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Labor Day Special Episode: A Chicago Sports Guide To How Much Our Bullpen Sucks · Monday Morning Cubs Show

0:08
SPEAKER_01: And we're clear.
0:10
SPEAKER_01: Good morning, good afternoon, and evening, Chicago Cubs fans, and welcome back to the Monday Morning Cubs Show.
0:16
SPEAKER_01: Today is Monday, September 7th.
0:19
SPEAKER_01: Happy Labor Day.
0:20
SPEAKER_01: It is your host, Carl, and I'm joined by Mahoney.
0:23
SPEAKER_01: Good to see you, my friend.
0:24
SPEAKER_00: Carl, always a pleasure.
0:26
SPEAKER_00: Good to see you as well.
0:27
SPEAKER_00: Happy Labor Day to you, to the maniacs, etc., etc.
0:32
SPEAKER_00: I mean, typically we might not be recording first thing on Labor Day morning, but hey, we got a ball game in about four hours.
0:38
SPEAKER_00: So we're up, we're grinding, we're getting to work, and Cubs are going to be getting to work to start this week off nice.
0:45
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, it's good to see you guys.
0:46
SPEAKER_01: Again, happy Labor Day.
0:47
SPEAKER_01: The Cubs do play today 120.
0:49
SPEAKER_01: That's like a little Labor Day special for Major League Baseball.
0:52
SPEAKER_01: So go figure, like we bitch, right?
0:55
SPEAKER_01: When it when it's like they don't have games on they need to do a better job July 4th, they need to do a better job on Mother's Day, Father's Day.
1:01
SPEAKER_01: There's a bunch of times throughout the season.
1:02
SPEAKER_01: Then it comes Labor Day.
1:03
SPEAKER_01: It's like I could I could use a 640 today if we're being honest.
1:07
SPEAKER_00: I I could, and then but at the same token, it's like, oh, needed that off day.
1:11
SPEAKER_00: But then it's like the holiday and they're not playing.
1:13
SPEAKER_00: I'd be like, what the hell?
1:14
SPEAKER_00: The Cubs need to be the feature game on a Labor Day weekend.
1:18
SPEAKER_00: So we got that going for us, at least, Carl.
1:21
SPEAKER_00: Hey, it was good to see you over the weekend as well, sir.
1:24
SPEAKER_01: How about it?
1:25
SPEAKER_01: Mahoney shot 77 at Kemper Lakes, ran the gauntlet at Even Par.
1:29
SPEAKER_01: If you guys have played that course course before, it's very hard.
1:31
SPEAKER_01: And you haven't played that much this year.
1:33
SPEAKER_01: Someone's gonna say, is Mahoney gonna call?
1:35
SPEAKER_01: Mahoney plays MP53 Mizuno Blade.
1:38
SPEAKER_01: So I'm not we're not gonna get into the conversation if Mahoney can hit it or not.
1:41
SPEAKER_01: It's just the fact if you look at the bag, you should send out a picture of the bag, though, because there is the saying the uglier the bag, the nastier looking the clubs, like the better the player.
1:50
SPEAKER_01: I don't mean shitty clubs either, like these are high-end clubs, but from the perspective of you're just a gross golfer.
1:55
SPEAKER_01: It was great to see you.
1:56
SPEAKER_00: It was great to see you.
1:58
SPEAKER_00: I do think it's funny too, just the little bit older we get, how peaceful an afternoon of that nature is in comparison as it was maybe 15, 20 years ago, neither here nor there.
2:09
SPEAKER_00: It was uh one of those things that really filled the soul points for me.
2:13
SPEAKER_00: I probably yourself thank you, Tooie, for having us out at great time.
2:18
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, how about this?
2:19
SPEAKER_01: I can tell you exactly.
2:20
SPEAKER_01: I had you're gonna not believe this.
2:23
SPEAKER_01: I had four beverages on the course, obviously thirsty for carob with with cot, I mean cocktails.
2:30
SPEAKER_01: So, like on four occasions, I had spicy watermelon and vodka.
2:36
SPEAKER_01: And then afterwards, I had I did I did, I had a nice cold pills there afterwards.
2:41
SPEAKER_01: Now, but my point to you is can you ever think of a time where I had what what four four on the fourth?
2:48
SPEAKER_01: No, on 18, my friend.
2:50
SPEAKER_00: That's what I'm saying.
2:51
SPEAKER_00: Like, yeah, that could be on the front nine, but and then this day and age it's just a little bit different, nice and casual, feeling good, and it was very nice for you to bring some thirsty Vs along for the ride as well.
3:03
SPEAKER_01: Hey, speaking of which, that's the official title sponsor.
3:06
SPEAKER_01: We're gonna get back to the to what we talked about while we were playing golf because it does impact the show.
3:11
SPEAKER_01: We kind of outline the show throughout the 18 holes.
3:13
SPEAKER_01: Mahoney played awesome, but there is no show for us to talk about without Thirsty.
3:18
SPEAKER_01: Carol, Mexican-style soda with the signature spicy finish.
3:21
SPEAKER_01: That's all bite, no rattle.
3:22
SPEAKER_01: And like I said, obviously, if it's on the golf course, you know, if it's in the backyard, if it's in the fridge, you name it, it's it's gonna hit.
3:34
SPEAKER_00: Absolutely, Carl.
3:35
SPEAKER_00: It hits you right at the front of the taste buds, right at the back of the taste buds.
3:39
SPEAKER_00: It is one of the I love being able to mix it up too on the front nine and the back nine.
3:43
SPEAKER_00: I start out with a Lamon Ladron, finish it up with a Merte, and the clubhouse, I'm having a Sandy of Savai or Savai spicy watermelon.
3:53
SPEAKER_00: So it's just it's perfect way to mix it up, dude, and like keep things fresh on the course.
3:58
SPEAKER_00: If you're not hitting it well, switch up a flavor.
4:01
SPEAKER_01: Hey, I like that course a lot, tea to green, too.
4:04
SPEAKER_01: I think as far as tea boxes, fairways, and greens are concerned, it's a big piece of property.
4:08
SPEAKER_01: Don't get me wrong.
4:09
SPEAKER_01: I mean, just unbelievable.
4:10
SPEAKER_01: T-shots, very guarded.
4:13
SPEAKER_01: You know, am I a great golf or not?
4:14
SPEAKER_01: By any stretch of the imagination, that's a great place to go hit it around.
4:18
SPEAKER_01: So if you know Kemper Lakes, and I don't like steering away from the outline too much.
4:22
SPEAKER_01: I'm just saying, we're talking about it.
4:24
SPEAKER_01: Mahoney fire, dude.
4:26
SPEAKER_01: And I want to say you had a four.
4:28
SPEAKER_01: What did you have on the front?
4:29
SPEAKER_01: Did you go 4136 or did you go 40-37?
4:33
SPEAKER_01: You were over 40 on the front nine.
4:35
SPEAKER_00: It was four, yeah.
4:36
SPEAKER_00: No, it was 40-37 with the those three putts.
4:40
SPEAKER_00: I think I would have been a little bit in a different scenario on the front nine, but hey, take it when you can.
4:45
SPEAKER_01: I know it's hilarious.
4:47
SPEAKER_01: That's not a not a true, honest, true, honest man's golf course.
4:51
SPEAKER_01: That's Kemper Lakes.
4:52
SPEAKER_01: Mahoney ran the gauntlet at even power.
4:54
SPEAKER_01: I was plus three fucking pin locations.
4:56
SPEAKER_01: Uh, back to Thirsty Vicero, though.
4:58
SPEAKER_01: We do have some awards to give out.
5:00
SPEAKER_01: Then we're gonna get into some of the outline.
5:01
SPEAKER_01: What Mahoney and I talked about.
5:03
SPEAKER_01: It's Labor Day, we won't waste your time.
5:05
SPEAKER_01: I say that as a joke.
5:06
SPEAKER_01: I'm actually being dead fucking serious, Lizard King.
5:11
SPEAKER_01: All right, so spicy watermelon.
5:12
SPEAKER_01: Well, I mean, right into it.
5:14
SPEAKER_01: Spicy, spicy watermelon player of the week is Pete Crow Armstrong.
5:17
SPEAKER_01: Why Mahoney?
5:18
SPEAKER_00: I mean, he's hit 40 home runs for us, he's like the first and whatever, yada yada, yada, yada.
5:23
SPEAKER_00: He's our MVP, he's our spicy watermelon, P.
5:26
SPEAKER_00: Crow Armstrong.
5:28
SPEAKER_01: Did you ever think at a point in time when we've been doing this show that he would be as good as he is?
5:34
SPEAKER_00: No, and the ceiling was very high.
5:37
SPEAKER_00: He's exploded through it, and here we are.
5:39
SPEAKER_00: I am in absolute awe of this unbelievable athlete.
5:47
SPEAKER_01: Is this might be our only moment on the show to really get on our knees and blow PCA?
5:52
SPEAKER_01: And he deserves it because he's just been sensational.
5:55
SPEAKER_01: Here, I'll point this out because you can find the numbers in the stats everywhere else.
5:58
SPEAKER_01: I love Brendan Miller.
6:00
SPEAKER_01: Check him out, he's talked extensively about P.
6:01
SPEAKER_01: Crow Amstrong's hand position, foot position in the box.
6:05
SPEAKER_01: If you really want to get deep on that, uh, one thing I would just offer up for Labor Day, more of a casual observation.
6:10
SPEAKER_01: I don't know if you saw, but like we had all the Bulls, the Blackhawks, uh, the Bears, like a bunch of guys wearing the Cubs uniform.
6:19
SPEAKER_01: Have not seen that before in my time.
6:21
SPEAKER_01: I remember one time Paris Hilton was in a Brian Erlacher jersey.
6:24
SPEAKER_01: I think she was getting finger banged by the soda machine next to Harriet Carey between the fifth and the sixth inning.
6:30
SPEAKER_01: That's literally the only time I can think of.
6:32
SPEAKER_01: Or like when Belushi throws on a Blackhawks.
6:35
SPEAKER_01: Like, can you think of other moments?
6:37
SPEAKER_00: No, no, you really can't, other than like a lot of the old timers coming together.
6:43
SPEAKER_00: You remember those the Blackhawks guys that were like just soaking it all in, they were showing up, but not the the current athletic landscape uh in Chicago rooting each other on seems to be becoming boys.
6:58
SPEAKER_00: One of the cooler things that I've been seeing, and it doesn't seem like it's just one of those one-trick ponies for these guys to be making an appearance, so very, very special time uh, you know, to be a Chicago sports fan.
7:10
SPEAKER_01: Okay, new segment here.
7:11
SPEAKER_01: It's called Chicken or the Egg.
7:13
SPEAKER_01: PCA is the chicken, Caleb Williams is the egg.
7:17
SPEAKER_01: Which one came first in this concept of I'm gonna get the guys together?
7:21
SPEAKER_01: Is it Caleb Williams being the number one overall draft pick?
7:24
SPEAKER_01: Is he the chicken here?
7:26
SPEAKER_01: Is it him winning games against the Packers that then gets Mattis out, that then gets Bedard out, you know, the new bowl?
7:32
SPEAKER_01: What's his name?
7:32
SPEAKER_01: Or is it the fact that PCA is clear-cut winner?
7:35
SPEAKER_01: Is he the egg?
7:36
SPEAKER_00: Oh god, I so I think I'm just gonna go ahead and say the new segment.
7:40
SPEAKER_00: New segment.
7:41
SPEAKER_00: Caleb's the chicken beating the Packers.
7:45
SPEAKER_00: He got a little bit rolling before PCA got rolling.
7:48
SPEAKER_00: PCA had arrived, but you know, he really didn't quite break through yet.
7:52
SPEAKER_00: You know, you saw him pecking out of the shell, and then Caleb William and the but and now he exploded out of the shell.
7:59
SPEAKER_00: That thing's fully hatched, no more hatchlings.
8:02
SPEAKER_00: Um, that there's there we go, and in the in the full roundabout circle way.
8:07
SPEAKER_00: That's well I got there.
8:09
SPEAKER_01: I'm never telling you about segments again.
8:11
SPEAKER_01: That was fantastic, my friend.
8:13
SPEAKER_01: Uh, we're still drinking Thirsty for Carol.
8:15
SPEAKER_01: They are the title sponsor of today's show.
8:17
SPEAKER_01: You can go to Amazon, you can get them shipped right to the front door.
8:20
SPEAKER_01: They do have three flavors for like the 10th week in a row, PCA's are spicy watermelon.
8:24
SPEAKER_01: I have a mango muerte, it's Alex Bregman.
8:27
SPEAKER_01: He's got a 242 weighted run created plus.
8:29
SPEAKER_01: That's a number that's going to come up throughout today's show, and that's over the last calendar week.
8:34
SPEAKER_01: He's just been sensational.
8:35
SPEAKER_01: NL player of the month, 12 homers in August, 300 career, uh, 300 batting average.
8:42
SPEAKER_01: So, some of the tones and themes will get into this show a little bit later.
8:45
SPEAKER_01: We know the big problem.
8:46
SPEAKER_01: I come in here, motherfucking pitching staff with the best of them, boys.
8:49
SPEAKER_01: There ain't no doubt about it.
8:50
SPEAKER_01: And there's plenty of time to do that.
8:52
SPEAKER_01: We're just gonna, it's Labor Day, it's a federal holiday.
8:55
SPEAKER_00: Keep it light, it's nice and light.
8:57
SPEAKER_00: I'm in a good mood, you're in a good mood.
8:58
SPEAKER_00: Let's just stay that way.
9:00
SPEAKER_01: You're two, three putts away from honestly me coming in here and doing a big tap dance about a 75.
9:04
SPEAKER_01: So, but far far be it from me to sit here and say anything other than Alex Bregman, Mango Morte.
9:10
SPEAKER_01: They're just the guys really turned it on after kind of what?
9:13
SPEAKER_01: After kind of punching you in the mouth a little bit, which which a mango muerte will do, but it will have you what coming back for more.
9:19
SPEAKER_00: That's right, Carl.
9:21
SPEAKER_00: Who do you have for Lamone Ladron?
9:23
SPEAKER_00: It's Nico Horner, Lamone Ladrone, you know, coming in.
9:26
SPEAKER_00: One of the more traditional flavors, I'd say, in the bunts, but um, you know, last but not certainly not least, you he's been holding it down at shortstop, playing very well with the bat.
9:37
SPEAKER_00: Nico Horner, Lamone Ladrone.
9:40
SPEAKER_01: Couldn't argue any better than that.
9:42
SPEAKER_01: And again, guys, go to Amazon, get it shipped to your front door.
9:47
SPEAKER_01: We should have, I should have put a better spot on the outline for Pete Crow Armstrong.
9:51
SPEAKER_01: Don't think it's necessary.
9:52
SPEAKER_01: He will end up with what 46 homers this year, 47 homers.
9:57
SPEAKER_01: The only reason he won't have 40 stolen bases is because now we're at the point in the season he doesn't need to be swiping bags, I suppose.
10:04
SPEAKER_01: But but who's to say otherwise?
10:06
SPEAKER_01: So some of the stuff Mahoney and I talked on the golf course today, you know, like could or should we have swept the Brewers going into the Marlins?
10:14
SPEAKER_01: The expectation was two and three.
10:16
SPEAKER_01: We end up four and three this past week.
10:18
SPEAKER_01: Uh, we could have been six and one, you know, but at the same time, we're seven games behind the Brewers with the series starting, you know, today.
10:25
SPEAKER_01: So there's just a little, it's just a weird feeling.
10:28
SPEAKER_01: How easily do you want to get over?
10:30
SPEAKER_01: It seemed like on Saturday, Mahoney, you were ready to move on.
10:33
SPEAKER_00: I was ready to move on.
10:34
SPEAKER_00: I saw really what I needed to see.
10:36
SPEAKER_00: You had already kind of covered a lot of this on Friday, you know, with like we have golfman, we have homes.
10:42
SPEAKER_00: I know what we can bring to a series.
10:44
SPEAKER_00: I think we have a better lineup, they got grittier players, play the game maybe a little bit harder.
10:50
SPEAKER_00: We all we know what we know now.
10:51
SPEAKER_00: We can get to the Miz.
10:53
SPEAKER_00: We know our bullpen sucks.
10:54
SPEAKER_00: So, what's the point of going coulda, woulda, shoulda?
10:57
SPEAKER_00: And that's where we we let things, you know, left off.
11:01
SPEAKER_01: And I think getting our doors blown off yesterday, to me, a loss is a loss.
11:06
SPEAKER_01: You take two or three from the Marlins, that could have sucked.
11:09
SPEAKER_01: We do bounce back, we should have could have won a series against the Brewers, you know, like there's a lot to get into.
11:17
SPEAKER_01: However, again, federal holiday, kicking things off with the Brewers.
11:22
SPEAKER_01: There's really no need for a series preview.
11:24
SPEAKER_01: We don't need to recap the Marlins too much.
11:27
SPEAKER_01: We do have an off-day Thursday that will kind of dig in and break down what happens with the Brewers.
11:32
SPEAKER_01: So ultimately, what I thought is it'd be cool if we just start, we'll look at the schedule for a second, get our hands wrapped around where we're at, where Philadelphia's at, because I think it's important to say we're seven games behind Milwaukee.
11:45
SPEAKER_01: We're just a half game up on the Phillies.
11:48
SPEAKER_01: They have a day game today against the Braves, you know.
11:51
SPEAKER_01: So I'm a little I'm prepared.
11:53
SPEAKER_01: I'm prepared to talk a little bit about Philly's schedule, I'm prepared to talk a little bit about the Cubs, you know, future schedule.
12:00
SPEAKER_01: We just have to agree.
12:01
SPEAKER_01: I understand the bullpen's bad.
12:02
SPEAKER_01: There's gonna be a time to talk about how much they suck later.
12:06
SPEAKER_01: You know, I I I'm I'm broken because I just don't even know.
12:10
SPEAKER_01: So like I'm not gonna waste the time.
12:13
SPEAKER_00: I want to waste just a little bit of the time, and and I kind of want you explaining a few things is like how bad the pitching staff is.
12:23
SPEAKER_00: I hate you.
12:24
SPEAKER_00: Uh can we just break it down?
12:26
SPEAKER_00: Give me some like regular Joe analogies to where I know you we got great numbers across the board as a team, but how bad is this pitching staff and could the story be maybe a little bit different?
12:39
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I mean, it's bad.
12:41
SPEAKER_01: The story could be different, it should.
12:44
SPEAKER_01: You know, what I'd like to do is kind of get and flip a page about about mentally where can we be at right now on a federal holiday?
12:52
SPEAKER_00: Fair, yes, yes, because I don't want yeah, that's too sour to start, correct?
12:56
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, can people enjoy themselves on a federal holiday?
13:00
SPEAKER_01: You know, I think that is, I think that's a place to be, but I understand where you're coming from when you're saying, listen, we're not getting out of this one.
13:07
SPEAKER_01: We absolutely have to talk about the pitching staff, right?
13:10
SPEAKER_01: Like it's that bad.
13:11
SPEAKER_01: I I would assume is that where you're coming from?
13:13
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, and I kind of might might have been just jumping the gun to where my mind's at, but yeah, that's where I was coming from.
13:19
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
13:20
SPEAKER_01: I don't think you're I mean, I don't think you're jumping the gun.
13:23
SPEAKER_01: I think you're you're co-hosting the show.
13:26
SPEAKER_01: Um what I don't want to do is get you know get down in into a rabbit hole here about why I think things can be positive if you get a sense that there are people listening to this that are going, hey there's nerves we can't ignore them.
13:41
SPEAKER_01: Okay.
13:43
SPEAKER_01: Because if it's if I start going into this rabbit hole about weighted run created plus, and actually the Cubs in high leverage, you know, the reality is that our bullpen did just shit the fucking bed last week, and that if there is any kind of questions about the team, it is the bullpen.
13:58
SPEAKER_01: So I would go back.
14:00
SPEAKER_01: We talked about Caleb Williams.
14:01
SPEAKER_01: There's probably a couple different scenarios in my head that I think would make a Cubs fan more comfortable.
14:05
SPEAKER_01: And maybe you're not a Bears fan, but like we've lived through it.
14:08
SPEAKER_01: I the this no bullpen situation, it would be akin to like, is it as bad as taking Brian Erlacher and Lance Briggs and Peanut Tillman and putting them on one side of the ball and then like literally not fielding a quarterback for a decade?
14:24
SPEAKER_01: Like, is that the is that a similar thing where you're looking at PCA and Bregman and you know you're looking at Nico Horner and all these guys having just like awesome second halves, and then the back end, it's like we don't have any.
14:35
SPEAKER_01: We what do you mean we don't we can't find one guy?
14:39
SPEAKER_00: An entire phase of the game is non-existent.
14:43
SPEAKER_01: We can't find one we couldn't find, we went through this before with the Bulls.
14:47
SPEAKER_01: I feel like obviously after D Rose got hurt, that was an awkward transition because we were trying to figure it out.
14:53
SPEAKER_01: But like you're telling me we couldn't find one guy to play next to Jimmy Butler.
14:57
SPEAKER_01: Like, I know Gasal was a like we had so many third chairs that were fine, but we couldn't find one fucking guy who was like, Yeah, I'll come to Chicago and play with Jimmy Butler.
15:07
SPEAKER_01: Is that a similar comparison?
15:09
SPEAKER_01: Probably that's probably more egregious, maybe I don't know.
15:14
SPEAKER_00: I mean, yeah, just no wingman to to push it during like a guy who's or was a superstar that was dropped in your lap essentially.
15:24
SPEAKER_01: Is it that bad?
15:26
SPEAKER_01: I mean, or is it like well, Phil Mayton's hurt and Hunter Harvey's hurt, and like actually turns out Zavarishan's just okay.
15:32
SPEAKER_01: And like, oops, did you know Daniel Palencia is like giving up a 1,000 OPS to left-handed pitching?
15:40
SPEAKER_01: You know, so like some of that stuff, I suppose, could be ration at like rationed.
15:44
SPEAKER_01: But then the thing I'd come back and say is Tom Rickens broke the luxury tax this year.
15:49
SPEAKER_01: We spent$35 million on a third baseman, who has been damn good, but like we had a third basem at the league minimum, so like we spent all that money to upgrade a position when like we literally don't have any of a position right now, so I'm in a unique position to to complain and to try and figure out where to complain.
16:07
SPEAKER_01: I'm just trying to ration my way through.
16:09
SPEAKER_01: Like, we have the best defense, we have the best offense, we actually have pretty good starting pitching for a seven-game playoff series between Clay Holmes, Kevin Gossman, and Matt Boyd.
16:20
SPEAKER_01: Like, I know Clay Holmes didn't look good yesterday in Miami, whatever.
16:23
SPEAKER_01: Hopefully, he was out banging hookers the night before.
16:25
SPEAKER_01: But like, you know, and I say that loosely, guys.
16:28
SPEAKER_00: What I'm saying is it's a tough getaway day, tough getaway day.
16:32
SPEAKER_00: If we're gonna be able to do it anybody in South Florida, yeah.
16:34
SPEAKER_01: Anybody who's been to that city in that stadium in that area, like maybe that can get away from me.
16:39
SPEAKER_01: So who knows?
16:40
SPEAKER_01: Maybe it got away from them, you know.
16:42
SPEAKER_01: Yep, but I have all these things where I'm going, man, it's all this positive, and then you look at the other side and you go, Are you have to be kidding me?
16:49
SPEAKER_01: And so that's where I'm like the the analogy is in my head, okay.
16:52
SPEAKER_01: So, like the bulls, they have it just are you have to be kidding me?
16:55
SPEAKER_01: There's a bunch of like you have to be kidding me moments, but I think probably in the last decade.
17:01
SPEAKER_01: And and I had listen, I'm doing parody songs.
17:04
SPEAKER_01: I liked Levine, I liked Paul.
17:07
SPEAKER_01: All right, I was big on DeRozan.
17:11
SPEAKER_01: Uh, I think it's like crazy we can find somebody to play with Jimmy Butler.
17:15
SPEAKER_01: Here's another one.
17:16
SPEAKER_01: I think it's I think it's crazy Jerry Reinsorf is not he's never spent over a hundred million dollars on a player.
17:22
SPEAKER_01: Am I correct on that?
17:23
SPEAKER_01: No, dad, that has to be a fact, Jack.
17:25
SPEAKER_00: Not a crackerjack.
17:27
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, he's never that that to me they just don't spend money ever, and not not ever, not after they won the World Series.
17:37
SPEAKER_01: Like they traded Aaron Rowan for a DH.
17:40
SPEAKER_01: No offense to Jim Tomey.
17:42
SPEAKER_01: I mean, I'm he's great, the dumbest fucking rocks.
17:45
SPEAKER_01: Uh but and I shouldn't say that.
17:48
SPEAKER_01: I mean, like, whatever.
17:49
SPEAKER_01: I'll say it.
17:50
SPEAKER_01: I don't give a fuck.
17:50
SPEAKER_01: He's first belt hall of fame.
17:52
SPEAKER_01: That guy's he came and spoke to the Illinois baseball team one time, and he was like, No, I'm sure you guys have a lot of questions because I'm Jim Tome and I play in the major leagues.
18:01
SPEAKER_01: So I'll just go ahead.
18:02
SPEAKER_01: I I would imagine that I'll start with what I would imagine your first one is this is how you guys find a good agent.
18:08
SPEAKER_01: We're sitting there like, what the fuck?
18:10
SPEAKER_01: Who beat Jim Tomey over the head as a kid?
18:14
SPEAKER_01: No, he's not on steroids, but he he didn't do steroids.
18:18
SPEAKER_01: But I love I love Jim Tomy, but Jerry Reinsdorf traded for Jim Tomey, and I shouldn't say Jerry Reinsdorf, Kenny Williams did.
18:27
SPEAKER_01: Now we're kind of getting off tail here.
18:28
SPEAKER_01: It's a federal holiday, Mahoney.
18:30
SPEAKER_01: My point is like it's one of those bad how baffling is it the Cubs are this bad as a bullpen.
18:35
SPEAKER_01: Is it fair to compare it to Jerry Reinsdorf and his in like his just he's never spent over a hundred?
18:40
SPEAKER_01: How, how, how maybe that's too that one might be what's I'm trying to connect it.
18:46
SPEAKER_00: I'm trying to connect the dots more.
18:48
SPEAKER_00: It's more the the not playing like getting somebody to play with Jimmy Butler or not having a huge component of uh a successful football team.
18:58
SPEAKER_00: And it is it's it's crazy how well we've done because of how well we've performed elsewhere, you know, aside from this pitching staff conundrum.
19:09
SPEAKER_01: I don't know.
19:10
SPEAKER_01: I I'm trying to figure out what the fuck that just meant.
19:13
SPEAKER_01: And I don't mean that to be rude.
19:15
SPEAKER_01: I'm I what I'm trying to figure out Yeah, I'm trying what I'm trying to figure out is if we had a rank like it's actually what is it?
19:22
SPEAKER_01: Is it actually unbelievable?
19:24
SPEAKER_01: Jimmy Butler spent six years in Chicago and we traded him.
19:33
SPEAKER_01: That's that's insane.
19:35
SPEAKER_01: That's insane.
19:36
SPEAKER_01: All right.
19:37
SPEAKER_01: Now now, is that as insane?
19:39
SPEAKER_01: And again, we're keeping this in context because this is all in comparison.
19:43
SPEAKER_01: We have I'll get into it with numbers.
19:45
SPEAKER_01: Do you think I will, Mahoney?
19:47
SPEAKER_01: I I know you will.
19:48
SPEAKER_01: That's a strike.
19:49
SPEAKER_01: We we are the number one offense in Major League Baseball.
19:53
SPEAKER_01: You can pick it any way you want to.
19:55
SPEAKER_01: I am inclined to have that conversation.
19:57
SPEAKER_01: We have the best defense in baseball, we have no bullpen.
20:02
SPEAKER_01: You can't even say it's the worst bullpen in baseball at this point.
20:04
SPEAKER_01: The guys who have shown up have been the worst.
20:06
SPEAKER_01: Those guys are all gone.
20:07
SPEAKER_01: We don't have anybody, we have not.
20:12
SPEAKER_01: So how insane that is that of the you know, however, many different categories are we're number one in offense, we're number one in defense.
20:22
SPEAKER_01: We have we have good one, two, three starting pitching for playoffs.
20:26
SPEAKER_01: I don't know how they fucking rank that, but like we bullpen incomplete.
20:30
SPEAKER_01: This is taking the ACT and going 36, 36, 31, 4.
20:37
SPEAKER_01: We're at four.
20:39
SPEAKER_00: Your score is just trashed.
20:42
SPEAKER_01: All right, so between the three, I've already bought brought up Bears quarterback while Erlacker and Briggs and Tillman are on roster.
20:49
SPEAKER_01: Uh trading Jimmy Butler after having him for six years, or what was the other one?
20:53
SPEAKER_01: Jerry Randsworth never spending a hundred million dollars on a freight.
20:57
SPEAKER_01: Which one is the most, or obviously the Cubs having the worst noble?
21:00
SPEAKER_01: What's the most insane out of these things?
21:04
SPEAKER_00: I think the one that's the most insane, but that's the most relatable, is really just no quarterback having no quarterback on the Bears.
21:11
SPEAKER_00: All right, just a whole facet.
21:13
SPEAKER_00: They'll keep you in it, but you know, what are you gonna do?
21:17
SPEAKER_01: A couple everyday living life comparisons, then see if any of these come across and go, that's actually worse than the woman.
21:24
SPEAKER_01: Now, you know that traffic in Chicago, and I'm sorry if you're not local to Chicago, but north of we'll just say from Jane Burn, north to where do you want to take it?
21:34
SPEAKER_01: Armitage is usually where a lot of people start peeling off, where you are dead gridlocked on a Saturday afternoon.
21:41
SPEAKER_01: And it's never gotten better, it never will get better.
21:44
SPEAKER_01: It's it is it's the bane of my existence.
21:47
SPEAKER_01: Now I understand 290 is gonna be bad, it's always gonna be bad, guys.
21:50
SPEAKER_01: They're not gonna in they're not gonna invest in the near west side of Chicago.
21:54
SPEAKER_01: So certainly not in any capacity that makes it easier or makes it traffic more dense there.
22:00
SPEAKER_01: I'm just getting into that specific window of ninety by the salt shed.
22:03
SPEAKER_00: You're speaking out like you're speaking my language here, because if you even think about it, like you're on ninety, especially towards Armitage, and you make you get a couple guys get healthy, but you know the express lane opens up.
22:17
SPEAKER_00: You think you have, oh hell yeah, I'm on I got an express lane now on ninety, and it then is you go maybe not even a quarter mile, just as jammed, just as backed up, didn't do shit for you.
22:30
SPEAKER_00: And you're you're still living in that hell, never improves.
22:36
SPEAKER_01: I can get specific if I want to carve out windows at 294.
22:40
SPEAKER_01: You know, if we if you really want to be specific about stretches at 55, I mean, obviously north of Joliet, but not pretty far south out there that are really terrible stretches.
22:50
SPEAKER_01: But I'm talking about with the context of you, just it'll never get better.
22:54
SPEAKER_01: It'll never, it'll never get better.
22:56
SPEAKER_01: Like, at least our bullpen could get better.
22:58
SPEAKER_01: You know, when I size up that stretch of Chicago traffic, I go, This is never going anywhere.
23:02
SPEAKER_01: This is this is we are fucked.
23:04
SPEAKER_01: Like, at least in my mind, right?
23:07
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I see a highlight on Twitter, Jackson Wiggins scored this last five outings.
23:11
SPEAKER_01: I go, Maybe that's the maybe that lane is opening up.
23:15
SPEAKER_00: Maybe it is, and then there's just another construction project that they announce, and it'll be like, All right, well, this will last another 10-15 years.
23:23
SPEAKER_01: In the same vein, just throwing it on the list here.
23:25
SPEAKER_01: We don't have to like dig into this.
23:27
SPEAKER_01: Do you is this is what I'm you're in Cook County.
23:31
SPEAKER_01: Yes, okay.
23:32
SPEAKER_01: I'm barely county.
23:34
SPEAKER_01: You're at the real fringe of Cook County.
23:36
SPEAKER_01: See, like Cook County is a place, and I grew up in Cook County, I love Cook County, I rep Cook County.
23:41
SPEAKER_01: I'm likely buying property in Cook County in the next, I don't know, we'll say 24 to whatever in in a year and a half to two years, we're probably getting property in Cook County.
23:53
SPEAKER_01: Right now we live in Kane County, we have property there, etc.
23:56
SPEAKER_01: But when I think of Cook County and the just how fucked it is, it's the pro the taxes, how corrupt the politics are, the budgets, people are gonna say, What do I know?
24:06
SPEAKER_01: I worked in that shit, guys.
24:07
SPEAKER_01: I grew up in this stuff, I know all about this stuff.
24:10
SPEAKER_01: I interned for companies in this stuff.
24:13
SPEAKER_01: My first job was at the Chicago Metropolitan Water Reclamation District.
24:17
SPEAKER_01: I was getting checks cut at four, I was making deliveries, I was making hand deliveries across the city, getting on a metro with a backpack full of stuff and making hand deliveries of 14 to 15 years old.
24:28
SPEAKER_01: I'm all over the space.
24:29
SPEAKER_01: I can tell you the cook when I tell you the pension crisis, when I tell you how fucked Cook County is, but then at the same time, you go on an architecture tour, you have a lovely time, it's very beautiful.
24:39
SPEAKER_01: So, my point is with you.
24:40
SPEAKER_01: I can see you're looking through the bills and stuff.
24:42
SPEAKER_00: My property tax bill right here.
24:45
SPEAKER_00: Yes, it's it's where you live, it is out of control.
24:49
SPEAKER_01: I don't want to say how much I'll I'll challenge it, I'll assess, and I'll still get screwed one way or the other.
24:57
SPEAKER_00: There's you can't make sense out of these things.
25:00
SPEAKER_01: Oh, and this this back scratching on the reassessment stuff, you know, Ed Burke going to jail, obviously Madigan getting wiretapped.
25:08
SPEAKER_01: Matt, the whole Madigan stuff.
25:10
SPEAKER_01: I used to have it just fringe, fringe, touch, fringe, touch and go stuff.
25:14
SPEAKER_01: And the his family, his family would do so much government business, private stuff, contracts, no bid contracts.
25:22
SPEAKER_01: You know, stuff where you're going, what do you mean you guys aren't?
25:24
SPEAKER_01: What do you guys you guys do?
25:25
SPEAKER_01: I mean, as clear as getting out the risk management.
25:28
SPEAKER_01: So that's obviously super what I'm trying to paint here and going back to the Cubs Bullpin.
25:33
SPEAKER_01: That's obviously so fucked.
25:34
SPEAKER_01: I know that's fucked.
25:35
SPEAKER_01: I know when you buy the house in Cook County, it's screwed.
25:38
SPEAKER_01: I know when you're running for office, it's screwed.
25:40
SPEAKER_01: It's just it's there's nothing you can do about it.
25:42
SPEAKER_01: Like, at least we're not that bad, are we?
25:45
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, there's nothing.
25:47
SPEAKER_01: Is our bullpen that bad?
25:48
SPEAKER_00: Is our bullpen that bad?
25:50
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, strike, strike.
25:51
SPEAKER_00: It's bad.
25:51
SPEAKER_00: That's that is that bad.
25:53
SPEAKER_00: But it I don't know if it's as well.
25:55
SPEAKER_00: Is anyone running for office?
25:57
SPEAKER_01: Is anybody running for office?
25:59
SPEAKER_01: We're going this guy.
26:00
SPEAKER_01: I saw Justin Steele made a couple.
26:03
SPEAKER_00: We'll see.
26:04
SPEAKER_01: All right, I one more, just the last one.
26:07
SPEAKER_01: Off the just the last one here.
26:11
SPEAKER_01: I have plenty of friends who've lived through this.
26:13
SPEAKER_01: And it's again, it's the the concept of like the offense is number one, the defense is number one, we have good enough starting pitch, and that's like we have no bullpen.
26:21
SPEAKER_01: So you work from home, you make a fuck ton of money, like you have nobody, nobody's really up, nobody's really kind of like you know, nobody's really kind of giving you it up up the butt.
26:35
SPEAKER_01: You like it's a hmm, what's the right way to say that?
26:37
SPEAKER_01: Because obviously it's work, like relationships suck, you gotta do Zoom calls.
26:40
SPEAKER_01: The thing that sucks is like you hate yourself, your soul has left your body.
26:44
SPEAKER_01: Like, you're doing you're doing what are you doing?
26:46
SPEAKER_01: You're doing plastic injection, customer service, international work.
26:51
SPEAKER_01: You have to work just awful hours from home.
26:53
SPEAKER_01: You're at you're you're working mostly with teams that are offshore and where you pick it, they hardly speak what you speak.
27:01
SPEAKER_01: What do you want to say about it?
27:02
SPEAKER_00: I mean, it could be odd hours, but I think the crux is really where you're doing so well, making so much money, you almost can't even bitch about it to your friends or family because oh, come on, Johnny, you're doing so good.
27:18
SPEAKER_02: Look at how much money you project is unbelievable.
27:20
SPEAKER_02: Good job.
27:21
SPEAKER_00: I you hey, if I'm getting paid that much, I know I'd be able to stick through it.
27:25
SPEAKER_00: While you're just like your eyes are turning blacker by the minute, and it's eating you inside every time you open or look at that computer screen, or it's the sixth or seventh inning, you know, and it's like, oh god, here we go.
27:41
SPEAKER_00: Even if you remember short bursts.
27:44
SPEAKER_01: Do you remember that place I lived in in Roscoe Village on the third floor?
27:48
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, it was like vividly the balcony.
27:51
SPEAKER_01: So there's like not that many multi-unit places in Roscoe Village, it's mostly houses.
27:58
SPEAKER_01: Now, a lot of the houses are cut into three-floor flats, so those are multi-units, and then there's townhouses, and there's some corner multi-units.
28:06
SPEAKER_01: But if you go to Lakeview, uh, if you go east into Lakeview, if you go further east into east Lakeview and north into uptown and all that stuff, you'll see tons of densely populated multi-unit, four or five-story, you know, four-unit, etc.
28:20
SPEAKER_01: So the and I'm bringing this up, I'm being long-winded, but the unique thing about Roscoe Village is it's mostly just like street houses, and some of them are cut to three floors, and some of them are cut into mansions.
28:30
SPEAKER_01: The mansions are like two, three, four million dollars.
28:32
SPEAKER_01: You know, the rent there is like it's pretty high.
28:34
SPEAKER_01: We got a nice place, we knew the guy who knew the guy.
28:37
SPEAKER_01: So, like, we got a good deal.
28:38
SPEAKER_01: It's a third floor, security was low, lumenities were non-existent.
28:41
SPEAKER_01: It was fine.
28:42
SPEAKER_01: But the guy next to me, he lived in like a four million dollar mansion.
28:45
SPEAKER_01: I'm gonna say, We'll call his name's Pete, good buddy of mine.
28:48
SPEAKER_01: He had a very small section of grass out front.
28:51
SPEAKER_01: He would just be out there watering it for like an hour at a time, just drinking IPA from the bottle.
28:55
SPEAKER_01: And I got to know Pete over time, diehard Steelers fan.
28:59
SPEAKER_01: And so what Pete did is Pete worked from 10 p.m.
29:03
SPEAKER_01: Um, Pete worked from 10 p.m.
29:06
SPEAKER_01: until 6 a.m.
29:07
SPEAKER_01: And he specialized in Chinese currency transactions.
29:12
SPEAKER_01: So he did a lot of trading and that stuff.
29:14
SPEAKER_01: He was an advisor to situations and mergers and acquisitions, and in a lot of stuff that involved a heavy amount of US currency being translated at the accounting level on the accounting principle format.
29:26
SPEAKER_01: So he was a prior trader who had retired, started a firm, and had consulted on on was like a foremost expert on Chinese currency.
29:34
SPEAKER_01: And this guy was hanging by a fucking thread every time I talked to him.
29:37
SPEAKER_01: I mean, you want to talk about just hanging by a thread and how you doing, P, what's up?
29:41
SPEAKER_01: He's just like, I can't remember the last time I enjoyed my kids.
29:45
SPEAKER_01: Though, oh, 10 times over, buddy.
29:48
SPEAKER_01: 10 times over, and and almost so regretful starting the company because now having the clients and now having the relationships and now having the stuff where you have to do the work.
29:58
SPEAKER_01: You could turn it off if you're a trader.
29:59
SPEAKER_01: You can see you can settle out.
30:01
SPEAKER_01: Like he's like, I don't even know who I would sell this business to.
30:04
SPEAKER_01: I am so far into it.
30:05
SPEAKER_01: You know, we would just be standing, he'd be watering his grass, and you'd be standing there.
30:09
SPEAKER_01: And this is kind of what I'm talking about.
30:10
SPEAKER_01: Where listen, the wife is smoking hot, the kids are awesome, cool kids, travel baseball, you name it, just people over in the backyard, just a group, everything you want out of fucking life.
30:21
SPEAKER_01: I'd talk to this guy, he's like, I am so ready to literally just you know, you're gonna find me hanging from the roof.
30:30
SPEAKER_01: That's our bullpen.
30:32
SPEAKER_00: That is it.
30:32
SPEAKER_00: That's our bullpen.
30:35
SPEAKER_01: All well, then here's the other thing, though.
30:37
SPEAKER_01: That's what I'm saying.
30:38
SPEAKER_01: This is a first place house.
30:39
SPEAKER_01: The wife is through the roof, you know.
30:40
SPEAKER_01: Like, we're talking about a lot of good things going on, lot of good place everything on owns the business, sit down, have a couple with him, get to know him, spend three years hanging out with him.
30:50
SPEAKER_01: You know, don't mind me.
30:52
SPEAKER_01: I'm gonna be smoking weed in the garage next door if you're busy and you want to come over and hang out.
30:56
SPEAKER_01: Like that type of level of friendship.
30:59
SPEAKER_01: And when you're going, so do you like it?
31:01
SPEAKER_01: He's like, I absolutely have no fucking clue how I got here.
31:05
SPEAKER_00: Oh man, and like even leaving might might be illegal.
31:09
SPEAKER_00: That's our bullpen.
31:11
SPEAKER_00: All right, Carl, I want to move along here.
31:13
SPEAKER_00: We got some ball or strikes prepared here for you, and I just want to, we're gonna cruise down the list rapid fire.
31:18
SPEAKER_00: So it'll be baller strike, and it's the 2026 Cubs.
31:23
SPEAKER_00: R.
31:23
SPEAKER_00: I might say that in the beginning, I might not, but I think you and the maniacs know.
31:28
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I just if the may if there's a maniac out there who can relate to what we're talking about with the bullpen, where you can think of first place this, first place that, really good this, absolutely nothing, Matt.
31:37
SPEAKER_01: None because of the the sum of the parts equal, hmm.
31:41
SPEAKER_01: You know, it's hard to get something that's hard to complain about.
31:44
SPEAKER_01: I think that's where I was coming with Culver's portal.
31:46
SPEAKER_01: It's hard to complain.
31:47
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, that's it's just one of those situations you're good.
31:51
SPEAKER_00: Go back to ball or strike.
31:52
SPEAKER_00: All right, Carl, let's do it.
31:53
SPEAKER_00: Baller strike, the 2026 Cubs are clutch, baller strike.
31:58
SPEAKER_00: So, like people are gonna get mad at me.
32:00
SPEAKER_01: I'm just gonna say it's clutch because you can go to anybody can do this stuff, all right?
32:04
SPEAKER_01: Anybody clutch, you can go to fangrafts, you can filter for teams, you can filter for situations, you can go to high leverage, and what you're gonna find is I was at the Chicago Cubs throughout the 2026 season, over 560 plate appearances under the designation high leverage.
32:19
SPEAKER_01: The Cubs lead major league baseball with a weighted run created plus of 120, second is Seattle at 118.
32:26
SPEAKER_01: So, in the high leverage seasons moments across the entire season, defined as you know, whatever seventh, eighth inning, ninth inning, two runs or less.
32:36
SPEAKER_01: You know, it's a moment that could swing the game.
32:39
SPEAKER_01: The Cubs are slashing 265, 364, 443.
32:43
SPEAKER_01: So that's a strike.
32:44
SPEAKER_01: They're I mean, like, this is I I have numbers, so it's a strike.
32:49
SPEAKER_01: Now you can say it's a ball because you get mad.
32:51
SPEAKER_01: I'm just challenged the numbers.
32:54
SPEAKER_00: Well, the even if it was challenged, then that would be end up clipping at least the corner, or actually, probably right down the middle.
33:00
SPEAKER_00: It shouldn't have been challenged in the first place.
33:03
SPEAKER_00: Carl, ball or strike.
33:04
SPEAKER_00: 2026 Cubs are swinging it well in the second half.
33:08
SPEAKER_01: Well, again, this is like fine.
33:10
SPEAKER_01: Just go to the numbers.
33:11
SPEAKER_01: You guys want to filter it, double check me.
33:13
SPEAKER_01: I'm a moron, I'm a moron.
33:14
SPEAKER_01: But like if you do it, you go second half, all major league baseball, every single team.
33:18
SPEAKER_01: The Chicago Cubs are number one with a weighted run created plus a 126, which, you know, like again, second half.
33:26
SPEAKER_01: Whatever you want to say, number two on the list is Boston.
33:29
SPEAKER_01: That's that's an American League East team, and they're 114.
33:32
SPEAKER_01: So Cubs, second half, 126, number two, Boston 114.
33:36
SPEAKER_01: So, like, if you ask anybody of any fan any fan base who wants to say their club's swinging it well right now, I is there anybody who could say in the second half they're swinging it better than the Chicago Cubs?
33:48
SPEAKER_01: Again, this is where you go to the numbers, Mahoney.
33:49
SPEAKER_01: So it's like, do I want to be a numbers guy?
33:52
SPEAKER_01: I mean, that's a huge game.
33:53
SPEAKER_00: That's a huge gap, too.
33:54
SPEAKER_01: You hit blades, I read fan graphs.
33:56
SPEAKER_00: So that's right.
33:57
SPEAKER_00: Ball striking versus just breaking it down and strategy.
34:01
SPEAKER_00: All right, all give it to me.
34:04
SPEAKER_01: Well, you just you said it.
34:06
SPEAKER_01: I'm a ball or strike, you're ball strike.
34:08
SPEAKER_01: You know what I mean?
34:09
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, that's never mind.
34:11
SPEAKER_00: Little accidental play on words there.
34:14
SPEAKER_00: Ball or strike, good against the right-handed pitching.
34:16
SPEAKER_00: Cubs, 2026 cubs, good against right-handers.
34:20
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I mean, this is like this is whether you like it or not, it's a strike.
34:23
SPEAKER_01: And it's Labor Day Cook.
34:25
SPEAKER_00: I'm throwing piping him right now.
34:26
SPEAKER_00: I'm piping him.
34:27
SPEAKER_01: Buddy, the burgers are coming out just steaming here.
34:30
SPEAKER_01: The Cubs are number one in Major League Baseball this year.
34:34
SPEAKER_01: All teams against right-handed pitching.
34:36
SPEAKER_01: Cubs have a 111 weighted run created plus 247, 335, 422.
34:41
SPEAKER_01: Like, that's an all the that's a very that's a very good year.
34:44
SPEAKER_01: 111 is a very good year against right-handed pitching.
34:47
SPEAKER_01: It's so good the Cubs are number one.
34:48
SPEAKER_01: Now it is fractions ahead of Milwaukee and the Dodgers, but Milwaukee and the Dodgers are two very good teams.
34:54
SPEAKER_01: The Cubs are ahead of them against all right-handed pitching.
34:57
SPEAKER_01: So, like, whether that's a ball or strike, I don't know who's better than them against righties, is what I'm saying.
35:01
SPEAKER_01: That's why it's a strike.
35:03
SPEAKER_00: Um, switching hands here, ball or strike, good against left-handed pitching.
35:08
SPEAKER_01: Like, I'm I'm in a numbers mood.
35:10
SPEAKER_01: It's a federal holiday.
35:11
SPEAKER_01: I've had the calendar out, I've been getting specific here.
35:14
SPEAKER_01: I'm just gonna go back to the well, and I'm gonna say, as a team, how are the Cubs against left-handed pitching?
35:20
SPEAKER_01: And throughout the 2026 season, this is one of those weird things.
35:23
SPEAKER_01: The Cubs are number one in Major League Baseball with a 126 weighted run created plus.
35:28
SPEAKER_01: Number two's Texas, 117, which hey, hats off to Texas.
35:32
SPEAKER_01: That's a great, you should be very proud of yourself.
35:35
SPEAKER_01: 117 against lefties is very good.
35:37
SPEAKER_01: Cubs are 126, uh, almost hitting 270, almost sleving 460 against lefties.
35:44
SPEAKER_01: So, you know, it's like, does this matter?
35:46
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I could I could make plenty of arguments that it matters.
35:49
SPEAKER_00: So Carl, baller strike.
35:51
SPEAKER_00: The Cubs are good against non-divisional National League opponents.
35:55
SPEAKER_00: So you're talking NL East, NL West?
35:57
SPEAKER_00: NL East, NL West.
35:59
SPEAKER_00: This is a ball or strike.
36:00
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, gun to my head, they're they've played 56 of those games, and they're they're 38 and 18.
36:08
SPEAKER_01: That's 20 games over 500.
36:10
SPEAKER_01: Now, again, first round of the playoffs, you're gonna have you're gonna run into, you know, again, it's like gun in my head.
36:17
SPEAKER_01: Is this something that matters?
36:19
SPEAKER_01: And the answer is yes.
36:20
SPEAKER_01: We're 38 and 18 against opposing team.
36:23
SPEAKER_01: Now, someone could say I want to be 40 and 16.
36:27
SPEAKER_01: And uh, and then I'd say, okay, that's great.
36:30
SPEAKER_01: Then then you go be 40 and 16, and uh, and then and then you could and then what you're wanting is a major league record win percentage then against other divisions in the same league.
36:43
SPEAKER_01: So you know, I'm I I think you could I think you should take a chill pill.
36:48
SPEAKER_00: Baller strike, not you, Mahony.
36:50
SPEAKER_00: No, I'm I'm chill right now, believe me.
36:52
SPEAKER_00: I'm chill.
36:52
SPEAKER_00: That's a strike.
36:53
SPEAKER_00: Baller strike, Carl.
36:55
SPEAKER_00: Cubs, good in one run games.
36:58
SPEAKER_00: I I can't hear you.
36:59
SPEAKER_00: What Cubs, ball or strike, good in one run games.
37:05
SPEAKER_01: So like if if if Major League Average is 18 and 18, and the Chicago Cubs are 21 and 16, that's a strike.
37:16
SPEAKER_01: Like, good is they're better than Major League Average.
37:19
SPEAKER_01: They have they have, I would guess, a top probably top 10 at 21 wins, maybe even more.
37:27
SPEAKER_01: You know, so that's a that's a weird stat, but if you're gonna say if they've played if they have 37 one-run games and they've won 21 of them, you know, strap like that over a full season.
37:37
SPEAKER_01: You know.
37:40
SPEAKER_00: It's close enough.
37:41
SPEAKER_00: That is close enough, and that's I mean, I think that's a strike, Carl.
37:45
SPEAKER_00: I think they're they're good enough in one run games and the brakes.
37:49
SPEAKER_00: But baller strike, good on the road.
37:52
SPEAKER_00: Cubs, good on the road.
37:55
SPEAKER_00: Look at the 40 and 30 what what I was gonna say, look, take a look.
37:58
SPEAKER_00: I don't know.
38:00
SPEAKER_00: Baller strike.
38:02
SPEAKER_01: If they're 40 and 32, what is it to you?
38:05
SPEAKER_00: That's a strike.
38:06
SPEAKER_00: Good on the road.
38:07
SPEAKER_00: Eight games over 500.
38:08
SPEAKER_00: I'll take that.
38:10
SPEAKER_00: Traveling.
38:11
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, now the question is, and I'll just ball or strike you then to reverse this.
38:15
SPEAKER_01: Let's close on this one then.
38:16
SPEAKER_01: Baller strike, Mahoney.
38:17
SPEAKER_01: Are they good at Wrigley if I tell you they're 41 and 31?
38:20
SPEAKER_01: Is 10 games over 500 good enough at Wrigley?
38:23
SPEAKER_00: See, I uh strike clipping the corner could be reviewed.
38:28
SPEAKER_00: I this is where I'd wish they were a little bit better.
38:32
SPEAKER_00: Only because it I just feel like Wrigley has such a magical place, but the other the other teams have the same elements that we deal with too, so it's it's still a strike.
38:44
SPEAKER_01: See, but that's where we play way more day games.
38:48
SPEAKER_01: We play way more day games.
38:50
SPEAKER_01: That's that's like a pillar of of of Wrigley Field is the advantage, and so it's kind of disappointing that and this where I'll say it's this is the only ball I have on the list, is it's disappointing that veterans like Bregman and Horner and Happen, etc.
39:04
SPEAKER_01: You know, like whatever.
39:05
SPEAKER_01: This could be a childish argument, but my understanding is.
39:07
SPEAKER_01: No, it's the toughest one for me.
39:09
SPEAKER_01: You should be able to take you should you guys should be able to take advantage of the fact that like a lot of guys are have are rolling out of bed, and in the next generation of baseball players are like up till four, and like whether people think I'm being a crusty 39-year-old or not, I'm telling you what I know, and what I know is from not my fucking brain, it's from many people that the new generation of baseball on their phone, on the computer, late till late, three o'clock, four o'clock in the morning, not social butterflies, not gonna leave, not even texting the girl on Tinder, just with the headsets, streaming, twitching, plugged into the digital world.
39:43
SPEAKER_01: So when you come and you play a wriggling, you go, hey, it's 10 a.m.
39:46
SPEAKER_01: blah blah blah.
39:47
SPEAKER_01: You know, like to me, it's isn't that isn't that an advantage for us?
39:52
SPEAKER_00: Should be a massive advantage.
39:54
SPEAKER_00: It really should be.
39:55
SPEAKER_00: Um, Carl, I I got one more for you.
39:57
SPEAKER_00: Ball or strike.
39:59
SPEAKER_00: The Phillies have a much harder schedule down the struts.
40:03
SPEAKER_00: Ball or strike.
40:05
SPEAKER_01: I just want to make this point because I think that's actually a good place to end.
40:08
SPEAKER_01: Uh happy federal holiday or stuff.
40:10
SPEAKER_01: But like the Phillies do have a harder schedule because they are in Atlanta today.
40:15
SPEAKER_01: Then they do have three against Houston.
40:17
SPEAKER_01: So, like, even though Houston is not great, Houston's still the AL West leader, even though they're marginally the 11th best team in Manchester.
40:25
SPEAKER_01: I would, I don't know if I'd put him in the top 10.
40:27
SPEAKER_01: But so then they do have a series against the Astros, then they're on the road for nine games, then they finish with three in Milwaukee and three in Tampa.
40:35
SPEAKER_01: So the reason I bring this up is because Philly is sniffing our crotch, but their schedule is so hard.
40:40
SPEAKER_01: I mean, it's gonna be it's gonna be really difficult for Philly to play 500 baseball down the stretch.
40:45
SPEAKER_01: Now they could get red hot and that happens, but you know, we sit here, we talk numbers.
40:50
SPEAKER_01: Like I'd be a monkey's uncle if I thought Philly was gonna play over 500 on the stretch, which suddenly flips it back to the Cubs and then say, Is our schedule easy enough, hard enough, etc.?
40:58
SPEAKER_01: And it's like, buddy, we got three more against Miami, we got three more against Cincinnati, we got three more against Pittsburgh, and we got these next three in Milwaukee that really matter a lot, that that there should be a lot of pride on the line.
41:10
SPEAKER_01: So we we have a we have a marginally easier schedule, they close very difficultly.
41:16
SPEAKER_01: We should feel good about we should feel good about playing them.
41:19
SPEAKER_01: The reason that matters, and I'm happy I brought up the lefties, they have Sanchez and Lazardo, two of the best lefties in the National League, you know.
41:26
SPEAKER_01: So, like we we we are gonna have to face them if they are gonna be the five seed, unless the wheels fall off through the schedule.
41:33
SPEAKER_01: And if we do face them, we're gonna see Sanchez one, we're gonna see Lazardo two.
41:38
SPEAKER_01: Um, you know, if we run in the Dodgers, they got Derek Schubel and Blake Snell.
41:42
SPEAKER_01: If we run into Milwaukee, obviously Kyle Harrison again, Atlanta, Chris Sale, don't sleep on Martin Perez out of the three spot, you know, and and and should the diamondbacks sneak in there um, you know, and make some noise in the first round.
41:55
SPEAKER_01: Eddie Rodriguez has absolutely shoved it up our ass.
41:57
SPEAKER_01: So there's cause to be concerned about some of the lefties, all the more reason to want to get them at home.
42:02
SPEAKER_01: And then a good reminder, Moni, we're number one in Major League Baseball against left-handed pitching.
42:06
SPEAKER_01: So, how'd I do?
42:07
SPEAKER_00: Yep, you did great, Carl.
42:09
SPEAKER_00: Thanks for really just guiding us through those baller strikes.
42:11
SPEAKER_00: I know they came rapid fire.
42:13
SPEAKER_00: I told you all maniacs that we were gonna keep it positive on this show as well.
42:16
SPEAKER_00: And I think we did.
42:18
SPEAKER_00: We know the glaring hole on the team, but we know that it's very, very, very good elsewhere.
42:24
SPEAKER_00: So that's what's going on in my world, Carl.
42:26
SPEAKER_00: Happy Labor Day to one and all.
42:29
SPEAKER_00: Uh big maniac fantasy drafts going on to boys.
42:32
SPEAKER_00: Quick shout out over to you guys.
42:33
SPEAKER_00: I know you guys are all listeners.
42:35
SPEAKER_00: We love you over here at the Monday morning cub show.
42:38
SPEAKER_00: Carl, take us away.
42:40
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, guys, thanks for tuning in.
42:41
SPEAKER_01: If you get a chance, uh, you know, obviously subscribe to the show, leave review, shout out to the boys.
42:46
SPEAKER_01: Good luck with the fantasy league.
42:48
SPEAKER_01: Um, you know, I had mentioned that the radio party would be 9-9.
42:51
SPEAKER_01: We're gonna push that back for end of the season and more of like an end-of-the-season party.
42:55
SPEAKER_01: And now a little slash a lot of that has to do with the fact that the series starts, we're seven games back, permitting, you know, me starting some new projects and stuff.
43:03
SPEAKER_01: So just be patient, but thank you.
43:06
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, thank you guys for your patience.
43:07
SPEAKER_00: And let's be honest, I've been running around like a maniac getting the kids to school to and from school.
43:12
SPEAKER_00: I was like trying to crunch the numbers and seeing if I can make it out there on a Wednesday afternoon, but stay tuned.
43:19
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, so stay tuned is a good way to put it.
43:21
SPEAKER_01: In the meantime, trying to be positive about the team.
43:23
SPEAKER_01: Like the bullpen sucks, it's a joke.
43:25
SPEAKER_01: Like, I'm trying to go back to the ACT thing.
43:27
SPEAKER_01: Like, you're you're looking at a student and it's going 36 Ace, 36 in English, 36 in Roman.
43:32
SPEAKER_01: That's a genius.
43:33
SPEAKER_01: You know, 31 in math.
43:35
SPEAKER_01: It's like maybe we're just not filling out the scantron when it comes to science, you know.
43:39
SPEAKER_01: Or like maybe we slept through that period, or just like I don't I don't know how bad it is, but I'm just trying to, and I'm and I'm appealing to the crowd.
43:46
SPEAKER_01: If you can think of a real day analogy that mimics and mirrors what we're talking about here, I think that's kind of the essence that we're trying to capture on a Labor Day.
43:53
SPEAKER_00: So send it on through.
43:56
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
43:57
SPEAKER_01: Uh until next time, share the show, review the show.
44:00
SPEAKER_01: We'll be back.
44:00
SPEAKER_01: Uh we'll be back later in the week.
44:02
SPEAKER_01: Love you guys, go cups.