Halfway through the season and we’re doing something most shows won’t — holding ourselves accountable live on air.

Joe put himself on the bench… twice.

Edwin got crowned for one of his preseason takes.

And one heated debate had Joe defending his own team while using odds against another.

Full midseason award breakdowns, new picks for the second half, and we read Benchie comments on air.

This is what Benched & Ready does differently. Real picks. Real accountability. No spin.

Three episodes every week. Miss the follow miss the drop.

The youth takeover at the MLB All-Stars is real — 11 players 24 or younger and four rookies stealing the show. But the fan vote vs actual performance divide is getting ridiculous (Vlad and Judge in, more deserving guys left out).

Joe goes hard on private equity firms buying stakes in teams like the Dolphins, Red Sox, and Celtics — saying it’s killing the soul of sports and prioritizing money over the players fans actually love.

Wimbledon is delivering with strong American runs, Djokovic breaking records, and stadiums everywhere randomly singing “Take Me Home, Country Roads” — the clear song of the summer.

Plus the great Joey Chestnut debate: 90% win rate, 66 hot dogs in 10 minutes — is competitive eating a sport and is he a GOAT?

Three episodes every week. Free on Spotify and Apple Podcasts. Miss the follow, miss the drop — hit that button, Benchies!

A 33-year-old with a career worst season hit a 3-run homer off Paul Skenes on his birthday. Third straight game with a home run. The Phillies are 40-19 under Mattingly.

A 53-point game tied TWO all-time WNBA records in one night. And most of America still does not know her name.

Germany just got sent home by the same Paraguay the USMNT beat 4-1 on opening weekend.

A referee ended Balogun's tournament for stepping on a heel. Everyone said it was a yellow at most.

And the Lakers built a team with no depth.

Plus — the Heat vs Celtics offseason debate gets heated. Tyler Herro's Instagram burner account got exposed. Billy the Marlin might actually be the reason Miami is winning. And starting next week we begin tracking every Callback Ammo pick live on air.

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Joe and Edwin unveil the official Benched and Ready NFL QB Tier System for 2026.

Mahomes is Tier 2. Edwin has 9 quarterbacks in Tier 1. Joe has 4. The debate gets heated.

Jalen Hurts apparently speaks like a Taoist monk and it might be ruining the Eagles locker room.

The Browns are on the bench. Again. They will always be on the bench.

Plus the USMNT plays tonight and Tim's comment from Monday sparked a World Cup conversation nobody expected.

Who got the tiers right, Joe or Edwin? Vote on our social media after you listen.

Tim, one of our Benchies, left a comment from Monday’s Headline Heat sparks a full World Cup new-rivalries talk, and the USMNT plays tonight. Joe hopes they drop eight goals.

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The Messi vs Ronaldo World Cup final everyone wanted is almost certainly gone. Portugal finished second in Group K after two scoreless draws and now faces a brutal path through Croatia, Spain, and possibly France or Germany. Argentina, meanwhile, got one of the easiest roads in the tournament. Edwin explains why Portugal looks worse with Ronaldo on the field and why the dream matchup is now a long shot.

The Mets fired manager Carlos Mendoza after a collapse that included six errors in one game and 50 runs allowed in five straight losses. Francisco Lindor did something almost unheard of — he walked to the mic and said, “This falls on us as players. We failed him.”

MLB dropped a wild realignment map for a 32-team league. The Yankees and Mets could end up in the same division. The Cubs and White Sox would share a division for the first time in over 120 years. The Dodgers-Giants rivalry gets restructured. And all of this gets negotiated before the CBA expires in December.

Plus — AJ Dybantsa threw out the first pitch at Fenway while the Red Sox swept the first-place Yankees. Cooper Flagg said his favorite NBA player is Jayson Tatum. Joe is putting it on record: both Massachusetts boys are coming home to Boston by 2030. Edwin called him crazy.

USMNT faces Bosnia in the Round of 32 on July 1st at 8pm ET. Joe thinks they’ll make the semifinals. Edwin says Round of 16.

Bryce Harper went 1-for-22, grabbed a waterlogged 35-ounce bat, and hit for the cycle by the fifth inning. Two days later he pulled Brandon Marsh aside between innings and told him to stop thinking and go be himself. Marsh hit a home run. That is what superstars do.

Ben Rice is carrying the Yankees with Aaron Judge hurt — .293, 22 homers, 53 RBI, 1.004 OPS — and nobody is talking about him because the World Cup took over every conversation. As a Red Sox fan, Joe is deeply annoyed by this. Crown him anyway.

Rafael Devers waved off his own manager's pinch runner with $211 million left on his deal, avoided his coaches, slammed his helmet and went straight to the clubhouse. Eric Byrnes said if he wasn't making $300 million he'd be released. Gone.

Alyssa Thomas dug her fist into Caitlin Clark's throat and stepped over her. No call on the floor. Clark left with a back injury. The Mercury posted a meme mocking Clark afterward and deleted it. One game suspension does not change the result.

And the NBA made Nate Ament wear a Miami Heat hat on draft night for a pick that belonged to Milwaukee. Adam Silver announced the trade right after. It is 2026. Fix the rule.

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The trade is done. Giannis Antetokounmpo is a Miami Heat. Pat Riley cooked again and Edwin has been saying it all season. Joe breaks down exactly why this roster scares him as a Celtics fan and exactly why it is not a title contender as currently constructed.

Giannis and Bam are the most physically dominant frontcourt in basketball. But Norman Powell could be gone. Andrew Wiggins needs to restructure his contract. The Heat are hard capped at the first apron with $18.1 million of space and a bench full of questions.

Then Joe and Edwin react live to the 2026 NBA Draft as the first round unfolds in real time. Every pick broken down — steals, reaches, surprises and the teams that got exactly what they needed. Plus, Jaylen Brown is still available and Boston has no idea what is coming next.

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MLB ownership just proposed banning high school players from the draft entirely cutting rounds from 20 to 12 and slashing the bonus pool from $358 million to $200 million. Mike Trout, Bryce Harper, Ken Griffey Jr. all would have been ineligible under this new proposal. Is this about development or just taking money out of players' hands?

Wyndham Clark wins his second US Open wire-to-wire at Shinnecock Hills while New York cheered his misses all day. Sam Burns started seven shots back and made it a one-stroke thriller. And 17-year-old Miles Russell had his dad caddie the final hole on Father's Day. Clark's response to the crowd — "New York didn't really like me today... I love you guys."

Then the World Cup viral moments taking over the internet, a German fan discovered Waffle House, called Taco Bell the holy land and got invited to the White House. 10,000 Scottish fans in kilts invaded Fenway Park and sang I Will Walk 500 Miles for an entire inning. A duck named Merlin showed up to Mexico City celebrations in a jersey with custom socks. And international fans are filming endless culture shock videos about free soda refills and Buc-ee's bathrooms.

Plus, USMNT vs Turkey Thursday is essentially meaningless. Do you rest the starters or let them play 20 minutes and keep their legs? Joe and Edwin debate.

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40-year-old journeyman goalkeeper nobody had heard of shut out Spain at his first ever World Cup and woke up with 13.9 million Instagram followers. His grandparents who raised him are gone. His mother couldn't afford the visa to be there. Then the US government stepped in and flew her to Miami for the next game. His Instagram bio says — Never forget who you are and where you came from.

Olivia Miles just scored 31 points on 80% shooting — career high — becoming the second rookie in WNBA history to do it. Bleacher Report has her as the number two player in the entire league. As a rookie. Through 15 games. And Edwin says this might be the worst we ever see her.

Messi scored a hat-trick at 38 in what is almost certainly his last World Cup. Someone bet $1.2 million he wouldn't score. He scored three times.

An Argentinian coach who never lived in America came in and taught American players how to be American. Sebastian Berhalter said it best — we're American and we don't take it. The USMNT answered 4-1 against Paraguay.

Plus the Red Sox are offering Scotland fans free drinks to fill Fenway Park. And someone lost $1 million betting on Spain at -1500 against Cape Verde.

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The 2026 NBA Draft is 7 days away and the entire league is in a holding pattern waiting on one man. Brian Windhorst said Giannis is FOCUSED on Miami. But is Pat Riley actually closing this deal — or does Brad Stevens pull off the steal of the decade?

Joe is a Celtics fan. Edwin is a Heat fan. Both have a lot at stake.

Then Joe and Edwin go back and forth one for one on their top 5 draft prospects in one of the deepest classes in years. Dark horses. Trade scenarios ranked most likely to least likely. And each host lays out exactly what they want their team to do before June 23.

Plus — the Chatham Friar asked if Joe was high. The CVS receipt Red Sox pitching debate. Spain drew Cape Verde. And the goalkeeper who went from 55,000 followers to a million in 24 hours.

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