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It is the JR Sport Brief Show here on the Infiniti Sport Brief. Sports Network. 888-710-4ISN. That's eight eight eight seven ten. four I S N Right now on the lines.
We got someone joining us to talk. Major League Baseball. Tomorrow. It's Saturday, october fourth. starts the divisional round.
of the postseason. Yeah, we got eight teams left. After we've dispatched, well, all of the teams and the Reds, Yesterday Joining us right now to talk all things baseball. Give us a preview of what we can expect starting tomorrow. is Ron Blum who covers all things MLB for the Associated Press.
Hey, Ron, thank you for the time. Hey, how you guys doing? Very well. I mean, there's so many teams that obviously garner a lot of attention: the Yankees, the Dodgers, Philadelphia, what have you. uh Milwaukee, they they seem to be kind of Y'all just under the radar right now.
What are your thoughts on what we can expect from the Brewers as they get ready to take on Chicago?
Well, it's kind of an emotional matchup with Craig Counsel going in against his ex-team. run by Pat Murphy, his former bench coach.
So I'm sure there's going to be a lot of excitement at the exchange of lineup cards and then a lot of emotion between the teams. And Milwaukee always has the feeling that it's going up a much bigger fan base. when it plays against the Cubs. When you think about the way that the Brewers play baseball, it seems a little old school. It seems like they buck the trend of what we typically see: all or nothing baseball, strikeouts are nothing, home runs are nothing.
They got guys stealing bases, they got pitchers, they have a very diverse. a standpoint. Do you think they've been overlooked this season? They are overlooked a little just because of where they play in such a small market. They're not a glamour team.
They don't get a whole lot of national television games. And like a lot of the postseason teams, they go into the postseason a little bit beat up. They say Brandon Woodruff won't be available in the series at all.
So we'll see. If you remember last year, they were in position to beat the Mets in that wildcard round in advance until Devin Williams gave up that home run to Pete Alonso. Or do you believe that they'll get past the Chicago Cubs and move on to take on either the Dodgers or the Phillies? Look, any of these teams can advance. I would say if they played 100 times, the Cubs would probably win 55 or 58 of them.
But uh that's the beauty of baseball, that you never know, and all it takes, especially in these Short postseason series is a bloop or something weird. We saw last night with the Yankees Red Sox game. It turned on. a popped fly into the Bermuda Triangle in right center and then a C and I hit just past the second baseman in a ground ball that hit the first baseman's glove and bounced high into right field. Iron Blum is here with us, covers all things baseball for the Associated Press.
You talk about the New York Yankees. We saw them beat the Red Sox yesterday, 4-0. And well, we heard from Aaron Boone when it comes down to Schlittler. He's like a star is born. Do you think he can be counted on consistently?
And maybe the Yankees can ride a little bit of a wave when he's on the mount?
Well, they certainly did in the second half of the season. He came up right before the all-star break. only because Clark Schmidt, a torn elbow ligament, this is a kid who started the season at Double H Somerset, got promoted to AAA. and then got called up only in an emergency. And He's put on four or five miles an hour on his fastball over the last Three years since the Yankees drafted him and then put another mile or two on him last night.
Uh that was by far the highest velocity he's ever shown. He had 11 pitches over 100 miles an hour or higher. Hey, Ron, I think we we might let's let's put run on on hold for a second. I think we might be having some some issues with with Ron's A connection. Maybe we were talking about people robbing people in New York City.
I don't know. Maybe we talked about the Yankees. They decided to rob. But Ron of of his connection. Here we got.
Hey, Ron, you still here? You good? I'm here. I can hear you fine.
Okay, perfect.
Now we got Ron back.
So we've seen what he's been able to do in stepping up. The Yankee fans are always looking out for blood. If they don't win the World Series, it's all for not. They just got to go out there. And fire everybody.
Do you think the Yankees are going to represent the American League in the World Series again? They have a chance. The key is the bullpen has been their Achilles yield. In the second half of the season, it's had one of the worst ERAs. in the major leagues.
And at various times, Luke Weaver and Devin Williams and then Fernando Cruz. Have all faltered. Bednar has been the most solid of them, but Weaver, since he came back from the hamstring injury, And Cruz, since he came back from the lat injury, they haven't been the same.
Well, Ron, much maligned for their bullpen as well, happens to be the Los Angeles Dodgers. I'm upset that they're going to take on. Philadelphia in this round, and it's only going to be maximum five games. What are your thoughts on who's coming out of this one? It seems like a coin flip.
But the Dodgers, yeah, they got their own bullpen issues as well. Yeah, I mean the Phillies are probably a stronger lineup, but the Dodgers have so many pieces they show what five hundred million buys that Otani is going to fit pitch his first postseason game. tomorrow they've been able to move lots of uh people into the bullpen.
So No other bullpen has a p believers who've been starters with the pedigree. of a Clayton Kershaw or are you back to Japan over Roki Sasasaki. Yeah, they certainly have the depth there. You talk about depth, that Seattle's going to take on Detroit. The Mariners for years.
They've been throwing all the pictures out there. They finally got all these bats, bringing in Suarez. What are your thoughts? Can't Seattle as well. Botox Cosmetic, Autobotulinum Toxin A, FDA approved for over 20 years.
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Well, maybe go past the Yankees of Toronto?
Well, like could Seattle, I think, against Detroit is probably the mi biggest advantage in terms of team strength in the fourth series. You look at Detroit. Had a big, big winning streak earlier in the season, but the Tigers closed. terribly almost missed the playoffs, lost twelve of their last fifteen games. and then took on a Cleveland team that was probably just about even or at its home level or just lower.
So Barring a surprise, Seattle, if it plays well, should win that series and play the Yankees or Toronto for a place in the world. Sure. Wh who do you think ultimately is gonna lift up the Commissioner's Trophy? I you never know. Loathe to predict who's going to go in these things because, like I said, these games can turn on a balance.
Yeah. If you look at the strongest possible teams, I mean the Yankees and the Dodgers, as you said, both have bullpen issues. Seattle might not have the strongest rotation and Might have some holes through seven, eight, nine in the batting order, the same in the Yankees. against certain pitches. Uh they've had struggled with McMahon and slumps.
Volpian extended slump.
So you just have to see how it plays out. Or Ron, I know one team that they ain't winning the World Series, that's the Mets. They decided to fire everybody not named Mendoza basically today. What adjustments can we expect from them throughout the course of the offseason? It can't be any major ones, right?
Well, I would think they're gonna go for healthier pitchers, they certainly uh didn't have much success with Zenga, Minaya, and Montas this year. But as they make moves, I think everyone's looking ahead to the possibility of no. 2027 season, and then possibly a salary cap starting to phase in in 28.
So that's going to start affecting some of the spending decisions too.
Well, Ron, do you you believe that there's there's going to eventually be a salary cap in Major League Baseball to correct all this wild spending?
Well, I don't know, correct it's not a correction. It's what teams seem to want and I think in this negotiation teams might press for it more knowing in the Republican administration the union can't run to a national labor relations board.
So I think certain elements of management will push more for a capitalist go round. How what we we've heard for for years now, Tony Clark, as well as the players, they have screamed and yelled. I mean, we see the disparity. Not everybody in the big leagues is running around with a $700, $750 million contract. What changes between now and then?
Well the Correct, the bargaining agreement expires on december twenty sixth.
So then it becomes a question of negotiations and what each side can get. In the clubs. At least based on public evidence, are financially getting ready At a level, maybe that the players can't meet. We'll have to see how the players with withheld licensing money. And they set up to distribute it.
But I think everything goes back to the end of. negotiations for the Lance Agreement, where executive board split and the eight an executive subcommittee voted to continue. waiting to try to get a better deal the overall better risk said that it was accepted.
So I think that set the signal also to management. that they should. push they might want to push harder to try to get a Okay.
Well, it'll be wild if it takes place. Hey, Ron, thank you so much for the time and joining us. We appreciate you, okay? All right, good to be with you. Have a good evening.
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