Passed Ball Show

12-19-2019 Passed Ball Show. John opens up this show by talking about the grave health of long time NBA Commissioner David Stern. Stern was one of the best commissioners in the history of sports. Baseball owners continue to claim poverty citing "market size." How come football and basketball teams don't have the same problems? It is all because of the lack of a salary cap, but just as important, a salary floor. Owners continue to feel they run the sport and will continue to do so until changes are made. MLB and its owners are to blame for the haves and havenots that exist among current teams. They are to blame for the lack of parity that exists in the sport. John talks about the Mets quest to 86- not to repeat their last World Series Championship, but their eagerness to win just as many games as they did in 2019. After firing their manager because 86 wins was not good enough, the Mets seem content running the same team out there again. The ceiling is just the 86 games they won last season. John then talks about the College Football playoff and the chance LSU, Ohio State, and Clemson have to win 15 games this year. It has only been done five times in the long standing history of College Football. The sad state of former Boston Bruins goaltender Tim Thomas brings to life the seriousness of concussions, CTE, and brain injuries as they apply to sports. One does not understand the significance unless they have dealt with one themselves.

12-14-2019 Passed Ball Show.

John opens up this version of the program by talking about how the New York Mets are in a business of saving money. They continue to put up the front that they have to reduce payroll if they are to make the necessary additions they need to make to compete with the best teams of the National League. Yet, they did not pay Yoenis Cespedes almost half of his contractual obligations for 2019. The Mets have used the Cespedes contact as an excuse of why they cannot afford other upgrades, yet they were not paying him in the first place. In spite of saving $20 million in having to pay Cespedes this coming season, they STILL claim they need to move a $10 million or so contact (Jed Lowrie or Jeurys Familia) if they are to have the financial ability to address the worst bullpen in Major League Baseball. The Mets answer to improving the worst bullpen in baseball is to send out the same exact relievers. What is the definition of insanity? John then talks about the Baseball Hall of Fame and how its voting process and choices of exclusion are different from Pro Football and Pro Basketball. Did OJ Simpson and Pete Rose dominate a sport enough to warrant inclusion in its respective Hall of Fame? Yes. Did anything they did (or did not do) after their playing career was over have anything to do with what they did when they played? No. Why is Pete Rose not in Baseball's Hall of Fame for what he did as a player? Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens (and anybody else suspected of using performance enhancing drugs) would get a more fair trial if they were being accused of a heinous crime. John gives a different take, though, when it comes to the career of Will Clark. While John does not back down from his support of the "steroids era" players getting enshrined in its Hall of Fame, he does feel for a player like Will Clark. Clark was as good as Rafael Palmeiro, but chose to not use PED's. Will Clark's accomplishments are not given the credit they deserve because of Palmeiro, because of Mark McGwire- two players that would be considered Clark contemporaries. Finally, in the Nobody's Listening segment of the show, John talks about the "R" word, and even though it should not be used, the context and intention should be considered before the PC police eats them alive. A statement of such should not be grounds for termination and definitely should not lead to somebody being given future employment

12-12-2019 Passed Ball Show. John opens up this portion of the program by talking about the change amongst MLB free agents and the Baseball Winter Meetings. The last couple of sessions have

seen the likes of top free agents not even sniffing their next contract due to owners' collision. The combination of team(s) needs and owners stepping up to the plate, free agency is well under way. Since the start of free agency, the Yankees have a history of getting the top pitcher when they have made it their top priority. John brings up the last ten examples of the Yankees getting the top free agent pitcher when they have made such declaration. John then talks about the impact new Hall of Famer Marvin Miller had on the game of baseball, why he was the pioneer of pioneers and what his election means for the Baseball Hall of Fame going forward. John then talks about the need for a salary floor being a priority or at the very least, a negotiating tactic, for an eventual salary cap in baseball. John then talks about some of the NFL coaches with the lowest career winning percentages and finishes off the show about an interesting fact about the Detroit Tigers winning percentage since 2000.

12-12-2019 Passed Ball Show. John opens up this portion of the program by talking about the change amongst MLB free agents and the Baseball Winter Meetings. The last couple of sessions have

seen the likes of top free agents not even sniffing their next contract due to owners' collision. The combination of team(s) needs and owners stepping up to the plate, free agency is well under way. Since the start of free agency, the Yankees have a history of getting the top pitcher when they have made it their top priority. John brings up the last ten examples of the Yankees getting the top free agent pitcher when they have made such declaration. John then talks about the impact new Hall of Famer Marvin Miller had on the game of baseball, why he was the pioneer of pioneers and what his election means for the Baseball Hall of Fame going forward. John then talks about the need for a salary floor being a priority or at the very least, a negotiating tactic, for an eventual salary cap in baseball. John then talks about some of the NFL coaches with the lowest career winning percentages and finishes off the show about an interesting fact about the Detroit Tigers winning percentage since 2000.

12-4-2019 Passed Ball Show. John opens up this program by talking about the feelings of the younger generation. As history has proceeded, older generations have had issues with the decisions of the younger. Today, the issue has more to do with right and wrong. The definition of right and wrong has changed to where a point can no longer be proven with a series of facts. Also, there are more angered takes against athletes (and others with known names) for bad decisions made. Little regard is put into whether others, including the judgmental outsider, have made similar bad decisions. Most importantly, John talks about the feeling that millennials have that those that have made bad decisions do not deserve the right to work. As if any financial, and in other cases life altering, penalties for crimes are not enough, these people believe athletes in these situations should never play the sport they play again. John then talks about the top ten NFL Head Coaches of All Time, and when he says, "All Time," he means all time. John then asks the question of whether this offseason will be a little bit busier than the past two. And he finishes off the filibuster by talking about his past experiences at the Baseball Winter Meetings and why this year may be the last he attends.

11-29-2019 Passed Ball Show. John opens up this program by talking about the demise of major newspapers. Newspapers are almost as irrelevant as the rotary phone- maybe at the level of a house phone. The New York Daily News (a paper struggling to sell print or web clicks- just like any other) chose to turn a simple story in to one that became an instant reach. New York Giants long snapper Zak DeOssie was placed on injured reserve because he was injured. Sportswriter Pat Leonard decided to either insinuate DeOssie was not injured, which there was no proof, or make it seem as if the Giants got rid of him on Thanksgiving. John reiterates the fact that Dallas Cowboys Head Coach Jason Garrett will not get fired during the regular season. It makes no sense to fire a coach when there is still a good chance the team will make the playoffs. Plus, the next Cowboys HC is likely coaching with another organization, or at the very least, is not employed by the Dallas Cowboys at the moment- which means there will be an extensive search that cannot happen during the regular season. Finally, John lets out some more frustration about the Baseball Hall of Fame process. The sport continues to neglect the honor of some who have accomplished some of the best all time feats in the history of the sport. No other (major four- football, basketball, hockey) sport holds out some of the best ever under any circumstance. Baseball should construct a museum to honor its history, one in which includes non-Hall of Famers. The Hall of Fame should not profit one bit off of anything related to a player not selected.

11-23-2019 Passed Ball Show. John has had enough of what he calls an "unfair debate." It seems as if nobody is wrong anymore. Perhaps it is society placating millennials for "hurt feelings." You drive home a point with facts and it doesn't matter anymore. People twist the truth until they can say they are not wrong anymore. As John digresses, he talks about fandom as it exists in the world of sports and the figurative cool-aid that is consumed among said fans. If you are a Cleveland Browns fan, Miles Garrett did nothing wrong. If you root for the Houston Astros fan, every excuse can be made for why it is okay that they did what they did. Since when did fans sell their souls to support their team and players' decisions right or wrong? Last time I checked, it was aggravated assault when an athlete beat another in the head with a helmet. Last time I checked, it was against the rules of baseball to use surveillance cameras to steal the signs of the opposition. It does not seem to be about what is right and what is wrong. It is all about what team a "fan" supports. John continues to nail home points supporting his argument about baseball data and analytics coming at the expense of a MLB manager, but it seems a lot of people still do not understand. It is almost as if they want to use their favorite team's manager as the scapegoat for anything they do not like to see. To quote NFL Hall of Fame Wide Receiver Cris Carter, "You need to have a fall guy." Maybe it is because fans do not know the name of the Ivy League graduate that works for their favorite team's front office (that just studies numbers and has never seen a sporting event in their life). John then spends a little time talking about second generation professional athletes as it applies to LeBron James' son Bronny. John cites examples of Bobby and Barry Bonds, Ken and Ken Jr Griffey, as well as Clay and Cody Bellinger as why it may be the hardest out of all for Bronny to follow in his father's footsteps.

11-21-2019 Passed Ball Show. John opens up the program by talking about the workout held November 16th by Colin Kaepernick for NFL teams. Kaepernick deserves the right to work, the right to seek employment, and in no way deserves to be blackballed from the National Football League. However, the decisions made to change the destination of the workout add murky details to an already confusion set of events. Does Colin Kaepernick want to play in the NFL again? Did he hold the workout more for his post-workout speech? Does he want to be a quarterback in the NFL or does he prefer to be a Martyr? There is a reason to be concerned over Kaepernick's interest at this point. Has he come to grips with his football career being over at this point? The other aspect is the obvious need for good quarterbacks in the NFL and the fact that Kaepernick is clearly as good as some that are in the league and making starts. Names like TJ Yates, Tom Savage, Chase Daniel, Luke Falk, and others have started games in the NFL over the past couple of seasons. Colin can clearly perform at the levels of the above named, even being three years removed from playing in the NFL. John then talks about the Baseball Hall of Fame and comparisons people like to do when it comes to cases being made for those not in. It is weak to make a case that a non- Hall of Famer is more worthy than Harold Baines, but it is worse when some are trying to discredit the credentials of Tony Gwynn. Gwynn will never be known as a power hitter and because of that, numbers like OPS+, WRC, and similar stats inflated by power numbers make him look less of the player he was. Gwynn was a throwback player- would have stood out even in the deadball era and hit for a higher career batting average than anybody since Ted Williams. Those comparisons are looking kind of lazy. Finally, there is no reason to make a case for another Hall of Fame baseball player until Barry Bonds is inducted. Bonds belongs in based off the merits of his accomplishments. He is the only player in baseball history with over 600 doubles and 700 home runs. Bonds is one of four players with a career on base percentage of over .440 and a career slugging percentage of over .600. The other names are Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, and Ted Williams. No other player in baseball has over 500 home runs and over 500 stolen bases. How about the fact that he was one of three players with over 1000 more walks than strikeouts? The other players are Williams and Eddie Collins. In the history of a sport that has its share of cheats, some of whom are in the Hall of Fame, why discredit a player who did more in their career than anybody else in this lifetime?

11-16-2019 Passed Ball Show. John starts out by talking about the ugly situation that concluded the Browns/ Steelers game this past week. How it embarrassed the league, but most importantly, how it took the fans away from their sanctuary as a sports fan. Violence exists in sports, but this was an over the top decision that makes a mockery of the very game that Miles Garrett was representing, John makes the comparison to the 1965 incident between Juan Marichal and John Roseboro of the Giants and Dodgers, respectively, and suggests a similar reconciliation between the two parties of Garrett and Mason Rudolph. John also brings up the Ron Artest "Malace at the Palace" incident, Marty McSorley and other hockey player stick incidents and asks where this most recent act of violence ranks amongst the rest of sports history. John then reiterates the facts that support a MLB manager having little or no impact on a current team winning or losing and brings to mind the example of Gabe Kapler. There is a cult following that assumes he is not a good manager, or at least was not during his two years with the Philadelphia Phillies. John debunks that silly idea and takes a shot of the credibility of those that believe a manager impacts the game like they used to. The ignorance of those that believe this really has to be acknowledged and the blasphemy that continues to be thrown out regarding this issue needs to involve some accountability. At the very least, those who feel this way have to be looked at as if they do not know very much about baseball. John declares he is now a Gabe Kapler fan. Next, John talks a little about the Houston Astros controversy and what would be the best penalty (assuming they are guilty of using surveillance equipment to steal signs). It would be an embarrassment to the sport if MLB takes away their World Series Championship of 2017. If current MLB managers AJ Hinch, Alex Cora, and Carlos Beltran are suspended for part of the 2019 season, they should be replaced with the computer equipment that does their jobs for them anyway. John finishes off by talking about suspended coaches Sean Payton (2012) and Leo Durocher (1947).

11-13-2019 Passed Ball Show. John talks about the scandal involving the Houston Astros and their alleged use of cameras to dictate what pitch is coming. Should the Astros be held accountable for cheating as a team? John says it would be insane to consider taking away their World Series Championship in 2017. However, if baseball doesn’t sanction the Astros, a John wonders if the individual players who cheated in the past ie. steroids users, gamblers, etc. should have their credibility reinstated. The message, if not addressed, would state that it is okay for teams to cheat without risk of losing their accomplishments, but individual players lose their reputations and their stats “do not count.” Players accused of cheating should be eligible for the Hall of Fame and elected if their accomplishments warrant so. Especially, if teams are not held to the same standards. Fans (and the media which leads and incites fans) want to see the those in the spotlight fail.