After Hours with Amy Lawrence PODCAST: 1

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And now, with Apple TV Plus. Friday Night Baseball. Comes home. Here's what I was not expecting when I started my drive into work and got into work and started looking over headlines. I was definitely not expecting to see any type of news about an NBA head coach. No, I thought the biggest storyline in the NBA this week would be the fact that the owner of the Phoenix Suns and the Phoenix Mercury has decided to sell both of his franchises. Robert Sarver has been in the center of an NBA firestorm over the past couple weeks to the point where you have not only members of his own team staff but also prominent players and others speaking out and trying to put pressure on the league and the league's ownership to force Sarver to sell. He's decided on his own that he will sell his teams and he did issue a statement on Wednesday and we'll get to that. So I thought that would be the biggest story coming out of the NBA until we get into training camps.

Not so much. Breaking news in the last couple hours and actually the story continues to unfold. It's After Hours with Amy Lawrence on CBS Sports Radio. Thanks so much for hanging out with us even as we get started on what is the night before the NFL kicks off week three. I told you it was going to come fast and furious. But there's more.

Aaron Judge and Albert Pujols with big hits just not home runs. So we'll give you the latest on their pursuit of history and how it took an interesting turn on Wednesday night. Roger Federer has won last match as a professional tennis player.

I'm so sad about this but I am really hoping that I can find it somewhere and watch on Friday. So we'll let you hear from the outgoing champion and then we'll get you set for week three in the NFL. Everything from the serious to the sublime. Quarterback news of course and matchups too.

So a lot of you still answering our question from our hump show about the top three most trustworthy coaches in the NFL. So we have a lot to do. Also a conversation with a woman that I wish I had known years ago. We actually worked in the same place at my previous network but never crossed paths.

Only have been connected through a mutual friend over the last month and it's been one of those types of instant friendships that you feel like you've had forever. And as it turns out, Jade McCarthy has got some brand new ventures. A passion for storytelling. She is in the football realm but in a different capacity. So excited to talk to her about what she's done since she branched out. As I say, there's a lot going on. You want to make sure you find me on Twitter, ALawRadio, also on our Facebook page after hours with Amy Lawrence. And we're live from the Rocket Mortgage Studios.

Do you need to know what it takes for a home to fit your budget and your family? Rocket can. Back to the NBA and the Boston Celtics. The first piece of news to break, which is stunning enough, is that Celtics coach Imei Udonka, who just took his team to the NBA Finals in June, is facing disciplinary action that could include a significant suspension for, at the time, an unspecified violation of team rules and team guidelines.

And according to Adrian Wojnarowski, the Celtics could come to a decision on how long that suspension will last as soon as Thursday. Also, according to Woj, the Celtics aren't likely to fire Udonka, but he could be away from the team for quite a while. Remember, he's just fresh off his first year as the head coach of the Celtics. He replaced Brad Stevens. And then when the Celtics were 25 and 25 and looked dead in the water, he finagled and tweaked their focus, put the emphasis on defense, and they were the best team both offensively and defensively in the second half of the NBA season, survived and advanced all the way to the NBA Finals. He was Brad Stevens' choice.

He was handpicked by Brad to take over the team. So team rules, a violation of team rules, was initially the report that was out there by ESPN, and then others started to break the news as well and add details to it. Shams Charanea, who's the longtime NBA insider, added this, Celtics coach Imea Udonka had an improper intimate and consensual relationship with a female member of the team's staff.

Shams is with the athletic and stadium, and his tweet finishes with, it's been deemed a violation of the franchise's code of conduct. All right, so my thought initially when I read that, saw that report from Shams, is it was consensual, so it must be a violation of team rules to either have a relationship, an intimate relationship with someone else in the building or someone else on the staff, or there's something else going on here. And there are companies who, if they don't ban relationships among employees, depending upon the dynamics, will not only demand that these relationships be reported if they get to the point where they are serious, intimate relationships, our company requires that relationships among employees are reported for this reason. If one of the members of the relationship is in a position of power, then it can get to the point where it becomes harassment, or it becomes a relationship that can affect the work structure, not only for the two of them, but also for the team or the company, the corporation itself, meaning if one of them is higher up the food chain and is a boss of some sort, there can be an element of coercion, but also it can muddy the waters. If there's feelings there that go beyond the workplace, well then it can affect their working relationship if one of them has authority over the other. And so I think that's what most companies are concerned about, is the productivity, and also there should be no coercion or harassment, and if one is in a position of power, there are ways that it can devolve into that. Not to mention companies are uber careful about potential lawsuits and how they might get sued, and let's be honest, for those of us who have ever had a relationship in a workplace, and I have, it can get complicated. If you break up, when you break up, it can be a mess, and so those emotions can often then make the atmosphere more difficult to navigate and can affect what happens in the workplace.

So there's a lot of reasons why companies frown on it, and there are some companies that actually ban relationships among employees. Again, according to Shams Charaniya, Celtic's coach Imea Yudoka had an improper intimate and consensual relationship with a female member of the team staff. It's been deemed a violation of franchise's code of conduct, and then according to other sources out there, other reports, I'm going to have to find the particular tweet that addresses the length of the suspension or the potential length of the suspension, because I do not want to put any information out there without crediting it, because none of this is my information, and if it turns out to be incorrect or it turns out to be erroneous, then I obviously don't want it to look like I came up with it, because that's not the case. This is why, young journalists, you always credit. You never steal someone else's work, because sometimes those reports and that speculation, those rumors, they're wrong, and if you reported it as your own, you are stuck.

So, I found it though. This is again going back to Adrian Wojnarowski, and he tweeted 38 minutes ago, no final decision has been made on the length of a suspension, but internal discussions have included scenarios that would keep Yudoka out for the entire 2022-23 season. That's a serious violation of team rules, right?

We're not just talking about a relationship here. There's something else going on. There was another report out there. Again, I'm going to have to credit, because I want to be really careful here, and take everything that you hear now with a grain of salt, because at this point, it's reporting, and it's coming from inside sources, and there's always a chance that these could be wrong. Though Woj and Shams are very well connected, these two guys have insiders in essentially every team, not to mention they have insiders in the league office, so a lot of times they're getting it directly from people who are connected to whatever it is that they're reporting. Isn't it Woj that frequently is tweeting out the draft picks before they ever get drafted?

It's After Hours with Amy Lawrence on CBS Sports Radio. So this comes from Bally Sports. Celtics coach Imei Yudoka and his partner are believed to have been separated prior to the current issue. Celtics players have been aware of the current issue with their coach for a couple of days, and were briefed earlier this week. Again, that comes from Bally Sports. No idea how much of that is accurate, but it would make sense that if they, this couple, or these two people, I don't know if you can call them a couple, they're hiding their relationship. This situation was addressed in the past, and if Imei and the woman were already told to cease and desist essentially, were already told that their relationship violated team rules, were already told that they were not supposed to engage in the relationship, and they did it anyway, that would explain. That would make more sense. However, at this point, the details are still very spotty. But what we do know is that Imei Yudoka, Celtics coach, is facing a lengthy suspension and disciplinary action, and according to Adrian Wojnarowski, at least some of the conversation internally with Celtics brass, which would include ownership and Brad Stevens, at least some of the conversation has actually been around a one year suspension.

Wow. So, we'll let you know if we see anything else, if we hear anything else, but that's the bombshell coming out of Boston on this Wednesday night. It's After Hours with Amy Lawrence on CBS Sports Radio. It seems weird to segue into baseball, doesn't it?

It does just a little bit. So why don't we finish the segment with the other NBA story, which I just referenced before I got into the Imei Yudoka, which is that Robert Sarver, the owner of both the Suns and the Phoenix Mercury of the WNBA, has announced he will sell his teams. And according to Adam Silver, he fully supports this decision. The statement from Robert Sarver, and you remember, but I'll refresh if you don't remember, or this is the first time you're hearing the story. There was an internal investigation done.

And it took nine months. But there were not only reports, but there were multiple employees inside the Suns organization who accused Sarver of treating female employees inequitably, sexual harassment, comments related to gender, inappropriate comments on their appearances, so sexist crap that many women have dealt with in the workplace. But also, this NBA investigation found that he used the N word at least five times when he was repeating the statements of other people. Okay, so maybe not his own words, but he was recounting, repeating the words and the statements of others and use the N word.

And as I said last week, I don't care if you're reading something, I don't care if you're repeating something, you're still responsible for the words that come out of your mouth. And even if you are telling a story, you don't have to use the actual word. I've never in my life used that word, but I've talked about the word because of my job many times. It doesn't matter if other people use the word.

He shouldn't have been using the word ever. And there have obviously been a groundswell of not only criticism and outrage, but also support to try to get him out of the league. And while NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said, I don't have the authority to force him to sell and the owners, it's a complicated process.

The owners at this point are not forcing him to sell either. Sarvers decided that he will. So here was a statement as a man of faith, I believe in atonement and the path to forgiveness. I expected that the commissioners one year suspension would provide the time for me to focus, make amends and remove my personal controversy from the teams that I and so many fans love.

But in our current unforgiving climate, it has become painfully clear that that is no longer possible, that whatever good I have done or could still do is outweighed by things I've said in the past. For those reasons, I am beginning the process of seeking buyers for the Suns and Mercury. Well, A, he doesn't sound super remorseful. B, if you are one of those people that thinks he shouldn't have to sell his team or that he should stand up in the face of all of this criticism as what he calls the unforgiving climate, then just know he's going to be a very rich man. Well, he's already a very rich man, but he's going to be an even richer man when he sells that team. Sports franchises are only available every now and then and at the going rate. Actually, you know what?

I'm going to Google this. Or if you want to, too, Jay, just to see if we can figure out the last NBA franchise to sell and what it was worth because his will be no doubt worth more considering that, A, the Suns have had a couple of really good seasons. People are excited about Suns baseball again. Sorry, Suns basketball again.

I've got baseball up on two TVs in front of me. But also the inflation and just in general the fact that these are moneymakers puts him in his position to really come out of this in fine shape, shall we say. The most recent sale of a franchise was the Timberwolves, Alex Rodriguez and Mark Lohr. Remember, they agreed to buy Minnesota's franchise for $1.5 billion. Now that sale hasn't gone through yet. And so they're not in full control of the team. Before that, the Rockets were sold for $2.2 billion in 2017.

So that's a Jay research. But the prices continue to skyrocket. So trust me, Robert Sarva is going to make out and make money and you don't need to feel bad for him if you are outraged that he's being pushed out or that he's being encouraged to sell against his will. So the NBA hasn't even got a training camp yet and already two storylines that kind of smack you upside the head.

Figuratively, not literally, but they do catch you off guard. You can find me on Twitter, ALawRadio, also on our Facebook page. As I say, if we've got more information to pass along, concrete information about Imei Udonka, we will do so. But the Celtics coach is facing discipline and potentially a lengthy suspension for violating team rules. Aaron Judge, Albert Pujols in pursuit, hot pursuit, actually, of history.

That's straight ahead. It's After Hours with Amy Lawrence on CBS Sports Radio. You are listening to the After Hours podcast. Miles Michaelis with 11 wins for the Cardinals, but he may be done. The 3-1 pitch to Pujols is hit on the ground right side. Base hit for Pujols. He breaks up the no-hitter in the top of the seventh inning. He goes the other way.

And Albert with hit number three. He's going to get it. He's going to get it. He's going to get it. He's going to get it. He's going to get it. He's going to get it. He's going to get it.

He's going to get it. In the seventh inning, he goes the other way, and Albert with hit number 3,374 in his career. Gets a two-out single here in the seventh inning and a nice round of applause here at Betco Park for their pitcher, Blake Snell. It has been terrific.

This is After Hours with Amy Lawrence. I know it was not home run number 699, but Pujols was able to slap a single into right field, actually going oppo, and break up what was at the time a no-hitter by Padres starter Blake Snell. You hear the call on Cardinals radio. The man continues to hit, continues to produce and be involved in whatever the Cardinals have going on, though they lose to the Padres again tonight, actually, as the Brewers win against the Mets. The gap between Cardinals and Brewers shrinks a bit to seven and a half games. But this is some adversity for the Cardinals. They've lost three in a row, and they've only won half of their last ten games.

It's After Hours with Amy Lawrence on CBS Sports Radio. The Cardinals, as I heard because I was listening to the broadcast live, as I have been now for weeks, whenever Pujols is in the lineup, there are 12 games left for St. Louis. Nine of them are on the road. There's only three home games left for the Cardinals. They've gone through this, they're on the road now, obviously, in San Diego, but they've gone through this long stretch of home games, and those fans at Busch Stadium were really treated to what was some of the best baseball of Pujols' season. But now, fans away from St. Louis will have the opportunity over nine of the last 12 games to see if he could potentially, and I'm just believing it, he can hit two more home runs and reach 700 for his career. Producer Jay Tacht tracked down this really cool exchange that he had with Harold Reynolds of MLB TV.

We'll play that for you a little bit later on, but I want to give you the latest in both of these pursuits for history. One career, one single season. So Albert Pujols still sitting on 698 home runs, and I saw a headline, actually, that, and really, a lot of the headlines in New York and the New York metro these days are about Aaron Judge, but a headline that made me laugh out loud. When you consider all of the attention and pressure on Judge as the Yankees are home in a series against the Pittsburgh Pirates, Judge has figured out how to get the best pitches to hit. I don't know if you're watching the game, but in his, I think it was, was he at four at bats or five at bats? Five at bats on Wednesday night. He was first pitch swinging in three of them, because that is how he gets the best pitches. The Pirates did not pitch to him in his last opportunity, didn't give him anything to hit, and so I feel like that's going to happen more and more, even if it's not a competitive game.

In this case, it wasn't. At that point, the game was well in the bag. But yeah, just the idea that he has figured out, and certainly we know he's in contention for the Triple Crown, he's having an MVP season, he recognizes now the best pitch I may see in the entire at bat is the first one I get, so I'm not going to waste it. And he has two doubles earlier in the game. Well, here's the 3-0, and the pitch is low. Judge walks, and here's the ninth bat at a bat in the inning, Anthony Rizzo.

And Tim Locastro is going to run for judge. That's John Sterling on Yankees radio, and you hear the fans booing in the background, but can you blame the Pirates? At this point, they had given up a four spot in the first inning, and then were on their way to an eight spot in the eighth inning.

I don't know that I pitched to them either, I'm done being embarrassed. And so the headline that I saw on one local New York publication, Aaron Boone, Aaron Judge stuck at 60 home runs. He's stuck, right?

After he hits two doubles and he gets on base a third time with a walk, he's stuck on 60 home runs. Oh, use your words. The atmosphere is pretty incredible. There were more members of the Roger Maris family in town, plus Aaron Judge's family actually in the stadium on Wednesday evening, and the fans standing up, taking out their cell phones, just the buzz and the electricity, man, incredible. Oh, incredible. You know, from the very first pitch, you know, on top of the first or seventh in the mound, they were ready to go.

So it was a fun environment, definitely on a Wednesday night, that's for sure. It's really neat, but I wonder how much it over, I don't want to say overshad, well, I guess overshadows would be the right word, seems to overshadow what the Yankees are doing, which is attempting to win an American League East, but the hitting that we've seen from Aaron Judge is fairly contagious because they've got live bats now. For the longest time, they went through this slump where they couldn't see the generate runs, they weren't protecting Aaron Judge, but it's the opposite now.

Everybody's hitting. Giancarlo Stanton had a walk-off grand slam as the Yankees rallied from five runs down on Tuesday night in the ninth inning and picking up where they left off. It wasn't Aaron Judge, but it was still a loud hit. Swung on and hit in the air to the right.

It is high, not as far, good as God. It's another grand slam. I want the people in the record books to tell me what team hit grand slams in the second inning.

Oswaldo Cabrera, the Wizard of Oz. He grand slams to right center, and the Yankees take a 4-0 lead. Once again, John Sterling on Yankees radio. So on Wednesday night, it's Oswaldo Cabrera with five RBI, Glaber Torres with his own five RBI, and while all the attention is on Aaron Judge, again, the hitting is contagious, and just the buzz and the excitement.

The Yankees now in this chase for playoffs in American League East. They seem to have locked into a groove. Plus, they're getting guys back. So Harrison Bader making his Yankees debut. Anthony Rizzo is back, and he's been contributing as well. And Luis Severino, who has been out for two months, made his first appearance since July 13th, goes five innings, so limited start, but five innings, I think he had 64 pitches, if I remember correctly, a run on two hits with a half dozen strikeouts. And so part of the reason that the Yankees are playing better is because they're getting their regulars back in the lineup, and this is where they want to be with two weeks to go in the regular season. But, yeah, it's become appointment TV or appointment radio, whichever it is, every time Albert Pujols steps to the plate, every time Aaron Judge steps to the plate, and both those guys are locked in right now, so you really don't want to miss it, lest you miss history.

All right, you can find me on Twitter, ALawRadio, also on our Facebook page, After Hours with Amy Lawrence. You are listening to the After Hours Podcast. Music Miles Michaelis with 11 wins for the Cardinals, but he may be done. The 3-1 pitch to Pujols is hit on the ground right side, base hit for Pujols. He breaks up the no-hitter in the top of the seventh inning. He goes the other way, and Albert with hit number 3,374 in his career, gets a two-out single here in the seventh inning and a nice round of applause here at Betco Park for their pitcher, Blake Snell. It has been terrific.

Music This is After Hours with Amy Lawrence. No, it was not home run number 699, but Pujols was able to slap a single into right field, actually going oppo, and break up what was at the time a no-hitter by Padres starter, Blake Snell. You hear the call on Cardinals Radio. The man continues to hit, continues to produce and be involved in whatever the Cardinals have going on, though they lose to the Padres again tonight, actually, as the Brewers win against the Mets, the gap between Cardinals and Brewers shrinks a bit to 7.5 games. But this is some adversity for the Cardinals. They've lost three in a row, and they've only won half of their last ten games.

It's After Hours with Amy Lawrence on CBS Sports Radio. The Cardinals, as I heard because I was listening to the broadcast live, as I have been now for weeks whenever Pujols is in the lineup, there are 12 games left for St. Louis. Nine of them are on the road. There's only three home games left for the Cardinals.

They've gone through this. They're on the road now, obviously, in San Diego, but they've gone through this long stretch of home games, and those fans at Busch Stadium were really treated to what was some of the best baseball of Pujols' season. But now fans away from St. Louis will have the opportunity over nine of the last 12 games to see if he could potentially, and I'm just believing it, he can hit two more home runs and reach 700 for his career. Producer Jay Tacht tracked down this really cool exchange that he had with Harold Reynolds of MLB TV. We'll play that for you a little bit later on.

I'll give you the latest in both of these pursuits for history. One career, one single season. So Albert Pujols still sitting on 698 home runs, and I saw a headline actually that, and really a lot of the headlines in New York and the New York Metro these days are about Aaron Judge, but a headline that made me laugh out loud. When you consider all of the attention and pressure on Judge as the Yankees are home in a series against the Pittsburgh Pirates, Judge has figured out how to get the best pitches to hit. I don't know if you're watching the game, but in his, I think it was, was he at four at bats or five at bats? Five at bats on Wednesday night, he was first pitch swinging in three of them because that is how he gets the best pitches. The Pirates did not pitch to him in his last opportunity, didn't give him anything to hit. And so I feel like that's going to happen more and more, even if it's not a competitive game.

And in this case, it wasn't. At that point, the game was well in the bag. But yeah, just the idea that he has figured out, and certainly we know he's in contention for the triple crown, he's having an MVP season, he recognizes now the best pitch I may see in the entire at bat is the first one I get, so I'm not going to waste it. And he has two doubles earlier in the game.

Well, here's the 3-0. And the pitch is low. Judge walks, and here's the ninth bat at the bat in the inning.

Anthony Rizzo and Tim Locastro is going to run for judge. That's John Sterling on Yankees radio, the fans booing in the background, but can you blame the Pirates? At this point, they had given up a four spot in the first inning, and then were on their way to an eight spot in the eighth inning.

I don't know that I pitched to them either. I'm done being embarrassed. And so the headline that I saw on one local New York publication, Aaron Boone, Aaron Judge stuck at 60 home runs. He's stuck, right? After he hits two doubles and he gets on base a third time with a walk, he's stuck on 60 home runs.

Oh, use your words. The atmosphere is pretty incredible. There were more members of the Roger Maris family in town, plus Aaron Judge's family actually in the stadium on Wednesday evening, and the fans standing up, taking out their cell phones, just the buzz and the electricity, man, incredible.

Oh, incredible. You know, from the very first pitch, you know, on top of the first or seventh in the mound, they were ready to go, so it was a fun environment, definitely on a Wednesday night, that's for sure. It's really neat, but I wonder how much it over – I don't want to say oversh – well, I guess overshadows would be the right word. It seems to overshadow what the Yankees are doing, which is attempting to win an American League East, but the hitting that we've seen from Aaron Judge is fairly contagious because they've got live bats now. For the longest time, they went through this slump where they couldn't see the generate runs, they weren't protecting Aaron Judge, but it's the opposite now. Everybody's hitting. Jean-Carlo Stanton had a walk-off grand slam as the Yankees rallied from five runs down on Tuesday night in the ninth inning, and picking up where they left off, it wasn't Aaron Judge, but it was still a loud hit. Swung on and hit in the air to the deep right.

It is high, not as far, good as God. It's another grand slam. I want the people in the record books to tell me that that team hit grand slams in consecutive innings. Oswaldo Cabrera, the Wizard of Oz, he grand slams the right center, and the Yankees take a 4-0 lead. Once again, John Sterling on Yankees Radio. So on Wednesday night, it's Oswaldo Cabrera with five RBI, Glaber Torres with his own five RBI, and while all the attention is on Aaron Judge, again, the hitting is contagious, and just the buzz and the excitement, the Yankees now in this chase for playoffs in American League East, they seem to have locked into a groove. Plus, they're getting guys back. So Harrison Bader making his Yankees debut. Anthony Rizzo is back, and he's been contributing as well, and Luis Severino, who has been out for two months, made his first appearance since July 13th, goes five innings, so limited start, but five innings, I think he had 64 pitches, if I remember correctly, a run on two hits with a half dozen strikeouts. And so part of the reason that the Yankees are playing better is because they're getting their regulars back in the lineup, and this is where they want to be with two weeks to go in the regular season. But, yeah, it's become appointment TV or appointment radio, whichever it is, every time Albert Pujols steps to the plate, every time Aaron Judge steps to the plate, and both those guys are locked in right now, so you really don't want to miss it, lest you miss history.

All right, you can find me on Twitter, ALawRadio, also on our Facebook page, After Hours with Amy Lawrence. Here's our latest sports update, and here's Marco Belletti. All right, AMO Celtics head coach, Ime Udonka, reportedly facing a likely suspension for a violation of workplace misconduct for having a consensual relationship with a female member of the team's staff.

Udonka, of course, led Boston to the NBA Finals in his first year as head coach. Meanwhile, blaming an unforgiving climate, Robert Sarver announced his intentions to sell the Suns and the Mercury. Sarver took tremendous heat for his racist and misogynistic comments, in which the NBA gave him a one-year suspension. NFL Justin Herbert getting a few extra days after playing Thursday night trying to make his way back from the rib cartilage fracture. Brandon Staley still not sure if he's going to be able to play Sunday against the Jaguars. We're just going to take it day by day and see where his comfort level is and truly trust him and let him kind of be the guide of where we're at and make sure we're prepared either way. Meanwhile, the Bengals, a bit of a surprise at 0-2, expected to make that leap forward after they came so close to a Super Bowl championship, but Joe Burrow refusing to listen to the outside noise.

I don't have Twitter or Instagram right now, so I've seen none of it. We're focused on what's going on in there. I'm sure it's not a very good reaction, but I think it will be a different reaction as we get going here. On the diamond, no home runs for Aaron Judge. He stays at 60, but the Yankees still able to flex their muscles. Swung on and hit in the air to deep left. Zielinski back on the track, at the wall.

She's gone. Another home run for Torres. Two in one inning. Two homers in the eighth, five RBIs for Gleyber Torres. Yankees drub the Pirates 14-2.

John Sterling to call Yankees Radio Network. Elsewhere, the Brewers blanked the Mets 6-0. Mike Brousseau with a pinch hit grand slam. Nationals clipped the Braves 3-2, so Atlanta remains one off the pace of the Mets in the NL East. Reds took out the Red Sox 5-1. Phillies walked it off on the Blue Jays 4-3 and 10. Guardians ripped the White Sox 8-2.

Their lead in the Central is 6. Cubs slipped by the Marlins 4-3. Astros handled the Rays 5-2. Warriors batted the Tigers 8-1. Rangers finished off the Angels 7-2. Royals took out the Twins 5-2. A's trimmed the Mariners 2-1. Giants topped the Rockies 6-1. Padres blanked the Cardinals 1-0. Blake Snell 13-k's over seven innings, a two-hit ball. Lost a no-hit bid in the seventh. The D-backs turn to side the Dodgers 6-1. I'm Marco Belletti. Pearl Off, we're getting you set for Thursday night. Football, Browns, and Steelers. Any chance we'll see Kenny Pickett, the rookie quarterback for Pittsburgh?

It's possible. Maggie and Pearl Off today. Three Eastern, New Pacific on CBS Sports Radio. You're in a five-minute break. Four minutes, 30 seconds remaining. Four minutes remaining. Three minutes, 30 seconds remaining. Three minutes remaining. Two minutes, 30 seconds remaining. Two minutes, 30 seconds remaining. Two minutes remaining. One minute, 30 seconds remaining. One minute remaining. 45 seconds remaining. 30 seconds remaining. 15 seconds. 15 seconds remaining. Here's the 0-2, and a high fly ball left field.

Back on it is McNeil at the track, at the wall, and it's gone! Brussels with a grand slam! And the Brewers have broken open here in the seventh.

This is After Hours with Amy Lawrence. Brussels is the big bet for the Milwaukee Brewers. In the seventh inning, though, the Brewers actually shut out the Mets in their matchup on Wednesday afternoon, and it seems like right now, between these two teams and then factoring in Atlanta, though the Braves had five straight wins before they lost on Wednesday afternoon, you've got this great tug-of-war going on. The Cardinals have given a little bit back now to the Brewers, so the Brewers are trying to pick up some ground while the Cards are swooning a bit with the three consecutive losses. The race between the World Series champion Braves and the Mets is fascinating because it seems like when one wins, the other one wins.

When one loses, the other one loses. It's a mirror image right now, and yet they are tighter than any race going on in baseball in terms of the division races. It's After Hours with Amy Lawrence on CBS Sports Radio, so yes, the Mets get shut out by the Brewers, and Mike Bresso actually had that grand slam but wants to give credit to the pitching staff for the way that they have navigated this stretch run. They've been our backbone all year, so for them to step up big in a must-win situation for us, that's exactly what the team needed. And yeah, we've got a happy flight out and carry the momentum into the next series. I don't think he had it at bat on the home stand, so it's just really impressive, but Mike's always ready. I mean, that's one thing that he is as prepared and on top of game situations as anybody we have, so you know he's going to give you what he's got for sure.

He does it every single time, so really happy for him to come through in a huge spot. It is that time of the year where you may not have the opportunity every single night if you're one of those players that isn't in necessarily the starting lineup, but because every at-bat seems so big when there's a pennant race, when every guy who comes out of the bullpen is put into a pressure situation, right? If you're a team that hasn't yet clinched a playoff spot, if you're a team that's chasing your goals, well, you have the opportunity to write a piece of history and to be part of a significant moment. There are people who will tell you, and these people inside, sports circles, football circles, that the most important player on the field, or no, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, the athletes who are in the biggest pressure cookers are not the starters necessarily because they have more opportunities and because they were warming up and they know their role specifically.

But the ones that face more pressure in pro sports and in college sports too are the guys who come off the bench because you have maybe one shot, maybe two shots, maybe limited opportunities per week, per month to make an impact, to leave a mark. And if you don't, you don't know when that opportunity could come along again. I actually felt that way when I was working earlier in my career before I had my own nightly talk shows where I would get a spot to fill in here, a spot to fill in there. And not only did I need to work to get paid, but I didn't know when the next chance would come along. And if I didn't feel like that show went well or I didn't put my best work forward, it ate me up until the next chance came along. So being a utility infielder, being a pinch hitter off the bench, being the guy that goes on the field in the dime package, right, in the defensive backfield, whatever it is, if you're only on the field or the court or the ice in limited capacity, limited opportunities, man, it's tough because you do feel like you have to make the most of those chances.

And if you don't, well, shoot. If I don't do something huge here and help the team in a big way, maybe they won't use me again. Now it's better to be in the arena than not at all. And so there is some benefit to that. It's better to have the opportunity than to not even be available. So it's cool. I don't know how many people, well, everybody complains about playing time, right? That's just a rite of passage when it comes to playing sports from the time that you're in third grade and your parents are complaining to you, well, I'm complaining for you.

Don't be that kind of parent. It's After Hours here on CBS Sports Radio. You can find us on Twitter, After Hours CBS. We've got a lot of responses to our question about the top three coaches in the NFL who are the most trustworthy. And by trustworthy, I mean equity and credibility and the guys with whom you believe they've earned the trust but also have earned the benefit of the doubt.

So when things don't work out or when there's a questionable call or a decision at the end of the game, you trust them because they've been in the arena, as I was just saying. There are a lot of coaches that haven't yet earned that equity or credibility, and yet I did see someone on our Facebook page put Nick Sirianni out there as the coach in whom he has the most trust. One of his top coaches in the NFL, and I always suspect he's an Eagles fan considering that Sirianni was the only one that he named. I tend to go with the more veteran experience coaches, and as much as I understand Sean McVay has a track record, as much as I get that Bill Belichick is still one of the greatest of all time, I had to narrow it down to three. And so I went with Andy Reid, Mike Tomlin, Sean McDermott. It was not easy to leave Pete Carroll, John Harbaugh, Bill Belichick out, but can I tell you who it was easy for me to leave out? Terry on Facebook, goes with Mike McDaniel.

He's coached two games, two games. I mean, it might be jumping the gun, a creature of the moment, no? I'll say, hey, I'll see you later. Oh my gosh, that's pretty presumptuous. I like it. The potential is there.

Yes, for sure. That's some kind of trust after two games. It's been two pretty good coaches.

Our phone number is 855-212-4227. Coming up about a half hour from now, Jade McCarthy's a former ESPN Sports Center anchor and also was part of NFL Sunday Countdown, where she was more of a feature reporter. So she told a lot of stories, but she has branched out. She lost her job in sweeping layoffs with ESPN a couple of years ago and has found a new niche. And it's really neat to connect with her and to get to know her a little bit. We did not know each other in Bristol, but now that I've had the chance to spend, you know, better part of the last two months kind of getting to know her a little bit, I'm just so thrilled that we've connected because our stories have a lot of similarities to them. And she is one of those broadcasters slash human beings that has gone through a bunch of adversity and trial by fire, so to speak, and has come out on the other side, just grateful for what is a blank canvas in some of the work that she does.

But we'll talk about that. So Jade McCarthy in a half hour here on CBS Sports Radio. The big news, if you missed it, it was breaking and there's still not a lot of details, though some reports out there, be careful what you believe, what you take to heart, what you start to spread as gospel.

I don't even know why I bother because social media doesn't listen to any type of pump the brakes advice. But Ime Udonka of the Boston Celtics is facing what's been termed a significant suspension. Now this is multiple reports, not just one, but a significant suspension for violating team guidelines, team rules. Another report out there from Shams Terenia indicates that he was engaged in an improper, though consensual relationship with a member of the Celtics team staff.

And you can certainly look at the speculation online. The reports, though, coming from Adrian Wojnarowski and Shams Terenia that this is going to be a significant suspension and that we could find out more details, the length of the suspension specifically, by Thursday, as if Thursday wasn't already busy enough. Thursday is the start of the NFL season. Please tell me that we have, I'm asking you producer J, I just need to hear from Mike Tomlin before the Steelers and the Browns go out and kick off week three in the dog pound, at the dog pound, in the middle of what's chaos for, I would say a little bit of chaos for both teams. Though to hear from Jacoby Brissett, you gotta close the door on that embarrassing collapse against the Jets. We have no time for any focus on anything else but the Steelers. And I think the players understand that.

I think the coaches understand it. I think that was the standard when we walked into this building on Monday, that we're onto the Steelers and looking forward to it. So Jacoby Brissett and the Cleveland Browns are now one and one, same as the Steelers, both teams winning their season openers, but losing in more dramatic fashion when it comes to Cleveland. Actually, in case you wanted to watch it again, Jets fans, Browns fans, or just football fans around the country if you didn't see it, right now NFL network is re-airing that Jets Browns game and they are just to the end of the third quarter.

I've got it up on the screen in front of me. And at this point in the game, Cleveland is ahead 17-14. As we know, got fast and furious in the final four minutes of this game. So if you stay tuned, you'll get to see the dramatic finish. Although I can imagine Browns fans are not interested in watching that again. So Imei Yudoka of the Celtics facing a suspension.

Robert Sarver plans to sell both the Phoenix Suns and the Phoenix Mercury of the WNBA. Aaron Judge has two doubles and a walk, though not home run number 61, and Albert Pujols also breaks up a no-hitter but does not get home run number 699. It's after hours with Amy Lawrence on CBS Sports Radio. Baseball, America's game. The most dramatic moments in the history of sports.

It's about connection. It makes the fans up against the wall. And now with Apple TV Plus, Friday Night Baseball comes home. Is this happening?

It is. Friday Night Baseball, streaming on Apple TV Plus. Baseball, America's game. The most dramatic moments in the history of sports. It's about connection.

It makes the fans up against the wall. And now with Apple TV Plus, Friday Night Baseball comes home. Is this happening? It is.

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Visit trytheroom.com slash tech. Baseball, America's game. The most dramatic moments in the history of sports.

It's about connection. It makes the fans up against the wall. And now with Apple TV Plus, Friday Night Baseball comes home. Is this happening? It is. Friday Night Baseball, streaming on Apple TV Plus. Friday Night Baseball, streaming on Apple TV Plus.