Hang Up and Listen

Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin are joined by Hannah Keyser of Yahoo Sports to talk about the Houston Astros’ World Series triumph. They also discuss LSU’s win over Alabama and the current state of SEC football. Finally, they assess Herschel Walker’s Senate candidacy.

World Series (5:02): How Houston won it all.

SEC football (26:12): Is Alabama on the way down? And what’s going on with Texas A&M?

Herschel Walker (48:46): What’s motivating the former football star’s foray into politics?

Afterball (1:08:35): Joel on what he wishes Deion Sanders would say about Jackson State and HBCUs.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin discuss Kyrie Irving and anti-Semitism. They also talk about the continued rise of Deion Sanders and Jackson State. And Claire Watkins of Just Women’s Sports comes on for a conversation about the championship game of the National Women’s Soccer League.

Kyrie (3:09): Is it finally time for the Brooklyn Nets to get rid of him?

Jackson State (28:09): Will the Prime Effect go away when Coach Prime moves on?

NWSL (47:10): The stardom of Sophia Smith and the future of the league.

Afterball (1:03:05): Stefan on a historic match-up between women soccer coaches.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin are joined by the Ringer’s Ben Lindbergh to talk about the Astros-Phillies World Series. They also discuss the decline of Russell Wilson, and possibly Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers. And they assess whether Adam Silver’s NBA promotion and relegation talk is for real.

World Series (5:35): How are the Astros so consistently good in the randomness of the postseason?

Wilson (28:00): Is Russ cooked?

NBA relegation (47:00): Could it ever happen?

Afterball (1:04:36): Josh on the key to sports fan happiness.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Joel Anderson and Stefan Fatsis are joined by Slate’s Ben Mathis-Lilley to review a crazy weekend in college football. ESPN’s Pablo Torre talks with Joel, Stefan, and Vinson Cunningham of The New Yorker about the new documentary 38 at the Garden on Jeremy Lin’s short but brilliant run with the New York Knicks a decade ago. Finally, Joel, Stefan, and Vinson discuss another new documentary, The Redeem Team, about the 2008 U.S. Olympic men’s basketball team.

College Football (5:25): Alabama vs Tennessee and CFB's explosive offenses.

Linnsanity revisited (28:32): 38 at The Garden. Is Jeremy Lin still underrated?

Redeem Team (49:28): Lebron, Kobe, Wade's quest for gold.

Afterballs (1:09:01): Joel examines which high basketball stars lived up to the hype.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin talk about the Warriors’ Draymond Green punching his teammate Jordan Poole. They also discuss 7-foot-4 basketball phenom Victor Wembanyama. Finally, the Athletic’s Steph Yang joins for a conversation about Sally Yates’ report on abuse in the National Women’s Soccer League.

Warriors (4:59): How should the team handle Draymond’s punch? Is he done in Golden State?

Wembanyama (28:24): Can the 18-year-old Frenchman possibly live up to all this hype?

Soccer abuse (49:09): What we learned from the report and what comes next.

Afterball (1:12:20): Stefan revisits cheating in chess and Scrabble. 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin discuss the fallout from Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa’s concussions. They also talk about Aaron Judge’s quest for the American League home run record. Finally, chess champion and poker pro Jennifer Shahade joins for a conversation about cheating allegations in both sports.

Tua (3:52): Why was he allowed to play after suffering an obvious head injury?

Judge (31:50): Is the Yankees star chasing the “real” home run record?

Chess and poker cheating (54:40): What we know, what we don’t, and what comes next.

Afterball (1:14:06): Josh on the real home run record of 1884.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin discuss the Boston Celtics’ decision to suspend head coach Ime Udoka. They also talk about Roger Federer’s tearful retirement. Finally, Anna Wolfe of Mississippi Today joins for a conversation about Brett Favre and the state’s enormous welfare scandal.

Udoka (4:24): Did the media and the Celtics mishandle the news of his suspension?

Federer (21:01): What makes his relationship with Rafael Nadal so special.

Favre (42:20): How the ex-quarterback got enmeshed in an escalating welfare controversy.

Afterball (1:02:46): Joel on Mississippi, a segregation academy, and a football field.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Josh Levin, Joel Anderson, and the New Yorker’s Vinson Cunningham discuss the NBA’s suspension of Phoenix Suns owner Robert Sarver and Denver Broncos coach Nathaniel Hackett’s bizarre decisions. Finally, Josh and Stefan Fatsis speak with Olympic champion Mark Spitz about the new documentary series 72—A Gathering of Champions.

Robert Sarver (4:07): Should Adam Silver have done more?

Nathaniel Hackett (25:55): What is this coach thinking?

Mark Spitz (45:57): One of the greatest Olympians ever remembers the dizzying highs and brutal lows of the 1972 Summer Games.

Afterball (1:10:40): Vinson on the greatness of Manu Ginobili.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Stefan Fatsis, Josh Levin, and the New Yorker’s Vinson Cunningham discuss the opening weekend of the NFL season and the rise of tennis phenoms Carlos Alcaraz and Iga Swiatek. They’re also joined by Josh Levin (same name, different guy) to discuss how he made the final stage of American Ninja Warrior.

NFL (3:10): The cognitive dissonance of a new season.

Tennis (23:27): Why 19-year-old Carlos Alcaraz looks like a legend in the making.

Josh the Ninja (47:20): How he conquered his Ninja Warrior demons.

Afterball (1:11:07): Josh on notable moments in Knicks message board history.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Josh Levin and Stefan Fatsis speak with Rennae Stubbs of ESPN and Racquet about coaching Serena Williams at the U.S. Open. Alex Kirshner of Slate and Split Zone Duo joins to discuss the start of college football season and the new 12-team playoff. Finally, the New York Times’ Juliet Macur talks about her story on how the Afghan women’s soccer team escaped the Taliban.

Rennae Stubbs (3:24): What she told Serena before and during her grand send-off in New York.

College football (24:22): How the game is changing, and how it’s staying the same.

Afghan women’s soccer team (49:23): The harrowing story of their escape from Kabul.

Afterball (1:11:42): Stefan on American soccer players on rival Scottish teams having the gall to eat dinner together.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.