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Speaker 1: These crazy things happen. You've got to give Brandon Hyde

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Speaker 1: and Rockerball Delli and a few others a little more time.

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Speaker 2: All right, we're getting ready to join be joined by

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Speaker 2: Tim Kirchen, the Great Tim Kirchen, who I don't know

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Speaker 2: that there's anybody that loves this beautiful sport of ours

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Speaker 2: more than Tim. And at anytime he starts to laugh,

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Speaker 2: it just makes me laugh because his laugh is infectious,

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Speaker 2: his knowledge is unbelievable. He's one of the good ones

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Speaker 2: out there. The twenty twenty two BBWAA Career Excellence Award

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Speaker 2: winner Analyst of course for ESPN, author of three books,

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Speaker 2: and the host with his son the great? Is it

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Speaker 2: a great game or what?

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Speaker 1: With his son?

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Speaker 2: I love it, Tim Kirchin, Welcome to the show. The

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Speaker 2: backwards hat just like krats. I'm not sure what we're

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Speaker 2: doing with this, look like look at you and AJ

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Speaker 2: and I love it.

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Speaker 3: Tim, Tim, you got to work for Fox to wear this.

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Speaker 3: You can't.

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Speaker 4: ESPN doesn't allow you to wear your hat backwards. You

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Speaker 4: have to work for Fox to wear your hat back

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Speaker 4: Just saying.

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Speaker 1: I am sixty eight years old and I can honestly

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Speaker 1: say this is the first time I have ever worn

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Speaker 1: a hat backwards in my life, but I did it

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Speaker 1: as a tribute to AJ and to Cratzy here, and

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Speaker 1: I look ridiculous in it, so I'm going to take

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Speaker 1: it off now. By the way, this is my WJ

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Speaker 1: hat Walter Johnson High School. That's where I went to

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Speaker 1: high school in Bethesda, Maryland, named after the greatest pitcher

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Speaker 1: of all time. If you can see, I'm also wearing

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Speaker 1: my Walter Johnson Flees pullover. It's eighty five degrees today,

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Speaker 1: but I just wanted to be a part of the show,

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Speaker 1: so I wore my hat backwards. It will never happen again.

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Speaker 5: Is wearing your hat? Is wearing your hat backwards disrespectful?

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Speaker 1: No, it's not. It's that my forehead looks like a

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Speaker 1: five head now because I've got so old, and by

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Speaker 1: wearing a hat backwards, I might lose even more hair.

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Speaker 1: It's the only reason I don't listen. You gotta be cool.

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Speaker 1: You have to be cool to wear your hat backwards.

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Speaker 1: And you guys are really cool, hon, It's really cool.

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Speaker 1: I'm the least cool guy in the whole world. I'm

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Speaker 1: so square, I'm divisible by four, so I'm out of

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Speaker 1: the conversation. When it comes to that, I think.

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Speaker 2: You're one of the coolest guys I know, Tim, I

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Speaker 2: really do. I love your infectious joy for the game,

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Speaker 2: and I love the fact that you're doing this pod

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Speaker 2: with your son. Great game or what what made you?

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Speaker 2: As you say, you're an old school guy, not cool,

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Speaker 2: but you're into the podcast game and you're doing it

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Speaker 2: with your boy. What have you enjoyed about that?

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Speaker 1: Well, it's been great because it's a baseball podcast. But

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Speaker 1: my son, Jeff, doesn't know that much about baseball, which

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Speaker 1: is great because I don't know anything about anything else

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Speaker 1: other than basketball and sitcoms from the sixties. So any

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Speaker 1: sort of pop culture, musical reference, anything that where you

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Speaker 1: have to fix something, anything that's really cool. He can

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Speaker 1: answer all of the questions and if they ask me

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Speaker 1: a baseball question, hopefully I can answer that. Also, he

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Speaker 1: is a wizard a magician at technology, so and I'm

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Speaker 1: the worst of all time at that. So when something

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Speaker 1: goes wrong, I drive to Philadelphia almost every week to

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Speaker 1: tape the podcast just so I'm in the same room

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Speaker 1: with him. In case something goes wrong with the technology,

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Speaker 1: he can fix it. There is no scarier feeling for

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Speaker 1: me to be five foot four and a half and

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Speaker 1: something goes wrong with the technology at.

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Speaker 5: Home, and you're so close to my house when you

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Speaker 5: get there too, So sometime we're going to have to

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Speaker 5: have lunch. That's fair.

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Speaker 1: No, no, it's already planned, Kratsey. You are coming to

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Speaker 1: skip back to my son's basement. We are going to

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Speaker 1: do a podcast in person, the three of us, and

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Speaker 1: it's going to be a blast because you live like

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Speaker 1: ten minutes from where my son lives.

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Speaker 5: It's great, I do And if something goes wrong with

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Speaker 5: your phone, we'll make sure it's taken care of. What

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Speaker 5: are you watching right now? What do you see? What

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Speaker 5: do you like in the game right now? That's going

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Speaker 5: on this season, the short short you know, twenty twenty

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Speaker 5: five games that they've played so far.

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Speaker 1: Well as always, my favorite thing about baseball is this

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Speaker 1: ridiculous unpredictability. Just look at all the bizarre things that

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Speaker 1: have already happened, all the first time things that have

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Speaker 1: already happened. Just this is a tiny thing, but this

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Speaker 1: just happened. The other night. Ben Rice hit a lead

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Speaker 1: off home run for the Yankees, So he's the fourth

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Speaker 1: different Yankee this year to hit a lead off homer

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Speaker 1: in a game. No team has ever had four of

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Speaker 1: those guys do it before the month of May, but

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Speaker 1: the Yankees did it. And about a hundred other things

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Speaker 1: have happened this year that just make you slap your forehead, like,

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Speaker 1: how in the world did that happen? How can so

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Speaker 1: and so team be this good? How can the Orioles

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Speaker 1: be six games under five? This is why baseball is

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Speaker 1: so beautiful. Is it's too good to be predicted. Just

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Speaker 1: when we think we understand what's going on, we recognize

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Speaker 1: that we don't, because that's the way the game demands it.

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Speaker 4: Tim, I saw a thing speaking of that, who's the

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Speaker 4: guy that has broken up eighty one no hitters with

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Speaker 4: a home run?

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Speaker 3: You should know this answer.

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Speaker 1: The guy that has broken up eighty one different no

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Speaker 1: hitters with a home Runju, this is a trick question.

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Speaker 1: It has to be.

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Speaker 3: Yes, thank you. I figured you would get that like that.

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Speaker 1: Come on, that was very good, aj I didn't think

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Speaker 1: your mind worked like that. Yes, he led us the

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Speaker 1: game with a home run eighty I believe it's eighty

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Speaker 1: two different times. Not the point, but yes, you're absolutely right. Gosh,

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Speaker 1: what again? Stumped by you? Is a really bad day.

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Speaker 1: Very very good. I'm very apprised.

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Speaker 4: I'm gonna tell Rosenthal you said. I'm gonna clip that

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Speaker 4: and just send it to Rosenthal and repeat thank you.

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Speaker 4: By the way, I can't take cred of it. I

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Speaker 4: saw it on Twitter X whatever it's called this morning.

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Speaker 4: I do I do want to ask you. We were

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Speaker 4: talking before you came on about managers on the hot

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Speaker 4: seat Rockoball Deli and Brendon Hyde and some other guys.

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Speaker 4: What do you think about this? It's too early to

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Speaker 4: be talking about this. I know it's a conversation, but

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Speaker 4: isn't it too early to be talking about this?

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Speaker 1: Yeah, this is probably my least favorite question that I'm

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Speaker 1: ever asked. Who's on the hot seat?

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Speaker 3: We are?

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Speaker 1: We haven't even gotten to May yet. Yes, the Orioles

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Speaker 1: have underachieved terribly, as have the Twins. But for us

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Speaker 1: to come out and say you got to get rid

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Speaker 1: of the manager when the Orioles haven't won a game

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Speaker 1: in which they've scored fewer than five runs this year,

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Speaker 1: they're the only team that hasn't done that. They have

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Speaker 1: significant injuries to their starting pitching. They have a subpar

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Speaker 1: offensive team, which should not be the case, and I'm

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Speaker 1: just I just don't feel comfortable blaming the manager for

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Speaker 1: stuff like that. But we do it all the time,

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Speaker 1: So I'm with you, guys. It's way too early to

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Speaker 1: say gotta make a change in Baltimore, got to make

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Speaker 1: a change in Minnesota. You gotta give them a chance.

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Speaker 1: Look at the Tigers last year. They weren't even a

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Speaker 1: contender until the middle of August and they won a

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Speaker 1: playoff series. Strange things can happen that you know. Remember

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Speaker 1: that the Nationals in twenty nineteen started out nineteen and

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Speaker 1: thirty one and they won the World Series. These crazy

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Speaker 1: things happen. You gotta give Brandon Hyde and Rockaball Delli

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Speaker 1: and a few others a little more time.

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Speaker 6: Alana.

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Speaker 7: We love our pupps dearly, and we want to shout

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Speaker 7: out Spot and Tango for taking care of our pupps

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Speaker 7: with their unkibble. They are a game changer.

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Speaker 2: A game changer is right, Scott. And you know anything

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Speaker 2: about me, You know that I love dogs and I

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Speaker 2: want them to live forever. My own rescue pup, Bentley,

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Speaker 2: is my passion and she loves Spot and Tango. Thank goodness,

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Speaker 2: it's one hundred percent human. Great ingredients, so you know

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Speaker 2: exactly what your dog is getting. Oftentimes, in other forms

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Speaker 2: of dog food, you have no idea what's in it.

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Speaker 2: It's a bunch of fillers. She loves it. It helps

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Speaker 2: keep her healthy. It's perfectly customized for her age, her breed,

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Speaker 2: her weight, and her level of activity. Makes me happy

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Speaker 2: to give it to her.

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Speaker 7: Hey, and you can upgrade your pets bowl with spot

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Speaker 7: Entango on kibble for a limited time. Go to spotantango

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Speaker 7: dot com slash foul, use code foul to get fifty

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Speaker 7: five oh percent off your first order. That is, spotantango

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Speaker 7: dot com slash foul, code foul to get fifty percent

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Speaker 7: off your first order. One more time for the pups

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Speaker 7: out there. Codefoul at spotantango dot com slash foul.

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Speaker 5: All right, you like crazy things? Can you believe? And

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Speaker 5: what do you think of it? That we've been playing

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Speaker 5: not one, but two minor league stadiums in Major League

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Speaker 5: Baseball this year?

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Speaker 1: You know, twenty years ago, Bud Ceiling, the General, i mean,

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Speaker 1: the Commissioner of Baseball told me we've got to do

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Speaker 1: something about Tampa Bay and Oakland.

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Speaker 3: We have to.

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Speaker 1: That was twenty years ago, and here it is twenty

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Speaker 1: years later and we're still not sure what to do

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Speaker 1: with the A's and the Rays. Let's hope the A's

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Speaker 1: will play three years in Sacramento and have a seamless

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Speaker 1: transition and be a really effective team and a good

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Speaker 1: team in Las Vegas, but we're not one hundred percent

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Speaker 1: sure that's gonna happen, and we have to be we

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Speaker 1: have to get a game plan for the Rays. And

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Speaker 1: this thought of us expanding right now, it just doesn't

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Speaker 1: make any sense to me, not until we solidify where

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Speaker 1: the Rays and where the A's are playing and make

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Speaker 1: sure they are a you know, franchises that are going

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Speaker 1: to work, before we do anything else. It is bizarre

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Speaker 1: that we're playing not one, but two teams in a

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Speaker 1: minor league ballpark almost every night, and it's hard.

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Speaker 2: To see empty stadiums in terms of fan bases there too,

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Speaker 2: tim with the A's and of the Rays where they

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Speaker 2: don't have that problems home with the me and home

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Speaker 2: with the Padres. Why are those two teams right now,

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Speaker 2: with the start that they've gotten off to, why are

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Speaker 2: they believable? And is this sustainable for both of those clubs?

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Speaker 1: Yeah, both are sustainable. Both are believable. Look, this is

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Speaker 1: not a great start by the Mets. The Mets have

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Speaker 1: been really good basically since June last year. I covered

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Speaker 1: that game in England last year when they won on

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Speaker 1: that bizarre two to three double play where Luis Trenz

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Speaker 1: touched home, played through to first for the double play

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Speaker 1: to end a one run game. That play had never

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Speaker 1: happened in the history of baseball. Not even AJ made

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Speaker 1: a play like that in a in the last out,

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Speaker 1: last two outs of a game. There is something special

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Speaker 1: going on with the Mets. I sensed it, believe it

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Speaker 1: or not. When I was in England, I said, this

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Speaker 1: team stinks and they have it togetherness that I'm not

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Speaker 1: sure I've ever seen for a team that is bad.

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Speaker 1: When they won that game, they picked up steam. They

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Speaker 1: played great down the stretch. They were amazing in October.

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Speaker 1: So they're believable. And they haven't even started to hit yet.

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Speaker 1: I mean, other than the leadoff guy and the cleanup guy.

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Speaker 1: And I'm amazed. They're starting pitching as bit as good

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Speaker 1: as it's been, so I'm not sure that's going to

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Speaker 1: continue in the rotation. They got to get some people healthy.

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Speaker 6: As for the Padres, they got seven shutouts. They're the

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Speaker 6: first team ever to have seven shutouts before the month

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Speaker 6: of May. Look at their bullpen, the power arms that

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Speaker 6: they pour out of that pen, and look at the

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Speaker 6: talented everyday lineup that they have, and wait till Jackson

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Speaker 6: Merrill who gets back one hundred percent.

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Speaker 1: They are both sustainable. They are both exceptionally dangerous teams.

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Speaker 4: Tim I was in London last year also, and I

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Speaker 4: saw Philly hammer on the day before. So why can't

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Speaker 4: Philly be hot? Why has it got your Mets Homer?

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Speaker 4: I get it, that's cool. But is this their window?

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Speaker 4: Is this their window for Philly? Is it closing because

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Speaker 4: Sharver free agent, Real Muto free agent, another y're on Nola,

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Speaker 4: another y're on Wheeler? Is this their window? Do they

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Speaker 4: have to get it done this year? Because is it

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Speaker 4: kind of shrinking a little bit?

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Speaker 1: It is shrinking, no doubt. But you can't say if

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Speaker 1: they don't win this year, that's it, They're done. But yes,

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Speaker 1: the Phillies are really good. When I went into when

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Speaker 1: I looked at the standings going in, I said, the

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Speaker 1: Phillies have the second best team in baseball to the Dodgers.

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Speaker 1: And I think at the end of the year. I'm

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Speaker 1: going to be thinking the same way that rotation is

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Speaker 1: tremendous as soon as Aaron Nola gets things figured out,

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Speaker 1: which he will. But yes, the Phillies recognized we've been

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Speaker 1: a disappointment a bit in the last couple of years.

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Speaker 1: It's time to go, and I fully expect them to

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Speaker 1: be a really good offensive team. And very few teams

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Speaker 1: pitch better out of the rotation than the Phillies did.

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Speaker 5: How about the Braves. Have they just not gotten their

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Speaker 5: shipment of torpedo bats yet? Is that their issue?

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Speaker 1: Well, that's gonna have to happen now they've finally gotten

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Speaker 1: hot here. There's absolutely no way they were going to

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Speaker 1: struggle that badly. But they got their work cut out

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Speaker 1: for them in a division of cour with the Mets

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Speaker 1: and the Phillies. The ron Lecunya news is not great

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Speaker 1: that we're not sure when he's coming back and what's

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Speaker 1: he gonna be Like Specer Stryder comes back, throws one

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Speaker 1: hundred and then goes back on the injured list. That

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Speaker 1: wasn't a good sign. But I refuse to give up

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Speaker 1: on the Braves this early because I've seen them bounce

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Speaker 1: back from other adversity and be really good. I expect

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Speaker 1: them to be really close, if not a playoff team

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Speaker 1: at the end of the year.

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Speaker 2: Tim I never cut out the Braves, and nobody obviously

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Speaker 2: counts out the Los Angeles Dodgers. Last year they won

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Speaker 2: the World Series piecemealing together a starting rotation. This year,

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Speaker 2: I thought they had more depth than the starting rotation,

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Speaker 2: but they've scuffled as of late. Lake Snell's not coming

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Speaker 2: back for a time. Obviously, Kershaw's coming back. Gonsolin will

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Speaker 2: come back. Do they have enough depth? I know that

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Speaker 2: sounds silly with the payroll and the signings, but do

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Speaker 2: they have enough to repeat?

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Speaker 1: I think they do. I would take the field because

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Speaker 1: I think there are that many good teams, especially in

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Speaker 1: the National League. But if you're asked me, who do

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Speaker 1: I think is the best team in baseball and will

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Speaker 1: be the best team in October? I think it will

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Speaker 1: be the Dodgers. But you're right along, and we already

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Speaker 1: have an injury to a top flight starting pitcher and

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Speaker 1: not let's not forget in the l In the NLCS

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Speaker 1: last year, they used an opener twice, and then they

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Speaker 1: used an opener once in the World Series, and they

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Speaker 1: still won, which is amazing. If they can get everyone

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Speaker 1: healthy in that rotation, they are going to be a absolute

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Speaker 1: nightmare for most teams in October. And the depth in

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Speaker 1: their in their everyday lineup is is just as good

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Speaker 1: as as it is in their starting rotation when everyone

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Speaker 1: is right.

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Speaker 3: Tim who has more.

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Speaker 4: Knowledge numbers you or audities, maybe you or Jason Stark.

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Speaker 1: Uh Well, Jason Starr taught me where to look now,

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Speaker 1: truth be told, I was looking for this stuff when

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Speaker 1: I was eight years old. That's how clueless of a

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Speaker 1: young kid I was. I had like two things in

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Speaker 1: the world I was interested in, so I was coming

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Speaker 1: up with the all food team and the All money

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Speaker 1: team when I was in junior high school. Jason is

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Speaker 1: the best I've ever seen at it. He taught me

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Speaker 1: where to look and how to find things. I've gotten

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Speaker 1: pretty good at it because I love all the stupid, quirky,

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Speaker 1: funny things that happened, all the pointless, useless things that happened.

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Speaker 1: But he's the best ever, and he taught me how

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Speaker 1: to do it as well as anyone could.

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Speaker 3: Who went in the Hall of Fame first or sorry,

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Speaker 3: the Career Excellence Award you.

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Speaker 1: Jason went in first, as he should have, and I

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Speaker 1: mentioned him in my Hall of Fame speech along with

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Speaker 1: Dan Shaughnessy and Peter Gammons, because those were the three

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Speaker 1: biggest mentors among the many mentors that I had in

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Speaker 1: the business.

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Speaker 4: Is that the biggest hold on you is that the

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Speaker 4: biggest award as a writer for baseball writer is that award?

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Speaker 1: Yeah? Of course, So if I may tell you a story.

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Speaker 1: So I won the award, and the next morning, Johnny Bench,

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Speaker 1: Johnny Bench, the greatest catcher of all time, called me

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Speaker 1: on the phone to congratulate me. He said, congratulations, Tim,

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Speaker 1: welcome to the club. You're one of us now. And

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Speaker 1: I almost started to cry again. And then he said, Tim,

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Speaker 1: you know it's moments like this that bring you back

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Speaker 1: to Little League. And now I'm ready to just cry

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Speaker 1: out loud, and he says, and let's face it, Tim,

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Speaker 1: you could still fit into a Little League uniform. Thanks

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Speaker 1: a lot, Johnny, good talking to you. I appreciate the call. Yes,

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Speaker 1: it was the biggest scrill of my of my professional life.

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Speaker 1: There will not be a close second. Although working with

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Speaker 1: my son on this podcast has been really, really cool

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Speaker 1: and really special.

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Speaker 5: That is an unbelievable story that he's still added the

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Speaker 5: jab in there at the end when he almost had

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Speaker 5: you at tears. So I'm gonna add a I'm going

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Speaker 5: to add a jab in. We were talking about good

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Speaker 5: tear Tames. Let's talk about the Marlins. They're close to

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Speaker 5: five hundred team and they don't want to be The

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Speaker 5: front office does not want to win. What do you

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Speaker 5: see happening with the future of this team this season?

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Speaker 5: Considering if al Contra gets better and he starts to

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Speaker 5: pitch better, he's gonna leave.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, well, it's gonna be a fascinating story there. I'm sorry.

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Speaker 1: I just don't see this keeping up and then being

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Speaker 1: an above five hundred team and a contending team for

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Speaker 1: the whole season. So they may take the ace and

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Speaker 1: deal him because they're gonna get a king's ransom for

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Speaker 1: him right now, because he's still really good and now's

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Speaker 1: the time to deal him. But it's gonna be really

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Speaker 1: interesting if they continue to win, how are they gonna

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Speaker 1: justify trading not only their best pitcher but one of

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Speaker 1: the best pitchers in the game. But if they're in

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Speaker 1: a complete rebuild, which it appears they are, then I

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Speaker 1: think at the end of July the best thing to

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Speaker 1: do would be to trade him, get a absolute haul

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Speaker 1: in return, and continue to rebuild at a very high level.

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Speaker 2: Tim, I just want to before we let you go,

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Speaker 2: I wanted to extend my condolences again for the passing

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Speaker 2: of your brother, obviously who passed of ALS. But I

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Speaker 2: know that you have been so instrumental in ALS awareness,

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Speaker 2: and of course you work with Sarah Langs, who's battling

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Speaker 2: Luke Gyrig's disease right now. So I didn't want to

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Speaker 2: let you go without an opportunity for you to talk

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Speaker 2: about that and in terms of any efforts or a

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Speaker 2: way that we might be able to help you.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, well we're working on it because I'm very much

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Speaker 1: a part of this now. I'll tell you, Cratzy Aj,

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Speaker 1: if you knew my brother, boy boy, you would have

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Speaker 1: loved him. He was such a good college baseball player.

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Speaker 1: He's only a little bit bigger than I was, and

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Speaker 1: the way he played the game all out, weigh one

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Speaker 1: hundred and thirty five pounds major league throwing arm when

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Speaker 1: he was at Catholic. You university guys on their team

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Speaker 1: would tell you if we had nine Matt Kirchins on

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Speaker 1: our team, we'd never lose a game. And they have it.

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Speaker 1: They have an award named after my brother, the Matt

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Speaker 1: Kirchin Ultimate Teammate Award at Catholic University that is awarded

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Speaker 1: to the senior that is the best teammate on the team.

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Speaker 1: So in honor of my brother, whatever it takes to

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Speaker 1: spread the word and to help the cause against this

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Speaker 1: wretched disease, you can count me in. We appreciate that

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Speaker 1: very much.

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Speaker 3: Where's Catholic University.

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Speaker 1: It's in downtown d C. And my two brothers played there.

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Speaker 1: My oldest brother, Andy, a catcher. What position did you

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Speaker 1: guys play? My brother Andy was maybe the best player

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Speaker 1: ever to play at Catholic University, left handed hitting catcher,

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Speaker 1: also major league throwing arms, so become. And my dad

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Speaker 1: was a really good player too. So h baseball family here,

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Speaker 1: Thank goodness. I don't know anything else. That's for sure.

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Speaker 3: The oldest brother, it's clearly the smartest Kirchen brother.

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Speaker 1: By far, the smartest he. I think he got fifteen

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Speaker 1: thousand on his SATs in high school. And my dad

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Speaker 1: used to look at me and my other brother and

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Speaker 1: say he never once said like, what's wrong with you guys?

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Speaker 1: Why aren't you as smart as your older brother? Because

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Speaker 1: he recognized, like right away, we're never going to be

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Speaker 1: as smart as him, as big as him, as good

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Speaker 1: as him, as handsome as him. We were just completely

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Speaker 1: below our oldest brother. But never compare the children in

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Speaker 1: your family, because they're all special on in every certain way.

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Speaker 2: Life lessons from Tim Kirchin. Tim, we appreciate you very much.

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Speaker 2: It's it's always a pleasure getting to talk to you.

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Speaker 2: Thank you very much, all.

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Speaker 1: Right, thanks for letting me me wear my hat backwards.

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Speaker 1: That was horrible.

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Speaker 2: The one knowing Tom, you will see Tim Kirchen in

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Speaker 2: a backward tat.

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Speaker 1: Okay,