Sean Casey: Aaron Judge Having A Better Season Than 2022

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NFL Sunday Ticket for out-of-market games excludes digital-only games. Ladies and gentlemen, this is the Rich Eisen Show with guest host, Andrew Siciliano. He is a brilliant, brilliant creator. Hey, hi! Live from the Rich Eisen Show studio in Los Angeles, today's guests, MLB Network analyst, Sean Casey, NBC Sports broadcaster, Noah Eagle, senior writer for the MMQB, Albert Prear, New York Times bestselling author, Ian O'Connor.

And now, sitting in for Rich, it's Andrew Siciliano. Are we on? We're on.

We're on. Hello. Hey, everybody.

It's not the weekend. Hope you're doing well. We open with an inside joke that's not even... Anyway, yeah. Hi. Hi. It's Andrew in for Rich. It's good to be back. You get me today and tomorrow. Do not fear your humble host, the man whose name is on the marquee, will be back shortly to tell you everything you need to know about Aaron Rodgers and his passive-aggressive stuff with the book.

No, I kid. But in all seriousness, Ian O'Connor is going to be on, who has the brand new Out of the Darkness book that Aaron Rodgers is speaking openly about. Is it authorized?

Is it unauthorized? What's actually Olivia Munn's fault? Here, coach.

Ian O'Connor will be on a little bit later. In all seriousness, it's happy. I am happy.

I'm learning English again. I am happy to be here. It is great to be here after three weeks doing the Olympics for NBC and Peacock and Goldzone and after running back and forth to Seattle last night to do a show with the Seahawks for serious and then maybe not even getting off the plane because they couldn't open the stinking door when we landed at LAX at 1030 at night. It is good to be in this chair drinking coffee with all of you.

Chris Brockman, Michael Del Tufo, TJ Jefferson. It is great to see all of you. How are you guys? Great, man. Good to see you, man. What's happening? Glad to get off that plane. I've had that happen once.

It's not fun. Let me tell you. We all have travel nightmares. No one needs to hear my travel nightmare to open your day, but you're going to hear it.

I'll do it real quick. We landed late from Seattle. Won't say what airline, but we landed at Los Angeles International Airport, pulled an Airbus 321 right up to the gate.

Good news. There is a gate. Let's get to the gate. Let's get off the plane. Get up to the gate. See the jet bridge come out. Then you automatically hear that loud noise.

Hey, great. That means the door is about to open. We're about to go home. Then the door doesn't open. Now, I can't see the door from around the little wall there, but you hear the noise and you hear the pounding and you hear they're clearly trying to open the door. So I stick my head up to the window and I could see, well, the gate agent is motioning for help. So now you get the guys in the yellow vest coming up the steps and they're trying to help. They're now four people trying to open the door. And it sounds like, it sounds like Ocean's 11, they're trying to blow a vault, right? I mean, it sounds like there's a jackhammer and a drill and a crowbar. It couldn't be louder.

And this goes on for 20 minutes. They can't open the door. Then you see the jet bridge pull back and then you keep hearing the noise.

So I can't see with the angle. Is there a guy on a ladder now? I don't know, but it still sounds like an earthquake.

They can't open the door. Pilot comes on, maybe bad example, earthquake. I know we had one a couple of days ago. I missed it.

Everybody okay? Yesterday. Yesterday.

I'm sorry. There was one like two weeks ago. There was one less than a week ago.

We've had two in a week. Is everybody okay? And we felt. Everyone okay? Everyone's okay. I didn't feel it.

It was literally here. The whole parking structure was shaking. That's how it's built.

It's built to sway those parking garages. Okay. Mike and I were literally standing right in front of my desk talking and they came up from the back like, you guys feel the earthquake? All right.

I missed all of that. Finally, the pilot comes on and says, so they can't open the door. This is really frustrating. They're telling us we have to back out and go to another game.

Okay. It's now 10 45. Everybody wants to go home. So that takes a couple of minutes because they've got to pull the blocks out from behind the wheels. They've got to get the cones out of the way, the carts out of the way.

That takes a few minutes. Everybody's got to sit back down. That took a little bit of effort because there is lovely old couple standing up in the aisle that didn't understand the instructions in English. And we had to find someone that was able to translate and tell them to sit back down because they don't want to sit back down. So finally, and they're very sweet, so finally we back out. They were.

They were adorable old couple. Of course, of course. You know, we back out.

Such a lower down. Then we pull right back up to the gate. Same gate.

Same gate. Like we literally backed out and then went back. And then we backed out and then went right back. And then we backed out and then we went right back like a yo-yo.

We didn't change gates. We kept backing up all the way, not just a few feet, all the way and then straight back. And everyone is, what the H is going on here? And then we would back up like a foot and then go forward again. Like, what are we doing? Trying to trigger the door or something?

And that's what I thought. Are they like, hey, we're moving back and forth or trying to make the door fall open? So finally we get up there. The jet bridge comes out and bam, the door opens.

And I swear the pilot got on and goes, well, folks, I have no idea what that was about. It was frustrating for us as well, but glad we're here. See you soon.

We apologize. It took 45 minutes. Everyone got off the plane. And the gate agent, you know, in his nice little suit and vest and tie and everything kind of sheepishly, I was one of the first people off the plane, the first whatever, sheepishly stood there and goes, sorry, guys. Like, no idea what happened.

It makes no sense. That was my travel story. I apologize.

You just wasted five minutes of your life. You're never going to get back. Let's get the football. Hassan Redick is still not with the Jets. He would like a trade. If you don't know the back story, he wanted a new contract with the Eagles.

He's had a couple of really good seasons. He's getting up there in age, realizes this is his last chance to get that bag, get paid. You've seen the salaries for the guys that go after the quarterback.

He knows there is money to be had. He wanted to trade the Eagles after they signed Bryce Huff. This is a key part to the story, formerly of the Jets, much younger, gave him a nice contract.

Big sack numbers the last couple of years for the Jets, primarily as a third down guy. They give him big money. We're going to replace Hassan Redick with a younger version. Redick sees the writing on the wall.

I'd like that. The Eagles say, we'll make it happen. So they flip him to the Jets. Well, he wants a new contract. That's how this works. Player wants out because he wants a new contract. Generally speaking, you trade him and the new team, they're allowed to talk to the agent beforehand.

They have permission. They come up with some kind of solution. Maybe it's not a massive new deal, but we'll slide some money forward.

We'll make it worth your while. Maybe we'll kind of give you a wink, wink, nudge, nudge that if you make it through this season with a few extra bucks, we'll make you, we'll make you a full, we'll give you a new deal next year. That's generally how this works. So he goes to New York and then never comes in. Like, to my knowledge, I think he might have gone in for a physical because you need the physical for the trade to go through.

But that's it. He has not been in the building since. OTAs, mandatory minicamp. He didn't go to Egypt or there in Rogers, to my knowledge. He just didn't go to Florham Park. Now it's training camp.

Now he's still not there. We've officially reached the point in training camp where you're getting fined per the CBA. Fines cannot be rescinded. CD Lam's fines can be rescinded. He's in the fifth and final year, the fifth year option of a rookie contract. The CBA has different rules. Those fines, Jerry Jones can rip up if he wants to, and he likely will. Hassan Raddick's fines aren't coming back.

So he's not there. And now he has requested a trade. And the Jets say, we're not trading you. They also say, well, you know, reportedly to members of the media, hey, we work this out with the agents.

Like, he said he'd be good. Now, believe that if you want to believe that. I think there is some truth there. You know, at least some kind of understanding. We're not going to make this difficult, right? We'll figure something out.

They haven't figured something out. Tell you what, if I'm in the Jets locker room right now, you've never been a teammate. Like, you have never been here. Like, the old, I don't like the Mike Tomlin, we want volunteers, not hostages thing.

Like, it used to sound funny considering the state of the world right now. It is still funny, but like, I don't know if it's the best phrase to use in this situation. Yeah, like, you're not one of us.

You have never been in the building. Like, maybe I played with you somewhere else. You know, maybe we've seen each other on the golf course or, you know, the rubber chicken events and the banquet circuit in the offseason. But like, you're not one of us. You haven't been here since the third week of July, living in a dorm or eating the food every day and showing up for a meeting. Like, you're not here.

We'd love your help. But if I'm in that Jets locker room, and generally speaking, the rule in football is, hey, that's your business. You figure out your business. I'm a grown man. You're a grown man.

I'm not going to tell you how to do your business. Players say that all the time. Hey man, I know he's holding out, but whenever he gets in here, he gets in here and we love him and support him.

Those people have been teammates in the past, but Son Redick's never been there. Now, the Jets probably cannot get the return on the dollar that they want. But if I'm the Jets, just let them go. Get them out.

Get them out. And you're going to have to wear this because I'm sorry, Jets. This makes you look bad. There's really no other way around it.

It makes him look bad. And I don't know what the true conversation was behind the scenes, but you traded for a guy for whom and with whom you had no deal. And you always do the deal before the trade. Always.

You can't do it without. Like, for example, no team is going to trade for Brandon Aiyuk without having a deal with Athletes First and Ryan Williams for the new deal. The new contract. It's just not going to happen. They're not going to trade him to the Saints tomorrow, let's say.

I'm making up a team. Unless Mickey Loomis has a contract done. So why trade for Hassan Redick unless you have a contract done? Now, the Jets are thinking we lost Bryce Huff, right? We replace him with a savvy veteran here, right? We put him with Will McDonald and our young front seven, Jermaine Johnson. Like, this is a good piece.

I see Joe Douglass's thinking, but you got to make sure all the boxes are checked and maybe Joe did, and maybe they feel like the agent went back on some kind of verbal agreement. But I mean, I am not one of these people to harken back to the old SNL bit about the Mets with Chico Esquela, more bad things about the Mets. You remember that? Like, I'm not one of these more bad things about the Jets people. I mean, years ago at NFL Network back in the day when Rex Ryan was being made out to be a clown, literally with the clown nose in the back of the New York Post all the time, in the back of the tabloids, the clown car, the this, the that, you know, I had my boss at the network say like, you can't stoop to that level. Like, be fair.

Don't be personal, right? There are a lot of people that love to take shots at the Jets because they haven't had a lot of success. There's a lot to take shots at sometimes. They've had a lot of bad luck.

The guy that sits in this chair every day can tell you a lot more about it than I can, right? I'm not taking cheap shots at the Jets, but this does not make them look good. It just doesn't. And it doesn't make Hassan Reddick look good either. So move on.

And you're going to have to take the L on this if you're the Jets. But the issue is for Hassan Reddick, this late in the season, in the preseason training camp, who's going to write you that deal right now? You're not going to get the big bag that you want. It simply is not going to happen. So try to find a team.

Try to find a home. It may come down to an injury. Somebody lost somebody.

We need an edge rusher. Like, you know, Cowboys. Who knows? Whatever.

Anyway, so 844204, Rich is the phone number. You know that by now. You can watch us live. And this is new on the Roku Sports Channel.

All the cool kids are getting one. Listen on Sirius XM, which is 161. On Sirius, 206 on XM. Online on the brand new Sirius XM app.

$9.98. You can also stream for free on the Odyssey app or odyssey.com. The Twitters and the Instagrams at Rich Isenshow. I'm at Andrew Siciliano. Rich Isenshow has a YouTube page as well.

You should be able to figure that out. Coming up shortly, right around the corner. Will Aaron Judge get to 60? Is this the best right-handed season we have seen in this century?

Even more so than in 2022. And Shohei Ohtani did something last night that even he had never done before. That's a professional tease.

That is a professional tease. Well done, Andrew. Now, if this were sweeps week, it would be Shohei Ohtani did something last night that puts your kids in danger. Coming up at 11. He didn't, though. He put baseballs in here.

Yes. Coming up, Sean Casey, the great Sean Casey, MLB TV, MLB Network. The mayor will be here on the Rich Isenshow.

Call 1-800-GRAINGER, click Grainger.com or just stop by one of their local branches. Hey, everybody. This just in. It's summertime. It's time to go and do all those summer things like going to a baseball game during the summer. I'm about to do exactly that. And I know exactly what to do.

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Last minute tickets, lowest price guaranteed. What is your best sports memorabilia that you have that you're you're most proud of or something that you love? Oh, it's I've got a bunch of things that I love. But the one that I would have to say is that is the coolest simply because it's not because I was a baseball player. So baseball stuff means a lot to me.

One year, a girlfriend of mine said, if you could have anything for Christmas this year, what would it be? And I said an autographed baseball glove from Brooks Robinson because Brooks was from Arkansas. He grew up in Little Rock, North Little Rock. And I just loved him. You know, when he played with the Orioles.

And so I thought that's never going to happen. But if I could have anything, that's what it would be. And she chased him down. She got all the publicists and everybody else on the case. And Christmas morning, I opened it up and there was an autographed book, Brooks Robinson glove. And it said and of course, you know, the glove from him, that's the thing because it was fielding, you know. And it said from a huge fan, Brooks Robinson, I'm like, Brooks Robinson knows who I am. I'm done.

This this is this is all fine. Did you ever put on the Brooks Robinson glove, like literally put your hand? Oh, I put it on. But boy, do I protect it. It's I finally put it in plexiglass because it's you know, the name might rub off, you know.

Yeah, you don't want to do it. Boy, that's a that's a real dandy thing. McGuire also gave me a bat right after he broke it, you know, right after he broke the the Marist. No, no. After he broke his bat, he ground it out to third. No, you should say it was home run number sixty seven, home run sixty two. But it was that year.

OK. It was that year. And yeah, he ground it out to third against the Dodgers. And he gave me the bat and his batting glove, which had dirt all over it and everything. So I've got that.

And yeah, I got some good stuff over the years. Love that little music playing us back. Hey, it's the Rich Eisen Show, everybody. Andrew Siciliano sitting in for Rich today and tomorrow. What's going to be on tomorrow's show? You ask.

I don't know. We'll figure it out. We'll talk to Tom Pellicero. We'll talk to Tom Pellicero tomorrow.

The Hassan Riddick update, the Brandon Ayouk update. Turn the mic on, T.J. You're like, the font's right there. You snapped and then the music stopped. Did I snap?

I just stopped. Fonzarelli? For those who don't know, Arthur Fonzarelli from Happy Days. That was a show that even I'm too young to watch. He's been on this show multiple times. We have many Henry Winkler. The fans in this show know Henry Winkler.

Also known for Barry. We talk about him quite a bit here, to be honest with you. So I was talking to Julian Love of the Seahawks yesterday. He said that, you know, the veteran's safety, he's buttoned up. He's very political, that often his teammates now call him Obama in the Seahawks locker room.

That was funny. This guy is not the former president, the guy that joins us now. He is merely the mayor. You know him from MLB Network. You can watch Sean Casey on MLB Network.

Listen to his podcast, The Mayor's Office. And this weekend, wait for it, Sean. This is a long intro here. This weekend is MLB's Players Weekend. Friday, Saturday, Sunday, players will have the platform to celebrate their interests, their backstories, causes, and people that are important to them.

Go to the ballpark or follow along on social media to learn more about the players' personalities and what makes them tick. Sean, you have an amazing patience for that. How are you, man? That's a big intro, Andrew. That's a big intro right there. It is quite an intro, but we want to get it right, man.

I mean, you're a man of the people here doing everything. It's good to see you. How's the season treating you? It's great, man. It's been a great season so far.

I think everybody, you know, the races are coming down to the end. It's been great for everybody, great for baseball. So just enjoying following it, man, as a fan.

You know, a former player, but has always been a fan, so it's been awesome. Let's placate the Dodgers fans, not only in this room, but in our town here first, Sean. Let me look at the box score here for Kershaw last night. 5-2 thirds, worked into the sixth. One earned run, three hits, six strikeouts. Do you think that's the Kershaw we get the rest of the way?

You know what? One thing about Kershaw is, you know, you can't teach experience. And this has been one of the greatest pitches of a generation. And I just really believe that you're probably going to get Kershaw five, six innings is probably going to be what the max will be. But this guy just kind of reinvented himself in these last few years and is still one of the best pitchers in the game. So I think if Kershaw being healthy down the stretch for the Dodgers is a huge plus for that rotation. Also in that game last night, Mookie Betts came back.

He looked good, thankfully not playing short. And Shohei Ohtani did something, Sean, that it blew me away had never happened before. He obviously has a lot of firsts. He's Shohei Ohtani. But for the very first time in his career last night, he homered on a 3-0 pitch, which is just bonkers to me that he had never. He has the green light, Dave Roberts said afterwards. I mean, of course Shohei Ohtani has the green light 3-0.

But then he had never actually taken it and launched one. He hit it for 50. You played, what, a dozen years. You're a 300 career hitter. You weren't a big walk guy, like 40 a year, 50 a year.

What does it say to you that that had never happened until last night? Well, I always think the mentality as a hitter is whatever you're going to get 3-0, you're going to get 3-1. You know, you're trying to get off base.

You're trying to try to any way you can. But a guy like Ohtani, I'm shocked by that stat because for his power, 3-0, usually the pitcher's just trying to lay one in there. And so for Ohtani, I bet you now, though, that he got his first one out of the way and he crushed that ball. I bet you he's going to start taking some more shots 3-0. But the mentality is if you get it 3-0, you're going to get it 3-1.

You're trying to get on base any way you can. But with a guy like Ohtani, with the power that he has, I'm sure Dave Roberts wants him to take more shots 3-0. I would love to see, and I don't have the number in front of me, Sean, like what percentage of 3-0 pitches he actually offers at.

But it clearly tells you, I bet it's low because there's no way that he swings 3-0 and doesn't hit one out before last night. That just blew me away. Yeah, I agree. I'm blown away. I'm totally blown away by that, too. I can't imagine he's a big 3-0 swinger. A lot of guys don't like the first pitch. A lot of guys don't like the 3-0 pitch. But like I said, I bet you with Ohtani going to left center the way he did last night, I bet you that 3-0 pitch is going to look more appetizing from here on out. Yeah, everything looks appetizing right now to Aaron Judge. We're talking to Sean Casey from MLB Network. Would you, Sean, say that this season is better? And I know we got a month plus left. Do you think this season is better than 22? Yeah, I really do.

I really do. And Judge said it the other day in an article. You really can't teach experience. He's learning himself more. And I think the biggest thing this year, Andrew, is the chase rate is down. He's not biting at that flyer off the plate from righty. He's really honing into this zone. He's fleeing at pitches that he wants. It's been incredible to watch him over these last few months.

I mean, almost feel like he's been on another planet for what he's doing. It seems like he homers every night. He's already well over 100 RBIs. And guys aren't really pitching to him. But when he gets the pitch to hit, he's not missing it. It makes you think of Bonds back in the 04 or some of the big years that he had when everyone was walking him. I mean, Judge is not really getting pitched to, but when he gets the pitch to hit, he's hitting it.

And like I said, it looks like he's just on another planet, what he's doing right now. He has 14 intentional walks, which to your point does lead the league. How would you pitch him? If this is October, where everything is magnified, and everyone is actually paying attention to the scouting reports here, and they have a plan of attack, how do you pitch him in October?

I mean, very carefully. You saw it the other day in New York when Josh Scheider, the Twins, walked him in the fourth inning. I mean, two outs, nobody on. You know, you don't want Aaron Judge to beat you if you're the other manager. But I think that's why, you know, having Juan Soto in two, having Joe Carlos, having Austin Wells swing three, having Jazz Chisholm there doing what he's doing two is such a big deal.

Because at the end of the day, you don't want Aaron Judge to beat you, but he's still good. As a Guardians fan here, Sean, I got to ask this. Six in a row, they've come back with three in a row now, victories, that is, after losing six in a row, although blowing an 8-3 lead last night and actually needing Klassé last night gave me anxiety. Should Guardians fans be anxious that even though they are tied to the Yankees and the Orioles for the best record in the American League, that the bottom is going to fall out, the bullpen is getting tired. I mean, they're going to make it, but that maybe just the magic is not going to last into October, or am I just being negative? I think you might be just being negative, Andrew.

I don't know. I really believe that they have a good team. And, you know, I really believe that that team, they've been so good all year long.

They've had the best record all year long. And I really believe that they're just hitting a little hiccup right now. They're hitting a little hiccup with the rotation. The bullpen's starting to get taxed a little bit because they've been leaning on them so hard. But when you have Naylor having the ear, you used to have it, Josh Ramirez, Jose Ramirez, Stephen Kwan, that lineup off the bottom is really good. So I think the Guardians are going to be OK. I really do. Listen, it's not me being negative. I phrased that wrong.

It's just natural anxiety you have, right? Where it was too good to be true in April and May, and then it kept going and going and going. You're like, wow, is Ben Lively still going to be pitching like this in October?

This guy was in Korea a couple of years ago. You know, can Webb or Boyd, who's going tonight, can these reclamation projects, especially Boyd coming off of surgery, actually give you meaningful innings? Can this collection of young, I don't call them all utility players, but guys playing all over the place actually put this together in October? But to your point, they have these big pieces.

They have the Ramirez, the Stephen Kwan, and the Josh Naylor who came through again the last couple of days. They have those pieces. You get the anxiety, though, right? You understand it.

I understand it. I think the biggest thing you have to realize in the big leagues, that's why it's the toughest industry to be in. It's a six-month season. It's a marathon, not a sprint. At some point, if you want to win a championship, you're going to have a lull in that season. You're going to have a tough couple of weeks. But I really believe that the team that they've put together is going to have the staying power to get things going again.

Big tears. The Twins were coming on them, and all of a sudden the Guardians came alive. So that lineup's good top to bottom. The pitching needs to kind of get back going again. I think they will. And I really believe they're going to win that division.

Okay. Last thing. This doesn't move the needle here, but I'm happy for Grady Sizemore. Any chance he can keep that job? Yeah, I think so.

I think so. I mean, it's good to see Grady getting the job. And you know, Andrew, being a Guardians fan, how hard-nosed of a player he was, the expectations he had for himself, hit for power, stole bases, played a great center field. So I think it's a great opportunity for him for these last couple of months. But I'm sure Jerry Reinsdorf, at the end of the year, is going to reevaluate and see what he has and decide whether to keep him or not. But I love the fact that Grady Sizemore's getting a chance to manage in the big leagues.

Absolutely. The great Sean Casey, the mayor, everybody. You can watch him on MLB Network. The podcast is The Mayor's Office. And all this weekend as well, it's Players Weekend. Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, players telling their stories, players getting their platform. Sean, we appreciate it, man. Enjoy the rest of the year.

And let's do it again soon, dude. Thanks, Andrew. Appreciate it. Great speaking to you, man.

Likewise. Sean Casey, everybody. I will, true story, never forget the day he got traded because he came up through the Indian system and he was the guy.

And I remember I was at the Final Four, I believe in San Antonio, I think a Michigan State Final Four. And I was doing a hit on some sports radio station. Oh, they just made a trade. They got Dave Burba from the Reds. You know, veteran right-hander, right?

Big rotation piece. I'm like, please don't tell me they gave up Sean Casey. Oh, yeah, they traded Sean Casey. I'm like, oh my Lord. Please don't tell me. They went on to a great career with the Reds and obviously other places as well.

All right. We have breaking news about a would-be NFL starting quarterback who needs surgery. That breaking news coming up next. Also, what was it like to sit courtside and see Steph Curry rain threes over Wimby? The man who called it on NBC and called the women's gold as well on Sunday. Noah Eagle will be here.

Coming up next, Andrew Siciliano sitting in for Rich. Let's talk about sleep number, people. We all know in the NFL there's no margin for error.

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That's OReillyAuto.com slash E-I-S-E-N. O-O-O-Reilly Auto Parts. When I said I wanted to bring a guest on, I'm like, well, I want to bring on who I wanted to be when I was a kid. And that was an offensive lineman for the Kansas City Chiefs. And I've been fortunate enough to get to know Mitchell and know what a good guy is and what a great player he is. So I wanted to share this moment with the right tackle for the Chiefs, my favorite football team. Not that I need to tell anybody that.

Yeah, I mean, it's really cool. I got to know him, I guess, at the end of last year and we hit it off right away. We both like food. We both like food.

We have a lot of shared interests. He asked me where I got my meat and we go to the same meat guy. He goes to the same butcher here.

I said, serious question though, Mitch. Where do you buy your meat in Kansas City? He's like, oh, this place called Bickelmeier's. And I'm like, okay, you're in.

You're good. Because I know how seriously you take your Kansas City food. You guys go to the same butcher here in the city.

We do, yeah. I mean, when I got here, I liked to cook. I was confined to an apartment in my previous life. When I got here, I got a house, got a whole backyard set up. I mean, this guy's got the greatest backyard set up you could ever imagine for cooking.

And he's sending me videos all the time, different stuff to try. The text exchange between me and him and some of his other offensive linemen that are into smoking is hilarious. Like, one night I put a brisket on and it was like we were kind of coordinating with the time difference of putting a brisket on around the same time. And I woke up to check my brisket and texted Mitch at 4 in the morning L.A. time, which was Kansas City 6 a.m. time. And I told Lindsay, my girlfriend, I'm like, I texted Mitchell Schwartz in the middle of the night about a brisket. Like, what is going on? And I responded.

You responded? For whatever reason, I was up at that exact time. Because I was doing a brisket the next night, so we kind of throw ideas off each other, see what we do.

I think he was doing like a 24 hour, super slow, got all jiggly and gooey, and the bark was perfect. It is the Rich Eisen Show, and I'm sitting at the Rich Eisen Show desk, the Rich Eisen Show radio network. It is furnished by Grainger. It is sturdy.

It is fantastic. I may have one in my own basement soon. I'm going to ask Grainger to build one because I love the desk so much.

Don't laugh. With supplies and solutions for every industry, Grainger has the right product for you. Call or click.

Grainger.com or just stop by. The breaking news from the NFL, and this one is disappointing, not only for Vikings fans, but honestly for fans of the league, because J.J. McCarthy really looked good over the weekend on the broadcast, on the Vikings broadcast with Paul Allen. He had Justin Jefferson on the headset calling out plays and the touchdowns.

It was great. J.J. McCarthy, it was just revealed by Kevin O'Connell on the podium, has a meniscus tear, came in yesterday. It didn't get a lot of headlines, but O'Connell said, hey, we're keeping J.J. out of practice on Monday. He is sore and kind of went, well, now they'll tell you that he has a meniscus tear and he needs surgery. Do not know how long he is going to be out. O'Connell said, and this is often the case, we're not going to know until we get in there.

I am not in any way a doctor, nor do I play one of the TV, the radio or any of your digital devices, but covering this for a while, they will tell you generally there are two kinds of meniscus tears or rather there's two kinds of ways to repair it. One where you're back pretty soon, one where it's going to be a while and they're not going to know until they get in there. So is J.J. McCarthy going to be ready week number one? Don't count on it. That ain't going to happen. So you're going to get Sam Darnold in all likelihood week one. Look, we're a month away. I've seen crazier things, but you don't throw a rookie quarterback in there after only one game and after only a third of training camp.

So forget about it. It is going to be Sam Darnold week number one. And that was going to be the case, I think, regardless of how well McCarthy played in that game on Saturday.

And even if he came back, it would have to be a knockout using boxing terms here. If it's even on the scorecard, if there is even a split decision, it's going to be Sam Darnold. You give the kid a little bit of time, but what you saw was really encouraging. And what was more encouraging than the numbers and the touchdowns, the fact that after the early pick, which didn't look good, he kept slinging it fearlessly. And yeah, he tries to squeeze it in some tight windows there, absolutely, but it looked pretty good. I mean, he, remember all JJ McCarthy, all they do is run the ball.

He's only thrown it 12, 15 times a game. Look pretty good to me. You also look good. The fact that Team USA won gold medals in both men's and women's basketball and who sounded good is the guy joining us now on the call, on NBC, on Peacock, on every NBC platform imaginable during the Olympics because he had the marquee events, the basketball.

Noah Eagle joins the Rich Eisen show. Are you back or is this live from parts unknown in Europe? I am back and better than ever. I did not have a plain door malfunction. So that was a good thing. But we did sit on the runway for an hour and a half.

So I felt like I had a plain door malfunction. Which after a month over there and you're back for an hour and a half, all you want to do is get out of there and get back home. I get it. But hey, man, congratulations.

I know it's about the athletes and about the medals and about the moments. That's what we all say in this business. But you killed it, dude.

Everything is mutual, Andrew. I mean, I think it was a great team effort and it was a blast. I'm sure you feel the same way and it's a huge undertaking. The Olympic Games are massive in so many ways and it felt like this year in particular was such a renaissance for the Olympics and such a resurgence in many ways.

But it was so much fun and obviously we got really lucky with the finish. But I appreciate it and I'm trying to readjust now to whatever American life looks like. I'm still got to say, parlez-vous anglais, parlez-vous anglais. You worked in a little French on the broadcast there when necessary. And I agree with you, it's one thing to go call the Olympics.

Oh, yeah, that's going to be fun. But these Olympics were great because we had so many great moments. America, I think, fell in love with the Olympics again because of Team USA basketball, both men and women, because of Noah Lyles, because of Sha'Carri Richardson, because of Mondo Duplanis, because of Kristin Faulkner, her amazing story as a cyclist. These games were great because the athletes were great, because the moments were great, because Paris, Noah, was an amazing host. I thought one of the best headlines I saw was the Parisians had nothing to complain about. It actually went well. Yeah. Yeah.

They complained that I was there, I think, and the majority of us that were roaming the streets were definitely annoying them and frustrating them. But it was the perfect storm in so many ways. And all of the tremendous athletes you just mentioned, the Simone Biles storyline and cementing her status as the GOAT, from a basketball perspective, just in the world I was living in, to think about so many of the storylines that went into it ahead of time, to think that the French men's team looked as bad as they did in week one and turned it on in such a way that we didn't expect. For them to get to the final, for the French women's team to make it to the final and have this just epic matchup in both the U.S. and France and go in a battle, and for the women to win eight straight goals, for Steph Curry to have his singular Olympic moment be what it was, I mean, they were two literal storybook endings. So you combine those with every other sport that felt like it delivered in the highest possible regard, it is truly a special time of every four years, and I was really honored to be a partner. Talking to Noah Eagle, who called the basketball on NBC, both the men and the women, obviously, the gold medal matches, and we saw right there the gold medal games, the image, the lasting image that we're going to see for years now of Steph and LeBron going night night.

What did it mean there? Do you think for these two to do this together after everything from the NBA in years past? So what I loved about this team was that spanned three distinct eras and generations of NBA superstardom. You had the old and the big dogs, as Anthony Edwards called them, with Steph, LeBron and Kevin Durant. Those are Mount Rushmore level players right there that are going to be all-time names, all-time figures in the world of basketball. Then you had that middle generation, the Anthony Davis, Joellen Bee, Drew Holliday, Derek White even now as a part of that.

And then you had this newer wave, Anthony Edwards, Tyrese Halliburton, Bam Adebayo, Jason Tatum, Devin Booker. You have this very distinct three levels, three eras. But at the end of it, it was the three oldest. It was the three oldest, by the way, to ever win gold for the United States men's basketball team. They all three, Kevin Durant, Steph Curry, LeBron James were older than Larry Bird when he won it for the 92 dream team. And there was something special about that.

And especially to your point, Steph and LeBron, Kevin Durant was clearly a part of this era and a part of the championship won in Golden State and a part of the story of the NBA. But those two were the faces. Those two were battling it out year after year. They were the headliners.

They were the lead singers. And so for them to be together, because we'd seen them in All-Star and on pickup teams, for them to truly fight for something that meant as much as an Olympic gold medal and something that it meant as much as keeping the five straight Olympic golds and everything else, the legacy that this builds and this moment creates was so special. And to see them enjoying it and that level of mutual respect that we knew was there, but was really brought to the surface with them being on the court together. I mean, how often did you see LeBron James say, I'm going to defer? Because look, you can say all the time, late clock, fourth quarter, one point game, tie game, need a bucket. LeBron always has it in his hand and then makes the right play. So you might give it up, but it's in his hand.

Kevin Durant, it's always in his hand. So how many times have you seen those two guys defer to somebody else and that dude deliver in the way that he did? It was so awesome. Yeah. And there's obviously the image that they will perhaps hang in the Louvre one day. And by the way, I don't know if anybody was following, but the actual Louvre Twitter feed was having fun all throughout the Olympics when people would say hang in the Louvre.

They would actually answer. And so that was fun on Twitter. And it goes all the way back to even the intrigue in game number one, is Kevin Durant going to be available? He comes off the bench late in the first quarter and starts raining threes. And then obviously he had his moments throughout the entire thing as well. Noah, do you believe LeBron when he says that at forty three he won't play in L.A. twenty eight?

Because honestly, I don't. I would say my gut is with you that knowing him and knowing what he understands about making history and how he enjoys this aspect of longevity and the fact that nobody's really done this at this level, there's a part of me that says he'll play. But at the same time, the work that is required. And I got to do these games with Dwayne Wade, who obviously intimately knows LeBron. And Dwayne said that he's the hardest worker he's ever been around.

And that has continued to now thirty nine years old. So the amount of work that's required literally on a daily basis, the amount of workouts that are required on a daily basis to play at the level that he plays is insane. And so to require that from a forty three year old would be a lot. And knowing LeBron, he's only going to do it if he feels he's going to play at a high enough level to be on the team. So it's an interesting question.

It's an interesting topic. I'm not sure the correct answer is yes or no at this point, because I think LeBron also does kind of go day by day with it and how he feels in the moment. But as a result of that, him declaring it right now doesn't feel like it's accurate either, because I think he'll get closer and if he feels enough, he'll say, you know what, let's do it one more ride.

And look, I don't know if it's a I think it's a fair comparison. Diana Taurasi just got her sixth at forty two. Now, granted, she spent a lot more time on the bench than she has in Olympics past to get that sixth. And you know, I'm not trying to go down the Kaitlin Clark rabbit hole to debate whether or not she should have been there instead. But Diana Taurasi was there and just got their sixth. And no, let's not forget the women, because I think that game Sunday was closer than many people thought it would be.

Yeah, very much so. And to that point, Taurasi is forty two. Lauren Jackson with Australia is forty three on her fifth Olympic medal. So it's and Lauren Jackson's retired maybe three separate times before this and is one of the greatest figures in women's basketball history.

So it's not out of the question for LeBron, just like it wasn't out of the question for DT. And both Lauren Jackson's and DT's presences on their teams were very helpful for a younger wave now coming up. The presence of veteran understanding situations, they were very active on their benches.

There's a lot there that does play a factor. That gold medal game was it was fascinating because it was such a slugfest in the first half, especially it was twenty five apiece at halftime, which we definitely didn't expect. The U.S. women were averaging about 90 points per game heading into that gold medal game. And France had had an explosive offense through most of the tournament themselves.

But give France so much credit for the way they handled themselves. They got ballers on that side. I mean, Gabby Williams showcased her talent. We knew what she was at UConn. We knew what she was in the WNBA as a top five pick. But I think she kind of reintroduced herself in a lot of ways. She wasn't playing in the W this season.

Same with Maureen Johannes. We know what talent she is, but they've got this youth movement of a bunch of women who were twenty four, twenty three, twenty two below. They had a 16 year old, not a 16 year old, excuse me, a 19 year old who played at six foot six in that game.

That is the future of French women's basketball that Tony Parker called the female Victor Wemen Vignama. So they've got immense talent. They had the crowd behind them and they played as great a game as physical a game and as arduous a game as you could possibly ask. And realistically, as the broadcaster, all I ask for are close finishes and fun finishes. Certainly got that.

You certainly did. And to put it in perspective, and I'm not trying to to, you know, make a joke about your age, but that that team has not lost in the Olympics since before you were born. Yeah, they haven't lost since ninety two. They have won sixty one consecutive games and just try to put that in perspective. Any group of elite athletes in a team sport winning sixty one consecutive games and not playing every day. It's a different group of athletes, obviously. Obviously Diana Taurasi has her six, but they haven't lost since Barcelona, which is just bonkers.

The dream team bird magic Jordan, that team, the women's team haven't lost since that year as well, which is ninety two. Did you get a chance, by the way, in our final minute? Did you and Dwayne, like, you know, hit the cafes? Was he dropping one liners on French waiters?

Did you guys get any of that? Yeah, I would say so we would go to dinner every now and then we would hang out. You know, we were doing games so much night games every day. So he would have a couple of days off here and there that he could dart back to Paris during the first week or whatever it might be.

But we had an early game on one of the days, went to dinner afterward and we got to this this restaurant and we picked one that was kind of outside the typical busy area. So we didn't deal with tons of crowds because I didn't realize how popular he was with the French in particular. I heard a lot of wait, when, when, when we just kept hearing that food and restaurant sat down and he ordered a Coke with ice and they don't really do ice over now. So we heard it, they go, ah, no, no ice, no ice. And he goes, oh, and then about two minutes later, I think they recognized who he was because fans outside started to make a little bit of a scene. And sure enough, he got ice. My statistician, Tyler Freed got ice and I got ice for my club. So that was great. Dwayne Wade doesn't bring rain.

He brings ice when he shows up to Paris. I don't know if this is announced, but someone just texted. Hold on, are you, were you working on your Portuguese now? We shall see. We shall see. TBD. TBD. Okay.

I started the sentence and I'm like, no, am I putting you in a bad spot regardless? You'll have many a big 10 Saturday night coming up this year for NBC. No Eagle. I mean it. Great job, dude.

Thanks for coming on. I know you're probably jet lagged and probably have laundry to do, but much appreciated. How's your folding skills? Can you get back here to New York in time?

Because that'd be, it'd be very helpful. I actually have to fly back to New York tomorrow, but yeah, I don't do windows and I don't do folding. I apologize. No Eagle, everybody who was amazing on the basketball with Dwayne Wade, the men and the women obviously, and had a golden dagger. Fantastic. Yeah.

Legend. Syracuse. Syracuse. Of course. Syracuse. Obviously.

Obviously. I missed listening to him call the Clippers games on the radio. He did a great job on the Clippers. And here's the thing about knowing the Clippers, TJ, working solo, working solo, which is what the Clipper radio job has been for a long time.

That is not easy, not easy to work solo. You are the play by play. You are the analyst.

You are everything. That ain't easy. Yeah.

That's when I became a fan. Yeah. Good at his job. And Dwayne, Dwayne was trying hard at the one liners a lot of the time. Yeah, but I liked it. It wasn't, he wasn't overdoing it, but you can tell he was just pumped and enthusiastic and excited. You could tell he's like, I'm on TV. I love my job.

I'm going to be funny. I thought it worked. They had a great, great, great vibe. Yeah. It was awesome.

Yeah, totally. That women's game. I did not see a lot of it on Sunday. I woke up early.

My travel schedule, not that important, but I flew back late Saturday evening and then I had to get up and cram for the Rams game on Sunday, but I turned on the last couple of minutes. I'm like, Oh my God. Oh wow. This is close. All right.

Coming up next hour in about 10 minutes, the latest on JJ McCarthy, Albert Breer joins us on the Rich Eisen show. And only two of 12 from three, it's almost like they needed someone who could shoot from outside. Almost. Almost. But Diana Taurasi got her six.

Like we're here for those stories. I played as many minutes as her. I understand that, um, listen, I'm not, how do I say this?

When I say political, political has, has a lot of, has a broad meaning here. They wanted Diana Taurasi on that team, period, full stop. She is still playing good basketball in WNBA. It's not as if she is some pushover in the WNBA. She's in the goat discussion when it comes to WNBA, do you want to grow the game or not? I agree with you.

I agree with you. I think Kaitlin Clark would have made these Olympics that much more exciting. Now in retrospect, all the people screaming, don't you want people to watch? No one's going to watch now. You were wrong.

You were absolutely wrong. Might there have been a couple of more eyeballs because of Kaitlin Clark? Yeah. But by the time that gold medal game was played on the last day, right before the closing ceremony, the Olympics had been such a runaway success. People are watching with or without Kaitlin Clark because they wanted to see team USA win another gold. And that's what they did.

Their 40th gold of the games. Rich Eisen show continues, Breer coming up. Former Navy seal, Sean Ryan shares real stories from real people from all walks of life on the Sean Ryan show. Tucker Carlson, what is it that you think that people gravitate towards? I'm not self-aware. I refuse to be self-aware.

I don't even like mirrors at all, which you can probably tell from my appearance. I don't have a crazy high IQ or I really don't have that many skills. I would say my main skill is I believe my instincts. I don't hesitate to follow my instincts ever. The extent that I have, I've gotten in trouble. The Sean Ryan show on YouTube or wherever you listen.