Latest / Foul Territory / PCA and Dansby Swanson join FT @Cubs camp + 2026 Cubs Season Preview

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PCA and Dansby Swanson join FT @Cubs camp + 2026 Cubs Season Preview · Foul Territory

• 0:09
  Speaker 1: You know you like that?
• 0:10
  Speaker 2: Here he is you know you know you like that
• 0:12
  Speaker 2: right now?
• 0:13
  Speaker 1: Yeah? Yeah, yeah he likes he liked that front end.
• 0:18
  Speaker 2: Yeah yeah, dig me a video.
• 0:20
  Speaker 3: How you doing man Ha's camp?
• 0:22
  Speaker 1: It's going well.
• 0:24
  Speaker 4: I only got a few more days left here before
• 0:26
  Speaker 4: I head out to to get with the USA guys.
• 0:29
  Speaker 2: So it's been nice.
• 0:30
  Speaker 4: Can be weird being away for two weeks, but it's
• 0:33
  Speaker 4: good reason.
• 0:33
  Speaker 1: Hey, no pressure after the Olympic teams, right the hockey
• 0:36
  Speaker 1: teams both went cold. I mean, there's no pressure on
• 0:38
  Speaker 1: you guys right now to live up to the standard.
• 0:41
  Speaker 4: I don't think. I don't think the team that I'm
• 0:43
  Speaker 4: on will feel any of that pressure. But uh, nice
• 0:46
  Speaker 4: to acknowledge what those two teams did. They they killed it.
• 0:49
  Speaker 4: They killed it.
• 0:50
  Speaker 1: Did you watch them?
• 0:51
  Speaker 4: Oh yeah, we were in the clubhouse. We had a
• 0:53
  Speaker 4: meeting at eight am or whatever, and Counts push it
• 0:56
  Speaker 4: back a little bit so we could all watch him
• 0:58
  Speaker 4: tune in. But is a good reaction, I on, Yeah,
• 1:02
  Speaker 4: we get a little grief afterwards, Yes, a lot actually
• 1:06
  Speaker 4: during during overtime and then and then when we won,
• 1:09
  Speaker 4: we yeah, James like yeah I won from here, but
• 1:12
  Speaker 4: we're all like nah, dude for the WBC.
• 1:18
  Speaker 5: So wait, you said you say you don't think those
• 1:21
  Speaker 5: guys are gonna that you're gonna go play with for
• 1:23
  Speaker 5: tam U s A are gonna be nervous, Like is
• 1:25
  Speaker 5: that is that what you think you're you look at
• 1:26
  Speaker 5: these guys and you're like, we got like they don't
• 1:30
  Speaker 5: get nervous.
• 1:31
  Speaker 4: Ah, well, good nerves. I mean I get the good nerves,
• 1:36
  Speaker 4: but not in a way that that is like, oh gosh,
• 1:39
  Speaker 4: these other these other teams did it, the Olympic teams
• 1:41
  Speaker 4: did it, so we have to do it. I think,
• 1:44
  Speaker 4: you know, I think this is a team of you know,
• 1:46
  Speaker 4: real professionals and guys that are gonna go about their
• 1:48
  Speaker 4: business and you know, treat it how they need to
• 1:50
  Speaker 4: treat it. But no pressure. I think the nerves are
• 1:53
  Speaker 4: always good. I'm sure y'all can relate, but no pressure
• 1:58
  Speaker 4: that comes from the the other team is doing their thing.
• 2:00
  Speaker 4: We're just we're just happy to to continue to represent
• 2:03
  Speaker 4: the USA.
• 2:05
  Speaker 5: Who's a dude that you want to see the most
• 2:07
  Speaker 5: in the in the two week two week tournament, Like
• 2:09
  Speaker 5: the dude that you're like, I kind of want to
• 2:11
  Speaker 5: see how he goes about what you know, it goes
• 2:13
  Speaker 5: about his business for this.
• 2:14
  Speaker 4: Time, I think Bryce John Maylee are our assistant hitting coach.
• 2:22
  Speaker 4: He uh, he loves Bryce when he coached him in Philly,
• 2:26
  Speaker 4: and I just heard some really cool stories about his routine.
• 2:29
  Speaker 4: Is his pregame cage work, How how detailed and intense
• 2:33
  Speaker 4: he he likes to be when it's time for him to,
• 2:37
  Speaker 4: you know, to suit up. So I'm really excited to
• 2:39
  Speaker 4: watch him go about his stuff and then judge obviously,
• 2:43
  Speaker 4: But Bryce is Bryce is the one I've been looking
• 2:46
  Speaker 4: forward to for a while.
• 2:47
  Speaker 1: Okay, that's fair. He's pretty, he's been all right, He's
• 2:49
  Speaker 1: been a right for his career. He's got some and
• 2:51
  Speaker 1: you know, he's got some things on him. Yeah, what'd
• 2:53
  Speaker 1: you work on this offseason? You got off to such
• 2:55
  Speaker 1: a hot I mean incredible, and I was like, dude,
• 2:58
  Speaker 1: this dude's in my m v P right now. For
• 3:00
  Speaker 1: the first half. He made the All Star team, fell
• 3:02
  Speaker 1: off a little bit in the second half. What adjustments
• 3:04
  Speaker 1: do you have to make as a player to get
• 3:07
  Speaker 1: to stay strong the whole season? Yeah?
• 3:09
  Speaker 4: Well, uh, I mean the swing. We know the swing
• 3:13
  Speaker 4: plays like we saw that in the first half. If
• 3:15
  Speaker 4: I'm swinging at the right stuff, the swing is gonna work.
• 3:20
  Speaker 4: So it wasn't really swing focused this year. I obviously
• 3:23
  Speaker 4: the I think consistency is a nice way to approach
• 3:26
  Speaker 4: the next year or at least search for some of that.
• 3:28
  Speaker 4: And the setup in the box was like really the
• 3:32
  Speaker 4: thing that I kind of harped on, where like I
• 3:35
  Speaker 4: was just trying to get in the box the exact
• 3:36
  Speaker 4: same way every time, kind of create a routine for
• 3:37
  Speaker 4: myself so so I know what I'm doing every time
• 3:41
  Speaker 4: I get in the box, so I can slum myself
• 3:43
  Speaker 4: down when it is the top second half that I
• 3:45
  Speaker 4: had last year, whatever happens. But then Carlos Santana was
• 3:49
  Speaker 4: cool at the end of the year and he was like, hey,
• 3:51
  Speaker 4: you're not you know, like you're not working out to
• 3:54
  Speaker 4: hit homers and you know for the back of the
• 3:56
  Speaker 4: baseball card stuff. He was like, I work out, and
• 3:59
  Speaker 4: I I put my focus on just being healthy for
• 4:01
  Speaker 4: one sixty two, Like that's the goal of my off season.
• 4:04
  Speaker 4: So like whatever, durability, endurance like you want to build,
• 4:07
  Speaker 4: like approach it that way, and it's kind of what
• 4:10
  Speaker 4: I did. Like I had shoulder surgery in twenty one,
• 4:13
  Speaker 4: and I'm like this offseason was the first time I
• 4:15
  Speaker 4: felt like I gained some strength back there. So it
• 4:19
  Speaker 4: was really like shoulder strength, shoulder mobility and hit mobility,
• 4:22
  Speaker 4: just things like set my body up to feel good
• 4:25
  Speaker 4: when the swing's not feeling good and all that stuff,
• 4:29
  Speaker 4: and then definitely some approach stuff. But that's really like
• 4:32
  Speaker 4: kicked into gear soon.
• 4:33
  Speaker 1: To me. It is interesting because you're like me, you
• 4:36
  Speaker 1: swing at everything right, and I've talked accounts before they're like, man,
• 4:39
  Speaker 1: we just wish we could get him to swing less. Yeah,
• 4:42
  Speaker 1: and then but then you take away your aggressiveness and
• 4:44
  Speaker 1: that's probably the hitter you've always been. Yeah, I knew.
• 4:46
  Speaker 1: I was told that, and I was like, I can't
• 4:48
  Speaker 1: really hit like that because that's never how I've done it.
• 4:50
  Speaker 1: So is that possible?
• 4:51
  Speaker 2: It is? It is.
• 4:52
  Speaker 4: I'm starting to see it now.
• 4:53
  Speaker 2: And Gregg.
• 4:53
  Speaker 4: Greggy's been huge for that because he's such like a
• 4:56
  Speaker 4: he's he's so disciplined up there to to what works
• 5:01
  Speaker 4: for him and what he does well.
• 5:03
  Speaker 1: Uh.
• 5:03
  Speaker 4: And so we've just been trying some things in Live
• 5:05
  Speaker 4: at Bats, having like real purpose and live at Bats
• 5:07
  Speaker 4: instead of just getting in and making it about getting
• 5:10
  Speaker 4: your timing down again and all this stuff. It is possible,
• 5:14
  Speaker 4: for sure. I believe it is. I mean, I know
• 5:16
  Speaker 4: I'm gonna still swing at bad balls and be able
• 5:18
  Speaker 4: to produce and hit them out the ballpark for doubles,
• 5:21
  Speaker 4: whatever it is. And I know I'm gonna swing at
• 5:23
  Speaker 4: bad balls and miss like I'm gonna still have that
• 5:26
  Speaker 4: element to my game. But there is definitely a focus on, like,
• 5:31
  Speaker 4: you know, toning it down a little bit this year.
• 5:32
  Speaker 4: I don't need to swing at everything that looks good,
• 5:35
  Speaker 4: like if it's a you know, if it's that hanging, oh,
• 5:38
  Speaker 4: breaking ball and it's not exactly what I'm looking for,
• 5:41
  Speaker 4: I can give that away sometimes. You know, that's kind
• 5:43
  Speaker 4: of like one way I've looked at it.
• 5:46
  Speaker 5: What is Bragman? What is Bragman brought up that you
• 5:49
  Speaker 5: hadn't heard before, because i mean you've had hitting coaches different,
• 5:52
  Speaker 5: you know, here and there. What's something that he brought
• 5:55
  Speaker 5: up that you're like, I'm gonna try that. I like
• 5:59
  Speaker 5: how you're how you're wording it differently.
• 6:02
  Speaker 4: Well, it was really kind of what I just said.
• 6:03
  Speaker 4: He was like, he was like, how often do you
• 6:05
  Speaker 4: swing it like that oh oh breaking ball when when
• 6:10
  Speaker 4: you're looking for like a like if it's a right
• 6:12
  Speaker 4: handed pitcher, it's a oh breaking while it starts out
• 6:14
  Speaker 4: over the plate, like, how often are you swinging at that?
• 6:17
  Speaker 4: I was like, I mean probably every time I see it, well,
• 6:19
  Speaker 4: see it pop whatever. He's like, I'm like, are you
• 6:22
  Speaker 4: And he's like no. I'm like, oh, okay, why, Like
• 6:25
  Speaker 4: you're good enough to do damage on that pitch. But
• 6:27
  Speaker 4: he's like, it's not really the point, Like holding yourself
• 6:32
  Speaker 4: accountable to like what you said you're gonna do, I
• 6:35
  Speaker 4: think probably turns into you know, greater things, like over
• 6:38
  Speaker 4: the stretch of the year, I don't I don't need
• 6:40
  Speaker 4: to hit twenty five homers in the first half. Again,
• 6:42
  Speaker 4: like now that I know I can do it, it's cool.
• 6:44
  Speaker 4: But I like the idea of like I said, like
• 6:49
  Speaker 4: if I'm looking for heater middle in on a lefty
• 6:52
  Speaker 4: and just because I see something does not mean I
• 6:55
  Speaker 4: got to swing at it, because a lot of the
• 6:56
  Speaker 4: times I'm sitting a pitch, I see it and I
• 6:58
  Speaker 4: chase because it's a ball. But I like, yeah, but
• 7:00
  Speaker 4: I guess right exactly exactly. So he's got He's just
• 7:04
  Speaker 4: got a lot of stuff that he's he's such an
• 7:07
  Speaker 4: advanced thinker and it's freaky to me because I don't
• 7:10
  Speaker 4: think I'm there yet, but having the you know, having
• 7:13
  Speaker 4: the time to start that now is gonna be good.
• 7:16
  Speaker 3: Let's look at some matchups coming up for tomorrow thanks
• 7:19
  Speaker 3: to Sea Geek, So we're gonna pull up some pitching probables.
• 7:22
  Speaker 3: Like I mentioned, Hey, here's what I want to focus on.
• 7:25
  Speaker 3: We just started talking about them. So the Mets play
• 7:28
  Speaker 3: the Astros on Thursday, we're gonna get to see Nolan
• 7:31
  Speaker 3: McLain and Tatsuya am My. So right away, I'm circling
• 7:35
  Speaker 3: that one as my favorite. And you can get the
• 7:37
  Speaker 3: get the tickets for that one over at the Sea
• 7:39
  Speaker 3: Geek app because I'm sure it's going to be a
• 7:41
  Speaker 3: hotter ticket for this one. But aj we get to
• 7:43
  Speaker 3: see Ami, who I think has a lot to prove.
• 7:45
  Speaker 3: He also might pop up in the WBC, but I
• 7:47
  Speaker 3: think he has a lot to prove because there were
• 7:48
  Speaker 3: some teams that clearly doubted him. And then Nolan McLain
• 7:52
  Speaker 3: has sky high expectations coming into this year and he's
• 7:54
  Speaker 3: also prepping for the World Baseball Classic.
• 7:58
  Speaker 1: Yeah, I love this matchup. Are you kidding me? For
• 8:01
  Speaker 1: a spring training story? You get to see two guys
• 8:03
  Speaker 1: that are expected to be big parts of their team's rotation.
• 8:05
  Speaker 1: Now they might only throw an inning or two, but
• 8:07
  Speaker 1: this is still fun. These are the matchups you look for.
• 8:10
  Speaker 1: This is the matchups I always look for if you
• 8:11
  Speaker 1: want to go to a spring training game. Yes, you
• 8:13
  Speaker 1: want to see your team, but if you can find
• 8:15
  Speaker 1: a good pitching matchup. And the best part is got
• 8:17
  Speaker 1: you can buy those tickets on SIKI. They can go
• 8:20
  Speaker 1: down the line like say you want an a my autograph.
• 8:22
  Speaker 1: After they're done pitching, they usually walk by, or they
• 8:25
  Speaker 1: go out and do some work extra workout in the field.
• 8:27
  Speaker 1: You can stand there, you can have your ball and
• 8:29
  Speaker 1: you can say, you know, Nolan McLain, can you please
• 8:31
  Speaker 1: sell my ball? Am I? Can you please sell my ball?
• 8:34
  Speaker 1: So it's a great opportunity to get an autograph.
• 8:37
  Speaker 3: Yeah, if you're looking for spring training tickets. This is
• 8:39
  Speaker 3: the spot glass House pitching for the Dodgers out in Arizona.
• 8:42
  Speaker 3: Chase Burns for the Reds up against Nick Povetta for
• 8:45
  Speaker 3: the Padres in that matchup. These are Thursday matchups. Gossman's
• 8:48
  Speaker 3: pitching for the J's, Crochet for the Red Sox. Seekek
• 8:52
  Speaker 3: is the spot Okay, use code territory ten ten percent
• 8:54
  Speaker 3: off tickets on Sea Geek. That's the code and with
• 8:58
  Speaker 3: that promo code teo are it o r y ten.
• 9:02
  Speaker 3: Make sure you click the link in the description to
• 9:04
  Speaker 3: download the app and you have that code automatically added
• 9:06
  Speaker 3: to your account so you can use it later.
• 9:08
  Speaker 2: Thank you to seek Geek.
• 9:09
  Speaker 3: And remember when you're on the app, you get a
• 9:11
  Speaker 3: good deal, that's the green dot. If they don't like
• 9:14
  Speaker 3: the deal for you, it's red. It's like a personal
• 9:17
  Speaker 3: assistant on the app.
• 9:19
  Speaker 5: Everybody always talks about offense. It's the first thing they
• 9:21
  Speaker 5: always talk about. Can you improve on your defense? Like
• 9:26
  Speaker 5: you're the best center fielder in the game right now, defensively,
• 9:29
  Speaker 5: can you improve on it? Is that something that you say, oh,
• 9:32
  Speaker 5: I got to do this to be better at or
• 9:35
  Speaker 5: is it like nah, I'm pretty good, like like we're good,
• 9:37
  Speaker 5: we'll just stay status quo.
• 9:39
  Speaker 1: No.
• 9:39
  Speaker 4: Absolutely, I was proud of what I did last year.
• 9:46
  Speaker 4: I had a lot of help getting there. But now
• 9:49
  Speaker 4: the throws, the throwing, that's uh, that's that's a part
• 9:53
  Speaker 4: of defense. So I think I made a lot of
• 9:56
  Speaker 4: poor decisions throwing wise.
• 9:58
  Speaker 1: Last year.
• 10:01
  Speaker 4: Trey Turners on second base and I'm like taking ten
• 10:04
  Speaker 4: steps to my right trying to throw them at home,
• 10:06
  Speaker 4: like just silly stuff like that. So the throwing decisions
• 10:11
  Speaker 4: actually like being able to kind of like a quarterback
• 10:13
  Speaker 4: would check down or get out the pocket and throw
• 10:17
  Speaker 4: the ball away if he has no options. Like That's
• 10:19
  Speaker 4: gonna be kind of how I approach the throwing side
• 10:21
  Speaker 4: of defense this year, just because I feel like I
• 10:25
  Speaker 4: could probably get more outs throwing the bases if I
• 10:29
  Speaker 4: if I take a page out of Happer's book, or
• 10:31
  Speaker 4: because he's really good at that part of the game.
• 10:35
  Speaker 2: It's just the throwing decisions.
• 10:36
  Speaker 4: I think that'll make me a much much better cleaner
• 10:39
  Speaker 4: defender because I, you know, going and running the ball down.
• 10:42
  Speaker 4: I feel like I can always do that, but I
• 10:46
  Speaker 4: want to be a well refined all around outfielder. And
• 10:49
  Speaker 4: I think I'm really close.
• 10:50
  Speaker 1: By the way, here's your football team, Chicago Bears fan.
• 10:53
  Speaker 1: Are you you didn't grow up? Did you really good
• 10:55
  Speaker 1: for J Cutler?
• 10:56
  Speaker 4: Matt Ford today?
• 10:57
  Speaker 1: As I was going to say, because the Rams from
• 11:00
  Speaker 1: La the Rams beat the Bears, and I know you
• 11:02
  Speaker 1: were there. I was. I was at the Packer game
• 11:05
  Speaker 1: when it was it was a Blizzard on the field
• 11:07
  Speaker 1: before the game. We didn't see you he big league me.
• 11:09
  Speaker 1: By the way, I didn't. But anyway, you're from La. Listen.
• 11:14
  Speaker 1: We talked already this morning about your comments. I loved them.
• 11:17
  Speaker 1: Listen as someone that was out there and said things.
• 11:20
  Speaker 1: Show your personality. You have an unbelievable personality. People can
• 11:22
  Speaker 1: call you quirky, people can say whatever you want, but
• 11:25
  Speaker 1: I love it. You have passion for the game. You're
• 11:27
  Speaker 1: honest with people, and you when you say something, you
• 11:30
  Speaker 1: mean it. Do you think that I don't think you
• 11:33
  Speaker 1: went too far. And people say, oh, he went too
• 11:35
  Speaker 1: far with the La stuff. But if you've been to
• 11:37
  Speaker 1: a Dodger game they had. They don't show up till
• 11:39
  Speaker 1: the fourth thing. They leave because of traffic, but then
• 11:41
  Speaker 1: everyone leaves at the same time, and so everyone's in
• 11:43
  Speaker 1: the traffic. So backlash. And by the way, what you
• 11:46
  Speaker 1: said about Chicago fans, I know you make Cubs and
• 11:48
  Speaker 1: I'm gonna throw White Sox fans in there. They are
• 11:50
  Speaker 1: the best, right in every sport. They are the best.
• 11:53
  Speaker 1: Their passion, they love it, They love their team, whether Cubs,
• 11:56
  Speaker 1: White Sox, whatever, they love them. So I have no
• 11:58
  Speaker 1: problem with what you said, I actually thought it was awesome.
• 12:00
  Speaker 4: No, I appreciated that. Actually that that co sign I
• 12:04
  Speaker 4: do because and I didn't get a chance to really
• 12:06
  Speaker 4: like like back that statement up with the fact that
• 12:12
  Speaker 4: that has nothing to do with Doc, That has nothing
• 12:14
  Speaker 4: to do with Showy any of the players over there.
• 12:16
  Speaker 4: I love Mookie Betts. I look up to him like
• 12:18
  Speaker 4: crazy Freddy's only ever been great to me. If anything,
• 12:23
  Speaker 4: those are the guys that have given these fans a
• 12:25
  Speaker 4: reason to be fans. And you know, I grew up
• 12:30
  Speaker 4: going to Dodgers games when they weren't always good, when
• 12:35
  Speaker 4: they had like Manny would pop up. But it's like
• 12:39
  Speaker 4: they go in phases and I remember, like, you know,
• 12:44
  Speaker 4: all fans fighting stuff, but like putting the Giants fan
• 12:46
  Speaker 4: in the komba like that stuck with me as a kid,
• 12:48
  Speaker 4: like little things, you know, and sitting in the stands,
• 12:53
  Speaker 4: just nasty stuff goes on. I didn't always experience that
• 12:55
  Speaker 4: at other ballparks. But like I said, that has nothing
• 12:58
  Speaker 4: to do with who's actually on the field for them.
• 13:00
  Speaker 4: I love playing against them, and I love I just
• 13:04
  Speaker 4: love what what they're doing right now because they're they're
• 13:07
  Speaker 4: creating a dynasty. But I want to take them down too,
• 13:11
  Speaker 4: and and again.
• 13:12
  Speaker 1: I love it all the people that are up man
• 13:15
  Speaker 1: like for sports man rivalries. Let's go all right, before
• 13:17
  Speaker 1: I let you go, no one had a better offseason.
• 13:19
  Speaker 1: By the way, the PCA going to all the Bay,
• 13:22
  Speaker 1: he went to a Bears games, hot black Hawks bulls,
• 13:25
  Speaker 1: hanging out with Caleb Williams. But I want you to
• 13:27
  Speaker 1: see this so you can winnesses. So we do a
• 13:29
  Speaker 1: poll raiser who wins the NL central watcher. I'm gonna pick,
• 13:32
  Speaker 1: and you know how much that pains me, right, and
• 13:34
  Speaker 1: so that like, so you saw it live, all right,
• 13:37
  Speaker 1: So there it is. I yes, everyone out there, I
• 13:39
  Speaker 1: hit the Cubs and the Cubs are winning the pole.
• 13:41
  Speaker 1: So PCA saw it, and everyone knows how much that
• 13:44
  Speaker 1: hurts me deep down in my art. But I did
• 13:46
  Speaker 1: get some beers from the Cubs fans earlier, so they're
• 13:49
  Speaker 1: trying to they're trying to convert me.
• 13:50
  Speaker 4: He's just he's a Chicago fan.
• 13:52
  Speaker 1: Man.
• 13:52
  Speaker 2: You don't have to be winning.
• 13:55
  Speaker 1: Yes, I yes, I do, Yes, I do, yes, I do.
• 14:00
  Speaker 3: Wait Pete one more before you go any extension conversations
• 14:04
  Speaker 3: this spring training. I know you know that kind of
• 14:08
  Speaker 3: comment really gets Cubs fans going, and I'm sure the
• 14:10
  Speaker 3: organization's like, hey, this, this dude loves us. I mean,
• 14:14
  Speaker 3: dude was an enemy territory growing up and he's thick
• 14:17
  Speaker 3: and thick a Cubs guys. So anything there so far
• 14:21
  Speaker 3: this spring? Do you think there could be conversations?
• 14:24
  Speaker 4: Yeah, I mean I do. What I just appreciate about
• 14:29
  Speaker 4: our front office is like they know why, they know
• 14:33
  Speaker 4: what I'm here to do and sorry, this thing's popping
• 14:35
  Speaker 4: on my here.
• 14:37
  Speaker 2: They know what I'm here to do. Like it hasn't been.
• 14:42
  Speaker 4: Such a huge topic of conversation to distract from like
• 14:44
  Speaker 4: the everyday you know, I'm only here for so long
• 14:47
  Speaker 4: before I go play in Houston and this and that.
• 14:50
  Speaker 4: So like, yes, there there will be talks. They're having talks,
• 14:54
  Speaker 4: but at the same time, like we're not in really
• 14:58
  Speaker 4: any rush to do anything, and I'd like to keep
• 15:01
  Speaker 4: it that way just because I'm gonna go out and
• 15:03
  Speaker 4: play regardless and and enjoy myself while I do. So
• 15:08
  Speaker 4: there's bigger fish to fry right now, I think than
• 15:10
  Speaker 4: getting me paid. Uh, Like yeah, I want to go
• 15:13
  Speaker 4: focus on WBC and get to know those guys and
• 15:16
  Speaker 4: and then really like dive into this team. I've gotten
• 15:20
  Speaker 4: three years now with pretty similar group of guys, and
• 15:24
  Speaker 4: that's been really special to me because I just feel
• 15:27
  Speaker 4: more comfortable and more comfortable as we go. So we
• 15:31
  Speaker 4: got too much stuff, too much good stuff going around
• 15:35
  Speaker 4: out here that, uh, I don't really need to focus
• 15:38
  Speaker 4: on anything else.
• 15:39
  Speaker 1: Good for you, Well, thanks for joining us, of course, change,
• 15:42
  Speaker 1: thanks for having ever changed. I mean, he's got a
• 15:44
  Speaker 1: it's like eighty five degrees and he's got the beanie on.
• 15:46
  Speaker 1: So just see what you do, stay yourself. I love it,
• 15:50
  Speaker 1: and we'll see you this year.
• 15:51
  Speaker 2: Thank you.
• 15:51
  Speaker 1: Actually, i'll see you in Houston. So good luck.
• 15:53
  Speaker 2: Hell yeah, good luck out there. Thank you guys.
• 15:56
  Speaker 3: Thanks appreciate I appreciate you. Let's do a season preview
• 16:04
  Speaker 3: on the Chicago Cubs. First off, let's look at additions
• 16:08
  Speaker 3: and subtractions. It's a pretty long list. Kratz, there's been
• 16:12
  Speaker 3: some turnover here, so I want to get your take
• 16:14
  Speaker 3: on how this all shakes out. So they lose Kyle Tucker.
• 16:18
  Speaker 3: I think that was pretty obvious. He wasn't going to
• 16:20
  Speaker 3: sign back there and never felt like that was going
• 16:22
  Speaker 3: to be the long term fit on a per game basis,
• 16:25
  Speaker 3: especially early on in the year. I mean he was cranking.
• 16:28
  Speaker 3: He was helpful, and then I know he went through
• 16:30
  Speaker 3: some injuries. But Owen Casey also made his debut late
• 16:34
  Speaker 3: in the season for the Cubs. He was involved in
• 16:37
  Speaker 3: the Edward Cabrera trade. A number of bullpen arms were
• 16:40
  Speaker 3: at free agency.
• 16:42
  Speaker 2: They left.
• 16:43
  Speaker 3: They did a really nice job of helping guys like
• 16:45
  Speaker 3: Brad Keller and Drew Pomerance land some nice contracts elsewhere.
• 16:49
  Speaker 3: Now let's go to the left side of the screen here,
• 16:51
  Speaker 3: editions Bregman. Of course huge, that's the one that Cubs
• 16:54
  Speaker 3: fans were looking for. Edward Cabrera put up a really
• 16:57
  Speaker 3: nice season last year with the Marlins. He's had injury
• 17:00
  Speaker 3: concerns in the past, but on a per start basis
• 17:03
  Speaker 3: last year it started to come together for him. And
• 17:06
  Speaker 3: then the bullpen was almost completely redone Mayton, Harvey Milner,
• 17:11
  Speaker 3: theel Bar, Shelby. Miller's long term play because he's hurt,
• 17:15
  Speaker 3: so he'll probably come back next year. Michael Conforder on
• 17:18
  Speaker 3: a minor league contract. That's a lot. Add it all up,
• 17:21
  Speaker 3: and what do you have for me? On the Cubs
• 17:23
  Speaker 3: for twenty twenty.
• 17:24
  Speaker 5: Six, they felt like they had some holes. Obviously, you
• 17:30
  Speaker 5: can look at the list in their bullpen. Now they
• 17:33
  Speaker 5: lost to Brad Keller. That's a massive loss, but they
• 17:36
  Speaker 5: felt like they needed more depth, more seventh, eighth, ninth
• 17:41
  Speaker 5: inning pieces, and so they added him. And we said
• 17:45
  Speaker 5: the whole offseason, you know what, you lost Kyle Tucker.
• 17:49
  Speaker 5: Whether you wanted him back or not, They're losing a
• 17:52
  Speaker 5: lot of offense, whether he was hot or not. At
• 17:55
  Speaker 5: the end of the year, you're losing a lot of
• 17:57
  Speaker 5: offense for one hundred and sixty two games. And they
• 18:00
  Speaker 5: didn't one hundred percent replace it in a per player
• 18:05
  Speaker 5: addition in Bregman, But it's tough to replace that kind
• 18:08
  Speaker 5: of offense. To me, their offseason was tremendous because getting
• 18:12
  Speaker 5: Bregman adds to the other guys in their lineup. When
• 18:16
  Speaker 5: you look at their projected their projected lineup for neck
• 18:20
  Speaker 5: for this year, they have a bunch. They have their
• 18:23
  Speaker 5: entire They have nine guys that had over a one
• 18:27
  Speaker 5: hundred ops plus. They had a very successful returning lineup,
• 18:32
  Speaker 5: which I was kind of you know what, I don't
• 18:35
  Speaker 5: know that a one hundred percent agree with this lineup
• 18:37
  Speaker 5: being good. At the beginning of last year, when they
• 18:39
  Speaker 5: had to face the Dodgers in Japan and they ended
• 18:44
  Speaker 5: up coming out and I'm sorry they were in Korea,
• 18:47
  Speaker 5: not Japan, and they came out and they had they
• 18:50
  Speaker 5: were one of the best lineups probably through about three
• 18:53
  Speaker 5: quarters of the year. They kind of fell off. Are
• 18:55
  Speaker 5: they going to address that? I think so. I think
• 18:58
  Speaker 5: each of these guys, you know, Aya Suzuki's in a
• 19:01
  Speaker 5: free agent year, Pete crow Armstrong had an amazing first half.
• 19:05
  Speaker 5: If he can just have half as good a second half,
• 19:08
  Speaker 5: that number will go up. Nico Horner is going to
• 19:10
  Speaker 5: be a free agent. Michael Bush I think has become
• 19:14
  Speaker 5: a guy in this lineup that can be who he
• 19:16
  Speaker 5: is with everybody else behind him. I mean, when you
• 19:20
  Speaker 5: have a guy like Carson Kelly had a one nineteen
• 19:24
  Speaker 5: ops plus at the catching position, this offense is stacked.
• 19:29
  Speaker 5: This lineup is stacked, and I think they weren't afraid
• 19:34
  Speaker 5: to address it with getting Bregman and they addressed all
• 19:36
  Speaker 5: their bullpen needs. It was a good offseason without getting
• 19:40
  Speaker 5: that massive, massive pitching edition that I thought they were
• 19:43
  Speaker 5: going to get. They went out and did it, and
• 19:46
  Speaker 5: you know, I think they're a better team than New
• 19:47
  Speaker 5: were last year.
• 19:49
  Speaker 3: I agree, one quick correction. It was the Tokyo Series
• 19:52
  Speaker 3: Japan for the Cubs and West Tokyo.
• 19:54
  Speaker 2: You're saying Korea.
• 19:55
  Speaker 3: Korea was two years ago, Padres Andres and Dodgers.
• 20:00
  Speaker 5: Okay, Yeah, so I was right the first time. That's
• 20:02
  Speaker 5: usually what happens. I'm always right unless I'm mistaken.
• 20:05
  Speaker 3: Yeah, you were trying to correct yourself, but yourself was right,
• 20:08
  Speaker 3: So you're good.
• 20:10
  Speaker 2: Just be you. But yeah, I'm with you.
• 20:12
  Speaker 3: Let's see what AJ thinks, especially because they're whining and
• 20:14
  Speaker 3: dining him out there. AJ better team this year and
• 20:17
  Speaker 3: a shot to take down the Brew Crew.
• 20:18
  Speaker 2: What do you think?
• 20:21
  Speaker 5: Maybe I'm not.
• 20:22
  Speaker 1: Sure we go. Yeah, I don't know what you guys
• 20:24
  Speaker 1: are talking about. They're trying to they're trying to bribe
• 20:27
  Speaker 1: me through my stomach with the nachos and a helmet,
• 20:30
  Speaker 1: the Windy City nachos. Here they have at Sloan Bark.
• 20:32
  Speaker 1: Good look at this thing. I mean, this might almost
• 20:35
  Speaker 1: fit Kratz's head. It definitely won't fit Subclib's head though
• 20:38
  Speaker 1: he's here, so but it'll fit Kratz his head. I
• 20:41
  Speaker 1: think the Cubs I showed you guys. I think the
• 20:43
  Speaker 1: Cubs win this division. I think they're the best team
• 20:45
  Speaker 1: in this division. They addressed some of their holes, and
• 20:48
  Speaker 1: when you get Steel back a full year cade Horton,
• 20:51
  Speaker 1: they fixed they they tried to fix their bullpen with
• 20:53
  Speaker 1: some of the moves they made. They don't open up
• 20:55
  Speaker 1: in Japan this year. I like this team to the postseason. Now,
• 21:00
  Speaker 1: does that mean they're gonna win the World Series? I
• 21:02
  Speaker 1: don't know, because National League, like we've talked about, a
• 21:04
  Speaker 1: stacked with the Dodgers, the Cubs, the Brewers, the Reds,
• 21:07
  Speaker 1: the Phillies, the Mets, the Braves. So do I think
• 21:11
  Speaker 1: they win the World Series? I mean, I always root
• 21:13
  Speaker 1: for the Cubs not to win the World Series, so
• 21:15
  Speaker 1: I'm gonna say no. But I think they win this division.
• 21:18
  Speaker 1: I think they have a really good team.
• 21:21
  Speaker 3: And it looks like you have a lot of food
• 21:23
  Speaker 3: there by the way. So while you continue to snaw, no,
• 21:26
  Speaker 3: I do want to run through the lineup, and then
• 21:28
  Speaker 3: by the time we're done with that, we'll actually have
• 21:31
  Speaker 3: a guest who is part of that lineup, by the
• 21:33
  Speaker 3: name of Michael Bush. I think that he's coming, Yes
• 21:35
  Speaker 3: he is. So when you look at that lineup, crats,
• 21:38
  Speaker 3: I'll let you take over and then they're gonna get
• 21:40
  Speaker 3: him set.
• 21:40
  Speaker 2: Up for a minute. Bush at the top. Here.
• 21:43
  Speaker 3: Look at the ops plus on Michael Bush last year
• 21:45
  Speaker 3: at thirty four homers and led the team in that category.
• 21:49
  Speaker 3: I mean, we've got all well above average from last
• 21:52
  Speaker 3: season in terms of offensive production.
• 21:56
  Speaker 5: Yeah, well above average. I mean I think what they're
• 21:58
  Speaker 5: gonna argue is what people will argue because baseball pundits
• 22:03
  Speaker 5: baseball fans are always like, well, what's the negative. You know,
• 22:05
  Speaker 5: we're they're probably a little right handed heavy, and I
• 22:09
  Speaker 5: think prevailing based on what the late Ryan Sandberg told me,
• 22:14
  Speaker 5: the field is actually better for a opposite field right
• 22:18
  Speaker 5: handed hitter and a left handed hitter. So maybe we
• 22:20
  Speaker 5: can ask Michael Bush that. But to me, I think
• 22:24
  Speaker 5: this team. Everybody says, oh, you know, they're gonna get
• 22:26
  Speaker 5: better because they're just a year older and a year
• 22:29
  Speaker 5: older and they're learning. Well, that's that's across any team.
• 22:33
  Speaker 5: I just feel like this team one year, one year
• 22:36
  Speaker 5: removed from having a great offensive season and they got
• 22:40
  Speaker 5: to struggle down the stretch a little bit offensively. To me,
• 22:44
  Speaker 5: it's the same lineup, and when you have that same continuity,
• 22:48
  Speaker 5: when you have the same guy hitting in front, of you,
• 22:50
  Speaker 5: the same guy hitting behind you. You start to see
• 22:53
  Speaker 5: how teams are going to attack it, You start to
• 22:55
  Speaker 5: get a game plan, and all of a sudden, everybody's
• 22:58
  Speaker 5: numbers start jumping up. So that's where I see the
• 23:00
  Speaker 5: Cubs unlike some other teams where they're like, Wow, we
• 23:03
  Speaker 5: have some good hitters, but they haven't played together. To me,
• 23:06
  Speaker 5: I see the Cubs taking that next step because of
• 23:09
  Speaker 5: the continuity in that lineup.
• 23:12
  Speaker 3: We're going to get into all of the nitty gritty
• 23:14
  Speaker 3: details about why you should switch to Mint Mobile, but
• 23:17
  Speaker 3: I brought a special guest in for this one to
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  Speaker 3: alert you that you might be paying way too much
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• 23:25
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  Speaker 3: when network is busy. Capable device required, availability, speed and
• 24:10
  Speaker 3: coverage varies cementtmobile dot com. So AJ's out of Cubs camp,
• 24:23
  Speaker 3: of course, we know that, and he's sitting next to
• 24:26
  Speaker 3: a man that makes him feel young again. Dance By
• 24:29
  Speaker 3: Swanson joining us right now, Danceby Of course I say
• 24:31
  Speaker 3: that because you're a former teammate and they're not as
• 24:34
  Speaker 3: many of those still available in the big leagues. How
• 24:37
  Speaker 3: you doing has Spring training for you?
• 24:39
  Speaker 2: So far? Man? It's been great.
• 24:41
  Speaker 6: AJ's making me feel old though, that's the problem I make.
• 24:44
  Speaker 6: I make him finish what I'm making myself a little
• 24:46
  Speaker 6: bit older. Spring has been good, the weather's been beautiful.
• 24:52
  Speaker 6: We obviously have a lot of excitement camp, just with
• 24:55
  Speaker 6: things we did, you know, in freegency and some of
• 24:57
  Speaker 6: the trades and stuff like that. So we got a
• 24:59
  Speaker 6: great group and you know, we're excited to build off
• 25:01
  Speaker 6: of you know, last season.
• 25:03
  Speaker 1: You have a child, now I do so. Now Dad's strength,
• 25:08
  Speaker 1: no sleep up in the middle of the night.
• 25:12
  Speaker 2: It's beautiful.
• 25:14
  Speaker 1: How are you going to handle that?
• 25:15
  Speaker 2: It's beautiful. Well that's all y'all know too.
• 25:18
  Speaker 6: My wife is an amazing athlete herself, so a lot
• 25:21
  Speaker 6: of split responsibilities, split duties, just in the grind together.
• 25:25
  Speaker 6: It's honestly the most amazing thing that we've ever done.
• 25:29
  Speaker 2: So blessed.
• 25:30
  Speaker 6: Josie's about three and a half months now, so we're
• 25:33
  Speaker 6: right in the thick of it.
• 25:33
  Speaker 1: Did you hold up Josie?
• 25:35
  Speaker 2: Huh?
• 25:35
  Speaker 1: Why did you pick Josie? That's on your walk up song?
• 25:38
  Speaker 1: Is it? No? No, I was gonna say, because if
• 25:40
  Speaker 1: you went outfield and then you went Josie, that would
• 25:44
  Speaker 1: have been that would have been a little long.
• 25:45
  Speaker 6: I came home one day and was like, what do
• 25:47
  Speaker 6: you think about Josie? And we loved it. Josie James
• 25:51
  Speaker 6: James my first name for everybody that didn't know, James
• 25:54
  Speaker 6: my first name, So Josie James Swanson.
• 25:56
  Speaker 2: Rolls off the tongue.
• 25:57
  Speaker 6: Good, got a lot of nickname options, and yeah, it's
• 26:01
  Speaker 6: it's it's truly amazing.
• 26:03
  Speaker 5: What's the one new baby task? That you're like, this
• 26:08
  Speaker 5: is yours. I'll do other things, but this is yours.
• 26:11
  Speaker 5: I can't handle this.
• 26:15
  Speaker 6: I mean, I've gotten pretty good at cleaning things, whether
• 26:17
  Speaker 6: it's bottles or any other things that need to be cleaned,
• 26:20
  Speaker 6: I've gotten pretty good at that. And uh really, I
• 26:23
  Speaker 6: mean one of the things I like doing the most
• 26:26
  Speaker 6: is just like making sure everything is set up and
• 26:28
  Speaker 6: ready for whatever mal may need, whether it's getting diapers out,
• 26:32
  Speaker 6: getting burp brags out.
• 26:34
  Speaker 1: You change diapers.
• 26:35
  Speaker 2: I do change diapers.
• 26:36
  Speaker 1: Yeah, so you're you'll do it. I'm not scared of
• 26:38
  Speaker 1: it because there are people I know now that you
• 26:40
  Speaker 1: have been a little bit afraid to reach down there,
• 26:42
  Speaker 1: especially when it's a number two.
• 26:43
  Speaker 6: Selfless over here, selfless, willing to do sacrificious for the family.
• 26:48
  Speaker 1: I love it. I love it.
• 26:50
  Speaker 2: There you go, team player? All right.
• 26:51
  Speaker 3: So you also mentioned you were keeping track of the
• 26:54
  Speaker 3: off season, So how did that go for you? So?
• 26:57
  Speaker 2: How excited were you? How involved?
• 26:59
  Speaker 3: Obviously I know you weren't necessarily making the moves, but like,
• 27:01
  Speaker 3: did you do any recruiting calls? And then what is
• 27:04
  Speaker 3: it looking like now with some of the new guys
• 27:06
  Speaker 3: in town?
• 27:08
  Speaker 2: Yeah?
• 27:08
  Speaker 6: I think I mean Jed and Carter and and Counts
• 27:10
  Speaker 6: obviously have a really good pulse on this group and
• 27:13
  Speaker 6: understand what you know, we may have been lacking last
• 27:16
  Speaker 6: season to the end of our season early and you know,
• 27:19
  Speaker 6: addressed all those things with just pitching depth, was the
• 27:22
  Speaker 6: bullpen or you know, with the starting rotation obviously the
• 27:26
  Speaker 6: obvious one is is Reggie coming over?
• 27:30
  Speaker 2: You know, I I really did stay out of it,
• 27:32
  Speaker 2: like it.
• 27:32
  Speaker 6: Was a pretty unique off season, obviously with our daughter
• 27:37
  Speaker 6: being born, so kind of just put my head down
• 27:40
  Speaker 6: and went to work in some different ways than I
• 27:43
  Speaker 6: have before, just with with training and all the different
• 27:46
  Speaker 6: things that I feel like I need to do to
• 27:47
  Speaker 6: get better. I haven't felt like the last few years
• 27:50
  Speaker 6: have been a little bit below what I feel like
• 27:53
  Speaker 6: I'm capable of, and felt like it was kind of
• 27:54
  Speaker 6: time to make some changes to.
• 27:57
  Speaker 2: Get better and help this group win.
• 27:58
  Speaker 6: I remember talking to Jed a little bit about just hey,
• 28:01
  Speaker 6: you know, I think if if these couple of things
• 28:04
  Speaker 6: get you know, kind of fixed up a little bit,
• 28:06
  Speaker 6: I think we have a real shot at being an
• 28:08
  Speaker 6: unbelievable baseball team. So I think we're in a good
• 28:10
  Speaker 6: spot right now.
• 28:11
  Speaker 1: But by the way you mentioned Bregman. You guys brought
• 28:14
  Speaker 1: Bregman over. He was drafted behind you. Does he let
• 28:16
  Speaker 1: you know that? Because you know, he wears his number
• 28:18
  Speaker 1: because he wants to remember the guys drafted in front
• 28:20
  Speaker 1: of him. We were one of those guys. Uh, So
• 28:23
  Speaker 1: does he let you know?
• 28:24
  Speaker 2: I let him know. You let him know that he's
• 28:27
  Speaker 2: aware that you know.
• 28:30
  Speaker 6: We were actually at Cubs con and someone was like,
• 28:32
  Speaker 6: because half hour was drafted in the same draft as us,
• 28:34
  Speaker 6: and somebody was mentioning it, and I was just like,
• 28:37
  Speaker 6: could you repeat that? I just want to remember the order,
• 28:40
  Speaker 6: the order that things happened. But I couldn't be more
• 28:42
  Speaker 6: excited to have breag you here. He's he's one of
• 28:44
  Speaker 6: our game's best competitors. I think that that can be
• 28:47
  Speaker 6: a little bit of a lost a lost thing when
• 28:49
  Speaker 6: we value players these days, it's just the ability to
• 28:52
  Speaker 6: make everyone around you better and to bring uh some
• 28:55
  Speaker 6: competitiveness and and intensity each and every day because it's
• 28:59
  Speaker 6: a long season and you're going to need that.
• 29:00
  Speaker 5: So this is your fourth season, going into your fourth
• 29:04
  Speaker 5: season of all the big free agentcy you guys have
• 29:07
  Speaker 5: brought in, or not even big free agents, but any
• 29:09
  Speaker 5: free agents does Bregman bring a different type of energy
• 29:13
  Speaker 5: in the sense of like just how comfortable he is
• 29:17
  Speaker 5: right away, probably because you know he has he has
• 29:20
  Speaker 5: a you know, longer term deal than most other guys
• 29:23
  Speaker 5: that come in. But is there any difference that you
• 29:25
  Speaker 5: feel like he brings to that clubhouse or just the environment.
• 29:30
  Speaker 6: Yeah, I mean, I like, like I said, Jed Carter,
• 29:33
  Speaker 6: accounts really do have such a good pulse on our
• 29:35
  Speaker 6: group and understand the personalities that we need to be successful,
• 29:38
  Speaker 6: and he definitely brings that. I think he's You've seen it.
• 29:42
  Speaker 6: Everywhere he's ever been, he's been successful. He's been able
• 29:45
  Speaker 6: to get the most out of his teammates, and I
• 29:47
  Speaker 6: think that was one of the things that I was
• 29:50
  Speaker 6: personally most excited about was being able to play with
• 29:52
  Speaker 6: him because I felt like he would help, you know,
• 29:54
  Speaker 6: enhance my game and challenge me in different areas that
• 29:57
  Speaker 6: may or may not have had in the past.
• 29:58
  Speaker 2: And you know, it's a fun year playing together.
• 30:01
  Speaker 1: Also, because you were drafted ahead of them, you can
• 30:04
  Speaker 1: let them.
• 30:04
  Speaker 6: We can put that as like the caption of this
• 30:06
  Speaker 6: whole drafted ahead of Alex praigline headline, Danisy.
• 30:09
  Speaker 1: Swanson drafted ahead of Alex Pragman. You mentioned some things
• 30:13
  Speaker 1: you want to change before we get into your personal change.
• 30:16
  Speaker 1: You made some adjustments in your stands. You will work
• 30:18
  Speaker 1: on some different things. But rically used to be known
• 30:22
  Speaker 1: as like a full hitter's park. Right Has it changed?
• 30:25
  Speaker 1: Oh yeah, it's just the wind blows in more. Is
• 30:28
  Speaker 1: it global warming? Is it global cooling?
• 30:30
  Speaker 6: I don't know what it is, but I'm not here
• 30:32
  Speaker 6: for right now. Man, it is last year, it felt
• 30:35
  Speaker 6: like it's like seventy percent of the days were hurting,
• 30:37
  Speaker 6: and then of the other thirty percent felt like twenty
• 30:39
  Speaker 6: of it was like crosswinds.
• 30:41
  Speaker 2: So it wasn't really helping either.
• 30:44
  Speaker 6: There was a couple of days and I'm sure you know,
• 30:46
  Speaker 6: like the game against Seattle or caw Rawley if he
• 30:48
  Speaker 6: could bun a home run. I'm pretty sure that there's
• 30:51
  Speaker 6: been a few days where obviously the ball will fly.
• 30:54
  Speaker 6: It seems like the days that the ball is gonna
• 30:55
  Speaker 6: fly the most you hit the ball on the ground,
• 30:57
  Speaker 6: and the days where it's going in you hit your
• 30:58
  Speaker 6: best bullets.
• 31:00
  Speaker 2: But I mean, it presents its.
• 31:01
  Speaker 6: Own unique challenges, and I think that that's something that
• 31:04
  Speaker 6: you have to get used to and understand. How to
• 31:08
  Speaker 6: you don't want to necessarily change things because you don't
• 31:10
  Speaker 6: want to change a swing to help you for a
• 31:13
  Speaker 6: few days, and then you go on along road trip
• 31:15
  Speaker 6: and then you've kind of lost yourself. So for me,
• 31:18
  Speaker 6: I think just really getting back to a point where
• 31:22
  Speaker 6: the barrel is showing up where it's supposed to show up,
• 31:24
  Speaker 6: to be able to hit the ball hard, whether it's
• 31:26
  Speaker 6: in there on the ground, on a line, and just consistently,
• 31:30
  Speaker 6: you know, being in a good spot to hit it.
• 31:31
  Speaker 6: Sounds simple, but sometimes we can get away from repeating
• 31:35
  Speaker 6: just the simple things over and over and over again.
• 31:37
  Speaker 2: And that's what I've gotten back.
• 31:38
  Speaker 5: To, speaking of showing up, do you are you one
• 31:41
  Speaker 5: of those guys who drives up to the park and
• 31:44
  Speaker 5: immediately looks at the flags when you can first see him,
• 31:46
  Speaker 5: because a lot of guys talk about that.
• 31:49
  Speaker 2: Oh yeah, it's funny.
• 31:51
  Speaker 6: So a lot of guys they're driving based on which
• 31:54
  Speaker 6: way the waves are coming.
• 31:55
  Speaker 1: That's always the thing that guys look at.
• 31:59
  Speaker 2: We actually did a really good job last year of just.
• 32:01
  Speaker 6: We had this kind of whole mantra of embracing Grigley
• 32:05
  Speaker 6: just because there are days where the win's gonna be
• 32:06
  Speaker 6: blown in and you gotta find ways to win, Like,
• 32:08
  Speaker 6: we can't just give up on days because the wind's
• 32:11
  Speaker 6: gonna be blown a certain way.
• 32:12
  Speaker 2: Like, we got to find a way to be able
• 32:13
  Speaker 2: to win baseball games.
• 32:14
  Speaker 6: And so they would always kind of have a little
• 32:17
  Speaker 6: bit of like a video board for us to show us, like, hey,
• 32:19
  Speaker 6: this is what the win's gonna be doing. This is
• 32:21
  Speaker 6: kind of stylid game we're gonna need to play today,
• 32:23
  Speaker 6: and guys would really buy into that. And I think
• 32:25
  Speaker 6: it showed last year. We were really good at home
• 32:26
  Speaker 6: and really good in those close game situations.
• 32:29
  Speaker 1: Now you've played for two great franchises in your career,
• 32:32
  Speaker 1: the Braves where we played together, and now you're with
• 32:34
  Speaker 1: Cubs who I would never play for. So how do
• 32:37
  Speaker 1: you rate each fan base? Because you you grew up
• 32:40
  Speaker 1: a Braves fan, right, you're from the area you were, like,
• 32:43
  Speaker 1: I remember when you made your debut, it was like homecoming.
• 32:46
  Speaker 1: It was like Game of Thrones, like the King of
• 32:48
  Speaker 1: the North has returned. Right, here's Danzy Swans and he
• 32:51
  Speaker 1: can't fail. And now you're in Chicago where it's a
• 32:54
  Speaker 1: little bit different, but now you know they still expect
• 32:56
  Speaker 1: to win. What's the difference in the fan bases that
• 32:59
  Speaker 1: you've seen.
• 33:01
  Speaker 2: There is a difference, but it's not one over the other.
• 33:03
  Speaker 6: Right, I've been so fortunate to play for two of
• 33:05
  Speaker 6: the most storied franchises, obviously growing up in Atlanta and
• 33:08
  Speaker 6: being able to witness the greatness of the Braves for
• 33:10
  Speaker 6: such a long time. You know, I couldn't have been
• 33:14
  Speaker 6: more blessed to have been a part of that and
• 33:16
  Speaker 6: kind of been a part of like the rebuild and
• 33:18
  Speaker 6: ascension back to the top. And in Chicago obviously, just
• 33:24
  Speaker 6: I think some of the big the day gameness and
• 33:27
  Speaker 6: the energy that's brought during some of those times is
• 33:30
  Speaker 6: unique in its own way. Like in Atlanta, you know,
• 33:32
  Speaker 6: no day games, right, all night games by ways. Chicago's
• 33:37
  Speaker 6: a little bit different just because of the of the
• 33:39
  Speaker 6: game times and stuff. But I mean each place, I mean,
• 33:43
  Speaker 6: fans were out each and every game in it, from
• 33:46
  Speaker 6: pitch one to the last one. You know, I've been
• 33:49
  Speaker 6: very blessed in that regard, and h Man, it's it's
• 33:52
  Speaker 6: a pretty cool thing to think about and reflect on.
• 33:55
  Speaker 5: When you sign a large contract like you did with
• 33:57
  Speaker 5: the Cubs, the organization says, hey, this is where we're
• 34:01
  Speaker 5: going in the next few years, have they lived up
• 34:04
  Speaker 5: to that? Have they lived up to what? Because you
• 34:06
  Speaker 5: hear other guys going to organizations they're like, hey, if
• 34:09
  Speaker 5: you sign here, we're gonna spend money. And then two
• 34:11
  Speaker 5: years later, have they lived up to everything? Or is
• 34:15
  Speaker 5: it in even more?
• 34:17
  Speaker 6: Yeah, I mean, I think I just I mean, I
• 34:18
  Speaker 6: think it's pretty easy to see just how how our
• 34:22
  Speaker 6: success has grown, how the roster has grown, the things
• 34:25
  Speaker 6: we've been able to do to kind of more or
• 34:27
  Speaker 6: less like win on the margins. I know that's not
• 34:29
  Speaker 6: a popular term in today's world, but you know, spending
• 34:34
  Speaker 6: money in the right areas, understanding how to get the
• 34:36
  Speaker 6: most out of guys. I think you've really seen that
• 34:38
  Speaker 6: on the pitching side, which has been its own recruiting tool.
• 34:41
  Speaker 6: Just guys that have been able to come back from
• 34:44
  Speaker 6: some injuries or from a year or two of what
• 34:46
  Speaker 6: they feel like is subpar performance and being able to
• 34:49
  Speaker 6: find themselves again and make some money from it. I
• 34:51
  Speaker 6: think that that's a recruiting tool of its own, just
• 34:54
  Speaker 6: guys getting better coming to Chicago. So it's been really
• 34:59
  Speaker 6: cool to see they've been able to build this group
• 35:02
  Speaker 6: and like I said, we have such a good personality
• 35:05
  Speaker 6: on this team. Just guys care about one another, Guys
• 35:07
  Speaker 6: care about the details. They're in it for the right things,
• 35:10
  Speaker 6: very very selfless, wanting to just be a part of
• 35:12
  Speaker 6: something bigger than ourselves. And that really is hard to
• 35:15
  Speaker 6: find in professional sports. It's not common. Aj obviously could
• 35:18
  Speaker 6: tell you, like, that's not common for a bunch of
• 35:21
  Speaker 6: professionals and adults with their own lives to be able
• 35:23
  Speaker 6: to come together for a greater purpose. And you know,
• 35:25
  Speaker 6: that's something that we talk about all the time and
• 35:28
  Speaker 6: really have embraced.
• 35:29
  Speaker 1: Before we let you go, you mentioned Mallory, your wife.
• 35:31
  Speaker 1: She has an Olympic medal, she has a Women's World Cup. Now,
• 35:34
  Speaker 1: if you were able to play in twenty twenty eight
• 35:36
  Speaker 1: with the Winter Olympics just wrapping up and the hockey
• 35:39
  Speaker 1: teams both winning, would that be bragging rights? If you
• 35:42
  Speaker 1: were able to maybe to go to twenty eight and
• 35:44
  Speaker 1: play in the Olympics and win a gold medal, would
• 35:46
  Speaker 1: you come home and say, Mallory, I got one too.
• 35:49
  Speaker 1: There's a World Series rank up there, like where does
• 35:52
  Speaker 1: the World Series rank on the Swanson family hierarchy? World
• 35:55
  Speaker 1: Series gold medal with Women's World thing?
• 35:57
  Speaker 6: So she has a World Cup, which is every four years,
• 35:59
  Speaker 6: so it makes it even hard to win one, right,
• 36:01
  Speaker 6: every four years, things are kind of ever changing in
• 36:05
  Speaker 6: the soccer roalm, just with what the team's gonna look like.
• 36:07
  Speaker 6: So she's got that, she does have a gold medal,
• 36:10
  Speaker 6: but the thing is she did score the game winning
• 36:12
  Speaker 6: goal in the goal so it's like the Olympics were
• 36:15
  Speaker 6: to be a thing like I would have to hit
• 36:17
  Speaker 6: like the game winning homer, you know, to win the
• 36:20
  Speaker 6: gold medal, to win the gold medal and say like, hey, honey,
• 36:23
  Speaker 6: I'm on par with what you've been able to accomplish.
• 36:27
  Speaker 3: That impossibly competitive but really fun relationship.
• 36:32
  Speaker 2: That is very cool.
• 36:34
  Speaker 3: Uh, Dansby, thank you for joining us. Great chatting with
• 36:36
  Speaker 3: you here at spring training. Good luck this season. We'll
• 36:38
  Speaker 3: catch you during the season, right awesome.
• 36:41
  Speaker 2: Thank you all.