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A Resilient Phillies Team Down The Stretch! (PST Episode 528) · The Philadelphia Sports Table | Philly Sports News & Views

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Hey, everybody, hope you are doing well. It's Jeff here at the
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PSD podcast show. We recorded this episode on Wednesday, August twenty three,
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twenty twenty three. By the time you hear this, some things may have
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changed in terms of the content, but we hope you enjoy the show.
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All right, everybody, you're listening to the Philadelphia Sports Table podcast show,
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the longest running weekly Philly sports podcast show in the world. Thanks so much
0:46
for joining us on this episode. We have got a great show for you
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this week. I am Jeff Warren. I'm here with my good buddy Eric
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Leonard Eric today as we are recording this. As I mentioned at the at
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the beginning, it is when day, August twenty third, twenty twenty three,
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and that means that thirty eight years ago today, the movie Teen Wolf
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came out. One of our favorites. Man, it's kind of unbelievable how
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many times I watched that movie as a kid. Same here, like it
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was one of those Prism staples. You know, if you grew up in
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the Philly area. Prism was our version of HBO. It was garbage.
1:21
I mean it was at twelve movies at times, you kind of them on
1:25
on rotation. Yep. I remember for the longest time it was Conan the
1:27
Destroyers. Yes, Teen Wolf and Spies like Us was on like on a
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loop. I watched all of them constantly because I had no life. I
1:36
was a kid. But Teen Wolf like Team Wolf like kind of actually kind
1:40
of guided our humor. I think you and I I think it did.
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You go through that movie the lines, and it's the most subtle lines too.
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You know, when his dad is outside the bathroom, Doris Scott Howard
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is going through his changes, and and it's the little lines here and there
1:59
that absolutely make that movie. It's not the it's not necessarily the stupid styles
2:04
surfing on top of the wolf mobile, you know, to surf in USA.
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Like a lot of people are like, oh, I really like that
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part of the movie. No, No, it's not that. It's the
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subtle lines that I don't think got as much do and attention as they should
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have gotten. That's why the movie is so great. No, you're absolutely
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right. It's the coach Finn Stock stuff. It's mister Ally the lay coach.
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It's not the style stuff. It's not the stuff is really supposed to
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be really funny. It's the tiny stuff that happens in the film, and
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what a great film. I mean, I you said thirty eight years by
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the way, yeah, thirty eight years. Oh my god, I just
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turned forty seven. This is sad to think about. A can of mov
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a kind of coco, am I right? A set move not turk Horse.
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By the way, It's nice to hear you talk, because the last
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time we did the show, you had basically a drain pipe down your throat.
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I know it was awkward, yea to chime in a bunch of times
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to tell stories and so just trying to get the words out. I was
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like, I can't talk, yes, but hopefully things are gonna go Hopefully
3:12
things are gonna go well with my health in the future. Let's hope.
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Oh my gosh, I need all the help I can get here. Eric
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getting older, Frost, Yes, we got a great show, folks.
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We're gonna get into some Eagles talk, of course, specifically Jalen Hurts,
3:25
specifically the quarterback position what it now means to us fans, because it's amazing
3:31
that we actually have that franchise quarterback of the future. We thought we had
3:35
it with Carson Wentz. Of course, we know the story, but we
3:38
really haven't had a true, true franchise quarterback since one Donovan McNabb, and
3:43
we're gonna get into that. We're also gonna get into some NBA talk,
3:46
specifically with the seventy six Ers, because they not only launched an inquiry surrounding
3:52
James Harden's recent comments about Daryl Morey, they ended up finding James Harden today
3:55
one hundred thousand dollars. I was like, holy crap, one hundred thousand
3:59
dollars for calling him a liar. Still, this situation is not going away
4:02
anytime soon, and it's probably not going to be good for the Sixers during
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the course of the early part of this season and even long term. So
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gonna get into some Sixers talk as well, Phillies talk. On the way,
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Eric and I are going to talk about our favorite Phillies players that we've
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been watching this season. Here, I'm gonna talk about that, and then
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what we're throwing down on the table this week, We've got Jen McGraw from
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Sports Talk Philly. She's gonna be joining us for a discussion about where the
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Phillies are at right now, just how they're gonna need to perform down the
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stretch to maintain these wildcard chances, and just how it's been fun watching these
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bats really just heat up. So got a great show. Hope you stick
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around for it all. Eric, Let's talk about this Eagle season, specifically
4:45
one Jalen Hurts again. A bizarre feeling heading into the season knowing that the
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Eagles truly have their quarterback of the future, you know, a guy who
4:54
can actually put the offense and the team on his back. Jalen Hurts showed
5:00
us so much last year potential, you know, candidate for MVP already this
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season. Hopefully stays healthy of course, you know, and we probably haven't
5:10
had this since Donovan McNabb. We just want to give our thoughts here on
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what Jalen Hurts really means to this fan base, means to the team,
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the organization, the city as this season is almost here and I it's hard
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to believe. You know, it was tough for me when he was initially
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drafted in the second round because you know, I was such a Carson Wentz
5:31
fan, So many of us were. We really did think he was the
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quarterback of the future, and we thought that Carson Wentz was going to do
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what Jalen Hurts is doing right now, potentially an MVP in this league.
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But of course, after last season and what Jalen Hurts gave us, what
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he gave the team and just the fan base in general, Eric, He's
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gonna be around for many years. I believe, I really do, barring
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any sort of awful injury. You know, God Forbiddy would have a dy
6:00
Bridgewater type of injury with his leg and knee where he would need multiple surgeries.
6:03
But yeah, what stop that. I just say, I'm just saying,
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I know, I just I can't believe we're actually here. The Philadelphia
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Eagles are going to be a relevant, very relevant team for years and years
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to come because of his talent. My gosh, what he has done this
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year, the deals that he has signed. The guy is absolutely killing it.
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And he is still that quarterback that is mentally prepared to take this team
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and put it on his shoulders when it needs to, when the offense needs
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something in the fourth quarter, when the offense needs to get the game started,
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he is going to be the guy. It's bizarre being able to really
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trust the quarterback position in Philadelphia at this point in time as much as we
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do with Jalen hurts Man, and again I go back to guy, I
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haven't felt like this since I shouldn't say I haven't felt like this. I
6:53
did feel like this with Carson Wentz. We know that turned out, but
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Donovan McNabb really was that last quarter back that had such a long tenure that
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he was able to put those of many of those Eagles teams, you know,
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not later in his later years, but a good chunk of three years
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he was able to put those Eagles teams on his back as he's running with
7:14
the ball, as he's throwing the ball down the field. We haven't had
7:17
this since Donovan McNabb man, and it's it's quite a bizarre feeling, it
7:25
is. And like there's been minor flashes flashes of this throughout the throughout the
7:30
past couple of years for the Eagles. Like I'm going back to McNabb,
7:32
but Carson Wentz going into the twenty seventeen season, he had a really good
7:38
twenty sixteen year rookie season, and I think we're all excited, but it
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was like, I don't think we were really sure. Really, yeah,
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he performed well and then that was kind of it for him. He got
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his knee blasted in LA late in the season, and then Nick Balls took
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over and it was kind of over for him. If you kind of look
7:56
back at it, I know we're all going to disappointed, but I just
7:59
didn't work out. I think the other quarterback I'm going backwards probably Mike Vick
8:05
in twenty ten. He kind of came out of it like there was no
8:09
expectations for him whatsoever right going that season. But you know after that he
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had a lot of expectations, didn't kind of fulfill them, kind of came
8:16
out of nowhere shooting star kind of deal. So you really have to do
8:22
go back. You have to go back to McNabb. And you know,
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Jalen Hursts is in such a weird position as a Philadelphia quarterback. I don't
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think it's ever happened before. Because even Donovan McNabb when he was at when
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he was a most trusted and most like, wow, he's going to take
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us to the Promised Land. Yeah, he hadn't taken us anywhere in the
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playoffs. Really. I think it was after the one season right oh two
8:48
season when he remember he broke his leg three touchdowns against the Cardinals. I
8:52
was there that game. Everyone was in love with McNabb and we all kind
8:56
of trusted him, just you know, blindly trusted him. And then he
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kind of went on to uh, you know, to lose how many NFC
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title games. I mean, I know it wasn't his fault, but he
9:07
kind of got a lot of the blame along with Andy Reid, but he
9:11
was he was really the last guy that we trusted. And even then that
9:15
was that was pre it had to be pre Don McNabb. My brother and
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my dad and I always called it the chin strap was off. Weren't burner
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games where he just he'd walk onto the field and he'd be like, Oh,
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he don't got it today. It's just it's just not happenings. His
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body language is low. It's just not it's just not going to occur,
9:35
uh this game. But man, I got to give Jill in Heart's credit.
9:39
This is the first time, like I feel really confident in a guy
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who has the stature, he's got the swagger, very professional, he's already
9:48
taken this team to a super Bowl, and you take away that one fumble
9:52
in the Super Bowl. He's kind of perfect right now. Right bet the
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second round pick he's got to be the best one, even even before even
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besides McNab, right, Like yeah, it also goes back to Randall.
10:07
If he hadn't broken his knee in like nineteen ninety, would Price pop with
10:09
the Green Bay? You know? Well if Randall had some coaching direction too,
10:13
Buddy Ryan basically said, just go out there and do what you want
10:16
to do, you know. But but that's my guy. We're not talking
10:20
nineteen ninety. How old were you nineteen ninety? I was fourteen, I
10:22
was thirteen. Yeah, so yeah, we're we're going that far back.
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I think he is by far that has the most promise of any Eagles quarterback
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since McNabb. But it's even more so because he has he has the Super
10:33
Bowl under his belt, so and a dominant quarterback in this league, like
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one of the top five quarterbacks. I'm sorry. There are some rankings that
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have come out, of course, and oh they're all very controversial and some
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Jalen Hurts is not even the top five or even top ten. Jalen Hurts
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is a top five quarterback in this league given what he was able to do
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last year with his passing game, given what he was able to do with
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his legs, as well. The touchdowns are are there, they're not They're
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not gonna go away, folks, They're not gonna go away. He's gonna
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be a top five quarterback in this league. And the fact that the Philadelphia
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Eagles have that it means that the team is going to remain relevant for years
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and years to come. From an offensive standpoint, Howie Roseman has done a
11:20
fantastic job. And the fact that Jalen hurts also is so very grounded in
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terms of what he wants for himself, what he wants for the offense,
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what he wants for the team. Something Carson Wentz couldn't give us. It's
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something that other quarterbacks in the past didn't have the ability to do, or
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they just weren't at that point in their careers with their body, whatever it
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was. But we have it now with Jalen hurts Man, and it is
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It's an incredible feeling, man, to know that, you know what,
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five years down the road, we could still be feeling this way about the
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Eagles chances to make playoff runs. And it's dude, that's it's such a
11:58
great feeling. And I hesitate to say that it's going to be like a
12:03
Patriots fandom type of thing where expecting wins was happening consistently year after year after
12:09
year. I hesitate to say that, but I think we could potentially be
12:15
entering that era. I don't know, I think we could. Eric.
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I think I think it helps that he stayed in college for how long,
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Like when he was draft at hell was he was in his twenties, right,
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h Yeah? Yeah, So he has a maturity about him, He
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has a level head. I look back into the quarterbacks I just talked about.
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I don't want to talk intelligence or whatever, but like he just he
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just seems more steady. Yeah, Carson Wentz just not don't don't know what
12:39
he's studying North North was it North Dakota State? Yep. Just just didn't
12:46
strike me as the kind of guy that was like all locked in all the
12:50
time. He studied hunting. He studied hunting, he loved to hunt,
12:54
loved to hunt. Great, how about you hunt of freaking super Bowl trophy?
12:58
Pal? He won good year. I mean, yeah, I'm just
13:01
going back and like this guy just seems like astute, Like he follows the
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game, like the story you told me the net was a Netflix thing,
13:11
the Quarterback Show. Yeah, he was approached by it, and he was
13:15
like, no, I want to I want to focus on the game.
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I want to focus on my game in season. Like, I'm pretty sure
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if if you lay it out Donno McNabb, Rowland, Cunningham, Carson Wentz,
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Mike Vick, all of them would have signed up for that show,
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no doubt in my mind. Jalen Hurts had the opportunity, could have could
13:35
have been the face. Besides, it would have been him and mahomes right
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if he said, yes, everyone brings up the Netflix app. It's the
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two of their faces. His brand is going to go through the roof.
13:43
He said, no, screw it, I want to do that, And
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that to me is just very telling of what he brings to this team,
13:50
the professionalism. And then you have to, like you have to look at
13:54
the other direction, like towards his teammates. They must respect that exactly,
13:58
Like hell, that like that is a huge like if he did the show
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and was doing all of the talk show circuits, and like maybe that doesn't
14:07
quite like jibe with the older offensive line. Maybe just In Kelsey and Lane
14:11
Johnson don't like that. You know, they don't not gonna stay it out
14:13
loud but I think it's a huge, huge factor in him being the best
14:18
quarterback we've had in a long time. Kible, I'm saying this last year
14:22
before the season started, when we were saying like this is make or break.
14:24
Yeah, yeah, because I mean, but that was reality, that
14:28
was the truth. You know, it was a make or break year for
14:30
him. Yeah. Completely. And meanwhile, we probably started the show in
14:33
twenty eighteen with saying like, Carson Wentz best quarterback of all time? What
14:39
we what do we got, guys, Let's go shoot like absolutely. You
14:43
know, it's interesting you mentioned the respect factor with other teammates and what it
14:50
means to them and inevitably what that means to the forward progress of the team
14:56
or you know, if he hadn't made the decision to do the Netflix quarterback
15:00
docuseries, you know, what would it have meant to the team if they
15:05
have these cameras all right, and they have cameras around them all the time.
15:07
Anyway, I understand that, but you know, the motivation at the
15:11
end of the day, And I think it's a really good segue into our
15:13
next topic, Eric, because when you talk about respect amongst teammates, I
15:20
wonder where the respect is right now. For one, James Harden, who
15:24
is right now, which today was fined by the NBA one hundred thousand dollars
15:30
for what he said about Daryl Morey in public and in fact said it twice.
15:35
He wanted to make sure that people had their mobile devices out and their
15:37
phones and cameras rolling so that it would get all over the internet, which
15:43
it did happen. He knew what he was doing, and he's indicated that
15:48
he's gonna he's gonna make life difficult for the Philadelphia seventy six Ers and Daryl
15:52
Morey. So they did launch this inquiry surrounding those comments and this situation.
15:58
It just inevitably it's not gonna end up being good for the Sixers in my
16:02
opinion, as this season looms. And it's because I think of that that
16:06
respect that we were just talking about with regard to Jalen Hurts and the respect
16:08
he add for the team, and it's something I just don't see, necessarily
16:11
see with James Harden. It's interesting how we've talked before in the pack.
16:15
I think I think it was the last time you were on the pod,
16:18
Eric, where we talk specifically about how we love how the NBA. It's
16:22
a players type of league. We love how the players have a certain amount
16:26
of power authority where they have more control of their contracts, of their own
16:30
long term future. We love that about this NBA league. We do.
16:36
We love it. It's one of the reasons why it's it's one of our
16:37
favorite leagues as in terms of, you know, the power the players have.
16:42
However, guys like James Harden, Dame Lillard, you know, they
16:47
they hurt the player's cause. I think this is my opinion. I don't
16:52
know what you're thinking about. I thought we talked about this perhaps on a
16:55
recent show, But like, I feel like, if James Harden stick around
17:00
here, you know, one, they're gonna be getting back a player who
17:03
led the league and assists last season. But also I think it's just going
17:07
to be tough from a respect perspective with the rest of his teammates because right
17:12
now, it's me, me, me, That's what his attitude is.
17:15
Right now, he's showing that he's not about the team, that he doesn't
17:21
necessarily have the respect for Joe El Embiid, Tyrese Maxie, the rest of
17:25
the guys in that locker room. Then inevitably when they get out on that
17:27
court. He's just not about the team building aspect and specifically where he's at
17:32
in his career right now. And it's understandable that there's so many within Sixers
17:37
Nation and these Philly sports fans that are pretty pissed off at him right now,
17:44
and I'm one of them right now. Look, he is a steady
17:48
and consistent basketball player during the course of the regular season, but he was
17:52
anything but that during the playoff series against Boston as we know, and then
17:56
the last two games of the divisional round, he was absolutely awful. And
18:00
for him to be doing what he has been doing with the Sixers organization,
18:03
and I know, look, Daryl Morey probably ended up screwing him in some
18:07
way, shape or form, which is why he's doing what he's doing.
18:08
I think both guys are at fault the lack of there's probably a breakdown in
18:11
communication, of course, But man, James Harden is not helping himself.
18:17
He's not helping his fellow players around the league by acting the way that he
18:21
is acting right now. He's not helping this Philadelphia seventy Sixers team. And
18:26
I think it's going to be a really tough season right right out of the
18:29
gate. I really do, because I think he's gonna be on the team.
18:30
I don't think he's getting traded before this season starts. I don't know,
18:33
man, Like, what are your thoughts on where this is at right
18:36
now and what it's going to be doing with this team long term? There's
18:40
no way he's not going to be on the team beginning of the year.
18:44
He's he's a volcano, volatile of a volcano right now to other teams.
18:52
His trade value is there's probably one or two teams you could even like talk
18:55
to to put you know, to get him to get him moved the Clippers,
19:00
And I mean, his whole thing was he this is a weird situation.
19:03
He really thought he was going to go to the Rockets, right and
19:07
then they hired a duco from you know, the former Celtics coach. He's
19:12
he's a real adult, hard ass and I'm pretty sure when he took the
19:15
position he was like, I don't want this asshole my team. I'm trying
19:21
to build a culture here and he doesn't fit. But by the way,
19:26
the the whole hardened Morey Love Affair that that that deserves its own two hour
19:32
podcasts. Outside of our thirteen hour process podcast we have to do someday.
19:37
I have no clue what the hell that it's about at this point, but
19:44
the respect he really, the only respect he needs is from Embid. I
19:48
mean, if that, let's just be honest. If Embide comes into the
19:52
locker room one day and says, hey, Hardens, my guy, I
19:56
talked to him. We're going to do this this year, everyone else will
19:59
get on board, including Maxie, including Nick Nurse. He he kind of
20:03
runs the franchise, which we've the Sixers franchise is kind of allowed. Right.
20:08
Pretty much every move is every move has been dictated by and Bead's mood
20:12
and in performance. So if if he goes to Harden says, hey,
20:18
player, ass off, let's fucking do this, things will change. From
20:23
a James Harden perspective. The only play he has right now, I mean,
20:27
he he can absolutely, He's he's kind of hit the end of the
20:32
road from the player like the we're in the what's the term we just used
20:41
the player like power empowerment movement, Like he's kind of hit the he's kind
20:45
of hit the end the road to that he's running out of team. So
20:49
his only move right now is to play his ass off the right way,
20:55
the way Nick Nurse wants him to play the way and Bead wants him to
20:57
play. If if he doesn't do that, I'm not sure what. I'm
21:03
not sure what his next move is, besides playing in China, where he's
21:07
right now running basketball camps and having these insane talks with Chinese children saying like
21:14
Daryl Morey is a liar. I'm sure they're sitting there going, what is
21:18
this guy talking about? Who's Yeah? They're like, who's Darryl Morey?
21:19
What's going on? We sign up for an NBA player basketball camp and you're
21:26
yelling and scream at your GM, like, what is happening right yeah?
21:27
Can you can you teach me how to like do a really good assist or
21:30
something. I can only imagine the parents coming and pick them up and pick
21:33
up with their kids. They're like, what happened today? Well? Uh,
21:37
the NBA guy You've screamed at us for some reason about somebody. We
21:41
don't know what's happening right now. Like he said the words Daryl Moorey five
21:45
hundred and twelve times. It's such a strange situation. He's misreading. He
21:49
always has. He's he's He's a classic enigma athlete and his only player right
21:56
now, honestly, is to play his ass off to get trade out of
22:00
town or stick around and buy into the system. That's his only play.
22:04
But we're talking about James Harden. He's not a normal person. He is
22:10
not a normal athlete. He's he has, he has gone to he has
22:15
like burned through teams, Like it's kind of a record. Like I think
22:19
when he retires, if there's if he gets his uh femix a Hall of
22:25
Fame, can there be a bust of how many teams did I ship on
22:30
to get traded from? Because he's gonna be the altar, he's the al
22:33
teimer. Yeah, there's a new wing to the NBA Hall of Fame in
22:37
Springfield. He's going to have his own wing because no one has ever done
22:41
this before. If he gets traded to the Clippers, it's like his fourth
22:44
or fifth team, right, It's incredible. Yeah. Absolutely. Look,
22:47
part of me also thinks that you kind of touched on this there, that
22:52
he would get motivated perhaps maybe this season, because playing on that one year
22:57
deal would mean that, you know, you'd have to prove himself if he's
23:02
going to get improved other teams, that he's going to get that one more
23:07
major pay day with another team. You know that one year did like he
23:10
would play his ass off. Perhaps, you know, part of me thinks
23:12
that maybe he would do that. Then again, then again, no team
23:17
wants to give him that payday right now at this moment because he is toxic.
23:19
And again, this is James Harden we're talking about, and he is
23:22
acting like a head case at this point. But the NBA is crazy because
23:29
there's another payday for him coming up somewhere. It's going to happen. I'm
23:33
kind of excited because I like the NBA craziness and just the just the whirlwind
23:41
of nuttiness. Do you think it would be the Calves maybe, like because
23:44
like apparently there was a report Calves made an inquiry about Harden and it was
23:48
reported that Morey and so I don't know if you read that, but Maury
23:52
wanted Jared Nowt and Evan Mobley and a draft pick in return. Oh my
23:56
god, Evan Mobley might be one of the greatest defensive players of all time
24:00
when he's retired. I can't imagine. But honestly, it's really funny to
24:07
me that, Like, I'm sure I don't know who his agent is.
24:11
I've yet to look that up. I don't know why I have not,
24:12
but I can't imagine his agent has not gone to him and said, listen
24:17
to James. I'm tired. I'm only fifty, but I feel like I'm
24:22
adi. I had gray hair. I feel like I'm gonna die. I'm
24:25
an alcohol Troy Payne, Payne, I feel your pain, Troy Payne.
24:30
I'm sure you've had conversations with him, like five hour conversations in the hotel.
24:34
You're probably trying to talk to him. All you can hear a stripper
24:37
music in the backgrounds. He's throwing freaking one hundred dollars of bills. Yes,
24:41
and you're like, hey, can you kind of get your head straight?
24:42
And he's like, why, I'm James Harden, Like he has one
24:48
play here, but I guarantee who doesn't see it? Like he can play
24:52
his balls off and and and either win a title. It's like, like,
24:56
listen if he wants if you want a title at this age with this
25:00
team, because these is kind of open, dude, Like yes, not
25:04
impossible for the six just like make a run with a new coach who actually
25:07
holds him accountable. If he actually won that title, he could sign a
25:14
monster deal next year and just prove just one year, dude, behave and
25:18
show that you're a top notch point guard. You're willing to distribute the ball.
25:23
Eleven assisted game, twenty points, six rebounds, two steals. You
25:29
could make a mint, but you just got to go over your absolute bonkers
25:34
ness. I don't know what else to call it, because he's he's how
25:37
do we see this? How do we see this? Yet he doesn't like
25:41
it is astonishing. It's like right in front of all of our faces,
25:45
including his, but he refuses to actually acknowledge it. And yes, it's
25:49
that simple. I don't have three hundred million in the bank and I haven't
25:55
been with like two thousand strippers in my lifetime. I don't know if that,
26:00
if that happened to me, what would my mindset be? Good?
26:03
Point? Yes, persons, as a professional, I've no clue. So
26:07
let us know what you're thinking about what's happening with James Harden and Sixers team
26:11
and how you think things are going to manifest itself as this season is right
26:17
around the corner and it's uh, it's it's gonna be here before we know
26:21
it. Folks, Philadelphia Sports Table at gmail dot com. We'd love to
26:22
read your email on the show here and respond to it. And if you
26:26
are new to the show, hit that subscribe button on whatever podcast platform you're
26:30
listening to us on. If you are on Apple Podcast, we'd appreciate that
26:33
follow, rate and review the show as well. If anything happens to your
26:37
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26:40
We've got all of our shows over there, including our PST special shows,
26:44
some movie reviews, talking about music every now and again. There's some good
26:48
PST special podcasts there for you as well at Philadelphia Sportstable dot com. Follow
26:52
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26:56
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27:00
as well. Search out Philadelphia Sports Table there. We are going to take
27:03
quick break, pay some bills. We'll be back in just a bit.
27:07
All right, we are back, and Eric, I gotta talk about this
27:11
Phillies team here, because I mean, the bats are heating up, but
27:15
I really just kind of wanted to reflect on who really has been our favorite
27:18
player to watch this season. I was expecting it to be Trey Turner back
27:25
in like March and April. I could not wait to see what Trey Turner
27:27
was going to do this season. And of course he has the most down
27:30
year of his entire career. So for me, it's not Trey Turner at
27:36
all. For me this year, And I remember talking about him prior to
27:38
the season. I thought he was going to have a great developmental year,
27:42
and he certainly has. And that is one Bryson Stott. Bryson Stott is
27:47
going to be an All Star for sure in the future. I am absolutely
27:52
certain of it. Last year, in one hundred and twenty seven games,
27:56
he had a two thirty four batting average, also had twelve stolen bases,
28:00
forty nine RBIs, and ten home runs. Already this season one hundred and
28:06
eighteen games, he's got a two ninety eight batting average. He's already got
28:11
fifty one RBIs, He's got twelve home runs, he's got two triples and
28:18
twenty seven doubles on the year so far. His ops this year is seven
28:25
eighty nine. Last year in twenty twenty two, it was six fifty three.
28:30
Bryson Stott has developed and continued to develop into a tremendous second baseman in
28:36
my opinion, and he's going to continue to get better. I love watching
28:38
Bryson Stot. I know, I know he's been a little cold as of
28:41
late, he's been a little cool. But over the course of this season,
28:45
Bryson Stott has been an incredible baseball player to watch. We are actually
28:49
seeing the development of a player in front of our eyes on this Phillies team,
28:56
and somebody who came up from the farm system. I remember watching him
29:00
about Coca Cola Park at Lehigh Valley and thinking, man, I really wonder
29:03
if he's going to be able to do it in the majors, and he
29:06
certainly has. I love what Bryson Stott has done this year, man,
29:10
so he's he has been my favorite player to watch and follow so far on
29:15
this twenty twenty three Phillies team this year. I don't know what what are
29:18
your thoughts and you know who have you who's been your favorite this year.
29:22
What I'll say about Stott though, is uh, he's twenty five years old.
29:26
He's the kind of kid we were just waiting for in the early twenty
29:30
tens. Yeah, right with his Phillies team where we traded all our prospects
29:34
away trying to win titles, and you know, we, my god,
29:38
how many how many guys we bring up and we're just like, this is
29:41
the next one, and it didn't remotely happen. It was really embarrassing,
29:45
quite frankly. Yeah, and this guy came up and you know, he's
29:51
second baseman. He's not Chase Utley right right, right, but he's a
29:56
big guy. He hits really well, he's smart player, great in the
29:59
feet, he's awesome with his glove. Like that's a huge deal. Like
30:03
a lot of I think a lot of Phillies fans kind of underplay the importance
30:07
of Chase Ally's defense, and I think Stott is right up there with him
30:11
defensively. So to Stot's a great pick because he's that kind of player we
30:17
waited for for years and he's actually fulfilling it. And again, how many
30:21
prospects do we see, like kind of completely bomb out. We talked before
30:26
the show. I had a list of guys I wasn't sure. Alec bomb
30:30
has been fantastic playing that man. He's really turned into a professional this year.
30:37
That's a great word for it. It sounds ridiculous because he's a professional
30:41
baseball player, but yes, he has become a professional this year. I
30:45
love that word. He was a top pick and they brought him up really
30:48
young, and he was good last year. You know, my favorite story
30:52
last year besides the World Series was the I fucking hate it here. I
30:56
mean, how great was that? And we braced it. It was like,
31:00
yeah, we know, we sucked, dude, Sometimes it's we got
31:03
you right. And he hung in there and he was a huge cog to
31:07
the World Series run. And he's been awesome to watch that again, playing
31:12
both corners defensively with with with Hoskins out and with Bryce Harper not always been
31:18
remarkable, it's incredible like that. That's a really difficult thing to do as
31:23
a city. He's a tall, tall dude too. To go third and
31:26
first, that is not easy to do. Nick Costellanos has been fantastic this
31:32
year. I've actually really liked Taywan Walker, great pick up, really like
31:37
solid solid within the within the rotation. Yeah, he's really like solidified the
31:44
rotation. Aaron Nolan kind of coming back, but honestly, man I gotta
31:48
give credit to Craig Kimberrell. I mean, oh yeah, thirty five years
31:52
old. And I think before the season, you know, people are kind
31:56
of like, okay, you're you beefed up your bullpen and you've beefed up
32:00
your rotation. Your closer is a thirty five year old guy used to make
32:04
All Star teams like twelve years ago, Like are you serious? Yeah,
32:07
And he made the All Star team this year. He's been fantastic. I
32:14
can't see enough about him. His his his fastballs, there, all this
32:17
breaking stuff is there. He's been a great closer, like real like just
32:22
that that that that oh my god, I'm trying to think of the term
32:27
like that, that presence, that crazy stance he does. Ye, it
32:30
kind of works still, you know at thirty five almost works now better as
32:35
an older player, absolutely, And I can't say enough about him. He's
32:39
really solidified the entire bullpen because because you know, you can go to him
32:45
in the ninth inning like we're good, we have Kray Kimbrell. I'm really
32:49
surprised, to be honest with you. I wonder if he could be one
32:52
of the top five most important players for the Phillies. As we're kind of
32:55
like entering this stretch, and as September is right around the corner, as
33:00
this team is likely going to be in the postseason, I honestly wonder if
33:06
Craig Kimbrell, for God's sake, Craig Kimbrell is going to be one of
33:09
the most important players for this Phillies team. I honestly think that he could
33:15
be. And I think it's a great pick, Eric, because nobody,
33:17
nobody knew that Craig Kimbrell was going to do this and this season, and
33:23
how we have all come to absolutely love him, and rightfully so in this
33:28
particular situation. I remember us talking in March, we don't know who the
33:30
closer was going to be. We didn't know who was going to need to
33:34
step up. You know, certainly injuries happened in the bullpen, and he
33:37
was right there to pick up what needed to be picked up. And he
33:40
had momentum, and he rode that momentum and continues to ride that momentum,
33:45
and I think he actually could be one of the most, like I said,
33:49
top five most important players for the Phillies as they're entering this final stretch
33:52
here. Oh, it's easily. I mean, if they make a long
33:57
playoff run, you know, he's be key. Yeah. We relied on
34:01
Hector Nerris and every time he came into the game, we were chewing our
34:05
fucking nails, like to the skin. Right. Yeah, I actually feel
34:09
comfortable with Craig Kimberrell. And we cannot, we cannot downplay the presence of
34:14
his dad, who's been to a couple of games now, who looks like
34:17
he played Leonard skinnerd Yes like after like the plane crash, like he was
34:22
like the third guitar player at one point. Right. I don't know if
34:25
you guys have seen him. Oh my god, I love him to pieces.
34:29
He's the Greig. Yeah, I'm assuming that's what Craig's going to look
34:32
like someday, right, And I'm hoping he makes a Hall of Fame and
34:36
he looks like that and he gets inducted. I just had been my favorite
34:39
baseball moments. I love the Craig Kimberrel pick for you as your favorite Philly
34:45
to watch this year, you know, because because sometimes it doesn't. I
34:50
don't think you have a lot of folks out there that would actually end up
34:53
going to a bullpen guy, you know, even even even in a closer
34:58
type of situation as your favorite baseball players to watch. But I think he
35:01
came on so strong this season and he's been absolutely prolific that it's tough.
35:07
It's tough not to say him. So I absolutely love it. Let's let's
35:10
hear from you folks out there, Philadelphia Sports Table at gmail dot com.
35:14
Let us know who your favorite Philly is this year. We'd love to talk
35:17
about it here on the show, for sure. So Eric, I think
35:21
that's about it. Here. They're gonna let you go here. We're gonna
35:23
talk to Jenn McGraw in a bit more about this Phillies team, what we've
35:28
been seeing from them, and what we're expecting in the future as they're looking
35:31
at this potential postseason runs. So you got anything else here, buddy before
35:37
we head out. I just turned forty seven last week. I'm fucking tired
35:43
at night, Jeff. When you started recording these shows like five thirty maybe
35:47
all right, okay, all right, after supper, I know it's what
35:53
is it right now? It's almost eleven o'clock on Wednesday night that we're recording.
36:00
We keep going, man, we keep going, keep getting it done,
36:02
man, keep doing it. We got ten more years, man,
36:05
let's keep going. I mean, yeah, yeah, we got twenty.
36:08
If I last, If I last that long, I mean, you'll have
36:13
two You'll have two drain pipes down your throat. Yes, I had I
36:20
would tell this. I hopefully can make some people laugh out there. I
36:23
was diagnosed with some abnormal swallowing, folks, abnormal swallowing, You're like,
36:35
swallowing is a normal human Oh god feature? Like I'm not sure what you
36:38
were doing? Like I don't know either, Like you take a bite of
36:43
stead, go go what you do? Like I don't understand what you mean.
36:46
I just put it up my nose and I'm just shove it in and
36:50
shove it back there, you know in your ear? Yes, a shell?
36:54
Am I doing something wrong? What's happening? All right, buddy,
36:58
I'll let you go. And again, folks, we'd love to hear from
37:01
the Philadelphia Sports tablet gmail dot com, and we'd love to read your email
37:05
here on the show. I'm gonna let Eric go. We are going to
37:07
take a break, and when we get back, got some more Phillies talk
37:09
on the way. Let's take that break now and we'll be back in just
37:14
a bit. All right, we're back. Let's get to what we were
37:16
throwing down on the table this week. We got a great interview, a
37:20
great discussion coming your way. First time guest here at the PST podcast show.
37:23
It's what we're thrown down on the table and now on the table.
37:30
It is great to have on the show for the very first time, coming
37:34
to us from Sports Talk Philly. And also she's doing some work over at
37:38
the Hamilton Gazette in New Jersey. Wrote a fantastic column this past week on
37:44
the Philadelphia Phillies. She does a lot of Phillies writing and analysis, and
37:49
we love following her on the Twitter dot com at Jennifer McGraw Underscore. We've
37:53
got the one and only Jen McGraw. How are you doing, Jen?
37:57
Great? It's thank you so much, first of all for having me.
38:00
I always love hopping on podcasts and any excuse I get to talk about Philly
38:05
sports is a great It's it's great no matter what day, what time.
38:08
Absolutely it's naughty. So it's it's great to be here. Absolutely, Philly's
38:14
been doing a great job with regard to this giant series too. You know,
38:16
it's a great time to have you on and again again. We're recording
38:20
this on Wednesday, August twenty three, will be uploaded on the twenty fourth.
38:24
However, like I love what's been happening, not just with this Phillies
38:29
team of course, with wins, have been winning some series here and there
38:31
over these pasts, you know, over the past month or so. But
38:35
I wanted to start off our conversation Jen with the fact that the Little League
38:38
Classic this past week was absolutely fantastic baseball. I mean, with the exception
38:45
of the Phillies actually, you know, losing the game there, but it
38:47
was great baseball. The Phillies organization, they're doing fun things this year,
38:52
and it's it's kind of bizarre in a way, some outside the box thinking
38:57
some fun things. But I mean, the Little League Classic, it was
39:00
fantastic marketing. It was just fantastic for the fans. And again, you
39:05
know, I hesitate to say that Major League Baseball and even the Phillies got
39:07
something right here, because there just seems to be this shift in terms of
39:12
how Baseball and MLB are marketing themselves this season. So I don't know,
39:17
I'm wondering have you noticed this as well? And you know what are your
39:21
thoughts on how a Little League Classic really came off and what it meant for
39:24
the game of baseball overall. Yeah, first and foremost, I think the
39:29
Little Little League Classic really, in a way, I guess, like brought
39:34
the baseball community together, not to say that they're not already together, but
39:37
kind of brought it together for this, like this event. And you know,
39:43
usually we're we're like, you know, harping on the Mets fans or
39:45
the Yankees fans or whatever. The Little League Classic, I think was a
39:50
great opportunity to just bring us all together and just enjoy that. Being said,
39:54
I actually did during my undergrad years at Rowan, I did a study
40:00
on like sports and younger generations and stuff, and I found that, you
40:06
know, of course younger generations are not as interested in sports. Many reasons
40:10
that could be, you know, like the short attention span, it's just
40:14
not fun. They need something more interactive, and so I thought that,
40:20
you know that being said, the MLB was probably thinking like, hey,
40:22
we need a facelift, We need a couple changes to come to like you
40:28
know, be more interactive, being more energizing for the fans. And where
40:31
we saw you know, the rule changes the pitch clock and such. So
40:36
I really think that the Little Lea Classic is another great addition to the world
40:40
of baseball and the MLB because it's bringing in those younger generations to keep them
40:46
interested in baseball, and even you know, same can be said for other
40:51
sports. You know, we talk about fantasy baseball, fantasy football, but
40:54
I think the Little Lee Classic is, like I said, another great addition
40:58
in another way to market the MLB. Yeah, I think it's a great
41:01
point you raise, and it's a subject matter we've talked about on the PSD
41:05
podcast show for many, many years. It's you know, the fact that
41:07
we kids have all these devices in front of their faces. They're constantly entertained.
41:12
Tiktoks are like basically a minute or less, and you have to be
41:16
catching folks attention, especially young folks attention, within the course of about eight
41:21
seconds in order for something to stick. And I think it's I think it's
41:24
absolutely great what you just said, and it's very very relevant in terms of
41:28
where we are today. Again, it's something we've talked about on this podcast
41:30
a lot. We're certainly gonna be talking about it more in the future,
41:34
and as we're moving along here, Jen, there is one Phillies player as
41:38
we're getting into this team that I really want to discuss, and I've been
41:42
thinking a lot about him throughout the course of this season because of we're not
41:45
we're not used to seeing what we're seeing from this particular player, and that
41:50
is JT. Real Muto. I mean, he has, as of us
41:52
recording this a five thirty five batting average at this point here the twenty twenty
41:57
three season. And yes, batting average aren't everything. I know that there's
42:01
a lot more of the game of baseball than just batting average, but it's
42:05
his lowest batting average since his rookie season back in twenty fourteen when he was
42:09
on the Marlins, so ten years in the league. Here at this point,
42:14
are we starting, in your opinion, to see the downslide of JT.
42:17
Real Muto or is this just perhaps a down season for him in terms
42:22
of real Muto the catch up position here? What do you think is happening
42:25
with him? And you know, do we have any concerns about this in
42:29
the future. The fan in me really wants to hope that it's just a
42:31
slump or just a down season. But I mean to bring this up and
42:37
to bring up you know, some other things this season that may have contributed
42:40
to maybe maybe hopefully a down season are still kind of concerning. I really
42:47
want to hope, like I said, that it's just a slump. But
42:51
you know, you bring up a good point. Maybe it's more than that.
42:52
Maybe we're starting to see him reach the end of his career, either
42:57
with the Phillies or just his career in general. It Yeah, I hope
43:02
not too. I that I really really hope that it's a slam. I
43:07
mean, like, and we've seen this happen before in baseball, where players,
43:12
especially on the Phillies, have had down seasons, have not looked the
43:14
best, and then came back the next year and completely dominated dominated. So
43:20
I want to I want to hope for right now, just in this present
43:23
moment, that maybe it's just a slam. Maybe we see in the next
43:27
game that jt Romuto has like a fantastic game, But you know that's it's
43:31
definitely something to keep in the back of our minds. Yeah. Absolutely,
43:36
Like you said, there are our MLB players who do have down years,
43:39
they can come back the following year and show us that more consistent, the
43:45
more consistency that they've shown throughout their careers, really hoping that with regard to
43:50
JT. Real Muto. So all right, we are going to actually bring
43:52
back now a segment on this particular interview that we had done for some time.
44:00
It's called our Upper Down segment or down, and I am going to
44:05
give you Jen a list of players here, and I'd love for you to
44:08
tell me if their stock, in your opinion, is trending up or trending
44:13
down and why. Okay, we just got done talking about this particular player
44:19
with my co host a short time ago, but I'd love for you to
44:22
give us your opinion on Bryson Stot. Is his stock going up or down
44:28
here at this moment? What are your thoughts? Now? When I was
44:31
looking at this list, there was a couple players, there was a lot
44:35
of players really that I was like saying, Okay, maybe the stock's going
44:37
up, and then I kept flip flopping back and forth to up or down.
44:40
For Stot, I think he's kind of had a quote at least like
44:45
these past couple of series, he's been kind of quiet. He's kind of
44:47
had some quiet gameplay, at least in my opinion, So I want to
44:52
say that his stock is going down, but I don't want to like say
44:54
down and it just be like this steep dive. I think it's just a
44:59
little I want to say, like a little bit going down just because I've
45:02
I've not really seen much from him. Okay, sounds good. Let's move
45:07
on to a gentleman who I think from an offensive standpoint, and specifically from
45:12
a defensive standpoint, has been showing us a lot this year. But up
45:15
or down for one Alec Bohm and his versatility on the field this year.
45:21
Up or down for Alec bomb I think up and I think you hit the
45:23
nail on the head for their explanation. Why. I mean, he's super
45:28
versatile. We like you said, we've seen a lot from him. Defensively,
45:31
I think he's been a very outstanding player this year, and in times
45:37
when the Phillies have had struggles, he's been able to show up. So
45:40
for that reason, I think his stock is going up. All right,
45:43
very good? Moving along here, we got a few more Let's say Tray
45:46
Turner here. Trey Turner, who, as we know, one of the
45:50
fantastic storylines of this Philly season. The standing ovation that I think really helped
45:57
him this season here in twenty twenty three, up or down for Trade Turner?
46:00
What are your thoughts, Jen? Now, I saw a I saw
46:06
some statistics. I can't quite remember where I saw them from, but I'd
46:08
seen statistics from Trade Turner of his like stats to season after the standing ovation,
46:15
after that support, and it looks like that they've improved. And you
46:20
know, like when I talk about this a lot, because it's something that
46:23
I'm really interested in, and it's like mental health for athletes, and like
46:27
having the support, especially in Philly, I think it's a really big thing
46:30
because Philly fans can be brutal, we can be ruthless. I think when
46:37
the support happens, then definitely a player will feed off of that energy and
46:43
will go out and show out and improve. And I think, like I
46:46
said that those stats since his ovation standing Ovation have improved, So I think
46:51
Trade Turner stock is on the rise. All right, very good, I
46:53
would absolutely agree with you. Now, I'd like to get into a couple
46:57
pictures here. In fact, as the season was opening, they were the
47:02
number one and number two pitchers we're going to get into next year. So
47:06
let's go with who was going to potentially be that number one in Zach Wheeler.
47:12
Zach Wheeler, up or down? What do you think? This is
47:15
another player that I was like deciding, you know, if it's down,
47:19
then it's very very very slow down, but not like like I said,
47:23
steep, or if it's on the rise then I mean, obviously, you
47:27
know it makes sense for him to be on the rise. Honestly, I
47:30
did h I originally said down, but I feel like he's kind of on
47:35
the rise. I mean, I know, yep, we haven't seen at
47:38
least recently, haven't seen two too much. But I think, like like
47:43
you said, with him being potentially the number one, I think his stock
47:46
is on the rise at least in the future. It'll be in the distance
47:51
near future, it'll be on the rise. Yeah, Zach Wheeler sometimes gets
47:53
himself into some sticky situations. At times, he's able to get out of
47:57
them. At times, you know, we're kind of holding our breath.
48:00
But I think that was a pretty good analysis right there. Terms of our
48:04
last upper down individual in the Philadelphia Phillies, we're gonna go with one,
48:08
Aaron Nola. What are your thoughts up or down with regard to Aaron Nola?
48:13
All right, So, I know we'll get into this next but I
48:15
hopefully, and I put this literally in my notes, hopefully up Okay,
48:22
Rise, I know right now, and I was like, I said,
48:25
I know we'll get into this, but I know that he's he's had some
48:29
inconsistency, but I really want to hope that he can and you know,
48:34
to put it bluntly, get it together and be able to be the picture
48:39
that the Phillies need at this in this series, series, in the next
48:43
series to come. So I said, hopefully on the rise. All right,
48:47
let us know what you're thinking out there, folks, Philadelphia Sports Table
48:51
at gmail dot com. We'd love to read your email here on the show
48:53
and respond to it with regard to any of those players that we just mentioned
48:58
on the Upper Down segment here. Moving along, as Jen said, gonna
49:01
get into some Aaron Nola talk right now, and it just seems like Aaron
49:06
Nola is going to be a starting pitcher in at least a game or two
49:10
if the Phillies do make the postseason. That's how things are looking right now.
49:15
And I'm not sure if I've ever had Jen at this particular moment such
49:19
a love hate relationship with a professional sports athlete like I do with Aaron Nola.
49:24
For years and years, I have defended him in terms of his pitching
49:29
from the mound when folks on the Twitter dot com are saying, Oh,
49:31
the guy's a bum, get rid of him. And then he has a
49:35
showing and he did what he did last season and specifically in September last year,
49:39
when he was never a September type of pitcher. He showed us so
49:44
much last year during that run to the World Series. So I'm wondering,
49:49
what are your thoughts on what we've seen from Nola this season, why we're
49:52
seeing this inconsistent type of pitching from him, and how do you see this
49:57
season concluding for him. You know, I sat yesterday like really thinking about
50:02
this question, and honestly, I am not sure why we're seeing inconsistency.
50:09
You know, it could be a mental thing, like we had talked about
50:12
a little bit earlier. I think it was a pitching clock earlier in the
50:15
season, Like I really do. I think the pitching clock was really messing
50:17
with him. Yeah, And like said, like you said, it could
50:21
be that as well. It could be the teams that the Phillies are facing.
50:24
I'm Honestly, there's so many factors that could go into it. I
50:28
really think the pitching clock thing makes a lot of sense though, as as
50:30
you bring that up. He's always been a slow pitcher. He's always been
50:35
that type of slow pitcher that he needs to take his time. We've seen
50:37
that time and time again. You go back, you look at Aaron Nola
50:40
games and they're long games. He just he was always liked to take his
50:45
time out there on the mound and just can't anymore. Yeah, And I
50:50
think that, you know, as we talk about the support thing with Trey
50:52
Turner, I think it's equally important that Aaron Nola gets the support as well.
50:57
I'm not saying, you know, like a standing ovation or anything like,
51:00
but you know, as long as he gets the support from the teammates
51:02
and fans, I think he is able to end the season a little bit
51:05
stronger than you know, what's what we've seen thus far this season. All
51:10
right, very good? Well again, folks. We are talking to Jen
51:15
McGraw the Hammonton Gazette to check out what she is doing over there, and
51:20
you can follow her on Twitter at Jennifer McGraw Underscore. And again, she
51:24
doesn't work over at at Philly Sports sorry, Sports Talk Philly as well.
51:30
And as we're moving along here, Jen, the bats are really heating up
51:34
as of late. Man, I have loved to see all these home runs
51:38
we have been seeing, and just and how they're playing smart baseball too.
51:44
It's not just the home runs, but you know, it's that single that
51:47
matters. It's that double that we see every now and again that really matters
51:51
to put this team in a good position offensively. And you know, at
51:54
the end of the day, like I just don't want this team peeking too
51:59
too early before the start of the postseason. Do you have any concerns that
52:04
the Bats are going to cool off one September rolls around? Why are Why
52:07
not? If I remember correctly from past years, it seems like things sort
52:13
of slow down and we sort of sort of start to hit the panic button
52:16
around September. Yeah, I think even like last year before they made you
52:21
know, that historic run, I think that, you know, like I
52:24
just said, I think the fans might start to get a little bit nervous,
52:27
But I don't think the Phillies are going to be in serious trouble in
52:30
September. I think as long as now of course, August is winding down,
52:36
so it's really not a lot of time for me to be saying this.
52:38
As long as they put themselves in a good position now in the seven
52:43
or eight days we have left of August to and of course early September,
52:49
to be able to keep themselves in a good position, because it seems like
52:52
every year September is just the panic month for the things are just starting to
52:59
go downhill. But I think as long as they set set themselves up in
53:02
a good position these next couple of weeks, you know, even if they
53:07
do kind of have a fallout in mid September, they still have a playoff
53:12
position Fingers crossed hopefully to be able to put themselves, like I said,
53:15
into playoff positioning. I feel like we are getting into and I don't want
53:21
to put the car before the horse, but I feel like we're getting into
53:24
this new era of Philadelphia Phillies baseball where where we are seeing productivity. You
53:32
know, we're seeing a team come together when they need to come together,
53:36
when cohesiveness and a jelling is able to we see it on our screens or
53:40
if we're at the ballpark, we're seeing it. You know, this is
53:44
a team that can do nothing offensively for a good five or six innings,
53:49
but when it comes to crunch time, they're able to hunker down. They're
53:52
able to whether it's home runs, whether it's getting runners in scoring position,
53:55
and then are able to score and win games. We've been seeing it time
53:59
and time again over the course of this past month, and it leads me
54:02
to believe that we are in this new era of Phillies baseball and it's just
54:06
it's a great time to be alive and to be a Phillies fan. Gm
54:09
oh I agree, absolutely, especially after what we've seen last season from the
54:15
Phillies that playoff run. I think like I had said this a couple months
54:20
before the postseason that led to the World Series. I was on a podcast
54:22
with a friend in February and or maybe it was it was a round February.
54:30
Anyway, it was around the time where Rob Thompson was stepping up and
54:35
taking control of the team, and I was like, you know, if
54:37
the Phillies continue to have fun and are you know, rallying, you know,
54:43
for their their for each other, then expect them to make the postseason.
54:47
Expect them to go deep in the postseason and then they did, so
54:52
I think, you know, having that fun and rallying for each other,
54:57
it's what's really gonna help them, you know in the long run, especially
55:00
this year. Absolutely yes, And you know, as we close things out
55:04
here and we close out our discussion, gen it seems to be also that
55:08
Citizens Bank Park. It's just it's different from other teams home fields, and
55:14
I think when we talk about home fields, it's so important, not only
55:17
in the game of baseball, but you know in other sports as well.
55:21
At Citizens Bank Park it really is. I mean, it's the fans,
55:24
it's the atmosphere, it's the energy that just permeates through the stadium when this
55:29
team is on the field. Earlier this season, I think there was a
55:34
sense of oh my gosh, Rhese Hoskins is not here, and the understanding
55:37
of what he has meant to this ball club, to this era of Phillies
55:42
baseball, and it took some time for this team to really understand and recognize
55:46
what it was going to be without him. They collectively got themselves together and
55:51
again we're able to get that energy going again this season, specifically at Citizens
55:55
Bank Park, and if the Phillies end up getting home field advantage in the
56:00
first round of the postseason. I mean, I think they could really truly
56:04
make a run again here in twenty twenty three. I mean, what are
56:08
your thoughts on this Citizens Bank Park, the fan base, and the energy
56:12
that's now surrounding this team. What are you thinking here? You know,
56:15
Philadelphia sports are really truly unlike any other, and I really set to think.
56:21
You know, Los Angeles is like the Hollywood that kind of thing.
56:25
New York is like the Broadway capital of the you know, United States,
56:30
but Philly is like the sports capital. I really truly feel like we're the
56:36
sports capitol. Do we have as many wins as other teams, as other
56:39
baseball teams? No, of course not. But the passion in the city
56:44
is I mean, like you said, like anybody could say, is unlike
56:46
any other. The media also can't help but get in on that passion,
56:51
and I think it really goings in on just how magical like the city is
56:57
and how the Phillies team is. The Phillies made a history run last season
57:00
that truly all began with just one shot, and I think if they get
57:06
that one shot again, if they if they stay in the wild card even
57:10
they truly have a shot to run it back to the World Series. I
57:15
think I think you're absolutely correct, and I can't wait to see what this
57:17
team is going to give us over these next few weeks and hopefully into the
57:21
postseason. As you mentioned again, folks, Jen McGraw at Jennifer McGraw underscore
57:28
on Twitter, give her a follow. She's a great follow. Jen.
57:30
It was great to have you on the pod here. I'd love to talk
57:32
to you at some point down the road. Come back and join us.
57:36
Absolutely any literally, anytime there is excitement in the air. Seriously, there's
57:40
excitement in the air about this Phillies team. We take a look at what's
57:44
happening in Major League Baseball and of course in the National League, the Braves
57:47
are absolutely killing it. They are still killing it. But as we know,
57:51
folks, when it comes to the postseason, things can change, Things
57:54
do change. Are the Braves gonna be that dominant? Are they going to
58:00
be that doe? I do wonder. It's just question we're throwing out there,
58:02
Philadelphia Sports Table at gmail dot com. Let us know what you're thinking
58:06
about this Phillies team. How do you think this Phillies team is going to
58:09
perform in the postseason. If things remain as they are now, they're heating
58:15
up. Man, the bats are hot. It is great to see.
58:17
So that's gonna do it for us this week here on the pod. Next
58:22
week we have got some great guests that are going to be joining us on
58:24
our Table talk show, our Opposition Territory podcast, our regular show as well
58:29
that drops every single Thursday morning. I can't wait to get into some of
58:32
that content next week. And yeah, so follow us on the social media
58:38
sites out there. Instagram, search us out Philadelphia Sports Table. We are
58:43
on Twitter as well as you know Philadelphia's I'm Sorry Philadelphia PST and you can
58:47
follow me at Jeffrey Underscore, Warren give Erica, follow at Brick Pollitt as
58:52
well. And if anything happens to your podcast feed, you gonna head on
58:55
over to Philadelphia Sportstable dot com. We've got all of our shows over there,
59:00
got our PSD Special podcast as well, some movie reviews. We're getting
59:02
some music every now and again as well. Take care, folks, we
59:07
will catch you next time.