August 3, 2026 • 36 mins
In the second hour, Grey Zabel sits down with Softy and Hugh to talk about how North Dakota State has prepared Grey for the NFL, what he remembers as a "welcome to the NFL" moment, that he wants to play against Aaron Donald, about loving playing with Charles Cross and who is the toughest Seahawks defender to block. Then Chuck Powell hops on to dissect the Mariners moves before the MLB deadline.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
No from the Star Rentals Sports Deals Jordan ninety three
point three KJRFM sports headlines.
Speaker 2 (00:06):
Alrighty, boys and girls, we are back at the Virginia
Mas Athletics Center. Softy Hugh Moger the Ogre in for
Jackson and Dick Today. Headlines, of course, are brought to
you by our friends at Frost Brewed Course, light as cold.
Speaker 3 (00:19):
As the Rocky.
Speaker 2 (00:22):
We are awaiting our friend Gray's abel practice just wrapping
up here by the way from the vMac. Should be
joining us in a matter of minutes. The Major League
Baseball trade deadline has come and gone. Mariners making a
couple of moves in the last couple of days. You
already know about Luis Castillo to the White Sox from
yesterday for a package including reliever Sir Anthony Dominguez. Today
(00:45):
the Mariners sending Alex Hoppey in two minor league pitchers
to the Baltimore Orioles for outfielder third baseman Taylor Ward, who,
by the way, last year with the Anaheim Angels thirty
six home runs and one hundred and three are He's
got a three eighty three on base percentage, which would
be number one, by the way on this Mariner baseball team.
(01:06):
He also leads the league in walks. What else we
got at the deadline? The Orioles sending catcher Adleie Rushman,
the former Beave, to Boston, the Cubs getting starting pitcher
Clay Holmes, an outfielder Tyrone Taylor from the Mets, the
Astros acquiring outfielder Dalton var Show from Toronto, and former
Marinder starting pitcher Robbie Ray has been sent from the
(01:27):
Giants to the San Diego Padres.
Speaker 3 (01:29):
Soccer.
Speaker 2 (01:30):
Not a great run for the Sounders boys and girls.
They have now lost a team record six in a row,
with a two to one loss to Portland over the
weekend League's Cup games. The next three matches before the
MLS resumes on August the sixteenth at Lumen Field against Vancouver.
The Ms, by the way, do have the night off.
They will take on the.
Speaker 3 (01:48):
Tigers for three games starting tomorrow.
Speaker 2 (01:50):
There is a plethora a few games today in Major
League Baseball. The Nationals up on the Phillies three to nothing,
top of the second, Cardinals and Yankees coming up at
four o'clock Pirateswaukie at four forty. Giants, by the way,
for those that are scoreboard watching in the Al West
are at Texas tonight at five o'clock. The Astros are
also at home at five ten pm, starting a series
(02:11):
with the Blue Jays. All Right, we're back at the
Seahawk practice facility the Virginia Mason Athletics Center. Gray's Abel,
starting left guard for the Seahawks, will join us in
a matter of minutes. We'll get some more conversation going
between now and the end of the show regarding what
the Ems did today at the deadline. The more and
more I think about it, obviously, I like these two
(02:32):
deals on the surface, they were two things, Hugh that
had to be done.
Speaker 3 (02:36):
But there's so many.
Speaker 2 (02:37):
More holes to fill, and without cal Riley getting his
act together, without Josh Naylor finding the seats, and without
Julio really I think picking up his game a little bit,
this team is gonna fall short of the playoffs. And
it's funny we mentioned Naylor earlier today. He's going a
twenty four game on base streak, which I would have
told you anybody is getting on base for three consecutive weeks,
(02:59):
You said, where.
Speaker 3 (03:00):
Do I sign?
Speaker 2 (03:01):
However, Josh Naylor's RBI pace during that span over the
course of twenty four games.
Speaker 3 (03:09):
You know what it is.
Speaker 2 (03:09):
By the way, Hugh forty, He's he's got six RBIs
in twenty four games, which would be a forty RBI
pace over one.
Speaker 3 (03:18):
Hundred and sixty two games. He just simply put the
on base.
Speaker 2 (03:21):
Is great, but he's simply putting his position in the
lineup needs to do a little bit more.
Speaker 4 (03:26):
Of all qualifying first baseman. He's second to last and slugging.
Speaker 3 (03:30):
Yeah, for the season. Yeah, no, it's not good. It's
not good.
Speaker 2 (03:33):
I mean, you need more out of Josh Naylor. You
need the power surge out of Josh Naylor. And I
don't know what's going on with cal Raley, man. I mean,
you know, just when you think the light is starting
to go on and the switch has been turned on,
it's gonna stay on for the rest of the year.
He has a game where he kind of falls apart,
in a week where he kind of falls apart and
goes into the tank. So I'm just wondering if there's
anything left in cal Raley that can give them anything
(03:56):
remotely close to what they had two three years ago. Again,
last year, last year's done. I mean, that's never gonna
happen as long as the guy lives. And we knew
that going in to the season it took one hundred
years for a catcher to hit sixty home runs. To
expect it to happen again would have been ridiculous. But
can we get a little bit of a sliver of
what the guy had two three years ago, Hugh.
Speaker 4 (04:15):
That we've been saying that, Look, he had you know,
seven home runs in April, right, and it seemed like okay,
that this is okay. And yet since then, I don't
think has he had a month more than two.
Speaker 3 (04:33):
I don't even know.
Speaker 4 (04:34):
I think I think it was one, one and one
since then when when he was at ten, So so
I think it's gone whards. He looks to me, Look,
I'm not in his head. What I'm about to say
is not fair, so let me choose my words carefully.
Me as a fan looking at him on television, he
seems to me like a guy that sometimes is dreading
(04:56):
and going up to the plate just doesn't just is
so uncomfortable that he doesn't want to be there, which
is shocking, right and and and maybe that's me just
reading into his body language, uh something that because I'm
interpreting it through the knowledge of what is his stats
are that that he that he might be dreading, So
maybe I'm seeing something that isn't there. But Dave, there's
(05:17):
times where I just go, oh my God, put this
guy out of his misery. And you know, it's it's
just so shocking because he's such the face of the franchise.
He seems like such a good dude. He seems so
beloved by by his teammates, Like like, I don't know,
it's it's almost painful to uh, it hurts to watch
him struggle this way.
Speaker 2 (05:36):
Yeah, he's got five home runs since April. He did
have three in July, by the way, and he's already
got the one in August. But he's got five home
runs since April. It's funny you mentioned his kind of
facial expressions, right a little bit. I don't know if
you mean his facial expressions or his body language or
a combination of both. But even I would comment in
like the last couple of years and way less last year,
but he just has this look and it's I honestly
(05:59):
think you his face, it's just the way he's he
was bored. He's got this look that he's concerned about
something that he's scared that something is gonna be about.
Speaker 3 (06:10):
Uh, well, it's just his face.
Speaker 2 (06:11):
His face looks like somebody who's concerned, right, I mean,
if if you if you look at him in the dugout,
he's just got this look.
Speaker 3 (06:19):
And I think that's his resting face.
Speaker 4 (06:21):
Honestly, if you think that is his resting face, that
that's that that God gave him a concerning face, then
he would have been showing the concerning face last year.
If what what I'm saying is true, there would be
something perceptible, a difference in his affect. Mike Holmgren talks
about quarterbacks affect. Well, if there's a quarterback of the
(06:41):
Seattle Mariners, it's Cal Rawly and and God blessed him.
It's not one of these that he can really you know,
it's just a manifestation of that level of struggling that
he's just I can't find it. It's like, right, I
don't know. I just feel like he's a guy that
dreads when his position is up in the order from
(07:04):
time to time.
Speaker 2 (07:05):
Yeah, I'm just saying that you don't really notice it
when he's hitting sixty home runs, right, Like Merton Hanks
had this weird looking alien neck. You don't notice it
when the guy's picking off passes, but you notice it
when he's sitting on the bench doing nothing.
Speaker 3 (07:17):
Well. Joining us right now on the radio show.
Speaker 2 (07:19):
I've been waiting for this guy for the last twenty minutes,
but it's all worth it because I have been waiting
to talk to him. I will be honest with you.
I tried to buy him a beer to sneak it
in here to the vMac. They wouldn't let me take
it through security. But I'm telling you what. This guy's
in training camp shape and doesn't need in any way
the starting left guard for your Seattle Seahawks. Gray's Abel
Joining us right now on the radio program. Greg, It's
(07:41):
Softy and Hugh Millin right there. How you doing, man,
I'm doing well. Thanks for having me on today.
Speaker 3 (07:45):
It is great to see you, pal.
Speaker 2 (07:46):
And I gotta tell you, I'm going to start off
with something that most guys might get punched in the
face if they'd brought this up to you. And I
guarantee you there's not one member of the Seattle media
who has ever said this to you. But I'm gonna
say it right now that those words are I partied
with your mom. Okay, I partied with your mom, all right,
(08:06):
And I'm gonna show you a picture right there.
Speaker 3 (08:08):
Look at that, all right?
Speaker 2 (08:09):
You know who those two gals are right there by
the way. Oh yeah, that's your mom and who else?
Tell people?
Speaker 5 (08:13):
Yeah, that's uh Jalen Sundell's mom. That's Rna Sundell.
Speaker 3 (08:17):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (08:17):
And that was before the NFC Championship at the ox
Hall across the street. We're out there having a great time,
and your mom and your dad and all the North
Dakota folks were all in there and they were all
going bananas getting ready for the game. You know what
your mom was most nervous about. She kept asking me, Hugh,
over and over again, if they win, how much your
Super Bowl ticket's gonna be?
Speaker 3 (08:37):
Asking me over and over. So please tell me that
you took care of your parents with tickets for the game.
Speaker 5 (08:42):
Yeah, yeah, for sure. And how cool was that? What
a North Dkota state tradition to go and tailgate pregame.
Oh and I don't know, they always go to the
I don't know if that's the German Bar where they
have the massive like mugs of beer and the Doss boots. Yeah,
beer and stuff. Yeah, my parents love that. But no,
it was a cool experience. And yeah I had to
kind of wear that one to the chest and and
(09:04):
get those Super Bowl tickets. At the time, it really
didn't matter how much it costs. It, like, you just
got to have your family there to witness what a
surreal event that was.
Speaker 3 (09:14):
Uh.
Speaker 4 (09:15):
And and let's stay on the North Dakota State component
of all this. Gray Because you got five or six
starters in the NFL from you know, a relatively small school,
they must be doing something right, uh, in not only
the development but but the targeting of the you know it. Like,
now that you've had a year in the NFL, what
(09:36):
can you look back and say, you know, there's something
about the North Dakota State culture that actually prepared me
in a way better than I might have known until
I had that rookie year.
Speaker 3 (09:47):
Yeah.
Speaker 5 (09:47):
I mean, first and foremost, they prepare you not only
as a football player, but as a human being. And
then to have the development that you have at North
Kota State and have the process and the standard and
the data day of what they expect really kind of
propels you into the NFL and allows you to be
successful because it's we're used to playing fifteen games a season.
(10:09):
The goal is to always win the last game of
the season, and doesn't matter where you're at, that's always
the goal. That's the expectation. So when you come into
the NFL, it's I was used to playing into January
and stuff and having that transition of well, you're not
going to be the best player out there, but you
maybe can be the hardest working player, play the most
physical or or be the smartest wall player out there.
(10:31):
And so the North Kota State kind of prepares you
for that, and then I think you fall back on
We've had guys have the opportunity at the next level,
the Billy Turners, the Joe Haggs, that Dylan Rai AND's
Courtel Wilson, and then they allow you to maybe talk
to you and kind of give you the expectation what
the NFL is going to be like. Yeah, so then
(10:51):
when you get into a league, it's not you aren't
kind of star shocked or stunned or anything. You understand
the expectation, understand the day to day and kind of
what required and then at the end of the day,
it just allows you to be successful wherever you go.
Speaker 2 (11:04):
Yeah, well, Gray's Abels with us, and he and I
were talking on the air before you show it up
that there's only one time last year where I remember
you getting put on skates by anybody, and it was
your welcome to the NFL moment, and I remember it
like it was yesterday. I want to know if you're
thinking about the same game that I am. So if
I asked you, because I got that game in my head,
(11:24):
by the way, I'll tell you if it's the same
game I'm thinking about.
Speaker 3 (11:27):
Was there that one welcome?
Speaker 2 (11:28):
Because everybody has that moment, right, no matter what position
you play, whether in practice, preseason game, regular season game,
everybody has that moment.
Speaker 3 (11:37):
Do you remember if you had that moment? And if
you do, what game was it? Yeah?
Speaker 5 (11:41):
I can think about thirty to forty moments.
Speaker 3 (11:43):
Okay, I've only got one, by the way, just saying no,
but go ahead.
Speaker 5 (11:46):
I think it was the second or third play against
the Las Vegas Raiders.
Speaker 3 (11:51):
That's right.
Speaker 5 (11:51):
I was setting a three tech and I didn't punch
and he just went, yeah, straight through my chest. And
I know for a fact because he let me know
right afterwards. He's like this ain't college anymore, rookie. Yeah,
all right, you got me.
Speaker 2 (12:06):
That's the exact play that I told you you was
talking about that play.
Speaker 4 (12:11):
Yeah, that's that's exactly what he had said off air
a segment or two ago. Well, let's say we're just
gonna keep beating up on you, Greg. You know here,
you're a super Bowl champion, but you gotta you look
like you got a strong chin. So I'm gonna give
you another one against the Rams. They got a dude
named Kobe Turner that you have talked about like somehow
(12:33):
that guy got you, but then you made the turnaround
after the Thursday night regular season game. Uh, you more
than held your own in the NFC Championship game. But
just maybe talk about him and and let me piggyback
on that. Uh, you may be facing Aaron Donald if
if if the Rams have it their way, So just
kind of some thoughts about the challenge with those guys.
Speaker 5 (12:54):
Yeah, I mean, I'll start first one with Kobe unbelievable player,
his side to side quickness and his strength and winning
the leverage battle as he's kind of shortened stock here,
and and he's one unbelievable player. And he's a smart player,
and I mean I get beat and the first first
time we played him because I overset him and he
took the inside move. And then second time in that
(13:14):
week Tish team game, I jumped him and without any
help to the inside and he kind of push pulled
me and got a pretty easy sack. And goes back
to later in the game. It was another one where
you punch him, get a little bit over your toes
and it's kind of that push pole into an arm
over that allows him to get to the quarterback and
get home as well. But you have guys like that,
(13:37):
and I think the more you plan, the more you
understand how to set him, how to how to engage him,
what to expect and all that. And so one, he's
a great player, and two you sometimes beat yourself in
the matter of the game, right right, and that and
that's that's tough to deal with. And then number two,
I mean, how cool would it be to go up
against one of the greatest d tackles of all time
(13:57):
if he decides to play this season, It's gonna be awesome.
Week seventeen or week fifteen, and week seventeen or week eighteen, Right,
You're gonna see I'm almost positive, first bout, first ballot
Hall of Famer.
Speaker 3 (14:10):
Oh so you want him, you want him to come back.
Speaker 5 (14:13):
I mean it'd be so cool to go up and
play against I mean, am I gonna get whooped? Probably? No,
it'd be so cool to kind of like I said,
Monomy Mono best on best to go see what you
got and yeah, guy like that, Like you'll you'll watch
that film and you'll understand what you got to get
better at and how to improve and be the best
player that you can be. Because he's a guy that's
(14:34):
gonna exploit every weekness.
Speaker 2 (14:36):
Well, if you can promise us that you'll whoop his
old ass when they come to Seattle or you go
to LA, I'm totally fine with that. It's funny how
players and fans think differently because I want nothing to
do with Aaron Donald. But you're not running away from
that at all. But let's get away from beating you
up here for a second grade because I want to
talk about the opposite side. Right, we talked about You're
welcome to the NFL moment, the Raider game. You mentioned
(14:58):
the Ram game was there. Like wide receivers, they get
their first touchdown, they keep the ball running backs, they
score their first touchdown, they keep the ball, like do
offensive linemen go out and buy the jersey of the
opposing player when they have their first cake In the NFL,
how did you celebrate the other side of that when
you really kind of felt like, hey man, I got this.
Speaker 5 (15:18):
Yeah, I mean probably just after that first win out
in Pittsburg, just understanding how hard it is to win
in the National Football League and doesn't matter how well
you play, you can always go back and find a
few plays that you want back. And that's the life
of announcement's lineman. But you got to celebrate the wins
of the everyday life of one winning the football game,
(15:40):
two playing well as an offensive line, and then three
having a good game yourself. So not sure if I
if I bought any opposing players jerseys this year. I
did a few fans and bodies and stuff like that.
Speaker 2 (15:52):
But like you guys have all the helmets of the
teams that you beat, right, like you collect them like skeletons.
Oh yeah, why don't you start collecting the opposing jerseys
and all the player who's backs are on the ground.
Speaker 5 (16:02):
Yeah, So I'd have like one and a half.
Speaker 3 (16:08):
Way more than that, trust me.
Speaker 4 (16:10):
Oh he's gonna have it. Uh so great's abel with this?
And and uh, I'm curious. You know, you strike me
as a guy who's maybe a historian. Maybe I got
a wrong of the NFL. And and I'm gonna talk
about a few guys that predecessors. The Oakland Raiders years
ago had a left tackle named Markschell and a left
guard named Gene Upshaw. They both went to the Hall
(16:31):
of Fame. There's only when one other tandem on the
left side that have both gone to Hall of Fame,
and that's Walter Jones and Steve Hutchinson of the Seahawks.
So you and Charles Cross have had such a promising career,
you got both guys are both young guys. Is that
something that's in your mind, that the hutch and Walter
(16:51):
Jones paradigm that was established or are you thinking, hey,
I'm just worried about myself. Or do you do you
get together with Charles and say, hey, let's try and
do this thing, man, Let's try and create a legacy
together on the left side.
Speaker 5 (17:03):
Yeah. I mean, first and foremost, Chuck has had a
way better career than I than I've had to block
at the level that he blocks for four straight years
is unbelievable, And the level that he plays at is
a Pro Bowl, all Pro caliber type player. And when
you play next to a guy like that, it just
makes your job exponentially easier because it allows you to
(17:26):
maybe have a misstep or a miss paunch or something
like that. You know, a guy that's playing on your
left like that allows you to kind of pick up
the slack and stuff. So, first and foremost, like Chuck's
phenomenally better player, but I think it'd be cool to
to not shouldn't they following the footsteps, but to kind
of blaze our own path of of figuring out, hey,
(17:48):
maybe maybe it's me and him for the next however
many years playing as good a football as we possibly
can play, And that's where I find joy in it.
And then maybe it's the entire line, like, how long
can us find guys play together right for the next
however many seasons and stuff, And that's kind of what
you literally look forward to. But at the end of
the day, there's injuries, there's free agency and all that stuff.
(18:11):
So I think just enjoying the moment and enjoying what
we have now is the biggest thing. I'll worry about
the future and down the road later. Let's go out
and have as much fun as we possibly can with
the five guys that we have now.
Speaker 2 (18:22):
Well, we think this is the first time this franchise
has brought back all starting five offensive linemans and so
far to five because they lost Hutch after the Old
five Super Bowl against Pittsburgh, So four to five Lockley
or Chris Gray, Tobeck all those guys. So this is
pretty special, right, It doesn't happen very often. You mentioned
free agency and cuts and retirements in the NFL to
have all five guys back, But I want to ask
(18:44):
you about who is the toughest Seahawk defender for you
to block. I mean, you just got done talking about
facing Donald and now you'll see Potensie, Miles Garrett, who
knows on some stunts you never know. But from day
to day in practice, even here in training camp, who's
the guy on that defensive line of the Hawks that
gives you the most trouble?
Speaker 5 (19:02):
Yeah? Just flip a coin. Just flip a coin for
our and tweriar guys. And I think I was just
talking to Dwayne Brown about this, and I said, if
you would have watched the tape last year in practice
of the Wednesday, Thursday, Friday practices, that an outsider would
have probably thought, like a majority of us on the
(19:23):
line would have been getting cut and not even seeing Sunday.
But you look back at that and you appreciate the
intense practices that you go through because it allows you
to go out on Sunday and play as free and
fast as possible, knowing the caliber of players that you
practice against. So, I mean, every defensive lineman gives their
own challenges, and I think that's the greatest part about
(19:45):
our defensive line right now and our squad is I'm
getting a different type of rush every single play, and
that's why you got to be so locked in and
practice or else, I mean, you're gonna be a highlight
clip in the team meeting, which has happened a few
times to me already.
Speaker 4 (19:58):
So Graysabel with a Super Bowl champion. Greysabel is with us,
And look, we all know that in the locker room
there's a sign that says NFL players strictly prohibited from gambling. Okay,
So I'm not taught. No part of me is is
suggesting that you're going to be involved in this. But
(20:19):
if I were, I'm a former player, I can go
DraftKings and fan duel. I can look and I say,
the shortest odds to win the Super Bowl are the
LA Rams at five point fifty plus five fifty. That's
basically five and a half to one. Then you jump
to the Bills at a thousand. You've got the Ravens
at eleven. The Seahawks are sitting there at eleven, one
hundred and twelve hundred. So why am I saying that
(20:43):
the NFL, World Nation, what have you is basically saying
that you guys have half the chance of winning the
Super Bowl that the Rams do. And I saw a
list the other day. I don't know the NFL day.
Maybe you know ESPN where they even miss old Seahawks.
I don't know how you misspelled Seahawks, but we're I
(21:03):
think I think you guys were listened as the tenth
most likely team to win the Super Bowl. So my
question to you is you, as a competitor, your sense
of your teammates. Fans get kind of riled up about this,
like they're dissing us, Like what the hell we're the
Super Bowl champions. How how how are they just anointing
the Rams or whoever else? What about you as a player?
(21:24):
Does that get into you at all? The sense that
that there's a little bit of like, hey, uh, they
are not giving us the respect that we should be
getting based on the fact that we're wearing the hardware
on our hands.
Speaker 5 (21:35):
Yeah. I mean, well, two ways to respond to that.
One would be, any given Sunday, anybody can get beat,
and it doesn't matter who the team is, where you're playing,
who you're going against. Any given Sunday, you got to
come out and perform and show up or else that
you have the ability to get beat. And then on
(21:55):
the backhand of things like twenty twenty six is a
completely new sea and I think maybe the outside world
is mad or doesn't like that. But at the same time,
I mean, you lose an m v P, Super Bowl,
MVP running back, safety and edge rusher and all this stuff.
We're a new team, we're new faces. We're we're gonna
(22:17):
bring the same exact standard. We're not gonna kind of
go away from from our from our standard, our style
of football. But we're a new squad. We got to
go out and prove to the world, to the fans too,
to to the NFL of how we want to play
and and and what we want to do on Sundays
and get done. So, I mean they can say whatever
(22:38):
they want. Obviously they they like what they see down
at Los Angeles Rams. But at the end of the day,
you got to show up and play football. And yeah,
every single Sunday is a different game and a and
a different opportunity. And we just got to go out
and do our best and and play to our ability
and understand we're a process over results type organization, top
(22:58):
to bottom, and and we're just going to continue to
improve day after day and get better.
Speaker 3 (23:03):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (23:03):
I can see your blood pressure rising after he asked
you that question. I mean I can see it is
his skins starting to get red, his fingers are starting
to get white.
Speaker 3 (23:11):
And I love that out of you.
Speaker 2 (23:12):
And I always tell you this that I I Gray,
I told this to you before you showed up, that
I thought you hit a Grand Slam home run last
year in your rookie year. I mean I was thrilled.
I think all of us were by the way you
played last season, right, So congratulations on a great phenomenal
rookie year.
Speaker 3 (23:28):
You didn't look like a rookie to me.
Speaker 2 (23:30):
I mean if you would have told somebody who didn't
follow football, what year is that guy? And they may
say he's in year eight or nine in the NFL. Right,
But there's there's more left in the tank. So if
you've got tools in your toolbox that you want to
sharpen a bit this year, what's the what's the focus
for you before.
Speaker 5 (23:45):
You go here? Yeah? I mean how long do we
go out here for all the things I got to get?
Speaker 3 (23:48):
As long as you want, by the way, Yeah, yeah,
go ahead.
Speaker 5 (23:51):
No, No, there's there's always things to clean up. And
I think a lot of the time I kind of
relied on my athleticism a little too much last year.
I mean I had pretty pretty awful hand placement at times,
and my body was out of line and got a
few holding calls and all that stuff. But there's there's
things that you can improve on while continuing to hone
in on what you do best, and that's just play
(24:12):
the game free and fast and have an understanding that
sometimes physicality and efforts going to outperform perfectionists. So you
just got to go out there every single day and
out work the guy across from you and play your
hardest really for the guys next to you because they're
really relying on you and depending on you. So, uh,
(24:32):
we got a lot of improve on, but I think
we had a good foundation stuf.
Speaker 2 (24:36):
Yeah, Well, congrats on a kick ass first year. And
tell your mama I enjoyed hanging out with her. By
the way, that was That was one of the highlights
of the season was getting a party with Mama's Abel
than Mama Sundal and then go watch you guys beat
the Rams to win the NFC championship. So hey, thanks
for doing this, man. Grats on a great year one.
Let's make it a kick ass year two. Best of luck, man,
I appreciate it. Thanks you you bet, you bet. Gray's
(24:56):
Abel with us on the radio show. We've gotta break
a lot more to get to front the vMac Right
here on ninety three to three KJRFM.
Speaker 1 (25:05):
Now back to SOUTHI and Dick at the Virginia Mason
Athletics Center and our special coverage of Seahawks training camp,
brought to you by the Boweling Classic on Sports Radio
ninety three point three kjr FM.
Speaker 2 (25:19):
All Right, we're back at the Virginia Mason Athletics Center.
Big thanks the Gray is Abel for joining us on
the radio show. But we turn away from the NFL
and welcome in the host of Chuck in the Morning.
Speaker 3 (25:39):
Every single morning.
Speaker 2 (25:41):
You hear the greatest baseball takes I believe sports talk
radio in Seattle has to offer from our friend Chuck Powell,
who joins us right now to talk about what the
Mariners did or did not do at the trade deadline. Chuck,
Good afternoon. How are you man?
Speaker 6 (25:55):
Happy deadline day? I hope you all celebrated with cake
and punch today and just brought in the holiday celebration,
you know, like you there's no tomorrow. That's what I got.
Speaker 3 (26:07):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (26:07):
I celebrate with a lot more than that, by the way,
but I'm not gonna tell you because the bosses may
not be very happy with me. But why don't we just,
first of all, start by just getting kind of a
recap from you. Good trade deadline for the Mariners, Bad
trade deadline for the Mariners. Luis caa steer to the
White Sox for a package including a reliever named Sir
Anthony Domingo's Domingos, who becomes the highest paid Marin reliever
(26:30):
of all time, by the way, Chuck's making ten million
dollars a year, and then you pick up Taylor Ward
from Baltimore for a package including major league reliever Alex
Happy and a couple of minor leaguers. What do you
think about the job Jerry and Justin just did well.
Speaker 6 (26:47):
I don't think it was great. I don't think it's
gonna win any awards, but I think it was good
considering the team's three games under five hundred. I don't
know how aggressive people should have expected them to be
at this stage. I'm glad they didn't move Kirby Hancock
or Randy as was rumored, so I think that's a victory.
(27:07):
They did address their biggest need, which was a right
handed bat, especially one that performs better against left handed
pitching in Taylor Ward. They did add to their bullpen
depth with Dominguez. I personally think Castillo would have been
better if they would have just made him a reliever
than what Dimingas is going to be going forward. But
(27:30):
the guy does dominate right handers, and as long as
you don't put him in a closer situation like the
White Sox mistakenly did at the beginning of the year.
He can be an effective piece in your bullpen. So
they did that. They cleared some space. They got Brendan
Donovan coming back tomorrow, space in terms of their salary
(27:51):
for going forward, for the payroll going forward into next year.
So I think they're a better team today than what
they were before the Morning started. And yet I still
do believe that this is going to come down to
whether or not you get contributions, mighty contributions from Cal,
(28:12):
Josh and Julio down the stretch. You need at least
two of those guys to come through if they're going
to pull off this division. But Jim Bowden told me
two weeks ago, week and a half ago on the
Morning Show that he thinks that the Mariners could do
nothing at the trading deadline and still win the division
easily because of who they're going up against. The only
(28:34):
thing I disagree with that is that I don't think
they could have done it easily. But I still do believe,
as I felt all season long, this is the best
roster in the division and they just need to start
playing that way.
Speaker 4 (28:46):
Chuck Powell with us, let's get a little more granular
on Taylor Ward in terms of what we expect. Is
he an everyday guy? Is he in ref Snyder's capacities?
And here's a guy out of fifty five qualifying outfielders
twenty seventh in war just fifty second out of fifty
five and slugging, but his OBP was is rather fourth,
(29:12):
his walks are third, doesn't steal a lot of bases
forty third out of fifty five or stolen bases. What
do you anticipate from him moving forward for the Mariners
the rest of the season.
Speaker 6 (29:26):
I mean, this is one of the crazier stories in
baseball this year, the metamorphosis that this guy's undergone in
his career. At the age of thirty two, he had
thirty six home runs a year ago thirty six. He'
hit sixty one home runs in the last two seasons
with the Angels, but for whatever reason, on a one
year deal with the Baltimore Orioles to prove that he
(29:47):
still has something left in the tank and maybe get
one more decent contract in his career before it comes
to a close. He decided to change his entire way
he swings and his entire approach at the plate. So
he went from a low on base guy who hit
thirty homers a year to one of the highest on
(30:09):
base guys in the entire league, who's on pace to
hit twelve home runs this year. He only has seven
at this point in the season. So he's a completely
different player than the Taylor Ward that we were facing
as an angel. And so for a team that is
struggling in against lefties this year, we all know that
(30:30):
he has hit lefties quite well this season, hasn't hit
righties all that well this season. They love guys that
get on base, and the Mariners organization, most analytics driven
people do, and he is going to get on base,
or at least that's what he's shown. And the reason
that I don't think it's res Schneider is that he's
(30:50):
doing this right now, he's doing this actively, he's doing
this this season, he's doing it yesterday, and so if
he ends up falling on his face like Rob Rethschneider,
then there's something in the stars that says the Mariners
just cannot hit lefties no matter who they acquire. Res
Snider at least had the excuse of six months off
(31:12):
a winter to rust up the way he has. Ward
doesn't have that he's he's actively performing against lefties, he's
actively getting on base at an American League best clip,
and so I think that he should be an everyday player,
but doesn't have to be a ros Arena and Julio
are going to be every day I think Dom's earned
(31:34):
that as well. I don't know if Ward goes back
to right field, if he goes to left field, where
he's played every single game so far this season. He's
either played left field or DH and a Rose Arena
goes to DH, or if you just put Ward at DH.
But I don't see any platooning with those four guys
at this stage, especially with Rayley on the injury list.
(31:56):
So I would guess for the time being, all four
of them those dudes are in the lineup every single day.
Speaker 2 (32:02):
Yeah, he's also played some third, it's been a while,
but I think I think what Hugh meant, I want
to speak for, but I think what HU mean is
does he take ref Snider's job, Meaning if the Mariners
need a right handed bat off the bench, does he
get that first crack, Like if Taylor Ward's not in
the starting lineup and they've got a lefty reliever on
the mound, that last question that I asked, is he
(32:23):
getting the first crack against lefties versus ref Schneider.
Speaker 6 (32:28):
Oh, for sure, but I think he's gonna be in
the lineup. And then I don't even know how Reshneider
even survives this adding another right hander because I want
roblades in the game the way he's played as of
late over Resnider. So Resnighter's going to have a hard
time surviving all of this because he got Donovan coming
back tomorrow, and then you have JP presumably being activated
(32:52):
at some point as well. So there's gonna be a
little bit of a roster shakeup and it's going to
start looking a lot more like the you know, the
group that you intended to have. So I think we'll
see some subtractions here very soon as the team gets healthier.
Speaker 4 (33:09):
What about Dominga is coming into the bullpen with brash
Maybe you probably know more about the update than than
I would, but how does the bullpen? Is he just
your eighth inning, high high leverage type of a guy
setting up munios or how do you envision the amusing him?
Speaker 6 (33:28):
Well, I would like to think that Spier is a
better option there for the eighth inning. The way Bizardo
is pitching, i'd probably have to elevate Diminga as ahead
of Bizardo at this point. And hopefully Bizarto's not washed,
but he's certainly been. He struggled as of late, and
then Matt Brash once he returns, he's your eighth inning
(33:49):
guy because he was performing extraordinarily well in that role,
and that's supposed to be at some point in August,
mid August hopefully, but probably more late August that you
get Brash back. Plus you're gonna get Carlos Vargas back,
and he was at times effective. A year ago, I
realized that a lot of people wanted to add another
bullpen piece. Yeah, there's nothing wrong with adding another bullpen piece,
(34:12):
but I have never been as hung up on that
being such a huge need on this roster. I mean,
they do have actively as much as they've appeared to
struggle here as of late, they are fourth in Major
League Baseball and bullpen Era fourth, and they are first
and fewest innings pitched by a bullpen number one. So
(34:32):
they're not tired and they're not terrible, but you did
need to add some depth, some length to it, especially
with Bizardo, struggling. But you add Deminguez, who could be
a good sixth, seventh inning guy, who, as I said before,
does dominate righties. And I don't know if I want
him in high leverage situations. He's the guy that gave
up the Grand Slam to Gino Swarez, if you remember.
(34:55):
I don't know if he's a high leverage guy. I
don't know if he can handle that kind of pressure.
But low leverage he can fill a role for you,
certainly the rest of the season make that deeper. I
like him better than a hoppy, and I like him
better than a rucker. Then you get Brashed back, and
then you get Vargas back, Anderson Kate. Anderson's going to
be activated in some kind of role before the season
(35:18):
comes to a close. I believe Ryan Sloan's going to
be activated in some sort of a reliever role before
the season comes to a close. And then if you
make the playoffs, one of your five starters, Emerson Hancock
presumably also joins the bullpen. So I'm not that worried
about the bullpen as some others are, even though had
(35:39):
they made a big splash and added something, I certainly
would have applauded it.
Speaker 3 (35:43):
Yeah, Chuck, Pal, great stuff. Man.
Speaker 2 (35:46):
I always love having you on, but better to have
you on after trade deadline day to get immediate reaction.
So great stuff and looking forward to tomorrow morning at six.
All right, appreciate it. Man, all right, man, all right,
all ranks with us. We're gonna break a little text
aimonials four nine four five one, brought to you by
the Emeral Queen on the Tacoma Dodge. Text Line deadline
(36:07):
is coming gone, thumbs up, thumbs down, thumb sideways, whatever
on the MS. We'll get to that next coming up
on ninety three three KJRFM
No from the Star Rentals Sports Deals Jordan ninety three
point three KJRFM sports headlines.
Speaker 2 (00:06):
Alrighty, boys and girls, we are back at the Virginia
Mas Athletics Center. Softy Hugh Moger the Ogre in for
Jackson and Dick Today. Headlines, of course, are brought to
you by our friends at Frost Brewed Course, light as cold.
Speaker 3 (00:19):
As the Rocky.
Speaker 2 (00:22):
We are awaiting our friend Gray's abel practice just wrapping
up here by the way from the vMac. Should be
joining us in a matter of minutes. The Major League
Baseball trade deadline has come and gone. Mariners making a
couple of moves in the last couple of days. You
already know about Luis Castillo to the White Sox from
yesterday for a package including reliever Sir Anthony Dominguez. Today
(00:45):
the Mariners sending Alex Hoppey in two minor league pitchers
to the Baltimore Orioles for outfielder third baseman Taylor Ward, who,
by the way, last year with the Anaheim Angels thirty
six home runs and one hundred and three are He's
got a three eighty three on base percentage, which would
be number one, by the way on this Mariner baseball team.
(01:06):
He also leads the league in walks. What else we
got at the deadline? The Orioles sending catcher Adleie Rushman,
the former Beave, to Boston, the Cubs getting starting pitcher
Clay Holmes, an outfielder Tyrone Taylor from the Mets, the
Astros acquiring outfielder Dalton var Show from Toronto, and former
Marinder starting pitcher Robbie Ray has been sent from the
(01:27):
Giants to the San Diego Padres.
Speaker 3 (01:29):
Soccer.
Speaker 2 (01:30):
Not a great run for the Sounders boys and girls.
They have now lost a team record six in a row,
with a two to one loss to Portland over the
weekend League's Cup games. The next three matches before the
MLS resumes on August the sixteenth at Lumen Field against Vancouver.
The Ms, by the way, do have the night off.
They will take on the.
Speaker 3 (01:48):
Tigers for three games starting tomorrow.
Speaker 2 (01:50):
There is a plethora a few games today in Major
League Baseball. The Nationals up on the Phillies three to nothing,
top of the second, Cardinals and Yankees coming up at
four o'clock Pirateswaukie at four forty. Giants, by the way,
for those that are scoreboard watching in the Al West
are at Texas tonight at five o'clock. The Astros are
also at home at five ten pm, starting a series
(02:11):
with the Blue Jays. All Right, we're back at the
Seahawk practice facility the Virginia Mason Athletics Center. Gray's Abel,
starting left guard for the Seahawks, will join us in
a matter of minutes. We'll get some more conversation going
between now and the end of the show regarding what
the Ems did today at the deadline. The more and
more I think about it, obviously, I like these two
(02:32):
deals on the surface, they were two things, Hugh that
had to be done.
Speaker 3 (02:36):
But there's so many.
Speaker 2 (02:37):
More holes to fill, and without cal Riley getting his
act together, without Josh Naylor finding the seats, and without
Julio really I think picking up his game a little bit,
this team is gonna fall short of the playoffs. And
it's funny we mentioned Naylor earlier today. He's going a
twenty four game on base streak, which I would have
told you anybody is getting on base for three consecutive weeks,
(02:59):
You said, where.
Speaker 3 (03:00):
Do I sign?
Speaker 2 (03:01):
However, Josh Naylor's RBI pace during that span over the
course of twenty four games.
Speaker 3 (03:09):
You know what it is.
Speaker 2 (03:09):
By the way, Hugh forty, He's he's got six RBIs
in twenty four games, which would be a forty RBI
pace over one.
Speaker 3 (03:18):
Hundred and sixty two games. He just simply put the
on base.
Speaker 2 (03:21):
Is great, but he's simply putting his position in the
lineup needs to do a little bit more.
Speaker 4 (03:26):
Of all qualifying first baseman. He's second to last and slugging.
Speaker 3 (03:30):
Yeah, for the season. Yeah, no, it's not good. It's
not good.
Speaker 2 (03:33):
I mean, you need more out of Josh Naylor. You
need the power surge out of Josh Naylor. And I
don't know what's going on with cal Raley, man. I mean,
you know, just when you think the light is starting
to go on and the switch has been turned on,
it's gonna stay on for the rest of the year.
He has a game where he kind of falls apart,
in a week where he kind of falls apart and
goes into the tank. So I'm just wondering if there's
anything left in cal Raley that can give them anything
(03:56):
remotely close to what they had two three years ago. Again,
last year, last year's done. I mean, that's never gonna
happen as long as the guy lives. And we knew
that going in to the season it took one hundred
years for a catcher to hit sixty home runs. To
expect it to happen again would have been ridiculous. But
can we get a little bit of a sliver of
what the guy had two three years ago, Hugh.
Speaker 4 (04:15):
That we've been saying that, Look, he had you know,
seven home runs in April, right, and it seemed like okay,
that this is okay. And yet since then, I don't
think has he had a month more than two.
Speaker 3 (04:33):
I don't even know.
Speaker 4 (04:34):
I think I think it was one, one and one
since then when when he was at ten, So so
I think it's gone whards. He looks to me, Look,
I'm not in his head. What I'm about to say
is not fair, so let me choose my words carefully.
Me as a fan looking at him on television, he
seems to me like a guy that sometimes is dreading
(04:56):
and going up to the plate just doesn't just is
so uncomfortable that he doesn't want to be there, which
is shocking, right and and and maybe that's me just
reading into his body language, uh something that because I'm
interpreting it through the knowledge of what is his stats
are that that he that he might be dreading, So
maybe I'm seeing something that isn't there. But Dave, there's
(05:17):
times where I just go, oh my God, put this
guy out of his misery. And you know, it's it's
just so shocking because he's such the face of the franchise.
He seems like such a good dude. He seems so
beloved by by his teammates, Like like, I don't know,
it's it's almost painful to uh, it hurts to watch
him struggle this way.
Speaker 2 (05:36):
Yeah, he's got five home runs since April. He did
have three in July, by the way, and he's already
got the one in August. But he's got five home
runs since April. It's funny you mentioned his kind of
facial expressions, right a little bit. I don't know if
you mean his facial expressions or his body language or
a combination of both. But even I would comment in
like the last couple of years and way less last year,
but he just has this look and it's I honestly
(05:59):
think you his face, it's just the way he's he
was bored. He's got this look that he's concerned about
something that he's scared that something is gonna be about.
Speaker 3 (06:10):
Uh, well, it's just his face.
Speaker 2 (06:11):
His face looks like somebody who's concerned, right, I mean,
if if you if you look at him in the dugout,
he's just got this look.
Speaker 3 (06:19):
And I think that's his resting face.
Speaker 4 (06:21):
Honestly, if you think that is his resting face, that
that's that that God gave him a concerning face, then
he would have been showing the concerning face last year.
If what what I'm saying is true, there would be
something perceptible, a difference in his affect. Mike Holmgren talks
about quarterbacks affect. Well, if there's a quarterback of the
(06:41):
Seattle Mariners, it's Cal Rawly and and God blessed him.
It's not one of these that he can really you know,
it's just a manifestation of that level of struggling that
he's just I can't find it. It's like, right, I
don't know. I just feel like he's a guy that
dreads when his position is up in the order from
(07:04):
time to time.
Speaker 2 (07:05):
Yeah, I'm just saying that you don't really notice it
when he's hitting sixty home runs, right, Like Merton Hanks
had this weird looking alien neck. You don't notice it
when the guy's picking off passes, but you notice it
when he's sitting on the bench doing nothing.
Speaker 3 (07:17):
Well. Joining us right now on the radio show.
Speaker 2 (07:19):
I've been waiting for this guy for the last twenty minutes,
but it's all worth it because I have been waiting
to talk to him. I will be honest with you.
I tried to buy him a beer to sneak it
in here to the vMac. They wouldn't let me take
it through security. But I'm telling you what. This guy's
in training camp shape and doesn't need in any way
the starting left guard for your Seattle Seahawks. Gray's Abel
Joining us right now on the radio program. Greg, It's
(07:41):
Softy and Hugh Millin right there. How you doing, man,
I'm doing well. Thanks for having me on today.
Speaker 3 (07:45):
It is great to see you, pal.
Speaker 2 (07:46):
And I gotta tell you, I'm going to start off
with something that most guys might get punched in the
face if they'd brought this up to you. And I
guarantee you there's not one member of the Seattle media
who has ever said this to you. But I'm gonna
say it right now that those words are I partied
with your mom. Okay, I partied with your mom, all right,
(08:06):
And I'm gonna show you a picture right there.
Speaker 3 (08:08):
Look at that, all right?
Speaker 2 (08:09):
You know who those two gals are right there by
the way. Oh yeah, that's your mom and who else?
Tell people?
Speaker 5 (08:13):
Yeah, that's uh Jalen Sundell's mom. That's Rna Sundell.
Speaker 3 (08:17):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (08:17):
And that was before the NFC Championship at the ox
Hall across the street. We're out there having a great time,
and your mom and your dad and all the North
Dakota folks were all in there and they were all
going bananas getting ready for the game. You know what
your mom was most nervous about. She kept asking me, Hugh,
over and over again, if they win, how much your
Super Bowl ticket's gonna be?
Speaker 3 (08:37):
Asking me over and over. So please tell me that
you took care of your parents with tickets for the game.
Speaker 5 (08:42):
Yeah, yeah, for sure. And how cool was that? What
a North Dkota state tradition to go and tailgate pregame.
Oh and I don't know, they always go to the
I don't know if that's the German Bar where they
have the massive like mugs of beer and the Doss boots. Yeah,
beer and stuff. Yeah, my parents love that. But no,
it was a cool experience. And yeah I had to
kind of wear that one to the chest and and
(09:04):
get those Super Bowl tickets. At the time, it really
didn't matter how much it costs. It, like, you just
got to have your family there to witness what a
surreal event that was.
Speaker 3 (09:14):
Uh.
Speaker 4 (09:15):
And and let's stay on the North Dakota State component
of all this. Gray Because you got five or six
starters in the NFL from you know, a relatively small school,
they must be doing something right, uh, in not only
the development but but the targeting of the you know it. Like,
now that you've had a year in the NFL, what
(09:36):
can you look back and say, you know, there's something
about the North Dakota State culture that actually prepared me
in a way better than I might have known until
I had that rookie year.
Speaker 3 (09:47):
Yeah.
Speaker 5 (09:47):
I mean, first and foremost, they prepare you not only
as a football player, but as a human being. And
then to have the development that you have at North
Kota State and have the process and the standard and
the data day of what they expect really kind of
propels you into the NFL and allows you to be
successful because it's we're used to playing fifteen games a season.
(10:09):
The goal is to always win the last game of
the season, and doesn't matter where you're at, that's always
the goal. That's the expectation. So when you come into
the NFL, it's I was used to playing into January
and stuff and having that transition of well, you're not
going to be the best player out there, but you
maybe can be the hardest working player, play the most
physical or or be the smartest wall player out there.
(10:31):
And so the North Kota State kind of prepares you
for that, and then I think you fall back on
We've had guys have the opportunity at the next level,
the Billy Turners, the Joe Haggs, that Dylan Rai AND's
Courtel Wilson, and then they allow you to maybe talk
to you and kind of give you the expectation what
the NFL is going to be like. Yeah, so then
(10:51):
when you get into a league, it's not you aren't
kind of star shocked or stunned or anything. You understand
the expectation, understand the day to day and kind of
what required and then at the end of the day,
it just allows you to be successful wherever you go.
Speaker 2 (11:04):
Yeah, well, Gray's Abels with us, and he and I
were talking on the air before you show it up
that there's only one time last year where I remember
you getting put on skates by anybody, and it was
your welcome to the NFL moment, and I remember it
like it was yesterday. I want to know if you're
thinking about the same game that I am. So if
I asked you, because I got that game in my head,
(11:24):
by the way, I'll tell you if it's the same
game I'm thinking about.
Speaker 3 (11:27):
Was there that one welcome?
Speaker 2 (11:28):
Because everybody has that moment, right, no matter what position
you play, whether in practice, preseason game, regular season game,
everybody has that moment.
Speaker 3 (11:37):
Do you remember if you had that moment? And if
you do, what game was it? Yeah?
Speaker 5 (11:41):
I can think about thirty to forty moments.
Speaker 3 (11:43):
Okay, I've only got one, by the way, just saying no,
but go ahead.
Speaker 5 (11:46):
I think it was the second or third play against
the Las Vegas Raiders.
Speaker 3 (11:51):
That's right.
Speaker 5 (11:51):
I was setting a three tech and I didn't punch
and he just went, yeah, straight through my chest. And
I know for a fact because he let me know
right afterwards. He's like this ain't college anymore, rookie. Yeah,
all right, you got me.
Speaker 2 (12:06):
That's the exact play that I told you you was
talking about that play.
Speaker 4 (12:11):
Yeah, that's that's exactly what he had said off air
a segment or two ago. Well, let's say we're just
gonna keep beating up on you, Greg. You know here,
you're a super Bowl champion, but you gotta you look
like you got a strong chin. So I'm gonna give
you another one against the Rams. They got a dude
named Kobe Turner that you have talked about like somehow
(12:33):
that guy got you, but then you made the turnaround
after the Thursday night regular season game. Uh, you more
than held your own in the NFC Championship game. But
just maybe talk about him and and let me piggyback
on that. Uh, you may be facing Aaron Donald if
if if the Rams have it their way, So just
kind of some thoughts about the challenge with those guys.
Speaker 5 (12:54):
Yeah, I mean, I'll start first one with Kobe unbelievable player,
his side to side quickness and his strength and winning
the leverage battle as he's kind of shortened stock here,
and and he's one unbelievable player. And he's a smart player,
and I mean I get beat and the first first
time we played him because I overset him and he
took the inside move. And then second time in that
(13:14):
week Tish team game, I jumped him and without any
help to the inside and he kind of push pulled
me and got a pretty easy sack. And goes back
to later in the game. It was another one where
you punch him, get a little bit over your toes
and it's kind of that push pole into an arm
over that allows him to get to the quarterback and
get home as well. But you have guys like that,
(13:37):
and I think the more you plan, the more you
understand how to set him, how to how to engage him,
what to expect and all that. And so one, he's
a great player, and two you sometimes beat yourself in
the matter of the game, right right, and that and
that's that's tough to deal with. And then number two,
I mean, how cool would it be to go up
against one of the greatest d tackles of all time
(13:57):
if he decides to play this season, It's gonna be awesome.
Week seventeen or week fifteen, and week seventeen or week eighteen, Right,
You're gonna see I'm almost positive, first bout, first ballot
Hall of Famer.
Speaker 3 (14:10):
Oh so you want him, you want him to come back.
Speaker 5 (14:13):
I mean it'd be so cool to go up and
play against I mean, am I gonna get whooped? Probably? No,
it'd be so cool to kind of like I said,
Monomy Mono best on best to go see what you
got and yeah, guy like that, Like you'll you'll watch
that film and you'll understand what you got to get
better at and how to improve and be the best
player that you can be. Because he's a guy that's
(14:34):
gonna exploit every weekness.
Speaker 2 (14:36):
Well, if you can promise us that you'll whoop his
old ass when they come to Seattle or you go
to LA, I'm totally fine with that. It's funny how
players and fans think differently because I want nothing to
do with Aaron Donald. But you're not running away from
that at all. But let's get away from beating you
up here for a second grade because I want to
talk about the opposite side. Right, we talked about You're
welcome to the NFL moment, the Raider game. You mentioned
(14:58):
the Ram game was there. Like wide receivers, they get
their first touchdown, they keep the ball running backs, they
score their first touchdown, they keep the ball, like do
offensive linemen go out and buy the jersey of the
opposing player when they have their first cake In the NFL,
how did you celebrate the other side of that when
you really kind of felt like, hey man, I got this.
Speaker 5 (15:18):
Yeah, I mean probably just after that first win out
in Pittsburg, just understanding how hard it is to win
in the National Football League and doesn't matter how well
you play, you can always go back and find a
few plays that you want back. And that's the life
of announcement's lineman. But you got to celebrate the wins
of the everyday life of one winning the football game,
(15:40):
two playing well as an offensive line, and then three
having a good game yourself. So not sure if I
if I bought any opposing players jerseys this year. I
did a few fans and bodies and stuff like that.
Speaker 2 (15:52):
But like you guys have all the helmets of the
teams that you beat, right, like you collect them like skeletons.
Oh yeah, why don't you start collecting the opposing jerseys
and all the player who's backs are on the ground.
Speaker 5 (16:02):
Yeah, So I'd have like one and a half.
Speaker 3 (16:08):
Way more than that, trust me.
Speaker 4 (16:10):
Oh he's gonna have it. Uh so great's abel with this?
And and uh, I'm curious. You know, you strike me
as a guy who's maybe a historian. Maybe I got
a wrong of the NFL. And and I'm gonna talk
about a few guys that predecessors. The Oakland Raiders years
ago had a left tackle named Markschell and a left
guard named Gene Upshaw. They both went to the Hall
(16:31):
of Fame. There's only when one other tandem on the
left side that have both gone to Hall of Fame,
and that's Walter Jones and Steve Hutchinson of the Seahawks.
So you and Charles Cross have had such a promising career,
you got both guys are both young guys. Is that
something that's in your mind, that the hutch and Walter
(16:51):
Jones paradigm that was established or are you thinking, hey,
I'm just worried about myself. Or do you do you
get together with Charles and say, hey, let's try and
do this thing, man, Let's try and create a legacy
together on the left side.
Speaker 5 (17:03):
Yeah. I mean, first and foremost, Chuck has had a
way better career than I than I've had to block
at the level that he blocks for four straight years
is unbelievable, And the level that he plays at is
a Pro Bowl, all Pro caliber type player. And when
you play next to a guy like that, it just
makes your job exponentially easier because it allows you to
(17:26):
maybe have a misstep or a miss paunch or something
like that. You know, a guy that's playing on your
left like that allows you to kind of pick up
the slack and stuff. So, first and foremost, like Chuck's
phenomenally better player, but I think it'd be cool to
to not shouldn't they following the footsteps, but to kind
of blaze our own path of of figuring out, hey,
(17:48):
maybe maybe it's me and him for the next however
many years playing as good a football as we possibly
can play, And that's where I find joy in it.
And then maybe it's the entire line, like, how long
can us find guys play together right for the next
however many seasons and stuff, And that's kind of what
you literally look forward to. But at the end of
the day, there's injuries, there's free agency and all that stuff.
(18:11):
So I think just enjoying the moment and enjoying what
we have now is the biggest thing. I'll worry about
the future and down the road later. Let's go out
and have as much fun as we possibly can with
the five guys that we have now.
Speaker 2 (18:22):
Well, we think this is the first time this franchise
has brought back all starting five offensive linemans and so
far to five because they lost Hutch after the Old
five Super Bowl against Pittsburgh, So four to five Lockley
or Chris Gray, Tobeck all those guys. So this is
pretty special, right, It doesn't happen very often. You mentioned
free agency and cuts and retirements in the NFL to
have all five guys back, But I want to ask
(18:44):
you about who is the toughest Seahawk defender for you
to block. I mean, you just got done talking about
facing Donald and now you'll see Potensie, Miles Garrett, who
knows on some stunts you never know. But from day
to day in practice, even here in training camp, who's
the guy on that defensive line of the Hawks that
gives you the most trouble?
Speaker 5 (19:02):
Yeah? Just flip a coin. Just flip a coin for
our and tweriar guys. And I think I was just
talking to Dwayne Brown about this, and I said, if
you would have watched the tape last year in practice
of the Wednesday, Thursday, Friday practices, that an outsider would
have probably thought, like a majority of us on the
(19:23):
line would have been getting cut and not even seeing Sunday.
But you look back at that and you appreciate the
intense practices that you go through because it allows you
to go out on Sunday and play as free and
fast as possible, knowing the caliber of players that you
practice against. So, I mean, every defensive lineman gives their
own challenges, and I think that's the greatest part about
(19:45):
our defensive line right now and our squad is I'm
getting a different type of rush every single play, and
that's why you got to be so locked in and
practice or else, I mean, you're gonna be a highlight
clip in the team meeting, which has happened a few
times to me already.
Speaker 4 (19:58):
So Graysabel with a Super Bowl champion. Greysabel is with us,
And look, we all know that in the locker room
there's a sign that says NFL players strictly prohibited from gambling. Okay,
So I'm not taught. No part of me is is
suggesting that you're going to be involved in this. But
(20:19):
if I were, I'm a former player, I can go
DraftKings and fan duel. I can look and I say,
the shortest odds to win the Super Bowl are the
LA Rams at five point fifty plus five fifty. That's
basically five and a half to one. Then you jump
to the Bills at a thousand. You've got the Ravens
at eleven. The Seahawks are sitting there at eleven, one
hundred and twelve hundred. So why am I saying that
(20:43):
the NFL, World Nation, what have you is basically saying
that you guys have half the chance of winning the
Super Bowl that the Rams do. And I saw a
list the other day. I don't know the NFL day.
Maybe you know ESPN where they even miss old Seahawks.
I don't know how you misspelled Seahawks, but we're I
(21:03):
think I think you guys were listened as the tenth
most likely team to win the Super Bowl. So my
question to you is you, as a competitor, your sense
of your teammates. Fans get kind of riled up about this,
like they're dissing us, Like what the hell we're the
Super Bowl champions. How how how are they just anointing
the Rams or whoever else? What about you as a player?
(21:24):
Does that get into you at all? The sense that
that there's a little bit of like, hey, uh, they
are not giving us the respect that we should be
getting based on the fact that we're wearing the hardware
on our hands.
Speaker 5 (21:35):
Yeah. I mean, well, two ways to respond to that.
One would be, any given Sunday, anybody can get beat,
and it doesn't matter who the team is, where you're playing,
who you're going against. Any given Sunday, you got to
come out and perform and show up or else that
you have the ability to get beat. And then on
(21:55):
the backhand of things like twenty twenty six is a
completely new sea and I think maybe the outside world
is mad or doesn't like that. But at the same time,
I mean, you lose an m v P, Super Bowl,
MVP running back, safety and edge rusher and all this stuff.
We're a new team, we're new faces. We're we're gonna
(22:17):
bring the same exact standard. We're not gonna kind of
go away from from our from our standard, our style
of football. But we're a new squad. We got to
go out and prove to the world, to the fans too,
to to the NFL of how we want to play
and and and what we want to do on Sundays
and get done. So, I mean they can say whatever
(22:38):
they want. Obviously they they like what they see down
at Los Angeles Rams. But at the end of the day,
you got to show up and play football. And yeah,
every single Sunday is a different game and a and
a different opportunity. And we just got to go out
and do our best and and play to our ability
and understand we're a process over results type organization, top
(22:58):
to bottom, and and we're just going to continue to
improve day after day and get better.
Speaker 3 (23:03):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (23:03):
I can see your blood pressure rising after he asked
you that question. I mean I can see it is
his skins starting to get red, his fingers are starting
to get white.
Speaker 3 (23:11):
And I love that out of you.
Speaker 2 (23:12):
And I always tell you this that I I Gray,
I told this to you before you showed up, that
I thought you hit a Grand Slam home run last
year in your rookie year. I mean I was thrilled.
I think all of us were by the way you
played last season, right, So congratulations on a great phenomenal
rookie year.
Speaker 3 (23:28):
You didn't look like a rookie to me.
Speaker 2 (23:30):
I mean if you would have told somebody who didn't
follow football, what year is that guy? And they may
say he's in year eight or nine in the NFL. Right,
But there's there's more left in the tank. So if
you've got tools in your toolbox that you want to
sharpen a bit this year, what's the what's the focus
for you before.
Speaker 5 (23:45):
You go here? Yeah? I mean how long do we
go out here for all the things I got to get?
Speaker 3 (23:48):
As long as you want, by the way, Yeah, yeah,
go ahead.
Speaker 5 (23:51):
No, No, there's there's always things to clean up. And
I think a lot of the time I kind of
relied on my athleticism a little too much last year.
I mean I had pretty pretty awful hand placement at times,
and my body was out of line and got a
few holding calls and all that stuff. But there's there's
things that you can improve on while continuing to hone
in on what you do best, and that's just play
(24:12):
the game free and fast and have an understanding that
sometimes physicality and efforts going to outperform perfectionists. So you
just got to go out there every single day and
out work the guy across from you and play your
hardest really for the guys next to you because they're
really relying on you and depending on you. So, uh,
(24:32):
we got a lot of improve on, but I think
we had a good foundation stuf.
Speaker 2 (24:36):
Yeah, Well, congrats on a kick ass first year. And
tell your mama I enjoyed hanging out with her. By
the way, that was That was one of the highlights
of the season was getting a party with Mama's Abel
than Mama Sundal and then go watch you guys beat
the Rams to win the NFC championship. So hey, thanks
for doing this, man. Grats on a great year one.
Let's make it a kick ass year two. Best of luck, man,
I appreciate it. Thanks you you bet, you bet. Gray's
(24:56):
Abel with us on the radio show. We've gotta break
a lot more to get to front the vMac Right
here on ninety three to three KJRFM.
Speaker 1 (25:05):
Now back to SOUTHI and Dick at the Virginia Mason
Athletics Center and our special coverage of Seahawks training camp,
brought to you by the Boweling Classic on Sports Radio
ninety three point three kjr FM.
Speaker 2 (25:19):
All Right, we're back at the Virginia Mason Athletics Center.
Big thanks the Gray is Abel for joining us on
the radio show. But we turn away from the NFL
and welcome in the host of Chuck in the Morning.
Speaker 3 (25:39):
Every single morning.
Speaker 2 (25:41):
You hear the greatest baseball takes I believe sports talk
radio in Seattle has to offer from our friend Chuck Powell,
who joins us right now to talk about what the
Mariners did or did not do at the trade deadline. Chuck,
Good afternoon. How are you man?
Speaker 6 (25:55):
Happy deadline day? I hope you all celebrated with cake
and punch today and just brought in the holiday celebration,
you know, like you there's no tomorrow. That's what I got.
Speaker 3 (26:07):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (26:07):
I celebrate with a lot more than that, by the way,
but I'm not gonna tell you because the bosses may
not be very happy with me. But why don't we just,
first of all, start by just getting kind of a
recap from you. Good trade deadline for the Mariners, Bad
trade deadline for the Mariners. Luis caa steer to the
White Sox for a package including a reliever named Sir
Anthony Domingo's Domingos, who becomes the highest paid Marin reliever
(26:30):
of all time, by the way, Chuck's making ten million
dollars a year, and then you pick up Taylor Ward
from Baltimore for a package including major league reliever Alex
Happy and a couple of minor leaguers. What do you
think about the job Jerry and Justin just did well.
Speaker 6 (26:47):
I don't think it was great. I don't think it's
gonna win any awards, but I think it was good
considering the team's three games under five hundred. I don't
know how aggressive people should have expected them to be
at this stage. I'm glad they didn't move Kirby Hancock
or Randy as was rumored, so I think that's a victory.
(27:07):
They did address their biggest need, which was a right
handed bat, especially one that performs better against left handed
pitching in Taylor Ward. They did add to their bullpen
depth with Dominguez. I personally think Castillo would have been
better if they would have just made him a reliever
than what Dimingas is going to be going forward. But
(27:30):
the guy does dominate right handers, and as long as
you don't put him in a closer situation like the
White Sox mistakenly did at the beginning of the year.
He can be an effective piece in your bullpen. So
they did that. They cleared some space. They got Brendan
Donovan coming back tomorrow, space in terms of their salary
(27:51):
for going forward, for the payroll going forward into next year.
So I think they're a better team today than what
they were before the Morning started. And yet I still
do believe that this is going to come down to
whether or not you get contributions, mighty contributions from Cal,
(28:12):
Josh and Julio down the stretch. You need at least
two of those guys to come through if they're going
to pull off this division. But Jim Bowden told me
two weeks ago, week and a half ago on the
Morning Show that he thinks that the Mariners could do
nothing at the trading deadline and still win the division
easily because of who they're going up against. The only
(28:34):
thing I disagree with that is that I don't think
they could have done it easily. But I still do believe,
as I felt all season long, this is the best
roster in the division and they just need to start
playing that way.
Speaker 4 (28:46):
Chuck Powell with us, let's get a little more granular
on Taylor Ward in terms of what we expect. Is
he an everyday guy? Is he in ref Snyder's capacities?
And here's a guy out of fifty five qualifying outfielders
twenty seventh in war just fifty second out of fifty
five and slugging, but his OBP was is rather fourth,
(29:12):
his walks are third, doesn't steal a lot of bases
forty third out of fifty five or stolen bases. What
do you anticipate from him moving forward for the Mariners
the rest of the season.
Speaker 6 (29:26):
I mean, this is one of the crazier stories in
baseball this year, the metamorphosis that this guy's undergone in
his career. At the age of thirty two, he had
thirty six home runs a year ago thirty six. He'
hit sixty one home runs in the last two seasons
with the Angels, but for whatever reason, on a one
year deal with the Baltimore Orioles to prove that he
(29:47):
still has something left in the tank and maybe get
one more decent contract in his career before it comes
to a close. He decided to change his entire way
he swings and his entire approach at the plate. So
he went from a low on base guy who hit
thirty homers a year to one of the highest on
(30:09):
base guys in the entire league, who's on pace to
hit twelve home runs this year. He only has seven
at this point in the season. So he's a completely
different player than the Taylor Ward that we were facing
as an angel. And so for a team that is
struggling in against lefties this year, we all know that
(30:30):
he has hit lefties quite well this season, hasn't hit
righties all that well this season. They love guys that
get on base, and the Mariners organization, most analytics driven
people do, and he is going to get on base,
or at least that's what he's shown. And the reason
that I don't think it's res Schneider is that he's
(30:50):
doing this right now, he's doing this actively, he's doing
this this season, he's doing it yesterday, and so if
he ends up falling on his face like Rob Rethschneider,
then there's something in the stars that says the Mariners
just cannot hit lefties no matter who they acquire. Res
Snider at least had the excuse of six months off
(31:12):
a winter to rust up the way he has. Ward
doesn't have that he's he's actively performing against lefties, he's
actively getting on base at an American League best clip,
and so I think that he should be an everyday player,
but doesn't have to be a ros Arena and Julio
are going to be every day I think Dom's earned
(31:34):
that as well. I don't know if Ward goes back
to right field, if he goes to left field, where
he's played every single game so far this season. He's
either played left field or DH and a Rose Arena
goes to DH, or if you just put Ward at DH.
But I don't see any platooning with those four guys
at this stage, especially with Rayley on the injury list.
(31:56):
So I would guess for the time being, all four
of them those dudes are in the lineup every single day.
Speaker 2 (32:02):
Yeah, he's also played some third, it's been a while,
but I think I think what Hugh meant, I want
to speak for, but I think what HU mean is
does he take ref Snider's job, Meaning if the Mariners
need a right handed bat off the bench, does he
get that first crack, Like if Taylor Ward's not in
the starting lineup and they've got a lefty reliever on
the mound, that last question that I asked, is he
(32:23):
getting the first crack against lefties versus ref Schneider.
Speaker 6 (32:28):
Oh, for sure, but I think he's gonna be in
the lineup. And then I don't even know how Reshneider
even survives this adding another right hander because I want
roblades in the game the way he's played as of
late over Resnider. So Resnighter's going to have a hard
time surviving all of this because he got Donovan coming
back tomorrow, and then you have JP presumably being activated
(32:52):
at some point as well. So there's gonna be a
little bit of a roster shakeup and it's going to
start looking a lot more like the you know, the
group that you intended to have. So I think we'll
see some subtractions here very soon as the team gets healthier.
Speaker 4 (33:09):
What about Dominga is coming into the bullpen with brash
Maybe you probably know more about the update than than
I would, but how does the bullpen? Is he just
your eighth inning, high high leverage type of a guy
setting up munios or how do you envision the amusing him?
Speaker 6 (33:28):
Well, I would like to think that Spier is a
better option there for the eighth inning. The way Bizardo
is pitching, i'd probably have to elevate Diminga as ahead
of Bizardo at this point. And hopefully Bizarto's not washed,
but he's certainly been. He struggled as of late, and
then Matt Brash once he returns, he's your eighth inning
(33:49):
guy because he was performing extraordinarily well in that role,
and that's supposed to be at some point in August,
mid August hopefully, but probably more late August that you
get Brash back. Plus you're gonna get Carlos Vargas back,
and he was at times effective. A year ago, I
realized that a lot of people wanted to add another
bullpen piece. Yeah, there's nothing wrong with adding another bullpen piece,
(34:12):
but I have never been as hung up on that
being such a huge need on this roster. I mean,
they do have actively as much as they've appeared to
struggle here as of late, they are fourth in Major
League Baseball and bullpen Era fourth, and they are first
and fewest innings pitched by a bullpen number one. So
(34:32):
they're not tired and they're not terrible, but you did
need to add some depth, some length to it, especially
with Bizardo, struggling. But you add Deminguez, who could be
a good sixth, seventh inning guy, who, as I said before,
does dominate righties. And I don't know if I want
him in high leverage situations. He's the guy that gave
up the Grand Slam to Gino Swarez, if you remember.
(34:55):
I don't know if he's a high leverage guy. I
don't know if he can handle that kind of pressure.
But low leverage he can fill a role for you,
certainly the rest of the season make that deeper. I
like him better than a hoppy, and I like him
better than a rucker. Then you get Brashed back, and
then you get Vargas back, Anderson Kate. Anderson's going to
be activated in some kind of role before the season
(35:18):
comes to a close. I believe Ryan Sloan's going to
be activated in some sort of a reliever role before
the season comes to a close. And then if you
make the playoffs, one of your five starters, Emerson Hancock
presumably also joins the bullpen. So I'm not that worried
about the bullpen as some others are, even though had
(35:39):
they made a big splash and added something, I certainly
would have applauded it.
Speaker 3 (35:43):
Yeah, Chuck, Pal, great stuff. Man.
Speaker 2 (35:46):
I always love having you on, but better to have
you on after trade deadline day to get immediate reaction.
So great stuff and looking forward to tomorrow morning at six.
All right, appreciate it. Man, all right, man, all right,
all ranks with us. We're gonna break a little text
aimonials four nine four five one, brought to you by
the Emeral Queen on the Tacoma Dodge. Text Line deadline
(36:07):
is coming gone, thumbs up, thumbs down, thumb sideways, whatever
on the MS. We'll get to that next coming up
on ninety three three KJRFM
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