I love talking to Bob Scanlan and could do so for hours. In this episode - the latest from the MartyTimeTV / Section 1904 Podcast joint venture - we talked to Scan for 30-40 minutes about the Padres daily lineup construction, BABIP, how teams are using Artificial Intelligence to detect pitcher’s “tells”, plus a few other Padres-specific topics.

We also learned a few things about Bob’s game day prep and how he keeps himself in such great shape. And yes, I was truly shocked when he revealed his age in this conversation. Long live the Scan Man.

Marty and I also kicked around a few other things, including SDFC’s winless drought and how different losing feels in MLB when compared to other sports, including soccer. It’s been 31 days since SDFC last won a match, which sounds more dramatic than it really is (0-1-2, W-L-D in that span). But you could feel the desire to get back in the win column tomorrow at Snapdragon Stadium. Kickoff at 7:30 (pregame at 7PM) with Adrian Garcia Marquez and me on San Diego Sports 760 and the IheartRadio App.

This is the “audio only” version of this podcast. If you want to see what we all look like before showering, you can find the MartyTimeTV tab on the homepage of this Substack.

This podcast hasn’t had much of a cadence to it and that’s been bugging me. I’m not sure that the Section 1904 Podcast will ever return to five shows per week - and maybe that’s a good thing! - but I do aim to be a bit more consistent here and in the podcast space.

With that, there have been a few questions I’d like to answer about this podcast and some of the things that have changed from the original version of the show. If you’re wondering about subscriptions and advertising and why I’m pushing out content on Substack, I addressed few of those topics in this episode.

I was also at SDFC training a bit earlier today and have a few notes from what I saw whilst there plus you can hear what Mikey Varas said when I asked about the cascading impact of so many red cards / sendings off in such a short amount of time. Jeppe Tverskov had a decent looking shiner which, he says, came from an errant elbow in training this week. The Captain jokingly denied to identify the culprit.

And then there’s the big news of the day. The Padres launched their City Connect jerseys, hats and clothing line. Nothing too surprising as the jerseys leaked weeks ago but we did get to see the other elements of the reveal. The Padres are really good at this type of thing and production wise, it was well done.

However, is it at all odd to anyone else that the Padres chose a Dia De Los Muertos theme in April, when the actual celebration isn’t until November? And did anyone else feel conflicted about Peter Seidler’s picture on the ofrenda while his family is weeks away from selling the team, following a nasty family split that has pitted Peter’s widow against his brothers?

There’s a fine line between paying respect and pandering for profit. Do the Padres deserve the benefit of the doubt that they’re doing the former and not latter? I’m not sure. Either way, I’m sure we’ll be seeing a whole bunch of this new gear around town.

Welcome Section 1904 / MartyTimeTV Joint Venture!

The first half of this Podcast is Darren briefly talking about the Padres weekend in Boston, Heath Bell’s comments on Craig Stammen and the most recent Friar Territory episode, before talking about SDFC’s disappointing trip to San Jose over the weekend.

The Chrome y Azul have seen FIVE red cards in 10 matches (all competitions) and have been without suspended players for a combined 450 minutes - not counting Manu Duah’s upcoming suspension against Minnesota United this weekend. Obviously, this needs to stop but is there a through line for the sendings off? Some thoughts.

Credit is also due to the improved level of competition, as Real Salt Lake and San Jose showed noticeably elite pace against SDFC and appear to be real threats in the Western Conference. San Jose would probably be THE story in the West if it wasn’t for LAFC. Mikey’s men are back in action this Saturday night at 7:30pm.

The second half of this Pod is the audio-only version of a conversation between Marty Caswell and MLB.Com’s AJ Cassavell. (YouTube version here). The two discussed Nick Castellanos’ role with the Padres, how close Yuki Matsui and Jason Adam are to joining the club and Craig Stammen’s process when choosing his leadoff hitters.

If you’re looking for a full hour of soccer talk, you’re in the right place. Lots of things are happening in the global game and this episode covers a bunch of different topics.

First, we caught up with our friend, ESPN’s Eric Gomez, who joined us from Miami where he was covering the opening of Lionel Messi’s new MLS home. Eric and Darren relived the experience of watching a match in Toluca before turning their attention to the recent international window with takeaways for both the Mexican and the United States Men’s National Teams. Javier Aguirre figured out ways to compete in the new-look Azteca while Mauricio Pochettino left us scratching our heads. Does he even want to be the coach?

(We didn’t talk about the uniform SNAFU between the USMNT and Belgium but just ugh)

After we wrap with Eric, we jumped into a preview of this weekend’s game between San Diego Football Club and the San Jose Earthquakes. Voice of the Quakes, Ted Ramey, taught us about Bay Area soccer culture & history, including a story about being at the first ever MLS game in 1996. Ted then talked about Hall of Famer Bruce Arena and his overhaul of the San Jose roster this past offseason. The Quakes are off to a flying start and it starts with defending, as you’ll hear in this episode.

The match is at Pay Pal Park on Saturday at 7:30. You can listen to Adrian Garcia Marquez and me on San Diego Sports 760, starting at 7PM. Here’s a link for the IHeartRadio App if you’re not into AM radio. Things are pretty tight at the top, so it’s an early season Western Conference matchup that has some sizzle to it.

This was all soccer. You want baseball? There are TWO new Friar Territory Podcasts available for you on YouTube and wherever you get your podcasts. Heath Bell went in on Craig Stammen in the most recent episode, which was…interesting? Unexpected? Both?

Enjoy the shows and thank you for your support.

It’s a new baseball season with a new manager and hitting coach yet 2026’s start feels similar to 2025’s ending. Sure, this is where everyone will shout “SMALL SAMPLE SIZE!”, which is the proper retort to anyone pointing out that the Padres have two home runs and are 29th in slugging percentage through four games.

Thankfully, MLB.Com’s AJ Cassavell is our guest and available to speak logically about the Pads slow offensive start before we talk about how Craig Stammen has managed his bullpen, catcher usage and how the team’s approach to ABS might evolve in the next few weeks and months. We also discussed Walker Buehler’s debut and how soon the Padres might see starting reinforcements available.

After AJ leaves, Marty and Darren discussed some of the rumors about ownership and how we are entering a way different era than anything we’ve experienced locally from our pro sports owners. The times, they are about to change in a major way.

This is the audio-only version of this conversation. If you want to watch the MartyTimeTV version, find the tab on the home screen of this Substack page or simply click here.

There’s also a new Friar Territory episode available. Our guest was Dave Flemming, longtime Giants broadcaster, who had insight on Tony Vitello and what Joe Lacob could bring to the table if he ends up owning the Padres. You can find that conversation here and wherever you find your podcasts.

One of the first sports programs I can remember was ABC’s Wide World of Sports. It was a weekend show hosted by the brilliant sportscaster Jim McKay and highlighted so many random sports from around the world, that it was must watch TV as a kid. Where else could you get your Demolition Derby fix in the 80s?

The line most remember from the show was “The Thrill of Victory and The Agony of Defeat". Usually they’d use that line voicing over some moment of athletic success before we watched a skier tumbling ass-over-teakettle down a mountain. But the words: Thrill. Agony. Feels like there’s no in-between for me this weekend. It will either be a thrilling weekend or an agonizing one.

This episode is me, channeling my nervous energy while waiting for the St. John’s vs Duke game at 4:10. My mind is taking me to illogical places and I am both excited and terrified for whatever happens this weekend.

Also, some appreciation for Ben and Woods on the eighth anniversary of their first show and a few thoughts on Opening Day. There’s also a new Friar Territory available on YouTube and wherever you get your podcasts. Hear from Xander Bogaerts and AJ Preller. Also, if you could subscribe to that show, it would help us greatly. Please and thank you.

Life for a St. John’s fan used to be a lot of fun. The team was always relevant and usually pretty good and watching the Johnnies at Madison Square Garden was an event. Did you see the movie “Coming To America”? They didn’t go to a Knicks game in the double date scene, they went to watch St. John’s, where Prince Akeem got very stimulated!

Run-DMC rapped about them. ESPN Big Mondays. Louie and his sweaters.

And then…nothing. Just pain. For decades. An occasional Tournament bid here and there but mostly lost season after lost season. So you’ll forgive me for spending a few minutes talking about my alma mater advancing to the Sweet 16 for the first time in 27 years and explaining why it’s such a big deal. And now - Duke. Consider this podcast your formal invitation to hop on the SJU bandwagon this weekend, even if it’s just to root against the Blue Devils.

Second half of this podcast is about SDFC.

On Sunday, I was broadcasting the match against Real Salt Lake instead of being at Viejas Arena. I have some thoughts on the past few matches and explain why the draws against FC Dallas and Real Salt Lake felt worse than the 4-0 beating against Toluca. And with the MLS transfer window closing on Thursday, hear what Tyler Heaps told the SDFC Hafltime Show (On AM 760) about his approach to the deadline.

Also, there’s a new Friar Territory episode available on YouTube and wherever you get your podcasts. Our guest is Kyle Glaser, who used to host Friar Territory and has covered MLB and the Padres for years!

SDFC’s run in the 2026 CONCACAF Champions Cup ended in Toluca on Wednesday night. The Diablos Rojos won the match 4-0 and advanced 6-3 on aggregate.

Hear from Darren, who was at both legs of the series, hours after the second leg at historic La Bombonera. Thoughts on the match, plus an exclusive conversation with Captain Jeppe Tverskov, minutes after being eliminated.

SDFC will next be in action on Sunday against Real Salt Lake. You can hear the game on AM 760 and the IHeartRadio App, with pregame at 3:30.

And not to sound like a Toluca homer, but the atmosphere at La Bombonera was elite. I’d put the overall experience - result aside - as a top three environment I’ve experienced. Probably a post for another day but incredible support and matchday energy from the home side - before, during and after the match. Was also nice to connect again with SD / TJ native son Eric Gomez.

(This is the audio only version of our conversation with Matt Vasgersian. For the full YouTube version, click here.)

Matt Vasgersian joined us from his Miami hotel, getting set for the World Baseball Classic semifinal between Venezuela and Italy (we were briefly interrupted by room service, delivering a roll of toilet paper and some tissues to the room…shrug emoji).

We talked about Team USA’s win against the Dominican Republic and a bit of redemption for Matt’s MLB Network colleague Mark DeRosa, the manager of Team USA. Matt shared some of the backstory from earlier in the tournament when criticism surfaced suggesting DeRosa didn’t fully grasp Team USA’s situation heading into their game against Team Italy.

Matt offered a few thoughts on the Padres, why he believes they're again a playoff team and what concerns he has as we inch closer to Opening Day. You can also catch Matt on Netflix on March 25th and NBC / Peacock this upcoming season. He’ll be on the call for Netflix’s first MLB broadcast between the Yankees and Giants.

Marty and Darren then wrapped up with a few updates about the MartyTimeTV / Section 1904 collaboration moving forward, a look at the NCAA Tournament, and San Diego FC dropping points against FC Dallas over the weekend.

I’m going to miss watching San Diego State face New Mexico in the Mountain West Conference Tournament. Seriously. It always felt like a real rivalry. The games mattered and almost always delivered, on and off the court. Before I turn my focus to SDFC, I offered a few words about the final matchup between the winningest MW Tournament teams.

San Diego Football Club takes on FC Dallas tonight. We will have the Kickoff Show at 5PM on Jam’n 95.7 & the IHeartRadio APP. Kickoff is at 5:40. I’ve included my conversation with SDFC Head Coach Mikey Varas in this pod. Mikey talked about the emotional, mental and physical state of the team, explained why the win against Toluca was so important and also talked about his years at FC Dallas. Covered a lot of ground this week. Enjoy.

Hope you’ll join Adrian Garcia Marquez and me for the broadcast later.