- 2 days ago
The Sports Junkies break down the top storylines around the sports world.
Category
🥇
SportsTranscript
00:00Nats took the series against the Braves.
00:06Not a big deal to take the series against the Mets, but they did.
00:09They keep scoring a ton of runs.
00:11And then they scored, they played the Cleveland Guardians last night
00:14who had won 8 of 9 coming in, and they were very hot.
00:17Although they were facing Tanner Bybee, who his ERA isn't horrible.
00:21I mean, it's below 5, but he was 0-6 coming into the game last night.
00:25But now 0-7 because the Nats pounded him early.
00:30They scored 3 in the first.
00:32They scored 3 in the second.
00:34Tacked on another one.
00:35They were up 7-0, or actually 7-1 after 3.
00:39James Wood, 4 hits, hit his 14th.
00:42Luis Garcia, 3 hits, 4 RBIs.
00:45He hit a bomb.
00:46I believe that was his, maybe his 6th?
00:514th.
00:514th, I'm sorry.
00:52Curtis Meade hit a couple.
00:53Curtis Meade hit 2.
00:54So he's the guy who's playing 3rd base over house.
00:57Yes.
00:57He had 7.
00:58He had 3 RBIs.
01:00C.J. Abrams leads the league in RBIs.
01:03That's right.
01:04Leads the league in RBIs.
01:05Hit his 12th.
01:06That's impressive.
01:07He's crushing the ball.
01:08Jacob Young, a couple hits.
01:11And he hit a bomb.
01:13Hey, Dillon Cruz hit 2 hits.
01:14Dillon Cruz.
01:15And Dillon Cruz hit a bomb in the Brave series.
01:18So, I mean, everyone's pounding the ball.
01:21They've got, they hit 15 hits, 10 runs.
01:25Poulin was the opener.
01:26Went 2 innings.
01:27Allowed 1 run.
01:28And then Zach Littell, who's been pitching really good, came in.
01:317 innings, 5 hits.
01:321 earned.
01:33Struck out 7.
01:34Got his 4th win.
01:35And their pitching was really good in the last 2 games against the Braves, too.
01:39With Irvin before he got sideline.
01:40They allowed 1 run in 2 games.
01:42The Jacob Young turnaround, in terms of power, is pretty impressive.
01:47120 games played last year.
01:49He hit 2 home runs.
01:50Yep.
01:50He's got 7 in 53.
01:52So, he's on pace for 20 or more for a guy who hit 2 last year.
01:57I mean, one of the biggest surprises in baseball as a team, the Nats.
02:02You can throw the White Sox up there.
02:03You can throw the Athletics.
02:06But, no one thought the Nats would be 1 game over 500 through 55 games.
02:10They still have that crazy stat where they have the most runs scored in Major League Baseball.
02:15And the most runs allowed.
02:17Yes.
02:17Imagine if they had some decent starting pitching.
02:20Well, pitching looked pretty damn good the last 3 games.
02:23Maybe they'll be buyers at the deadline.
02:26Is that possible?
02:27Maybe they're turning around a little bit.
02:29Sounds crazy.
02:30That's what I've been saying for a while.
02:31I doubt it.
02:32I don't think the ownership will do anything.
02:34Yeah.
02:35I mean, it's pretty exciting to think about the expectations coming into the season.
02:41And to see where they are now.
02:43Yeah.
02:43I mean, all I've ever wanted is for them to just be relevant.
02:46And when they're relevant, I put them on.
02:48When they're irrelevant, I'm sorry.
02:49I'm a fair weather.
02:50I'm out.
02:51Is Josiah Gray going to come back anytime soon?
02:54I mean, I assume.
02:56He's rehabbing.
02:57I would pretty much write him on.
02:58The Nats have 16 more runs than the Braves.
03:04Think about that.
03:05And the payroll difference is probably $150 million.
03:08Oh, at least.
03:08Oh, it's probably more than that.
03:10I mean, because the Braves are 18 games over .500.
03:13They go into that series.
03:15They win the series.
03:15They hold them to one run over the two games that they won.
03:21I mean, it's just pretty cool, man.
03:23Look, they're way back in the division, eight and a half back.
03:27You know, there's wild cards.
03:29There's a bunch of teams that are in the mix.
03:31Right now there's, I don't know, six teams or seven teams within four games.
03:36But the Nats are two games out in the wild card.
03:40But it's 28 and 27.
03:41There's no way I thought that that was going to happen.
03:43I did think they were going to get over 65 and a half wins.
03:45I don't want to say this, but I'm going to.
03:48I think it's pretty much a lock that they get to 66 wins.
03:51According to SpotTrack, the active payroll right now for the Braves is $208 million.
03:57That's third in the league.
03:59For the Nationals, their active payroll.
04:0260, 65?
04:04$42.2 million.
04:06It's about as low as you can imagine.
04:07It's the lowest in the league.
04:09Which of these guys, once they become a legitimate contender, let's say two years from now,
04:15they could be a legitimate contender.
04:16Which of these guys is part of that plan?
04:18James Wood, 100%.
04:19100%.
04:20C.J. Abrams, 100%.
04:22Jacob Young?
04:24Starting to look like it.
04:25Yeah.
04:26I mean, a great defensive player.
04:27Starting to hit the ball.
04:28I would say yes.
04:29Dale Lyle?
04:31Yes.
04:31Oh, definitely Dale Lyle.
04:32That doesn't even fit a spot in the outfield for Dylan Cruz.
04:35Yeah.
04:37See, guys like Curtis Meade, it seems like kind of like just a fill-in right now type of guy.
04:42Yeah.
04:42But they've done a good job finding these guys to like fill-in.
04:47Like Jose Tanya.
04:49Mm-hmm.
04:51Tanya, they acquired.
04:52Vivas.
04:53Yep.
04:53I mean, some of these guys, you're right.
04:55I mean, they look like fillers, but I mean, you can't have huge payroll guys one through
05:01nine.
05:02Nunez.
05:03I mean, Abrams and Wood are going to cost a lot of money.
05:06Yeah.
05:07Well, they're going to cost somebody a lot of money.
05:09We don't know whether that's the Nats or-
05:11They're going to cost a lot of money.
05:12Well, at some point, the Nationals need to start paying their guys.
05:14I agree.
05:15They've done it in the past.
05:16They need to do it again.
05:17I don't think it's going to happen.
05:18That's going to come with a new ownership.
05:19I'd be shocked if they paid both Wood and Abrams to stay.
05:24Yeah, I would agree.
05:24Well, they might win new ownership.
05:25Maybe one.
05:26Maybe one will be here, but I would bet against both of them.
05:29But they're not for sale, like to throw out new ownership.
05:32No, because they can't be for sale until they get this behind them.
05:35They get the work stoppage behind them.
05:36Then they'll be for sale.
05:37I'm assuming there's a work stoppage next year.
05:39Yeah.
05:39Yeah.
05:40I agree.
05:41Yeah.
05:41Then I think they would be for sale.
05:42The work stoppage is almost a guarantee, and that's why they got to wait until that gets over
05:47with.
05:47Then they'll hopefully be on the market.
05:49Hopefully, Ted or somebody buys them, and then you can operate normally again.
05:53Until then, we're kind of on hold.
05:55So if you're in D.C. later because the Nats are over 500, the Grant and Danny Nats are over
06:01500 parade is a go for today.
06:04So they're going to walk from the station to the center field gate.
06:08The plan is for people to make...
06:10Two blocks.
06:11It says four blocks total.
06:13I mean, according to Grant's Twitter.
06:15It's about four blocks.
06:16The plan is for people to make signs and wear Nats gear and walk with Grant and Danny
06:20to the ballpark.
06:21Then they're going to go to Walters for a game watch and hang at the start of tonight's
06:26game.
06:27And this is cool.
06:28Walters is giving the first 100 fans in Nats gear that show up a free beer.
06:32I like the beer.
06:33So hang out for the Nats are over 500 parade later today here in D.C.
06:38Sweet.
06:39So I was busy with the Memorial Day parade.
06:41Now I'll do this parade.
06:42Yeah.
06:42You can do both.
06:43You can double dip, JP.
06:44You can parade it up.
06:45Well, it is exciting because they're relevant again, which is kind of...
06:49And it's not just 20 games in.
06:51It's a third of the season at 55 games in.
06:53Yeah, that's real.
06:54Right.
06:54I mean, it's awesome, man.
06:57It's just cool that we're talking about them because we probably thought we were not going
07:01to talk about them at the start of the season late May.
07:04I like it when they're relevant and I got them on every day.
07:08It's a fun, high-scoring product.
07:10Now, the pitching gives up a lot of runs on the other side, and that's something that needs
07:13to be rectified.
07:14But they're way better than most people expected.
07:17Cavalli's on the mound tonight.
07:18He's been good.
07:20Yeah.
07:20Like, if you went through the offense and you said, well, these guys are keepers for
07:24two years from now.
07:25A lot of the guys are.
07:27On the pitching staff, not as many.
07:29But Cavalli, I think, has shown that he is definitely a keeper.
07:33I see how he pitches tonight.
07:35I mean, Cleveland's good.
07:36And they were hot.
07:37So, let's continue to roll it.
07:40A couple other notes from yesterday.
07:42The Orioles, Mr. Matt Myers, beat the best team in the American League 9-7.
07:49Another walk-off for Colton Kouser.
07:51Back-to-back.
07:52This was in the 13th inning.
07:53They beat them 9-7.
07:56I believe that was his third home run.
07:58Tampa did not pitch well or play defense well.
08:01They committed four errors.
08:03And the Orioles, even though the Orioles are not having a good year, they're six games under
08:06.500, but they beat the Rays back-to-back on walk-offs from Colton Kouser.
08:13Valdez loves it.
08:15Loves with the AOs, go 13 innings, get a dub.
08:18You know, we talk about Paul Skeens and how good he is.
08:21And he is.
08:21He's dominant.
08:23And by the way, the Pirates beat the Cubs yesterday 2-1.
08:26The Cubs have lost nine straight.
08:29Nine straight losses.
08:30They had won 10 straight just a few weeks ago.
08:34But they followed up the 10 straight wins with a nine-game losing streak.
08:38They lost 2-1.
08:39But this Jake Mazurowski dude is...
08:43He throws like 200.
08:44So he got his fifth win.
08:46He struck out 12.
08:47His ERA is 1.83.
08:49He's got to be the leader right now for National League Cy Young.
08:53He's thrown 311 pitches of over at least 100 miles per hour.
08:58Well, didn't he have like 50-plus in yesterday's game alone?
09:01Yes.
09:01I think he had like 57 over 100 miles per hour in one game.
09:05So he's thrown 311 this year, right?
09:07And all of it starts.
09:08The rest of Major League Baseball, all of the pitchers, have thrown 170 total.
09:14He's thrown 311.
09:15So he's thrown 65% of the 100-mile-per-hour pitches in Major League Baseball this year.
09:20I just don't know how much longer they can keep up.
09:22Yeah, I mean, how much pressure can you keep putting on your arm?
09:25I don't know.
09:26Not many.
09:26But it's unbelievable to watch him throw it.
09:29And the Cardinals just...
09:31Every time they struck out, they just walked back to the dugout and go,
09:34What can I do?
09:36It's basically what they were saying to each other.
09:37You guys throw flame balls right down the middle.
09:39You can't touch them.
09:40Unbelievable.
09:41Isn't Otani having an amazing year pitching?
09:43Yes, he is.
09:45But Mazurowski's got a 1.8 ERA and leads Major League Baseball in strikeouts.
09:49I mean, he's just the talk of, certainly of the National League in terms of pitchers.
09:54He's a big lurch up there dealing it, too.
09:566'7", 201.
09:57He's a big dude.
09:58He's a add-a-few LBs.
09:59Skinny.
10:00I mean, Otani right now, now it's only eight starts, has an ERA at .73.
10:06Yeah.
10:07I mean, he's awesome.
10:07He's incredible.
10:08So is he just not in the mix because he just doesn't have the amount of starts?
10:13No, he's in the mix.
10:14I just think Mazurowski's got to be, right now, with the amount of strikeouts and the
10:19ERA below 1.9, he's got to be up there, if not the leader.
10:22Yeah, but the ERA's double Otanis.
10:25I understand that, but I just think he's the talk of the National League.
10:29Yeah.
10:30I'll agree with that.
10:31He's the talk of...
10:32He's definitely a more buzzword.
10:33I would say he's the talk of Major League Baseball, not just National League, because
10:37when you're throwing so many pitches at 100 miles per hour, I mean, that's just so hard
10:40to do.
10:41It's just very impressive.
10:42Mazurowski's quotes were, that's what I do.
10:45I throw hard.
10:46Yeah.
10:47He's right.
10:47He's pretty accurate.
10:49So he's given up 13 runs in 11 games.
10:54Otani's only had eight starts.
10:56Do you know how many runs he's given up, EB?
10:58Earned runs this season?
10:59In how many starts?
11:00Eight.
11:01I don't know.
11:01Six.
11:02I don't know.
11:02Six or seven?
11:0212.
11:03Four.
11:03I have no idea.
11:05Four runs.
11:05It's all he's given up, earned.
11:07Yeah.
11:07He's pretty good.
11:10Maybe Mizorowski...
11:10That'll be amazing if Otani can add a Cy Young to his MVPs.
11:15I wouldn't rule it out, for sure.
11:18Yeah.
11:19I mean, he's definitely in the mix, but I just think Mazurowski, the pace that he throws
11:23the ball is incredible.
11:24Maybe he'll be able to keep up because of his size, maybe more so than you think.
11:28In his last five starts, okay, against St. Louis, the Cubs,
11:32the Pods, the Yankees, and Washington.
11:35All right?
11:35Really good lineups.
11:37Really good lineups.
11:38He's thrown 31 in the third.
11:40He's given up one on run.
11:42One.
11:430.29 in his last five starts.
11:45You know how many strikeouts he's got in those 31 innings?
11:4850.
11:49He's mowing dudes down.
11:51I mean, Otani's great.
11:52Skeens is great.
11:53But this guy's the talk of Maze League baseball now.
11:56Very early, though.
11:57We're not even to June.
11:58I didn't watch the Knicks-Cleveland Cavs game yesterday.
12:02Well, it was a give-up game for Cleveland.
12:04Of course.
12:05I mean, they didn't want to be there.
12:06It was just embarrassment.
12:07It was an embarrassing series for Cleveland.
12:09And especially what Kenny Atkinson said after game three, that they were...
12:13Predicted to win.
12:14And analytically, they were beating the Knicks.
12:16It made a little sense.
12:19That's not a great look.
12:20That's not a great look.
12:22What he should have said, what Kenny Atkinson should have said, is we're getting our ass kicked.
12:27That's what he should have said.
12:28Because that's way more accurate than whatever analytics that his people drilled down on.
12:33Yeah.
12:33Well, he was just looking at the sportsbook analytics and going, all right, our expected score is this.
12:39It's higher than what it is.
12:41We're underperforming.
12:41But analytically, we're supposed to be beating the Knicks.
12:44The shooters are missing shots.
12:46Look, the Knicks deserve a ton of credit.
12:48The first series they had, they, I believe, were down 2-1.
12:53And since then, they've ripped off 11 straight wins.
12:55And it's not just their winning.
12:58Their average point differential in the playoffs is 19 points.
13:02Yep.
13:02They are smashing opponents right now.
13:05Killing them.
13:06Back to the finals first time since 1999.
13:09I can't root for the Knicks to win the finals.
13:11So, I'll be forced to, I guess, pull for whoever comes out of the West.
13:15OKC or San Antonio?
13:17I'll have to root for one of those teams.
13:19I can't root for the Knicks to win the finals.
13:22What's the hatred for the Knicks?
13:24They're just an annoying, entitled fan base.
13:27I can't root for them.
13:29Now, their fan base has suffered.
13:30Even though they've sucked a lot.
13:32Not Wizards level of suck for years, but for a lot of years they were down.
13:36I can't root for the Knicks to win.
13:37So, I will throw my support behind whatever Western Conference team advances.
13:43Well, it would be pretty cool if it was the Spurs.
13:45I'm not sure it's going to be.
13:47Right.
13:47But, game five is tonight, I believe.
13:49Jalen Brunson, though, gets the Eastern Conference Finals MVP.
13:55Mm-hmm.
13:58Going to the Wizards talk.
14:00Point guard.
14:01Ball in his hand a lot.
14:03Yep.
14:04I mean.
14:04I don't know.
14:04Just my preference on the whole Darren Peterson versus A.J. DeBonce deal.
14:09Mm-hmm.
14:10James Harden was awful in this series.
14:13Makes 44, I think it's a player option of 44 million for next year.
14:19Yeah.
14:19Is he picking that up or is he going out on the market?
14:21All he said was, I expect to be here, you know, he hopes to be there in Cleveland, who
14:26knows.
14:26If you watch any of those montages that people make that go viral, I mean, he basically just
14:31stands there on defense.
14:32Yeah.
14:33I know Luka got that rap a couple seasons ago in the finals.
14:36I think James Harden's taken it to another level.
14:38Yeah.
14:39James Harden.
14:40But he's old.
14:40He's 36, 37 years old.
14:42They only took eight shots, too.
14:45Yeah.
14:45Which is kind of weird.
14:46I mean, they just never.
14:47I'm telling you it was a give-up game.
14:48They're down 3-0.
14:49So, I don't think any team has ever in the history of the NBA come back from down 3-0.
14:53So, he was.
14:54He shot 38% in the finals.
14:57He shot 17% from three.
15:03Okay.
15:03He averaged 16 in the series.
15:06And I believe.
15:07How many total turnovers did he have?
15:0911.
15:1017 total turnovers in four games.
15:12I don't know what analytics Kenny Atkinson is looking at.
15:15I'm just looking at final scores.
15:16They lost by 11.
15:18They lost by 16.
15:20They lost by 13.
15:22And they lost by 37.
15:23I think in games 2 and 3, the argument is, if you look at the shots of some of the
15:31guys,
15:32they usually hit threes at a much higher rate.
15:35Right.
15:35And it was below.
15:36I mean, some of that might have to do with the defense.
15:38But that's what he was trying to say.
15:41Hey, Merrill usually shoots 45% from threes.
15:45And he was.
15:46I'm making up the numbers now.
15:47Two for nine.
15:48Yeah.
15:48Yeah.
15:48Those guys, they're going to be doing shots at the swim up bars in Cancun.
15:52The poolside.
15:53The other thing is, they went.
15:55They played 14 games in the first two rounds.
15:58The Knicks played 10.
16:01So the Knicks were much more rested.
16:03Might be wrong on the map.
16:04Donovan Mitchell was still super supportive of James Harden after that game.
16:08Yeah, he was.
16:08He was tired of people taking shots at Harden.
16:10Yeah.
16:10Yeah.
16:11He was.
16:12I think we ignore leadership by him.
16:17I think we ignore the human, the character of who he is.
16:24All positive things, by the way.
16:28I think we ignore the empowerment that he gives people.
16:33I think we also ignore his greatness in a major way.
16:38I say we, I really mean y'all.
16:40Sorry.
16:43Like, this man changed the game of basketball.
16:48Like, changed the game of basketball.
16:53In ways that we've never seen before.
16:56I'd say that's a little overstated.
16:58Because I would say Steph Curry.
17:00Well, I think that James Harden was one of the guys with the step-back three.
17:03Not that he invented the step-back three, but one of those first guys, ball in the hand.
17:08I'd say a lot of people who live and work in basketball say Harden changed the game more than Steph
17:13Curry.
17:14Curry changed it from a team perspective.
17:16Harden changed it from the individual perspective of the step-back and the gather step.
17:20He basically revolutionized the game.
17:22Well, he sucked in this series.
17:23I've heard Reggie Miller.
17:24He was awful in this.
17:26I've heard Reggie Miller with a little bit of chip on his shoulder say that he shot a step-back
17:29three.
17:30But James Harden definitely popularized it.
17:33I mean, look, overall for the playoffs, he averaged 19 points.
17:37I mean, not 25.
17:40I mean, overall.
17:42Considering his age.
17:43I don't know.
17:44It's just the drop-off, generally speaking, from the regular season to the playoffs.
17:48It's the name.
17:49It's the money he's making.
17:50You get to the Eastern Conference Finals.
17:52You're playing a huge market team, and you're expected to play a lot better than that.
17:56I can understand if you're only averaging 17 or 18, but you're dishing out a bunch of assists.
18:01But the fact that you're turning the ball over six times a game?
18:05But how surprising is it that the Knicks are in the finals?
18:08It's not good.
18:08Because before the playoffs started, everybody was on Boston.
18:13Yeah.
18:14Everybody was on Boston.
18:15Detroit was the one seed.
18:16Mm-hmm.
18:17Detroit had home court advantage.
18:19And the Knicks come out of the East.
18:21No, they've been awesome.
18:22With back-to-back sweeps in the last two series.
18:25Dominant performances.
18:25Playing great.
18:26So we'll see what happens with Game 5, OKC, and Spurs.
18:30Mr. Bickle, I watched almost all of.
18:33Both lacrosse championships.
18:35Look at you.
18:36First of all, the girls, those girls are ballers.
18:40Mm-hmm.
18:41I mean, especially the girls, the two stars for Carolina and Northwestern.
18:44Well, how cool is that setting, too, over there at Northwestern?
18:47At Northwestern, yeah.
18:48What a beautiful setting.
18:49Yep.
18:50Our boy Michael Wilbon was there.
18:51But anyway, Northwestern wins the Women's National Championship.
18:56I believe that's their second.
18:59I think they've been to four straight.
19:01They lost to North Carolina last year.
19:04And then they lost to Boston College year before that.
19:07But then they beat Boston College four years ago.
19:09So I think that's two in the last four years for Northwestern.
19:12When I was getting my master's at Maryland, one of my jobs, I had an on-campus job, make
19:16a little cash, right?
19:17I was like 23, 24 years old.
19:19Mm-hmm.
19:19Was to Proctor.
19:21Remember, I had Ratcliffe Thomas.
19:23I had Sarunas.
19:24Yep.
19:24I also had Kelly Amonti.
19:26She was in my...
19:27She is the head coach at Northwestern.
19:31It's just certain names I remember seeing.
19:34Kelly Amonti, yeah.
19:34You helped her achieve great things by Proctor and UV.
19:36I will say I had zero interaction with her.
19:39But it was just a name I would always see on my little list.
19:42I had to make sure they were all present.
19:44And they had to make sure they didn't sneak out.
19:46Yeah.
19:47That's all I had to do.
19:47Right.
19:48I was a big nerd.
19:49Bar was set very low.
19:50Yeah.
19:50She was dropping F-bombs just for eating her lips to the refs.
19:55I mean, it was pretty funny.
19:57Kelly Amonti.
19:58Yeah.
19:58Because she was pissed about something.
20:00Got a national title on the line.
20:01I was just amazed by their athleticism.
20:04The girls are flying.
20:05I mean, you know, I don't watch a lot of women's lacrosse.
20:07Yeah.
20:08It was fun to watch.
20:09And then Notre Dame got a 3-0 lead on Princeton.
20:12And Princeton, I think, then ran off 11 straight goals.
20:15Well, what they did is their defensive coordinator, Jeremy Hirsch, went to a zone.
20:18And then that basically shut it down.
20:19They did talk about that, yeah.
20:21And it seemed like they were winning every face-off, too.
20:23Anyway, the head coach for Notre Dame, he was pissed.
20:26He was dropping F-bombs.
20:28He was yelling at his staff, at the players.
20:30He was just getting killed.
20:31And, yeah, Corrigan.
20:33But they lose, Notre Dame loses 16-9.
20:36So Princeton used to dominate men's lacrosse in the 90s, their first national championship in 25 years.
20:41So props to Northwestern and Princeton.
20:44Coming up at 7 o'clock, we'll give our full Dewey Beach recap.
20:47Thanks again to all the listeners that came down for our broadcast on Friday.
20:51We will do that coming up at 7 here on The Jokes.
Comments