Welcome to the Big Bloon Sider. Dick Gabrielle with you on a Monday edition of our program, Coming to You Live on Tape. We recorded from the garage, as we usually do, and I bring that up because that might not be the case later in the week. I have Jerry duty. So if I am summoned, it'll be the best of the Big Boon Sider. But we will be with you tonight and tomorrow night here from the garage. Baseball season is over for the Wildcats. You know that,
of course. By now it's Kentucky and a painful, painful loss fell to West Virginia, my dad's alma mater last night, thirteen to twelve, in one of the wildest and when it comes to what was on the line and how they lost, it the most painful loss that I can remember, maybe ever in at least recent UK baseball history. I wasn't around. Well, I was around, but I wasn't there when Keith Madison's best team, which was in nineteen eighty eight, was about three innings maybe from the College World Series.
And this is back before they took sixty four teams. It was so much harder to get into the world series, and he lost. His team lost to Stanford and Mike Messina had him down and again a couple of innings away, then lost, and then the next day they ran out of pitching. So that was painful. I remember reading about it back in nineteen eighty eight. There wasn't any radio
or TV on it. But this one was worse to me because the Cats had it against West Virginia, a team they should have beaten in the opening round, and then they lose. They lose that one by a run, then they lose again by a run to West Virginia, and it was frankly because of errors. And yes, I know West Virginia made a bunch of errors as well. It doesn't matter if you're making errors, you're blowing it. And the Wildcats, of course, in Game one, made an error.
Luke Lawrence made an error that opened the gates for West Virginia and the Wildcats lose at four to three. Wasted a great pitching performance by Ben Cleaver, the Slim Reaper. He gave up three runs, only one was earned, and then gave up an unearned run. When Simon Gregorson was on the mount, he gave up one hit, one unearned run and lost to West Virginia four to three. So now you got to battle back, and they did. They come back. They beat USC Upstate, which was a good team,
not a great team. And then they got to play Clemson, which had lost to West Virginia, which came from behind and beat Clemson. So now the Wildcats have got to play the Tigers on their home field, and they destroyed Clemson, had a six run fourth inning and just had a big time, had what thirteen base hits, good pitching by Nate Harris, six innings, three runs, and the bullpen got it done havn Byers, Nile Ad cock Leydon Harris. So now that sets him up to play West Virginia again,
and you know what happened. Cats jumped out to a four to one lead, made it five to one, made it six one, then gave up six runs in the fourth inning. Another error cost him Tyler Bell. And I'm not picking on these two guys, Luke Lawrence and Tyler Bell, because let's face it, Without those guys both offense and defense, Kentucky's not here. Kentucky's not in the postseason. But they made errors on routine plays at the worst possible time.
Still Kentucky bounced back after giving up the lead and watching West Virginia tie it at seven to seven, and did what good teams do immediately answered, got two runs in the fifth, got three more in the sixth, and another in the eighth. Right, so now they're up twelve to seven. And I'll be honest with you, I knew how deeply Kentucky had gone into his bullpen, which had been somewhat of an issue all year, up and down, and I thought, man, I don't know if they can
hold this lead. Even though West Virginia made five errors, I don't know if Kentucky can hold this lead. And it couldn't. Cats just kept either walking people or hitting people. And they walked seven, gave up runs with two outs, and they lose another one run game. Lost a dozen
one run games this year. But I've got to be honest when I got to thinking about it, when I calmed down, I said to myself, at the beginning of the year, knowing or not knowing what I knew about this team, which is to say, I didn't know what they were going to be like, I didn't know who was going to play what. To the coaches, they thought they had to figure out figured out in the fall
and preseason. They were changing the lineups, they were changing position players, some of them mostly in the outfield, but some at first base. They dealt with injuries to keep players. At one point they were down to their fifth third basement. They had James McCoy playing third base, which he'd never played, and of course McCoy spent a lot of time this year at first base, which he had never played. So they just kept juggling and tweaking and trying to fix thing.
Lost their starting center fielder early in the year. They lost key relievers this year, and remember last year they were almost completely healthy going into postseason, same the year before. Not making excuses. You got to deal with it. Everybody deals with injuries. But those were some of the challenges that they had. And after the game, Nick Minjeone, talking to the media said, yeah, this is this is gonna bother him for quite some time.
I'll be thinking about this game in these moments for a long time, because you know, when you have a team down and you gotta you gotta put him away.
Proud of our.
Team for the their ability to add runs. You know, obviously we we got down and then we responded and we kept adding to the lead. And just man, this team, very few people even gave his team a chance, so to be in this position, the leadership that we got from our seniors was absolutely incredible.
It was interesting. He never directly commented on the collapse of the bullpen, because every time it seemed like his thoughts took him to that, he fell back on how proud he was of the team, how proud he was of the senior class, of what this team went through just to get here. Think about this now, with all the one run laws this year, and with all the mysteries surrounding this team that lost almost every starting player, including a reliever and starting pitcher, from last year's World
Series team, they had one regular back. McCoy was a part time regular, if there is such a thing in right field. Devin Burks was the only position player back from last year. And again, including the rotation, the top relievers and all, and still they were one went away from playing for a shot at the Soupers again for the third consecutive year. I didn't see that coming, did you.
No.
Every once in a while you'd see potential when they swept Oklahoma, when they went to Knoxville and beat Tennessee. Ole Miss has planned for a super slot tonight against Murray State. Kentucky beat Ole Miss in one game, lost a couple of one run games to the Rebels, so you saw the potential there. They just couldn't quite nail it down during the regular season and last night against
West Virginia. But again, as Minjiones said, very few people gave this Kentucky team a shot at doing anything this year.
I told him, there's not a lot of people that gave them a chance a chance. So when I look back and I think about what this team has done, the amount of time, effort, energy, and the buy in that they just literally just bought into everything we were doing, it was truly remarkable.
Truly remarkable. And still, by the way of those comments courtesy of on three dot com, still Kentucky should have won the game, and if West Virginia had lost, the Mountaineers would have said we should have won the game. That's just the way it went. But you got to take advantage. And Kentucky had so many opportunities to win that one, and really opportunities to get through this regional
without a loss. But just missed it. So this is something when I think back on this season, I will think about all those one run games, midweek games, SEC games, and yeah, it's another tough year for the league. It's not going to be quite as formidable as it was last year when half the field, well maybe it will be half the World Series field was SEC teams. But you got all missed playing as I said tonight for with Murray State in Oxford for a shot at hosting
a super Wake Forest at Tennessee tonight. Little Rock Arkansas, Little Rock at LSU tonight, beat LSU last night. How about that in the box and forced another game at alex Box Stadium tonight. Oklahoma SEC team is at North Carolina, a team Kentucky swept, but then not Kentucky out of the SEC tournament. But it's an incredible year so far. Georgia done, Mississippi State done, Vanderbilt the overall number seed, number one seed done, beaten by Right State, Texas done,
beaten by UT San Antonio. It's phenomenal. Now Auburn is gonna host the super or move to the Supers. Arkansas moves to the Supers. Auburn's a team to beat Kentucky early in this year. Arkansas did not play Kentucky the typical strong year in the SEC, but I think we'll agree Wildcats should still be alive. Coming up at the bottom of the hour, we're gonna talk with Jeff Picoro
of the SEC Radio Network. We'll talk baseball, football, basketball, Our number two Derek Terry of Betcat Central, of course, has covered Kentucky baseball year long, and our New York City Bureau chief Mike Sephoznik. I'm going to check in with Mike on two fronts, number one to take the pulse of New York Knicks fans, and I think I already know the answer how they're treating Karl Anthony Towns. Remember now it's New York. But also Mike is about as wild eye a Kentucky fan as you'll ever want
to meet. That's all I had on the Big Boon Sider here on six thirty WLAP. Welcome back to the Big Boon Sider. Coming up at the bottom of the hour, Jeff picorol the UK Sports Network, and coming up tomorrow night we'll talk to Darryl Bird. It's it's kind of a tradition the SEC people get together in Destin, Florida and meet and talk and all that. And Darryl is I believe the only local person, the only person on the UK beat who goes down to Florida covers the meetings.
Takes a little time, he and his wife, but he gets a chance to sit down with Mark Pope and Mitch Barnhart. The off times, would sit down with whoever was Kentucky said football coach at the time. Obviously Mark stoops right now, but now he waits until he gets back and sits down. Might have talked to him before the meetings, but they sit down and talk with each other with an eye on the Cat's Balls pre season football yearbook coming up, and you've heard us talk to
Aaron Gershan about that. So we'll have a chance to talk to Daryl about that tomorrow night and catch up with him on what's been discussed. I know looking at the website that at the Cats Ball's website that he had a good sit down with Mark Pope and with Mitch Barnhardt. So we'll find out what's on their mind tomorrow night. Speaking of Jefpiicorel a long time with the Cincinnati Reds the network and there's a really bittersweet story
about the Reds. Elie Della Cruz had a home run yesterday and this came right after he learned of the death of his sister. According to the story, obviously, playing in Chicago with a heavy heart, Red's lost seven to three, but Dela Cruz had a two run homer and scored two runs. And this is after he had found out that his sister had passed away. And Terry Francona, the manager, said Dela Cruz insisted he wanted to play and said the team would support him, and in fact, the fiftieth
home run of his career came. Dela Cruz patted his chest as he took his final steps toward the plant, pointed to the sky and bang, knock one out of the ballpark. So, Ellie Dela Cruz right now is dealing with tragedy. Didn't talk to reporters on Sunday, Reds didn't offer any more details, but the home run was number twelve on the year for Elie Dela Cruz. And while we're talking tragedy, John Brincus remember him Sports Science, Remember that feature on ESPN. He was the co creator in
the host. He died at age fifty four. There was no cause of death given in the story that I read, but it dealt extensively with depression. It said Brincus had been dealing with depression. According to the announcement of his death on social media. I can only assume he took his own life because he admitted that he had attempted suicide earlier in his life and had second thoughts. Obviously, but he sold his company and Sports Science that feature, and he said after he did that, he spiraled into
what he called a deep, deep depression. He said he had a noose around his neck was ready to do it, but his dog named Zeppelin, tugged on his genes and pulled him out of what he called his suicidal funk. Then he sought help and said that he was in much better shape in terms of his personal life than he had ever been before. However, he is gone now and they keep talking about the depression from which he suffered.
Sports Science was such a great feature, and as the story said, it aimed to uncover sports biggest myths and mysteries using cutting edge technology, settying things like momentum friction, the laws of gravity. The series won six Emmy Awards. It started on Fox Sports in twenty oh seven and it moved to ESPN. I thought it was such a great, great feature and a great idea, and I was I was sad when it went away. We talked last week with Kenny McPeak and his horse Mystic Dan and won
the Derby. Want to raise the Churchill Downs on Saturday, So congrats to Kenny, who says Sovereignty will win the Belmont. He told us that when we were at his barn Friday morning, journalism will be entered. That's final. Now. Michael McCarthy worked his horse, breezed him yesterday. Breezing means train
like he's racing, you know, going all out. And in fact the jockey for journalism when Berto Rispoli was actually in town from California yesterday morning and this was the only workout for journalism since the May third Kentucky Derby course Journalism finished second. But in case you're interested, he went a half mile in forty seven and five. That's pretty good, folks, opening quarter twenty three and change galloped out one minute four five furlongs one twelve and change
for six. That's according to New York Racing Association clockers. Those are really healthy times. So Journalism appears to be ready to go after winning the Preakness, and even though he was bumped in traffic coming down the stretch, he's doing well up in New York. He's going to try to win that Preakness Belmont double runner up in the Derby.
Winner of the Preakness will be the lone horse to compete in all three jewels of the Triple Crowd in twenty twenty five, and in fact, if he wins, he'll be the first horse to complete that Preakness Belmont double, not including Triple Crown winners since a Fleet Alex in twenty oh five. Sovereignty did work a half mile, so
he's ready to go. Good to go. Bill Mott's Colt skip the Preakness, as you know, but recorded his third workout since the Derby on Sunday morning when I half mile and forty eight and change almost forty nine over the Oklahoma training track that's across the street from the main track at sarah Tooga. It's so weird picturing the Belmont at sarah Toga, but it's a good track. They'll get a great crowd and it's going to be a really good race, I think, with both sovereignty and journalism
hooking each other again. Also training Sunday morning, a cult named Crudo. He's the son of Justify, a Triple Crown winner, and a horse that won the Sir Barton Stakes on the Preakness undercard, so he'll get some play. Finally, in case you track such things, and you may already know this if you're a Madden fan, but on the cover of Madden NFL twenty six, EA Sports announced earlier today and released an image Saquon Barkley and it's the photo from when he leaped over a player earlier this year.
It was probably the greatest moment regular season for the Eagles when he did that. There had to be a zillion photos taken. And that's what's on the cover now of Madden. And if you believe in the Jinks, bet against the Eagles. I'm not going to bet against Saquon Barkley.
Not me. Jeff Pacarl's next year on six thirty WLAP welcome back to the Big Moon side of joining us now in our celebrity online Mister Jeff Picayl, color analyst on the UK Football Radio Network, also sports director WTVQ here in election and much to discuss right now though, Jeff, as we move into the summer months, which can be challenging for local TV sports. But and you know you worked in TV sports back in the day. You've been a TVQ now for a little more than a year, I think, right.
Three, you've been there three years.
On your second years, they go around wow.
Three.
Well, then, you know, summertime, it seems like is getting smaller and smaller when it comes to getting yourself ready for the upcoming football season and stuff like that, isn't it.
Well, you know, like Robin asked the other day, aren't they out of school? Why are they still playing baseball? Yes, they are the only guys on campus and the softball is the only.
Girls on campus right now.
So yeah, but you track.
Athletes scattered out there, but they're not on campus.
Right yeah. So yeah, it's getting shorter and short as you say, And you know, I don't see me into it, but you know you have to. If you're baseball, you've got to play the games and softball.
So you know. Part of this too, though, is we are keeping an eye on transfers for all sports, most recently basketball of course, still some football out there, and then we start hearing about football what you guys used to call summer camp. I guess it's still camp technically in the middle of August, so you know, just the days are getting shorter.
Yeah, I mean you look at that, they've got basically about well two months thirty about sixty days they're practicing, and they start practicing because remember it's a little earlier this year. The first game is August, like the first of August, so yeah, they'll be in there at the end of July practicing. You know, it's kind of weird
because most of the guys are there. This is the time where when when I played, we worked at I worked at Clavern Farms in the summer for John Sosby with the farm manager there, and Seth of course was our big boss. But you know, we worked there for about five weeks and that was the only money we got back in the day. And everybody did I mean you talked to Derek and Felix and those guys, they all did it as well. You could work there. You worked at the pepsi plant over there on that for
sales road road. Yeah, you just loaded trucks. That's what she did in the summer.
Can I assume that your job at Clayburne was not glamorous, that you might have been working at one end of the horse that people try to avoid.
Well, we actually did. And there was two things. And the one was okay, you you you'd get about twenty guys and you'd stand about five feet apart, and all of us had a hoe that had the two prongs on one end and the hoe on the other side. You just walk the fields where the you know, the pat they're different little paddocks or whatever you want to call their little acre.
Lots and stuff.
And yeah, and you had to get all the thistle out, all the all the you know the thing, because they could eat those and callacky or they step on them and jump. So that's all you did, was just cut the weed mile Frank hare Cam Jacob to me, David, Tom, Yeah, a bunch of us worked out there. Then the other thing was, yeah, then when it got a little bit later and you had to bail Hey, and they had a flatbed truck and you'd walk behind it and pick up the veils. They were forty and eighty pound bails.
Two different guys and Tom up on the truck and guys stacked them on the truck.
Yeah. Yeah, it's basically work out for you.
Yeah. I wonder if Folds were doing that now. I think I know the answer.
Well you mentioned.
I know. It's like it's like at the station. When we used to have interns that were we were allowed to actually tell them to do stuff. You know, Now things changed legally, so basically all interns could do when I was still working TV was sit there and watch. I mean, we sneak them a little work now and then, but it was, you know, it was ridiculous. Anyway. We could go on all night about that. But much to discuss various sports. Let us start with baseball. I know.
I mean, I've tried to qualify that game last night, Jet, but that had to be the weirdest, uh oddest, saddest game that I think I've ever recovered in UK baseball. I wasn't there when Keith Madison's best team in eighty eight got knocked out of the tournament because there were there were three innings from the world's He's back when it was even harder to get there. I wasn't there for that one man.
Well, I think I think What makes this hurt the worst dick is the fact that you know, and I'm not blaming one player, you can't do that because this was a full team breakdown. But you know, and Tyler Bell was playing on a on a hurt knee. I mean, he got drilled right in the kneecap, missed the game before. But he comes back, he's he's your best player.
Face that.
I mean, the guy is unbelievable. He makes really two areas only gave him one, but he makes two errors and if either of those, which one was a routine double play, you're at the inning. He doesn't get it. They score five runs after his after his error, he just bobbled the ball coming up the transfer to try to,
you know, flick it over to second base. And they score five runs, you know, And then how many the thing I didn't look at yet, and you and Dougie and Darren I'm sure have done this, but how many who runs that they score with two outs? There had to be eight or nine or ten.
Those are the most frustrating.
I mean, they just couldn't get that third out. You know, they hit two different innings.
And this is microcosmic of the entire season. I mean, what a dozen one run losses? You know they may they could play another fifty years and that not happened.
Yeah, you know, here's the thing too, And I've said this about football, so and I'll say it about baseball. There's two positions, one in football and one in baseball that you just simply can't find enough of these. And football it's offensive defensive line. You just can't find six foot six, three hundred and fifteen pound guys growing on trees.
Baseball you can never have enough arms. And I would spend every dollar I had on nil whatever they have and try to get pittried, because all you need was one guy to step up yesterday, just one to get you to today. And I thought, I hope they played Clemson on Saturday because I thought they could beat West Virginia twice, and you know, because I thought, you know, they beat Clemson pretty east handily and really should have beat West Virginia the first game and the second game.
Well, and again, an intern an in turn, an error on a routine play opens the door. But you know, it takes all phases. And this has been a decent Kentucky defensive team. I think I told you uh, not as good as some in the past. But yeah, when you get all three phases like you did in that
blowout of Clemson and then you make it look easy. Yeah, and I didn't see that coming either, blowing out Clemson and West Virginia, in all fairness, did win the Big twelve, but I thought Kentucky was better, but not not when it came to when West Virginia needed to shut things down. They had enough arms to do that because one of my concerns, Jeff, was that this Kentucky team might flatten
out the way it did in the SEC two. That was the most puzzling game to me of the year, you know, going to sleep against Oklahoma and they were destroying the ball down in Clemson. I was pleasantly surprised by that.
Well here's the bottom line to this, and I don't know what the answer is, but really, if you take the last what was it eight games they played, they're one and seven.
Yeah, you know that's not good.
Right after they sweep Oklahoma, Yeah, wellhich wasn't long after they went down and could have swept Tennessee here.
Yeah, I mean I thought the Vanderbilt series, you know, again, a game they are a series. They really could have won all three games, and instead they lose all three and I think you're just like, well, we're done. And I think that maybe some of those guys who were a little surprised you weren't you always say that thirteen wins. I hear you guys talk all the time and your your chain gang guys at thirteen wins is the uh, you know kind of that probably the floor magic number. Yeah,
even though they're thirteen and seventeen. And I'm one that says I don't think you should reward a team for being under five hundred to get into postseason. But that's just me. But you know, I just thought that was a tough way to end the season, and especially one where you brought in thirty new guys and now how many of those guys are going to stay next year? You know, That's that's the big problem in baseball, there's such a turnover.
But some of the best players on this team are freshmen, that's the good news, or sophomores like Ben Cleever. So he's Jeff Coorrol. He's a sports director WTVQ and color analysts on the UK Football Network. We will shift to Kentucky football on the other side of the break here on six thirty WLAP Welcome back. We're talking to Jefficorrel of WTVQ and the UK Sports Network, and before long we'll be calling. I assume we'll get the contracts in
the mail. Jeff, you never know Kentucky football coming up. You mentioned earlier how you would spend whatever you could to bring in linemen. Well, Mark Stoops did that. I don't know the particulars you might of what they're spending, but O line, as we all know, has been a huge issue. We're not going to beat that dog anymore.
But it is going to be interesting. You talked about, you know, guys getting to know each other, and here in the offseason, receivers and quarterbacks and running backs to a point, can't go out and throw the ball, get to know each other. Yeah, what do linemen do at this time of year?
This is the time when they're really lifting weights and just getting bigger and stronger, chause they're going to lose ten to fifteen pounds as the season goes on from wear and tear and beating down. You can't lift as much weights and stuff. But there's really not a whole lot you can do. Look, I always talk about offense the blind as being like a dance. You know, everybody has to take the right steps and the only way to do and you can't do it with four guys.
You can't do it with three. It has to be all five, and a lot of times it has to be six because the tight end is so integral. Now in Kentucky's offense right blocking scheme, I should say not passing, let me how you make that straight. But you know they really have it. They have to all five beat together and the only time you can do that is practice, and so it's hard for them in the off season to get the five guys or six guys together and
just do steps. So they don't really do that. But that, to me is the biggest thing, is repetition because it has to be second nature to these guys. And now as fast as the defensive linemen have become with the size, if you take one bad step, if you take a drop step instead of a jab step, or you take a crossover step, your beat and you know, these guys have to learn that, and some of them have to
learn it with starting with your right foot. Anna left the guys that flip both sides, So it just takes time.
You are a wide receiver back in the day, and you've got a wide receiver room now with some guys who came back, but also some new faces, you know, and I don't know what was going on in terms of the dynamics over the last couple of three years with Dane Keene Barrian Brown. They were clearly clearly the best players and made some big plays, they really did, but just something just seemed off. I don't know what it was. What do you expect, what do you anticipate this year?
Well, I think it's additioned by subtraction. To tell you the truth, I think that those two guys were and I have to say, let me try to put this in the best tone I can. They were really good players. I don't know how great the teammates they were. How that you know, you have to be cocky, you have to be self assured. You know, you're like a fighter pilot out there when you're a quarterback and you're a wide receiver, right, you got to want the ball and
but you also have to do other things. And you also don't out in the huddle, and you also don't yell and scream at your coach and things like that. I really think that this team is better now they've got they've got some guys and that I think will really help. And I did want to correct you on one thing. I wasn't a wide receiver, Dick.
I was a downfield anfield blocker. That's right. I'm sorry, coach wherever you are, that's right.
Yes. But and I do want to say this. I really think that I don't think you're going to see any problems with the receiving room.
I really do.
I like. I like the dynamics they have there. You've got a quarterback with Annon for an arm. The big difference is going to be to make blackform. And let me put it bluntly to you. This you you said about an offensive lineman, a good a just a good, not a great. A good offensive lineman these days is going to cost you about two hundred to two hundred and fifty thousand dollars. Just how about that?
Yeah, I believe it, Lowick.
I can't fathom that as a college kid. It just doesn't make sense to me. And I understand the people who said, you know, we're still wearing tim Couch jerseys and they're still buying Tim Couch jersey and he didn't get a penny for that.
You know, I.
Understand that, I do. But they've opened this and we could talk at nauseing about this. I just don't know where the end's going to be because this is in a professional situation here. Where are they going to get the money? I mean, you brought in five guys that cost you know, on that offensive line, that cost you well over a million dollars just for the offensive lineman. So, you know, I just don't know, and it's just amazing. We didn't have anything. You know this, you didn't have
anything when you were in school. We worked on the side. We got twenty bucks, you know, Derek Graansey. Then we're upset because they only got fifteen. We got twenty, but.
That was it.
Why did you get.
Yeah?
But now to walk around, why why did.
You get the works? Why did you get twenty in Rambley at fifteen? Did they drop it?
I think no? I think it was a you know, what do you call it? A cost of living increase?
Oh? Wow? No kidding?
Yeah, well yeah, but.
And so those have there going. Why did you get twenty bucks? The r our dining hall was in the building wasn't open on the weekend, so we had to eat on our own, right, and some kids don't have any money, So the university was allowed to give back then a small stipend to eat on the weekends, and it was fifteen twenty dollars. So that's what we got, which went.
A longer way back then, but still it was Oh yeah, goes to you guys. You guys need you guys needed more fuel than the average man. A few minutes left with Jeffercorrel. We spent and I interviewed your buddy Kenny McPeak last last week. I know you all were hanging out at a concert not not long ago, but Mystic Dan wins on Saturday, the Kentucky Derby winner Kenny McPeek. Jeff as a, I knows your buddy. You guys have
been from bud since high school. But in terms of what he does for the sport, obviously we know horses can't talk, and guys like Kenny, who who are good at it, really advances through ABD racing, which you love as much as I do.
Yeah, he really has and I think that you know, for those that don't know. Horse Racing now is an app that you can get on your phone. It's free, which is amazing. It does have ads, but it's free. And that's something that he thought of.
He wanted.
You know, he was a guy that years and years and years ago, was let's open up our signal to everybody. You know, and you know, I know understand that racing was afraid of gambling and all that kind of stuff on the side, but you know, why not open it up? And now they finally have. But that's beside the point. He's a Hall of Famer now from what he's done wi him and Derby and the Oaks. He's won everything except the He's won the Prietness, he's won the Belmont,
he's won Bader's Cards. Yeah, he's just never won the Breeders' Cup, uh Classic, the Classic. But he's won the Distaff and he'll be in the Hall of Fame. That's amazing. But yeah, he's he's done great. And Mystic Van the first Derby winner to come back to Churchill and Winter Race since Silver Charms. How about that?
I did not know that. I know he won what was it Saturday Friday?
Yea, he won the Blak Friday, he won the Blame, which is yeah, that's called Stephen Yeah, the Stephen Foster Undercard they call it. For the weekend. I'm sorry, it was Saturday. Saturday he won the Flame. You know, it's a nice race. It's a it's a graded race. It was a really nice deal. He wasn't the favorite post time was post time, finished third. But he did the same thing he did in the Derby Brian Hernandez nos his horse and took the turn and really kind of
cut the corner and just ran away from everybody. So he looks to be back. And you know, now they're hoping that Torpedo Anna can get back on track as well in her next race up in New York.
Well, and I can't recommend enough the series you know on Netflix about Racing to the Crown. I mean, you talk about an inside look, but also as people who work in TV, you know what I think about someone who's done a few documentaries of my day? How many cameras, how many people, how much behind did they spend? And it's brilliant And and Kenny's run center, isn't he Yeah?
You know he did a Yeah, he just lightning in a bottle for him too, because since that series and since his horse, his horse is when the Oaks and the Derby, his business is now better than it's ever been. He's opened a new string up in New York, so he has a ton of horses up there with Jimmy Jerkins, of course, his dad one of the all time great trainers, Allen Jerson being second Pario twice. Jimmy's running that the
string of horses up in New York for Kenny. So he's got him in Florida at at his farm down there is where all the babies go. That's where they get broke and everything he bought. He bought paddle with stables down there, and it's a beautiful facility. Then he's got him in New Orleans, he's got him in Oaklawn, He's not him in Kentucky. He's got him at Churchill and at his farm at Magdalena. And then he's got the big string up in New York. So he has
literally hundreds of horses now in training. And you know, it couldn't happen to a better guy, and.
Wishing well, yeah, and we're going to make our annual pilgrimage. My brother and my friends and I are going to go up there this August as we have the last three or four years, and last time up there we got a chance to see therpeda Ana out on the track. Kenny unfortunately was ill that day, so we didn't get a chance to talk to him, but she is a true superstar and she is in great hands as we know.
He is Jeff Picarel of WTVQ. Jeff Picarel on Twitter or x Very simple and watch morehum on thirty six. Listen for him on the UK radio notework. Thank you, sir. Thanks ed up next our number two with Batcat Central's Derek Terry and our New York City Bureau Chief Mike Sephazni. That's next on six thirty Like Bag.
Take Back, Welcome back to.
The Big Moonsider joining us down our celebrity hotline is a guy who's been covering the baseball Wildcats all year. Bat Cat Central is the name of the website. Derek Terry is the name of the writer, and Derek, you were down in Clemson up until Sunday until yesterday. I had him make it back, of course, because you have a real job today. But uh, it's just crazy how that regional basically encapsulated the entire season for Kentucky.
Isn't it?
Yes?
And unfortunate Kentucky. But that's how it. Uh So that's how it ended, you know, the end of season of what is it, dick twelve won round offices this year, I think ends up being the final number. And uh, you know this one, Uh, this one stinks. I mean you're up two times by five runs in this uh, in this final game against West Virginia and you know, unable to hold it and use a lot of pitchers.
If you if you look the box score, it looks a lot like some of those midweek games with some of the names that are out there, you know, just really having to go deep into the pen. And uh, you know there were some errors in there as well that led to that, which on one hand, West Virginia committed five errors themselves. You know, they didn't play very plain either And at the end, you know what you said, I think is probably true. That really kind of encapsulates
the season. Just a lot of really close calls, a lot of really hard losses and season ends and in pretty brutal fashion. It's hard to see a season end like that.
You know, Minjeone likes to talk about doing things they've never done before. I don't remember them losing a game like this, especially one that brings the season to an end. You know, it's just it's nuts. But you mentioned errors, and I will always look back and I'm not pointing fingers. There were so many mistakes made. But the middle infielders for Kentucky, Luke Lawrence, Tyler Bell, during the regular season,
they committed only four errors a piece. They were you know, they took up where Grant Smith and Amelian Petrade left off. They were one of the best middle infield I think one of the best middle infielder combos in the SEC, if not the country. And yet Luke Lawrence in the first game against West Virginia a routine play, Tyler Bell in the game last night, a routine play, and they both led directly to Hugh Jennings. Never saw that coming, you know what I mean?
Yeah, you know that is that is a tough way to go out. I mean, both these games against West Virginia, especially Sunday's game Friday, you know, I think they played that well. I don't think either team played very long Friday. I don't know if it was just postseason nerves. Starting out, both teams committed air as he mentioned Lawrence Is that brought in two runs, and I believe West Virginia shortstop also made their that led the UK scoring two runs. So it was just kind of some sloppy play. He
won't use this as an excuse. I'm not sure when he'll talk to media again if he if he did last night, I don't think Bell ever really got over that what happened Friday to start off. He just didn't look the same, you know, is that leg I plot him for fighting through it, but I think it was there, you know, bothering him that whole time. So you know,
I don't think his range was as good. But just be told him that er, that's a pretty much a roostine ball, and he's made that play basically all year and he didn't there and they led to health lead he should say to a really big inning.
You know, there is a bright side to this, believe it or not, in that some of the young guys made big plays, big ad bats. You know, it seems like Derek most of the quality on his team as the younger guys, you know what I mean, Does it look that way to you.
Yeah, you know, Belle great Sea and you know he didn't go out the way he'd want, but this was you know, he's it's been a long time. I mean, I'm trying to think, Dick, when was the last time that you remember a freshman just clearly being the best player on a team. Because I thought that was the case this yere cole h had a last year a senior transfer from Columbia, But I really just think all around, Bell was by far the best player, and you don't
see that all the time with the freshman. So Hudson Brown is a guy that will leave that regional feeling much better about probably his standing of where things are. I mean, he was excellent those last few games. Lawrence can come back. Schwartz a starter, he can come back, So a lot to build around. And then on the mountain tooth leave Nick Harris give a great outing against Clemson some Sunday, So there's plenty of the build arounds. So have some freshman come in next year too that
I think can help right away. But you know, like always, now know it's probably going to come down to how well you do in the portal to kind of to build around the edges a little bit, and I think this team can. I think he liked the bones of the roster pretty well. But h I said, they need to go to the portal and and find at least two or three difference makers, hopefully put them back and probably regional competition for hosting a regional you know, contention for that next year.
Yeah, because that is something that you know, Kentucky fans have gotten used to used to doing.
And you know, well when they when they've advanced, it's been when they've held up themselves. It's it's hard when you go on the road and to try to win a reasonable.
You know, your point about the best player being a freshman. Technically you can go back to the COVID season when John Rhodes was the national national freshmen of their code, but they only played seventeen games, so you know, that's kind of got an answers by it. But and you know now he's in an Orioles chain played you know,
left early. But anyhow, Yeah, I mean, there's there's a lot to like, but this was the most maddening season for those losses, and I can remember and it just seemed like Derek had never got any better.
You know, no it didn't. I mean if you think back to the Vanderbilt series when it's easy to say now because they weren't even among the last four teams
they got in. But yeah, when you were kind of sweating it out there on selection, you know last Monday Memorial Day for the selection show, you could point towards you know, two straight walk off home runs for Vanderbilt and then in similar fashion, it wasn't a one run loss, but they held a three run lead I think in the sixth inning of the final game and ended up not being able to hold it. So that was just
one series, But there were others. I mean Auburn or yeah, I think it was Auburn they lost back to back eight to seven games. Texas they lost their one run game, I mean, what an SEC game. But the MIDWEK against Woolville they lost. You know, they had to lead in that game and lost. So when you have that many, I don't think there's just one thing you can point sphere. I'm sure there were situations where the coaches felt like they could have made some better decisions. You know, there's
plays that the players could have done better thinking. I think it was against auebign right. I can't remember if it tied it or if it put or if you k would have won, or if it just led to it been tied. But Bell I think dropped the pop up in the infield really early on in the season, and you know, so there's enough flame to go around.
Uh.
I would say the goal now for the coaches will be, you know, the portal opens today Monday, and from from there, you know, they'll spend the next few days, I'm sure evaluating what they thought went well, where they need to get better and try to identify things within their roster that you know, maybe led to this and to the end this kind of season. But overall, I mean three
straight tournament appearances. This is a team that, as strange as it's kind of the outcomes were in terms of how disappointing it was, I feel like they had expectations and I know people are going to it is a bitter loss, you know, to lose that way, I think it'll haunt people for a while so are involved with
that game. But to get back to a regional in a season like this where they had to replace so much from a College World Series team, I think they really showed a lot to be honest, that this was not some kind of one off kind of thing last year or you know there you know, Mark excuse used to talk about it after that twenty eighteen season that they just didn't want to have a good team, they wanted to have a good program. But I think for
baseball it was similar this year. You know, you didn't want to go two or three more years after you made it to the World Series before you had a shot to really have a team that you felt like would be good again. So in that sense, you know, you were cruising Sunday night, I felt like you're going to being a Game seven of the regional tomorrow you Monday night for that whenever the game was going to be played at some point on Monday, and it didn't
fall that way. But uh, I don't think you look at this program and see it as one that's just so far off from getting back to Omaha. Really not a guarantee by any means. Yeah, I think if they can go to the make the right kind of editions, and uh absolutely it should be it should be a team that isn't hosting conversation and that's probably something we can talk about later in the summer after the drafts and and what we kind of see how a better
idea of what the roster is looking like. But I feel like I keep a yeah, no, I was gonna say.
I also think and I keep reminding myself. And you know, Minjion never used as an excuse. They had a significant number of injuries this year, two important players, and one of them was to Robert Hogan. You know. The bullpen collapsed Sunday, uh, you know, and they had trouble with it all year. Robert Hogan pitched briefly this year and wasn't right when he pitched. And this is a guy they thought, and I thought they had every right to expect that based on what he did down the stretch
last year. He was one of the reasons they got to Omaha, and they knew they could lean on him, a veteran pitcher who had really good SEC caliber stuff. And he just wasn't there. And he wasn't the only one. There were four or five six players that they were really counting on and that didn't happen last year. And men Geone kind of mentioned this down the stretch that last year and really the year before prior by the
time they got the tournament play, everybody was healthy. And I throw in one more thing we forget unless we sit down and just think about it. Last year Kentucky had a left fielder who was putting together a first round draft pick kind of season, you know, which was as important as anything that happened for that team. So I think this team had to scrap a lot more and just kind of ran out of gas.
Yeah.
I told Daniel Hager, who covered it for ks Are that you know, I felt like they maxed it out this year. I mean, I really did. This was a team that I don't know that It's depends on how you want to look at it. Because when he played as many close skins as they did, it's it's easy to look at the record and look at these individual games and say they should have won some of these we add those up. When you add those up, it could have been a sixteen or seventeen win team in
the SBC. But I guess if I it's kind of hard to quantify this. I don't know if I feel like that was their talent level though, I don't know if I feel like they were a seventeen type. I mean that's pretty good, you know, if you can get the seventeen wins in the league. I mean, that's a clear regional host type team, and you can play with the numbers to say that that was a possibility. So
I don't know. I mean, that's a good point on Hogan though, because with how little he was used, you more or less kind of throw him in the in the category of like lost production from last year because he just never really did anything. And you know, it wasn't even an option on the stretch with his injury.
No, And yeah, the thing is you thought you had him, you know going into the season. That that was one
of the toughest things about it. You know, he only appeared in nine games, so yeah, you know, and we can talk what it should have could have And I thought I thought Benjie and broke it down pretty well when he talked about how, you know, games come down to individual moments, individual pitches, plays, and they were and I felt like the same thing with all these close games, they were really close to being I don't know if it was seventeen wins, but being better than they were.
So this is one man we're going to scratch our heads about for a long time, aren't we.
He I'll be curious to know kind of how this season is viewed in the long run, because really, I don't think we'll be a forgettable team. I mean, I think they did a good job to get back, but uh, I don't know, no, no real defining moments outside of that Tennessee series. I think where they kind of turned the season around and well, Oklahoma, Yeah, that was a good sleep. I was actually out of town that weekend, so that doesn't doesn't stick out in my mind as
much as they it should have. You know, there's something game too. I mean, this was one where you send out the number eleven team in the country, probably played you know, tied of school record for runs in the postseason. So that was a good thing. And had they held on and won last night and found a way to pull it off, and I think they very quickly would have become you know, kind of a lovable group that was just scrapping through the postseason found the way to
win some games. But as it was, you know what other element, Dick and I don't know much more time you got, but just how will the guys that are on this team that come back, you know, what what lessons will they take from this year? How will these you know, really painful losses It all the time, you know, teams that come up a little bit short, they have really painful in to their season. It's a long way
until they play again. And you know, I don't know how much that will drive guys in the offseason or anything, but I guess kind of what mentality will got to take from this year that we're here and saw how close they were and and really probably how disappointed they are that it turned out the way that it did, with with with how close they were to getting back to forcing a winner take all games in that regional,
I mean, a lot to build on. I think that's if you want to take an optimistic view, they're they're I mean, they have a legitimate superstar. I think a Bell who should come back next year and leave the way Schwartz took a step up. We mentioned Brown, Ethan handle got hurt. He's a guy that I think they love that. You know, Ethan's one of those guys that the production of this point's probably not matched. What kind of player he is. I think he's better than why
he's shown. I think the coach is still that way, and I'll get him back from injury. So I think it will be a very exciting off season adding to this group. And I fully and again, well we'll want to play out. But just as the season ended, in my view, someone that keeps up with it a lot, I feel like it's reasonable to think they're going in the next season that the expectation could be that there'll be one of those top sixteen teams again and then hosting a regional one.
I agree with you, and again that's the standard now, so it makes it kind of fun. He is Derek Terry. He produces the website Batcats Central. You can sign up Batcats pluralcentral dot com if you want to follow Kentucky baseball. Thanks so much, and we'll talk to you down the road.
All right, thanks for having me on coming up.
At the bottom of the hour or New York City Bureau Chief Mike Sefasnik, you'll talk about the Cats and the NBA on six thirty WLAP. Welcome back to the Big Blue Side, and just a quick segment here ahead of the bottom of the hour. We will chat. But Mike Safaznik, he is the producer of the Mike Saffo podcast where he talks sports and he likes to talk to authors, also traveling. He is a guy who's been He's trying to visit every country in the world, so
we'll get caught up with him there. But the reason I talked to him is he is such a UK fan. I call him a New York City Bureau Chief. In his real job, he is actually a New York City police officer, but he goes by Mike Saffo on the podcast. And he's a UK fan because when he was a kid, when he was twelve, he went to a watch party in New York City, where he's born and never lived anywhere else, and he was the only UK fan watching the Kentucky Duke game. And we all know what happened
in that game, but Mike was stubborn. He picked Kentucky the underdog. He even had a white T shirt and he wrote UK on it or Wildcat or something, made it his own special jersey, and of course, with three seconds or two seconds or whatever left in the game, ought his team at one. We all know what happened after that, and Mike ran home crying. But he's been a Kentucky fan ever since. And he somehow reached out to Cameron Mills. I think they get him on his
podcast and they became fast friends. And that's how I met Mike. We've been up in New York visiting with him and things like that, and he's been on my show several times as our New York City bureau chief. So we'll chat with Mike coming up, and I want to know what's going on right now, and I think I already know with Knicks fans and Karl Anthony Towns now that they've lost in the playoffs, So we'll talk about that, but we'll also talk about Mark Pope and
the Wildcats in the upcoming season. You got to talk about that right with the New York City Bureau Chief here on six thirty WLAP. Welcome back to the Big Blue Insider. Joining us now, we haven't chatted well. We need to check in every now and then with our bureau chief. We have a few up in New York City. Mike Sephoznik of the Mike Staffo Podcast is my NYC bureau chief. How are you, sir?
Dick Gabriel Always a pleasure and this is one you're the best.
To what you do?
You know to call me or get me all when I'm so down and disappointed with sports and stuff. So you get me really animated. This is why you're a genius. You never called me when things are good.
Well, the Yankees are doing okay right.
Well they lost eighteen two nights ago, but yes, they won last night, so we're doing okay. We're in first place.
That's good. Aaron Judge is healthy, that's the important thing. But I needed to make sure you weren't out on the Brooklyn Bridge thinking about doing something drastic after your knicks locked. And we talked prior to the season about Karl Anthony Town's the big trade to send Julius Randall to Minnesota. They have their issues, but it looked like Towns was doing everything you all needed them to do until you guys ran in to the Indiana Pacers, who, by the way, I hated when I was growing up
because they kept beating my Kentucky Colonels. But just how do people feel about Towns today?
Oh, Dick Gabriel keys public enemy number one? Knicks fans, Yeah, what Knicks fans like me? We're out of control of noxiously rational. They love cats. And remember here's what I always tell you New York sports fans, they're not the biggest college basketball guys, so they didn't watch Kat at Kentucky, so they didn't know much about him. Then he went to Minnesota and all they see is his great stats and he's a big dude. So when he came here,
we think we're getting not me. The fans here like we're getting old school big man who can pound, he can bounce down below, he's gonna bump, and they think they get like this Charles Oakley who can score. They see Cat like, okay, we like this naess and what do we talk about when he came, they're gonna love when he drops forty eight on a Thursday night against Milwaukee. But the playoffs came, he is unfortunately public enemy number one.
Dictate every call to every sports show, every article. They're done with Cat. They're like one and done trade him. And of course we want the new shiny toy. We want Giannis that they're done with Cat. Unfortunately, they're done with the dumb styles. They turned on him real quick.
It's bad and to be expected it being New York. I know it's the city you love, the city's so nice. They named it twice. But yeah, it's it's it's to be expected. He had to know that going. He grew up in New Jersey, right, yes, yes, so he.
Kind of make the most one block one block. Jalen Brunson had most blocks than him. They hated the random three, you know, they forget he dropped twenty and that's great comeback when. But Dick, they're done with him. Like I listened to all the podcasts Anthony Nick Laws, My Long Lonely Walk Yesterday alone, not worry. If I was get hitten by a boss, I wouldn't care. Everyone's still a cat. Unfortunately, they've tied it with them. It's bad right now. I
don't love it. But they're like, he doesn't play defense, he was targeted. We don't want him. This is what mansouta got ridy. We need Randall that. It's so believable. That's just crazy right there.
Though they want Randall back after they do they want Randall that, but that's sports, and that's sports in New York. Uh. The franchise doesn't hate him now, right, I mean, you got the building blocks right right?
I think, so listen obviously without getting two in depth, we need a vet, you know, the Pacers just kept running nine guys out there. Tims. He's known for using the same six guys. We need defenders, that's what it is. And I think we weren't sold, you know, a fusse item. There was no sweet baiton switch. We knew what we were getting with Kat. A lot of the real nick fans didn't. They're not watching Minnesota West Coast games at
ten o'clock, so they think they're getting this bruiser. They think a guy and all the time it's like, wait a minute, our center is just shooting threes. He's not even a center. I think one caller told the great he says, he's not a big man.
He's just a.
Toll man, Like he's not a Knicks big man. You know, you're thinking Ewing Oakley Mason that.
You know.
They we try to hold on to the glory days. But unfortunately they're not the biggest fan of Colle Anthony Towns right now.
But it's amazing to me when I was I was playing cards the other night with some friends and we were watching one of the games, and one of the guys college fan dismissed they don't play any defense in the NBA. Said, Oh my gosh, yes they do. The Pacers beat the daylights out of him when he was in the paint. And I know there's been so much said and written about the fouls you know that are
called and not called in the playoffs. Indiana is amazingly physical and Karl Anthony Towns took the brunt of that, didn't.
He He took it and they knew what they were doing. They would do a pick and roll, and they just took advantage of him. Listen, Brunson doesn't play defense either, but all we cared about was mak. You know, it's old school basketball mentality. Robinson a logo on Matumbau. We want our big guy to block shot. Yes, we want to be the chef and that's not Kat and they just took such advantage of him. And listen, we were out coached. And the one thing Nick fans we don't
we won't accept it seems better than us. The Paces are a better basketball team than us, and we would accept that. So we have to find the reason. And the reason now on today's tongue is Carl Anton Towns. He's the reason we lost. If we had Randall, Randall would have bumped yeah, so's it's typical of New York sports talk radio. I don't want to say nonsense over. Yeah that's what it is.
Yeah, yeah, that's what I was afraid of. I knew that was the case, but needed to get it from my bureau chief in fact. So now all you've got to look forward to is next year. But you do have a former Kentucky wild well, once a whilecat, always a wildcat, as you know in Shake Gels of Alexander. Will you even allow yourself to root for another team? Right? Do you just root for him with Oklahoma City?
I am basically I might bring out my Seattle SuperSonics old gear. I am the biggest thunderstand because I like you. Reggie Miller broke my heart. I've always hated the Piecers. I don't like to stay of Indiana as a Kentucky basket plan as well. And then when Halburton did the choke still and then you wore black to like the funeral in game six, and I am the biggest thun defan you've ever met. Right now, I am SGA. I might go to the MD store on Fifth Avenue to
Bida's jersey. Yeah, so I am usually I don't watch. You know, when Kentucky loses, I'm done. I don't want the rest of the tournament. I don't care, you know, I am all in appointment watching. I need to stund it to embarrass the pieces because we should. They embarrassed us. I need like another bully. We got bullied. I need a bully to come take the take over them.
Well, now Halliburton is trying to make people believe that he was slighted and that he's better than SGA and all that. Of course, you know, uh, the kid in Minnesota was doing the same thing. So I think that's going to be a really interesting matchup if they go at each other.
Well that's what it is. SGA, I don't know if he's even gonna be going. SGA is going fun on a show, of course, but Halliburn's doctuing playing and then part will be Yeah. So Halliburn just tossed listening when he did that choke signed, dick you if you would have still my neighbors must have. I was worried they were going to pull the fleet some of the things. I was screaming at him when he did the choke sign.
And for those listening who aren't NBA fans. The chokes sign was basically an homage to Reggie Miller because that a big Pacers win over the next many many years ago, Reggie Miller did the exact same thing.
So uh, and he pointed, Reggie mill Is on the broadcasting. You know this, Reggie mill Is broadcasting it. He does it chokes and points to Miller.
I'm like, as you pointed back at him too. I gave Reggie Miller credit for not being all in on the Pacers. I know he had to be excited inside, but uh, you know, you've got to maintain some level of professionalism, especially at that level on tn T. But he did a good job. By the way, I don't know much of the NBA on TNT. You watch, I'm a big fan. I run clips from Barkley and Shack on my show. But you know, they have been so great for the best studio show on television, and I'm gonna miss it.
I don't know about you any sport.
It's not just the best best one it is. Yes there, they're dynamic, and you know what I love about it. And you know that you're a big sports guy, the NFL, MLB, You're always changing it. You're bringing in a row, you're bringing in this one, You're that status thing. Their relationship, their dynamic, it was so pure. I was so broken when they were starting it off. How is this? This is the this was it? This is the NBA. I'm so upsetentive. I love everything they did, really, even when
your team's down and they talked. Honestly, I love it. I think it can be very missed on that whole. Like you know, it's part of your life, it's how you watch the game. Tune it for them too.
And Ernie Johnson is the perfect guy and has been for that group. And he reminds me of Dick Enberg, who was the perfect guy when they paired him with Al McGuire and Billy Packer, and he knew when to shut up and let those guys go. And it was TV gold and there just isn't enough of that. Mike Sephaznik is my guest. He is our New York City Bureau chief, a huge UK fan podcaster in his own right. We'll come back and talk Kentucky sports in just a
minute here on six thirty WLAP. Welcome back. We're talking with Mike Sephaznik, the Mike Saffo podcast is available. Can't recommend it enough, especially if you like books about crime and if you like travel and things like that. I know you just got back from another country you checked off your list? Where were you?
I went to Lebanon and then Syria. Yes, I spent the week in Syria. So that was a wild one. And I'm actually going on. It's actually, besides North Korea, a country called Turkmenistan. It's actually the most difficult country in the world to visit. And after four years, I just got my visa three days ago. I'll be going there in two weeks. So yes, that's the next one.
And you try to get to North Korea for how long?
Oh, Dick, I'll tear the quickest story. I had the opportunity to go there eight years ago. I was invited. I said, yes, And what do you think happens if we're supposed to go in March? And I said, listen, I can't go in March because of obviously marching edne Kentucky basketball, so I don't go. We rescheduled for October. I won't go to the Yankees and the playoffs. And then the next time it was when unfortunately the Ottawamberg situation happened, and the USA stopped issuing visas, like we
stopped going there. So the two chances I had my friend's way, I didn't go to the Kentucky and I wouldn't go to the Yankee. So typical Mike's spasmic ware spots, rooms, you know, other great opportunities to me.
I do need to double back to the Knicks real quickly. I forgot to ask you about this. Mike h is very good friends with Cameron Mills, and that's how I met Mike, and we do the text chain thing as well. And the other day you sent us some photos of you at the next game with with Walt Frazier and other dignitaries, and uh, you were there as part of the security crew. You must have been like a kid on Christmas morning.
We go there, didn't went out getting two into the whole story. I had to go there for work reasons, for police reasons, right, and they're like, hey, listen, here's the deal. You have full access. I need you to know basically, look out for this guy, this guy, this guy Mike. The one game there's no picture. I'm like, yeah, obviously they're not working. So, you know, John Stalks walks by me, like, all right, hey guys one Alan Houston, Helen Houston. But I'll let that one go. And then
I see well plots for Agil. I'm like, you know what I'm done, mister Fraser boom, five minute conversation. I see Bill Bradley, and then I'm digging. She reaped out do her a game Latrelle's free. Well it's Chris Child. If you dribbled the basketball, if you were over six to two. I was taking this picture with you. Hey, Mike, don't take pictures on the floor. I had my toes on the blue just pin up a set. The guy
no self control. And finally the guy I was working with, he thinks Omark like, bro, we gotta get out of here. I'm like, is everything the right to prow I see where this would go. Let's go. So, yeah, I got my pictures. You know, no self control, But yes, it was one of the coolest experiences watching the game from the floor. Was happened to beat that? Yeah? The only thing that they're very lucky. I couldn't get it for us to meet Kylie Jenner and Bench Stiller and those guys that was my next.
Move, and I should have pointed out Mike is one of New York City's finest, but deep down he's a kid at heart like we all are. All Right, well, let's talk about the basketball Cats. You've kept an eye, I know, and I'm certain you've peppered Deb Moore or whoever what's request to have Mike Mark Pope on your podcast, But you've watched him rebuild this team. We talked this past season about the joy that you took and how well Kentucky played still though finished in around the middle
of the pack in the SEC. How confident are you and what's coming up?
Well back to last year, how fun was it because maybe my expectations were lower, and I'm like, you know what, let's just have a buying season. And I remember Cameron calling me you jow Hood even reached the guys like, bro, give us a chance. You're going to love the way this team plays and then you fall in love with it. And it was something we always asked. And yet these guys aren't going to be here four or five years.
But getting these transfers over and these guys who proved it seems love Kentucky beast well not that the old guys didn't. And I'm not going to have no rebusiness history, you know, but I just love the way he's playing. You know what, twenty four and twelve we looked good. We weren't great in the conference, but out come, yes, he was stacked. She really could expect. The one thing that's weird because the NBA Draft's coming up soon and I never miss it and we might only have like
a guy drafted. When was the last time we went, have me twenty years that we didn't have a cat drafted in the first rounds? Right, So that's a weird thing to not have this superstar. But how can you not be excited about to see.
This coming up?
I think Polk's can do like the greatest job. Like everyone's bought into his game, right, his system.
You know, it's interesting that you mentioned that about not having a first round pick, but I think it's a it's a bit of a win that Kobe Brea played himself into the second round. He was expected just to be a free agent, you know, and he played well enough for Kentucky. So yeah, I mean it's it's odd, but it was more of a group effort.
Wasn't it, Well, it's the team.
And all we said is so whenever we lost them at it, if it was the Saint Peters or in the Leit eight, we're not a team. We're players that want there's mostly me saying and not you because you're a reasonable fan. It was we're not a team, you know, overreaction. My wife said that not made. But we finally played at the team last year week. You know, injuries, obviously I want more defense, so everyone in I bet I know we see the theme the Knicks, Kentucky, anything with
a K. We don't play defense. We play a little defense. That's calling of what I want a little more defense to take that next step now you know, next step is the Elite eight, and then you know we're building. It's one year.
To me, that was one of the more interesting chapters in the story this year was when they played at Ole Miss And I'm sure you watched that game at their live on as your kids used to say on tape, and uh, they were so terrible and they looked like they weren't even interested, and Pope and company doubled down on defense. The next day he talked about Bray himself. He said he literally threw himself and so I could see him in my mind's I thrown himself on the
floor at the Craft Center. But the defense amped up and they were I won't say a different team, but a much better team, weren't they after that?
It's exactly what Cameron said when Cameron's like, listen, Mark Polpe will not go to coch coach Pope will not make you run through the wall with him. He'll grow through the wall first and then you follow. He's a perfect leader. And I loved when Cameron said that. I got pumped up, of course, and then I bought and pulled out my old ninety six. Yeah, Kentucky sug but they're buying into his whole thing, and you're excited again and again. Expectations of Holly where I think the pre
rankings with maybe fifteenth or sixteen maybe can's work. So the expectations of Holly again because we're Kentucky, very similar to noticing, you know, one of the blue bloods, one of the elites. But I think we have another great season. Like I just love this whole team aspect. I kind of want one or two of the superstar studs. That's just because like the shiny new toys. But I'm going to trust Coach Pope on this one.
Well take away could fit that bill and he's coming back.
But what I find early, guy yea goo.
What I find the most interesting about the way Pope has built this team is he's done it with returning players. He's done it with portal players, and he's done as good a job just about as anybody with that. And he's doing it with true freshmen with recruits. Because your neighbor Rick Patino, the Saint John's coach, has said this year, at least for this year, he's not even looking at high school players. He's going to do it through the portal.
Of course, when you have Mike Ropoli, you know, the Vitamin water billionaire, you can buy whatever you need if they are if they're going to take the money. But I just like to mix that Pope is put together, you know.
And again I never not coach cal you know how much I loved him. But he would just say the ten best players, give me the ten bests. I don't care if six them play, you know, play the three.
Yeah.
It seems that and it could be wrong on wrong a lot. It seems like Polk's like, Okay, we need to let's find the best number two.
He's not.
He's strategically recruiting from everywhere, and he's doing it the right way. Listen, we all want, you know, ten great things. We don't need ten Mercedes in your driveway. Like I think he's just doing any piece we need. We need to We need a big man. Let's go get him. We need, we need a good go. He's running the bench. Listen, he's running a great program. Is only good things coming up?
And I love it.
No one I don't want to say turned on him. You know, you lose the Tennessee in the you know in torment, that's stucky. But everyone still loves him.
That's what I love.
I hate when everybody just overreacts, which I'll usually do.
I sell one overreaction Twitter tweet after some loss, when somebody's get rid of him, now, don't wait, get rid of him, I'm like, what are you drunk? A few minutes left with Mike Saffo, Kentucky fan or New York City borough chief and a terrific podcaster in his own right, What about Patino? What what had that done? Because man playing in the garden and I love coming up even though Kentucky lost. I love covering games in the Garden. I first did it in seventy six when Kentucky won
the n I up there there's no place better. And for him to get that place rocking again. And he was one of the great stories in the NCATE tournament this year until Cali Perry brought it to an end. But what that What has that been like? Watching him breathe new life into the college team in New York.
It's so great. Like I said, unfortunately college basketball here isn't huge, but it was huge back in the Big East. Yeah, with Carni Seca, with Chris Mall and those guys, even to Felipe Lopez. So Katino comes from he was at Iona. Oh you know, there'll be a story here and there.
Yeah.
But halfway through the year when there were no more game to Carni Seca because too many fans were going there. And like Frances and New York Sports radio is talking about Saint John's. They never got discussed. You would get a call randomly if they made a tournament. No one told me. Now they were kind of leading some story. And listen, Patino is just a magnet when Coach P does anything, and now the team's going on a run,
and of course the story with Calipari. But Patino up here bringing games now to the Garden, now playing Kentucky this year. I know it's in Atlanta, I believe, But now he is. He is the story. They're talking about recruiting, and I don't think the last time we talked about recruiting if he was like a Felipe Lopez.
Recruiting twenty thirty years ago.
And so anything Patino's doing now, like I got his name the guard who he sat in the second half?
Was it really?
Unfortunately I forgot the Saint John's guard that would never be discussed and it was a lead story. I'm like, wow, what Patino's doing? So people care about Saint John's basketball? Now, what's your be good? Anytime he talk basketball is great. But anything Coach P does up here now is a story. So he's got the Garden, He's on the jumbo tron. Anything Patino does, he got the dinner. He's making the newspapers and he lost it too. Yeah, now just he
is a stafle theer. Probably we'll city on sport's so great and they want a Tino coach, and Nick, I'm telling you it's gonna be crazy to deal with him. They adore him. They lost him up.
Here, no doubt. And here's so old I am. You know, I'm older than dirt. But I covered that Saint John's team that played in the final four in lexingon Kentucky in rupp Arena back in nineteen eighty five, and by coincidence, Felipe Lopez, his Saint John's team was upset by Detroit Mercy in the NCA Tournament. I had that game for INCA Radio, so I got a chriss cross with Saint John's throughout my career. Anyhow, we are out of time, sadly, but we're talking in Mike Saffo the Mike Saffo Podcast.
Check it out. He is our New York City Bureau chief and it's crazy about all things UK basketball. And you're on Twitter. Tell people who had to find you on.
Twitter at Mike's STAFFO m I k E s A. Fol Please do not go to my Twitter after Nick's lost, Kentucky lost, Kentucky Yankees lost, Giants loss. Whenever my sports team lose, don't go I overreact sometimes and I apologize in the morning, though I apologize, Yes.
Don't when he said when he tweets my life is over, don't take it literally. He'll be back. Thanks sir, you're talking to you.
Thank you, sir, and that'll do it.
Thanks to my guest Mike's Shaffo, Jeff Mcorol and Derek Terry. Good night from the garage and Lexington.
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