Hang Up and Listen

Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin discuss the World Cup with Ken Early of the Irish Times, the fate of the DH and Major League Baseball expansion with Ben Lindbergh of the Ringer, and killing the NBA draft with Jay Caspian Kang of Vice News.

World Cup (2:00): Ken Early joins for a conversation about Argentina’s fall from grace, England’s impressive play, and Neymar’s meltdowns.

Baseball (20:20): Ben Lindbergh explains why likely expansion and realignment in MLB will lead to the welcome death of pitchers hitting. 

NBA draft (38:27): Jay Caspian Kang talks about how replacing the NBA player draft with an open auction would end tanking and empower players.

Afterballs (58:05):

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Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin discuss the World Cup with Slate’s Nick Greene and Slate’s Jim Newell joins to talk about golf’s U.S. Open. Plus, an interview with BuzzFeed’s Ken Bensinger about his book on corruption in soccer, Red Card. 

World Cup (2:20): Stefan, Josh, and Nick Greene discuss the start of the men’s World Cup in Russia, including exuberant Spanish-language goal calls, the World Cup debut of replay review, and whether American fans should root for archrival Mexico.

U.S. Open (25:28): Stefan, Josh, and Jim Newell assess Brooks Koepka’s back-to-back wins at the U.S. Open, Phil Mickelson’s weird, possibly unethical putt, and everyone’s whining about the difficulty of the Shinnecock Hills course.

Red Card (43:00): Stefan and Josh interview Ken Bensinger about how the U.S. got involved in investigating FIFA and what it was like to hang out at Sepp Blatter’s house.

Afterballs (1:01:12): 

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Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin are joined by ESPN’s Dave McMenamin to talk about LeBron James' next stop; by Bruce Arena to discuss why the U.S. missed the World Cup; and by Slate's Jayson De Leon for a conversation about who to root for in Russia.

LeBron's future (2:21): Nobody knows where the world's best player will end up. But where should he go? (Josh thinks New Orleans.)

U.S. soccer (21:52): Former U.S. men's national team head coach Bruce Arena shares his thoughts on why Team USA missed the World Cup for the first time in 1986.

Who to root for in the World Cup (39:28): Slate's Jayson De Leon stumps for Peru. How about Argentina? Perhaps Egypt?

Afterballs(57:48): 

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Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin discuss the NBA finals between the Cleveland Cavaliers and Golden State Warriors and the crazy story of anonymous Twitter accounts linked to Philadelphia 76ers GM Bryan Colangelo. Hockey writer Greg Wyshynski of ESPN joins the show to discuss the Stanley Cup finals between the Washington Capitals and Vegas Golden Knights.

NBA Finals (3:10): Stefan and Josh talk to Ethan Strauss of The Athletic about the first two games of the NBA finals.

Bryan Colangelo (34:27): Stefan, Josh, and Ethan discuss the fallout from the discovery of Twitter burner accounts that revealed details about inner workings of the Philadelphia 76ers.

NHL Finals (54:08): Stefan and Josh talk to ESPN’s Greg Wyshynski about the Stanley Cup finals between the Washington Capitals and Vegas Golden Knights.

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Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin are joined by ESPN’s Kevin Pelton to discuss the fourth straight Cavs-Warriors NBA Finals. NPR’s Gene Demby also joins to talk about the NFL’s anthem policy, and Deadspin’s Laura Wagner comes on for a conversation about her piece “So Who Is Barstool’s PFT Commenter?”

Warriors and Cavaliers (2:16): Kevin Pelton explains whether the Houston Rockets and Boston Celtics should’ve stopped shooting 3-pointers, how to predict playoff outcomes when teams don’t try their hardest during the regular season, and what to watch out for in the latest Warriors-Cavs championship series.

NFL’s new anthem policy (21:46): Gene Demby talks with Stefan and Josh about the motivation behind the NFL’s new stand-or-else national anthem policy and how the league’s players will respond.

PFT Commenter and Barstool Sports (41:32): Deadspin’s Laura Wagner assesses why media outlets haven’t revealed Eric Sollenberger’s identity and how his PFT Commenter character helps make Barstool Sports palatable.

Afterballs (60:01): 

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Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin are joined by the Athletic’s Marcus Thompson to discuss the Warriors and Steph Curry. Bloomberg’s Ira Boudway also joins to talk about legalized sports betting, and John Swansburg helps assess Tom Wolfe’s classic piece on NASCAR driver Junior Johnson.

Golden State Warriors (4:20): With Steph Curry looking spry and healthy, can anyone stop the NBA’s best team? And what’s the deal with Curry’s mom fining him for cursing?

Legalized sports betting (26:15): The Supreme Court’s huge ruling will change how leagues operate and how fans wager. Bloomberg’s Ira Boudway explains the ramifications.

Tom Wolfe on Junior Johnson (44:35): Tom Wolfe’s Esquire piece “The Last American Hero Is Junior Johnson. Yes!” is a classic of new journalism. What did Wolfe get right about Johnson and NASCAR and what did he miss?

Afterballs (1:11:40): 

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Stefan Fatsis and guest host Mike Pesca discuss the start of the NBA conference finals and the debate over the debate over who’s the greatest, Michael Jordan or LeBron James. Stefan talks to Roger Bennett of Men In Blazers about Wayne Rooney’s reported move to America and Roger’s new book, Men in Blazers Present Encyclopedia Blazertannica. And Stefan and Mike are joined by Nate DiMeo to discuss his essay in Mike’s new book, Upon Further Review, about the alternate history of tug-of-war.

NBA (1:42): Stefan and Mike discuss Game 1 of the NBA Eastern Conference Finals, Michael v. LeBron, and Charles v. Shaq.

Wayne Rooney (22:04): Stefan and Roger Bennett of Men In Blazers talk about English striker Wayne Rooney’s reported move to D.C. United of Major League Soccer.

Tug-of-War (40:24): Stefan and Mike talk to Nate DiMeo about imagining what would have happened if tug-of-war hadn’t been kicked out of the Olympics a century ago.

Afterballs (56:01): 

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Stefan Fatsis is joined by ESPN’s Dave McMenamin to break down the epic buzzer-beater by LeBron James in Game 3 of the NBA’s Eastern Conference playoffs and by hockey writer Sean McIndoe to discuss the Stanley Cup playoffs. Slate’s Christina Cauterucci and Juliet Macur of the New York Times talk about the exploitative treatment of NFL cheerleaders. And ESPN’s Sam Miller explains how there were more strikeouts than hits in the major leagues in a month for the first time ever.

LeBron (3:15): Stefan and ESPN’s Dave McMenamin conduct a forensic breakdown of LeBron James’s seemingly impossible game-winning shot against the Toronto Raptors.

NHL playoffs (21:39): Stefan and hockey writer Sean McIndoe discuss the Vegas Golden Knights, the Winnipeg Jets, a rare playoff suspension, and Brad Marchand of the Boston Bruins licking his opponents.

Cheerleaders (43:50): Slate’s Christina Cauterucci and Juliet Macur of the New York Times talk with Stefan about Juliet’s reporting on the treatment of cheerleaders for Washington’s NFL team

Baseballs (1:01:32):  ESPN’s Sam Miller talks with Stefan about the decade-long rise in strikeouts and whether Major League Baseball needs to do something about it.

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Josh Levin, Wosny Lambre, and Ethan Sherwood Strauss discuss the NBA playoffs. They also talk about Meek Mill’s release from prison and his relationship with the 76ers, and they ponder quarterback Josh Allen’s old, racial-slur-laden tweets.

NBA playoffs (2:20): Josh, Wos, and Ethan assess the state of the Oklahoma City Thunder and the NBA’s most polarizing player, Russell Westbrook. They also examine LeBron James’ latest triumph and check in on the state of the Golden State Warriors.

Meek Mill (22:35): Upon his release from prison, the Philadelphia rapper headed straight to the Sixers’ game against the Miami Heat. How did Mill forge such a tight connection with the team, and how did he become a cause célèbre for criminal justice reformers?

Josh Allen (37:23): The Wyoming quarterback’s tweets were publicized the night before the NFL draft. Should we care about Allen’s social media misadventures, and how should we think about athletes’ old tweets more broadly?

Afterballs (56:00): 

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Josh Levin and Stefan Fatsis discuss the NBA playoffs with Slate’s Nick Greene. The Irish Times’ Ken Early joins to talk about Arsene Wenger’s departure as Arsenal’s manager, and the MMQB’s Tim Rohan explores the history of the mock draft.

NBA playoffs (2:00): The hosts are joined by Nick Greene to assess the first round, which has featured standout play from the Philadelphia 76ers, a shocking sweep by the New Orleans Pelicans, and LeBron James’ efforts to drag a subpar supporting cast past the Indiana Pacers.

Arsene Wenger (21:25): Ken Early explains why the legendary Arsenal manager’s tenure went south and what his legacy will be in the Premier League.

Mock drafts (40:30): Where did mock drafts come from and how have they eaten the world? Tim Rohan, who did an oral history of the mock draft for Sports Illustrated’s MMQB, comes on the show to explain.

Afterballs (53:25): 

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