I don't know
if he's gonna hit. And certainly they're am and Eggers,
the Rebosses and the and the master Bonies of the
world have done a great job for them, good contact
type players, but they don't they don't have a lot
(14:37):
around Raleigh and Rodriguez.
Speaker 3 (14:39):
They just well, I would I would disagree with you
on the little injury thing. I think they've had a
lot of injuries on this baseball team and that was
gonna lead me build to my next question, your thoughts
on Dan Wilson as a game manager, because it's I mean,
it's kind of hard for me. I guess when you look, Okay,
ro Bless, Bliss, Dylan Moore, Luke, Rayley, Polanco, Limited Uh
Logan Gilbert, George Herby, Brice mother Santos Brash, Trent Thornton.
(15:02):
All of those guys except for Polonco have hit the
iel so far. That's eleven guys I just mentioned in
forty games. So he has been playing with you know,
a couple of fingers at least behind his back, if
not an entire hand, and I get that. I think
it's important to mention that. But what is yours? What
is your takeaway? What have you observed from Dan Wilson
as a game day manager, as a strategist since he
(15:26):
took over this job last year.
Speaker 6 (15:29):
I think that he's still a little bit of a
work in progress as a game manager.
Speaker 4 (15:34):
He's going to get better at it.
Speaker 6 (15:35):
His instincts have improved because you know, he's been sitting
away from that seat. He's not been managing games right,
but he certainly knows the game inside and out. He
speaks from a place of high integrity and high success,
and they have developed it. They are developing a culture
of winning and that hasn't been there for a while.
(15:56):
I like the fact that he puts Munos in the
ninth where he belongs. None of this, you know, leverage
bs and there's a little bit of an order to
the bullpen, and everybody kind of understands that a little
bit better.
Speaker 4 (16:07):
I think you can argue.
Speaker 6 (16:08):
Back and forth on the mix in the match on
maybe guys have bunted, maybe they did it on their own.
Polanco bunning that one game that's a head scratcher. Sometimes
he pinch hit. Sometimes he doesn't. I mean there's a
method to the madness sometimes. But I think he's going
to get better as time goes on, and I'm sure
he's having that conversation with himself.
Speaker 4 (16:29):
I think he's done a great job.
Speaker 6 (16:30):
I think he's just a godsend for this club to
have two incredibly successful players that know what winning really means.
They're playing at the highest level and developing a culture
winning between I and Egger to have them there and
you can feel that even though personnel wise they've made
no changes, this team is much better and they've been
(16:51):
much better since those two guys got in control of
the team, right, So I think he's going to manage
the X and O's is a little bit better. And
the one thing that's been interesting. Your point about injuries
is well taken. They've had a real blow to their
starring rotation. They're not having Brash for a big part
of the year and now he's back. But you know,
when blissed road plays went down, this team played better
(17:11):
because those guys were swing first, swing and miss Blisz
was a swing and miss guy. They couldn't play second,
so they got rebossed and they got Dylan Moore over
there and they got better, and then they had to
do some juggling and Telesbo's out and he can really
play first, and that opens up Poloco a spot for
him to play as a dah so and then we
got an elite third baseman that they didn't really like the.
Speaker 4 (17:32):
Game up and already played third.
Speaker 6 (17:34):
So some of it worked okay, but it doesn't necessarily
mean they haven't been handicapped by injury.
Speaker 4 (17:39):
That's that's absolutely true.
Speaker 3 (17:41):
Bill Krueger, great stuff. We will talk to you in
a week next Thursday at four.
Speaker 2 (17:45):
Thanks Bill.
Speaker 4 (17:47):
I loved it, guys. Thanks for having me.
Speaker 2 (17:48):
All right, man.
Speaker 3 (17:49):
Bill Krueger with us courtesy the Queen Ann Beer Hall.
Occidental Hall opening up near Lumenfield very soon. Keep an
eye on that APGA Championship update from Quail Hollow right now.
Curtis Westwood One casting live from the R and R
Foundation specialist broad Jes Studio.
Speaker 1 (18:07):
Now back to Saftie and Dick, powered by Emerald Queen Casino,
the vetting capital of the Northwest. On Sports Radio ninety
three point three kJ.
Speaker 7 (18:16):
R, rebound down to Christian Brown. You got a hurry
eight seven seconds front Court over to Westbrook cliff Side
Gordon for the win. Yeah, two point eight seconds left.
Coming back the other way, Williams from half court taked
it no good at the horn and the Denver Nuggets
shock the Oklahoma City Thunder in game number one.
Speaker 3 (18:39):
That is the voice of Jason Cosmiki, the voice of
the Denver Nuggets.
Speaker 2 (18:43):
That game feels like forever ago.
Speaker 3 (18:45):
By the way, the joker in that game dropping forty
two and then kind of you know, inconsistent for sure,
not shooting the ball well, but then goes off for
forty four, obviously in the loss the other night. But
joining us right now on the radio show a man
who in Denver, despite it, really, let's face it, Kevin
Shockey's complete ineffectiveness, as the new program director of Altitude
(19:06):
Sports in Denver, this guy is flourished though, as the
studio host for Denver Nugget Basketball.
Speaker 2 (19:11):
They call Himberto.
Speaker 3 (19:12):
Mark Bertanelli is with us on the radio program right now.
Speaker 2 (19:16):
Mark, How are you pale?
Speaker 5 (19:18):
Good?
Speaker 8 (19:18):
How you how y'all doing there in the Pacific Northwest?
Speaker 2 (19:21):
We are good.
Speaker 3 (19:22):
We are fired up to root for you guys like
mad We're all Seattle fans. We have a saying up
here in Seattle. All right, So we're rooting hard for
you guys to take care of these bastards. So what's
the confidence meter look like before game six to night?
Speaker 4 (19:36):
Men?
Speaker 7 (19:37):
Oh man?
Speaker 8 (19:39):
Zero for me, Man, I'm nervous as hell. This game
is freaking me out, you know what I mean? Like,
I don't like these elimination games. But we just got
this news from the head coach of the Denver Nuckets,
David Adaman, and the interim head coach of the Denver
Nuggets that Jamal Murray is sick, super sick. And I
thought that he'd probably give it a go. But from
(19:59):
the way sounds they're talking about maybe trying to find
somebody else to start for Jamal tonight. That's how sick
he is.
Speaker 4 (20:05):
So that's that's not.
Speaker 8 (20:06):
Ideal when you really only have two great players on
your team to start with.
Speaker 3 (20:10):
Yeah, thanks a lot, Mark, Why do you just start
off by kicking us in the balls while you're at it?
Speaker 8 (20:14):
By the Waycusha throw a little sunshine down on that one,
didn't I All right?
Speaker 2 (20:18):
So I mean who's got to step up? Then?
Speaker 5 (20:20):
Who's gonna be the guy that steps up in that
secondary role behind the Joker.
Speaker 8 (20:25):
Well, it's got to be one of the core for
I mean, Michael Porter Junior has struggled so much and
I'm sure it's the shoulder or or his confidence or something.
So I mean, you can't put that on Mike tonight.
Maybe Aaron Gordon. Maybe Aaron Gordon can do it. Maybe
he can get it done. If Jamal's not gonna be
in there, because we all expect greatness from Joker, Jokes's
(20:45):
gonna show up and give you forty or twenty or
whatever it's gonna be. So you need somebody else. Maybe
maybe Russell Westbrook off the bench. Maybe Russ has one
of those games tonight and gives the Thunder some trouble.
I don't know, man, I am, I am super nervous
going into this one.
Speaker 2 (21:01):
Well, I mean you should be right.
Speaker 3 (21:03):
I mean, you lose the game, You're done, by the way,
so nobody blames you for that. But Mark Bertanoli Studio
host Altitude Sports in Denver before Game six, Nuggets and
Thunder tonight, you Thunder, and you mentioned Russell Westbrook. There
is he the kind of guy that would hear all
this talk, all these anonymous reports that have come out
(21:24):
about him. Being immature. I know some people are coming
to his defense and saying that's not true. Is he
the kind of guy that would hear all that stuff
and use that as gas to have a big night tonight.
Speaker 2 (21:36):
Yeah?
Speaker 8 (21:37):
Yeah. Although Rusk goes one hundred miles an hour no
matter what, right like he lives his life a quarter
mile at a time.
Speaker 4 (21:41):
That's Russell Westbrook. He's just the crazy man.
Speaker 8 (21:44):
So and I love chaos. I love chaos, and that's
what he brings to a basketball game. But is it
going to help you or hurt you tonight? I'm assuming
that Russ is going to bring that energy, but if
he does that thing where he starts missing shots, especially
in the second half of these games, and then instead
of helping you, he hurts you. Man, I don't know.
(22:04):
I don't know what you're gonna get from Russ tonight.
But let me ask you, Discord, let me ask you
this question right here. When the NBA here in a
couple of months or next summer, announces that Seattle is
going to get an expansion team, at that point, will
you forgive OKC for gaffling your team?
Speaker 2 (22:22):
Never ever?
Speaker 3 (22:23):
Because because because we we missed out on Harden Durant Westbrook.
Speaker 4 (22:28):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (22:28):
Uh and if the if.
Speaker 3 (22:30):
We we've already missed out on one NBA Finals appearance,
we may miss out on a second one, and we
may miss out who knows, on a championship. So at
the top of the pyramid of the most hated bastards
in Seattle sports history sits a guy named Howard Schultz
and everybody else's number two in my opinion forever, with
a close second Clayton Bennett, no question about it. You know,
(22:52):
tell me about tell me about the Joker and why
his numbers are so different in this series than they
were in the Clipper series. Obviously you're playing a better team,
but look at his assistant number. He's averaging five assists
and five.
Speaker 5 (23:02):
Turnovers a game against Oklahoma City, whereas against the Clippers
he was ten assists and three turnovers. What how have
they been defending him differently than the Clippers did?
Speaker 8 (23:13):
Well, they have more bigs to throw at him. And
I really think the Joker's elbow is is kind of
it's been bothering them all season long. I think it
is especially bothering him in these playoff series because Joker
doesn't miss the shots that he's been missing during this series.
Speaker 4 (23:28):
The weird thing is is our stats.
Speaker 8 (23:31):
Guy just gave us this information this morning. It's something
crazy where Joker in the in that last game. In
that last game, Joker could have ended up with I
think it was seventeen assists, but he ended up with
five instead because his teammates aren't making the show. Like
you'll find a teammate in an open position with an
(23:52):
open shot and they throw up an airball or a brick.
And so the question is do you, I mean, do
you just ask Joker to just, you know, carry the
offensive load and put up more shots if his teammates
aren't going to help him out, if his teammates aren't
going to knock down shots, what's the answer to that question?
I just have Joker go for sixty again.
Speaker 4 (24:11):
Who knows?
Speaker 3 (24:12):
So I'm looking at Mark and again Mark Bertanoli studio
hosts for the Nuggets before they take on the Thunder
and a must win game tonight, you Thunder and the
ticket prices and maybe it's because we're getting close to
tip off. They're down to one hundred and twenty seven
bucks to get in the door. Conversely, and I realized
it's New York versus Denver, but still seven hundred dollars
to get in for the NICK game tomorrow against Boston.
(24:34):
I just wonder are our fans residing to the fact that, Hey,
we fired the coach, we fired the GM, we got
our championship, and this team is on the decline.
Speaker 2 (24:45):
What's the attitude of the fan base like out there?
Speaker 8 (24:48):
Well, the fan base has been trying to trade members
of this team all this season long, trying to find
help for Joker. They're like, Joker's never had an All
Star teammate. He's never had a teammate who's made an
All Star Game until you brought in the MVP, the
former MVP, Russell Westbrook this year. So it's like, how
do you get that man help? You know, with the
(25:08):
new NBA CBA you can't hit that second apron or
you're in all kinds of problems. So you could basically
play for two max guys, like three or four mid
level dudes and then a bunch of scrubs the end
of the bench. And the problem for the Denver Nuggets
and the reason why Calvin Booth is in the GM
anymore is that it goes Joker. Jamal Aaron Gordon Michael
(25:28):
Porter Junior and then kind of a lot of skirt,
you know what I mean, there's not much after that.
After that, after you're starting five, So they daffle the GM,
they fire the head coach.
Speaker 4 (25:39):
We're all shocked.
Speaker 8 (25:40):
I think the surprising thing is that Nugget fans forget
about that until they lose a game, you know what
I mean, this entire playoff run, they never bring up
the fact that the team fired coach alone until you
lose a game, and then they blame and then they
blamed the coaching or the move late in.
Speaker 4 (25:56):
The season or whatever it was.
Speaker 8 (25:57):
But you know, I mean, when you're up, when you're
up in this series against OKC and you start thinking
you're gonna make the Western Conference finals, nobody's talking about
the firing of Michael Malone.
Speaker 3 (26:06):
Berno, you're the man, and remember always remember you say,
go get him tonight. Men, we're pulling for you, big boy,
Go get him, man, all right, thank you, you got it.
Mark Bertonoli from Denver Studio, host for the Nuggets. And
that's not good news, by the way, the words are
rich more not good. That Jamal Murray may not play tonight.
That kind of changes things don't.
Speaker 2 (26:26):
You think they're nick We're gonna break.
Speaker 3 (26:27):
Textimonials in a special bonus edition Extended edition.
Speaker 2 (26:31):
This is like Return of the King.
Speaker 3 (26:33):
Five hours at five o'clock fun with audio coming up
on ninety three three KJRFM
It's time for our weekly conversation with Bill Krueger, brought
to you by the brand new Occidental Hall next to
Lumenfield on Occidental Seattle's newest hot spot for sports fans,
with massive HD screens and a menu backed with Seattle's
best smash burger, wings and the best local craft beers
in town. Now with Bill Krueger, here's Suffian.
Speaker 2 (00:21):
Nobody trust me.
Speaker 3 (00:22):
Nobody does smash burgers better than the Occidental Hall and
the Queen Anne Beer Hall. And I assume by default
the lumen Field location.
Speaker 2 (00:32):
The new Occidental Hall opening up soon.
Speaker 3 (00:33):
We'll have killer smash burgers as well, wings, TVs, lots
of TVs, incredible beer menu as well. Go check out
the Queen Ann Beer Hall on Queen Ann Hill, Moss
Bay Hall and Kirkland And he's soon to be opened Occidental.
Speaker 2 (00:48):
Hall near lumen Field.
Speaker 3 (00:49):
Here he is our friend who's going to join us
now every Thursday at four excellent because Brett Boon quit
to go be the Rangers hitting coach. Our friend, Bill Krueger,
how are you pal?
Speaker 4 (01:00):
It's good to have a spot, even if it's by default.
Speaker 2 (01:02):
Well, technically I will say this.
Speaker 3 (01:05):
Technically your spot opened up when Steve and Susa took
a job with the Rays.
Speaker 2 (01:09):
Oh yeah, and then when Booney.
Speaker 3 (01:11):
Went to Texas, we just moved you from Susan's spot
to boone spot.
Speaker 5 (01:15):
So the question is what team is Bill Krueger going
to be the pitching coach of next year?
Speaker 2 (01:19):
Marlins?
Speaker 5 (01:20):
Because they stick because all of our guests always move
on to baseball teams.
Speaker 4 (01:24):
I don't want that kind of team. I don't know
if I want.
Speaker 6 (01:28):
Jacksonville what I did, the Jacksonville Golf Shrimp, because that's
about what they're rolling out there for the Marlins. You
know what, none of those gus listen. I have thrilled
to be hon with you guys. You build it open
for me. I feel like humble and excited.
Speaker 4 (01:41):
Thank you.
Speaker 3 (01:41):
Let me ask you this if you got that call,
because you're still fairly young, you know, forty two years old.
If a baseball team called you up and said, hey,
we want you to be our pitching coach or maybe
even like an assistant pitching coach, and you're going to
be hitting the road like you did when you played
for the next five months, traveling hotels. Do you even
have any interest at all and doing something like that
right now, at this stage of your life, you know.
Speaker 6 (02:04):
It would have to be a pretty unique set of circumstances,
I'm afraid.
Speaker 4 (02:07):
Yeah.
Speaker 6 (02:07):
You know, the thing is it's probably not going to happen,
but it's fun, I guess, fun to talk about. There
was probably a time in my life post baseball that
it would have made sense, but you know, I've enjoyed
my life in media.
Speaker 4 (02:21):
It's allowed me to do a lot of things locally.
Speaker 6 (02:23):
It's allowed me to be close to my family and
you guys know a little bit about our journey with
our daughter, and she's doing beautifully now.
Speaker 4 (02:31):
And that was the decision I.
Speaker 6 (02:33):
Made at the time that I wasn't going to chase
the baseball over the country, whether it was on the
field or in the broadcast.
Speaker 4 (02:38):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (02:38):
Well, this line of questioning just delays the inevitable, which
is talking about what happened against the Blue Jays and Yankees,
where I mean, the offense kind of fell apart. Man,
let's face it, you know, disappointing because here we have
a baseball team that in general terms has been pretty
good offensively, second on the road in batting average, but
second to last at home.
Speaker 2 (02:57):
So I don't know, how much did you.
Speaker 3 (02:59):
Take from that Blue Jays Yankees six game stretch that
leaves you slightly concerned, if not more than slightly about
the offense.
Speaker 6 (03:07):
Well, I think there's certainly we're reverting a little bit
to the mean. Where the mean is is yet to
be determined. But they proved over that stretch of what
was it twenty five games that they could really score
and a lot of that was done by putting the
ball in play and cutting down on strikeouts. It was
(03:28):
also with the home run ball, though, question, I think
this team is going to be. The aim for this
team is to be slightly above the midpoint offensively, but
they have to become an elite pitching staff and that's
the part that the club is waiting on.
Speaker 4 (03:45):
We saw it the last two games.
Speaker 6 (03:46):
But then you have Miller going on the disabled list
and they probably need another reliever. That's something we can
talk about as they move forward. But they still could
get back to being an elite pitching team. That's the
answer for this team is to take the advantage that
they've run up, be a big point offensive.
Speaker 4 (04:02):
Team and get back to being a top six pitching team.
Speaker 6 (04:06):
Well, you mentioned I don't think it's fair to measure
them against what they did on the road and through
that nine game series stretch.
Speaker 4 (04:12):
That's not I don't think that's who they are.
Speaker 5 (04:14):
Well, which is more real then, because you said getting
back to the met I mean we were seeing two extremes.
We saw last year's extreme of just awful offense and elite,
elite pitchings, particularly from starting pitching, and then this year
really shaky pitching for the most part because of the injuries,
and well above average offense. So which is closer to
what you think we'll see from here on out once
(04:34):
everybody gets healthy.
Speaker 6 (04:37):
Better pitching, average, hitting, hopefully a little bit more opportunistic
because we're putting the ball and they're putting the ball
in play more. They're not going to be a top
six home run team, but they can by approach put
more balls in play. And of course I could have
all the sabermetric people chasing me down telling me that
(04:58):
I'm wrong, but I'm a rope putting the bone in play.
Speaker 4 (05:01):
So I think that leads to good things.
Speaker 6 (05:04):
And you know, look, when you put this team together,
and we could go back in the way back machine
and talk about some of the egregious choices they made
when they had elite players they could have controlled. Even
though they would had to spend a little bit of money,
it would have beat the pants off of trying to
go to the market over the winner. And they got
left with what they got left, and they'd got an
incredible start from someone that looked like their career was
(05:26):
over and hopefully he can keep it going. And Jorgete Polanco,
but that was just found money. That's like coming down
the street and finding a you know, a thousand dollars billy,
just pick it up and put it in the pocket.
I mean, nobody could have predicted that his career was over.
And look what he's done. So I don't know if
he can keep expecting that. He looks like he's gonna
be much better than he was. You know last year.
(05:48):
For certain, they're gonna need more production from their key players,
and you know they they're gonna be a little bit
on the want. They're gonna have to hamm an egg
a little bit to be good.
Speaker 3 (05:59):
Yeah, Polanco last twelve games, hitting a buck ninety four
with a six to z eight ops. He was going
to cool off eventually, obviously, but clearly a guy that
belongs in the lineup, no question, as much as he
can get in it with his injury situation. But Bill,
go back to the pictures for a minute. You know,
this was the concern that a lot of us had that, man,
they are just not going to be able to recreate
(06:19):
the injury luck they had a year ago with that rotation,
and it took a month and three fifths of your
rotation is on the injured list. So even when Gilbert
and Bryce Miller and Kirby do come back as a former,
picture yourself.
Speaker 2 (06:34):
How concerned are.
Speaker 3 (06:35):
You about those guys for the rest of this season
considering what they've already dealt with.
Speaker 6 (06:43):
You know, I'm pretty optimistic, I really am.
Speaker 4 (06:48):
I don't quite understand what's going on with Bryce Miller.
Speaker 6 (06:51):
I think they air hugely on the side of caution
with Kirby having a little shoulder swords and he should
have come out guns of blaze when he pitches next
week against Houston. And I think Gilbert, you have to
give him some amazing credit how he could step outside
of himself, turn the compete button off and realize that
(07:13):
he was dealing with something that he should pull the
plug on himself to get a grade one flexer strain
out of that, and he's still not out of the woods.
But I think he's going to be fine too. Miller
is a little bit of a head scratcher. It sounds
like it's been an irritant but already an injury.
Speaker 4 (07:30):
So I don't see that as a problem.
Speaker 6 (07:31):
I think some of this is, you know, he's he's
struggling with that, and that has been a hurdle for
him because there's other mitigating factors that are that he's
struggling with a little bit, and that's all part of
the maturation of pitching. You know, understanding who you are
as a pitcher. Am I a top level upstairs pitcher?
I'm a downstairs pitcher? Am I a spider pitcher? Am
I a curveball pitcher?
Speaker 3 (07:52):
Who?
Speaker 4 (07:52):
Am I?
Speaker 6 (07:53):
You can't be everybody Gilbert tries to, And honestly, I
think as I look at Gilbert, and I think he's
in an an amazing young man with great tools and
a great attitude and a hard worker. But when you
got ninety seven with late release down the hill at
six foot six, you better be throwing more than twenty
eight percent fastball and throwing that bevy of breaking stuff
(08:16):
is part and part, in my opinion, why he's having
a little bit of an elbow problem. He needs to
come back and throw his fastball for a strike. Take
a page out of what Brian wu is doing. And
it's not just because Wu is tricky. He's got the
low rebef point in the upshoot and all that. It's
because he has elite command with his fastball and he
understands where the fastball needs to go. And if you
(08:38):
do that, guess what happens? You pitch deep in games. Gilbert,
even though he was pitching well, not pitching deep in games.
This pitching around the strike zone. That's part and part
what we're talking about here. Way too many pitches, not
enough fastballs, and some of this is resultant in some
of the little micks that they're having right now in
their arms.
Speaker 5 (08:58):
Well, Bill, with these injuries are the we've seen a
lot of young arms come in now. Any of these
young relievers, you see some potential end that you think
could be high leverage guys in the very near future.
Speaker 6 (09:11):
Bargas has been impressive, even though he gave up the
home run yesterday. You know, he made a big mistake
with the slider. You know, he's got great stuff and
he's gone from I don't know where it's going to
I'm I'm in the game now. But now he has
to be able to take it to another level because
when you're pitching at the end of games against elite hitters,
(09:32):
you have to understand a little bit more situation. And
you can't just like I'm letting it rip slider, I'm
letting it rip fastball. You've got to be a little
bit more intentional. And he hung a slider to Judge
and you can't be in the middle of the plate
with a slider with Judge in a game like that.
Speaker 4 (09:47):
You can't. So the lesson's learned, okay, but I like it.
Speaker 6 (09:51):
He's got explosion with fastball ninety seven, with movement, a
really good slider, got some talent, and he's found the
plate and he's pitched with confidence. And there's another kudo
to the meritors for finding him underneath the rock where
they've been able to find a guy or two every year, right,
and that's to their credit. They found underlying pitching that's
(10:11):
really helped this team, particularly in the bullpen, and he's
he was a great find.
Speaker 3 (10:16):
I'll tell you what if Baseball had it set up,
and I don't know why they don't do this. I mean,
maybe they some team would think about doing it. Bill
Bill Krueger is with us again courtesy of the Queen
Anne Beer Hall, Moss Bay Hall, and seem to be
open occidental Hall President of Baseball Operations, and one for
each side. One guy takes pitching, one guy takes the offense.
Because the POTO would be the executive of the year
(10:38):
if he was only judged on pitching right every single
year he's been phenomenal. But going back to yesterday's game,
and somebody mentioned this, and it sounds ludicrous obviously because
it was a tie game in the eighth inning and
Aaron Judge is leading off the inning. But naturally people
come back and say, well, why even pitch to the guy? Well,
because you're putting the go ahead run on base. It's
(11:00):
a tie game and he's leading off the eighth.
Speaker 2 (11:02):
So can you.
Speaker 3 (11:03):
Think of any reason in a tie game yesterday, leading
off the eighth why you would just put Aaron Judge on.
Speaker 2 (11:10):
No.
Speaker 6 (11:11):
Yeah, I agree, you gotta pitch him. You got to
pitch with confidence. Uh, you have a guy in Vargas.
It's got great stuff. It's right on right. And you
know he hasn't had a big series. I mean he was,
he's he's playing at the breaking ball and chasing away.
They've done a good They do a good job to
pitch it to him the whole series. So I don't
see any reason that you would pitch around him right there.
Speaker 5 (11:31):
No, well, he said, all your building. Oh, the AL
West is terrible. Als is terrible. And you look at
the AL West and there's four out of five teams
that are over five hundred. So yes, there's no great
team in the in the AL West. But handicap it
for us, at least through the first quarter of the season.
Speaker 2 (11:45):
We've gotten to the quarter pole.
Speaker 5 (11:47):
Handicap what you've seen thus far and how you see
it play out at this point.
Speaker 6 (11:53):
Mariners one as, two heats in, three Texas, four Angels.
Spot Wow, And I think that's I think that's about right.
I mean, how many times how many great players from
Houston lose before they eventually fall. You keep sip sipping players,
you keep these surping players out of their line up.
Eventually they're gonna fall. And the Rangers are just you know,
(12:14):
two years ago they swung the bat and everybody did.
And now they're hit and miss and they don't have
enough pitching. So I don't see them making a move.
And Astros will be okay. They have a winning culture.
Speaker 4 (12:26):
But the A's are decent, I mean incredible as it
may seem.
Speaker 6 (12:30):
They're pretty good. And you saw that the four to
three series of Marriage hold the edge, but those games
all close. So yes, it's gonna be a tidy played division.
I don't think anybody's gonna run away and hide. The
Angels are terrible. I'm gonna put them in last place
and the trout doesn't come back. They're gonna lose one hundred, okay,
which is pretty shameful for a big market team like that,
(12:51):
But such is life. But you know, in general, and
I've never said this for upteen years, I'm an American
League guy, played American League most my career. I think
the American League has been the superior league, and the
numbers have played that, played that out for a long
period of time.
Speaker 4 (13:06):
Look at All Star Games, look at World serieses et cetera.
The National League is better this year, They're better. Yeah,
the league is down.
Speaker 6 (13:15):
The League is down, The Ale West is down, even
the Ale East is down. The better teams are in
the National League, particularly in the in the in the
ANL West, we saw the Giants, they're good. We know
the Dodgers are good. We know the Padres we're gonna
see them next are good. And the Diamondbacks are good.
That's a great division. And you look across there and
(13:36):
the Mets are pretty good, the Cubs are good, the
Phillies of course will be good. And right now in
the American League, you've got the Yankees. They're good. We've
seen them. Detroit is good, Okay, I.
Speaker 4 (13:48):
Mean they're winning. I don't know if they're good.
Speaker 6 (13:50):
And that's it, right, I mean the Nation League is
just better, not so I think that as you handicap it.
So the good news what the Mariners is, even though
they kind of punted the last couple of off seasons,
they're still sitting in the CAF or Sea right right.
If they get their starters back, what do they look like?
Five yond premium starters, an elite young closer, a shortstop
(14:11):
of centerfielder to catcher.
Speaker 4 (14:12):
That's Gatzi. That's good. They're good. All they have to
do is fill in the cracks.
Speaker 6 (14:16):
And they've had a little bit of injury around those
but they haven't really tried hard. But you know, Ben
Williamson has been a nice little replacement. I don't know
if he's gonna hit. And certainly they're am and Eggers,
the Rebosses and the and the master Bonies of the
world have done a great job for them, good contact
type players, but they don't they don't have a lot
(14:37):
around Raleigh and Rodriguez.
Speaker 3 (14:39):
They just well, I would I would disagree with you
on the little injury thing. I think they've had a
lot of injuries on this baseball team and that was
gonna lead me build to my next question, your thoughts
on Dan Wilson as a game manager, because it's I mean,
it's kind of hard for me. I guess when you look, Okay,
ro Bless, Bliss, Dylan Moore, Luke, Rayley, Polanco, Limited Uh
Logan Gilbert, George Herby, Brice mother Santos Brash, Trent Thornton.
(15:02):
All of those guys except for Polonco have hit the
iel so far. That's eleven guys I just mentioned in
forty games. So he has been playing with you know,
a couple of fingers at least behind his back, if
not an entire hand, and I get that. I think
it's important to mention that. But what is yours? What
is your takeaway? What have you observed from Dan Wilson
as a game day manager, as a strategist since he
(15:26):
took over this job last year.
Speaker 6 (15:29):
I think that he's still a little bit of a
work in progress as a game manager.
Speaker 4 (15:34):
He's going to get better at it.
Speaker 6 (15:35):
His instincts have improved because you know, he's been sitting
away from that seat. He's not been managing games right,
but he certainly knows the game inside and out. He
speaks from a place of high integrity and high success,
and they have developed it. They are developing a culture
of winning and that hasn't been there for a while.
(15:56):
I like the fact that he puts Munos in the
ninth where he belongs. None of this, you know, leverage
bs and there's a little bit of an order to
the bullpen, and everybody kind of understands that a little
bit better.
Speaker 4 (16:07):
I think you can argue.
Speaker 6 (16:08):
Back and forth on the mix in the match on
maybe guys have bunted, maybe they did it on their own.
Polanco bunning that one game that's a head scratcher. Sometimes
he pinch hit. Sometimes he doesn't. I mean there's a
method to the madness sometimes. But I think he's going
to get better as time goes on, and I'm sure
he's having that conversation with himself.
Speaker 4 (16:29):
I think he's done a great job.
Speaker 6 (16:30):
I think he's just a godsend for this club to
have two incredibly successful players that know what winning really means.
They're playing at the highest level and developing a culture
winning between I and Egger to have them there and
you can feel that even though personnel wise they've made
no changes, this team is much better and they've been
(16:51):
much better since those two guys got in control of
the team, right, So I think he's going to manage
the X and O's is a little bit better. And
the one thing that's been interesting. Your point about injuries
is well taken. They've had a real blow to their
starring rotation. They're not having Brash for a big part
of the year and now he's back. But you know,
when blissed road plays went down, this team played better
(17:11):
because those guys were swing first, swing and miss Blisz
was a swing and miss guy. They couldn't play second,
so they got rebossed and they got Dylan Moore over
there and they got better, and then they had to
do some juggling and Telesbo's out and he can really
play first, and that opens up Poloco a spot for
him to play as a dah so and then we
got an elite third baseman that they didn't really like the.
Speaker 4 (17:32):
Game up and already played third.
Speaker 6 (17:34):
So some of it worked okay, but it doesn't necessarily
mean they haven't been handicapped by injury.
Speaker 4 (17:39):
That's that's absolutely true.
Speaker 3 (17:41):
Bill Krueger, great stuff. We will talk to you in
a week next Thursday at four.
Speaker 2 (17:45):
Thanks Bill.
Speaker 4 (17:47):
I loved it, guys. Thanks for having me.
Speaker 2 (17:48):
All right, man.
Speaker 3 (17:49):
Bill Krueger with us courtesy the Queen Ann Beer Hall.
Occidental Hall opening up near Lumenfield very soon. Keep an
eye on that APGA Championship update from Quail Hollow right now.
Curtis Westwood One casting live from the R and R
Foundation specialist broad Jes Studio.
Speaker 1 (18:07):
Now back to Saftie and Dick, powered by Emerald Queen Casino,
the vetting capital of the Northwest. On Sports Radio ninety
three point three kJ.
Speaker 7 (18:16):
R, rebound down to Christian Brown. You got a hurry
eight seven seconds front Court over to Westbrook cliff Side
Gordon for the win. Yeah, two point eight seconds left.
Coming back the other way, Williams from half court taked
it no good at the horn and the Denver Nuggets
shock the Oklahoma City Thunder in game number one.
Speaker 3 (18:39):
That is the voice of Jason Cosmiki, the voice of
the Denver Nuggets.
Speaker 2 (18:43):
That game feels like forever ago.
Speaker 3 (18:45):
By the way, the joker in that game dropping forty
two and then kind of you know, inconsistent for sure,
not shooting the ball well, but then goes off for
forty four, obviously in the loss the other night. But
joining us right now on the radio show a man
who in Denver, despite it, really, let's face it, Kevin
Shockey's complete ineffectiveness, as the new program director of Altitude
(19:06):
Sports in Denver, this guy is flourished though, as the
studio host for Denver Nugget Basketball.
Speaker 2 (19:11):
They call Himberto.
Speaker 3 (19:12):
Mark Bertanelli is with us on the radio program right now.
Speaker 2 (19:16):
Mark, How are you pale?
Speaker 5 (19:18):
Good?
Speaker 8 (19:18):
How you how y'all doing there in the Pacific Northwest?
Speaker 2 (19:21):
We are good.
Speaker 3 (19:22):
We are fired up to root for you guys like
mad We're all Seattle fans. We have a saying up
here in Seattle. All right, So we're rooting hard for
you guys to take care of these bastards. So what's
the confidence meter look like before game six to night?
Speaker 4 (19:36):
Men?
Speaker 7 (19:37):
Oh man?
Speaker 8 (19:39):
Zero for me, Man, I'm nervous as hell. This game
is freaking me out, you know what I mean? Like,
I don't like these elimination games. But we just got
this news from the head coach of the Denver Nuckets,
David Adaman, and the interim head coach of the Denver
Nuggets that Jamal Murray is sick, super sick. And I
thought that he'd probably give it a go. But from
(19:59):
the way sounds they're talking about maybe trying to find
somebody else to start for Jamal tonight. That's how sick
he is.
Speaker 4 (20:05):
So that's that's not.
Speaker 8 (20:06):
Ideal when you really only have two great players on
your team to start with.
Speaker 3 (20:10):
Yeah, thanks a lot, Mark, Why do you just start
off by kicking us in the balls while you're at it?
Speaker 8 (20:14):
By the Waycusha throw a little sunshine down on that one,
didn't I All right?
Speaker 2 (20:18):
So I mean who's got to step up? Then?
Speaker 5 (20:20):
Who's gonna be the guy that steps up in that
secondary role behind the Joker.
Speaker 8 (20:25):
Well, it's got to be one of the core for
I mean, Michael Porter Junior has struggled so much and
I'm sure it's the shoulder or or his confidence or something.
So I mean, you can't put that on Mike tonight.
Maybe Aaron Gordon. Maybe Aaron Gordon can do it. Maybe
he can get it done. If Jamal's not gonna be
in there, because we all expect greatness from Joker, Jokes's
(20:45):
gonna show up and give you forty or twenty or
whatever it's gonna be. So you need somebody else. Maybe
maybe Russell Westbrook off the bench. Maybe Russ has one
of those games tonight and gives the Thunder some trouble.
I don't know, man, I am, I am super nervous
going into this one.
Speaker 2 (21:01):
Well, I mean you should be right.
Speaker 3 (21:03):
I mean, you lose the game, You're done, by the way,
so nobody blames you for that. But Mark Bertanoli Studio
host Altitude Sports in Denver before Game six, Nuggets and
Thunder tonight, you Thunder, and you mentioned Russell Westbrook. There
is he the kind of guy that would hear all
this talk, all these anonymous reports that have come out
(21:24):
about him. Being immature. I know some people are coming
to his defense and saying that's not true. Is he
the kind of guy that would hear all that stuff
and use that as gas to have a big night tonight.
Speaker 2 (21:36):
Yeah?
Speaker 8 (21:37):
Yeah. Although Rusk goes one hundred miles an hour no
matter what, right like he lives his life a quarter
mile at a time.
Speaker 4 (21:41):
That's Russell Westbrook. He's just the crazy man.
Speaker 8 (21:44):
So and I love chaos. I love chaos, and that's
what he brings to a basketball game. But is it
going to help you or hurt you tonight? I'm assuming
that Russ is going to bring that energy, but if
he does that thing where he starts missing shots, especially
in the second half of these games, and then instead
of helping you, he hurts you. Man, I don't know.
(22:04):
I don't know what you're gonna get from Russ tonight.
But let me ask you, Discord, let me ask you
this question right here. When the NBA here in a
couple of months or next summer, announces that Seattle is
going to get an expansion team, at that point, will
you forgive OKC for gaffling your team?
Speaker 2 (22:22):
Never ever?
Speaker 3 (22:23):
Because because because we we missed out on Harden Durant Westbrook.
Speaker 4 (22:28):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (22:28):
Uh and if the if.
Speaker 3 (22:30):
We we've already missed out on one NBA Finals appearance,
we may miss out on a second one, and we
may miss out who knows, on a championship. So at
the top of the pyramid of the most hated bastards
in Seattle sports history sits a guy named Howard Schultz
and everybody else's number two in my opinion forever, with
a close second Clayton Bennett, no question about it. You know,
(22:52):
tell me about tell me about the Joker and why
his numbers are so different in this series than they
were in the Clipper series. Obviously you're playing a better team,
but look at his assistant number. He's averaging five assists
and five.
Speaker 5 (23:02):
Turnovers a game against Oklahoma City, whereas against the Clippers
he was ten assists and three turnovers. What how have
they been defending him differently than the Clippers did?
Speaker 8 (23:13):
Well, they have more bigs to throw at him. And
I really think the Joker's elbow is is kind of
it's been bothering them all season long. I think it
is especially bothering him in these playoff series because Joker
doesn't miss the shots that he's been missing during this series.
Speaker 4 (23:28):
The weird thing is is our stats.
Speaker 8 (23:31):
Guy just gave us this information this morning. It's something
crazy where Joker in the in that last game. In
that last game, Joker could have ended up with I
think it was seventeen assists, but he ended up with
five instead because his teammates aren't making the show. Like
you'll find a teammate in an open position with an
(23:52):
open shot and they throw up an airball or a brick.
And so the question is do you, I mean, do
you just ask Joker to just, you know, carry the
offensive load and put up more shots if his teammates
aren't going to help him out, if his teammates aren't
going to knock down shots, what's the answer to that question?
I just have Joker go for sixty again.
Speaker 4 (24:11):
Who knows?
Speaker 3 (24:12):
So I'm looking at Mark and again Mark Bertanoli studio
hosts for the Nuggets before they take on the Thunder
and a must win game tonight, you Thunder and the
ticket prices and maybe it's because we're getting close to
tip off. They're down to one hundred and twenty seven
bucks to get in the door. Conversely, and I realized
it's New York versus Denver, but still seven hundred dollars
to get in for the NICK game tomorrow against Boston.
(24:34):
I just wonder are our fans residing to the fact that, Hey,
we fired the coach, we fired the GM, we got
our championship, and this team is on the decline.
Speaker 2 (24:45):
What's the attitude of the fan base like out there?
Speaker 8 (24:48):
Well, the fan base has been trying to trade members
of this team all this season long, trying to find
help for Joker. They're like, Joker's never had an All
Star teammate. He's never had a teammate who's made an
All Star Game until you brought in the MVP, the
former MVP, Russell Westbrook this year. So it's like, how
do you get that man help? You know, with the
(25:08):
new NBA CBA you can't hit that second apron or
you're in all kinds of problems. So you could basically
play for two max guys, like three or four mid
level dudes and then a bunch of scrubs the end
of the bench. And the problem for the Denver Nuggets
and the reason why Calvin Booth is in the GM
anymore is that it goes Joker. Jamal Aaron Gordon Michael
(25:28):
Porter Junior and then kind of a lot of skirt,
you know what I mean, there's not much after that.
After that, after you're starting five, So they daffle the GM,
they fire the head coach.
Speaker 4 (25:39):
We're all shocked.
Speaker 8 (25:40):
I think the surprising thing is that Nugget fans forget
about that until they lose a game, you know what
I mean, this entire playoff run, they never bring up
the fact that the team fired coach alone until you
lose a game, and then they blame and then they
blamed the coaching or the move late in.
Speaker 4 (25:56):
The season or whatever it was.
Speaker 8 (25:57):
But you know, I mean, when you're up, when you're
up in this series against OKC and you start thinking
you're gonna make the Western Conference finals, nobody's talking about
the firing of Michael Malone.
Speaker 3 (26:06):
Berno, you're the man, and remember always remember you say,
go get him tonight. Men, we're pulling for you, big boy,
Go get him, man, all right, thank you, you got it.
Mark Bertonoli from Denver Studio, host for the Nuggets. And
that's not good news, by the way, the words are
rich more not good. That Jamal Murray may not play tonight.
That kind of changes things don't.
Speaker 2 (26:26):
You think they're nick We're gonna break.
Speaker 3 (26:27):
Textimonials in a special bonus edition Extended edition.
Speaker 2 (26:31):
This is like Return of the King.
Speaker 3 (26:33):
Five hours at five o'clock fun with audio coming up
on ninety three three KJRFM
Dave 'Softy' Mahler and Dick Fain News
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