Bat Flips And Nerds

Twins lefty Mitch Horacek joins to chat about the plight of minor league baseball players during COVID. During a candid conversation he discusses the need for union representation in the minors, goes into the moral conundrum of 'staying ready' for a spot on a COVID hit team, and talks about his own diversification into the world of web development to get by.

This is a fascinating, and pretty heartbreaking listen.

You can find Mitch and Anthony Shew's web design company 'In the Zone' at https://inthezone.dev/

MLBPA certified agent Joshua Kusnick joins to offer his perspective on whether the season should/will go ahead, the stagnation of the free agent market, the impact on his client Carlos Asuaje and the systemic racism across baseball as a sport, viewed from his perspective having represented high-profile black players such as Michael Brantley, Lorenzo Cain and Jeremy Jeffress.

In the first of a series profiling those in key baseball roles ahead of a season unlike any other, C. Trent Rosecrans of The Athletic Cincinnati joins us to talk about how the job of reporting might be changed forever by COVID-19 and the MLB's approach to baseball in 2020. In a wide-ranging, and thoughtful chat he considers the parallels between open access clubhouses in MLB and the Premier League, the impact of 'player led' media products, and the Black Lives Matter movement on his work. We also touch on how and whether a 60 game sprint helps out the Reds.

Play-by-play announcer Jason Benetti joins Russell and Darius to talk about the role of the broadcaster, calling KBO games from his living room, the prospects of the White Sox and a 2020 MLB season, and how a tuba got him into broadcasting.

Darius, John and Rob attempt to untangle the moral conundrum that will be the 2020 MLB season. Will it even happen? Does anyone care? What happens if a key player pulls out? Who'll spring surprises? And most importantly - should they have done Baseball Big Brother instead?

Veteran of over 150 Big League games with six clubs, and current KBO ace with the Lotte Giants, Dan Straily joins John and Russ to chat about his career - including the impact of coaches and front office figures such as Gil Paterson, Brent Strom and Dick Williams - and his decision to head to the KBO. Dan shares awesome insights on sharing the clubhouse with Joey Votto, Brandon Phillips, Christian Yelich and Giancarlo Stanton, and on how Driveline rebuilt his career.

Former Padres pitcher and coach, and current pitching coach for the Adelaide Giants of ABL, Josh Spence joins us to chat about the opportunities of college baseball, winning the College World Series with Arizona State, turning down a $1m signing bonus and getting out his idol - Chipper Jones - on MLB debut.

Alex Fast of Pitcher List joins Russell and Darius to discuss the site's recent PitchCon event, diversity in fantasy baseball, how to analyse pitching, shifting attention to the KBO, and much more.

Current Melbourne Aces coach and LA Dodgers scouting co-ordinator joins Russell to chat about his time helming Team Australia to Olympic silver, the cultural differences between US and Japanese baseball and signing Daisuke to the Red Sox.

Former Miami Marlin, St Louis Cardinal and NC Dino Xavier Scruggs joins John to chat about the Cardinals Way, playing on a Marlins roster up close to Ichiro, Bonds, Yelich, Stanton and Jose Fernandez, and the impact of GB coach Liam Carroll on his pro career.

They also discuss his new venture, Xtraordinary Athletes, which taps into the hidden skills and knowledge of his fellow pros and discuss an odd time in baseball - from minor league pay to Black Lives Matter - and what his fellow players, and we as fans, can do to help.