Talk Thru It

With the trade deadline come and gone, the Rangers made moves largely resembled deck chair rearrangement on a sinking cruise liner. The situation in Arlington has become one of malaise to the general viewer; going nowhere fast at the big league level, a lack of understanding as to what will be coming in the next couple of years, but above all apathy from the rich oil men at the very top ultimately pulling every string. In this episode, Sam talks about why it's time for change both in the owner's box and the front office and how those two separations are for vastly different reasons. It's another downer but informative episode about Rangers baseball, but it's a little hard to make anything else right now. Follow Sam on Twitter @thesamuelhale Check out "90 Minutes Of Hell" in its extreme infancy at www.90minutesofhell.com Our theme song is "Donnalee" by Blue Dot Sessions

In the first release of the new biweekly schedule, Sam spends time waxing poetic about how baseball is adrift as it's lost one of its most important resources: hope. From the boardroom to the clubhouse, hope has packed up and left town with minimal hope of it's miraculous return. How and why are detailed within what is one of the more powerful yet downer episodes in the series yet. Follow Sam on Twitter @thesamuelhale Our theme song is "Donnalee" by Blue Dot Sessions

Since our last podcast, the Wings have played four games only winning one. Each game has been different, but a few constants have been present throughout the season. This week's episode goes into those constants, questioning why they are and offering solutions as to what the teams should aspire towards going forward.  It's a longer podcast than normal, but there's a lot to talk about.  You can follow Sam on Twitter @thesamuelhale Our Theme Song is "Donnalee" by Blue Dot Sessions

After much anticipation, the 2020 WNBA season is off and running inside the wubble at the IMG Academy. With two games in the books for the Dallas Wings, already we have an idea of what the 2020 team is going to look like facing two teams at or around their relative skill level. Some of it is as expected, other things are a pleasant surprise. Regardless, it's been an interesting pair of games and this week's episode breaks down what we've seen through two games with game 3 against the Indiana Fever on deck tonight.  Check out Episode 14 where we previewed the Wings season just last week: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/episode-14-previewing-the-2020-dallas-wings/id1509065550?i=1000485914521 Follow Sam on Twitter @thesamuelhale Our Theme Song is "Donnalee" by Blue Dot Sessions

The WNBA never had more momentum than they did coming into the 2020 season. A ton of offseason moves that shook up the league, an incoming draft class featuring a once in a lifetime talent entering the pro ranks, and interest at an all time high. Then the pandemic hit, and like all things the league was put on ice. Following the lead of the NBA, the league entered into a "wubble" in Florida with the intent of doing a truncated season. That season starts this weekend, and we take a few minutes to discuss the prospects of the 2020 Dallas Wings. Spoiler: if you're looking for a title contender, keep looking. If you're looking for an exciting team? You're in the right place.  The article referenced from Winsidr's Justin Carter: https://winsidr.com/2020/07/17/breaking-down-the-new-look-dallas-wings-guard-rotation/ Check out our first episode about the Wings' draft here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/episode-1-winging-the-draft/id1509065550?i=1000472080362 Follow Sam on Twitter here: twitter.com/thesamuelhale Our theme song is "Donnalee" by Blue Dot Sessions

It's fair to say that the MLB season to this point has been tumultuous. At one point, even this podcast declared that Major League Baseball should be disbanded(a position it maintains mind you). Despite that, the season begins today for the Texas Rangers. What does that mean, how good can the team be, should they even be playing baseball? We talk about that and more in today's first of two season preview episodes centered around the Texas Rangers.  Check out Episode 9 where we discuss disbanding MLB here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/episode-9-disbanding-major-league-baseball/id1509065550?i=1000477666507 Follow Sam on Twitter here: twitter.com/thesamuelhale Our theme song is "Donnalee" by Blue Dot Sessions

The Wednesday deadline came and went for NFL teams to sign long term extensions with their franchise tagged players. One team that notably didn't was the Cowboys, who failed to sign quarterback Dak Prescott to a deal. Dak will now play out whatever the 2020 season looks like on the $31.4 million salary provided by the tag without long term security. In this episode, we detail why this is largely a failure for the Cowboys and how this experiment may have cost Dallas their greatest draft success story in decades. Talk Thru It's theme song is "Donnalee" by Blue Dot Session Follow Sam on Twitter @thesamuelhale

Thankfully for most, this isn't the only thing I do in the podcast space. It is the newest, but the thing I've been doing the longest is working with two wonderful people talking about fantasy baseball. Well, they talk about it. I largely make jokes and try to help them talk about it. In this episode, I talk about what they talk about by...you know what this is getting complicated. Just give it a listen, I explain it better in long form. Apologies for the congested sound; my allergies have decided to assault me on recording day.  This week's song is random 70s news track that I didn't label the name of for the new FFF Intro. Follow me on Twitter @thesamuelhale

Look, sometimes not every week is robust with things Sam wants to talk about. Or real life intervenes, or both who actually knows. Either way, something like that happened this week which led to an experiment. Given three topics, could Sam create a coherent five minutes segment on each with the stopwatch keeping him as honest as human error allows? There is only one way to find out.  This week's song is "In The Box" by Blue Dot Sessions Follow Sam on Twitter @thesamuelhale

Since the Covid-19 pandemic shut down sports in March, plans about them returning have dominated the news cycle. While the NBA and NHL appear on track to resume sometime this summer, an ugly fight between Major League Baseball's owners and its players union has put a 2020 season in severe doubt. This latest display from the owners has laid bare an ugly truth: American professional baseball at the highest level is failing due to corporate greed and a lack of concern over the future of the game. In this episode, Sam talks through the reasons why MLB has made disbanding the league a possibility along with the main culprits. Then, he discusses what a potential MLB 2.0 might look like if the current structure was torn down and started anew. Links: Rob Arthur in April 2019 showed in great detail how the MLB ball was juiced here. Check out the full interview with Rob Manfred on The Dan Lebatard Show with Stugotz here. "Screwball" the Billy Corben documentary about the A-Rod investigation is available on Netflix. Check out the official trailer here. Sam's new Youtube channel can be found here, with new content coming three times a week. Follow Sam on Twitter here.

This episode is going to sound quite different from the normal Talk Thru It experience. There's not a lot of production, not a lot of fanfare. It's just over 25 minutes of me with an open microphone, telling a story about a man I never knew while asking the question: If the United States of America would be willfully complicit and responsible for the death of people they and society claim to be heroes, without action what hope does a group of people oppressed for over 400 years have? It's an episode about the current happenings in the country, partly a response to the ignorance of Drew Brees, and acknowledging that being a "hero" doesn't mean salvation which bodes poorly for those who are much worse thought of. Any mistakes are mine and mine alone, and for them I do apologize. To all those people fighting for their liberation and a better world: I stand with and love you, and will do my best to aide you however I can. You deserve that much. Links: Soraya Nadia McDonald wrote a moving piece on the Undefeated about George Floyd and the image of Derek Chauvin's knee on his neck here.  William C Rhoden, also at the Undefeated, wrote it's now or never for fixing America's racism problems here. The NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund could use your support here. The Bail Project takes 100% of donations to help fight mass incarceration here. They're not in every city, but see where you can help here. The Equal Justice Initiative...well this one feels pretty self explanatory really. Check out their cause here. Black Lives Matter has put together a Carrd link with tons of different resources geared towards actions of different varieties if you want more or aren't sure where to start. Check it out here. This graphic has been going around social media; it lists multiple places with an emphasis on Minnesota based causes that could use support. Check that out here. Campaign Zero is mentioned above, but if you'd like more information on them and to help their cause check out their website here.

There's no more grind of a job in sports media than the general assignment reporter. One day you're covering the NFL, the next day Indy Car, the day after that college rowing. It takes a special skill set, determination, but above all else hard work. Saad Yousuf is one of, if not the, hardest working reporter in Dallas media. He takes some time out of his schedule this week to talk about the challenges of his job during a pandemic, how the athletes he's connected with have handled being off work, and how he views his long term security in an industry that changes every day. Saad is one of the bright young stars in sports media, so you don't want to miss this week's conversation. Related Links: Follow Saad on Twitter here, and check out this work at The Athletic here.  Find Sam on Twitter here.  This week's song is "For Such A Thing To Land" by Mela

On this week's episode, we're joined by the sax player for one of Dallas' hottest bands in 2020. The Bastards of Soul are taking off, having just released a brand new 45 and documentary on Youtube. Eugene Cantera joins us to talk about that and much more. Eugene tells us how "BBQ in Paris" was created and named, meeting some famous people while in college at the University of Hartford, and how teaching has allowed him to travel the world while helping all sorts of different people enjoy and learn music and so much more. It's a can't miss interview with a musician who's as kind as he is talented. Related links: You can find Eugene on Twitter here and Tumblr here. Pick up the new 45 from Bastards of Soul here, and check out their new documentary "Just A Little Bit" here.  If you want to know about the Dallas School of Music, click here.  Find Sam on Twitter here. This week's song is "599" by The Underscore Orkestra

Becky Lynch dropped a bombshell on the wrestling world the night after Money in the Bank. Arguably the most popular superstar in WWE told the world that she was pregnant, and that her chief rival Asuka would replace her as champion. How did it all happen, and what does this mean for women's wrestling in the world's largest company? This week's episode dives into what happened on Monday, what made it work, what the future of Lynch might be in and out of the ring, along with several competitors who have the chance to step up in the absence of The Man.  Related links: Watch the full segment here.  Check out Becky's exclusive interview with People here.  Trailer for Becky Lynch's WWE 24 Episode here(full episode available on the WWE Network). This week's song is "Little Idea" by Scott Holmes Reach Sam on Twitter here.

On this week's episode, we break down the recent movement in the lawsuit featuring the USWNT versus the USSF. We give you details on what happened, why it happened, and at the end talk about why the events in court probably don't reflect the events in real life as well as they should have. It's a bit of a dense episode, but there's a lot of meat within.  As promised, here is the full judgement rendered by Judge Klausner. You can also read the work on this case by SI's Michael McCann here and here.  This episode's song was "Awaits" by Ketsa Follow Sam on Twitter here. 

This week on the program we have our first guest. Kevin Correa, the host of Free 2 Play Sunday mornings 10-11AM on ESPN 103.3 in Dallas, stops by to talk about the fascinating recent events involving League of Legends pro Doublelift. In addition to his recent movement from Team Liquid to Team SoloMid in what was a bit of a messy divorce, Doublelift has been a fixture of the American esports scene for about a decade with plenty of stories around it. Kevin and I discuss how Doublelift got started, his success in the LoL world, the details on this most recent move, and what this means for both TL and TSM going forward. If you're an esports fan this is a podcast for you. If you're not, it's still a podcast for you because you'll probably learn something and be interested in Doublelift's eventful journey through esports.  This week's song is "Hotshot" by Scott Holmes Find Sam on Twitter here Find Kevin Correa on Twitter here, and check out the Free 2 Play show podcast here.

Segment 1: Hi three weeks in a row, that's pretty cool. Listen please. Segment 2: Probably not working at Vox or SI anytime soon. Also a Big Mac gets compared to a college football coach. Find out which one. Also also featuring a Mario Party 3 music interlude. Segment 3: Hey things are still bad, protect yourself at all times like a fighter. Segment 4: See you next week, thanks bye. This week's song: "Life Illusion" by Ketsa Praise/yell/both at me on Twitter here. 

With the 2020 WNBA Draft on Friday night, this week's episode is breaking down the possibilities for the Dallas Wings in the draft. Sam discusses how the Wings got into their current position, breaks down the two players most likely to be drafted #2 overall, then throws out names presumed to be targets at picks 5 and 7. Sam also gives some thoughts on the passing of Howard Finkel, who left us at the age of 69 Thursday. Episode 1 song: "Negentropy" by Chad Crouch Reach Sam on Twitter here

Obligatory first episode that isn't first which tells you what you need to know about the podcast when it actually starts. I think there's an ad at the start as well. I recorded one, so it should be there. Just a heads up. Anyway, the real good stuff starts next week but if you want to know what that is listen to this week. OK, see you next week bye. Episode 0 Song: Paper Lanterns In The Dusk by springtide. Intro Clip via Mike Sirois' Twitch, go watch him he's fun and stuff.