The Dan Patrick ShowOn today's Dan Partrick Show, Former NFL WR Larry Fitzgerald tells us about golfing with Obama and Tiger Woods. NY Post Jets Beat Reporter Brian Costello shares his reaction to the Jets firing Robert Saleh. Plus, Legendary Broadcaster Bob Costas discusses the legacy of Pete Rose.
You are listening to the Dan Patrick Show on Fox Sports.
Radio if you're just joining us. The Jets have fired their head coach, Robert Salah. We bring in Larry Fitzgerald, the future Hall of Famer. What do you make of that decision to fire Robert Salay?
Dan, good to be on with you, appreciation you having me.
It's uh surprising, you know, in the game in the league that not much surprises you.
That this this is not what I expected.
I mean, this is not a team that's eminated, eliminated from the playoffs. Yeah, you have a Hall of Fame quarterback still back there, very capable, you know, defense that's that's played somewhat decent, better than expected throughout the course of the year.
So I was just as surprised as everybody else when I heard the news today.
Okay, but I don't know. Were you ever on a team where coach got fired during the season?
No?
Never, Okay, because I wonder, I mean, that's a drastic move.
I agree, I agree, and I don't. I don't.
I don't.
I certainly believe that you can put your team in a better position, you know, removing your head coach at this point in the year unless there's somebody that we don't know about on that staff that could really galvanize this team and and you know, get them to perform at a better level.
But I just I just don't know if that's that's truly possible.
What do you think is going on with Devonte Adams?
Like?
How did this end poorly with the Raiders? After I know that Derek Carr got sent to the Saint or he went to the Saints and that's who he wanted to play with, but now he wants out? How do you think this plays out?
I think you get to you to a point in your career where you start looking around and you start evaluating truthfully, like do I have a chance to win here? You know, I'm a Hall of Fame receiver, you know, prolific, most prolific player of my generation probably, and like.
I want to win. I want to win a championship.
I want to play a meaningful games in November, December or January and eventually have a chance to play in the Super Bowl. And quite frankly, Dan, you would agree with this. They just they don't have a don't have that ability in uh in Las Vegas right now. And you know, I understand that he wants to you want to play medieval games.
Yeah, but did you face the same situation at any point in your career with with Arizona.
Yeah, but I'm I'm, I'm, I'm I'm very different.
You know, everybody handles these situations, you know, in a way they feel his best for themselves, and so I respect his desire to want to go, you know, be on a contender.
You know that's the way he chooses to do it. And you know, I haven't. I have no no issues with that.
What's the uh, the magic that Mahomes is bringing where it doesn't matter who's the receiver, Like, how does he make that where? I know Brady did this as well, where you just plug and play. But Mahomes, They're not an offensive juggernaut, Larry, They're I mean, they're a defensive minded team. And then you're kind of asking the offense, Hey, can you get us like twenty one points? That'll be enough for us to win games?
Yeah?
I don't.
I don't know that.
Will work all year.
They definitely need to play better and more consistent offensively.
But I mean, I.
Know Andy Reid gets a lot of credit.
I don't know if he gets enough, though, I don't think he gets the love and admiration he truly deserves for what he's able to put out there every single year. I can't tell you the last time I watched the game a team win when you know their best player in Patmo does not throw a touchdown, you know, I mean, like, are you like Patrick Mahomes did not throw a touchdown and they won by ten?
Was it ten to thirteen points last week?
I mean like, yeah.
Man, that's that's that's crazy to think about that.
And and then you lose, you know, your most targeted receiver to a knee injury a week ago, and you know, then you Kareem Hunk comes in a rounds for one hundred and Juju goes for one hundred and thirty.
I mean, like it literally, it's just.
Whoever Andy Reid, those in the in the in the gulash, whoever Andy Reid, those in the in the crock pot. You know it's gonna come out and it's gonna be smelling good.
They might be calling you, when's the last time you heard from the team winning A.
Long time ago? DP, I got I got, I got nothing for you. I got nothing for you.
Need me on the golf team or to pick a ball team or something like that. I got you.
But okay, but who who reached out to you? How long ago?
This was the this was the.
Year after h you know, the last year I played. I talked, I talked to the Chiefs, and you know, I knew it was time. It was I had a great run. You know, it was time to move on to new endeavors.
Wait wait, wait the Chiefs. I mean you didn't have enough to kind of do what you know Travis Kelsey's doing, you know, grab a ring here.
No, No, there's no guarantees in life.
I mean I've seen guys go ring, chase and a lot of different sports, and you know I remember Karl Malone and Gary Payton going to the Lakers and chasing the like. There's no there's no guarantee just because you're on on a really good team that you're gonna win.
And you know, I had a great had a great run, and it was it was my time.
He's Larry Fitzgeral, you up for the Hall of Fame next year.
I believe so yes, you believe so yes, sir?
Yeah, I think you know so not believe So Larry is joining us on behalf of DraftKings, offering the free to play pick Them pools every Sunday in October, DraftKings donating one dollar for the first twenty thousand entries every week the Larry Fitzgerald Foundation, and that funds breast cancer research and support. So it's the free to play pink. That's pink, not pick So you want to explain that a little bit more, Did I do? Okay?
Now, you always do look a great job.
But DraftKings, I've been very fortunate to have a six year relationship to this point. We raised over five hundred thousand dollars in the month of October. My mother lost her battle of breast cancer two thousand and three of you know, my executive director of my foundation, Daniel Frost, you know, just beat breast cancer.
I've had ads and a.
Lot of people close to me who would battle through this, and you know, it's just something that I'm really passionate about, and you know, it's really great that Draft Kings would be on board to you know, stay in the fox hole with me in our organization as we continue to bring awareness to a hideous disease.
What hurts on you nothing.
I've never had a surgery. Nothing. I wake up every morning and you know I have no issues, no issues.
How is that constable? You never had a surgery.
I don't know. I don't know. I was fortunate, very fortunately God looked over me.
Dang.
Yeah, that's important. I mean for as many catchers and I'm looking here, you were really good at tackling people too. I got a lot of tackles in your career for a wide receiver, right.
Yeah, I did, you know, but that was always a big emphasis for us. You know, if it was a fumble or interception, we got to get the guy on the ground. It didn't help me in the Super Bowl agains James Harrison. But I didn't know I had to tackle it.
Oh, no, didn't.
I didn't know I had to tackle the man that I don't know if he's ever tried to move refrigerator before, DP, Like, you don't see. You don't seem like a guy who who really does too much domestic work around the house, But if you ever try to move a refrigerator, that's that's what it felt like trying to hit James Harrison.
Okay, but there was this staffer who blocked you on the sidelines when he made that interception in the Super Bowl.
It was not a staffer. It was actually answer a role.
And so when he won his Super Bowl with the Giants, you know made me more mad because you know, he stole mine.
Man got himself one.
Oh my god, what are you thinking though, you're chasing James Harrison because the clock is winding down and the half is going to end, and you're chasing him trying to keep him from scoring.
No. I knew I would be able to catch him. I was gaining ground on him.
I just didn't anticipate that I would have to run through another block from somebody on my own team, you know, So that that that part, that part hurt me.
But you score that touchdown though in the second half. Did you think you guys were winning the Super Bowl when you're running in Absolutely.
I think momentum really shifted in our favor. And you know that that touchdown, you know, really put us in a really you know, positive position. So I thought it would be enough. But you know, there's a reason Ben Roethlisberger is the first better Hall of Famer, and you know, Mike Thomas going to be a Hall of Famer and you know, he had wanted a better office of coordinators and Bruce Aaron's and they made a great play to finish the game.
Larry just picked up the game of golf not too long ago. And I think he might be a sandbagger. He might, he might lie on his handicap a little bit. But the most famous player a person I should say that you've played golf with is who.
I don't know.
I mean, I played with a lot of I was the President Obama, I would say, is way up there.
On that list. I mean I get a chance to play.
With him, you know every year, I always, you know, still kind of pinch myself. Tiger Woods and Michael jo I seen those are those are a lot of fun to play with him, so competitive and he learned so much from him turn their mental approach.
Okay, but how much money are you playing for when you play against Jordan?
You know what, I try to keep it. I try to keep it within the reason. You know, it's hard. It's hard to gamble with billionaires, you know, whatever, whatever, whatever numbers comfortable for him is grossly uncomfortable for you.
You know.
So what about Tiger did you play for money with Tiger.
No, No, we didn't play. We didn't play for money. He you know, he actually just likes to He likes to just have a good time. He doesn't that necessarily get into all the money games.
But when you play against Barack Obama, they're secret Service agents lining the fairway, aren't there.
Yeah? Then so I actually, uh, a few years ago, I was playing with him. I made a hole and wanted.
The group with him, and and you know I didn't. Really My celebration was pretty subdued. Is because you know, you see all the semi automatic I got, I got, I got a golf club in my hand, and I'm on Timothy away from him, Like there's a lot of things that could go wrong very quickly. And so I was like, okay, you know, I act like you've been there. I want to act be my best Berry Standards impersonation.
Good to talk to you, Good luck with DraftKings, and thanks for joining us.
Thank you have a great day.
Man.
That's Larry Fitzgerald, the former Cardinal wide receiver, third overall pick back in four and made the Pro Bowl eleven times. DraftKings offering free to play pinkham pools every NFL Sunday in October DraftKings donating one dollar for the first twenty thousand entries every week going to the Larry Fitzgerald Foundation to fund breast cancer research and support. I once played golf with the Governor Jesse Ventura, and we were in Minnesota. Well, you play in their Secret Service guys lining the fairway, and I would joke with Jesse Ventura. I'd be like, you know what, your ball always seems to stay in bounds. I Ke'd hit a shot and would go sideways, and he always found it. Secret Service guy always found it. And I mean, I'm not calling him a cheater, but it felt like there was a home course advantage there that he never hit the ball out of bounds and be like, no, I'll be damn you found your ball, Huh. I thought it went right in the middle of the lake. Nope didn't. I go, Okay, man, it must be your day, Must be your day. No didn't, Nope didn't. He was a lot of fun though he was. He was a sharp guy, fun, good opinions, strong opinions. Played with Ray Allen and Dante Colepepper and Ray Ray's a really good player, and Jesse was okay, but Dante Coulpepper shouldn't have been out there. First of all, I didn't know that golf was eighteen holes. He thought it was nine. And then we got to the end of you know, the ninth hole, and he was like, well, see you guys, we're like, there's nine more holes, not for me. So he ended up leaving.
Yes, Pauline, do you think it would be fun and relaxing to play with a president, former president or just completely tense?
Yeah?
I can't imagine relaxing.
Yeah, I don't think so it would be. I think if you had a couple of beers and then you were able to talk like that, because I I would have a lot of questions, but I don't know if I'm allowed to ask him.
And can you even in the middle of a round of golf, do you have to address it? Oh, that's a great put, mister president. You wire to wire, it's mister president.
Probably so yeah, A guy always thought Bill Clinton would be a lot of fun. If I'm we're having beers and I'm allowed to just talk freely, that that could be interesting. What do you think of the raisor backstae right? How about that win against Tennessee. Yeah, it's Todd. That was my That was my Clinton, and you've been doing your Donald Trump and person we're in.
Competition with you. O.
There, that was it what mine?
No, his was that Donald Trump.
That was I wasn't doing a pressure and here let me do it again.
Cracking.
We don't like cracking. We do like cracking. We flip, We flop. We sounds like.
You're you're not doing an impersonation.
We tend to flip. We flip one way, we flip the other, flip your mind. I call her flipper because she flipped. That's all I got.
I think if we're watching you, it helps.
It doesn't help.
Ready, Yes, you know.
One of the things that really got me about Sausage Off was like Todd, like, you can't hear what we're all hearing. You can't hear that. That was the most fascinating part to me that he couldn't figure out that fork and falk weren't the same thing. And we kept going on and on about it, and like, you can't hear the difference there, You can't tell the difference. This is the same thing to me where I'm like, tell you you can't hear that you're not doing an impression.
You're just talking.
You're just you're just using your own normal voice.
You can't hear that. Well he did the Olivia Newton John tribute and didn't hear himself, not on you know time, not on cue, not on I mean, you were a mess.
It makes good sports radio asciation.
You gotta answer it just right, you know what I mean, don't google.
Let's just try to think it.
Tell yourself meantally.
Know what you're talking about, or get embarrassed.
But this this was meant to be a very nice, sweet tribute to Olivia Newton John.
Huge in John. It was not supposed to end up being a disrespectful goofy thing. I took it very seriously.
When I thought, I know, I know, yes, still, I.
Think I've said it on the show before.
There's nothing better than the big German goes, Hey, guys, Fritzie needs to hear the music. He weeks goes, he does hear the music, He goes, oh the never mind.
And then we ask you, do you want to do it again? And You're like, Nope, I think I nailed it.
I don't really need to stay with the music.
It's all about the words.
Music is just a little extra thing in the backgrounds conversation. Everyone knows it's all about the lyrics, not the background music the best or get embarrassed on.
Radio and TV.
Got to speed up a little bit the syllables to get that in the greatest moment.
Be sure to catch the live edition of The Dan Patrick Show week days at nine am Eastern, six am Pacific on Fox Sports Radio and the iHeartRadio.
WAPP Final Hour. On this Tuesday, Dan and the Danet's Dan Patrick Show. The Great Bob Costas will stop by coming up here in a little bit. He was on the call for the Yankees game against the Royals, won by the Royals. You got playoff baseball this afternoon. Phillies at the Mets five Eastern Dodgers padres tonight. NHL season opens tonight. Chiefs handled the Saints twenty six thirteen and they stay undefeated. Here we'll all check in with the Colts. Colts with the Jets coming up, as they've made a decision with Robert Sala. They have decided to fire Robert Sala. And here we are five games in, so we'll talk to somebody who covers the team. That'll be in a moment. Last team to start five and OHO and miss the playoffs the twenty sixteen Vikings. Last team to start five and OHO and win the Super Bowl was the twenty fifteen Broncos. As we look at Vikings undefeated, you also have the Kansas City Chiefs undefeated as well and seven to three DP Show email address DP at Danpatrick dot com, Twitter handle a DP show Good morning if you're watching on Peacock and our radio affiliates around the country. So back to Robert Sala. He was fired about an hour ago. Brian Costello covers the Jets for the New York Post kind enough to join us on short notice. How did we get to this point? Brian? Was he with us? I don't think he's ready just yet.
Dan.
Oh, okay, all right, we'll get to Brian here coming up in a moment. Stat of the Day brought to you by Panini America, the official trading cards to the Dan Patrick Show. Yes, PAULI, you.
Know what's one weird thing. How tenuous was this? The Jets lose to the Broncos by one point. They had to comeback the other day and they lost by six. So because of seven points, you fire your head coach, because I don't think a four and one team fire as a coach. I know it's a loss of a loss, it doesn't feel that far away.
Yeah, Se, But isn't he like twenty and thirty six? Yes, that's the reason why I got fired. Well, let me bring in Ian Costello covers the Jets for the New York Post. How did we get to this point?
Brian Dan, I'm still processing it, but you know, I think this season there was such high expectations for the Jets with Aaron Rodgers coming back, lots of super Bowl talk, and they've looked. They looked bad the last two weeks. You know, it was a one point lost to Denver, and if Greg Zerline makes a fifty yard field goal, maybe things are different. But they didn't. They had fifteen penalties in that game. Thirteen Network accepted five fallse starts, and you know, there's a clamoring there was. The fans were starting to get restless, and I think Woody Johnson listens to the fans. I think he spends a lot of time on Twitter, and he has people in his family that do and I think he you know this Sunday, I also think Daniel can't overlook the game being in London on Sunday. He was the ambassador of the United Kingdom. He's got a lot of friends over there. I'm sure he was embarrassed with the way they played and that probably played a factor in this as well.
So you're surprised.
I'm surprised.
Yeah.
I look, I've been asked after last week. I was asked a bunch of times by beat by people on different shows and stuff. And you know, I thought they have a stretch here where they have three standalone games in a row. They were on an NFL network Sunday morning, they play Monday Night Football this week against the Bills, and then they play Sunday Night Football in Pittsburgh. So that's three games where you have a national audience. I said to people, if they lose those three games, then I think he's in trouble, because that then it's you know, all the morning shows are talking about him, everyone's talking about it. Then I think something could happen. But again, the Jets haven't changed coaches mid season since nineteen seventy six when Lou Holtz quit, so this is not like and they've had you know, Rich Kotite was the coach they went one to fifteen. Adam Gase was the coach. They were oh and thirteen to start that season. Todd Bowles last season, there was clear there was calls for them to fire him mid season. Everyone knew he was gone, and it hasn't happened. So this is this is surprising because the Jets, this is not the way they've operated in a long long time.
I wondered, if you fire Robert Sala, if you're still going to try to get Davante Adams, like, I don't know if those two are connected or not.
Brian, Yeah, I don't see a connection there. DeVante doesn't know Sala. I mean, Davante's tie to the Jets is obvious with the quarterback, so that's that's the tie. And I don't think this changes anything in terms of John DeVante Adams. Yeah, I don't think. I don't think that's related in I think this is just purely about what what Woody Johnson's seen the last couple of weeks on the field.
Well, I didn't know if they would not fire him, they'd given the benefit of the doubt, if they were going to bring in Davonte Adams.
So yeah, yeah, I'm not sure. I'm not sure if that I think this is I think the DeVante Adams thinking is more than Joe Joe Douglas negotiating that right now, this this is Whatody Johnson deciding to move on from Sala.
Man, this is crazy.
But we shouldn't be surprised. But we are surprised. Why is that? It's the Jets?
Well, i mean, Dan, if you had me on nine days ago, right, they beat the Patriots on Thursday Night football, they look good, right, Rogers, Rogers was Rogers. He was controlling it. Everyone's like, oh, going to the super Bowl. Here they go. They hit their stride, they figured it out. I mean, Dad, we were asking questions that week before the Broncos game of you know, do you guys have to him a prosperity Well here like, do you guys not have to get big ends. We were literally asking these questions in the locker room two weeks ago, and now he's fired, Like it's this league. Is the NFL is insane? Which is how weak the week it is? And you know, obviously there was a case to be made that Sala should have been fired last year. Yeah, right, but he got kind of got a mulligan because Aaron Rodgers missed the whole season and they brought him back. But you could tell talking to Woody Johnson. We talked to him at NFL Honors before the Super Bowl. He was basically saying, like, this is it, Like this is your last chance, and so I think he entered on shaky ground and then things just got shaky in the last two weeks here.
How do you think the players are going to react to this.
I talked to a couple this morning. They're pretty surprised right now. They didn't see this coming. You know, players are pretty resilient and not much phases them, So I think I don't think it's changed as much. Dan. That's my issue with this is the offense has been the problem. Yeah, solves a defensive coach. The defense gave up ten points to the Broncos. They gave up sixteen points to the Vikings. One touchdown was a pick six, Right, So the defense hasn't been the problem. The offense has been the problem. What does this change offensively? You've now made the defensive coordinator who basically designed the defense, along with Salah the head coach. You maybe a change in voice helps. But to me, Dan, this is a ten and seven team. You know, that's what I thought coming in the season. I still think they can go ten and seven, and now it's but now you know, if they win a few games in a row, it's gonna be oh well, oh brick did it where? I just I just don't think this changes much.
Do you think Whatdy Johnson gave Aaron Rodgers a heads up before this happened?
Yeah, that's the that's the question right now that I have I would think he probably would have, but I don't know that for sure right now, but I think if he didn't run it by him that that's an interesting decision.
You always have drama in your job. Is that a good thing? That you always have drama?
It gives me job security, Dan, I'll say that. You know, this beats never boring. When the New York Post makes the list of jobs maybe we can get, maybe we can live without this one, Jets Beat is not on that list, so uh yeah, but it's it's you know, I just texted my wife. I said, the plans have changed for the week different.
Thank you, Brian, Thanks Dan. That's Brian Costello Jets Beat reporter for the New York Post. Yeah, you got drama. You don't have high highs, like like if you're covering some of these teams that get a chance to go to the Super Bowl or an NFC title game or AFC title game. With the Jets, there's always going to be a storyline. The question is is it going to be a positive storyline. I remember being around the Jets when Mark Gastenov was there and they were a good team. You know, Ken O'Brien, but the Giants were a better team at the time. But they had uh, Marty Lines and Joe Klecko. They had a really good defensive line. Freeman McNeil, al Toon was really good, Wesley Walker, they were I mean they they were close to being a really good team. And uh so there wasn't really drama back then. I think Joe Walton was the head coach. But I think that's the first time I was around Richard Todd, So I was never around when Namath. I wasn't covering them. I wasn't old enough to be covering them back then. It started in the early eighties, but I remember Gastoneau was always a storyline because he was he was dating Brigitte Nielsen really yes, yes, and he had I think he had a Rolls Royce and he was a big deal. He wasn't well like by his teammates. I mean, I thought Joe Kleco was the heart and soul of that team. He was one of my favorite players. But you know, you're out there covering these teams and you kind of juxtapose that with the Giants, with Bill Parce, Sells. Belichick was there, you got lt you got you know, Phil Simms, Joe Morris, but the Jets were holding their own. You know, they just couldn't they couldn't get over that hump. The Giants, of course won the Super Bowl. Yes, Pung.
It's such an awkward week to do it, because now you have a standalone Monday night football game versus Buffalo for the media just chop it up, preview the game.
But you don't want him to win his way out of this. If you're planning on firing him, I guess that you're going to have these standalone games. They can lose all three of these and then you can go, Okay, Now if he wins two or three, you're like, I don't know if we can fire him after a win against Pittsburgh. Yeah.
See, it's almost like that's why you fired him this week is because you have a standalone game coming up, and as ownership, you could be like, see fans, we're trying.
Oh, I mean, it's all pr right. It starts from the top. I mean it's it does now? Does Rogers tuesdays? Does he talk or is that with McAfee or is that both?
Usually the quarterback speaks either Tuesday or Wednesday to the gathered media, and he also has his obligation with the McAfee.
I mean, Rodgers has to answer some of these questions. Aaron, why did you have your coach fired?
Who word? Did the code red?
Aaron? The defense has been great, the offense has been terrible, which is true. Robert Salad doesn't have anything to do with the offense. Oh man, what a mess? What a mess? Chris and Pennsylvania. Hi, Chris, what's on your mind?
Hey you good morning? So Rogers. You know he's getting a lot of blame here, But what happened to the running game. Let's talk about brief Hall and Braylen Allen Man, they just like both disappeared the last two games.
Yeah, but I think this is more systemic with that that You're right. Should they have a better running game? Yeah, they should have a better offense. You know, if you have a better passing game, you can have a better running game, and vice versa. They just they haven't. It hadn't synced up yet. There's plenty of blame to go around. There always is with the Jets. Dave and san Antonio. Hi, Dave, what's on your mind?
Hey?
Good morning guys.
I hate to take us off topics here for a second, but I'm dropping my kid off. I get home a little bit earlier than usual. I put on Dan Patrick on peacock. I'm watching Marvin shoot baskets and I'm looking at Marvin shoot baskets and I'm like, what is going on here?
Man?
Marvin Like, whether's don't shoot like that?
Dan?
I know you're a shooter.
Man.
You have been out there with Marvin, help him on the on the court. You got to help my brother out.
He'd never asked for help. I always wait if somebody asks for help, then I'll help them. And Marvin hasn't asked for help with shooting. Do you need help? Do I?
I don't think so.
Okay, so then I'm not going to help you. But if you said to me, I setan, I didn't notice something with Seaton where he was shooting and he would move he would move it off his head to his side, and I said, no, just keep it on the side. Don't move it from the head to the side, because it's taking longer to get your shot off. That was all. It's just a nice Hey, I noticed this, But I don't want to give you a tutorial on shooting.
You know what, during the break help me.
I'll need more time than that.
The break after that you want to start a service where you people send in videos and then you break down their form. It's like, uh, well, charge like a a monthly fee for it or something.
You know what. I have to do this Happy Gilmore thing, so I don't have time right now. I found out I'm in two scenes with Happy Gilmore, and I think I'm shooting my scenes here, I think, but I don't know. I just heard from Samdler this morning and he said, Danny, you're gonna need a wardrobe change for two scenes. And I said, okay, so I'll find out exactly what that is. But look, if I can help I mean I took time out to help Ray Allen when he came in a.
Little late, though he'd already played a couple thousand games.
I don't think it's ever too late. I'm still trying to perfect my shot, and we'll always try to perfect my shot. I even want to hit the rim. I want the net, and then I don't even want the net to move. Marvin, I don't know if I can help you if you don't want to be that great like you coulda want it, and if not, I'm not wasting my time anymore.
You know what I want it?
No, I didn't believe that at all.
Oh, it's all let's move logs.
I don't know what it's gonna do about helping my shot, but we're gonna move logs.
Yes, falling.
I just saw a video. Reggie Miller's fifty nine years old. He posted a video of him just jacking from deep No.
Problem, no, no problem, nope. And you know those who have it have it and they never lose it. It's just it's it's magic in your hand. But it's a small fraternity of us that you know, it just never leaves. Show us a handshaked in no can't You almost tricked me into showing you the secret handshake, because if I see Steph Curry, I just give him the nod and then he knows it's time for the secret handshake. And I hope Klay Thompson gets back in the fraternity, you know, I hope. So did you see where Luca bet one of his teammates. I think it was one hundred thousand dollars. This was during this is like a couple of days ago, that he would make a full court shot. They had like some fan past or something, and Luca made it for one hundred thousand dollars. Did you see that? I don't know, maybe you didn't see the video, but it is. It's pretty funny. It is wild. Yeah, but I think I don't know what the bet was. So Luca is gonna make a hundred thousand, but uh, I think one of his younger teammates cost him one hundred large Derek Lively, Yes, yeah, yeah, And you could see his reaction when Luca makes a full court shot. It's like, damn, yeah, Pauline.
Luca's underneath the opposing basket about three feet out. Yeah, he doesn't even step up. It's like a hook shot you would do in horse in your backyard, but from eighty five feet.
Probably further thing. Yeah, yeah, for one hundred thousand dollars, Let me take a break, Bob Costas he will join us. Coming up next. More of your phone calls as well. We're back after this and the Dan Patrick Show.
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This is the first time since the division series were added in nineteen ninety five that all four series are tied at a game apiece after two games. You got baseball coming up later on today you got the Phillies and the Mets, and then you got Dodgers of the Padres coming up at nine Eastern. Bob Costas on the call for the Yankees game with the Kents City Royals, MLB network host and Hall of Fame sportscaster. When the playoffs started, Bob, a couple of baseball writers said all twelve teams could win the World Series. You feel the same way when that happened, when that started.
Well, all twelve teams have a shot to win a given series. And as I said to you before, if when the playoffs start under this format, you could take any team you want from either league and I take the field, I'd like my chances because so many good teams, one hundred win teams have been knocked out. Especially treacherous is the division series round with the odd number of off days, so a lesser team can get by, maybe with only two good starters. Detroit may get by with only one good starter, but he's the best pitcher in baseball, best starter in baseball this year. Once you get to the LCS, it's a more legitimate test. But think about last year. The Diamondbacks knock off the Dodgers, a team that finished sixteen games ahead of them in the same division. They get all the way through to the World Series. The team they meet, the Texas Rangers, is in effective wildcard team. They tied the Astros for first place, but there was a tiebreaker, so they had to play in the wildcard round. So both those teams had to play in the Wildcard round. They both made it to the World Series, where they the best teams in their respective leagues over the course of the season. No, but the days of an old Pennant Race, win it, or even the old LCS win the division, have to finish first, go to the LCS. That's the one thing that you get to the World Series. Those days are behind us. There's a lot of pluses to this. I mean, there's been a lot of great games, and I've had a lot of people say, you know, it just almost feels like March madness in a sense. I'm watching four games at once, and we're going around with the highlights that everybody's got a shot and there are interesting things happening, and that's what Baseball wanted. And even if you're not among the twelve teams, there were enough teams close enough into the last week or so to keep their fan bases engaged. That's the trade off. Or you're going to always get the purest matchup between the two best teams in the league. No, in fact, I would think less often than not that would happen. But there are upsides to the setup too.
I love the best of three. I just it created tension, immediacy. Each game mattered, and maybe it's not fair, but I always feel like if you got one hundred and sixty two games to alter your course, there and if it comes down to this, and you know, some of these teams had all three home games if they got to that, so I was fine with it. I don't want all the playoff series like that. Where do you stand on that?
Well, the difference between baseball and other sports has to be taken into account. Baseball plays one hundred and sixty two twice as many as the NHL and the NBA, and roughly ten times as many. Did I say the NHL and NBA, Yes, I did, and roughly ten times. I didn't get much sleep last night, Dan, I got to get on a plane to Kansas City. I'm a little groggy, but ten times as much as the NFL, and so there's a legitimate feeling that you want to honor what happens over the course of that long season. Playoff qualifying seems different in baseball. That doesn't mean that this format is bad, but almost any format, if you want that many teams to be in it is going to be imperfect to one extent or another. But this one does yield some excitement in the early rounds, no question.
And I love that Detroit is in. I watched almost all of that game yesterday Schooble is I mean dominating. Yeah, And you know, I just it's a young team. Aj Hinch gets a chance to, you know, come back Kansas City. Although they won in what twenty fifteen, they're still I mean, I love that. Then you get the Padres and the Dodgers. That feels like Yankees in Red Sox. Yeah, you know. So there there's a lot of matchups, a lot of fun things. And then you throw in the Phillies in the Mets And it doesn't matter if it's exhibition, you know, spring training or you know, or a playoff. So that that I think the match I think Baseball's had a really good year this year.
I think so too, with historic performances by Otani and Judge.
Judge continues to struggle in the postseason.
That's another subplot in all of this, and Bobby Witt Junior emerging as one of the best all round players in recent seasons. There's a lot to.
Like in this baseball season.
And to your point earlier, the Padres and the Dodgers feels like a real rivalry. It felt like that before the game on Sunday night. Then you've got people throwing stuff, which you can't applaud at Profar and then apparently Manny Machado tossed a baseball in the direction of Dave Roberts, and Roberts is a pretty even keel guy, but he said it had some mustard on it, and I found it to be disrespectful. So the atmosphere is for Games three and four in San Diego should be pretty raucous as well, as long as everybody stays in their seats and yells the screams as much as they want, but doesn't do anything more than that. But you know, they play in the same division, just like the Tigers and the Guardians do in the same division. The Mets and the Phillies in the same division, so there's that familiarity with all the games played during the regular season. And now they meet again in October, and because of the proximity, you're going to have even more visiting fans if they can score a ticket somehow, visiting fans in the other team's ballpark.
In fact, I said to Ron Darling.
During Game one, this is the only series where a plane ride is required between New York and Kansas City. I think they should go old school and take a train and everybody wears suspenders and smokes cigars and reads the Sporting News and it's in black and white, and it looks like a scene out of the natural.
Would you be willing to take a train today to Kansas City, Bob.
Absolutely not, even the club car on a cello.
I'm not going that far. We've tried to put Otani's season in perspective, and you know, I'm looking at a hitter and a hitter in a regular season. The only other you know, that moment where he has the three homers, like, is that the greatest game ever for a hitter? And I still brought it even though it's two games. Ted Williams on that final day when he could have sat out and he played both ends of the double header and batted four oh six, that's the only thing that I thought might be a comparison to that.
Your thoughts, well, I think of the Sandberg game forty years ago on the NBC Game of the Week, when Ryan Samberg went five for six and hit two homers, last ditch homers off Bruce Suitor. They used relief pitchers differently, and I think White Herzog had Suitor in there for at least three innings. So Sandberg homers to tie it on the ninth. He homers again in the tenth with two out to tie it again and was immediately dubbed the Sandberg Game. And that's what people around Chicago still referred to it as. And it was on a national broadcast when the game of the week was something different than it is now, when you have so many ways to access baseball. Fred Lynn had a game during his Rookie of the Year MVP year in seventy five for the Red Sox where he hit three home runs and had ten RBIs at Tiger Stadium. But what Otani did here, and then, of course, if you think of something happening in the World Series, you think of Reggie Jackson hitting three home runs in a deciding World Series game, it's more meaningful. I think of some of the games that George Brett had. He had a three homer game every homer off Catfish Hunter in the LCS in either seventy seven or seventy eight, And he had another game in eighty five where he had two homers, a double and a single and the double hit the top of the wall against Toronto. Brett is one of the all time great postseason performers. The thing about this, though, is not only did he have five hits and three home runs and he almost had the cycle, he was thrown out a third trying to stretch a double. He had two doubles, so he's thrown out a third, could have had the cycle. And he passed both milestones. He passed the fifty and the fifty in the same game. So I think that this has elements that surrounded. You could look at others and say, I can make a case for this or that, but for now Otani will.
Do Could he be underrated?
I don't know how he could be underrated. He's been certainly celebrated.
People will interpret what I'm about to say wrongly, but it would be a great thing for baseball in the big picture. If Otani, who never played in a playoff game with the Angels, if Otani got to the World Series, and if Judge snapped out of it and hit a few homers on the way to the World Series, and you got Yankees Dodgers, not just because of the markets, but because these are the two players who's the casual fan is immediately recognizable. You can grasp what they've done, you can grasp that they're both historic players. Now, I know that you will have comments saying, oh, it's a big market bias. Hey, if the Tigers make it, If Kansas City plays the Tigers or the Guardians and the LCS, that's good for baseball in its own way. But if you're just looking for a big boost in World Series ratings, you got the combination of the markets and the two marquee players that would be the best in that respect for baseball.
Well, when I say underrated, because we didn't know that he was capable of stealing sixty bases and even the pitching part of it. That'll come back next year and he probably won't come close to these numbers. He won't be running the bases this way, but it's almost like I can't do that. I'm going to show you something else that I can do.
Yeah, this year, minus the pitching, kind of liberated him to run the bases. And maybe it accounts for a portion of what he's done at the plate because he doesn't have as much stress on his body and on his attentions. Maybe, But as everyone has said, and it's true, he's a unicorn. Is he the greatest player you can make a case for many others. But is he the most talented player, certainly that I've ever seen. Will He is not to say that he's a greater all round player than Willie Mays. I mean, he's never played the field to any significant extent. He's a dh But we've never seen someone who simultaneously does the two things, or the multiple things if you count the base dealing that Otani does. Because as we said before, we know that Ruth would have been a Hall of Famer as a pitcher had he never switched to the outfield. But he didn't really do the two simultaneously to any great extent, though Tony has.
Do you remember when we were at the Mets Astros playoff game and Pete Rose said to us we were at the top of the steps, and he said, who do you like today? Do you remember that?
I do? I do?
And you know I was telling Aaron Boone or just having a conversation before the game. And you know Aaron knew Pete from the time he was a little kid because his dad, Bob Boone, was a Phillies.
Teammate of Pete Rose.
And you want to talk about six degrees of Kevin Bacon, if you talk to Aaron Boone, you can connect into just about everybody, including people from before the midpoint of the twentieth century, because his grandfather broke it in nineteen forty eight. So we're talking about Pete Rose, and it occurred to me. I hadn't thought about this in a very long time. It's around nineteen eighty one and I'm just starting out with NBC and I'm standing in front of the Phillies dugout and Pete Rose is playing catch, just warming up before the game, and he glances over and he goes, I see you. You do the It was Big ten basketball games, and I'm thinking, Wow, Pete Rose knows who I am. But then a few years later it dawned on me what that was really all about.
He was betting on those Big ten games.
Absolutely, what's the line on Michigan State Northwestern on a Tuesday night in February?
Did we put to bet? I don't know what we accomplished with discussing Pete in his legacy and moving forward. I don't know. It just felt like it was the same story with Pete and it never changed.
You know, I'm repeating myself here. Nobody's nominating Pete Rose for Citizen of the Year. But not only was he a truly great player. Just on the numbers, he's a Hall of Fame caliber player, but he was so iconic in the way he played the game in a bigger than life personality and part of one of the great teams, the Big Red Machine. And it's not just in the aftermath of his death. I've been saying this for more than thirty years. Baseball should have made a distinction.
Now.
I know that technically it's the Board of Directors of the Hall of Fame, but if any of the commissioners had said, hey, come on, it's okay with us, that would have influenced the Board of Directors. They could have made a simple distinction. He is rightly banned from any official part in baseball because he broke the cardinal rule, but he's on the Hall of Fame ballot. People who poisoned the record books by taking steroids probably damaged the game more than Pete Row has ever damaged the game. They're on the ballot, whether they make it in or not, they're on the ballot. And if he winds up getting in posthumously, now it's almost like they're twisting the knife, whether that's their intention or not. And I know that there were unsavory things connected to Pete, but somebody got those forty two and fifty six base hits, and I've always said you could put it at the bottom of the plaque, along with all the achievements. Banned from baseball in nineteen eighty nine for gambling, and in the immediate aftermath, Fay Vincent, who succeeded Bartia Maadi and was one of Bart's closest friends, if he had lifted that ban. In terms of the Hall of Fame, that would have seemed too lenient. But as time went by, you get to the turn of the century, I think everybody would have grasped it eligible because of what he did. Historically eligible for the Hall no longer officially connected to baseball.
That's the punishment.
And people who say, well, you know, baseball, like every other sport, is now embraced gambling, so it's hypocritical. I get that. Atmospherically that's a bad look, but it's still the rule for any player. If you bet on a game in which you're not involved in baseball, you can bet on football or basketball. But if you bet on a game that you're not involved in, automatic at least one game suspension, then you can one year suspension, then you can apply for reinstatement.
But if you bet on a game in.
Which you are involved, including if you bet on your own team, the rule is still exactly the same as it's been for decades and decades.
Lifetime banishment.
But if he was in the Hall of Fame, do you think if they found out that he gambled later, would they have taken him out of the Hall of Fame. Let's say just baseball wise, his career Hall of Famer. Then he becomes a manager, let's say six years after he's in the Hall of Fame, and then he's betting on baseball. They find that out, would they have taken him out of the Hall of Fame?
But at that point he couldn't have managed in baseball. By what I just suggested, he's banned from baseball.
No, no, no, let's say no, they don't catch him. Oh I think no. So he's in the Hall of Fame for his playing career. He waits six years, the Reds bring him in to be their manager. Then all of a sudden, he bets on Baseball. Would they have taken him out of the Hall of Fame.
That's a tricky one. I guess not.
But they might have altered the plaque, okay, to indicate, you know, what the circumstances are for those who haven't been to the Hall of Fame they think of Some people think of that as just the plaque gallery. That's part of it, but it's a much lower Argia museum. And Pete Rose and Joe Jackson and all the supposed steroid guys, they're all represented in terms of their place in baseball history throughout the museum, but it's the plaque gallery where Pete Rose is missing. I mentioned this on the air right after he died someplace or other. I went to the Hall of Fame with Pete for a piece for the Today Show sometime in the nineties, and he had not set foot in the Hall of Fame since Barchiamatti had banned him. And at one point he walked over to ty Cobb's plaque, and Pete was not a reflective man at all, but in that moment you could tell he was reflecting.
And I actually backed.
The way to give him some space, and you could tell that he's looking at this plaque and saying, Hey, I'm connected historically to this guy, this guy I never met. I'm connected to Ty Cobb. Why am I not here represented in this gallery? Well, the answer is mostly by your own doing. But justice can be tempered with mercy. I don't think if Pete Rose had gotten into the Hall of Fame, let's say in two thousand and five, twenty ten, and he had the plaque in the fashion that I suggested, No little kid is going to walk through the Hall of Fame with his dad look at the plaque and say, gee, Dad, I guess it's okay. Then if I get to the major leagues and I bet on baseball, I mean, the cautionary tale is there.
It was in the first paragraph of his obituary.
And we knew that for decades that it would be in the first paragraph of his obituary. He paid a huge price, even if he was even it was by his own doing, he paid a huge price.
Yeah. I did ask Johnny Bench after Pete died. I said, you saw that segment. Yeah. I said, did you have any idea if he was betting on baseball as a player, And he said, well, I was told by the FBI, you know, to stay away. I think the reason why Pete is never going to be on the ballot it is those those commissioners know that Pete Bett is a player, and I, yeah, I think that that might be the point of no return.
You know that may be true.
I asked Rob Manford in an interview a few years ago, is there something that the general public and those of us in the media pay attention to, what would know about? Is there something that we don't know about that influences this decision, something more damning than what we know, or additionally damning to what we know. And Manford's answer was no.
Yeah, I don't believe it. Don't believe it. I had too many conversations with Bud Seelig where I just got it. I got a sense that there was something there, and I don't think Pete all of a sudden goes, Hey, I'm just going to start gambling on baseball as a manager and not as a player.
Yeah, what you're saying is logical. Yeah, you don't know the answer for sure, but it's certainly a logical question.
Great to talk to you, safe travels to Kansas City.
Thank you, Dr.
But it's Bob costas u TNT, the exclusive home of the Alds Alcs. Bob on the call with Ron Darling, and that'll be coming up tomorrow in Game three in Kansas City. You know, sometimes I get going with Bob and I forget that I'm doing a show. You just talk. It's and I'm lucky to have that relationship, but it's just it's a conversation. The fact that he remembers that's nineteen eighty six. We're at the top of the dugout steps at Shay Stadium and Pete is there, and he walks up to us and says, who do you like today? That's a gambling language right there. That's what gamblers say, who do you like today?
