This episode is brought to you by Progressive Insurance.
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Not available in all states or situations. Here we go again. What was your draft night like? Michael Jackson died on the day I was drafted.
The Atlanta Hawks select Jeff Teague. Everybody was at my house crying. They were at your house and you're getting ready. They should have been crying for me.
I'm about to change my family's life. They're crying about Mike. Earlier on the show, NFL Network insider Tom Pelissero. Coming up, Cincinnati Reds manager Terry Francona.
Plus, your phone calls, latest news, and more. And now, it's Rich Eisen. That's right, hour two of this program on the air here on this Friday. It's a what's more likely Friday. We're going to play that in hour three. It's going to be a fun third hour.
There's no guests in it. It's just us. Just us hanging out. We're about to play the latest edition of Who Wants to Be a Hall of Famer. That's setting the internet on fire too.
Is it really? People are in their feelings for some reason. People are in their feelings. We'll get to that in a second. Let's go to the phone lines, you know what I mean? And by that I mean, let's go to the phone lines.
844-204-rich is the number to dial here on the program. Let's go to Terrence in Cleveland. What's up, Terrence? Terry. Rich, how you doing? Oh my God. Terrence, you had me at hello.
What's going on? Rich, people will come, Rich. They'll come to Brook Park for reasons they can't even fathom.
They'll turn up on Snow Road not knowing for sure why they're doing it. They'll arrive at the stadium, citizens as children, longing for the past. Of course we don't mind if you buy season tickets, the Haslems will say.
It's only $20,000 for a PSL. They'll pass over the money without even thinking about it, for it is money they have and division titles they lack. And they'll walk out to the dog pound and sit in shirt sleeves in a perfect indoor climate. They'll find they have reserved seats somewhere in the 500 section, where they sat when they were children and cheered their heroes. And they'll watch the game and it'll be as if they've dipped themselves in magic waters.
The memories will be so thick they'll have to brush them away from their faces. The one constant through all the years, Rich, has been Brown's dysfunction. The NFL has rolled by like an army of steamrollers, it's been erased like a blackboard, rebuilt and erased again. But Brown's dysfunction has marked the time. This field, this game, it's a part of our past, Rich. It reminds us of all that once was good and it could be again. Oh, people will come, Rich.
People will most definitely come. Wow. Terrence and Cleveland are going full Field of Dreams on us to talk about the new Brown Stadium that's apparently being built. Well done, Terrence. Thank you, Rich. Well, thank you, Rich.
That's a drop. You know what, I guess, you know, for the Guardians or maybe the Cavs when they're back, you can call in, you know, as Burt Lancaster and give us your thoughts on the season. The doctor now? I could give you my Morgan Freeman impression if you'd like. Is Morgan Freeman? My Morgan Freeman impression.
Oh, please, please do. It's the last Thursday in June. Why not?
What are you on? Shalala Sanders came to Cleveland in 2025 on a four-year stretch to play TV. That's quarterback to you. Front office caught him playing well for his father out in Colorado. Young punk. Mr. Rock and Roll. Cock-ass as hell.
We liked him immediately. Wow. Terrence, you are phenomenal. Terrence, really good. I muted my mic so I wouldn't laugh.
Wow. The audio guys, the one guy who didn't do it. Jay, Jay Pharoah of The Rich Eisen Show.
Fan base. That was incredible. Terrence, well done.
Call back with the other characters. Wow, that was amazing. That was fantastic.
Yeah, that was I know where we're going with that, but I was here for the ride. So he did James Earl Jones discussing the Brown Stadium. And then Morgan Freeman about the drafting of Shadore Sanders. From the beginning of Shawshank. From the beginning of Shawshank. Wow, that was amazing.
That was phenomenal. All right. Joey in Bakersfield.
Good luck. What's up, Joey? What up? How you doing?
What's on your mind, Joey? I want to predict the Niners' season. Oh, the win-loss?
You want to do a win-loss for the Niners? Can you do it as someone's voice? Any character? Joey in Bakersfield. Can you do Joey from Friends? Instead of what you can say wins, you say, how you doing?
How you doing? Give Joey some music here. Win-loss game. This is a fourth 49ers one you have.
Joey in Bakersfield, California. What happens when the season opens in Seattle? We get a win. That's a 1-0 start at the Saints. Win. 2-0 home for the Cardinals. Loss. We have problems at home against them. I know.
That is true. 2-1 against the Jaguars at home. Win.
3-1 at the Rams on Prime Video to kick off week 5 Thursday. That is a win. That's a 4-1 at the Buccaneers.
That's a loss. 4-2 home for the Falcons. Win. 5-2 at the Texans. Loss.
We're 5-3 at the Giants. Win. 6-3 home for the Rams. Win. Sweeping the Rams at the Cardinals now. Win. 8-3 home for the Panthers on a Monday night. Win. 9-3 at the Browns. Loss.
We have problems in Cleveland. Okay. 9-4 off the bye home for the Titans. Win.
At the Colts. Win. 11-4 home for the Bears. Loss. Home for the Seahawks. Sweep. Win. That's 12-5.
Joey in Bakersfield. Thank you, sir. Hey, I appreciate that.
And you make football better. Thank you. Hey, Joey, I appreciate that. It sounded like you meant it and I'll take it.
That was very genuine and you caught me on that one. Thank you. I appreciate it. I appreciate that and agree.
Alright. Joey in Bakersfield. Mike in Long Island had him 12-5.
Terzo in Iowa and our friend Joshua Jackson. 11-6. Realistic. I like that sweet spot. 11 wins.
You think so, right? Now, many of my ideas come from staring at the ceiling in the middle of the night because I can't go back to sleep. I'm in my mid-50s now. Now 56 years old.
What can I tell you? I don't know where this one popped in my head. I just thought to myself, what we talked about on the show earlier in the day, I forget who it was, but we're like, if somebody doesn't play again, is that person a Hall of Famer already? Doesn't matter if they're played 5 years, 6 years, 7 years, 10 years, 11 years.
Their body of work to this point in time, would they be in the Hall of Fame if by fate they're not allowed to play anymore or by choice decide not to play anymore? And you're saying in the first 3 cracks at it, in 2 segments, we did it with Aaron Judge and Otani together to kick things off. First pitch it.
And then yesterday we did our first player from the NFL in Josh Allen. You're saying it's lit up the comment section. Oh yeah. Oh, comments are hot.
They're hot. I mean, there are a group of commenters who understand what we're doing here and are getting legitimate yes or no. And then there are always the group who just want to get mad and be like, you guys are idiots because they're not really understanding what we're doing.
But the people that are into it, yeah, they're into it. Okay. I like that. And we have our first NBA player for a segment that we're referring to as Who Wants to Be a Hall of Famer?
Who Wants to Be a Hall of Famer? Is that your final answer? We love production value. We're clapping for our own production value. I love Regis.
I'm clapping for Regis. I don't think that was Regis. No? That might be it.
That would have been hard. No. That's not Regis.
Is that your final answer? It's a Regis imitation. That's not Regis. I think that's Regis. I think that's Regis.
Not a chance this is Regis Philbin. Not a plan. I can play it. I can play it.
Who Wants to Be a Hall of Famer? Is that your final answer? That's Regis. That's 100% Regis. That's how many I left.
That is Regis. Not to get too deep in the weeds here. Okay.
We're good. Let's move to our actual... Today's contestant for Who Wants to Be a Hall of Famer is none other than the Dallas Maverick of note, because he used to be a Los Angeles Laker, the throw-in in the Luka Doncic trade. Wow. That's how they treated that man.
That's how they treated him. I mean, in the pocket listing. Anthony Davis, 32 years old. Let's give you his resume, everybody. Regular season averages. He's nine for 17 on average in a game. The nine field goals made per game is 20th all time. 20th all time. In terms of rebounds per game, 10.7 rebounds per game, that's 35th all time. 2.3 blocks per game. 14th all time ahead of Shaq and Tim Duncan.
Yeah. He averages 24.1 points a game, which is 26th all time. Over 27,000 minutes. His field goals made 7,100. That's 74th all time. His 8416, 8,416 rebounds, 70th all time. He's 25th on the all time blocks list of 18-15. And he's just shy of 19,000 points in his career. Ten time all star, four time all NBA first team, three time all NBA defensive first team. Three times he's led the league in blocks. And we all know he won that one title. And he's only one of two players to average at least 24 points, 10 rebounds, in two blocks throughout his career, since they started counting blocks in 1973. The other player is named Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. And he made the NBA's 75th anniversary team.
I'll go first. He's a Hall of Famer. And I came into this segment thinking, I don't think he's a Hall of Famer.
I really did. When I thought to myself, is this guy, if he doesn't play another game, if he decides to, by the way, could you imagine making that call to Nico Harrison? Hey, Nico.
You know what? Nico Harrison does not like this segment idea right now. Could you imagine how that would play? At that point in time, Jason Kidd would call up the Knicks, and say, ask for me again.
Call up and ask for me again. But don't you think, right? This guy is a Hall of Famer? Rich, I think without question, he is a Hall of Famer. No doubt. You mentioned 75th anniversary team. All of those guys are in or will be in.
They're not one that isn't, correct? No, he doesn't have any actual hardware in terms of MVPs or Defensive Player of the Year awards. He probably should have won at this point, TJ, a Defensive Player of the Year award. He is so underrated as a shot blocker, rim protector, rebounder, defensive player. Look, I don't really count their bubble championship, but he was awesome in the bubble for the Lakers and probably the main reason that they ended up finishing that off over Miami, without question, Anthony Davis, Hall of Famer.
You agree? I mean, you just look at his stats. In addition to all the stats you guys said, eighth player to win an NCAA title, an NBA championship, and a gold medal. Six of the previous seven are in the Hall of Fame, and only he and Michael Jordan are on that list that actually have two Olympic gold medals. He's won a title at all three levels, including a FIBA World Cup championship. He was the number one pick, 10-time all-star, five-time all-NBA, five-time all-defense. And the thing about the NBA Hall of Fame is they take into consideration everything, not just your pro career, but your high school career, your international career. So based upon all that, he's absolutely going to go into the Hall of Famer. It's the Basketball Hall of Fame, and they're a lot more lenient than the Major League Baseball or the NFL when it comes to their Hall of Fame.
29.6% three-point shooter as well at his size in his career, right? I mean, I think that's the first consensus we've had, right? Yeah, absolutely, absolutely. And I kind of feel like we're probably going to get more consensus on NBA players than any other player in any other sport. You're probably right about that. But the standards that their Hall of Fame have are just a little bit lower compared to Cooperstown and Canton. But honestly, I thought to myself, is this guy really Hall of Famer? I don't think so, but let me see the numbers, and the numbers support it. Without question. It's funny you say that.
Your eye test maybe says no. In a weird way, do you think he's underachieved in his career? Well, obviously the Pelicans is one thing.
The Lakers, he did win a title. And again, I just need to say it, because whenever you say it, I do offer the pushback. In the same way we always say, you can't come up with the schedule. The schedule is made for you. You got to play who you play when you play them. And if this other player is injured, that other player is injured, and this opponent's less than, then you beat that player. They beat that team.
You have to play who's in front of you and beat who's in front of you. And you can basically say, well, who did this team really beat? Well, they beat the teams they're supposed to beat. So you have to give them credit for that. The Lakers didn't create the pandemic. Did we know that?
I know. The Lakers didn't create the pandemic. Everybody else had to play by the same standards. It was beyond out of body, out of sight, out of mind. They did it.
They did it. You could make the case it was the most difficult championship to win of all time. Away from their families, you have no idea what the hell's going on in the world. Don't forget, that's when the world was exploding outside of the bubble too.
There was even a conversation about not playing games because of what was going on in the real world. It was just a weird time on earth. That year, they had the oldest roster and their top players were the older players and they benefited from three to four months rest. Regardless, to say underperforming, no. Has his career been underwhelming? You think, based on your eye test, that he wasn't a Hall of Famer, and then you looked at the numbers and all the metrics and you're like, oh yeah, definitely he is.
I guess it's an eyebrow test. Thank you. Anthony Davis, congratulations.
You don't have to play anymore. That would be insane if that happened for him in Dallas. Let's take a break. Terry Francona is going to join us next. The Cincinnati Reds skipper. He is, as you know, the manager of one of our favorite players that we've been talking about since day one. Elie De La Cruz. The man has managed Elie De La Cruz and Michael Jordan.
And gave you duck boat parades. Terry Francona next. Let's talk about coffee, people. If you're like me, your day cannot begin until you've had your first cup. Whether you're gearing up for back-to-back meetings, shuttling kids back and forth to activities, tackling an endless to-do list, your morning sets the tone for it all and the perfect cup of coffee sets that tone. Crafted just for you.
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DrinkTrade.com slash Eisen. This episode is brought to you by Progressive Insurance. Fiscally responsible, financial geniuses, monetary magicians. These are things people say about drivers who switch their car insurance to Progressive and save hundreds. Because Progressive offers discounts for paying in full, owning a home, and more. Plus, you can count on their great customer service to help you when you need it, so your dollar goes a long way. Visit Progressive.com to see if you could save on car insurance.
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Venmo purchase restrictions apply. How happy has our next guest made you, Chris Brockman? I don't think you could put a number on it. 2004 was one of the greatest years in the run in October that I've ever had. I mean, he's a new skipper of the Boston Red Sox, right?
Yeah. That team, I think, brought me more joy than any team that I've ever rooted for. And we've had a lot of parades. I'm the manager of the Cincinnati Reds that we're referring to right now. Two and a half games back in the wild card right now in the National League getting set to take on the Padres tonight in Cincinnati. Terry Francona, how you doing, Terry? Good to see you. Rich, great to see you. Thanks for having me.
I'm sure you've heard that from people from the greater New England area, your entire existence, right, Terry, pretty much? You know what? I mean, it was a pretty cool thing.
There's no getting around it. I'm pretty good about moving on and staying in the moment, but don't be lying. I mean, those four days when we came back against the Yankees, they're probably my four fondest baseball days of my life. And when you see Dave Roberts, do you ever talk about those moments when you see Dave?
Every time I see him, I hug him. I mean, truth be told, I probably got fired. I know ownership had kind of drafted a letter of apology to all the fans for our showing. It wasn't a very good mood around the ballpark.
Then a week later, we all could have run for mayor. I think you've got to keep things in perspective, but every time I see Dave, we laugh about it. Now, when did you come up with the idea of letting him take a base, Terry, or did he do it on his own, or what happened there? We talked about it. We actually had talked about it in Anaheim in the first round of the playoffs, and he couldn't get a good jump.
He was fighting to do it, and he couldn't do it. So we kind of met down in the runway before the inning. We had Millar and Billy Miller there and Dave, and I said, Millar's going to get on, and this is what we're going to do. We were possibly going to bunt if Dave couldn't get a jump, but Millar had swung the bat so well against Bariano. He's one of the few guys that did. I know as I was talking to Dave, Billy Miller's eyes were like, Hey, man, give me one thing.
You've got nine things going. When Millar walked and Davey left the dugout, I just winked at him. That was my way of telling him, go get it, big boy. And I love that you bring it up when maybe you're handing out lineup cards against the Dodgers or anytime you see them.
That's pretty cool, man. Look at that moment right there, Dave Roberts. That's Jeter, by the way, who turned 51 the other day. You want to feel old? Derek Jeter's 51 years old, man. I already felt old, but I still wouldn't feel good if he was playing shortstop for a team, because he's kind of the ultimate guy that, you know, one of the greatest kids in the world.
And then when you play him, he wants to rip your heart out, which is what you're supposed to do. Right. Well, you've got a pretty damn good shortstop of your own right now, Terry Franco. And I'll be honest with you, you know, obviously, Ellie's arrival predates yours there in Cincinnati. I'm wondering when you're getting offered the job and you're thinking about coming back and being a manager, is he a reason why you're like, I will manage the Cincinnati Reds, Terry?
Not exclusively. I mean, I'd be kind of fibbing if I said I wasn't excited because of, you know, the youth and what he can do and I think what he's going to do. It was actually a couple of things.
One, it was the youth of our whole team, which I really like, especially our pitching staff. And then, truth be told, when Nick and Brad came out to my house, we kind of talked about this job. I was sitting in my rocking chair and it just felt right. About an half hour into it, I caught myself saying, well, you know, we could do this, we could do that.
I'm like, whoa, whoa, whoa, slow down. And it felt good. I like going through things with people that I respect and care about and know they're going to kind of have my back. I felt that way in Cleveland and I felt that way here. And I think I made a really good choice. Yeah, I guess that's my fault for bringing up a specific player like Elie De La Cruz to a manager to say, you know what, there's one guy. Obviously, it's a team effort. I totally understand that. But this kid had me and everyone here at hello. I mean, he just has such freakish abilities in, obviously, the most positive way to use that word.
Is there a comparison? If you don't mind me just focusing on him for a second, because I am such a fan of Elie De La Cruz, of anybody that you've seen before. Terry? You know, Ridge, I get it.
I mean, you know, I'm new here or fairly new here. And even like, you know, we're going to Boston Monday and my grandkids want to talk to him. That's that allure.
You know, I had heard about it before I got here, but I've never I don't know if I've ever seen that. But I mean, MJ is the one. But when this kid walks out into the field or into the dugout or somewhere, everybody goes crazy for him. And I think it's a combination of his talents, you know, the way he plays the game, and then his personality. Like, you just look at him the way he carries himself. You can tell he's a good kid. And I mean, it comes shining through. And to me that, you know, when you couple that with the talent he has, that makes him pretty special.
Yeah. And just again, his speed and everything that he that he can do to to help change the game. How has your team improved between a game one to game tonight against San Diego that you've seen?
Terry? Well, I think I think we're getting better defensively. That's one of our biggest is and again, some of it's just by the good fortune of having like McClain back and Friedel back healthy. But we're trying to not everybody chases offense. We try not to chase it so much where we put ourselves in a bind because we think we have good young starting pitching. And if you put them in a, you know, behind the eight ball, you end up chasing your tail a little bit.
So we're trying to make things reach offensively while not hurting ourselves defensively. Then I guess how has the game changed since game one you managed with the Phillies to game tonight against the yeah, right against the you're laughing. But I mean, obviously things have changed including my own hairline because I was doing Sports Center highlights for your Phillies back in the day. Now, here I am all these years later. But how have things changed between that day and tonight's game?
Terry? When I got hired in the winter of 96, there was a general manager and an assistant general manager. Now there are baseball ops people. I mean, and it's a good thing. The game is evolving.
There's more information. I think as a manager, you need to know like what to sift through, what to take, what not to take. Because if you take 50 different ideas that are coming at you and you try to use them all, it's going to be chaos. But, and again, you know, I do enjoy when somebody has the ability to make me kind of maybe second guess the way I was thinking or try something.
I actually enjoy that. But it has to make sense to me. I'm not just going to do it because it's on a piece of paper. But how does that manifest itself during a game, right? I mean, you've got information in front of you or it's downloaded. Like, are you going to have a meeting after this interview or you already have about tonight's Padres lineup, second time through the order, third time through the order?
It just seems to me like righty righty versus lefty lefty is so damn quaint. You know what I mean? Like there's got to be a million different nuanced stats that are placed in front of you prior to one single game, Terry, right?
And again, if it's not applicable during the game, it's not really going to help. So the guys here are great. They give me the information. I have this lineup card here and I have it filled out on the front and back. Once I have this card filled out, I'm ready to go. I can relax. I can enjoy the day because I feel like I'm prepared and I know what I want to do. It doesn't mean it's going to happen.
But like I said, once I feel prepared, I can relax and start to enjoy the game. Terry Francona, Cincinnati Reds manager here on the Rich Eisen Show. You mentioned MJ before, sir. For the kids in the back, that's Michael Jordan you're referring to in terms of superstar status, right?
That's how you're referring to Ellie Dela Cruz in terms of level of interest. But Jordan's different. What was Michael like when he first walked into the clubhouse, when you were the skipper for him in the minor leagues, Terry?
I would have a hard time ever finding something negative to say about him. I remember it was kind of fashionable at the time to get on him about playing baseball. And the first thing I had mentioned to him when we got to Birmingham was, hey, these guys have worked really hard just to get to the AA level.
This is the amount of money they're making or not making. And, you know, what we're doing, you got to respect the game of baseball. And my goodness, I don't know if I've ever been around somebody that respected the game more. It made it easy to be patient with him baseball-wise because you had to because he hadn't played. But he worked hard. He was knowledgeable. He was coachable.
And you know what? It shouldn't be surprising because I don't think you can be that good in another sport without having those traits and characteristics. Is there anything off field that he did that you can share where you were beyond impressed? You're like, wow, that is something I didn't expect from Michael Jordan. I didn't see that one coming.
Anything like that, Terry? You know, I think once I got to know him, I saw everything coming. It's hard to do anything with him or against him where you're not competing. I mean, whether it's ping pong, tennis, golf, certainly, Yahtzee. It didn't matter.
And he didn't like to lose. And that's like all the stories you've heard. They're true.
All of those stories. Like on the bus and stuff like that? Is that what you're saying? Pretty much? Yeah.
You know, I found out. It took me a while because, you know, the Southern League back in the day, there were some long bus rides. And they weren't steeper buses.
It was sometimes two to a seat and they were long. And I look at him and he seemed so content. And it took me a while to figure out that that was probably the first time in years where nobody could get at him. And he could actually relax and either listen to music or read a book or play cards and nobody could get at him. And he really enjoyed it.
I love that, man. And last one for you on this one. What was he naturally great at? And what was he working on that if he'd somehow, some way, by the grace of the sports gods, decided to just stick with baseball, do you think he would have been great at, Terry? Well, even early on before he played a lot. I mean, he stole 30 bases, you know, in the Southern League. He drove in 50. You know, he was so long levered that he was always working on trying to keep his swing short.
And he, you know, when he went to the fall league, he was drastically improved. I don't think it's fair to talk about any prospect until they get about 1,000 at-bats. But I'll tell you what, Rich, and I found out sometimes the hard way.
You tell him no, and he's going to find a way to make the answer be yes. And I believe that in baseball, too. Terry Frank Cohen, a few minutes left with the Cincinnati Reds skipper here. And then while we're in the wayback machine, let's go back to Boston. So when you arrived there, it was Big Poppy's second year there. What was your first interactions with David Ortiz like, and did you know that he was beginning to just break out? He kind of did break out in the year before your arrival. When you arrived, it started a run for Big Poppy that will end in Cooperstown, as we all know. Your first interactions with him and what you saw when you got there, Terry?
Couldn't have been better. I mean, this guy was off the charts. And to me, before he was probably David, you know, before he was becoming Big Poppy.
And I enjoyed that, actually, probably more. He was kind of a go-to guy. You know, there were several guys like, you know, Veritech. I mean, there's a lot of guys on that team that I don't know if people realized how solid of baseball players they are. You know, like Johnny Damon would run into the wall, you know, hair flying. And he'd text me in the morning, I think I can play.
You know what? And then he did play more often than not. I mean, those guys, Millar, the stuff you saw with Millar, it was real. It was meaningful. We had guys that just really liked to play baseball. And when the game was over, if we lost and they're trudging up to the clubhouse, it wasn't because they didn't get hits. It's because we lost. So again, there were some characters, but boy, they had some character. All right.
And then again, hitting the wayback machine considerably. I've got a photograph of a Cincinnati red. I'd like you to help me identify who this person is. Can we pop it up on the screen, guys, if you don't mind, for Terry?
Who is this Cincinnati red we have to see on the screen here? Yeah, that looks like my little brother. That's like half of me. Obviously, I didn't spend enough time in the weight room.
That is unbelievable. It's like half of me. No wonder I couldn't hit the ball very far. No, look, you were staring down the pitcher, whoever that was. It looks like you were staring. No, I was staring down the cameraman and it was in foul territory because I wasn't playing very much. Yeah, you would have been great with the pitch clock.
You were making eyes, you know what I mean? You wouldn't have got one of these back in the day. Who was on the reds when you were there, Terry? Who was on that team when you were on the reds? Barry Larkin, Kirk Stilwell was a young, good team. Eric Davis, Tracy Jones, Bo Diaz was a catcher, Ronnie Oster, Buddy Bell. It was a mix of veteran and young guys. And truth be told, I was the weak link. Nick Asaski got hurt early in spring training. I started playing.
I think I got like amnesia, like I forgot how to hit. And it bothered me because I think Pete really looked out for me and wanted me to make the club and I felt like I let him down and it bothered me for a long time. And for the kids in the back, the Pete is Pete Rose.
What in the world was he like as a manager, Terry? Well, you got to remember, I played with Pete in Montreal, so I don't know how many people can say they played with him and for him. So he was my teammate three years earlier. And you can't find a better teammate. I don't care where you look.
And I know that's documented. This guy is the ultimate teammate. So playing for him, I wanted to do okay because I loved him. I revered him. And like I said, I didn't do very well, but he never gave up on me. Probably could have released me a few times. Never did. I would have tried to run through a wall for him.
Yeah. I mean, and now, I mean, what is it like for you to, again, you played with him, for him, and now you've succeeded him in the position in a way for the Cincinnati Reds. And I don't know if you walk past the statue of him diving for, you know, home plate with his, the Pete Rose hair. I mean, what goes through your head? Do you ever stop and think about this stuff?
I know you like living in the moment, as you say. I do, but I got, actually in my office, you can't see it. I got a picket or Pete hidden. I got a jersey. I got a ball.
I got a bat. I know there's some miscues along the way. I'm aware of that. And I'm glad I never had to be part of the process because I would have never been able to not be biased when it comes to him.
Because I re-geared him and I still do. And when they had the Pete Rose night and his family, his kids and grandkids were here, I was front and center just watching and listening and smiling. It was great. Yeah. It's really amazing.
And obviously the history and the pageantry of the Cincinnati Reds that you're trying to bring back and bring a title there to Cincinnati like you did to Boston, obviously, twice over. And I also can't help but notice you're already at home. I saw this online the other day. I want to ask you about this chair. Is that from your boat, Terry? Is this what you're sitting on during the games right now? Is this what's going down for you?
Brad, Nick, the guys, you know, my boss is here. They asked me how my legs were doing because I was standing because I can't see. If I look through that screen, I feel like I can't see the game, so I got to stand over it. And I said, well, my legs get a little tired. And they were like, well, get a chair. Well, I need to get a chair.
I'm not going to kill myself. I had one of those, a little smaller version in Cleveland, and it actually broke a couple times. And nobody ever laughed at that as I felt backwards during the game. But this one's kind of the Cadillac version.
And I've only had it for two nights, but I love it, man. And trying to see if they'll let me, instead of walking to the mound, just cast out. Like, instead of a hook, you actually have an actual hook?
Like, when you hook a player, you just cast it out and hook the player? That's interesting. And, you know, I don't know who did it, but the other day when I went out there, there was one of those captain's hats sitting on the chair. So, you know, I tried it on, and I think everybody thought it'd be funny. The bad part was, I think I ended up looking more like Max Patkin than probably a boat captain.
The clown prince of baseball with a reference right here. I love it, Terry. What a blast, man. I'm so happy that you took the time, obviously, on a game day. Best of luck tonight and down the road, and look for more of my calls to have you on. It's just a pleasure. Everyone at ESPN still talks glowingly of your time when you were there.
And I've obviously been covering you forever and a day. What a pleasure chatting with you. Thanks again, Terry. It's thanks. Everybody there was so kind to me, and everybody helped me because I got lost every day there. So everybody helped me get to my car.
It was actually a fabulous experience. Thanks for having me. I enjoy watching you on the NFL, Matt. Thanks, bud.
I really appreciate it. It's Terry Francona taking on the San Diego Padres tonight in Cincinnati, the great American ballpark. Cincinnati Reds in the mix in the National League and the National League Central right here on the Rich Eisen show.
That was a delight. Obviously, I know Big Poppy's in Cooperstown now, but it's pretty cool, man, right? Yeah, he and Dave Roberts, excuse me, will wink.
I mean, I didn't reveal that that made me very upset to be a Yankee fan. In real time, I thought he was out. You know, I remember thinking, oh, gosh, he's out. Now what are we going to do? Now what's going to happen?
And, you know, and so obviously it wasn't making up a letter of apology, huh? To the city of Boston. I mean, obviously, remember the 03 was the boon to Game 7 ALCS, and then there's a lot of expectation coming into 04. NOMAR gets traded.
There was all the A-Rod rumors in the offseason. And then, you know, you kind of circle in the drain a little bit. And of course, now it's 3-0 to your rival. Geez, could this end any more disastrously? And the curse was still in effect. Still in effect. And it was just going to keep going.
You felt like it was never going to end. What a run. Jordan. Played for Pete Rose. Played with Pete Rose. Succeeded Pete Rose. Managed Michael Jordan.
Big Poppy. He's a Hall of Famer, right? How is he not? Correct, right? I think so. Bias.
You want to do it here? He's had an amazing manager. I mean, his playing career. Hold on, I've got it right here. Pop. There we go. Who wants to be a Hall of Famer? Bonus. Is that your final? No, bonus.
Very good. So, two-time World Series champion as manager of the Red Sox. Three-time AL Manager of the Year. Winning as manager in Cleveland history. Cleveland history.
By the way, did you know he managed their 11 years, Chris? It was 8 years with the Red Sox. 11 with Cleveland.
Took them from the Indians to the Guardians. Should have never left Boston. Five division titles, three AL pennants, 11 total postseason appearances. He's going for career win 1993 tonight. It's close to 2,000 wins. Yeah, I just looked it up.
I was thinking the same thing. Only 12 managers with 2,000 wins. How many are in the Hall of Fame? All of them except Bruce Bochy and Dusty Baker and I imagine both will be whenever they're done.
Yeah, right? He just passed Casey Stengel recently. Obviously, he's in the Hall of Fame. Yeah, we just spoke to a Hall of Fame manager.
100%. He played for the Expos, Cubs, Reds, Guardians, Indians, and Brewers. That photograph of him is a red. I mean, that's great. That's fun. Alright, great production value everybody and I've been told by Mike Hoskins that is in fact Regis Philman's voice. Who wants to be a Hall of Famer? Is that your final answer?
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Your summer favorites are ready at Starbucks. I stand corrected. Everybody back off. What was it like shooting that scene though with Ray Kinsella and his father?
How long did you figure out how to play that? Well, we had to do that. Notice that we did that at magic hour. You also notice that when that shot pulled back and you saw all those cars, you know, now, but that would have been CG'd. But that was technically, that was all extras that we called on the radio, come be in our movie. And they created that big traffic jam.
Hold on a second. So that traffic jam, that's a real... That's a real shot. And the people from Iowa came and saw so many people feel like they're a part of that movie.
So those thousands and thousands of cars that were in that giant traffic jam that went out on those two lanes, that was real. But in terms of playing it, in terms of, as you said, the quiet moment, how did you work that, Kevin? Well, what I did was I went back to when I first read it. And so I become the audience when I read it.
And when I read it, I went, I couldn't believe that it had orchestrated itself to that thing. And I had that feeling on the couch. And so I knew if I played that straight, if I didn't wink at anybody, that these players did come, you know, that's my corn.
You know, Phil Robinson is the architect of that movie. You know, I tell a story, you know, and I don't tell a lot of them. But, you know, they kept coming after me. I wasn't going to be able to do that movie. I was going to do Revenge.
And I got into a, finally Revenge kept getting pushed, kept getting pushed. And finally, I had to put my foot down and say, look, if you don't get this movie together, I'm going to go do this movie in the corn. I asked the director, why did you hold out for me so long?
Why? And he said, well, and this is one of the greatest actors we've ever seen. He goes, they wanted me to do Robin Williams. And I said, Robin Williams is perfect. He said, yeah, but when I think of Robin, I think he does hear voices in the corn. And I don't want that.
People don't believe you hear voices. And that was a really interesting, that's a director that makes a save. That's a Mariano Rivera, you know, it's a save. He saved his movie because of his belief in an idea. You know, not the quality of actor because Robin Williams will never, this is a guy so special. But I was curious. I said, he's actually a bigger star than me, you know, whatever. And he goes, I need somebody that you don't think hears voices. And that would be you.
I've never heard Robin Williams was considered for that role. That's unbelievable. And then you did it and obviously we're talking about it today. Yeah, yeah, yeah. It had gold dust on it when I read it because I did that little intake of breath.
Do you want to have a catch? And of course I wept myself. The great Kevin Costner and all of his multiple appearances of The Rich Eisen Show can be checked out on our YouTube channel.
YouTube.com slash Rich Eisen Show. That was just a blast, man, right? Like a baseball man, right? Through and through.
Player, manager, Hall of Famer. Yeah, no doubt. Ellie De La Cruz, baby. I love Ellie De La Cruz. Truly. When Cooper and I did our fantasy baseball draft where we just drop into an ESPN fantasy league just to do. We don't know anybody in it. Although we had his friend Ryan join us this year. Long story short, we were like, who do we want to come out of this draft with?
Obviously Judge was one of them, but our draft position wasn't well enough, good enough for that. Did he go one? He probably went one or two, right? Oh, he went. Oh, Tony went one.
And then because everybody thought that he was going to pitch two, which is true. Then Judge, we wound up with Ellie De La Cruz. We wanted him. Let's go to Oscar in Boston, Massachusetts. Been holding on for almost two hours. What's up, Oscar? Good morning, fellas. How are you doing?
What's going on, man? How are you? I'm doing well. I'm hoping to do the win loss game for the Green Bay Packers. Are you from Wisconsin? No, but my dad is. OK, so you're a Packer fan sitting there in Patriot country.
Yes, indeed. I can also root for the Patriots. OK. Give him some music here. The second win loss game of the Packers that we've conducted. So we haven't done too many of these.
Glad to have a cheesehead. Tell us what happens at home against the Lions in week one. What a week one game that is.
I'm excited for it. I think we are going to lose that one. OK, an 0-1 start with the commanders coming into Lambeau to kick off the Amazon Prime season week two right away. We're going to go 1-1 and beat the commanders.
That's a quick bounce back right there. 1-1 with the minibar going into Cleveland week three. We're going to win that one, too. That's 2-1 at the Cowboys. Yeah, we own the Cowboys, especially at AT&T. Sorry, TJ. Are you aware of that, TJ? That the Packers own the Cowboys?
I'm going to have to do some research. Packers don't have owners, but they own the Cowboys. That's a Sunday night game, by the way. That's a Sunday night game for the whole country to feast on. Off the bye now, 3-1 against the Bengals.
Yeah, I think with the extra rest we'll be able to take care of them, too. That's a four game win streak now at the Cardinals. We're going to keep that win streak going, Rich. 5-1 at Aaron Rodgers' new home and the Steelers on Sunday night. It would be a great story if Rodgers were going to be able to beat the Pack, but he won't be able to. That's six wins in a row going home to take on the Panthers. Let's make it seven. 7-1 home for the Eagles on a Monday night.
They will take care of business and the Pack will do this, unfortunately. 7-2 at the Giants. We will win that one. 8-2 home for the Vikings. As a toss up, I think we're going to lose this one.
Oh boy. 8-3 at the Lions to kick off Thanksgiving. We will get our lick back and win this one. 9-3 home for the Bears. And I think we'll lose that one, unfortunately. Oh, 9-4 at the Broncos.
This is twists and turns here. I don't have a good feeling on this one, but I'm going to be optimistic and take the W. 10-4 at the Bears now. We will get our game here. 11-4 against the Ravens at home. I think Lamar's got us.
I'll give it to them. 11-5 at the Vikings. And we will win this one. 12-5, says Oscar in Boston. Son of a Packer fan. Here we go. Thank you, Oscar.
Appreciate it. Going through that win-loss game. Again, remember when we were talking to Mike North, the executive in the NFL, whose main job of his big job is the schedule, right? And he's like, well, we can do Eagles Cowboys on opening night and Chiefs Cowboys on Thanksgiving and supercharge the big spots rather than hold those back as the pieces of filet mignon they usually are.
Reason why we could do that is because there are so many other big games that are on the schedule to give to Fox and CBS for contests to take in on a Sunday or to put on a Monday night or put on a Sunday night as well. Packers, Lions, Packers, Commanders, Packers, Cowboys, Packers, Bengals, Packers, Steelers with Aaron Rodgers, Packers, Eagles, Packers, Broncos, Packers, Ravens, Ravens, and then there's their division games. The Packers are a must-see television with a brutal schedule. Yeah.
Yeah. Looking at that schedule, they could easily start one and three heading into the bye week and it's kind of panic mode because they are a tough spot playoff wise. They are home against the Lions. They are to kick things off. But again, like I said, they're playing the NFC East and the AFC North and the NFC North is already, as I said, maybe the toughest this division has ever been, which is why, you know, so we're going to see them late window, CBS, Lions, Packers.
Didn't Nance say that's what he's doing when he came on after the schedule release? So late window, CBS country will see that then five, you know, four days later, five days later, it's the kickoff of the Amazon Prime video season. The commanders at the Packers, then two weeks later at the Dallas Cowboys for Sunday night football. Then after they're by late window, CBS against Joe Burrow and the Bengals in their house. Then two weeks later, they're on Sunday Night Football with Rogers in Pittsburgh, welcoming the Packers.
Rogers versus Green Bay. What a massive football game that is. And that's not even, that's now seven games into their schedule. There's a Monday night against the Eagles in Lambeau. And then the meat of their, I mean, they play the Lions to kick off the season. They don't play another division game until November 23rd, the week before Thanksgiving, on which they play another division game and then another division game. Then they have a sabbatical from their division at Denver before diving back in against the Bears, another sabbatical home against the Ravens, and then diving back in to finish the season at the Vikings. Holy crap. Those last six games.
Yikes. Green Bay's schedule, that win-loss game, as I'm going through it, I'm like, damn, we're going to see a lot of the Packers. The whole country is going to be watching because it is must-see television. And they've got their work cut out for them. What's more likely, they go 12 and 5 or 5 and 12?
12 and 5. I think so. I really believe it. I know you're looking at the schedule. I'm looking at that schedule like, oh, baby. They are a damn good football team who is a damn good coach. I get it. Right? I'm a fan.
That's hard. And one thing that Matt Leflore wanted, he won't choke and he won't cramp. He stays. Hydrated.
That's one guy that's never going to cramp under pressure. Not going to happen. We didn't think the Niners would go 6 and 11 last year. That was aided by a lot of injuries. A ton of injuries. They don't have, you know, insane injuries. Wow, the Packers season. I'm charged up for it right now. That guy's not cramping.
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