00:00:06
Speaker 1: All right, welcome back to Splash Hit Territory. Susan Slusser is on with me. We get to talk about a few things. We got two big deals going on right now. We've got what's next for the Giants. Is it a rebuild? Is it a kind of rebuild? Is it a 09 situation, which I kind of have a pretty good– I actually kind of like that one, to be honest with you. And then we got playoff baseball, which we have to talk about because– There's only a certain amount of games for us to watch right now. It's all playoff baseball. So we got to break that down. So I'm super excited. So Susan, thank you for joining me on this episode.
00:00:40
Speaker 2: Oh, my pleasure, Jeremy.
00:00:41
Speaker 3: I am so excited to talk to you about 2009 and then maybe more important, 2010. I almost feel like in this, you're the host, but I feel like I will be interviewing you. I wrote a story that is in the Chronicle today. It's online at sfchronicle.com.
00:01:01
Speaker 2: I've just been hearing.
00:01:02
Speaker 3: Rumblings here for maybe the last, since we had the post-season presser rap kind of thing, that the Giants might be eyeing more of a rebuild than you might get from Buster Posey saying, Buster's like, yeah, I think we can contend next year. I definitely think he wants to, 100%. But there's some things that will signal whether they're going to really go for it or if they're actually going to, well, I'm huge now. if they're going to actually go for it or if they really are more rebuilding. So we can talk about that a little. But the fact everybody keeps talking about 08, 09, Jeremy, you were there for the 09 situation.
00:01:51
Speaker 2: Can you see that given the young talent that they've been bringing up throughout this year, especially St.
00:01:58
Speaker 3: Bryce Eldredge, and what you know they're looking at for potentially bringing up next year, the year after, your Jackson.
00:02:04
Speaker 2: Floors, et cetera. Do you see any similarities here?
00:02:07
Speaker 3: Because I have heard this circulating for maybe two weeks.
00:02:11
Speaker 1: Well, the 09 rebuild, man, I don't know if it's a complete rebuild. I mean, when I remember 09, it was what I think needs to happen. It was a big bullpen rebuild, if you think about it. They had Lincecum there. They had Kane. They had Zito. They had Johnny Sanchez. They had guys that they had the year before. That wasn't what they were rebuilding. The offense, I mean, we had a few guys, but I don't remember a big scenario there. We added a couple guys, Uribe. We had some similars like that. I think it's similar to just the rebuild of the bullpen. And when you're talking bullpen rebuild, I like it because you've got to bring in veteran guys that are literally going to come in, and they're going to do their job. So you have veterans, right? You've got guys with seven, eight years' experience. They can throw strikes. They can pound the zone. They have pitched in big ball games. All these things, they're super, super important to a bullpen. They're super important to a team winning, not just during the season. It's massive when it comes to winning in the playoffs. A bullpen has to be available to a team if you want to get to the playoffs and if you want to win the playoffs. I think that's super important. I think that it's a big deal when it comes to, for me, when it comes to how we're going to do, how we're going to approach the end of the game. When you got Tony saying, how can I see the end of the game in this situation? I already know how I see this game ending. I see us winning. I see us winning four to three. I see us winning four to two because the next three or four guys that are coming in, I already know that I have an 80%, 90% chance of slamming the door. And so does the other team. I think that's big.
00:03:53
Speaker 3: Well, the comparisons I see, and I don't necessarily see maybe as many as some of the people in the organization, I think, are seeing from, say, the 2008-2009 region. But if you're looking at 2008, here are the similarities. There is the start of rebuilding the bullpen and getting some guys some experience. And it was Bruce Bochy's second year. And you've got Fightella coming into a second year there.
00:04:22
Speaker 2: More players.
00:04:23
Speaker 3: Buster Posey comes up at the very end of 2008, obviously huge. You know, Sergio Romo comes up. So you're starting to see some of the pieces come in and get some experience. 2009, obviously, is really where things started to take off in.
00:04:43
Speaker 2: A huge jump.
00:04:43
Speaker 3: 2008, it was they only finished. one game better than they had the previous year. This is, we're not, we're talking 71 wins to 72 wins. That's right. If the giants go from 65 wins to 66 wins next year, no one is going to be happy. They need to do what happened from, to me from 2008 to 2009, they went from 72 wins to 88 wins.
00:05:06
Speaker 2: Right.
00:05:06
Speaker 3: Huge jump. But that's, I feel like, that's the only thing that's really going to make the fan base really happy with the direction they're going in. So I think like a full rebuild, and here is my take on this. We will know this offseason, whether they're committing to a sort of a more complete type rebuild versus a partial rebuild, is Jung-Hoo Lee.
00:05:36
Speaker 1: Yeah.
00:05:37
Speaker 3: They trade Jung-Hoo Lee and go with all young outfielders, and they could because, gosh, that talent there, that was incredible. really maybe one of the most exciting developments of the season, certainly in the second half.
00:05:48
Speaker 2: They could do that. Maybe bring back a pitcher. Maybe bring back a reliever.
00:05:53
Speaker 3: That, to me, is more what we would think of as a rebuild. Hang on to John Hooley, and there's loads of reasons to. We talked about it on the last show. He's got some experience. He's gotten better every year. He's kept some weight on that was stronger, missed less time. A lot of reasons to like Jung-Hoo Lee, you know, the bat to ball skills, all of those things. I think the fan base has maybe moved off a little bit of their love for him, but he also, people were kind of all over me for saying this last time, but he does bring the South Korea market and that's not insignificant.
00:06:32
Speaker 2: For a lot of reasons.
00:06:33
Speaker 3: Money, eyeballs, and you want to set yourself up the way the Dodgers have with Japanese players, the way the Cubs have with Japanese players. with that market for those players, you know, if you're, if you're the like, Hey, you're the top South Korean player, where you want to go, San Francisco, look at the support. So I, I think this is a trickier than just a, should we let Harrison Bader go?
00:07:00
Speaker 2: Of course we should.
00:07:01
Speaker 3: It's, it's not that Jung who Lee brings an awful lot, but both on and off the field and he's loved in the clubhouse.
00:07:08
Speaker 1: And the business decision, and fans need to understand it, it is a business. So there are guys that are going to get signed. Yes, they have to be talented. 100% sure. I'm not going to sign a guy just for that market and him not produce. You won't have the market. There are guys, they're bringing a market. If anybody thinks that the Dodgers went after Otani and they gave him that much money just because he was a two-way player, no. You're not setting records at that level of record if you didn't think that you were going to bring in that stream of income from that market. It is a business money-making deal. It doesn't mean it wasn't the right move. It's the amount of money given to ensure that deal to get done they knew was going to be paid for long before that deal was ever going to be needed. You can't guarantee a guy $ 50 million when he's 60. You don't even know baseball's... Baseball might not even be round when they're– I'm sorry, but I don't know. 50 years from now, how are you going to project that? You can't. You know that that money already came in. It's sitting in a little account, and they're paying them. So that's how that works. It's the same in all these markets, right? It is what it is. You sign a local guy. You sign Brandon Crawford. What are you going to get? You're going to get all of Walnut Creek. You're going to get the entire East Bay. I mean, that's what you got. Like you sign that Randy Johnson comes over and Oh nine. What'd you get? Local guy going to be a hall of famer group right here in the Bay area. Why not? Marketable situation. That's what that is. Does it bring impact to the team? Yes. But does it make sense? Marketability wise? Absolutely. I don't think that that's going to change, but I do think that the bullpen has to be, that is a key. I'm telling you like, If you bring the bullpen that can seal up games, give me guys that from the seventh inning on, that when I bring them in, they're going to knock it down. They already knew they had Wilson. He was an all-star. We had the closer. They just needed to get the bridge, and that's why they brought a bunch of us in. But it wasn't just us. It was bring us in to help Romo, who they knew was going to be a long-term guy. Get him. He's a one-year guy. Get him some understanding of how it works in the big leagues. He found him. Pretty good deal. I mean, that guy became an unbelievable pitcher, right? No one thought 15 years. No one would have thought 15 years out of that guy. Great guy. But he came along because we brought in veteran guys. Javi came in after that. You piece it together. So you can bring in bullpen guys that can seal up. I guarantee you of the 25 games or whatever they blew after the sixth or seventh inning. I don't know the numbers, but I'm just going that high. I bet we can change 15. I guarantee you we can win 15 of those games if you bring in a seal of a knockdown seal of bullpen. Now you went from a 66. Now you're at an 80. I'm not saying that's great. I wouldn't buy into that. But could you could you get into the mid eighties? Yes, you absolutely could. You absolutely could get into the mid eighties on a winning deal. And if to me, the way that baseball is right now, you could end up going to the playoffs with 81 wins. I've never seen it set for this year, but someone did it. Houston did it. They rolled into the playoffs, 80, 81 wins. That's unbelievable. But And I'm not saying our division will be able to take that. You're not going to get in the playoffs because you're never going to make it in the National League. Because the National League West is not going to play to an 81-game situation. You're not going to get even a wild card at that. But to me, get that bullpen in there. Get these starters. Get a couple starters. Spend some money. They have it. Complete rebuild?
00:10:36
Speaker 2: No.
00:10:36
Speaker 1: But can they add valuable pieces?
00:10:38
Speaker 2: 100%.
00:10:40
Speaker 1: Is it going to take more than two or three? Yes. You're going to need five or six pieces coming in. But then you bring those guys in. Now think about the offseason. Land those dudes. Now you've got an offense that says, hey, we just got five of these guys. Now their confidence goes up. Defense confidence goes up. Other pitchers' confidence goes up because they get to learn from these guys. That's contagious, and that'll win games. And then you see, like, the Dodgers and San Diego and Arizona all looking at, like, the Giants are making a run. Like, they're sending a message. That's what you need to have coming into spring training, if we play spring training.
00:11:14
Speaker 2: Well, I've got a few for you.
00:11:15
Speaker 3: So I've got a story I think will be online maybe Friday. And I don't know, either in the Saturday or Sunday Chronicle. Looking at the free agent market and kind of who maybe the best targets might be for the Giants, particularly when it comes to relievers. Now, if you're doing a partial rebuild, do you add some big salary relievers this year?
00:11:40
Speaker 2: I think so.
00:11:41
Speaker 3: 100%.
00:11:41
Speaker 1: Yeah.
00:11:42
Speaker 2: Yeah. And it's sort of interesting.
00:11:45
Speaker 3: And one really kind of intrigues me as a possibility. I, you know, he might be a little bit cheaper than a traditional closer because he is not yet a closer, but there's a lot of value in sort of the, you know, sort of the use marrow petite kind of guy who can do either. If you're in more home and this is this, this also takes away a major asset from one of your division rivals.
00:12:08
Speaker 2: He's a free agent.
00:12:10
Speaker 3: To me, he could be exactly that kind of guy, a petite kind of guy. I think he would profile really well at Oracle, who wouldn't really. And then also you don't have to face him, and he's owned the Giants.
00:12:21
Speaker 2: But there are some other options. There are, you know, David Bednar is out there.
00:12:26
Speaker 3: He's obviously closed in his hometown, which isn't easy. Had a really rough final year in Pittsburgh, ERA 0-5. But then he's gotten it done in New York with the Yankees. Yeah.
00:12:39
Speaker 2: He's going to be more pricey because he's a closer.
00:12:42
Speaker 3: I don't think he's going to be Edwin Diaz, $ 23 million a year pricey. But if you want a closer, if you don't think Randy Rodriguez is your guy, if you don't think Camilo Doval is your guy, if you maybe want to add somebody like more a home, but you want to have a traditional closer to which honestly, if they did that, yes, please go ahead and get both.
00:13:02
Speaker 2: No problem with that at all. relievers are hard to project.
00:13:06
Speaker 3: So, you know, the more, the better as far as I'm concerned, but particularly guys with these kinds of track records, he would be good. And here's a, here's sort of my wild card. And again, this is a taken away a guy from, from somebody that, uh, and then you don't have to.
00:13:21
Speaker 2: Face is Clay Holmes. Cause he's done both.
00:13:23
Speaker 3: He started, I think he's happier starting now. He did the, what Jordan Hicks tried to do a few years ago from, from, uh, ladings relief to starting. And he's been very good, so he could do either. But he's such an extreme ground ball pitcher.
00:13:39
Speaker 2: Oh, my gosh. He would be amazing.
00:13:41
Speaker 3: And you could use, I mean, they need another starter, too. So in that case, you've almost got to, you know, you've got plenty of options there. But if you tell a guy you're signing him as a starter, to me, you have to use him as a starter. So, I mean, you've got a pact there. But I like that idea, too, though he's not a reliever.
00:14:00
Speaker 1: I do. But there's so many options that you don't need a 23 minute, that $ 23 million closer is not closing right now, by the way, he's not closing. Like you can't, I mean, it's like, that's a huge risk. I just want guys evaluate, pull away, evaluate, say, let me see their whole numbers. Let me see what they pitch. I would like to see, let me see what their numbers are in high pressure situations. Not when it's four, nothing, not when it's six, nothing. No, what is their numbers in high-pressure situations? Get enough of those guys in that bullpen. Someone will figure it out. Romo was not a closer before he became one. Casilla was not a closer before he became one. You just knew what they could do in high-pressure situations, and you said, I'm going to go ahead and put you here. And Bochy said, you can do it. We got guys that can back you. Jeremy's closed before. Javi's closed out some games before. Moda's closed out some games before. we had guys that could come around these guys and say, if it doesn't work out, it doesn't. But you, if you can pitch in high pressure situations, let's evaluate. But I, but you cannot have a bunch of these young guys and say, Hey man, go do it in a three, one ball game. Not when you want to win, not when you want to. And that's what you want to do. The giants want to win. I don't believe in a rebuild. I think you'll lose the fans. Do I believe in a high impact scenario where I got to bring in some impact players and, Yes, but we don't need a complete rebuild. We just need impact players to be signed, not top tier. Don't need to over $ 50 million guy. No, I need to go get them. And that's what Sabian Sabian did not go out. Bob Howie wasn't a top tier guy. He had 10 years at the time. Didn't pay a ton of money for him. I was a guy that came in. I was a younger guy. I had upside, but I had been starting and relieving. No one knew what I was. And so when Sabian came in and said, this is what I want you to do. I need you to throw a lot of strikes, pound the zone. and show some veteran leadership. That's all I was at the time. It wasn't like I had a track record of being a seventh, eighth inning guy for 10 years, you know, but get some of those guys in and then play it out, man. And, and then go after those, those kinds of guys. And I think if you do that, I think you'll be just fine next year. So 2009 rebuild, I like total rebuild. I do not like at all.
00:16:14
Speaker 3: Yeah. I agree. I, you know, I've heard both 2008 and 2009. I really don't think a 2008 one game improvement would be, would be better. And maybe it's just because that was baby steps for getting the bullpen a little bit more on its feet, headed in the right direction, a little more, you know, but Bochy had managed before. This certainly is not comparable to Vitello and what he's going through. But there is also, you know, the fact that Tony Vitello and, kind of saw this play out over the course of the year is maybe more comfortable with.
00:16:48
Speaker 2: The younger players.
00:16:49
Speaker 3: You know, it took him some time, I think, to really establish great relationships with some of the veterans. I think he did accomplish that. But it took a few, you know, a few things. And, you know, he's talked about the fact that he had a couple of testy conversations. Let's put it with some of the veteran players. Uh, I do believe they're all on board now, but that took a while. He clearly has a good rapport with young players.
00:17:15
Speaker 2: That's his background.
00:17:17
Speaker 3: So that also might be part of the thinking, uh, you know, this is in this guy's wheels house, younger guys, and then there's the CBA. And I feel like we spend too much time talking about the CBA. Nobody really cares about business stuff, but it's so important as a team is trying to figure out what to do money wise. budget wise, if you're in this kind of, we don't necessarily think we're going to win the division next year. We're not sure we're a playoff team next year. There's this upcoming labor strife. Are we really going to max out budget wise for this coming year? Are we going to rebuild the whole bullpen right now? Are we looking at free agents who are free agents after.
00:18:00
Speaker 2: Next season to add?
00:18:02
Speaker 3: And you know, they are, they've always got, you know, every front office has a sort of contingencies and then various different highlights for upcoming years. You've got to plan years out. And when reporters, players, people on any sort of podcast media start talking about possible options, it's not like the front office is calling either of us and going like, hey, what do you think about Mara Holm?
00:18:28
Speaker 2: Is he the guy? We don't know.
00:18:30
Speaker 3: This is educated guesswork. I can tell you that from what we know about what Buster Posey wants. He wants guys that throw strikes. So you got to look at any pitchers that aren't walking a ton. A nice, healthy strikeout to walk ratio is probably something you want to look at. And that's going to be a number one for him, I think. And, you know, a little bit of experience, sure. But I think the walk thing is probably number one on his list of things to look at.
00:19:00
Speaker 2: So, Look at those guys. Yeah. But you know what?
00:19:03
Speaker 3: You're not going to be a very successful back into the bullpen guy anyway, if you've got a.
00:19:08
Speaker 2: High walk rate.
00:19:09
Speaker 1: Correct. You're right.
00:19:11
Speaker 3: Yep.
00:19:11
Speaker 1: Correct. And I know we have to go to our sponsor. We got a word from our sponsor, but last thing to remember in this right here is remember this Bruce Bochy was a manager for a really, really long time. And he had a 71, he had a 71 in a 70 game winning team. Don't always blame it on the manager. Sometimes the guys are on the field. Everybody's got to get off Vitello a little bit. He's going to be fine. Give him some guys because you had a hall of fame manager that could not get it done with certain guys on the field. He sat there in the off season. He said, Hey, you want me to get it done? Give me players that can get it done for me. And then I'll move the chess pieces around the board. So we've got to get the right play. So everybody needs to remember that, but we do have to go to Wisconsin. We got playoff. Susan, we got playoff baseball. No, we don't get to talk Giants. We already know that. We don't need to continue to go down that road. We have to watch Dodgers.
00:20:09
Speaker 2: Ugh.
00:20:10
Speaker 1: We have to watch them. But we also get to watch Milwaukee, who I am hopeful. I'm not saying that Atlanta can't do it. Atlanta's got a dangerous group. I don't know if they can get the Dodgers or not. We're going to see tonight. Hopefully they make it into the game tomorrow. And they can tie that 3-2. If not, I am truly believing. And I know San Diego wants to win. And it would be awesome to see a San Diego Dodgers rivalry, too. They get into it a little bit in the playoffs. I think I'm a Milwaukee fan. I love this team. I love how they play the game of baseball. They won 103 games, not because they stump it and they depend on the three-run homer. They won a lot of ballgames. Big hitting, clutch hitting. They do get the homer, but they also play defense and they pitch. I love the Milwaukee. Tampa, once again, another. Tampa's always Tampa. It's unbelievable. You have Boston. You have Toronto. You have New York, obviously. The big, giant guys. all about the East Coast baseball, and then you've got the Florida, Tampa Bay, with 35 people showing up to a game, beating everybody. They seem a way, they figured out a way to win. But neither of them, Milwaukee, Tampa, have ever won a World Series. I really want to see one of these teams do it.
00:21:26
Speaker 3: Yeah, I absolutely do too. And someday we want to see the Mariners in there.
00:21:31
Speaker 1: Yeah, that too.
00:21:32
Speaker 2: In the World Series.
00:21:32
Speaker 3: Seriously.
00:21:33
Speaker 2: But, yeah.
00:21:34
Speaker 3: I think Milwaukee hasn't won since 57 or something like that.
00:21:38
Speaker 2: Is that right?
00:21:38
Speaker 1: Oh, they've won one? They've won a World Series?
00:21:41
Speaker 2: Yeah.
00:21:41
Speaker 3: I mean, it's going back to, like, you know, the Killebrew.
00:21:44
Speaker 2: Chase or something.
00:21:45
Speaker 1: Well, I get away with saying they've never won it because I don't even– I can't go back far. I stopped in the 70s. Yeah.
00:21:52
Speaker 3: I just parrot what I hear during the playoffs. I think that's what I don't don't fact check me.
00:21:58
Speaker 2: I love the Brewers.
00:21:59
Speaker 3: I think that is when Scott and I were on the show earlier in the week, we talked about, hey, are there are there role models for the Giants? And yes, the Brewers. I've always said that I love the way they play. I love the speed. So I'm covering old ground there. But one of the things, first of all, I think we all, and I'm an objective reporter, so I'm going to say some people watch the postseason to hate watch the Dodgers.
00:22:23
Speaker 2: Who's to say who those people might be?
00:22:27
Speaker 3: As a reporter, you kind of root for the guys you know, and they're actually Dodgers I know really well and like, and I will.
00:22:34
Speaker 2: Root for them-ish. But so the Braves, how can you not love them? Don Smith.
00:22:41
Speaker 3: Oh.
00:22:42
Speaker 2: Mike Yastrzemski, great, great giant.
00:22:45
Speaker 1: Yeah.
00:22:45
Speaker 3: Forever giant. Is that what we say? They're just, they're also a very fun team. I covered Matt Olson in Oakland, a terrific guy and what a talent. So yeah, I really, the Braves are super fun. I would love to see them advance in an objective way.
00:23:04
Speaker 2: Yeah. Yeah, and the Brewers. No offense to Robbie Ray. We love Robbie Ray. You know what? The Padres are interesting.
00:23:15
Speaker 3: Mason Miller is now away on paternity leave.
00:23:19
Speaker 2: We've seen this postseason.
00:23:23
Speaker 3: Tony Vitello gets dinged like all managers for his bullpen use. Teams get into the playoffs, and even then you go like, wait, why is Mason Miller pitching in a game where they're up like this? And then he has a rare wobble the next time out. So, again, I'm going to kind of echo what you said about Vitello. You know, people pile on when he does things other managers also do.
00:23:45
Speaker 1: Yes.
00:23:46
Speaker 3: They are all prone to, you know, like we all are.
00:23:50
Speaker 2: We all make mistakes.
00:23:51
Speaker 1: That's right.
00:23:52
Speaker 3: But, yeah, in a playoff situation and Mason Miller, that gets even more highlighted. So that can happen. But, yeah, he's away on paternity leave. So remember back in the day, Jeremy, I think you were playing when people used to go.
00:24:04
Speaker 2: Paternity leave? Why are these guys going on paternity leave?
00:24:07
Speaker 1: Yeah, we got three days. I think, in fact, all of my sons were born on World Series years. So, Walker was 07 when I was in Colorado, and then Logan was 10, and Colt was 2012. I was fortunate enough that those boys decided to come into the world right before the playoffs, but it was still a little scary because it's still in the playoff run, and hey, you're kind of a guy we use. So, how long you think you're going to be gone was the look. And I'm like, Hey man, like I will honestly, I'll try to get back as soon as I can. It is a weird deal. Cause it's like, it is my, yes, my kid is coming to this world. I, I gotta, you gotta be there for it. I mean, that'd be the worst thing ever. You don't ever put the game before your family, but then you're also like, uh, so I could stare at the kid and the kid can't hardly see me yet. You don't need me. You're screaming. You don't even, you want mama. So like, How about, can I roll over here real quick and play? And then I'll come right back. Like you almost, it's a really hard, tough deal. Like, because you're like, you're in it. It's kind of important, but you also now, now know why yes, managers make decisions, but everybody's like, why'd you throw them in a two, two? Why'd you bring them in for six outs? Well, that's why I knew I was losing him. I got to seal up this game. So you know what? I'm not worried about burning you. Like if you can do it, you'll be just fine. And I know I'm going to, you're going to have three days off. And hopefully we can come up. It just backfired. And it backfired on a, yes, it was a middle, middle fastball. He walked, but it wasn't like he got lit up. It hit a single that was six inches outside of the guy's glove. Like he could have laid out and caught it too.
00:25:44
Speaker 3: Right.
00:25:44
Speaker 1: So it, it did backfire. But I mean, I think that that, that's why managers do certain things. Like I know what you don't know. I know what's going to happen here. So I've got to utilize you to try to win it. What, how can I be, you can be my biggest weapon today. Cause I'm not getting you tomorrow. And I think that's what– but San Diego came back. They won yesterday. You know, they made it interesting. But also we can't– I know we're focusing sometimes on some of the merit, but we didn't– the White Sox. That is a perfect example of what happens to a team that was literally possibly the worst team in baseball freaking history two years ago. I mean, it was terrible to watch those guys. To last year wasn't much better. To this year, I mean– Now they're in the– like it can happen. Fans need to understand it can happen to teams. You can turn it over. Now they're not playing in the same type of division that has the Dodgers. No one in the Central is banging out a $ 750 million player and then a $ 400 million and a– like whatever the Dodgers spend, right? Like they got– you know, no one in the Central has that scenario going. But it doesn't matter. Can you compete and can you win the playoffs year to year, no matter what your season is, if they want to? Yes, if they want to. And that's what we have to remember, because that's a fun story, too. I got a buddy here that's a White Sox fan. I was razzing him all year long. I was like, bro, they're living in a pipe dream. It's not happening. Then they're in the playoffs. I'm like, well, they got like two games. Congratulations. Well, then now they're in the D.S., And he's here every night. He's wearing me out, man. I mean, but it's good for him, right? So he's excited. He was a cop in Chicago, and he's excited. And so for me, there's always hope. MLB on Fox is streaming on Fox One. The postseason is here, and we have your front row seat to the wildest walk-offs, lights out pitching, and clutch plays all playoffs long. Stream each NLDS and NLCS game, then the 2026 World Series, Live on Fox 1. At home or on the go, live or on demand, never miss a moment. Stream now. Start your Fox 1 three-day free trial today at fox1. com. I just, I want to see people get unseated because I want to see, I like the, hey man, if you tell me we can't do it, oh, we're gonna. I do like, I do like Machado's answer the other day when Ortiz said it's over and he said, huh, we've heard that. I love it. I love it. I mean, I got on Smoltzy in 10, no, 12. When we played the Nationals, was that 12 or 14 that we played the Nationals? 14. 14 we played the Nationals. That guy was doing a whole broadcast. He kept saying we when he was talking about the Nationals. I looked at him and I was like, we, bro? What do you mean we? Like, he was like, well, I didn't mean it like that. I'm like, well, it sounded like that. I listened to the broadcast. You know, like, So sometimes I was like, hold on, man, you're thinking we're done. We're not. And, and we, we messed everybody up, you know, in 10, we messed everybody up. Every, everybody said, these guys aren't going to make it past the first bet. Cincinnati two and Oh, no, since everyone swept at home. Nope. It's over. It's over. Everybody's hold my beer. You know, I'm about to show you, you know, like, and I like San Diego's. I like that situation too. So I think that it's going to be a, it's going to be an interesting deal, man. When you, when you wake people up and I'm, I'm, I think this is a really competitive playoffs. I actually like this situation that we have right now. So it's been fun to watch.
00:29:23
Speaker 3: Yeah. And I, you know what, a quick shout out since you mentioned the white socks. And honestly, if the giants are going to do a rebuild.
00:29:29
Speaker 2: Man, there's a model.
00:29:31
Speaker 3: I think they came way quicker than anybody expected, but Will Venable, North Bay Zone, Forever Giant, Max Venable's son. I know Will was always sort of on the Giants radar as a possible manager. The White Sox were smart, swooped him and got him. Like you, I've got a good friend who's a White Sox fan. I got a lot of fondness for White Sox fans because they've been through it and they always feel like, kind of like the ace fans did here for a long time.
00:30:01
Speaker 2: Yeah. And we're number two. Don't we get any respect?
00:30:03
Speaker 1: Yeah. Yeah.
00:30:05
Speaker 2: I got a lot of feelings for White Sox.
00:30:07
Speaker 1: Yeah. And they're doing great. I love the playoffs right now this year. This has been, this is my, there's a lot of teams that haven't for a long time that, that could possibly. And that's where I think it's awesome. That's why I think the Dodgers need to exit stage left and let someone else have a turn. They probably don't think that way, but that's how I think. So, but yeah, no, that was great. I'm looking forward to seeing the playoffs, Susan. I know that you, uh, you're getting ready to, uh, go ahead and go across the ocean there, man. You're going to enjoy some time and enjoy it. I've just got back from over there. Freaking loved it. Uh, so I know that you, you enjoy it over there as well. So, uh, enjoy your time.
00:30:46
Speaker 3: I'll be, um, look, I know it won't compare to your brewery plug, plug your brewery. But I will be in the pub drinking whatever the dark beer of choice is.
00:30:59
Speaker 1: Oh, yeah, yeah.
00:31:00
Speaker 2: Whatever the pub happens to be.
00:31:02
Speaker 3: Colonel Fawcett in Camden, if anybody's in Camden ever.
00:31:05
Speaker 2: Colonel Fawcett, A +.
00:31:07
Speaker 1: Awesome, awesome. Yeah, no, it's going to be great. I'd love to hear your beer styles over there. I think there's a lot of good ones. And it's going to be Oktoberfest time frame, so you should have some stuff going on no matter where you're at. So thank you so much for joining me. If you are listening, don't be afraid to give us a follow. Don't be afraid to give us comments. We love those. We are going to do more mailbag situations. Grab some merch. We do have some Splash Hit Territory merch. You want to grab that. I'll start wearing it. I'm kind of in the middle of Oktoberfest, so I got the Oktoberfest merch right now for the free room going. But no, thank you so much for joining us. We will see you next time. Susan, enjoy your time across the pond. Look forward to hearing from you.
Speaker 1: All right, welcome back to Splash Hit Territory. Susan Slusser is on with me. We get to talk about a few things. We got two big deals going on right now. We've got what's next for the Giants. Is it a rebuild? Is it a kind of rebuild? Is it a 09 situation, which I kind of have a pretty good– I actually kind of like that one, to be honest with you. And then we got playoff baseball, which we have to talk about because– There's only a certain amount of games for us to watch right now. It's all playoff baseball. So we got to break that down. So I'm super excited. So Susan, thank you for joining me on this episode.
00:00:40
Speaker 2: Oh, my pleasure, Jeremy.
00:00:41
Speaker 3: I am so excited to talk to you about 2009 and then maybe more important, 2010. I almost feel like in this, you're the host, but I feel like I will be interviewing you. I wrote a story that is in the Chronicle today. It's online at sfchronicle.com.
00:01:01
Speaker 2: I've just been hearing.
00:01:02
Speaker 3: Rumblings here for maybe the last, since we had the post-season presser rap kind of thing, that the Giants might be eyeing more of a rebuild than you might get from Buster Posey saying, Buster's like, yeah, I think we can contend next year. I definitely think he wants to, 100%. But there's some things that will signal whether they're going to really go for it or if they're actually going to, well, I'm huge now. if they're going to actually go for it or if they really are more rebuilding. So we can talk about that a little. But the fact everybody keeps talking about 08, 09, Jeremy, you were there for the 09 situation.
00:01:51
Speaker 2: Can you see that given the young talent that they've been bringing up throughout this year, especially St.
00:01:58
Speaker 3: Bryce Eldredge, and what you know they're looking at for potentially bringing up next year, the year after, your Jackson.
00:02:04
Speaker 2: Floors, et cetera. Do you see any similarities here?
00:02:07
Speaker 3: Because I have heard this circulating for maybe two weeks.
00:02:11
Speaker 1: Well, the 09 rebuild, man, I don't know if it's a complete rebuild. I mean, when I remember 09, it was what I think needs to happen. It was a big bullpen rebuild, if you think about it. They had Lincecum there. They had Kane. They had Zito. They had Johnny Sanchez. They had guys that they had the year before. That wasn't what they were rebuilding. The offense, I mean, we had a few guys, but I don't remember a big scenario there. We added a couple guys, Uribe. We had some similars like that. I think it's similar to just the rebuild of the bullpen. And when you're talking bullpen rebuild, I like it because you've got to bring in veteran guys that are literally going to come in, and they're going to do their job. So you have veterans, right? You've got guys with seven, eight years' experience. They can throw strikes. They can pound the zone. They have pitched in big ball games. All these things, they're super, super important to a bullpen. They're super important to a team winning, not just during the season. It's massive when it comes to winning in the playoffs. A bullpen has to be available to a team if you want to get to the playoffs and if you want to win the playoffs. I think that's super important. I think that it's a big deal when it comes to, for me, when it comes to how we're going to do, how we're going to approach the end of the game. When you got Tony saying, how can I see the end of the game in this situation? I already know how I see this game ending. I see us winning. I see us winning four to three. I see us winning four to two because the next three or four guys that are coming in, I already know that I have an 80%, 90% chance of slamming the door. And so does the other team. I think that's big.
00:03:53
Speaker 3: Well, the comparisons I see, and I don't necessarily see maybe as many as some of the people in the organization, I think, are seeing from, say, the 2008-2009 region. But if you're looking at 2008, here are the similarities. There is the start of rebuilding the bullpen and getting some guys some experience. And it was Bruce Bochy's second year. And you've got Fightella coming into a second year there.
00:04:22
Speaker 2: More players.
00:04:23
Speaker 3: Buster Posey comes up at the very end of 2008, obviously huge. You know, Sergio Romo comes up. So you're starting to see some of the pieces come in and get some experience. 2009, obviously, is really where things started to take off in.
00:04:43
Speaker 2: A huge jump.
00:04:43
Speaker 3: 2008, it was they only finished. one game better than they had the previous year. This is, we're not, we're talking 71 wins to 72 wins. That's right. If the giants go from 65 wins to 66 wins next year, no one is going to be happy. They need to do what happened from, to me from 2008 to 2009, they went from 72 wins to 88 wins.
00:05:06
Speaker 2: Right.
00:05:06
Speaker 3: Huge jump. But that's, I feel like, that's the only thing that's really going to make the fan base really happy with the direction they're going in. So I think like a full rebuild, and here is my take on this. We will know this offseason, whether they're committing to a sort of a more complete type rebuild versus a partial rebuild, is Jung-Hoo Lee.
00:05:36
Speaker 1: Yeah.
00:05:37
Speaker 3: They trade Jung-Hoo Lee and go with all young outfielders, and they could because, gosh, that talent there, that was incredible. really maybe one of the most exciting developments of the season, certainly in the second half.
00:05:48
Speaker 2: They could do that. Maybe bring back a pitcher. Maybe bring back a reliever.
00:05:53
Speaker 3: That, to me, is more what we would think of as a rebuild. Hang on to John Hooley, and there's loads of reasons to. We talked about it on the last show. He's got some experience. He's gotten better every year. He's kept some weight on that was stronger, missed less time. A lot of reasons to like Jung-Hoo Lee, you know, the bat to ball skills, all of those things. I think the fan base has maybe moved off a little bit of their love for him, but he also, people were kind of all over me for saying this last time, but he does bring the South Korea market and that's not insignificant.
00:06:32
Speaker 2: For a lot of reasons.
00:06:33
Speaker 3: Money, eyeballs, and you want to set yourself up the way the Dodgers have with Japanese players, the way the Cubs have with Japanese players. with that market for those players, you know, if you're, if you're the like, Hey, you're the top South Korean player, where you want to go, San Francisco, look at the support. So I, I think this is a trickier than just a, should we let Harrison Bader go?
00:07:00
Speaker 2: Of course we should.
00:07:01
Speaker 3: It's, it's not that Jung who Lee brings an awful lot, but both on and off the field and he's loved in the clubhouse.
00:07:08
Speaker 1: And the business decision, and fans need to understand it, it is a business. So there are guys that are going to get signed. Yes, they have to be talented. 100% sure. I'm not going to sign a guy just for that market and him not produce. You won't have the market. There are guys, they're bringing a market. If anybody thinks that the Dodgers went after Otani and they gave him that much money just because he was a two-way player, no. You're not setting records at that level of record if you didn't think that you were going to bring in that stream of income from that market. It is a business money-making deal. It doesn't mean it wasn't the right move. It's the amount of money given to ensure that deal to get done they knew was going to be paid for long before that deal was ever going to be needed. You can't guarantee a guy $ 50 million when he's 60. You don't even know baseball's... Baseball might not even be round when they're– I'm sorry, but I don't know. 50 years from now, how are you going to project that? You can't. You know that that money already came in. It's sitting in a little account, and they're paying them. So that's how that works. It's the same in all these markets, right? It is what it is. You sign a local guy. You sign Brandon Crawford. What are you going to get? You're going to get all of Walnut Creek. You're going to get the entire East Bay. I mean, that's what you got. Like you sign that Randy Johnson comes over and Oh nine. What'd you get? Local guy going to be a hall of famer group right here in the Bay area. Why not? Marketable situation. That's what that is. Does it bring impact to the team? Yes. But does it make sense? Marketability wise? Absolutely. I don't think that that's going to change, but I do think that the bullpen has to be, that is a key. I'm telling you like, If you bring the bullpen that can seal up games, give me guys that from the seventh inning on, that when I bring them in, they're going to knock it down. They already knew they had Wilson. He was an all-star. We had the closer. They just needed to get the bridge, and that's why they brought a bunch of us in. But it wasn't just us. It was bring us in to help Romo, who they knew was going to be a long-term guy. Get him. He's a one-year guy. Get him some understanding of how it works in the big leagues. He found him. Pretty good deal. I mean, that guy became an unbelievable pitcher, right? No one thought 15 years. No one would have thought 15 years out of that guy. Great guy. But he came along because we brought in veteran guys. Javi came in after that. You piece it together. So you can bring in bullpen guys that can seal up. I guarantee you of the 25 games or whatever they blew after the sixth or seventh inning. I don't know the numbers, but I'm just going that high. I bet we can change 15. I guarantee you we can win 15 of those games if you bring in a seal of a knockdown seal of bullpen. Now you went from a 66. Now you're at an 80. I'm not saying that's great. I wouldn't buy into that. But could you could you get into the mid eighties? Yes, you absolutely could. You absolutely could get into the mid eighties on a winning deal. And if to me, the way that baseball is right now, you could end up going to the playoffs with 81 wins. I've never seen it set for this year, but someone did it. Houston did it. They rolled into the playoffs, 80, 81 wins. That's unbelievable. But And I'm not saying our division will be able to take that. You're not going to get in the playoffs because you're never going to make it in the National League. Because the National League West is not going to play to an 81-game situation. You're not going to get even a wild card at that. But to me, get that bullpen in there. Get these starters. Get a couple starters. Spend some money. They have it. Complete rebuild?
00:10:36
Speaker 2: No.
00:10:36
Speaker 1: But can they add valuable pieces?
00:10:38
Speaker 2: 100%.
00:10:40
Speaker 1: Is it going to take more than two or three? Yes. You're going to need five or six pieces coming in. But then you bring those guys in. Now think about the offseason. Land those dudes. Now you've got an offense that says, hey, we just got five of these guys. Now their confidence goes up. Defense confidence goes up. Other pitchers' confidence goes up because they get to learn from these guys. That's contagious, and that'll win games. And then you see, like, the Dodgers and San Diego and Arizona all looking at, like, the Giants are making a run. Like, they're sending a message. That's what you need to have coming into spring training, if we play spring training.
00:11:14
Speaker 2: Well, I've got a few for you.
00:11:15
Speaker 3: So I've got a story I think will be online maybe Friday. And I don't know, either in the Saturday or Sunday Chronicle. Looking at the free agent market and kind of who maybe the best targets might be for the Giants, particularly when it comes to relievers. Now, if you're doing a partial rebuild, do you add some big salary relievers this year?
00:11:40
Speaker 2: I think so.
00:11:41
Speaker 3: 100%.
00:11:41
Speaker 1: Yeah.
00:11:42
Speaker 2: Yeah. And it's sort of interesting.
00:11:45
Speaker 3: And one really kind of intrigues me as a possibility. I, you know, he might be a little bit cheaper than a traditional closer because he is not yet a closer, but there's a lot of value in sort of the, you know, sort of the use marrow petite kind of guy who can do either. If you're in more home and this is this, this also takes away a major asset from one of your division rivals.
00:12:08
Speaker 2: He's a free agent.
00:12:10
Speaker 3: To me, he could be exactly that kind of guy, a petite kind of guy. I think he would profile really well at Oracle, who wouldn't really. And then also you don't have to face him, and he's owned the Giants.
00:12:21
Speaker 2: But there are some other options. There are, you know, David Bednar is out there.
00:12:26
Speaker 3: He's obviously closed in his hometown, which isn't easy. Had a really rough final year in Pittsburgh, ERA 0-5. But then he's gotten it done in New York with the Yankees. Yeah.
00:12:39
Speaker 2: He's going to be more pricey because he's a closer.
00:12:42
Speaker 3: I don't think he's going to be Edwin Diaz, $ 23 million a year pricey. But if you want a closer, if you don't think Randy Rodriguez is your guy, if you don't think Camilo Doval is your guy, if you maybe want to add somebody like more a home, but you want to have a traditional closer to which honestly, if they did that, yes, please go ahead and get both.
00:13:02
Speaker 2: No problem with that at all. relievers are hard to project.
00:13:06
Speaker 3: So, you know, the more, the better as far as I'm concerned, but particularly guys with these kinds of track records, he would be good. And here's a, here's sort of my wild card. And again, this is a taken away a guy from, from somebody that, uh, and then you don't have to.
00:13:21
Speaker 2: Face is Clay Holmes. Cause he's done both.
00:13:23
Speaker 3: He started, I think he's happier starting now. He did the, what Jordan Hicks tried to do a few years ago from, from, uh, ladings relief to starting. And he's been very good, so he could do either. But he's such an extreme ground ball pitcher.
00:13:39
Speaker 2: Oh, my gosh. He would be amazing.
00:13:41
Speaker 3: And you could use, I mean, they need another starter, too. So in that case, you've almost got to, you know, you've got plenty of options there. But if you tell a guy you're signing him as a starter, to me, you have to use him as a starter. So, I mean, you've got a pact there. But I like that idea, too, though he's not a reliever.
00:14:00
Speaker 1: I do. But there's so many options that you don't need a 23 minute, that $ 23 million closer is not closing right now, by the way, he's not closing. Like you can't, I mean, it's like, that's a huge risk. I just want guys evaluate, pull away, evaluate, say, let me see their whole numbers. Let me see what they pitch. I would like to see, let me see what their numbers are in high pressure situations. Not when it's four, nothing, not when it's six, nothing. No, what is their numbers in high-pressure situations? Get enough of those guys in that bullpen. Someone will figure it out. Romo was not a closer before he became one. Casilla was not a closer before he became one. You just knew what they could do in high-pressure situations, and you said, I'm going to go ahead and put you here. And Bochy said, you can do it. We got guys that can back you. Jeremy's closed before. Javi's closed out some games before. Moda's closed out some games before. we had guys that could come around these guys and say, if it doesn't work out, it doesn't. But you, if you can pitch in high pressure situations, let's evaluate. But I, but you cannot have a bunch of these young guys and say, Hey man, go do it in a three, one ball game. Not when you want to win, not when you want to. And that's what you want to do. The giants want to win. I don't believe in a rebuild. I think you'll lose the fans. Do I believe in a high impact scenario where I got to bring in some impact players and, Yes, but we don't need a complete rebuild. We just need impact players to be signed, not top tier. Don't need to over $ 50 million guy. No, I need to go get them. And that's what Sabian Sabian did not go out. Bob Howie wasn't a top tier guy. He had 10 years at the time. Didn't pay a ton of money for him. I was a guy that came in. I was a younger guy. I had upside, but I had been starting and relieving. No one knew what I was. And so when Sabian came in and said, this is what I want you to do. I need you to throw a lot of strikes, pound the zone. and show some veteran leadership. That's all I was at the time. It wasn't like I had a track record of being a seventh, eighth inning guy for 10 years, you know, but get some of those guys in and then play it out, man. And, and then go after those, those kinds of guys. And I think if you do that, I think you'll be just fine next year. So 2009 rebuild, I like total rebuild. I do not like at all.
00:16:14
Speaker 3: Yeah. I agree. I, you know, I've heard both 2008 and 2009. I really don't think a 2008 one game improvement would be, would be better. And maybe it's just because that was baby steps for getting the bullpen a little bit more on its feet, headed in the right direction, a little more, you know, but Bochy had managed before. This certainly is not comparable to Vitello and what he's going through. But there is also, you know, the fact that Tony Vitello and, kind of saw this play out over the course of the year is maybe more comfortable with.
00:16:48
Speaker 2: The younger players.
00:16:49
Speaker 3: You know, it took him some time, I think, to really establish great relationships with some of the veterans. I think he did accomplish that. But it took a few, you know, a few things. And, you know, he's talked about the fact that he had a couple of testy conversations. Let's put it with some of the veteran players. Uh, I do believe they're all on board now, but that took a while. He clearly has a good rapport with young players.
00:17:15
Speaker 2: That's his background.
00:17:17
Speaker 3: So that also might be part of the thinking, uh, you know, this is in this guy's wheels house, younger guys, and then there's the CBA. And I feel like we spend too much time talking about the CBA. Nobody really cares about business stuff, but it's so important as a team is trying to figure out what to do money wise. budget wise, if you're in this kind of, we don't necessarily think we're going to win the division next year. We're not sure we're a playoff team next year. There's this upcoming labor strife. Are we really going to max out budget wise for this coming year? Are we going to rebuild the whole bullpen right now? Are we looking at free agents who are free agents after.
00:18:00
Speaker 2: Next season to add?
00:18:02
Speaker 3: And you know, they are, they've always got, you know, every front office has a sort of contingencies and then various different highlights for upcoming years. You've got to plan years out. And when reporters, players, people on any sort of podcast media start talking about possible options, it's not like the front office is calling either of us and going like, hey, what do you think about Mara Holm?
00:18:28
Speaker 2: Is he the guy? We don't know.
00:18:30
Speaker 3: This is educated guesswork. I can tell you that from what we know about what Buster Posey wants. He wants guys that throw strikes. So you got to look at any pitchers that aren't walking a ton. A nice, healthy strikeout to walk ratio is probably something you want to look at. And that's going to be a number one for him, I think. And, you know, a little bit of experience, sure. But I think the walk thing is probably number one on his list of things to look at.
00:19:00
Speaker 2: So, Look at those guys. Yeah. But you know what?
00:19:03
Speaker 3: You're not going to be a very successful back into the bullpen guy anyway, if you've got a.
00:19:08
Speaker 2: High walk rate.
00:19:09
Speaker 1: Correct. You're right.
00:19:11
Speaker 3: Yep.
00:19:11
Speaker 1: Correct. And I know we have to go to our sponsor. We got a word from our sponsor, but last thing to remember in this right here is remember this Bruce Bochy was a manager for a really, really long time. And he had a 71, he had a 71 in a 70 game winning team. Don't always blame it on the manager. Sometimes the guys are on the field. Everybody's got to get off Vitello a little bit. He's going to be fine. Give him some guys because you had a hall of fame manager that could not get it done with certain guys on the field. He sat there in the off season. He said, Hey, you want me to get it done? Give me players that can get it done for me. And then I'll move the chess pieces around the board. So we've got to get the right play. So everybody needs to remember that, but we do have to go to Wisconsin. We got playoff. Susan, we got playoff baseball. No, we don't get to talk Giants. We already know that. We don't need to continue to go down that road. We have to watch Dodgers.
00:20:09
Speaker 2: Ugh.
00:20:10
Speaker 1: We have to watch them. But we also get to watch Milwaukee, who I am hopeful. I'm not saying that Atlanta can't do it. Atlanta's got a dangerous group. I don't know if they can get the Dodgers or not. We're going to see tonight. Hopefully they make it into the game tomorrow. And they can tie that 3-2. If not, I am truly believing. And I know San Diego wants to win. And it would be awesome to see a San Diego Dodgers rivalry, too. They get into it a little bit in the playoffs. I think I'm a Milwaukee fan. I love this team. I love how they play the game of baseball. They won 103 games, not because they stump it and they depend on the three-run homer. They won a lot of ballgames. Big hitting, clutch hitting. They do get the homer, but they also play defense and they pitch. I love the Milwaukee. Tampa, once again, another. Tampa's always Tampa. It's unbelievable. You have Boston. You have Toronto. You have New York, obviously. The big, giant guys. all about the East Coast baseball, and then you've got the Florida, Tampa Bay, with 35 people showing up to a game, beating everybody. They seem a way, they figured out a way to win. But neither of them, Milwaukee, Tampa, have ever won a World Series. I really want to see one of these teams do it.
00:21:26
Speaker 3: Yeah, I absolutely do too. And someday we want to see the Mariners in there.
00:21:31
Speaker 1: Yeah, that too.
00:21:32
Speaker 2: In the World Series.
00:21:32
Speaker 3: Seriously.
00:21:33
Speaker 2: But, yeah.
00:21:34
Speaker 3: I think Milwaukee hasn't won since 57 or something like that.
00:21:38
Speaker 2: Is that right?
00:21:38
Speaker 1: Oh, they've won one? They've won a World Series?
00:21:41
Speaker 2: Yeah.
00:21:41
Speaker 3: I mean, it's going back to, like, you know, the Killebrew.
00:21:44
Speaker 2: Chase or something.
00:21:45
Speaker 1: Well, I get away with saying they've never won it because I don't even– I can't go back far. I stopped in the 70s. Yeah.
00:21:52
Speaker 3: I just parrot what I hear during the playoffs. I think that's what I don't don't fact check me.
00:21:58
Speaker 2: I love the Brewers.
00:21:59
Speaker 3: I think that is when Scott and I were on the show earlier in the week, we talked about, hey, are there are there role models for the Giants? And yes, the Brewers. I've always said that I love the way they play. I love the speed. So I'm covering old ground there. But one of the things, first of all, I think we all, and I'm an objective reporter, so I'm going to say some people watch the postseason to hate watch the Dodgers.
00:22:23
Speaker 2: Who's to say who those people might be?
00:22:27
Speaker 3: As a reporter, you kind of root for the guys you know, and they're actually Dodgers I know really well and like, and I will.
00:22:34
Speaker 2: Root for them-ish. But so the Braves, how can you not love them? Don Smith.
00:22:41
Speaker 3: Oh.
00:22:42
Speaker 2: Mike Yastrzemski, great, great giant.
00:22:45
Speaker 1: Yeah.
00:22:45
Speaker 3: Forever giant. Is that what we say? They're just, they're also a very fun team. I covered Matt Olson in Oakland, a terrific guy and what a talent. So yeah, I really, the Braves are super fun. I would love to see them advance in an objective way.
00:23:04
Speaker 2: Yeah. Yeah, and the Brewers. No offense to Robbie Ray. We love Robbie Ray. You know what? The Padres are interesting.
00:23:15
Speaker 3: Mason Miller is now away on paternity leave.
00:23:19
Speaker 2: We've seen this postseason.
00:23:23
Speaker 3: Tony Vitello gets dinged like all managers for his bullpen use. Teams get into the playoffs, and even then you go like, wait, why is Mason Miller pitching in a game where they're up like this? And then he has a rare wobble the next time out. So, again, I'm going to kind of echo what you said about Vitello. You know, people pile on when he does things other managers also do.
00:23:45
Speaker 1: Yes.
00:23:46
Speaker 3: They are all prone to, you know, like we all are.
00:23:50
Speaker 2: We all make mistakes.
00:23:51
Speaker 1: That's right.
00:23:52
Speaker 3: But, yeah, in a playoff situation and Mason Miller, that gets even more highlighted. So that can happen. But, yeah, he's away on paternity leave. So remember back in the day, Jeremy, I think you were playing when people used to go.
00:24:04
Speaker 2: Paternity leave? Why are these guys going on paternity leave?
00:24:07
Speaker 1: Yeah, we got three days. I think, in fact, all of my sons were born on World Series years. So, Walker was 07 when I was in Colorado, and then Logan was 10, and Colt was 2012. I was fortunate enough that those boys decided to come into the world right before the playoffs, but it was still a little scary because it's still in the playoff run, and hey, you're kind of a guy we use. So, how long you think you're going to be gone was the look. And I'm like, Hey man, like I will honestly, I'll try to get back as soon as I can. It is a weird deal. Cause it's like, it is my, yes, my kid is coming to this world. I, I gotta, you gotta be there for it. I mean, that'd be the worst thing ever. You don't ever put the game before your family, but then you're also like, uh, so I could stare at the kid and the kid can't hardly see me yet. You don't need me. You're screaming. You don't even, you want mama. So like, How about, can I roll over here real quick and play? And then I'll come right back. Like you almost, it's a really hard, tough deal. Like, because you're like, you're in it. It's kind of important, but you also now, now know why yes, managers make decisions, but everybody's like, why'd you throw them in a two, two? Why'd you bring them in for six outs? Well, that's why I knew I was losing him. I got to seal up this game. So you know what? I'm not worried about burning you. Like if you can do it, you'll be just fine. And I know I'm going to, you're going to have three days off. And hopefully we can come up. It just backfired. And it backfired on a, yes, it was a middle, middle fastball. He walked, but it wasn't like he got lit up. It hit a single that was six inches outside of the guy's glove. Like he could have laid out and caught it too.
00:25:44
Speaker 3: Right.
00:25:44
Speaker 1: So it, it did backfire. But I mean, I think that that, that's why managers do certain things. Like I know what you don't know. I know what's going to happen here. So I've got to utilize you to try to win it. What, how can I be, you can be my biggest weapon today. Cause I'm not getting you tomorrow. And I think that's what– but San Diego came back. They won yesterday. You know, they made it interesting. But also we can't– I know we're focusing sometimes on some of the merit, but we didn't– the White Sox. That is a perfect example of what happens to a team that was literally possibly the worst team in baseball freaking history two years ago. I mean, it was terrible to watch those guys. To last year wasn't much better. To this year, I mean– Now they're in the– like it can happen. Fans need to understand it can happen to teams. You can turn it over. Now they're not playing in the same type of division that has the Dodgers. No one in the Central is banging out a $ 750 million player and then a $ 400 million and a– like whatever the Dodgers spend, right? Like they got– you know, no one in the Central has that scenario going. But it doesn't matter. Can you compete and can you win the playoffs year to year, no matter what your season is, if they want to? Yes, if they want to. And that's what we have to remember, because that's a fun story, too. I got a buddy here that's a White Sox fan. I was razzing him all year long. I was like, bro, they're living in a pipe dream. It's not happening. Then they're in the playoffs. I'm like, well, they got like two games. Congratulations. Well, then now they're in the D.S., And he's here every night. He's wearing me out, man. I mean, but it's good for him, right? So he's excited. He was a cop in Chicago, and he's excited. And so for me, there's always hope. MLB on Fox is streaming on Fox One. The postseason is here, and we have your front row seat to the wildest walk-offs, lights out pitching, and clutch plays all playoffs long. Stream each NLDS and NLCS game, then the 2026 World Series, Live on Fox 1. At home or on the go, live or on demand, never miss a moment. Stream now. Start your Fox 1 three-day free trial today at fox1. com. I just, I want to see people get unseated because I want to see, I like the, hey man, if you tell me we can't do it, oh, we're gonna. I do like, I do like Machado's answer the other day when Ortiz said it's over and he said, huh, we've heard that. I love it. I love it. I mean, I got on Smoltzy in 10, no, 12. When we played the Nationals, was that 12 or 14 that we played the Nationals? 14. 14 we played the Nationals. That guy was doing a whole broadcast. He kept saying we when he was talking about the Nationals. I looked at him and I was like, we, bro? What do you mean we? Like, he was like, well, I didn't mean it like that. I'm like, well, it sounded like that. I listened to the broadcast. You know, like, So sometimes I was like, hold on, man, you're thinking we're done. We're not. And, and we, we messed everybody up, you know, in 10, we messed everybody up. Every, everybody said, these guys aren't going to make it past the first bet. Cincinnati two and Oh, no, since everyone swept at home. Nope. It's over. It's over. Everybody's hold my beer. You know, I'm about to show you, you know, like, and I like San Diego's. I like that situation too. So I think that it's going to be a, it's going to be an interesting deal, man. When you, when you wake people up and I'm, I'm, I think this is a really competitive playoffs. I actually like this situation that we have right now. So it's been fun to watch.
00:29:23
Speaker 3: Yeah. And I, you know what, a quick shout out since you mentioned the white socks. And honestly, if the giants are going to do a rebuild.
00:29:29
Speaker 2: Man, there's a model.
00:29:31
Speaker 3: I think they came way quicker than anybody expected, but Will Venable, North Bay Zone, Forever Giant, Max Venable's son. I know Will was always sort of on the Giants radar as a possible manager. The White Sox were smart, swooped him and got him. Like you, I've got a good friend who's a White Sox fan. I got a lot of fondness for White Sox fans because they've been through it and they always feel like, kind of like the ace fans did here for a long time.
00:30:01
Speaker 2: Yeah. And we're number two. Don't we get any respect?
00:30:03
Speaker 1: Yeah. Yeah.
00:30:05
Speaker 2: I got a lot of feelings for White Sox.
00:30:07
Speaker 1: Yeah. And they're doing great. I love the playoffs right now this year. This has been, this is my, there's a lot of teams that haven't for a long time that, that could possibly. And that's where I think it's awesome. That's why I think the Dodgers need to exit stage left and let someone else have a turn. They probably don't think that way, but that's how I think. So, but yeah, no, that was great. I'm looking forward to seeing the playoffs, Susan. I know that you, uh, you're getting ready to, uh, go ahead and go across the ocean there, man. You're going to enjoy some time and enjoy it. I've just got back from over there. Freaking loved it. Uh, so I know that you, you enjoy it over there as well. So, uh, enjoy your time.
00:30:46
Speaker 3: I'll be, um, look, I know it won't compare to your brewery plug, plug your brewery. But I will be in the pub drinking whatever the dark beer of choice is.
00:30:59
Speaker 1: Oh, yeah, yeah.
00:31:00
Speaker 2: Whatever the pub happens to be.
00:31:02
Speaker 3: Colonel Fawcett in Camden, if anybody's in Camden ever.
00:31:05
Speaker 2: Colonel Fawcett, A +.
00:31:07
Speaker 1: Awesome, awesome. Yeah, no, it's going to be great. I'd love to hear your beer styles over there. I think there's a lot of good ones. And it's going to be Oktoberfest time frame, so you should have some stuff going on no matter where you're at. So thank you so much for joining me. If you are listening, don't be afraid to give us a follow. Don't be afraid to give us comments. We love those. We are going to do more mailbag situations. Grab some merch. We do have some Splash Hit Territory merch. You want to grab that. I'll start wearing it. I'm kind of in the middle of Oktoberfest, so I got the Oktoberfest merch right now for the free room going. But no, thank you so much for joining us. We will see you next time. Susan, enjoy your time across the pond. Look forward to hearing from you.
