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Speaker 1: Okay, let's talk about O'Neal Cruz, the short and skinny.

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Speaker 1: Now let's go in depth, because well, either way it's

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Speaker 1: a depressing conversation. The Pirates should trade O'Neill Cruz right

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Speaker 1: effing now.

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Speaker 2: To quote Danny let mein slapshot.

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Speaker 1: He's twenty seven and he doesn't yet know how to

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Speaker 1: play baseball. He is what he is and what O'Neill

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Speaker 1: Cruise is is a dope, a dummy.

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Speaker 2: I'm a roon, if you will.

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Speaker 1: He played a routine flyball in with a three run

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Speaker 1: triple yesterday he lost a flyball in the sun because

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Speaker 1: he went out there without sunglasses and the other outfielders

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Speaker 1: wore him and Donnie Kelly.

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Speaker 2: Called him out on it.

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Speaker 1: But three runs later, don't matter what Donny Kelly said.

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Speaker 1: That's all in the first inning, and I lost the game.

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Speaker 1: O'Neill Cruz lost the game for the Pirates in the

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Speaker 1: first inning. O'Neill Cruz f schemes knocked him out of

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Speaker 1: the game in the first inning. In this ain't a

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Speaker 1: one time thing, not hardly. It ain't just one game

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Speaker 1: out of one hundred and sixty two. O'Neill Cruise always

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Speaker 1: makes mistake like that. He's got zero baseball IQ and

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Speaker 1: of course he ended the.

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Speaker 2: Game on a strikeout.

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Speaker 1: Cruise is all X and velocity and speed on the

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Speaker 1: bass pass and Miles.

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Speaker 2: Peror on his bro and blah blah blah.

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Speaker 1: Because he doesn't play winning baseball. All the metrics, the analytics,

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Speaker 1: the advanced stuff, the intangible stuff, it don't matter.

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Speaker 2: Running on the base betch don't matter if you strike

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Speaker 2: out too much. And what's wrong with O'Neill Cruz isn't

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Speaker 2: gonna change.

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Speaker 1: This is the Mark mannon show eight three three four

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Speaker 1: one two WXDX the number to call. We got Tim

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Speaker 1: Benz at the bottom of the hour. Yeah, everything that's

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Speaker 1: wrong with O'Neill Cruz is not going to change. He's

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Speaker 1: not going to figure it out at twenty seven, and

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Speaker 1: I'm not sure O'Neil Cruz.

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Speaker 2: Even wants to figure it out.

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Speaker 1: It's not that Cruz is still learning how to play

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Speaker 1: center field. He was out there all last year. To repeat,

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Speaker 1: O'Neil Cruz just doesn't know how to play baseball. He's

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Speaker 1: a butcher in the field. He can't hit lefties at all,

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Speaker 1: one seventy three lifetime average against lefties. He only hit

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Speaker 1: two hundred total last year. He's a career underachiever before

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Speaker 1: now and moving forward and to repeat the Pirates of

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Speaker 1: Tray Cruise right effing now, because maybe some team will

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Speaker 1: still like his potential and ignore that he's twenty seven.

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Speaker 2: O'Neil. Cruz is a bum.

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Speaker 1: Not to be critical. Let's go to Bill and Slippery Rock. Bill,

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Speaker 1: you're out of Bark Madden Show, Sir, I said, good day.

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Speaker 3: Here's my question for you.

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Speaker 4: Why isn't first base ever considered an option for the guy?

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Speaker 1: Because they got well, right now, it can't be Bill,

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Speaker 1: because they got two guys who were first. In fact,

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Speaker 1: they got three guys who were first Baseman h Horwitz

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Speaker 1: who plays there, or Howard who's in right field, and Ozuna,

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Speaker 1: who's the DH. I mean, if you move him, where

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Speaker 1: do you put Horwitz?

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Speaker 3: Yeah, I understand that's just the last resort possibility.

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Speaker 1: Horwich is a better hitter than Cruise because he actually hits.

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Speaker 2: The ball, you know.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, no, no, they got to get rid of him.

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Speaker 1: They got to get rid of them, but they won't.

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Speaker 1: They just won't. But they gotta thank you for the call. Yeah,

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Speaker 1: they're in love with his potential, the potential is just

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Speaker 1: another way of saying that you might suck an O'Neal

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Speaker 1: Cruz does.

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Speaker 2: Let's go to Bill another bill in the car bill.

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Speaker 2: What's up? Bill? You there? Yes, I'm here, go ahead,

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Speaker 2: good day, I said, good day.

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Speaker 5: I say, give him a shot of being.

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Speaker 2: A bat boy.

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Speaker 4: If that's all work out, then you're push them down

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Speaker 4: the steps.

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Speaker 2: Ye up, another tempt to be funny didn't work. Let's

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Speaker 2: go to Dave in the truck. Dave, you're on with

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Speaker 2: double M.

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Speaker 6: Hey, Mark, what's going on?

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Speaker 3: What up?

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Speaker 1: Hey?

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Speaker 6: Yesterday you were talking about ty Simpson. All the talk

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Speaker 6: on ESPN about how he might be better than you know,

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Speaker 6: being the top quarterback or NFL.

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Speaker 1: Right now, those is what like Orlovsky and uh I

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Speaker 1: think Todd McShay are saying.

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Speaker 6: Yeah, yeah, I did a little research. Orlovsky and him

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Speaker 6: have the same agent.

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Speaker 1: Oh yeah, I saw that too. I mean, does that

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Speaker 1: affect what Orlofsky says? I don't know. Uh, I don't

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Speaker 1: know how ESPN works around that. I mean, can they

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Speaker 1: barrow Orlovsky from talking about ty Simpson? I mean, I

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Speaker 1: just know that ty Simpson's only started f fifteen games

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Speaker 1: in college and quarterbacks with that lack of experience at

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Speaker 1: the college level generally don't do well in the pros,

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Speaker 1: those those one year starters like Ty Simpson that said

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Speaker 1: Kenny Pickett started like what was it nine years for pitt.

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Speaker 2: And he sucked.

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Speaker 6: And good point, that's all I had.

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Speaker 2: I thank you for the call.

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Speaker 1: It really is amazing that this was supposed to be

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Speaker 1: this great year for quarterbacks in the draft and it

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Speaker 1: just went to crap.

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Speaker 2: It's good, Harry, Harry, you're on with double.

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Speaker 5: M Hey Mark. I get the frustration with O'Neil Cruz

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Speaker 5: and the you know already escaped coating him, but when's

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Speaker 5: the last time the Pirates developed anybody? And if past

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Speaker 5: performance is a predictor of the future, we're going to

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Speaker 5: be having the same conversation about Connor Griffin in two years.

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Speaker 1: I don't disagree with any of that, but that does

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Speaker 1: not excuse Cruise. Cruise fails on a little league level,

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Speaker 1: like him watching those two fly balls in center field yesterday,

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Speaker 1: had nothing to do with the Pirates developing him. It

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Speaker 1: had to do with him not knowing how to play

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Speaker 1: baseball and not wearing sunglasses, not caring, not being focused.

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Speaker 5: But that's been Pirate baseball for tech.

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Speaker 2: Okay, you see you're not listening.

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Speaker 1: Okay, Nobody screws up for the Pirates like Cruise does.

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Speaker 2: Nobody screws up on a little league level like Cruise does.

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Speaker 1: You want to see they couldn't develop Henry Davis a

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Speaker 1: one to one pick as a hitter.

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Speaker 2: Go ahead and do that. But you don't tell a guy, hey,

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Speaker 2: when a ball is.

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Speaker 1: Hit right to you at center field, come racing in

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Speaker 1: like a moron, let it go over your head. That's

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Speaker 1: not development. That's him not knowing how to play baseball.

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Speaker 2: Capiche, I get it, man, I'm right as always.

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Speaker 1: Okay, uh eight three three four one two wxdx the

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Speaker 1: number to call up. I talked about this a bit earlier,

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Speaker 1: but I had a great time at the championship game

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Speaker 1: and dinner at the Mary Lemieux fantasy camp last night.

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Speaker 1: Saw all the great names in the past, but it

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Speaker 1: was especially great to talk to Mario at some length.

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Speaker 1: Maria has been a really great friend to me and

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Speaker 1: helped my career. And he's Mario Lemieux. He's the greatest

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Speaker 1: hockey player ever I know, the greatest hockey player ever.

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Speaker 1: And he will be back with the Penguins organization before

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Speaker 1: too long. I feel relatively certain saying that. A great

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Speaker 1: story from last night, this one camp for Terry Madden,

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Speaker 1: no relation got diagnosed with terminal cancer. And don't forget

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Speaker 1: it's the Mario Lemue Foundation for Cancer Research. And Terry

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Speaker 1: Madden has lived past his cell by date. He played

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Speaker 1: at the camp, did pretty good and I bet he's

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Speaker 1: back next year. What an absolute inspiration. So great time.

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Speaker 1: Thanks to Mario for everything and for having me six

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Speaker 1: grandkids for Mario now he caught me up on that.

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Speaker 1: I can't keep track. And thanks alsen to everyone involved

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Speaker 1: with the foundation, Nancy Angus who is amazing running the foundation.

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Speaker 1: I don't know where Pittsburgh would be without Mary Lemieux.

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Speaker 1: He is the founder of the Feast, the most important

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Speaker 1: figure in the history of Pittsburgh sports and one of

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Speaker 1: the most important figures in Pittsburgh history period and on

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Speaker 1: so many levels. Get your calls in eight, three, three, four,

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Speaker 1: one two WSDX. We got Tim Benz at the bottom

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Speaker 1: of the hour and up next. You like it, you

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Speaker 1: love it, you want more of it? The Buco roundup

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Speaker 1: one oh five to nine.

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Speaker 2: It's time now for the radio craze. That's sweeping the nation.

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Speaker 1: Debate baseball talk that is a Pittsburgh sensation. It's the

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Speaker 1: Buco Roundup. Third episode of the season. The Pirates are

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Speaker 1: oh to one, but it's only one game. The crew

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Speaker 1: stuff that ain't going away. It's much more than one

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Speaker 1: game with him his problems. They are great, and they

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Speaker 1: are many, but in terms of the team and where

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Speaker 1: they finish this year, it's only one game. So let's

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Speaker 1: play good year, bad year, like the Zeppelin song. Brandon

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Speaker 1: Law will have a good year. Good start, obviously with

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Speaker 1: two home runs yesterday. O'Neil Cruz will have a bad

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Speaker 1: year and a dumb year and a frustrating year.

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Speaker 2: Schemes will have a great year.

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Speaker 1: If he doesn't go to jail for committing manslaughter on Cruise,

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Speaker 1: which is unnecessary because eventually Cruise will get hit in

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Speaker 1: the head by a fly ball. Oh Zooner will have

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Speaker 1: a bad year. He's a washed up, right handed power

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Speaker 1: guy and panc Park does not suit him. Reynolds will

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Speaker 1: have a very good year. He's a talent and a

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Speaker 1: grinder and he's go back from a bummy season last season.

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Speaker 1: Uh O'Hearn will be man. Yeah, he hit a home

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Speaker 1: Rune yesterday. But he's a ham and agger. I think

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Speaker 1: they overpaid a little bit for him. Then again, that's

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Speaker 1: the kind of guy they can get in free agency.

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Speaker 1: And there's guys I'm not sure about, like Chandler and

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Speaker 1: Ashcraft have the stuff, but not the Beagley experience. Anyway,

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Speaker 1: the pots are oh to one off today at New

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Speaker 1: York tomorrow Keller on the Hill and that is the

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Speaker 1: Bucco round up for Friday.

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Speaker 2: Let's go to Dick and Churchill. Dick your own with

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Speaker 2: double m.

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Speaker 7: Uh.

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Speaker 1: Yeah.

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Speaker 3: I've calmed down since my call yesterday, if you recall,

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Speaker 3: but I don't think I think I know what we

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Speaker 3: can do with Cruise and hear me out history says

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Speaker 3: this is a good idea. We should at least explore

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Speaker 3: the option of trying to trade him to the Edmonton Oilers.

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Speaker 1: See now yesterday were un hinged. Today you just warn't funny.

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Speaker 1: Thank you for the call. A lot of people call

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Speaker 1: him just not funny. Yeah, the Bucco talk is not

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Speaker 1: so I know yesterday, Like I said, it's only one game,

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Speaker 1: but not with Cruise.

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Speaker 2: Not with Cruise.

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Speaker 1: He's a career underachiever, never learned how to play baseball,

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Speaker 1: not yet, won't. Somebody said put him a third hit.

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Speaker 1: Watch that true too, I trade him maybe maybe putting

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Speaker 1: Mangam in center field, but he's a singles guy.

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Speaker 2: Then again that's better.

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Speaker 1: I mean Cruz provides the occasional long home run exit

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Speaker 1: velocity distance, but only occasionally. Yeah, maybe putting Mangam in

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Speaker 1: center field, and then Cruz platoons at DH with Ozuna.

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Speaker 1: You had Joel Embiid on Twitter making fun at Cruise. Hey, Cruse,

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Speaker 1: learn how to DH. Yeah, I just get rid of him.

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Speaker 1: He won't focus, he won't learn. O'Neill Cruise is a liability,

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Speaker 1: all right, Just to mind the corner. Tim Bench from

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Speaker 1: the Trib one oh five nine Join now by Tim

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Speaker 1: Bench in the Trib. Tim, what should the Pirates do

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Speaker 1: with O'Neill Cruise? He's a butcher in the field and

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Speaker 1: he can't really.

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Speaker 4: Hit, which you know, kind of takes away my answer

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Speaker 4: right away, which is designated hitter, because he can do

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Speaker 4: less damage there. But if you're trying this hard to

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Speaker 4: find places to hide a guy, maybe you should just

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Speaker 4: get rid of him. Because his ops last year was

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Speaker 4: what six seventy six? His batting average was two hundred.

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Speaker 4: That's not enough offensive production to make up for the

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Speaker 4: fact that he's a negative wherever you put him in

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Speaker 4: the field. And you feel obligated to keep him in

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Speaker 4: the field because you're leaning so much on his run

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Speaker 4: and armed tools. But I don't know if that's worth

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Speaker 4: it for some of the other negatives that come along

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Speaker 4: with his overall package of play.

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Speaker 1: I'm hearing people say, oh, it's only one game, but

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Speaker 1: it's not. O'Neil Cruz is a career underachiever, not least

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Speaker 1: in the field. He mangled short stop. Now he's mangling

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Speaker 1: center field, and he's been in centerfield for over a year.

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Speaker 1: People act like he's still learning. I'm not sure O'Neil

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Speaker 1: Cruz has ever learned anything in his entire life, dating

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Speaker 1: back to grade school.

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Speaker 4: It wasn't only one game when the same thing, well,

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Speaker 4: not the same thing, but when bad things happen in

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Speaker 4: centerfield on opening day last year. It's not his natural position.

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Speaker 4: He's learning on the fly. I still think they might

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Speaker 4: have overreacted or misread the best thing to do with

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Speaker 4: him when they figured they couldn't keep him at shortstop anymore.

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Speaker 4: And I don't know, Mark, maybe this is part of

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Speaker 4: the thinking when they bring Griffin up, maybe it was

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Speaker 4: one more look to see if he had center field

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Speaker 4: nailed down at all, and if he doesn't, you can

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Speaker 4: put Griffin out there, or you know, you expedite things

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Speaker 4: by moving on from Cruise, and that's where you put

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Speaker 4: Griffin into the lineup. You know, you kind of take

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Speaker 4: away one pr hit by mollifying that another move, which

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Speaker 4: is get the phenom up here, and people focus on

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Speaker 4: that instead of understanding that yet another theoretical future phenom

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Speaker 4: didn't pan out the way he was supposed to hear

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Speaker 4: in Pittsburgh.

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Speaker 1: No, I agree with all that, and I would definitely

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Speaker 1: trade Cruse. Some team might still get fooled by his talent.

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Speaker 1: I might even bench him in the interim and play

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Speaker 1: Mangum in center field until you bring Griffin up. Mangum

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Speaker 1: plays much better defense, and he can run. He's a

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Speaker 1: singles guy. But what is Cruise. I mean, he had

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Speaker 1: twenty home runs last year. He's the kind of guy

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Speaker 1: with those Statsu quoted the two hundred average, the six

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Speaker 1: seventy whatever ops. If he was hitting like thirty five homers,

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Speaker 1: that'd be okay, But he only hit twenty last year.

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Speaker 4: It's a good point about Mangum because he's a guy

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Speaker 4: that not only is fast, but he's a good base

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Speaker 4: runner too. And Cruz is not a great base runner.

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Speaker 4: He's just a fast one, I think anyway. And in

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Speaker 4: terms of his acumen and being tuned into the Mangum

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Speaker 4: gives you that, and you don't lose the speed in

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Speaker 4: center field if you were to have him in there.

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Speaker 4: You know, the one thing about being so enamored of

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Speaker 4: a guy's toolbox as you read as you wrote today,

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Speaker 4: and the tools that he has, and you've got to

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Speaker 4: put one in the other and he's never been able

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Speaker 4: to do that. And if you're so honed in on

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Speaker 4: what the tools are, and one of them being the speed,

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Speaker 4: the arm, the glove, the glove has to work if

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Speaker 4: the speed and the arm are going to get you there,

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Speaker 4: you know, like if the speed in the arm are

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Speaker 4: able to be in position to make plays for you,

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Speaker 4: the glove has to be able to catch the ball first.

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Speaker 4: And he's not been good at that. So you're never

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Speaker 4: getting all the tools to go in the toolbox, even

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Speaker 4: if he is plugged in and thinking the right way.

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Speaker 4: But if I'm like Kevin Kiermeyer, for instance. You know,

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Speaker 4: there's really good defensive outfielder who worked with him in

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Speaker 4: the off season, and everybody's talking about how this is

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Speaker 4: going to help his game. Because the first thing he

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Speaker 4: does is run in on a line drive right at him.

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Speaker 6: I'm like, I don't even want to be.

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Speaker 4: Associated with this guy.

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Speaker 2: People are gonna think it.

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Speaker 4: They don't know they're look at me and say, what

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Speaker 4: are you teaching him? Because that's the direct opposite of

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Speaker 4: what you're supposed to do in that situation.

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Speaker 1: Skeens got wrecked yesterday by Cruise of Shenanigans.

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Speaker 4: Uh.

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Speaker 1: He didn't pitch great, but but he was clearly rattled,

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Speaker 1: and I think they did the right thing yanked him.

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Speaker 1: Uh he threw a lot of pitches and and and

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Speaker 1: just you know, he was off his game even beyond

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Speaker 1: Cruse screwing up.

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Speaker 4: And before Cruise screwed up too. You know, it's like

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Speaker 4: the first pitch of the game, I thought it was

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Speaker 4: borderline and he, you know, started to get way high

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Speaker 4: and was losing on his arm side release point. They

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Speaker 4: did a pretty good job breaking that down the post

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Speaker 4: game show when I watched yesterday, And you know, we've

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Speaker 4: talked about this with skeens in the past that he's

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Speaker 4: really good at getting himself out of trouble when he

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Speaker 4: gets into it. You know, he gets two runners on

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Speaker 4: with one out and he's getting a double play, or

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Speaker 4: he gets got a third base. Invariably he seems to

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Speaker 4: get a pop up and then a strikeout. But he

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Speaker 4: wasn't able to do that yesterday. The walk's got in

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Speaker 4: the way. He got behind too often, you know, the

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Speaker 4: guy with the swinging bunt. And then of course what

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Speaker 4: happened with Cruise happened, and that made everything worse. So

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Speaker 4: I don't think it would have been a great afternoon

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Speaker 4: for Schemes regardless. But Cruise's mishaps in center field at

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Speaker 4: least gave us the ability to say to ourselves, Okay,

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Speaker 4: well that was just a one off and there were

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Speaker 4: exacerbating circumstances to why Schemes wasn't very good.

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Speaker 1: Yeah again, I thought he looked rattled. Cruise can't screw

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Speaker 1: up if he strikes guys out. But but Cruise is

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Speaker 1: definitely the the number one antagonist in that little drama.

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Speaker 1: The one good thing tim is the Pirates hit anyway,

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Speaker 1: three home runs?

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Speaker 2: Are they gonna keep hitting?

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Speaker 4: I do think they're gonna hit more than last year.

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Speaker 4: I do think the three guys that they added our

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Speaker 4: good additions. And that's what I wrote today on the trip,

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Speaker 4: which was there is that defense mechanism that you go

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Speaker 4: to to say, well, it's just one game, and okay,

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Speaker 4: sure it was, it's one out a two. But man,

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Speaker 4: everything we sort of talked about for the entirety of

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Speaker 4: four months, you know, leading into the one game, seemed

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Speaker 4: to manifest good and bad. The good, but no one's

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Speaker 4: saying it's just one game for Brandon Lao. No one's

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Speaker 4: saying that it's they all I want to find in

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Speaker 4: Brandon Law and that all Herd's gonna be pretty good too.

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Speaker 5: No one saying just one game for them.

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Speaker 4: Because this is what they were brought here to do. Meanwhile,

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Speaker 4: the bullpen, after Schemes went out the next four relievers,

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Speaker 4: relievers I think it was, they walked seven more guys,

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Speaker 4: gave up six more runs. You know, the defense in

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Speaker 4: general was not good. There were two fielding errors or mistakes.

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Speaker 4: By the picture. There was a pass ball on Davis.

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Speaker 4: So like the fielding aspect which we talked about showed itself. Uh,

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Speaker 4: the bullpen, which is questionable showed itself and for as

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Speaker 4: much hitting as they did, they also didn't walk a

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Speaker 4: single time and struck out ten. So the plate discipline

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Speaker 4: aspects that we were worried about manifest.

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Speaker 1: And issued walks to the disparity there are contributed to

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Speaker 1: losing as much as anything.

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Speaker 4: So my point is you can't just selectively say when

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Speaker 4: it's just one game. No one is selectively saying, well,

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Speaker 4: it's just one game for Brandon Lowell, Ryan o'hur and

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Speaker 4: they're saying this is how it's supposed to go. And

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Speaker 4: I kind of think it will not two home not

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Speaker 4: three home runs between the two of them in one game,

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Speaker 4: but I do think they will score more runs. The

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Speaker 4: order is definitely longer now, but there's still is that

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Speaker 4: fatal flaw off striking out way too much and over

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Speaker 4: the yesterday something like one for seven with runners in

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Speaker 4: scoring position.

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Speaker 1: We're talking to Tim Bench and the trip he's brought

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Speaker 1: to this by somebody.

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Speaker 2: I can't find it. Where the hell with it? Tim? Will?

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Speaker 6: You got two hits, two freaking hits.

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Speaker 1: If the Pirates compromise their defense too much to get

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Speaker 1: bats in the lineup, I don't think so.

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Speaker 2: I think they needed bats worse than they needed.

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Speaker 1: Defense, but it certainly showed up yesterday, and not just

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Speaker 1: with Cruise.

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Speaker 6: That is true.

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Speaker 3: I've thought of that.

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Speaker 4: My I don't want to come off being hypocritical every

381
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Speaker 4: time I complain about what the defense is supposed to

382
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Speaker 4: look like, I'll stick with it. I mean, like I think,

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Speaker 4: you know, you look at the differences in Major League

384
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Speaker 4: Baseball fielding percentage in terms of just like law, errors made,

385
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Speaker 4: and it's pretty thin from one to thirty two. And yeah,

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Speaker 4: I guess within the margins when we're talking about one

387
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Speaker 4: or two games costing you a playoff spot or not

388
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Speaker 4: eighty three wins versus eighty five or eighty six, Yeah,

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Speaker 4: that stuff does come back to bite you. But they

390
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Speaker 4: needed bats more than a couple games here or there

391
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Speaker 4: based on fielding, because they only won seventy one due

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Speaker 4: to an ane ft lack of offense. So if you

393
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Speaker 4: had to sacrifice for defense to get some more bats

394
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Speaker 4: in there, and those are the guys who were gonna get,

395
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Speaker 4: then go out and get them. And to the previous point,

396
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Speaker 4: have some other guys that you can shuttle around. Or

397
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Speaker 4: if it's a close game late and the bats have

398
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Speaker 4: kept you in it, or have given you a lead.

399
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Speaker 4: You can put Mangum in the outfield for defense. You

400
00:20:59,680 --> 00:21:02,160
Speaker 4: can put Triolo on the field for defense.

401
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Speaker 2: Yeah, material was starting as it is.

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Speaker 1: I mean that that's why I'm I think their defense

403
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Speaker 1: is gonna really hurt, maybe more than the bats they

404
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Speaker 1: get and will help him.

405
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Speaker 2: You got a first baseman in right.

406
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Speaker 1: Field, you got a right fielder and left field, which

407
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Speaker 1: won't serve Reynolds well. At PNC Park with the dimensions,

408
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Speaker 1: you got a third basement at short stop, you got

409
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Speaker 1: a second basement at third base. They just shuffle and

410
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Speaker 1: move and it just is not gonna come out good

411
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Speaker 1: more than bad.

412
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Speaker 2: Ever.

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Speaker 4: Well, another option to that, Denmark could have been you

414
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Speaker 4: leave Gonzalez where he's most natural, which is second base.

415
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Speaker 4: And he's not the greatest defensive defensive second basement, but

416
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Speaker 4: he does do some things well. He's gotten pretty good at,

417
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Speaker 4: you know, getting the ball out of his hand quickly

418
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Speaker 4: at second base. We talked about that a lot last year,

419
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Speaker 4: and you know, there are some improvements that he made

420
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Speaker 4: at second And then instead of getting loud, you spend

421
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Speaker 4: more attention and money and just getting a third basement

422
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Speaker 4: like Suarez or somebody else, you know, they could have

423
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Speaker 4: done that and just said we have our second basements,

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Speaker 4: the guy that we used the first round pick on,

425
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Speaker 4: let's try to upgrade at a different position. But they

426
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Speaker 4: didn't do that, and you know, for the time being,

427
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Speaker 4: it feels to me like they're making a defensive move

428
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Speaker 4: over an offensive move, which is, you have a good

429
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Speaker 4: shortstop in Triolo, and if they kept Connor Griffin off,

430
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Speaker 4: I think he's going to be fine at shortstop and

431
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Speaker 4: you got triola where he plays his best, which is

432
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Speaker 4: at third, and then all of a sudden the defense

433
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Speaker 4: feels at least better on the left side. But they

434
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Speaker 4: got to get Griffin up here to do that.

435
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Speaker 1: How big was that win? By the Pang was at

436
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Speaker 1: Ottawa and after Sid left.

437
00:22:36,680 --> 00:22:40,840
Speaker 4: The game hurt, it was a huge win. You know,

438
00:22:40,960 --> 00:22:44,000
Speaker 4: they lose that game in regulation, Mark they are out

439
00:22:44,000 --> 00:22:46,159
Speaker 4: of the playoff picture right now. They want it now,

440
00:22:46,200 --> 00:22:48,400
Speaker 4: they're in second place, and that just goes to show

441
00:22:48,400 --> 00:22:51,920
Speaker 4: that for all these exclamation point victories. I wrote about

442
00:22:51,920 --> 00:22:54,000
Speaker 4: this a little bit too in the trip today, they

443
00:22:54,080 --> 00:22:56,639
Speaker 4: still got to get like three or four more and

444
00:22:56,760 --> 00:23:00,439
Speaker 4: it's a really tiring process to do that, because you know,

445
00:23:00,480 --> 00:23:04,399
Speaker 4: we're throwing exclamation points on getting one point in Carolina,

446
00:23:04,560 --> 00:23:08,480
Speaker 4: blowing out the Avalanche, winning an overtime against Boston, finally

447
00:23:08,520 --> 00:23:11,480
Speaker 4: claiming a shootout against Winnipeg, Like these were all these

448
00:23:11,520 --> 00:23:14,720
Speaker 4: hallmark tent pole moments that we're saying, Okay, this is

449
00:23:14,720 --> 00:23:16,600
Speaker 4: something we're going to look back on when they finally

450
00:23:16,600 --> 00:23:18,440
Speaker 4: break the playoffs drout and say this is how they

451
00:23:18,440 --> 00:23:22,080
Speaker 4: got there. Well, yes and no, because for as great

452
00:23:22,080 --> 00:23:25,479
Speaker 4: as these tough, hard fought, exciting wins have felt, and

453
00:23:25,520 --> 00:23:28,320
Speaker 4: March has been in a very exciting month of hockey

454
00:23:28,320 --> 00:23:31,280
Speaker 4: for the Penguins, you're still looking at now ten games

455
00:23:31,320 --> 00:23:34,240
Speaker 4: to go where the next four are against teams or

456
00:23:34,280 --> 00:23:36,560
Speaker 4: either in playoff position or right on the cusp in

457
00:23:36,600 --> 00:23:38,959
Speaker 4: the case of Detroit. So they're gonna have to come

458
00:23:39,000 --> 00:23:41,040
Speaker 4: up with a couple more of these games. As great

459
00:23:41,040 --> 00:23:43,520
Speaker 4: as that Ottawa win was, they might have to do

460
00:23:43,560 --> 00:23:46,080
Speaker 4: it a couple more times, and to your previous point,

461
00:23:46,200 --> 00:23:48,560
Speaker 4: maybe without sitting Gino too, And that's a tough ask.

462
00:23:48,920 --> 00:23:50,880
Speaker 1: Well, in that vein, we don't know how long Cit

463
00:23:51,040 --> 00:23:52,760
Speaker 1: is out. I mean, who knows, he might play against

464
00:23:52,840 --> 00:23:53,920
Speaker 1: Dallas tomorrow.

465
00:23:53,560 --> 00:23:54,320
Speaker 2: But I doubt it.

466
00:23:55,280 --> 00:23:57,160
Speaker 1: But wow, I mean, you look at all the injuries

467
00:23:57,160 --> 00:24:00,560
Speaker 1: Gino out right now too. Gino had been suspend, have

468
00:24:00,600 --> 00:24:03,480
Speaker 1: been out after the Olympics. There's only so much any

469
00:24:03,560 --> 00:24:05,480
Speaker 1: team could continually overcome.

470
00:24:05,520 --> 00:24:08,160
Speaker 2: At some point, you hit a.

471
00:24:08,119 --> 00:24:12,800
Speaker 4: Wall and how you're doing is just a duvetail. With

472
00:24:12,840 --> 00:24:15,920
Speaker 4: the Pirates conversation, guys playing out of position and moving around.

473
00:24:15,920 --> 00:24:17,800
Speaker 4: Now you got Raquel going back to center. I think

474
00:24:17,800 --> 00:24:19,520
Speaker 4: you'd agree that he's been much better since he went

475
00:24:19,600 --> 00:24:24,400
Speaker 4: back to wing. You know, unless you want to throw

476
00:24:24,520 --> 00:24:29,480
Speaker 4: Ken Ben Kindle between him and between Raquel and Russ.

477
00:24:29,520 --> 00:24:31,320
Speaker 4: You could do that, I guess. I mean they've kind

478
00:24:31,320 --> 00:24:34,159
Speaker 4: of already broken up the Manta Brazo thing and have

479
00:24:34,280 --> 00:24:38,240
Speaker 4: been going back to it with convenience, but not necessarily

480
00:24:38,280 --> 00:24:41,520
Speaker 4: all the time. So they just have moving chess pieces

481
00:24:41,560 --> 00:24:42,479
Speaker 4: without sit out there.

482
00:24:42,480 --> 00:24:45,200
Speaker 1: And if they want depth, they want to roll four

483
00:24:45,240 --> 00:24:47,920
Speaker 1: lines without sitting Geno, there ain't no depth, So you

484
00:24:48,000 --> 00:24:49,800
Speaker 1: got to load up up top to get the guys

485
00:24:49,800 --> 00:24:51,200
Speaker 1: who can't produce to produce.

486
00:24:52,240 --> 00:24:54,080
Speaker 4: Yes, And you know, I think you guys were on

487
00:24:54,200 --> 00:24:56,080
Speaker 4: the conversation. I think you were talking to Staggy earlier

488
00:24:56,119 --> 00:25:00,600
Speaker 4: about like what's Kindle's high end potential for points and

489
00:25:00,920 --> 00:25:03,920
Speaker 4: maybe he can press it into the nineties if he's

490
00:25:03,960 --> 00:25:05,760
Speaker 4: playing with the two best wingers on the team.

491
00:25:05,880 --> 00:25:07,840
Speaker 1: But I'm not worried about that now, Tim, I'm worried

492
00:25:07,840 --> 00:25:11,359
Speaker 1: about can he helped the team win Monday at Queens

493
00:25:11,400 --> 00:25:13,359
Speaker 1: and for that matter, tomorrow against Dallas.

494
00:25:13,400 --> 00:25:14,639
Speaker 2: I that that's a long shot.

495
00:25:15,160 --> 00:25:17,960
Speaker 1: I said to Staggy, if you told me I could

496
00:25:18,000 --> 00:25:20,360
Speaker 1: lose to Dallas but for sure win at the Islanders,

497
00:25:20,359 --> 00:25:20,879
Speaker 1: I'd take that.

498
00:25:21,800 --> 00:25:26,200
Speaker 4: Oh for sure. Yeah, absolutely, because well and also in regulation,

499
00:25:26,359 --> 00:25:28,359
Speaker 4: can we put that caveat on it too, because you

500
00:25:28,359 --> 00:25:31,240
Speaker 4: don't want the Islanders to scoop up a point, which

501
00:25:31,280 --> 00:25:33,960
Speaker 4: is something you always have to consider, because so Rocan's

502
00:25:33,960 --> 00:25:36,800
Speaker 4: going to keep a minute for three periods and he

503
00:25:36,920 --> 00:25:39,240
Speaker 4: actually just did that against Dallas last night, now that

504
00:25:39,240 --> 00:25:41,280
Speaker 4: I'm saying that, because they won that game to one,

505
00:25:41,680 --> 00:25:44,320
Speaker 4: as Columbus was losing to one, as the Penguins were

506
00:25:44,320 --> 00:25:46,480
Speaker 4: tied to too. Just to I think he used the

507
00:25:46,520 --> 00:25:49,280
Speaker 4: phrase on a knife a razor's edge. That's exactly what

508
00:25:49,359 --> 00:25:52,200
Speaker 4: his playoff race is at this point, because like even Detroit,

509
00:25:52,200 --> 00:25:54,560
Speaker 4: who I talked about before, is not out of it

510
00:25:54,640 --> 00:25:56,480
Speaker 4: yet and they're in ninth place, but they got eighty

511
00:25:57,080 --> 00:26:00,639
Speaker 4: four points and it's eighty seven to get in, so

512
00:26:00,840 --> 00:26:03,040
Speaker 4: that's how stacked it is up and down the East,

513
00:26:03,119 --> 00:26:05,320
Speaker 4: and you can't. It'd be great to win all these

514
00:26:05,320 --> 00:26:08,160
Speaker 4: games in regulation. That's probably not gonna happen. But give

515
00:26:08,160 --> 00:26:10,680
Speaker 4: me the regulation win against the Islanders. Then, as you

516
00:26:10,840 --> 00:26:12,960
Speaker 4: sort of referenced before, if you lose to Dallas, well

517
00:26:14,080 --> 00:26:15,719
Speaker 4: so be it. Give me the points where I can

518
00:26:15,760 --> 00:26:18,240
Speaker 4: get to and keep somebody else from getting any to me.

519
00:26:18,400 --> 00:26:20,720
Speaker 2: Tim Carlson's the big story of the season.

520
00:26:20,760 --> 00:26:23,680
Speaker 1: He's the MVP of the team base now as much

521
00:26:23,720 --> 00:26:28,080
Speaker 1: as consistent availability. He's had a big year, stepped up

522
00:26:28,080 --> 00:26:30,359
Speaker 1: as a leader after that. I think the stories are

523
00:26:30,440 --> 00:26:33,040
Speaker 1: Kindle and Chinnikov, and certainly were last night in the shootout.

524
00:26:34,320 --> 00:26:37,000
Speaker 4: Yes, I think you rattle them off. I might put

525
00:26:37,040 --> 00:26:42,280
Speaker 4: Cheinakov before Kendall in terms of my voting for team MVP,

526
00:26:42,480 --> 00:26:44,640
Speaker 4: But then again, Kendall has been here longer. I guess

527
00:26:44,640 --> 00:26:46,200
Speaker 4: if we wanted to say that or use that part

528
00:26:46,240 --> 00:26:48,600
Speaker 4: of the argument. One thing I was curious about for you,

529
00:26:48,760 --> 00:26:51,520
Speaker 4: Markins he brought up the shootouts and the goaltending. Once

530
00:26:51,560 --> 00:26:54,919
Speaker 4: you think of that challenge from MWS, is he just

531
00:26:55,080 --> 00:26:59,119
Speaker 4: basically building a dossier at this point or what is

532
00:26:59,119 --> 00:26:59,960
Speaker 4: he just trying to build?

533
00:27:00,000 --> 00:27:02,679
Speaker 2: This was a challenge. I didn't think he would or

534
00:27:02,760 --> 00:27:03,320
Speaker 2: should win.

535
00:27:03,400 --> 00:27:06,920
Speaker 1: I think he's just frustrated in clutching at Straws being

536
00:27:07,000 --> 00:27:07,920
Speaker 1: over the season.

537
00:27:09,119 --> 00:27:11,520
Speaker 4: I think he's at the point now where he's saying

538
00:27:11,560 --> 00:27:13,760
Speaker 4: I don't know what it means either, So I'm just

539
00:27:13,760 --> 00:27:16,640
Speaker 4: gonna challenge everyone and maybe I'll get the right guy

540
00:27:16,680 --> 00:27:19,000
Speaker 4: in the right night to think that the way I

541
00:27:19,040 --> 00:27:21,199
Speaker 4: think on it, that might be where his head is.

542
00:27:21,280 --> 00:27:23,959
Speaker 4: But it almost felt like to me last night they

543
00:27:23,960 --> 00:27:27,240
Speaker 4: were going to challenge regardless. They looked so long and

544
00:27:27,320 --> 00:27:30,040
Speaker 4: hard for it. I'm a little surprised the rest let

545
00:27:30,119 --> 00:27:33,560
Speaker 4: him go that long. The opposing coaching staff was really

546
00:27:33,600 --> 00:27:36,280
Speaker 4: getting agitated that they weren't dropping the puck fast enough.

547
00:27:36,560 --> 00:27:39,280
Speaker 4: They finally decided to do it. And you know, we

548
00:27:39,320 --> 00:27:41,560
Speaker 4: can get conspiracy theory on it or not if this

549
00:27:41,680 --> 00:27:43,840
Speaker 4: is just a rookie coach being brought through the wringer,

550
00:27:43,920 --> 00:27:46,119
Speaker 4: But that one I didn't think that had a chance

551
00:27:46,160 --> 00:27:48,639
Speaker 4: to win. I know Borky and Josh and the broadcast

552
00:27:48,680 --> 00:27:51,199
Speaker 4: sort of talk themselves into seeing it. I know what

553
00:27:51,240 --> 00:27:53,960
Speaker 4: they were looking at. I know it was similar to

554
00:27:54,080 --> 00:27:56,399
Speaker 4: the last one that didn't go their way. But I

555
00:27:56,440 --> 00:27:58,600
Speaker 4: swear Mark that's what they're doing at this point. They're

556
00:27:58,640 --> 00:28:00,600
Speaker 4: just building a case of the off season to make

557
00:28:00,640 --> 00:28:02,800
Speaker 4: a big bitch about it and say this is how

558
00:28:02,800 --> 00:28:04,840
Speaker 4: you got to fix it and why and you know,

559
00:28:04,880 --> 00:28:06,040
Speaker 4: if you get you have to go on a power

560
00:28:06,080 --> 00:28:08,199
Speaker 4: player or PK after that, fine, so be it. But

561
00:28:08,840 --> 00:28:10,400
Speaker 4: in the luck of the draw off they get one

562
00:28:10,440 --> 00:28:12,600
Speaker 4: taken off the board. I think that's what he's fishing for.

563
00:28:13,200 --> 00:28:15,520
Speaker 1: Well, the Penguins make the playoffs or not, and you

564
00:28:15,600 --> 00:28:17,439
Speaker 1: better win at Queen's on Monday.

565
00:28:18,240 --> 00:28:21,719
Speaker 4: Yeah, I keep saying that they will. I just I

566
00:28:21,760 --> 00:28:25,040
Speaker 4: still have questions about the Islanders and the Blue Jackets

567
00:28:25,160 --> 00:28:28,560
Speaker 4: enough that I feel like the Penguins can slip in there.

568
00:28:28,680 --> 00:28:31,080
Speaker 4: I was not counting on a second injury for Sid though.

569
00:28:31,600 --> 00:28:34,520
Speaker 4: If it's short term, then yeah, they make it muddle

570
00:28:34,600 --> 00:28:38,440
Speaker 4: through these next four get I don't know if they

571
00:28:38,480 --> 00:28:43,600
Speaker 4: can six points out of it, and then from there

572
00:28:44,120 --> 00:28:47,680
Speaker 4: they got Florida, Washington twice in Saint Louis. If they

573
00:28:47,720 --> 00:28:50,160
Speaker 4: can keep themselves within shouting this and at least within

574
00:28:50,160 --> 00:28:52,640
Speaker 4: the wild card picture coming out of these next four games,

575
00:28:53,560 --> 00:28:55,440
Speaker 4: maybe even just get five points out of these next

576
00:28:55,520 --> 00:28:58,360
Speaker 4: four games. Clean up after that. When you face teams

577
00:28:58,400 --> 00:29:00,520
Speaker 4: that aren't in the playoff race anymore, you can finish

578
00:29:00,560 --> 00:29:03,080
Speaker 4: strong and if you if you fall after this week

579
00:29:03,120 --> 00:29:05,320
Speaker 4: behind the pace, you can catch back up. But I

580
00:29:05,360 --> 00:29:06,280
Speaker 4: do think they make it.

581
00:29:06,800 --> 00:29:09,000
Speaker 1: Tim great Stuff will talk to you on the podcast

582
00:29:09,040 --> 00:29:09,680
Speaker 1: over the weekend.

583
00:29:10,320 --> 00:29:12,320
Speaker 2: You got it our Thanks, that's Tim Bens.

584
00:29:12,320 --> 00:29:15,760
Speaker 1: Don't forget I'll do a podcast with timftrib live dot com.

585
00:29:16,120 --> 00:29:18,440
Speaker 1: We tape it every Sunday night and it gets out

586
00:29:18,480 --> 00:29:21,200
Speaker 1: there every Monday morning. Then Tim and I also on

587
00:29:21,240 --> 00:29:25,000
Speaker 1: Facebook Live Monday mornings. Actually the podcast might get posted

588
00:29:25,040 --> 00:29:30,880
Speaker 1: Sunday night anyway, just listen to it. Up next, we

589
00:29:30,960 --> 00:29:35,440
Speaker 1: are gonna hear from Bob Costas about the well I

590
00:29:35,440 --> 00:29:38,400
Speaker 1: don't think it's a controversy, but the IOC is not

591
00:29:38,480 --> 00:29:42,240
Speaker 1: going to let trans women compete against biological women in

592
00:29:42,280 --> 00:29:42,920
Speaker 1: the Olympics.

593
00:29:43,080 --> 00:29:46,080
Speaker 2: One five to nine.

594
00:29:45,800 --> 00:29:48,000
Speaker 1: Segment brought to us by the Steelers Pro Shop. Get

595
00:29:48,000 --> 00:29:51,400
Speaker 1: it direct from the team at shop dot Steelers dot com.

596
00:29:51,640 --> 00:29:54,040
Speaker 1: Wyt to know what you do with O'Neil Cruz after

597
00:29:54,080 --> 00:29:58,440
Speaker 1: he botched the game, lost the game yesterday Chase Skens

598
00:29:59,240 --> 00:30:02,200
Speaker 1: in the first day it weren't the Mets the Chase Skens,

599
00:30:02,240 --> 00:30:05,880
Speaker 1: it was O'Neal cruise in him blotching things up in

600
00:30:05,960 --> 00:30:09,000
Speaker 1: the field. Also, are the Penguins gonna make the playoffs?

601
00:30:09,080 --> 00:30:13,080
Speaker 1: Quite an inspirational win last night. I'm fired up about it,

602
00:30:13,080 --> 00:30:14,840
Speaker 1: but not too many people have wanted to talk about

603
00:30:14,880 --> 00:30:17,240
Speaker 1: it today. We've mostly been stuck on O'Neal cruise. So

604
00:30:18,160 --> 00:30:21,760
Speaker 1: either topic dial eight three three four one two w XDX. Also,

605
00:30:21,840 --> 00:30:25,160
Speaker 1: we have breaking news on Tiger Woods that we'll get

606
00:30:25,160 --> 00:30:27,560
Speaker 1: to just around the corner. But he was in a

607
00:30:27,680 --> 00:30:34,760
Speaker 1: car wreck. Here's Paul Skeen's talking after the game in

608
00:30:34,800 --> 00:30:37,280
Speaker 1: the wake of that cruise fuel disaster.

609
00:30:38,920 --> 00:30:41,080
Speaker 7: You gotta look at it for what it is. You know,

610
00:30:41,120 --> 00:30:46,680
Speaker 7: there wasn't a ton of hard contact. Leadoff walk is

611
00:30:46,720 --> 00:30:53,120
Speaker 7: not great, but yeah, you know some balls landed the

612
00:30:53,240 --> 00:30:59,680
Speaker 7: or you know, the Polanco ground ball, you know stuff

613
00:30:59,680 --> 00:31:05,480
Speaker 7: like that. So it's just you know, the it's like

614
00:31:05,520 --> 00:31:09,400
Speaker 7: the batting average on balls and play thing. I was

615
00:31:09,440 --> 00:31:12,160
Speaker 7: super high at a and that'll go down as the

616
00:31:12,200 --> 00:31:12,920
Speaker 7: season goes on.

617
00:31:14,600 --> 00:31:16,520
Speaker 1: That's the right thing for Skeens to say, even though

618
00:31:16,560 --> 00:31:18,680
Speaker 1: I didn't understand a lot of what he said.

619
00:31:19,480 --> 00:31:21,520
Speaker 2: You got to shower that game off and move on.

620
00:31:21,640 --> 00:31:26,000
Speaker 1: But Skeens wasn't overwhelming or even very good, and he

621
00:31:26,120 --> 00:31:29,160
Speaker 1: was very evidently rattled all the way Cruise played.

622
00:31:29,800 --> 00:31:30,680
Speaker 2: I don't blame him.

623
00:31:31,800 --> 00:31:33,840
Speaker 1: I kind of think that Skeen showed up for a

624
00:31:33,880 --> 00:31:39,280
Speaker 1: coronation and not a competition, for a storybook type thing,

625
00:31:39,360 --> 00:31:43,040
Speaker 1: and an evil demon showed up in center field to

626
00:31:43,160 --> 00:31:48,320
Speaker 1: ruin the fairy tale. Skeans is gonna be great, but

627
00:31:48,360 --> 00:31:53,800
Speaker 1: if you strike guys out, Cruise can't f up fly balls.

628
00:31:55,480 --> 00:32:00,440
Speaker 1: The International Olympic Committee will not let trans women compete

629
00:32:00,720 --> 00:32:04,280
Speaker 1: at the Olympics against biological women. I agree with that,

630
00:32:04,360 --> 00:32:06,200
Speaker 1: and Bob Costas does too.

631
00:32:07,720 --> 00:32:12,280
Speaker 8: There are people who use this issue cynically for political purposes,

632
00:32:12,600 --> 00:32:15,960
Speaker 8: and they're demonizing people who happen to be trans, who

633
00:32:16,000 --> 00:32:20,560
Speaker 8: should be treated with respect and dignity and understanding. However,

634
00:32:21,520 --> 00:32:25,520
Speaker 8: common sense is not transphobic. There's a reason why the

635
00:32:25,600 --> 00:32:29,760
Speaker 8: high school champions don't compete with the college champions. There

636
00:32:29,800 --> 00:32:33,640
Speaker 8: is a reason why no transman who was once a

637
00:32:33,680 --> 00:32:37,400
Speaker 8: woman and has become a man has ever competed successfully

638
00:32:37,800 --> 00:32:41,560
Speaker 8: with men in the Olympics. If Caitlin Clark could play

639
00:32:41,560 --> 00:32:43,560
Speaker 8: in the NBA everybody would applaud it.

640
00:32:43,600 --> 00:32:44,840
Speaker 2: That'd be an incredible thing.

641
00:32:45,120 --> 00:32:46,840
Speaker 8: But if the last guy on the bench of an

642
00:32:46,920 --> 00:32:49,920
Speaker 8: NBA team went to the WNBA and started averaging forty

643
00:32:49,960 --> 00:32:53,000
Speaker 8: points a game, everyone would know that is bs.

644
00:32:55,440 --> 00:33:00,160
Speaker 1: That's one hundred percent brilliant. By costas the perfect thing

645
00:33:00,280 --> 00:33:04,760
Speaker 1: to say. It's all about fair. That's the operative word

646
00:33:04,920 --> 00:33:06,080
Speaker 1: in sports.

647
00:33:06,160 --> 00:33:06,520
Speaker 2: Fair.

648
00:33:07,240 --> 00:33:11,320
Speaker 1: And if a man competed in the WNBA and dominated, well,

649
00:33:11,400 --> 00:33:15,600
Speaker 1: that would never be loued. The sexes are not equal

650
00:33:15,720 --> 00:33:19,959
Speaker 1: physically because genetics don't dictate. And let's not pretend like

651
00:33:20,040 --> 00:33:26,440
Speaker 1: costas said for the sake of agendas and politicizing. That said,

652
00:33:26,480 --> 00:33:29,440
Speaker 1: every female athlete could kick my ass in just about

653
00:33:29,440 --> 00:33:35,000
Speaker 1: everything now and back way when I was in my prime,

654
00:33:35,080 --> 00:33:39,520
Speaker 1: to use that term loosely. That segment brought to us

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Speaker 1: by shop dot Steelers dot Com. We got John Perata

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Speaker 1: talking about cruise at the bottom of the hour. Right now,

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Speaker 1: I want to know what should the Pirates do with

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Speaker 1: O'Neal Cruz will review the options, and I want Penguin talk.

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Speaker 2: Are they gonna make it?

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Speaker 1: Dallas and time tomorrow? What a win last night eight

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Speaker 1: three three four one two w xdx

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Speaker 4: I mu