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The StewPod: Baseball, pop culture & more

The StewPod: Baseball, pop culture & more
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The StewPod is a baseball podcast by Mike Oz and Chris Cwik of Yahoo Sports. We talk about the hot topics of the week, bring on big-name guests and a dash of pop culture to each episode. If you want to know what music Andrew McCutchen is listen to or what Evan Longoria's favorite pair of sneakers are, you're in the right place.
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The next round of the MLB postseason is upon. We are one stage away from the World Series with four teams looking now to punch their tickets by winning either the ALCS or the NLCS.
The Houston Astros and New York Yankees started Friday night, with the Astros taking an early series lead. The Los Angeles Dodgers and Chicago Cubs begin their series Saturday. Here to talk about both of them is former MLB catcher and current Fox Sports analyst A.J. Pierzynski.
Fox, as you know, is home of the ALCS and will be broadcasting the World Series for the 18th straight year.
Pierzynski was part of the the FS1 broadcast team in the ALDS that called the Astros games, so he talks about what makes them dangerous and he talks about what makes the Yankees dangerous in the ALCS. He also gives us his take on two Dodgers pitchers — Alex Wood and Yu Darvish — that he caught in his playing days.
The busiest part of baseball's postseason is upon us — all four division series will be going by Friday. Friday, in fact, is the best baseball day of the year, as all eight remaining postseason teams will be in action in their respective ALDS and NLDS.
On a new StewPod, the Yahoo Sports' baseball podcast, we're talking to two men in the thick of it — one is Cody Bellinger, the Los Angeles Dodgers star rookie who will play his first postseason game Friday when the Dodgers open their series against the Arizona Diamondbacks. The other is Yahoo Sports' MLB columnist Jeff Passan, who joined us from Houston and will be stadiums across this land throughout October.
We delve into every series — particularly talking about if the Indians should fear the Yankees, if we might be underrating the Cubs and who might come out on top in the Red Sox-Astros series.
Bellinger joined us on behalf of sports nutrition MET-Rx, for whom he just starred in this new postseason hype video. With Bellinger, we talk about what it's like going into his first postseason, how the Dodgers' losing streak affected the team and what it would mean for the Dodgers to finally win another World Series.
[Music: "Come on Baby" - Saigon]
The most unique event of the Major League Baseball season is happening Sunday night, as the Pittsburgh Pirates and St. Louis Cardinals forego a standard big-league game and head to Williamsport, Pa., to play in the first ever Little League Classic.
The idea: Take two big leagues and have them play in the heart of the Little League World Series. MLB renovated an old minor-league stadium — Historic Bowman Field, which is the second oldest minor-league stadium in the country, having opened in 1926 — and it will host the game. But it won't like many baseball games you see.
Capacity at Bowman Field isn't even 2,500. And for this game, all the tickets are going to Little Leaguers. The Little Leaguers will get to meet the big-league players earlier in the day and interact with them. It's sort of a sequel to last year's Fort Bragg game, an effort by MLB to take its product to different settings for one night per year.
To talk more about this, the StewPod's Mike Oz and Liz Roscher got on the phone with ESPN baseball analyst Jessica Mendoza, who will be calling the game. She also has a unique job Sunday. She'll be calling Little League World Series games in the afternoon for ABC's coverage, then take her normal post as an analyst on ESPN Sunday Night Baseball with Dan Shulman, Aaron Boone and Tim Kurkjian to call the Little League Classic.
We talked a lot about why the Little League Classic idea is so cool, and one of the Mendoza's reasons was:
"The intimacy of the event, you gotta understand these guys play in front of 40,000, 50,000 fans that are really removed from where they are. This is going to be, not just a small crowd, but they’re right there with them. And having spent the day with them and interacting — and how cool it’s going to look because all the kids are wearing their uniforms, so you’re going to see these bright colors. It’s just going, to me, bring this youthful, joyful feel to what can be a very serious game. But I think it’s important. I think we all remember when we first picked up a ball and played the game. And I think this game will give a reminder to not just the people watching but those playing in the game, which is going to show."
She also talked to us about MLB's upcoming Players Weekend — which you can get a preview of Sunday night, as the Pirates and Cardinals will wear their Players Weekend uniforms — her own experience playing Little League and about the growing interest for young girls to play baseball instead of softball.
[Music: Glass Animals - "Youth"]
The Chicago Cubs are back. Since the All-Star break, the defending champs have shaken off that World Series hangover and taken control back in the NL Central.
This week on the podcast, we're talking to a man who might be so happy you'd think he's still part of the team. Well, he kind of is.
Cubs legend Ryne Sandberg — who is also an official team ambassador these days — is our guest. He's talking about what's behind the Cubs resurgence, offering his take on their trade-deadline additions and talking about his love for Chicago. That could be seen this week, as he worked with Subway to break ground on a renovation for a Chicago-area Little League field.
Elsewhere on the show this week, we're talking about Pete Rose, an alternative world in which Donald Trump owned the Giants and we take an unexpected turn into soundtracks of '90s sports movies.
[Music: Camp Lo — "Swing"]
New York Yankees shortstop Didi Gregorius is having another impressive season, getting even better at the plate than he was the last two seasons. His batting average is up, so is his on-base percentage and he's looking even more at home at Yankee Stadium, where even though he had the toughest of shoes to fill, he's become a fan favorite.
On this week's Stewpod, the Yahoo Sports baseball podcast, Gregorius joins us to talk about the adjustments that helped him succeed, what he seems from Aaron Judge that impresses him and whether he thinks the balls are juiced this year.
Gregorius joined us on behalf of the Delta Dugout program, which gives fans the chance to win memorable baseball experiences, like watching the Yankees play on the road next season. In his latest spot, Gregorius is even being a funny guy.
Here are some of the other things Gregorius talked about on this week's StewPod.
On how he’s more prepared this season:
“It’s more adjustments. I came from National League and it was different. I think personally they pitch different in the American League. You gotta make adjustments, get to know the pitchers and see what they try to do with you … The hardest part of the game is staying consistent with your plan when you go out there and play the game. I ask guys questions, how they approach this guy and try to put that in my plan too.”
On how Aaron Judge impressed him:
“It’s all-around game. He wasn’t the way he wanted to be when he came up last year. I like that he went home and made some adjustments and look what he’s doing now. It’s actually really great. I’m all for it. If he keeps making adjustments, he’ll be ever better. I think there’s a lot more in there.”
On whether the balls are juiced:
“No. Not at all. I haven’t seen anything to be honest.”
In a new episode of The StewPod, the Yahoo Sports baseball podcast, Hall of Famer Frank Thomas joins us to talk about the upcoming All-Star game.
In the podcast, we talked about:
• Stanton vs. Judge in the Home Run Derby
• How it's reminiscent of Thomas vs. Griffey
• Frank Thomas' tips to win the derby
• Can the Big Hurt still hit dingers?
• Young stars to watch in the All-Star game
• The Cubs get snubbed
• The best part of the All-Star game for players
• First-half surprises/disappointments
• Thomas' current World Series pick
Catch Frank Thomas on Fox Sports' All-Star coverage, including the pregame show alongside Kevin Burkhardt & Alex Rodriguez at 7:30pm ET on Tuesday on FOX. He's also on the two-hour All-Star preview show airing on FS1 Monday at 3 p.m. ET with Burkhardt, Pete Rose and Tom Verducci.
With all the Unwritten Rules Theater we've seen around MLB this week, The StewPod imagines a world in which a new baseball league is starting and we have to decide which unwritten rules to keep and which ones to ditch.
Mike Oz and Chris Cwik are joined by Bad News Ramen and Yahoo Sports' Nick Bromberg.
We're also talking about Kyle Schwarber getting demoted, the 69-year-old baseball cards that sold $500K and we have a great question for you: Batman or Mario?
Music: Cousin Stizz ft. Offset - "Headlock"
With the MLB Draft right around the corner, Jordon Adell is waiting for his life to change forever.
Adell, a top-ranked high-school player from Louisville, Ky., is expected to be drafted in Monday's first round. Depending on who listen to, he could be a top-10 pick or a top-20 pick. Regardless, scouts all believe he has a high upside. Adell has the " best all-around tools" in the draft, according to MLB.com. He backed that up with a mammoth senior season at Ballard High School in which he hit 25 homers with 62 RBIs and a .562 batting average.
In our interview with Adell, he said he has an idea which teams are interested in him (he wasn't revealing it) and talked about wanting to find a team that truly thought he was a future franchise player.
"You want to be somewhere where they're all in for now. If a team is [No. 15] and they're like 'Yo, this is our guy. We're going to work him and we're going to get him where he's going to play for us and he's going to be our dude.' That's exactly what you want. You don't want to be just a discount .. You want to be the man and that's exactly what I want to be."
We also talked about how he's getting ready for the draft, what he'll be wearing and we threw some rapid-fire questions at him so you can get to know him better. The MLB Draft begins at 7 p.m. ET Monday. TV coverage begins at 6 p.m. ET on MLB Network.
Elsewhere on this week's show, we're talking about David Price's battle with the Boston media, whether it was right for MLB to auction off Hunter Strickland's brawl jersey, Scooter Gennett's four-homer game and the domestic abuse allegations involving Derek Norris and Addison Russell that surfaced on Instagram.
Give it a listen and if you like what you hear, be sure to subscribe on iTunes or Soundcloud and leave us a nice review.
[Music: Vince Staples ft. Ty Dolla $ign - "Rain Came Down"]
First a thing you know about Arizona Diamondbacks star first baseman Paul Goldschmidt: He's one of the best players in the league. And that's consistent, year in and year out. He's a big reason the D-backs are one of this year's most surprising teams in MLB.
Now a thing you might not know about Goldschmidt: During the 2013 baseball season, when he was an MVP runner-up, he finished his college degree. Like, during the season. He divided up his days between baseball and school. He had an itch to finish his degree after being drafted out of Texas State University a year shy of graduation.
"I actually learned it was easier during the baseball season than the offseason," Goldschmidt told the StewPod. "Just because of our schedule and having a routine every day. Especially on the plane flights when we were going cross country. I’d put my headphones in, I’d have my laptop or my iPad and just get after it and read and write my papers and everything. I really didn’t get to hang around with my teammates as much as I can now because when they’d go to breakfast or dinner, a lot of times I’d stay back and have to finish up schoolwork. I missed out on movies for two years, but it was definitely worth it."
Goldschmidt obviously see the value of education, which is one of the reasons he's partnered with the University of Phoenix for a scholarship program to help people pursue their dreams of graduating. Whether it's to finish a degree or start fresh, Goldschmidt and University of Phoenix are offering five full-tuition scholarships.
On this week's installment of the StewPod, the Yahoo Sports baseball podcast, Goldschmidt joined us to talk about his college journey, baseball players seeking education, plus such as his stolen-base prowess and why the D-backs are exceeding expectations.
Elsewhere on the show, we're examining a number of hot topics from around MLB:
• Is MLB doing enough to prevent brawls?
• Are brawls good for baseball?
• All-Star voting: Which player is getting too much love?
• Who should Jeter team up with to buy the Marlins?
• Can Mike Trout still win the MVP after being out two months?
• Do you have a three-year-old (or older!) beef you want to settle? Who did you wrong!?
[Music: "Chase Me" by Danger Mouse ft. Run the Jewels and Big Boi]
This week's StewPod is the stuff of legends — and that's mostly because St. Louis Cardinals great Ozzie Smith is joining us.
On the Yahoo Sports baseball podcast, we're talking with Smith about baseball's changing rules, plus Chris Cwik and I are digging into the soon-to-be legendary Madison Bumgarner injury, which has all of baseball talking as we head into the weekend. It's a good listen, so pop us into your playlist while you're out dirt biking this weekend ... or maybe just doing your errands.
Ozzie Smith joined us on behalf of Kingsford Charcoal, whom he's working with on the #BestOfBaseball campaign in which one fan will win a trip to the All-Star Game. We asked for Smith's opinions about many of the rule changes and proposed rule changes in the game, plus we talked about the talented young crop of shortstops in the game right now.
We've also got a lot to say about the Bumgarner injury, including how it will impact the Giants this season, how people will view Bumgarner getting hurt on his day off and how people might view it differently if he got in trouble doing something else.
[Music: Cam'ron — "Bubble Music"]
The Internet had never been happier for a Hall of Famer than it was for Tim Raines, who finally, in his final year on the ballot, got the word that he'd be immortalized in Cooperstown. The news is a few months past now. Baseball season is here. And every day we're inching a little bit closer to the end of a 10-year saga.
Tim Raines is going to be a Hall of Famer. It's started to set in, he says, but the best it yet to come. He'll get on stage in July and make his speech and he'll go to the parties and he'll ride in the parade and he'll see his family there. It'll be special.
Raines joined the StewPod this week on behalf of Osteo Bi-Flex to talk about getting ready for Cooperstown and how it'll finally be his turn soon. Raines told us that he's attended Hall of Fame inductions for this friends in the past, so he knows how it goes, but he doesn't know how it feels.
"I know what it’s like," Raines told Yahoo Sports. "I've done the parties. I've done the little autographs sessions. I've seen the parade. I kinda got a feel for what it’s going to be like. but I've never felt it. This time it’s going to be a little different. This time I'm going to be in the parade. This time the party is for me. This time people are coming to see me instead of me going to see someone else. Just that part of it is the part that I'm looking forward to. I'm not a guest. I'm the guy."
We cover a variety of other topics too, including:
• The day he got the call
• What he's doing to get ready
• How the Internet helped him and how it will change voting
• His role with the Blue Jays as a coach
• Is Vlad Jr. as good as his dad?
• Which young players impress him.
• Tim Tebow's turn from football to baseball
[Music: Pierce Fulton - "Borrowed Lives"]
The amount of time the average baseball fan spends thinking about their fantasy team would likely terrify you. Trust us, we're speaking from experience. While your other league-mates are busy watching those other sports, you're creating 19 different spreadsheets, setting up Twitter alerts for every minor-league club and mapping out astrology projections to figure out how Scorpios will perform in April.
It's a bit excessive, sure, but it's worth it. Winning your fantasy league not only fills your pockets (with gummy bears), but it also provides bragging rights over your friends and family. You can't put a price on that!
We here at The Stew want you to experience that joy, so we asked Roto Arcade's Scott Pianowski to come on the StewPod and share his tips for the 2017 season. Scott is in roughly 12 to 13 leagues this year, so he's more than qualified to dole out some knowledge.
With any luck, you'll take advantage of that advice and put your league members to shame. When that happens, think of us fondly. Oh, and feel free to send us some of those gummy bears as well.
Here's the full rundown of this week's show:
• Intro
• General draft strategies. What do you do early? What positions can you wait on?
• Is position scarcity a valid strategy or do you go best player available?
• Should owners have a "Do Not Draft" list?
• Do sleepers even exist anymore?
• Let's talk specific players. How is Scott handling some of fantasy's most polarizing guys?
• Should you take the plunge on Matt Harvey? Was Jean Segura for real?
• Who are your favorite fantasy lottery tickets?
[Music: Run the Jewels - "Talk to Me"] Warning: NSFW lyrics
The World Baseball Classic is upon us and baseball's international tournament finds itself in a very familiar place as far as its American participation is concerned: How do we get more U.S. stars to care?
The WBC has proven in the past that the United States — where we call baseball our National Pastime — just doesn't care as much about winning on the world's stage as much as Japan or the Dominican Republic does. That goes for fans but also players. Sure, Team USA has put forth a team that's capable of winning the tournament, but that team is nowhere near as good as it could be. And that remains to be a storyline that hovers above the WBC.
For this week's podcast, we're joined by Jon Morosi, MLB Network's chief evangelist for the WBC, to get you totally up to speed on some of the tournament's biggest storylines. We spend a lot of time, however, talking about ways to get more buy-in from MLB's top stars. The list of frontline stars who aren't playing in the tournament includes Mike Trout, Clayton Kershaw, Kris Bryant, Mookie Betts, Max Scherzer, Noah Syndergaard and countless others. Morosi gives us some of his ideas to drive more engagement to the tournament and hips you to some of the other countries and plays to watch out for. (Keep an eye on worldbaseballclassic.com for the full schedule of games over the next couple weeks).
Elsewhere on the podcast, we're talking about A-Rod's reported new relationship, Tim Tebow's spring debut, fantasy baseball and, a fitting topic on the 20th anniversary of the Notorious B.I.G.'s death, a debate about Tupac vs. Biggie with Bad News Ramen.
Here's a full rundown of the show:
• Intro
• Who has more to gain: A-Rod or J-Lo?
• Tebowmania
• The WBC so far
• Jon Morosi joins the show.
• How he well in love with the WBC
• Does Team USA have a chance?
• How do we get more American stars to care?
• Other WBC teams to watch for
• Who's going to be a breakout player?
• Bad News Ramen joins the show and offers his WBC takes
• Am I making bad fantasy baseball decisions?
• Biggie vs. 2pac?
[Music: "Sky is the Limit" by Notorious B.I.G. ft. 112]
David Ross rode off into the sunset in the best way possible. In his 15th season in the big leagues, Ross helped the Chicago Cubs win the World Series and break their infamous curse. He had said early on that 2016 was going to be his last season, so how's that for an ending?
Only Ross, 39, didn't slip quietly into retirement. His playing days are over, sure, but Ross is plenty busy. This week it was announced he'd taken an analyst job at ESPN. It's a perfect fit for Ross, who has always been well-spoken and a go-to quote for reporters after games.
And that's just one his new jobs. Ross also accepted a job as a "special assistant to baseball operations" in the Cubs front office, which in reality means he'll be doing a little bit of everything for the Cubs, from helping out in spring training to scouting and helping with the draft. If that's not enough, he has a book coming out in May titled, "Teammate: My Life in Baseball."
Ross joined us this week on the StewPod, the Yahoo Sports baseball podcast, to talk about all these things and more. We put him on the spot to give some analysis on a few topics and we talked about whether ballplayers stick to sports in the clubhouse and if players should be public with their political opinions.
Elsewhere on the show: My dude Bad News Ramen joins me as guest co-host because Chris Cwik is out this week. We talk about Hal Steinbrenner's unfortunate quote about Aroldis Chapman, the intersection of sports and social/political commentary, plus we end up talking about the best hip-hop diss songs.
[Music: Portrait - "Here We Go Again"]
Dansby Swanson of the Atlanta Braves joins the show and we talk a lot about the Hall of Fame.
Here's a rundown of the entire show:
- Contrary to reports the StewPod is not moving to L.A. and getting a new logo
- Dansby Swanson joins the show to talk about becoming a New Era ambassador, being the face of the franchise for Braves and lots more.
- Bad News Ramens offers his take on the ENTIRE Hall of Fame ballot
- Mike and Chris debate Manny Ramirez's HOF case.
It's Hall of Fame season in baseball, and with that comes all sorts of opinions and analysis. Including this: One projection says five new players could be voted in this year, the most by BBWAA voters since the historic 1936 class, which was the first.
Nathaniel Rakich created a model for using public ballots to project what the final results will be and this year he says Jeff Bagwell, Tim Raines, Trevor Hoffman, Ivan Rodriguez and Vladimir Guerrero will get in. You can read all about his process and see his results at The Hardball Times. But he's also joining on this week's podcast to talk all things Hall of Fame.
This week's show also features talk about our Hall of Fame coverage so far and the public response, Alex Rodriguez allegedly not returning to baseball in 2017 and Edwin Encarnacion's interesting clause in his contract with the Cleveland Indians.
[Music: "If U C My Enemies" by Rubblebucket]
Mike Trout is baseball’s drama-free superstar — the type of guy who still lives in his hometown, works out with his friends and still frequents the same haunts he did before he had two MVP awards.
So when Trout agreed to come on this week’s StewPod, the Yahoo Sports’ baseball podcast, we quickly learned he was living another drama-free day: hunting in the morning, working out at night, spending the day doing a photoshoot in his hometown of Millville, N.J. (population 28,400) for Body Armor, the sports drink in which he’s a stakeholder.
We peppered Trout with a number of questions, ranging from his recent MVP win to what he thinks about the people who say the Los Angeles Angles are “wasting his prime.” He also talked about MLB’s new rookie hazing rules that prohibit dressing up like women, his workout routine and his beloved Philadelphia Eagles. Oh, and you know we had to ask him about the weather, since that’s one of his top hobbies.
You can listen to the whole conversation above. Here are some highlights:
On rookie hazing:
"That’s one of the things you do. That’s how the veteran guys welcome you. That’s how I looked at it. I had fun doing it … It didn’t bother me at all."
On the idea that the Angles are “wasting his prime”:
"It’s not like we don’t want to win. Our mentality going into spring training is we want to win a championship. When people say they’re wasting my years, I can’t control that. I just go out there and just try to do the best I can."
On the Eagles:
"Going into this season, obviously everybody wants to do go to the Super Bowl, but the reality was, it’s a year we had a rookie quarterback. Wentz has been unbelievable. He’s fun to watch. He’s got a great future. I keep telling everybody this, I go to a lot of games, they’re always in the game at the end of the game."
This week on the show, we’re also joined by our friend Bad News Ramen for the return of the Three Strikes segment, plus Mike and Chris talk about hazing, the Braves GM’s comments about pay for front-office jobs and our view of the free-agent market.
[Music: “Dusk 2 Dusk” — Smoke DZA & Pete Rock]
Dexter Fowler finds himself in a fascinating place these days: He's still riding high off the Chicago Cubs' World Series win, but he's also a free agent and it's looking increasingly likely his time with the Cubs is over.
The Cubs signed Jon Jay to a one-year deal on Tuesday, which many fans and people in the industry took to mean that the Cubs won't be resigning Fowler. But what better way to find out then ask the man himself, right?
Fowler joined us on this week's StewPod to talk about free agency, his post-World Series experience and how he's helping raise money for a cool youth sports initiative. But first, free agency.
Fowler said he got a call from Cubs president Theo Epstein telling him about the Jon Jay deal.
"We talked," Fowler told us. "I realize it's a business. You gotta do what you gotta do. I'm gonna do what I have to do on this end. He does what's best for his ballclub. At the end of the day, there's no hard feelings. They still look at me as family and I do the same."
Asked whether he thinks the door is shut in Chicago, Fowler said: "I always leave my opinions open. You never know."
While we wait to see where Fowler lands, he's also helping Dick's Sporting Goods' Sports Matter program and its #SaveYouthSports effort. Dick's is selling special green shoelaces and $2 from each sale goes to Sports Matter. The program has saved a youth football team in Houston and will continue to help other underfunded youth sports programs around the country.
HERE'S A FULL RUNDOWN OF THE PODCAST:
• Intro: Mike and Chris are back together
• Dexter Fowler joins the podcast
• Are his days in Chicago over now that the Cubs signed Jon Jay?
• What's it like being a free agent in 2016. How does he get his information?
• How much does he follow rumors on social media?
• Besides money, what goes into making a decision where to play?
• What did he learn from free agency last year?
• Why are youth sports important to him?
• Shoelaces and his favorite sneakers
• What was his most unbelievable post-World Series moment?
• When do you get back to regular life?
• Rapid-fire: Favorite place to eat on the road, offseason binge-watching, music and movies
• Mike and Chris talk about the Yoenis Cespedes signing
• Which big free agent is the next to fall?
• The Andrew McCutchen trade market?
[Music: "Cash Machine" by D.R.A.M.]
Life still isn't back to normal for Addison Russell, the 22-year-old Chicago Cubs shortstop who helped break the curse and deliver the first World Series title to the North Side since 1908.
Russell took part in the team's giant parade, got whisked off to Disney World and even was given the key to the city in Pensacola. You know what they say: To the victors, go the spoils.
Russell joined the StewPod this week to talk about the World Series win, all that's came after it and getting back to normal offseason life. The World Series isn't exactly a high that goes away after a week or two, but Russell says he's already getting back into the parenting routine, playing the new "Call of Duty" game and binge-watching some TV shows he's missed.
Russell joined us on behalf of MET-Rx, which he says is an essential part of his conditioning plan whether it's regular-season travel time or offseason Dad time.
Here's a full rundown of our chat:
- When does life get back to normal?
- Important: What happened to Matt Szczur's underwear?
- What's the coolest thing that's happened after winning the World Series?
- Is Chance the Rapper the coolest person you've gotten to meet?
- What's the offseason like?
- How much do you pay attention to offseason news and rumors?
- Rapid fair questions: Favorite places to eat, favorite music right now, what shows are you binge-watching, best sneakers of all-time, etc.
[Music: "Whistle King" by The Georgia Flood]
Podcast: Joe Buck explains why he doesn’t actually hate your team
The 2016 World Series is right around the corner. While we wait to figure out just who will be playing the Cleveland Indians we know for sure that Joe Buck will be there.
As Fox Sports’ lead broadcaster, Buck is everywhere — MLB playoffs, Super Bowl, etc. He’s the soundtrack to modern sports experience for many people. So we had to have him on a brand new StewPod to talk about a number of things, starting with why he hates your favorite team.
And, big news here, he doesn’t actually hate them, as much as you think otherwise. He told us, among other things:
When I’m in the booth, the only thing I’m guilty of rooting for is a good long series and exciting games. San Francisco Giants fans think I hate the team. I would rather be in San Francisco than just about anywhere on Earth. But I have to play it down the middle and they’re used to hearing their guys all summer long scream and yell for the Giants. So I get it. It’s not a big deal. It doesn’t make me sad or cry to my mommy at night.
Hear that? You gotta try harder if you want to make Joe Buck cry. We also talked to Buck about how he preps for calling big moments like the final out of the World Series and why he bothers with Twitter.
There’s a lot more in the podcast too, so check it out. And if you come away a Buck fan, then be sure to check out his book “Lucky Bastard” and his interview show “Undeniable,” which starts its first season in 2017.
[Music: Otis English – “Young Kids, Old Love”]