After Hours with Amy Lawrence PODCAST: Hour 2

Imagine you're looking at a balancing scale, with everything you do for other people on one side, and everything you do for yourself on the other side.

If it isn't balanced, maybe it's time to spend a little more time on you. And therapy is a great place to start. BetterHelp connects you with a licensed therapist online who can help you find that balance and stick to it. Visit BetterHelp.com slash positive to get 10% off your first month.

That's BetterHELP.com slash positive. Facts are facts, like how contributing to employees' financial security makes them want to work harder for their company. In fact, according to a 2023 study by principle, 87% of employers say that better employee financial security means employees are more engaged and productive at work. The fact of the matter is that employees want to feel financially secure in their future.

So consider this. Principle helps you invest in your employees by providing customized benefits and retirement plans to help keep your employees more engaged and productive. When you take care of your team, they take care of business.

That's a fact. Learn how Principle can help you find the right benefits and retirement plan for your team at Principle dot com slash benefits. Products and services offered by member companies of the Principle Financial Group, Des Moines, Iowa.

For important information, visit Principle dot com slash disclosures. That was a quick hour. Wowsers and coming up in just a few minutes, 20 as a matter of fact. Antonio Gibson, Washington commanders running back, caught up with him after practice, kind of a taste of what we'll do during football season. And obviously, when it comes to players, coaches, even TV personalities who join us on the show, sometimes we accommodate their schedules and we record earlier in the daytime. And for those of you who have listened to sports radio religiously or I guess even spotally over the past few years, you recognize that there is some high tech equipment out there that makes it possible for us to record interviews, even if we're not in studio and to record them ahead of time and then play them back here on the show. And so it was one of those rare days.

I haven't done it, gosh, in six months, maybe in which we scheduled a couple of interviews during the afternoon to accommodate schedules. And it just so happened that CBS offered us Boston Rob Mariano about so this DeMar Hamlin episode, secret celebrity renovation. So, so cool.

And also Antonio Gibson. In advance of the commanders kicking off their regular season, September 7th is the NFL season opener. And then you look ahead to that Sunday week one and it's September 10th with, I believe, a doubleheader on Monday, September 11th.

But I could be wrong. I actually don't have the schedule memorized. Are you disappointed that I don't have the entire NFL week one schedule memorized? Just one game? OK, so they're going backward. Backward. They're going back to the old format where it was just one game as opposed to a doubleheader. I can't wait until the Monday night Manning's make their return.

They can make a bad game. Entertaining. You got weather. Did you see the photo? So I'm pretty sure that other than TikTok, Peyton Manning is not on social media. I could be wrong.

I don't have all the various social media services myself. But Eli is on social media and I can't figure out if the photo that he posted earlier this week is legitimate. It's Eli, of course.

He's smiling ear to ear. He's standing behind a it looks like a Jeep. It's some type of an SUV. It's a New York license plate, which makes me think that it's probably not Peyton. Because Peyton doesn't live in New York. But the caption for the photo, it's a little weird that Peyton got this as his license plate.

And what it says is Eli 2XSB, which is Eli two times Super Bowl. So what I'm thinking is Eli Manning wandering around. Who knows where he was wandering around at an event or out in public. And he sees this license plate on a random vehicle that he comes across. And so he stops and he takes a selfie and, of course, pretends like it is Peyton's car. I think that's the deal, because Peyton lives in Denver. Not that he can't have a vehicle that's registered in New York. Maybe it's his part time vehicle, but or maybe it's Eli's car.

I think I have an answer to this, actually. Does Eli live in New York or does he reside in New Jersey? I think he has a few houses, actually.

I've heard a few houses on Eastern Long Island and one in Westchester, New York area. I think he does have one. So then this could be his vehicle. Are you ready? I have an answer. Oh, you do.

All right. Yeah. So I was going down in that comment section a little further. And this one guy at Jack, I don't want to say his last name, but he goes, that's my dad's Jeep.

Go blue. And he posts two photos along with that one's his father with Eli and the other ones of Eli taking that photo of the license for. Oh, my gosh.

OK, I got to go down and find out a little bit. That's amazing. Oh, because there's only one hundred and eighty nine comments. But yeah. So Eli Manning's active on Twitter at least. And he's funny. He's always poking fun at Peyton, to be sure. Poor Cooper just completely gets ignored.

The two of them gang up on Cooper, their oldest brother. But yeah. Peyton is the butt of many Eli jokes.

Anyway, good stuff. So back to the Monday night Manning's. I love the combination. I love the humor. They are very entertaining, even as Eli is fooling around while Peyton's being very serious, breaking down every play that he sees.

And of course, name dropping about the quarterbacks and the other people that he spoke to in preparation for the broadcast. So I can't wait. Can't wait for the Monday night Manning's to return. And those guys are on. I do watch my football.

Don't we all? It's after hours with Amy Lawrence on CBS Sports Radio. We will have a conversation with Washington commanders running back Antonio Gibson in 15 minutes here on CBS Sports Radio. And still to come, Josh Jacobs talks about his contract situation. And speaking of contracts, we heard from Chris Ballard on Jonathan Taylor's relationship and his status with the Colts. What about Kyle Shanahan on Nick Bosa? And then back to practice, Joe Burrow. Welcome back to practice, Joe Burrow.

So there's a lot that we'll get to. Our phone number is 855-212-4227. That's 855-212-4CBS. If you were listening to the show 24 hours ago, you may have caught us talking about Bryce Harper hitting career home run number 299. Any chance, Jay, you can bring back how Bryce was talking about the sports radio caller on WIP in Philadelphia. His name was Chuck. And now he's famous, by the way. WIP, as you can imagine, has made a very big deal of the fact that Bryce Harper, A, listens, and B, had a home run that he dedicated to a listener named Chuck. So this is Bryce Harper after he hits home run number 299 on Tuesday.

Driving in today, I'm listening to WIP like I do a lot, the 2 o'clock hour. And a guy named Chuck called in and he calls in a lot of players. But I said, you know, he was talking about our team and talking about me and stuff. And I walked in the training room and I was like, I'm going to go deep tonight for Chuck. That guy had me fired up, man. And actually, after Bryce Harper hit home run number 299 and dedicated it to Chuck, he actually joined WIP with John Marks and Ike Reese to talk about that experience. So kind of cool.

Well, there was still some business to attend to on Wednesday. 7-6 in the bottom of the eighth. First pitch to Harper. He launches one high in the air, deep right field.

Renfro back, looking up, and it's gone! Number 300 is a go ahead two run home run by Harper in the bottom of the eighth inning. That's one amazing swing after another this month for the Phillies. And Harper has put the Phillies up 8-7 with his 300th career home run. Growing up, you don't really think about the one or the two or the three or anything like that.

You think about the bigger numbers. I really wanted to do it at home in front of this fan base and in front of this great city and I'm happy I did it at home. Bummed out, we weren't able to close it out right there. Well, and he refers to the end of the game, which we'll get to momentarily. But he also said, I love being a Philly, plain and simple. I love being a Philly. Started his career with the Washington Nationals and lo and behold, the Nationals end up winning a World Series without Bryce Harper. But before Bryce can do it with the Phillies.

They got all the way to the Fall Classic last year. Huge deal, ended up losing, of course, to the Houston Astros. But then added Trey Turner, who recently has caught fire. You may recall that Bryce himself was injured to begin the year.

Ended up coming back a lot more quickly than what was expected. And now he is hitting the snot out of the ball. So congratulations to Bryce on career home run number three hundred, which he does in front of or which he hits in front of the Philly faithful. But Craig Kimbrel still had to close out the game and it did not go so well. And the next pitch, he swings it down and lifts a fly ball.

It's carrying deep out in the right field and that ball is out of here. Brandon Drury has just homered for the Angels. That is a two run shot and the Angels have a 10-8 lead.

How about that? Terry Smith on Angels Radio and Scott Fransky, by the way, called the three hundredth home run for Bryce Harper on Phillies radio. So yeah, let's throw a bone to the Angels because it was just their eighth win. Eighth win since August 1st.

So only eight wins in the month of August. And Brandon Drury, who had the big hit in the ninth, trying to find the silver lining to the cloud. It's been tough for sure. I haven't been playing good baseball for a while and all the stuff about the waivers and all that. So it's been tough for us. But there's no other option but to keep playing. So we're going to keep going. So the Angels are an afterthought now.

Shohei Ohtani still haven't heard whether he'll get surgery or will attempt to rehab his torn UCL without the surgery, which he tried in the past, if you remember. So the Angels are not part of anything. The only team worse than them in the AL West is the A's who are officially eliminated from playoff contention. But at the top of the division, we've got quite a battle going on. A dogfight.

And it was Seattle hosting Oakland on Wednesday. Bases loaded. The pitch to JP.

Swung on. Line drive. Left field base hit. Scoring from third base is Canzone. Big wave Caballero. The throw home. He slides.

He is safe. The Mariners have taken the lead. JP Crawford coming through huge for the M's. He's been massive all season long and he's given the Mariners the lead. The JP Crawford shot, it was a single in the seventh, puts the Mariners in front.

You can hear the crazy crowd behind that call there on Mariners radio. And even as they set their sights on the title in the AL West, this is a team that is breaking records. Setting new marks.

Setting new heights. They erased that playoff drought in 2022 and now they're pushing themselves further and higher than they've been before. What a month. Capped off today's game. 21 wins in a month. And there was a really special team here that won 116 games one year and they didn't even do that. Hm.

Scott Service. Franchise record for the Mariners with 21 wins in August. And they don't play every day, right?

So the month has 31 days. They had 21 wins in August. And actually, I don't know if they play on Thursday. I'd have to check the schedule. But the date on Thursday is August 31st.

So you can take off even a handful of days in which they did not play like Thursday. And it's even more impressive. And I told you this earlier, this week when we spoke to Daniel Kramer in Seattle, remember he was talking about the 37,000 plus who showed up for their home game, it was the largest crowd they held on a Monday in forever. They were trailing the Rangers in the division standings by seven and a half games in mid-August. Now here we are, it's not even the end of the month. And they are sitting atop the division leading the Houston Astros by one one hundredth of a point in the standings.

That's crazy, right? The Astros sweep the Red Sox at Fenway Park. It was an early onslaught, seven runs on 12 hits. And according to Michael Brantley, longtime member of the Astros, they are still large and in charge and they're running the show in the West. I know what we can do and what we're capable of. I've been here for a while. So I'm just very excited for each and every day that they show up and play with this great group of guys in this locker room.

All right. Meanwhile, the Red Sox are going the wrong way. They've lost five of six. And while the wildcard standings are, they're jumbled, there's still a lot of possibilities in the American League. It's the Rays who have a five and a half game cushion on the Astros, the defending World Series champs. The Rangers, also in the AL West, who are a disaster right now, they've dropped seven of ten. They still sit in that number three wildcard spot in the American League. Then you've got the Blue Jays, two and a half games out. The Red Sox are now six and a half games out. They've dropped four in a row and, as I say, five of their last six, though if you think about the teams I just mentioned, it's even worse for the Rangers because they've lost ten of their last thirteen. And so every team is going to go through a stretch where they can't quite put it together, where they're scuffling a bit. This is where you want to say goodbye to it.

So poor road trip for the Rangers. But as we hit September and go into the stretch run, man, they've got to figure out a Guys, it's no secret that classic dress shirts suck. That's why our friends at And Collar created something different. No more tight collars, loose fabric or stubborn stains. Just outrageously comfortable shirts that are breathable, stain resistant and perfect for all occasions.

Blending the comfort of athletic wear with the style of dress shirts, you'll never feel better being dressed up. Discover their versatile collection at AndCollar.com and save 20% with code radio, shop shirts and more at AndCollar.com. Discount code available for a limited time.

The terms and conditions apply. Proven Winners Color Choice shrubs are the landscaping plants that have been trialed and tested by expert horticulturists to ensure your success. Whether you're looking for the hottest hydrangea, a re-blooming rose or an elegant evergreen, you can count on the shrubs in the white containers for easy care curb appeal for years to come.

There's still plenty of time to improve your landscape this season, so head to your favorite local garden center and ask for Proven Winners Color Choice Flowering Shrubs. This is Matt Spiegel of 670 The Score in Chicago and my podcast, The PBP Voices of Baseball is all about the art and craft of play by play. Catch up on episodes with Joe Davis, Joe Buck and many more.

Then something crazy happened along the way. I did a weekend of Cubs Cardinals on the radio. So now conversations are enriched with feedback and advice from Jason Benetti, Boog Shambi and others to come. The PBP Voices of Baseball, I bring you the people who bring you the game.

Listen on the Odyssey app or wherever you get your podcasts. Way to turn this around. Just kind of forget about it. I mean, look at the positives, not the negatives. We had a bad series in Minnesota and in Arizona, but coming out, we won the series here and I mean, be able to go into this next series and hopefully do the same thing.

Yeah. Even as I highlight where they are in the wildcard standings, which is right now sitting in that third spot, they're just a game back of the Mariners and the Astros in the AOS. So a lot that's yet to be decided, but get it. One month to go, roughly. One month left in baseball's regular season.

It's too early to start talking about October, but I'll just say it once, October is coming. But first, September is coming and that means the start of the NFL season. So excited to catch up with Antonio Gibson, commander's running back, who if you remember was the number one back to start last season because the rookie Brian Robinson was shot. Remember he was injured in a shooting incident and didn't return and I don't remember exactly when it was, but midway through the season.

Because he's a running back, because the narrative around running backs, it was good to talk to Antonio about the value of being a back in his position in the NFL, along with a brand new quarterback, new offensive coordinator. You'll hear that coming up. Find me on Twitter, ALawRadio, our Facebook page, always open and available for you. We're 24-7 After Hours with Amy Lawrence on CBS Sports Radio. You are listening to the After Hours Podcast.

This is After Hours with Amy Lawrence. On commander's radio, getting set to start the season. It's a lot of fun to think about the infinite possibilities and to that end, still ahead, Mark Ross of NFL Network, who joining us from LA, getting set for what is the kickoff that comes up a week from Thursday.

That's awesome. After Hours with Amy Lawrence on CBS Sports Radio. Now that it's almost here, I'm just ready to give into it.

Let's go. Let's get to football season already. It starts on Thursday, September 7th, to be followed by week one Sunday. The commanders will be hosting the Arizona Cardinals, who may or may not have a quarterback.

It's strategery, if you will. I had a chance to catch up with Washington running back, Antonio Gibson. And it's timely, right, because of the narrative around running backs this offseason.

But I got to start with something that's not quite so deep. I asked him, what are the emotions as you finally get closer and week one kickoff draws near? Man, super excited. Seeing what the team finally put together at that long OTA, the training camp, and seeing what we finally worked for, to finally put that to work we won, man, it's exciting. Do you get tired of seeing your own teammates and going to get your own teammates day after day for weeks? No, I feel like we go against one of the best defenses every day. So that's just getting us ready for whoever we got to go against. But that might be me being a little biased, but I honestly believe that. How critical will that defensive line be for your success this season?

You're right. Oh, I feel like, you know, offensive line gets the best of the best every day. So you know, that just gives them a step ahead when you know, we got to go out and compete against somebody else. Not saying that those guys aren't going to, you know, everybody get paid. But I feel like we go against some of the best guys every day.

So that just gives us the upper hand. Even as you get ready to kick off the season, I saw some cool photos on your Twitter where you were taking pictures with fans and signing items for kids. Why is that important to you to do to connect with fans? Oh, just to give that that was something I didn't, I didn't get a chance to do growing up. And you know, a lot of guys from my area, like people didn't come back and, and give back. So I always take time out to those who, you know, probably won't be able to get that moment every every now and then. So you know, they come out to support us, so why not show a little bit of love?

Oh my gosh, I think you made their life they were so happy some of these kiddos in the photos. That's awesome, Antonio. So we've had a major conversation around the commander's offense this year with Eric B enemy. So I want to know what's different with him as your offensive coordinator.

Oh, just the mentality, the expectations, the details. You know, what he expects from us is just, it's greatness. So you know, he picks at everything and, you know, for some, it might be a little annoying, but it's what you need from a coach and you know, you have to take that coach and you got to be able to, he's been on a team that has seen success and, you know, he they made it to, you know, where we want to be so you know, I feel like it's what we need and I feel like everybody's been accepting it and you know, that's, that's why we where we are where we are now. And you know, we feel good about going into the season. Yeah, how much does it matter that he comes from a Chiefs organization that has hosted five straight AFC championships and has been to three Super Bowls in five years?

Um, doesn't matter too much. It's just the fact that he, you know, he knows what it takes. So you know, you know, it's kind of like what he says, you know, it's like, hey man, kind of listen, like, you know, he's been there before, so you just want to listen. But at the end of the day, we still have to put in the work to get where we need to be. So you know, it matters to the standpoint of, you know, trusting a guy, you know, like this, you know, taking his word for a lot of things, but on the other hand, at the end of the day, we got to put in the work and we got to do our part to get there. I always appreciated when a coach pushed me, or when a coach challenged me, it made me feel like he expected or he she expected more of me.

Exactly. So let's talk about your quarterback to Antonio because somehow there's a lot of buzz around him. A lot of buzz from Coach Rivera and others throughout the offseason OTAs in camp. What tells you that he's ready for this job? Just a just a confidence he walks around with and where he plays with. He's comfortable in the huddle, he gets guys where they need to be. He's not in the huddle panicking, fumbling words or you know, telling guys the wrong thing. And when you see that and when a guy who can sit back in their pocket, step up, go through all his reads and hit that last check down, go through all his reads and feel comfortable enough to sit in the pocket. I feel like that's when you know a guy's ready. You know, we were rocking with him and I can't wait for him to prove a lot of people wrong.

Yeah, excited to see what happens. We're spending a few minutes with Antonio Gibson from the commanders running back position. It's after hours here on CBS Sports Radio. Of course, every running back in the league has been part of this narrative over the last month or so with running backs not getting paid or being franchise tagged. So I want to ask you, because you're in it every day, Antonio, how valuable are running backs in the NFL? I feel like very valuable. We're we're in a position to where we take blows every every play.

I know a lot of people saying running back, but I feel like every position out there like people got families. We're risking our lives to play a game that we love. So I feel like, you know, pay the guys, especially the guys that, you know, who this mainly evolves around. Like, I mean, those guys deserve it right now. So, you know, get those guys what they deserve. They they've been some of the top backs in the league for for a minute now. And they proven that like they work for that.

So why not pay them? You know what I'm saying? So that's that's just a tough situation. But I mean, I'm not in that position right now. So hopefully when that time comes, you know, they show love. But, you know, I feel like everybody, you know, deserves to get paid and not just us.

I feel like everybody should get paid. Right. It's not like the NFL is hurting for cash.

Exactly. So, Antonio, you mentioned the pounding. Your position takes a ton of hits. How do you try to stay healthy and try to stay fresh over the course of what's a really long season? You just have to have a routine.

It could be from massage to having, you know, somebody outside of the, you know, to get extra work on when when the guys in the facility can't. So I feel like just having that routine that you used to and that you're comfortable with, you know, throughout the week, throughout the season, you've got to maintain that. That's how you maintain throughout that long season. I keep seeing a lot of fantasy football buzz about you. Hey, draft Antonio in this round or that round. He's going to be a sleeper in fantasy. Do you play fantasy? I am. Honestly, I could care less about him.

It is a nice compliment, though. Make sure you grab Antonio Gibson. Now, you and you and Brian Robinson ended up splitting carries at the end of last year.

His story is incredible, of course. But how much does that help when you have someone else that you can share the load with? Oh, just being able to stay fresh and knowing that, you know, when not to wish this on anybody, but when one guy goes down, you know, the next guy's up or when one guy gets by, you know, you got somebody who can come in and do the same thing. So that's just, you know, to be able to compliment off each other and that helps the team to know that you got, you know, a couple running backs who can all run the ball and do what they need to do for the team.

So got to love that. I hear about the fans in Washington, the passion, certainly the fact that they will be vocal and they'll express themselves. How much fun is it to have a fan base that cares so much like the commanders fans?

Just to hear the positive feedback now, you know, instead of the negative. So this is something, you know, hopefully we get that support throughout the whole season. You know, they'll come out for all the games and get it back to where they used to be. Not like I'm telling you anything you don't know, but the commanders, the only team in the division not to make the playoffs last year. How tough is the NFC East?

Oh, very tough. I feel like on the defensive side, some of the best, best defensive teams in the league if you ask me. So, you know, that's tough for our offense, but I feel like this year we're going to put it together with this new system. You know, we're going to get it going, but you know, we got to take it day by day, game by game. So we start with week one. How much does it prepare you though, when you go up against division games and division opponents that are so tough? Yes, you know, throughout the season, you know, we play those guys for five years. So, you know, when we see those other guys, you know, we're already on edge because, you know, we play against some of the best as it is. So I feel like, you know, once we, once we play against those guys, you know, it kind of gives us an up or we're already coming into the game, you know, you know, we're looking at. So I feel like it gives us the edge. What I love is that in division rivalries, teams are not intimidated by the crowds, by the atmosphere, and certainly by the opponent. Yeah, as I said, at the end of the day, we, they bleed, like we bleed, they breathe, like we breathe. They walk like we walk. So I feel like it's just a matter of who comes out there and perform that day.

You know, I don't feel like any NFL team is sorry. So, you know, it's just come to perform that day. And, you know, you have to be the best on that day. Antonio Gibson with us here after hours, CBS Sports Radio, looking ahead to week one, what do you need to do to come out of the gate strong? Just set the tone, you can't, you can't have those, you know, come out slow and then try to pick it up the second half, you got to come out swinging and you got to keep it there. So so that's the game plan, you want to come out hard and finish strong.

You don't want to have those start strong and then second have you kind of fall off or start slow and then second half, try to pick it up. You got to have that fight throughout the whole four quarters. And that's the plan. All right.

Well, I'll be looking for that as we watch the commanders open up the season, a lot of promise there, a lot of buzz. As you point out, Antonio, stay healthy, first of all, and thanks so much for a couple of minutes. All right.

Thank you. Good to talk to him about the value of running backs, but I like how Antonio expands it. It's not just running backs who deserve to be paid.

They're out there. And he even says, we're out there putting our lives and our bodies on the line. And so we're doing the work. Everybody should get paid. And the fact is, the NFL is a cash cow. It's not hurting for money. I'm with him as much as it seems like exorbitant amounts of money that go into these contracts. All of these owners are making money hand over fist, right? So the massive TV deals, now the streaming licensing rights, the salary cap is going up, up, up. And while you generally see the going rate for quarterbacks climb precipitously at the same time, other guys are getting paid too. And why not? Do the owners need to get richer?

I mean, needs relative in the United States in this capitalistic society or capitalist society, but why not the players since they're the ones that are on the field? I'm all right with that. And he is too. And yeah, good to hear from him about the NFC beast and Sam Howell telling you there are a lot of positives coming out of commander's camp and preseason around Sam Howell. Can he help guide the commanders back to the playoffs?

Haven't been since 2020, but even then they had a losing record atop the division when they hosted the Buccaneers in the first round of the postseason. Goodness. One week from Thursday. That's it. Just one week from Thursday. Find me on Twitter, ALawRadio, our Facebook page too.

Let's see. Coming up, Novak Djokovic, he advances at the US Open, so does Coco Gauff, as well as the comeback story of Caroline Wozniacki, which is kind of fun to follow. She hasn't played in a major in three and a half years, but she's back and now has two kiddos in tow, which is cute. You are listening to the After Hours podcast.

I had to work for my points a bit more, but you know, nevertheless, I think I played great from the beginning to the end, some hiccups, but I like the level, you know, hopefully I can maintain it in the next round as well. This is After Hours with Amy Lawrence. Novak Djokovic is on to round number three, though not quite as comfortable as he was in that straight set victory in his opener, his return to New York for the first time since the final in 2021.

It's After Hours with Amy Lawrence on CBS Sports Radio. So yeah, he did win in straight sets, but afterwards, and you'll hear a lot of the athletes talking about it, the conditions in New York. I know this because I went running a training run on Monday evening and then did three hours of yard work on Tuesday evening in what was extremely thick humidity. And so even as the humidity and the clouds are kind of pulling out, the heat was increasing a little bit.

And we've talked about how on the court there, especially hard courts in New York and Australia too, they bake, the courts themselves bake in the sun. And so the second round match, even though he did advance, and maybe if you're only looking at the score, you think, ah, that was easy. He actually said it took some adjusting initially. Not the great start like I had the other night, but it was also due to the conditions that were quite humid on the center court.

I feel like I said it after the first round match, it's very little air, very little breeze that you can feel on the court. And I think it affected both of us. He started off solid. We had some rallies and we kind of had to reach out for the towel basically after each one of those longer rallies. So it took a bit more time and effort, but, you know, one break was enough.

And then after that, you know, second set, I played really good. There's a lot of history on the line every time he plays in a grand slam. And one of his strengths all of his career on any surface really has been his conditioning.

He is so committed to being in shape. And for that reason, hasn't had a ton of injuries. This is a guy who's been relatively healthy going back to when he first broke onto the tour and became a challenger to Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.

It's after hours with Amy Lawrence on CBS Sports Radio. If you followed Novak's career, you know, initially part of what he struggled with. And this was just him getting acclimated to being in the spotlight, being in the limelight, carrying expectations, matching up against the best in the world in Roger and Rafa. They had the edge over him when it came to the mental toughness, when it came to staring down the moment, when it came to performing his absolute best on the game's grandest stage. And now he is world number one again. So after winning in Cincinnati, he's leapfrogged Carlos Alcaraz.

We'll see if they meet again in New York. But with all the attention as he closes in on grand slam number 24, if he ends up winning, it's a lot to carry every day and every match. My mindset has always been to really adapt to the change and to the pace of life. Of course, maintaining the right balance, I think is a key of understanding who you are and keeping the authenticity in today's world.

That's actually probably even more needed and respected than it ever was. I think because there's, you know, so much going on and there's tons of information that are coming to you through social media, through internet, television, you know, any digital communication tool that you can think of. You have thousands of information that you have to process every single day.

So that's a lot. You know, I mean, when I was starting professional tennis career, it was completely different. So I think this is something that you can't really stop or the more you resist it, I guess the worse it is.

So you have to kind of find the individual formula that really works for you. I feel like it's important to embrace the change, the evolution of humankind, of society, of where things are going. I guess, yes, social media is a part of it and to varying degrees athletes will pay attention or not. I mean, we now know Bryce Harper listens to Philadelphia sports radio as he's driving into his games, into the ballpark. But yeah, athletes will tell you, I don't listen. I pay zero attention.

I tune out the noise. Others are very active on social and some athletes actually will read or process and take it to heart. That's a lot to navigate and I appreciate what Novak said too about it's not a level playing field. It is not a fair fight, if you will, for public figures on social media. You got to choose your battles and on social, celebrities can't win. That's just how it goes.

Famous people, high profile, public figures cannot win the battle on social. It's after hours with Amy Lawrence on CBS sports radio. Coco Goff, she's a teenager, but she's already learning at the US Open from players like Novak and Carlos Alcaraz. You may see this a bunch, footwork, but also the sliding to help you get to one point of the court or another without pulling a muscle or tearing something. Somebody who I look up to a lot movement wise is definitely Novak and definitely Carlos. I think they're both people that are seeding their field when it comes to, well, obviously the tennis, but obviously physically and speed and footwork wise. It's something that I'm trying to work on. I do think I have the athleticism as them, not like the same as them, but compared to my field, so I'm hoping that I can continue to learn by watching them.

I was watching Alcaraz last night. You want to be the best, you've got to learn from the best. If you're not matching up with them directly, the phrase is you want to be the best you got to beat the best. But in this case, there's always something to be gained from those athletes who are as close to mastering a surface in a game as possible. Caroline Wozniacki was on top of the tennis world years ago, and here she is attempting a comeback with two kiddos in tow. She's got a two year old daughter and also a 10 month old son. So she is 10 months removed from giving birth and into the third round at the US Open.

So she comes out of retirement, has not played a major since the 2020 Australian Open, so three and a half years ago. And she looks and feels real comfortable so far into the third round. I've been feeling very comfortable here in New York in general ever since I arrived here. Just something about the courts and everything else that have made me feel good. So yeah, I feel like I played well today. I'm so happy to have managed to close it out, even missing a couple of those match points.

I'm happy that I just stayed calm and collected and I managed to win in the end anyways. She's 33 years old. She retired, as I say, going back to early 2020. She also moved to the broadcast booth like many athletes do. You may know she's married to former NBA player David Lee. He was with the Warriors for a while. Now they've got two kiddos and she's currently ranked, are you ready for this?

623 in the world. She's irrelevant, but she's gone. But now here she is into the third round and actually has not played at Flushing Meadows in New York since 2019. So this is a big deal for Caroline Wozniacki.

Very popular, former world number one and also a former Grand Slam champion. It's After Hours with Amy Lawrence here on CBS Sports Radio. Let's quick talk to Mike who's in Baltimore. Got about two minutes, Mike. Welcome to the show.

Hey, I haven't called in a while and congratulations on your pending nuptials. I just want to say something that went under the radar today. I went to the Orioles White House game today and it was a fan that was ribbing Tim Anderson.

Nothing vile, you know, if he wasn't, you know, no courage or nothing like that. And this was between Tim Anderson turned around, grabbed his private parts and shook it at the guy. Like I said, it went under the radar because it was between innings because I didn't hear anybody saying anything in the media about it.

I don't even know if they saw it, but Tim is, he's not a, he's not a nice guy. He definitely has an edge to him and he's a guy who has decided he's not going to take, whether it be from a fellow opponent or, you know, a fellow player or whether it be from fans, he's not going to take anything sitting down, so to speak. Yeah. I mean, he's got a toad, but there are athletes who play better with a toad where they're kind of on that edge between anger, letting their emotions get out of control. And of course he was part of that brawl that took place earlier in August.

So yeah, I mean, he's apologized for that since, but yeah, he definitely plays with a major chip on his shoulder, almost plays angry and sometimes it gets the best of him. Right. I just was wondering if anybody in the media, so kind of me, you know about it, but I doubt it because they definitely would have mentioned it, but I didn't know this is the first I've heard of it.

In fact, I just Googled it while you were talking and there's nothing about it on social either. No. Yeah. So it kind of slipped under the radar. I guess it was between innings because it was between innings and all, I didn't hear anything about, you know, after the game, but I was just saying this is just tremendous. Yeah.

I mean, you get a reputation that precedes you and he definitely has one of those. Good to talk to you, Mike. Thank you so much for listening. Okay. All right.

Thank you. In Baltimore, it's kind of fun to think about the possibilities for the Orioles and what they could have in store as we hurdle our way into the stretch run of September. The Orioles are now 33 games above 500. They've won seven of their last 10 and they're still clinging to the lead in the AL East to buy a game and a half over the Rays. Back to football with Mark Ross next after hours, CBS Sports Radio.