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00:00:06
Speaker 1: Welcome back in everybody to GM territory. The divisional series is over and it is time for the championship series. Jim, how exciting were both of all of these divisional series?
00:00:18
Speaker 2: Yeah, it was so exciting in that game five with that Cleveland White Sox game. Absolutely amazing. And, you know, it was interesting because as you know, I had predicted the Guardians would win that series. And my reasoning was because they had an ace in Gavin Williams that the White Sox did not have. And I talked about future Hall of Famer Jose Ramirez with the two-run homer last night. So it kind of played out as I thought it would, as we nailed seven out of the eight series. The only series I got wrong was the Yankees-Tampa Bay series. But that series last night was amazing. The crowds in both Cleveland and Chicago were just so great for baseball and so great to see the small market Cleveland Guardians playing the small market Tampa Bay Rays now for the American League Championship. And then on the flip side, Yeah, the Dodgers series was amazing. And, you know, they're showing the world why they are back-to-back world champions.
00:01:09
Speaker 3: Yeah, they sure are.
00:01:10
Speaker 1: Yeah, you just mentioned it. You went seven for eight so far in the playoffs. And I think that's probably going to match what the Cowboys record is at the end of the season.
00:01:19
Speaker 3: I'm just teasing. I'm just teasing. Sorry, I had to.
00:01:21
Speaker 2: Thanks, Trey. I got you. I got you.
00:01:24
Speaker 3: It was up there. It was up there.
00:01:25
Speaker 2: It hurt. It hurt, but I got it.
00:01:27
Speaker 3: I'm sorry. I'm sorry.
00:01:28
Speaker 2: Yeah.
00:01:28
Speaker 1: And then, like you just mentioned, that Jose Ramirez home run, he pretty much scooped that out of the zone. That was a ball. And Jose is balling right now. He absolutely is balling.
00:01:39
Speaker 2: That was the lowest pitch he's ever hit a home run on his entire career, according to StatCast.
00:01:44
Speaker 3: Yeah, it was crazy.
00:01:45
Speaker 2: That's how incredible it was.
00:01:46
Speaker 1: Before we get into this matchup, let's talk about our partners at Calshi, the prediction market where you can trade on the outcome of real-world events, including the NLCS. And here what jumps out to me is the Milwaukee Brewers won 103 games, best record in baseball this season. They took the season series from the Dodgers, four games to three. And right now on Couchy, the market has them as the underdog. The Dodgers are trading at 61 cents and the Brewers 41 cents. So I'm taking the Brewers. I'm buying Milwaukee to win the National League at 41 cents. The Brewers at 41 cents to win the NLCS. You can find that market in every game in this series right now on Couchy. All right, let's break this thing down. All right, Jim, you're already in Milwaukee. What can you tell me about this Dodgers team heading into this series?
00:02:35
Speaker 2: Well, as we all know, this team is led by four number one starters. And in game one will be Tarek Skubal on the mound. And we all know Tarek Skubal was the Cy Young Award winner in the American League. both 2024 and 25 and somehow in 2026 had elbow surgery and then came back so fast they're now naming the surgery after him calling it the scooble scope and he still made 26 starts he was traded at the trade deadline from the tigers to the dodgers because what the dodgers had to add more talent to a team that's won Two straight world championships. And oh, by the way, who will be closing for him? That's Edwin Diaz, who was signed in the offseason, spent most of the year on the injured list, and now he's throwing 100 miles an hour with a 92 mile an hour wipeout slider. I talked to both of those guys yesterday at the ballpark at American Family Field in Milwaukee yesterday. As the Dodgers worked out, I was there last night watching them up until eight o'clock. It was an amazing workout. And it just reminded me how talented they are. You know, I talked to Freddie Freeman, who had injuries and then all of a sudden got his knee healthy for the Atlanta series. And he had two home runs in that series. And, you know, you talk about the superstars everywhere on the field, the shortstop Mookie Betts. I mean, Freeman and Betts were out there early working again yesterday, like they always do on their way to the Hall of Fame. But the talent just never seems to stop all over the diamond with this Dodger team. But, you know, I think at the end of the day, you look at the four starters that they're going to run out there. That's a difference maker for them, right? Four number ones. You got Scooble's going to go game one. Yoshi Yamamoto is going to go game two. They haven't announced three and four. So it'll be Blake Snell and Tyler Glass now in some order. And, you know, look, that group has won four Cy Young awards. They've been six time all stars. I mean, it's just an incredible group. This is a really good team defensively. They've got a lot of power up and down the lineup. Some of the guys that were cold most of the year, like Kyle Tucker and Teosca Hernandez and Mookie Betts, all got hot at the right time here in October. I think the one question mark with the Dodgers is Shohei Otani. We all know he's not going to pitch, but injuries have really slowed him down at the end of the year and including here in October. I watched him yesterday. He did go against the 100-mile-an-hour pitching machine as they try to get ready for the 105 miles an hour they're going to face on Mizorowski tonight. But he just doesn't look healthy. And I don't know if it's the knee. I don't know if it's the hip. I don't know if it's the bicep. I don't know if it's the neck. I really don't know what it is. But I do know I'm not seeing his lower half. And I do know what I'm seeing is he's chasing balls out of the strike zone. So I really don't know what to expect from him in this series, to be honest,
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Trey. But I also know this team has enough offense without him to win anyway. That's how good they are. When you talk about Freeman and Betts and Muncy and Edmund and Kyle Tucker and Andy Pahas and Teosca Hernandez and even the kids on the bench like Josue, DePaula. There's just so much depth. There's so much lineup. Look, we know how they won the last two world championships. And this team has come back intact. But oh, by the way, we've added Scooble and Diaz and Tucker. And I just am watching this team on the field last night just going, this is just one of the greatest baseball teams ever assembled in the history of the sport. That's what the Dodgers are.
00:06:22
Speaker 3: And they actually might be. the greatest.
00:06:24
Speaker 1: If they pull off this three-peat, I think we can say, you know, these last three seasons, these rosters, they're going to go down top five all time in Major League history.
00:06:34
Speaker 2: All right. So let me ask you this, because I agree with that, right? They win this, not only at Dynasty. It may be that we have to look back at it and say, this was the greatest team ever assembled, right? Yeah. But let's also be honest. Over the last two years, nobody has won more games in Major League Baseball than the Milwaukee Brewers. They won more regular season games than the Dodgers did a year ago. They won more than them this year. And oh, by the way, they won the series against the Dodgers this year, four games to three. So, Trey, give me your breakdown, if you would, on these Milwaukee Brewers.
00:07:06
Speaker 1: Let's start with the number that defines this matchup. $ 124 million against $ 316 million. The Dodgers are spending more than two and a half times what Milwaukee spends. And the Brewers won more games. 103 this season. A franchise record. They had the best record in baseball for the second straight year. How did they do it? They don't beat you at power. They hit the second fewest home runs in the majors this year. They beat you by grinding. Milwaukee led the MLB in batting average at 258 and an on-base percentage at 341. They swung less than any other team in baseball and chased less than any team in baseball. They make you throw strikes. They put the ball in play.
00:07:47
Speaker 3: They run.
00:07:48
Speaker 1: They catch it. They're one of the best defensive teams in the sport. The best in the National League with a 3-4 ERA. In the division series against San Diego, the Penn threw nine innings with a.
00:07:58
Speaker 3: 47 ERA. When Milwaukee has a lead late, the game is usually over. And it starts with Jacob Mizorowski.
00:08:05
Speaker 1: He went 16-5 this year and led all of baseball in ERA at 1.8.
00:08:11
Speaker 3: Strikeouts at. 252 and whip.
00:08:13
Speaker 1: Hitters batted. 157 against him. But what I want to focus on is how did the Dodgers.
00:08:19
Speaker 3: Do against him? Against the Dodgers, he's been even better.
00:08:22
Speaker 1: He has a 159 ERA, 27 strikeouts, and three walks in 17 career innings against the Dodgers. Dodgers hitters are 6 for 36 against them, a 167 average with 14 strikeouts. Freddie Freeman is 0 for 6. But here's the one name I'm going to circle, and that's Shohei Itani. He's slumping. All right, we can see that. And he's been dropped in their batting order. Yet, he's one Dodger who has hurt Mizorowski. with two hits and five at-bats and a home run and a triple. Game two, likely going to go to Logan Henderson, and the Dodgers have hit 135 off of him. He's allowed one run in 12 innings against them this year. So where's the concern for the Brewers?
00:09:04
Speaker 3: That's depth.
00:09:05
Speaker 1: After Mizorowski and Henderson, the rotation is a question mark. Dustin May, their deadline pickup, had a 5.65 ERA and 10 Brewers starts. That means game three and four in L.A., could be bullpen heavy. The hitters I want to watch on Milwaukee is William Contreras, who has hit. 375 with two homers in the Divisional Series and led the majors with 24 RBIs in September. He has never struck out against Scooble. Jackson Chirio, whose walk-off single off Mason Miller, who won Game 2 against San Diego, already owns a franchise record for postseason home runs at age 22. And Christian Jelic, The first captain in franchise history finally drove in a postseason run for the first time since Game 7 of the 2018 NLCS. And remember the history. Milwaukee lost Game 3 in San Diego for its 12th straight postseason road loss, tying a major league record. They won Game four to end it. This year, they won three of four at Dodger Stadium. So the can't win on the road narrative, they just buried it. All right, Jim, you are currently in Milwaukee. I know you've been talking to the players, the staff.
00:10:11
Speaker 3: Give me the keys to game one and the series.
00:10:14
Speaker 2: All right, Trey, I'll start with the Los Angeles Dodgers, and I'll start with tonight's game because you asked me for game one. I think first pitch strikes for Tarek Skubal is going to be the key. When he gets first pitch strikes, he's really, really tough to beat. When he gets first pitch strikes, he can pitch deep into the game, which is something the Dodgers want him to do. When he gets a first pitch strike, he gets early count outs. It also sets him up for early count punch-outs. And if he can get that four-seam fastball at the top of the zone for a strike, that is the key because he can follow that with that nasty changeup that he's got, that dead fish changeup, which hitters, as you know, wave over it all day long. So I think for him, it's first pitch strikes. And I'll tell you, interestingly, one of my favorite matchups in this series is going to be Scooble against Jackson Churio, who ambushes first pitches. He's one of the best first pitch batters in baseball, especially against the fastball. So I'm really interested to see if Scooble starts him with a change or a fastball and if Churrio decides to try to ambush that. But that's going
to be a key to game one and the series. Again, Scooble probably pitches again in game five. All right, number two for the Dodgers. They have to out-Homer the Brewers. That is the one part of the Dodgers team that is significantly better than Milwaukee. They hit homers. Milwaukee does not. To win this series, quite frankly, they have to out-Homer him. Number three, Dodgers have to play a clean defensive game if they're going to beat Milwaukee. Why? Because Milwaukee is one of the best base running teams in baseball. Their base runners score. They're third in baseball and base runners score when they get on base. And that's incredible. when you think about this team that's not a home-run hitting team. But that's how good they are. They steal bases. They go first to third extremely well. They bunt. They squeeze. They were third in baseball in sacrifice. So for the Dodgers, you've got to be able to make the defensive plays. You've got to make sure your defense is positioned perfectly for the way they play baseball. Keys for the Milwaukee Brewers. For tonight in game one, Jacob Mizorowski's secondary offerings. We know what he's going to do. He's going to throw 105, 103, 105, 101, whatever, in that range. Dodgers are preparing for that. I was talking to Freddie Freeman last night, and he's like, rolling his eyes, like, just how difficult it is to try to catch the 105. That's great. But when Mizorowski's slider and curveball are working with that 105, good luck. Remember this, Jacob Mizorowski is going to win the NL Cy Young Award. He's the only starting pitcher to post in the ERA under two the entire season. He is a true ace. But if he gets those secondary pitches going tonight with that 105, good luck to the Dodgers. Key number two for Milwaukee, sack, squeeze, and run. OK, Brewers have to show off their speed and their athleticism, right? They win by playing small ball. They do as good as anybody. They're a great base running team. They've got to do it in this series. It's hard to get a base runner on base against a guy like Scooble or even in game two Yamamoto or Snell or Glasnow. But when you do get a base runner, you've got to find a way to get the runners over and get them in. And then finally, for the Brewers, the next key is middle of the field range. They are special defensively. Gary Mitchell in center field is going to run the balls down the gap. He's going to go over the wall and bring homers back. Bryce Terang, one of the best defensive second basemen in baseball with incredible range both to his left and to his right. Cooper Pratt, same thing. Behind the plate, William Contreras can shut down the running game. Not that the Dodgers have much of a running game, but you want to try to run on him. And they have some guys that will do that, like Kyle Tucker. Contreras can shut that down. I think the range up the middle for Milwaukee is going to be key to them winning. So, again, I think keys to the game for the Dodgers tonight, it's going to
be scuba first pitch strikes, out-home ring Milwaukee, and playing a clean defensive game. For the Brewers, it's going to be Miz's secondary pitches, their ability to play small ball, and their mid-range defense.
00:14:38
Speaker 1: Yeah, we're mentioning Mizorowski here. I did look up his stats at home, and he's 8-1. He dominates at home. What I do find interesting about Mizorowski is he actually left-handed hitters are only hitting 114, where right-handed hitters are hitting above 200.
00:14:55
Speaker 3: It's crazy.
00:14:58
Speaker 1: So, yeah, like you mentioned, Freddie Freeman, as he rolls his eyes, he's going to have his hands full. But for me, there's two players I want to watch in that Dodgers lineup. And I want to see how Max Muncy produces. Look, he had three home runs in the NLDS. We know that he's hitting a lot better. He's been the October slugger for the Dodgers. And Kyle Tucker has had a great turnaround. He's hitting above 300 in the NLDS and had a home run. Something to keep in mind, though. He's 0-5 career versus Logan Henderson. So game two, watch for that. And he has zero plate appearances against Jacob Mizorowski. So this will be the first time he sees some 105 velocity.
00:15:40
Speaker 2: Can I ask you a question?
00:15:43
Speaker 1: Yeah.
00:15:43
Speaker 2: Is this possibly the greatest pitching matchup we've ever seen in a postseason?
00:15:49
Speaker 3: Yeah.
00:15:50
Speaker 2: I know there's been a lot. Everyone's going, wait, what? But think about this for a minute. Nobody in baseball history has thrown as hard as Mizorowski does. In the history of the game, nobody's ever done it. Tarek Skubal has two Cy Young Awards the last two years, and after an injury, was the best left-handed pitcher in baseball after the trade to LA. We're talking about The best right-handed pitcher and the best left-handed pitcher in the sport going at each other in game one? This is the kind of matchup we dream of. And, oh, by the way, it is David and Goliath, right? I mean, it is. And, yes, the Brewers are the underdog. I get it. But the Brewers, they won more games than the Dodgers this year, and they beat the Dodgers head-to-head four out of seven. And, look, I'm not going to argue this. The Dodgers have the most talented future Hall of Famers of any team in baseball this year. There's no doubt about that. Milwaukee Brewers, I could argue, had the best team. You can argue they had the best team. So is the best talent going to win or the best team going to win? And when this series is over, is that the best team that won? I'm going to say yes. But I'll say this. Before the playoffs started, as you know, I predicted there'd be a Milwaukee LA LCS, and I made the statement, whoever wins this series is going to win the World Series, and I stand by that. Before the playoffs started, I predicted the Brewers in seven. I have never felt worse about a prediction I have ever made in my life. Not one. It is so hard for me to see these Dodgers and think they're not going to win it again. But I will say this. The Brewers have the best pitcher, I think, on planet Earth in Mizorowski. And I think they have the best clutch hitter in baseball right now in Jackson Churio, who, by the way, has more RBIs in the postseason than any other Brewer, surpassing Ryan Braun. And he's 22 years old. Crazy. And this is only his third year in the big leagues. And I can argue that he is the best clutch hitter on the field for this series. Like, this is going to be unbelievable. We didn't even talk managers. Two elite managers, Pat Murphy and Dave Roberts. I can argue, along with Kevin Cash at Tampa, they're the three best managers in baseball. They're going at each other. This is going to be a series that people are going to remember. And the funny part about it is I can see a pathway where it goes seven games tied in the ninth inning, just kind of like the Cleveland-Chicago series has ended. And I can also see this series ending in five. And I think game one is going to be so important, Trey. I think the Brewers have to win game one. They have to win the Mizorowski start. If you don't, I think it's going to be really hard to beat the Dodgers.
00:18:44
Speaker 1: I tend to agree with you. I'm going to say I want the Brewers to win this series. I know they have that bad taste in their mouth from last postseason. And look, they get another crack at it against the same team. Give me the Brewers. I'm riding with you. And honestly, I should probably just follow every pick that you make. I mean, seven for eight so far.
00:19:02
Speaker 3: Come on.
00:19:02
Speaker 1: That's that's crazy. All right, let's now switch over to this American League Championship Series. This one's going to be exciting. We got the Tampa Bay Rays, the Cleveland Guardians, who just won last night. Give me your thoughts on this series.
00:19:18
Speaker 2: I think the Tampa Bay Rays are clearly the best team in the American League. and they belong in the conversation with the Brewers and Dodgers for the best team in baseball. I think they're the three best teams. I think when you look at the Tampa Bay Rays, they have really good starting pitching led by Drew Rasmussen. They have a really good bullpen and a great closer in Brian Baker, but all of their bullpen arms are really good. They have an elite manager in Kevin Cash who knows how to navigate the pitching staff. And then when you look at the lineup, they have three guys that you can't pitch around, right? Yandy Diaz, Jonathan Aranda, and Junior Caminero. All three have 20-plus homers this year. Caminero with 40-plus. All three get on base more than 35% of the time. It's just hard to pitch to them. And when they're stacked, what do you do? They can beat you with speed. Chandler Simpson in left field, one of the fastest runners in Major League Baseball, and a. 300 hitter. Gets on, can steal a bag at will. They have elite defense. Taylor Walls is one of the best defensive shortstops in
baseball, and he just consistently makes all the plays really fun to watch. This Tampa Bay Raid team, as I said, will win this series. There's no doubt in my mind. And I think for the Cleveland Guardians, they're exhausted. It was a long, tough road to get here. Down two games to none. Go to Chicago, win two, come home and win the clincher. They're exhausted. Their pitchers are tired. I mean, Gavin Williams pitched three times in that five-game series, and he is an ace. He is a one. But what's he going to look like in his next start? And I think that concerns me. Their bullpen is worn. Now, the other way to look at it is they got a lot of momentum. They're winning. They have the energy. They get a day off before they have to play on Monday. And we've seen teams that get hot and then the momentum carries. But I just feel like because Tampa's rested, Tampa has home field advantage. First two games will be at the trop. Rays are really tough to beat at the trop. They're comfortable. Their fan base is the best it's ever been since they've been in existence. It's going to be loud at Tropicana Field. And look, I love the Guardians, and I love what they've done. I have a hard time thinking they're going to get past Tampa to the World Series. But one thing we do know either way, one of the smallest markets in Major League Baseball will be in the 2026 World Series. We know that as a fact, either Tampa Bay or Cleveland.
00:21:58
Speaker 1: And I am... I'm 1000% here for it. I do want to mention some key stats of some of these Tampa Bay Ray guys. Junior Caminero against Parker Messick. He is one for 12 versus Gavin Williams, two for 10 with one home run. I am assuming Gavin Williams will probably start game three or game four, depending on how he feels after last night. And then Yandy Diaz, as we mentioned, he's three for 11 against Parker Messick. But against Gavin Williams, he is seven for 15 with three extra base hits, which are all doubles. Some arms I'm going to be interested in looking at during this series. Nick Martinez had a great regular season. And against Jose Ramirez, Ramirez is only one for 11 against him. I'd like to see Nick Martinez continue his strong season here in the postseason. One key arm though, Freddy Peralta. His September ERA, 0.96. How about that? Against Jose Ramirez, Jose hits him pretty well. And then Steven Kwan, their leadoff hitter is only one for nine. And speaking of Steven Kwan, he has been in having an elite second half of the season, 353 average. He's been a really solid leadoff man for him and a table setter. And that's something that you need in postseason baseball. Oh, and by the way, Cleveland's closer, Cade Smith, yeah, he's been balling all year long. In the ALDS, he had a 1.35 ERA, 11 strikeouts, only one base on ball, and that's in six and two-thirds innings pitched. So, look, I like your take with Tampa, and I'm going to go against the rule I just made for myself not too long ago. I'm going to go against you here. I'm going to take the Cleveland Guardians, I'm going to ride this momentum, and I think think they can do it. They got to win one though. Out of those first two games in Tampa, they got it. They got to win one.
00:23:54
Speaker 2: One thing's for sure. We are going to have a very exciting league championship series in both sides and I am here for it. I absolutely love it. And by the way, I did not like the fact that a letter from the commissioner's office that was sent to all 30 owners was leaked to the media and And said, please don't send holiday cards to the players after the lockout date. Like, wait a minute. Like, first of all, who leaked that and why? Second of all, why even send the letter to the owners until this World Series and postseason is over? We're having one of the best postseasons we've had. We've got the small market teams still playing. We have one of the greatest teams ever going against a team that won more games in the regular season. Like, this is mama drama, grandma drama. This is what we hoped for. We wait all season long for this. Let's keep the focus, please, on the games. Let's not talk about the labor situation until this postseason is over. This is too much fun. There's so much talent on the fields. Trey, I know you're here for it. I'm here for it, too.
00:25:05
Speaker 3: Yeah, we sure are. We're here for it.
00:25:07
Speaker 1: All right, everyone, that's going to do it for this edition of GM Territory.
00:25:12
Speaker 3: Challenge relaxed.
00:25:13
Speaker 2: We got it.