Hang Up and Listen

Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin are joined by the Washington Post’s Rick Maese to talk about the state of the Maryland football program after DJ Durkin’s firing. Slate’s Nick Greene also joins to discuss Buffalo Bills quarterback Nathan Peterman and Bleacher Report’s Mirin Fader explains why WNBA players opted out of their collective bargaining agreement.

Maryland (1:07): Maryland suspended D.J. Durkin, then reinstated him, then fired him. Rick Maese explains how the process played out and why Durkin ultimately got ousted.

Nathan Peterman (21:18): The Buffalo Bills quarterback is, by some measures, the worst quarterback ever. Why does it bring us so much joy to watch someone who’s so bad at his job?

WNBA (36:25): The world’s best women basketball players want higher salaries and better treatment. Will they get what they’re after given that the WNBA perennially loses money?

Afterballs (54:27): Stefan on why high school football teams are forfeiting games and Josh on UConn football coach Randy Edsall’s bizarre incentive-laden contract.

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Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin are joined by ESPN’s Sam Miller to discuss Boston’s fourth World Series title in 15 years. ESPN’s Dave McMenamin also joins to talk about LeBron and the Lakers, and the Ringer’s Kevin Clark explains why NFL coaches are finally getting aggressive on fourth down.

World Series (3:31): How the Red Sox won a championship, how David Price got vindication, and how Dodgers manager Dave Roberts got criticized for removing Rich Hill from Game 4.

Lakers (21:07): The Lakers are off to a 2-4 start. How is LeBron’s team looking, and what’s the nature of the media scrum around basketball’s biggest star? Plus, why did LeBron’s old team fire its head coach Tyronn Lue?

Aggressive NFL coaches (35:37): How coaches stopped worrying and starting going for it on fourth down and going for two-point conversions with increasing abandon.

Afterballs (54:57): Stefan on the historical significance of Arizona’s Warren Ballpark and Josh on kicker Morten Andersen’s single “Take It to the Top.”

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Stefan Fatsis is joined by Ben Lindbergh of the Ringer and Emma Baccellieri of Sports Illustrated to discuss the baseball playoffs; by author Michael Sokolove and Dan Wetzel of Yahoo Sports to talk about college basketball’s corruption trial; and by writer Liam Boylan-Pett and history professor Louis Moore to discuss Bob Beamon’s record-shattering long jump and his underreported civil-rights protest at the 1968 Olympics.

Baseball (1:01): The Boston Red Sox and the Los Angeles Dodgers are meeting in the World Series as the two hottest, and probably the two best, teams in baseball.

Basketball trial (23:55): The federal government’s case against three bit players in the business of college basketball player recruiting masks the actual problem with the sport: the NCAA.

Bob Beamon (47:43): Sports fans are familiar with Bob Beamon’s record long jump at the Olympics in Mexico City 50 years ago. But his medal-stand protest was overshadowed by that of Tommie Smith and John Carlos.

Afterballs (1:05:38): Stefan talks about whether boys should be allowed to play on girls’ field-hockey teams—and a gripping game in which one was.

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Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin are joined by Yahoo’s Jeff Passan to discuss Red Sox pitcher David Price’s October awfulness. ESPN’s Jeff Carlisle talks about why Major League Soccer’s Columbus Crew are staying in Ohio, and Deadspin’s Dvora Meyers assesses gymnast Simone Biles.

Baseball playoffs (3:20): Why have David Price and Clayton Kershaw been so much worse in the playoffs than in the regular season? And will the Milwaukee Brewers’ bullpen-first strategy come back to haunt them?

Columbus Crew (21:22): The Major League Soccer franchise was supposed to move to Austin. How did Columbus manage to keep its team?

Simone Biles (38:48): The reigning Olympic gold medalist is still taking gymnastics to new heights. She’s also getting more comfortable speaking out in public.

Afterballs(58:42): Stefan on the UEFA Nations League and Josh on an obituary cliché.

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Josh Levin, Ben Mathis-Lilley, and Slate’s Joel Anderson discuss Drew Brees becoming the NFL’s all-time passing yardage leader, the UFC fight between Khabib Nurmagomedov and Conor McGregor,  and college football at the season’s halfway point.

Drew Brees (1:49): What does the New Orleans Saints quarterback’s success say about the NFL? And is his persona winning or grating?

UFC (18:32): Was anyone seriously outraged by the melee after Khabib Nurmagomedov’s victory? And why weren’t more people outraged by McGregor’s actions before the fight?

College football (32:02): Alabama is great again. Is Notre Dame any good? And will UCF ever get a shot at a championship?

Afterballs(45:28): Ben on college football and TV commercials, Joel on ESPN’s Junior Seau documentary, and Josh on Alan Page.

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Stefan Fatsis and Deadspin’s Laura Wagner are joined by Ben Lindbergh of the Ringer to discuss the baseball playoffs, and by Sally Jenkins of the Washington Post to discuss New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick. Plus, a conversation with Jason Gay of the Wall Street Journal about  Gritty.

Baseball (1:44): Can “bullpenning” carry the Oakland Athletics past the New York Yankees in the playoffs? And why were the Baltimore Orioles historically bad?

Belichick (17:02): Bill Belichick talked to Sally Jenkins about the changing state of football and his obsessive approach to the game—but not his relationship with Tom Brady.

Gritty (34:54): The Philadelphia Flyers’ new mascot, Gritty, is simultaneously terrifying and beloved. How did he become an overnight media darling?

Afterballs (48:02): Laura on Johnny Manziel’s “letter” to Baker Mayfield and Stefan on the etymology of “bullpen.”

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Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin are joined by Slate’s Jim Newell to talk about Tiger Woods’ first win in five years. Plus, Lee Jenkins explains why he left Sports Illustrated to take a job with the Los Angeles Clippers’, and Jonathan Hock discusses his documentary 14 Back.

Tiger Woods (1:19): It had been 1,876 days since Woods won a golf tournament. Why did it mean so much to see him back on top of the game he’s dominated for decades?

Lee Jenkins (22:10): SI’s longtime lead NBA writer decided to leave that gig to become the Clippers’ executive director of research and identity. Why’d he make the move? Also, what’s an executive director of research and identity?

14 Back  (42:15): Jonathan Hock’s latest film is about the rivalry between the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees and the classic one-game playoff in 1978 in which Bucky Bleeping Dent played a starring role.

Afterballs(1:03:00): Stefan on Bucky Dent’s bat and Josh on an American star in Australian Rules Football.

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Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin discuss Vontae Davis’ mid-game retirement and Le’Veon Bell’s holdout, Outside Magazine’s Alex Hutchinson talks about Eliud Kipchoge’s new marathon world record, and Aaron Gordon assesses The Athletic as a business and editorial venture.

Vontae Davis and Le’Veon Bell (1:25): Davis’ sudden exit from the league and Bell’s refusal to suit up without getting a long-term contract show the limits of player solidarity in the NFL.

Eliud Kipchoge (21:27): The 33-year-old Kenyan has won 10 of the 11 marathons he’s entered. Alex Hutchinson explains what makes him so great and how he destroyed the world record.

The Athletic (39:31): Will the new media outlet save sports journalism or destroy it? Aaron Gordon’s non-hot take: The answer is somewhere in between.

Afterballs(59:47): Stefan on live retweets of high school football carnage and Josh on the pleasures of airplane mode.

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Josh Levin and guest host Vann Newkirk of the Atlantic are joined by the New Yorker’s Louisa Thomas to discuss Serena Williams and the 2018 U.S. Open final. They’re also joined by Slate’s Derreck Johnson to assess LeBron James’ HBO series The Shop.

Serena Williams (1:02): What happened in the 2018 U.S. Open final between Serena Williams and Naomi Osaka, and how we should think about the confrontation between Williams and chair umpire Carlos Ramos.

The Shop (44:50): LeBron’s new show debuted with an episode featuring Snoop Dogg, Draymond Green, and Jon Stewart. Is it any good?

Afterballs(1:04:05): Vann on men’s doubles and Josh on eight-peats.

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Josh Levin and Stefan Fatsis are joined by Deadspin’s Laura Wagner to discuss Colin Kaepernick and Nike. Mark Leibovich also joins to talk about his new book on the NFL, Big Game. Finally, they interview the Washington Post’s Dave Sheinin about his piece on a baseball player who came agonizingly close to making the majors.

Kaepernick and Nike (1:21): How cynical should we about this alliance between athlete and corporation? And how surprising is it that Nike struck a deal with the leader of the NFL’s social justice protests?

Big Game (16:15): Mark Leibovich spent years chatting with NFL owners and chasing commissioner Roger Goodell and Patriots quarterback Tom Brady. Here’s what he learned.

Brian Mazone (38:14): What goes through a baseball player’s mind when he comes up just short of his lifelong dream?

Afterballs (51:46): Stefan on his baller mom and Josh on turnover props.

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