This is cut to It with Steve Smith Senior at production of The Black Effect and I heart Radio. I'm Steve Smith Senior and I'm a little John and this is cut to it. Good do it, Good do it. They's getting down to do it. Good do it. We asked the questions you always want to know, but no one ever asked, let's cut to it. You ain't heard about it, then we're about to let you know. It's all.
I don't know if you know, but there's a looming lockout happening major League Baseball, Major League Baseball, and so we had a great opportunity to talk to someone who is pretty well in the know. She works for MLB network, a lot of Rizzo. I got an opportunity to ask you some questions. You asked a few questions who you were pretty I was pretty shock how much baseball you really knew. But I also know you have your laptop up. Never you never boxed a brother in YEP while I
boxed you, and I apologize. Let me see, I think I got a nickel for them, So all right, but I just it was cool to hear her talk about baseball here talk about ethnicity, the lockout, how baseball really is when you talk about each year old who played twenty eight years of his professional career. And then Ozzie News Ozzie not knew something, the former general manager of the Baltimore Ravens. But Ozzie Smith shortstop, he used to come out and backflip and second base and backflip to
come on that out on the field. Not I just remember as a kid, or Ricky Henderson, just all those players that really turned baseball into exciting sport. Now baseball has changed and all these different things that are going on. So um, you know, she gave us an opportunity to really talk about that stuff. So this is usually we do evergreens things, but this one actually is not evergreen. We got as the whole this is an as and and and we both saw this as an opportunity. Mareth
Carter and Brian Balta chevis producer, producer crew extraordinary. Yes, do a great job in helping us. And we got an opportunity. So we were able to um. Usually we say squeeze the lemit brother, we didn't squeeze no limit. We got straight lemon aid out this thing. So we got that. We got that a one. But yeah, without further ado, we got a line of result on the cut to a podcast with a wealth of knowledge about the game of baseball. We're gonna do this section and
want to talk ball. We have the advantage. You know baseball through and through. Backstage, Joe knows baseball through and through. Okay, these two idiots over here me, I might know a little bit someth about baseball. You Liah, do you I might might yes or might not. Let's get into the interview. Let's just so we have disadvantage. I've been through a lockout work, Uh, you know strike whoever? Depending on who you're listening to, is how is work? Right? Before you
talk about that? Where do you believe the state of baseball is right now? I think that baseball actually, despite the fact that there's a workstoppage, isn't actually in a very healthy place. Um you think so? I do. I do think that in terms of and you just look at the numbers in terms of merchandise and those types of things and fan interest there up. Um I have all the faith in the world that they will come
to an agreement prior to spring training. UM. I think right now, no one's paying attention because of your sport because of the NFL, and they're not supposed to be baseball right now anyway, if this starts creeping into spring training, when the Super Bowl is over, I believe the Super Bowl is the thirteenth of February. When the Super Bowl is over, that's and and there's still you know, the
weather started to heat up. Spring training, you know, starts to get on people's minds, and there's still nothing going on. That's when I think it's going to hurt us. Um. I do think that the Union. I have a tremendous amount of faith and Tony Clark and I have a tremendous amount of faith in Rob Manfred of the league to get this done. And I do think that the Union is probably one of the best unions in all of sports. One of the strongest unions in all of sports.
Not one of the best, one of the strongest. See the best, the best can get a good deal, but one of the strongest is the United Front that baseball is that football hopes, we hope and pray to be one day, and basketball is kind of literally one b But football and hockey bottom feeders are feeders in the Union. When it comes to players versus ownership. It's just it. It's bar none. MLB has it together. They do. They
have a tremendously strong union. And again Rob Banfred with the league has been doing labor law and negotiations for the better part in two decades. I mean, the man is very, very smart. So I do think that they will come to some sort of agreement. I hope so, because it happens if they don't, what happens if they don't. Let's just throw that hypothetical out there because I have to say that is because I've been through that work stoppage and it's rough. It's rough. It is rough on players.
I don't care how much money you have in the bank. When you have that thought of what you planned on receiving at that time and you don't get it, you know, it makes you a little iffy. It makes you start to squirm. It makes you look like you watch the scary movie. You went to bed and now you have to go pee and walk across the hall. You you don't turn um, Yeah, no, it's it's not. You never want to have a work stoppage and and it's not
even so much. Of course, it affects the players clearly, but it also affects, you know, the folks in work in the concessions or in the ticket office, or the people that are you know that really, I mean, the four of us will probably be fine if we have to go through a work stoppage because of our careers and what we've been able to accomplish and just where we're at in the stage of our lives. But not everybody is that fortunate to be able to um, you know,
miss a, miss a page for um. You know, I think instead of just focusing on the economics of the shortage, I think we need to, you know, also work on the game itself and you know, picking up the pace of play. I mean four and a half hour baseball games. That's not getting it done, especially if you want to
attract a younger audience. Kids these days don't have you know, they have the intention span of a gnat to two minutes of fifteen seconds is the most you can run on the thing we called that snack able content, if not snack able content down pigeon, he's a shot clout like in basketball. You laughed at that snack able content. You guys have had that conversation. That's that's good stuff,
stackable content. But let me think about the frenzy that was the signing period before the lockout actually happened, and
how exciting that was. It was so exciting. It was like the NBA signing spend half a million, half a billion, half and half a billion dollars on really two players, and then if yeah, great, But I mean Marcus Simeon, who who bet on himself, talking about betting on himself, didn't get a qualifying offer from the A's bet on himself and just parlay it into a seven year, hundred seventy five million dollars That is what I'm talking about. Who do you think we're some of the early winners
in free agency before the lockout? Well, for sure, Simeon, for sure. I am not so prize that Seeger didn't go back to l A. I knew for a fact, make me he had. It's gonna be a big bigger than I know. It's bigger than a Rod because remember that a Rod. The Rangers had the A Rod contract
many years ago. First of all, stop with this money talk, because I am a Dodgers fan and I think about but think about it though, think about it for a hot second, you have to think about the fact that that Walker Bueller is going to be a free agent soon. You're you're gonna want to keep think. I love Corey Seeger to death. I was his first interview when that kid got drafted a billion years ago. I love him. I love his family North Carolina folks. I love his family.
But apart from a couple of years, he hasn't he has history. And no, he's a good player. He's a solid, solid player, beautiful. I mean, like professional at bat all the time, always ready to step in the box and take a swing, but like he has to stay healthy. Right, I don't know that I'm gonna pay him eleven years, three million dollars. When you have Trade Turner, who's not Corey Seeger, but it is a very very serviceable shortstop
that you can move. Trade Turner is not a second baseman, so you move him to short, you have him play short. He can run, he's fast as hell, And you still have to figure out what you're doing with Bueller, what you're gonna do with holi Arius. You know, I'm glad they kept Chris Taylor talked about a versatile player. The Dodgers are gonna be you guys. They've been to the postseason eight straight years, nine straight years, like he can't like, they've been to the World Series three out of the
last six. They should have won in seventeen, so you gotta have that, you know. I mean, they should have a tremendous amount of faith in Andrew Freeman. They should have won a seventeen because they were going to be playing the Yankees, I believe, and are you had tickets they should have They should have won in seventeen because they didn't cheat that ticket. Hold hold on, listen, I had tickets for them to play in New York, had
the tickets in my email. That is why during the World Series, I wanted both teams to lose, because you got the Astros who yeah, and then the Braves who beat the Dodge because I'm a Dodges fan as well, and he had the Braves beat it. So that is one both teams. I am thrilled for the Braves, though. I mean, if you had to pick a team like, I mean, Brian Snicker is lifelong to hank the Hank Aaron connections between Dusty Baker Sweet couldn't care less about that, right,
do you? See this, I love it. I've told you i'd if I could live any word in b l A. I told you that. So are the Braves back then? Like? Are they back to those nineties Braves as they are a crom doll because there's no Glavin Avery Smolts Rocker. No, it's not there. One shot deal. I don't want to. We can talk, I mean the Braves and at least is a week division, so I don't I don't know that the Braves won't be back there next year. Um,
you know they have decent pitching. It's not the Brewers pitching. You know. I like the top three with the Brewers, and they have the back end of that rotation with Williams when he comes back after punching a wall. And Josh Hayter is ridiculous, hater is a beast. Let me ask you, though, because you have said something and I would love to get in this conversation with it and hear your point of view, because I do believe it's bias because you are about baseball and I'm biased because
I'm about football. Do you believe that baseball is still part of America's pastime? Yes, I think there is a ridiculous amount of popularity when it comes to football, and I get it. Um, there's only sixteen games in football. There's a hundred I'm sorry, apologized, seventeen games in football. There's a hundred and sixty two in baseball. So to have an attention to say over the course of the whole season for baseball is tough. Um. Football's a passionate sport.
It's a you know, it's a sport where it's it's appointment television. You're going to, you know, make sure that you're watching that game an appointment television. But baseball is a little bit different. I think. I think if you think baseball is boring, you're not. It's because you're not smart. Not you. I'm just saying. I think I think Joe play baseball. So he's he's loving this. He's like, yeah, here's what he says. Yeah, tell him stupid, Tell tell
him stupid. I think, especially in the National League, baseball is a thinking person's game. I don't want the d H in both leagues. I think it. I think it cheapens the sport. Um. I love football. I'm a Denver Broncos fan. I haven't had a team to Tier four and I cannot believe the attorney von Miller. I understand, but I don't like it. I love football, but I just think they're two totally different types of sports. And here's my thing about football that I don't like. Everybody
gets into the Hall of Fame. Not everybody gets into the Hall of Fame. Baseball, I think too many people get into the Hall of Fame, and football time out and a technical. Not everybody gets into Hall of Fame. A lot of people that probably shouldn't be in the Hall of Fame get into. We have a class of finalist Steve Smith, I'm getting close to I'm up this year, so I'm not gonna. I'm not gonna put my foot in my mouth dump. We're not stepping on a white line, right.
You had an amazing career. There's a career that belongs in the Hall of Fame. There are certain careers and off the field crap that doesn't belong in the Hall of Fame. And baseball has more of like a standard, perhaps perhaps a character clause. I'm not gonna. I would like to stay employed, so I'll just know I agree. I agree with you're saying. I guess the Hall of fames, like Basketball's Hall of Fame is like souped I would say,
that's doing it's easy to get into. You know, you don't have to win championships like some of the people they've down the Hall of Fame quick like first ballots. It's people that you know. Yeah, yeah, so that's more one. I would say it's a lot easier than the football. The reason I guess I asked about the past time is because you know, a lot of now where we are is about ratings, right, and about how many eyeballs are watching that no questions, But I think how maps that?
How much do you believe that's gambling on it too? I think gambling has increased, right, increased in the last couple of years. But you look at it, some of the players don't like Thursday Night. Some of the players do. But when you look at the holidays and you look at how things are going, things given now has become one of those things. How many thirty eight six million?
Where there was like seventeen point five that watched Game seven of the World Series, right, which brings more advertising dollars to whoever has more, because whoever has the most eyeball calls people believe well, but I think I think your question was I think your question was, do I believe it's still pastime versus The question is is it the most profitable sport? It's not. I mean, baseball is profitable, but the NFL, and I love how the NFL claims
it's a nonprofit organization. No, they lost their they lost their part of the lockout thing is they lost their five want three C status, so they're no longer which look at him, I used to I actually used to be player rep. Oh good, I love that. I know all about that. And in the lockout, that was one of the things that they lost, when the subpoenas and all that stuff where they went before, when we went before Congress and had some of those conversations, right, they lost.
I believe it was that two thousand ten, two thousand eight when the lockout started, conversation started happening, that was brought to the forefront, and because of that, all thirty two teams were no longer part of that. They started fragmenting off and becoming um, you know, the Panthers, Carolina
Panthers LLC, the Baltimore Ravens LLC. So they became ll c's and became those ten ninety nines w nage versus the five on three c's because they were getting a little bit told on that you're a billion dollar company with a five on three C status and nonprofit, but you're making all this money, so they lost that status. So but yeah, a lot of people didn't know that. So thank you, thank you, no, thank you for schooling me on that. I I you know, I love football.
Baseball has given me an unbelievable livelihood. So I'm obviously biased and partial to that because I didn't even when I first got my When I received my first baseball job back in two dozen and seven, covering the Colorado Rockies, I knew the basics. I knew very little. I had to absolutely learn everything, and now I can't imagine my life without it, So you know, I'm pretty partial to it. I punched Todd Hilton the side of the head in the fight one time. What why you back the question?
Uh so? Uh? Yeah. So I went to Long Beach at first, and I may or may not have had some academic fraud. Um, we don't need to get into that part. So I had to transfer, had transferred to an n ai school in Tennessee because you know, back then age was everything. If you transferred D one, you had to sit out, and I just didn't want to. So I went to a small school in Tennessee called Cumberland University, which was the destination for every D one dropout across the US. We were stacked. We had guys
from University New Orleans. We had, so we're playing Tennessee when they had did you just try to say as a whole bunch of brothers on the team that what you just said? So Atlanta and I continue this cover. So they had when they had Moses um Yellow and they had so Helton was on that squad, and they came in like ranked fifth in the nation to play us at our yard, and they were just dog in our field because they were the big shots. You know, they had our a Dicky, They had all those guys
on the team. So we beat them to one play at the plate, you know, called him out. We win. So they start running their mouth, so they start shoving. So our catcher, who's now a cross checker with the Rockies, who actually is the one that found Walker Bueller. So his name Scott Corman. He was my catcher. So he was. He was locked up with with Helton, and Helton said something about he just signed for whatever million, and I
came running. I hit him as hard as I could, hit him in the side of the head, and it worked. He didn't get up, but like, yeah, were was a full on melee. So yeah, absolutely he didn't get up. I mean I hear him. Me kept going like, I wasn't gonna stand over the top of him. You gotta hit you ain't smoky, Huh, you got knocked. I didn't hit him that. You can't be staying. You can't strike a pose because there, Yeah, we don't have a hell on every So you're gonna get hit one way or another.
You're gonna get sidebar. Sorry, I want to go back to what you said about America's past time. I agree with you. It is um Baseball has done such a great job of making adjustments to draw in the younger viewer. You know, from the seven inning and a double header to starting a man on second, you know, in extra innings. You know, we always go back to the purists of baseball. You've been around a long time. I've been around a long time. How does that make you feel? What there's
part of you. It says we're making adjustments to make the game better, but then you go to the old school baseball grind it out. How do you feel about those changes. It's tough. It's tough to have a balance with it because I do see the importance, especially you know, being in television and always wanting to draw that audience and those eyeballs and the interests and keep it fresh and exciting. It's like, I do understand the need based
on the way that the world is. If we want to attract the younger viewer, you're going to have to speed the game up. You're going to have to make it interesting. I'm not a huge fan of the strikeout or home run, uh you know the I do believe there's importance and value in putting the ball in play, moving a guy over, learning how to bunt, using you know, going the opposite way, using the entire field. I think
that's important. But these four and a half hour games are crazy, and I understand, you know, them wanting to put a d H in the National League to maybe sweed up the game, but you're also jeopardizing you know, people's jobs. You know, there's there's fewer opportunities and the one way you look at it. Um. I think there's an importance of recognizing places where there is added value
in change. But I don't like. I don't mind as a reporter, I don't mind starting a man on second and extra innings because at a certain point I want to get the heck out of there. But I don't I don't think that it's it's something that should be done in the postseason. I think you know that once you get to the playoffs, stuff old school needs to
be back. And you know this whole thing too, with the with the the opener, you know, and not letting guys go deep into the game and you get one man on base and people start freaking out, and there's all these short hooks, and if you look back in you can argue that, you know, Kevin Cash's decision to pull Blake Snell won the World Series of the Daughters, I would agree with that. I love cut to It, and I love it even more when you download us
and subscribe and you can follow us on social media too. Smithie, where where at that's at? Cut to It on Instagram? What about Twitter? At? Cut to It? Facebook? Cut to It featuring Steve Smith Sr. What about online? And you can follow us at cut to It podcast dot com where you can buy merch and you can subscribe to us wherever you listen to podcasts. I got all my answers questions. Um, yeah, I got all my questions answered. That's what I'm here for, brother, cut to a podcast
dot com. My son, my six year old son, used to play baseball right when he was younger. M hell of an athlete, right, looking at his gene pool right. And the thing that was extremely interesting is as he played baseball, my son is a being pole. He's actually he's six one now, uh maybe a hundred and thirty pounds. Hundred and fifteen pounds. That's like after Thanksgiving, right, So that's the heaviest he gonna be right as of right now. But he he was fast. But the craziest part is
he was a placement hitter. He can place the ball. But yet you know, in in in little league and in in middle school, you can have guys coming in and out. You know, you can have them back maybe they weren't in field and all that stuff, and substitute and then come back in. But one of the things I noticed was he was not value with his athleticism on the baseball team because he couldn't bring in runs. And because of that and because of him wanting to
play baseball, we started to go to baseball games. I started to pay attention. And when I started to pay attention on his teams was was Bryce Harper's. So we we go down to Philly and watch a game. And I watched when Bryce first got there, all that money, they would switch the field and the dude would get out. You got all this money, They switched the field and
he hits it right there. What I'm what I'm getting to is why our home runs over value because they're exciting, because people want to see the ball go over the fence. People don't want the younger generations to Joe's point earlier, it's like the purest want you to move a guy over. They they value the the style of game that your son presents. The newer generation wants to see you smash the ball four. Yeah, I mean there's value. There's excitement
in that too. But that whole mentality of if you strike out, can you imagine Tony win in today's game? The man? So here's here's here's the thing. I grew up, not really I played baseball. I thought it was boring for me because I was a kid with a d h D. And I you know, I was always going, all right, I'm a I'm adult with my mind is always going. I have two switches on and off when my my When I'm off, I'm sleep and I go.
My wife calls me a professional sleeper. Right, I could be on a forty five minute flight or fourteen hour flight. Brother gonna get his snoozes in. Right, That's just me, That's how I am. But then and there was you know, I remember watching growing up in l A. And my dad, I'm a Dodgers fan of my dad was Oakland Ages fan. And I remember Ricky Henderson, right, I remember I remember or stealing all those basses. I remember growing up in l A. And my mom and dad went to Lock
High School and Eddie Murray Darrell Strawberry. Right. And then there's this guy he used to do this back flip right before. He used to go out with the Cardinals Smith right, uh eros each year O twenty eight years right, him playing baseball and him being able to place the ball. Last time I checked if a man could play twenty eight years in baseball professionally, he might be doing some some some things right in. And I've seen some games, um,
the Tokyo Swallows. I went to a game out there and watching how they hit the ball in placement, and it can be a game for me as a consumer going to Tokyo and seeing those games and seeing how they were placing a ball constantly, like you went to go grab some nick came back man severs would be scored. You know what my opinion is on that. I believe and this is just my opinion. That's why you only here.
I believe saber metrics have ruined the game. I believe there's a place in there's well, there's a place for analytics, right, there's a place for statistics. There's in every sport. You got to incorporate that. But I do think we don't value the eye tests enough. I don't believe we we value playing the hot hand. And if if for example, and I know the Dodgers, well, so I'll just make this up. If Cody Bellinger can't hit that, you know, that high fastball at his eyes, but he's he's playing
really well this week. Let him keep him in there. You know, I think there's too much focus on matchups and number verse and again over uh pretty large sample size. I can see that there's value in that, but constantly
moving stuff around. I mean, you know, as a player, how important being comfortable and having that communication from your coaches, whether you know it's the head coach or a wide receivers coach, running backs coach, whatever it is, to know where where you're going to be and how you go
about your day. And I think, especially in baseball with a hundred and sixty two games, if you don't know where you're going to play in the lineup that day, or you don't know you know if you're gonna play, I just there's a there's a place in a marriage for both. I think we're over analyzing stuff. There's too much information, complicated statistics and baseball is super overwhelming. Well, and it's not even so much statistics like she was saying,
and it's it's the analytics. It's the shift you were talking about. The reason why Bryce Hopper got out is because point three percent of the time against a picture with a right hand and he's going to hit it over there. So the analytics is tough and from a baseball purist mind the shift is. I mean, they're even shifting with people on base now, which is obscene to me. And I go back to I'm sorry, no, no no, no, no no, and just asked, asked picture, asked Clayton Kershaw
how much he likes the shift. I'm sure, I'm sure he hates it. So I hat you know, I wasn't very good, but I pitched as well too, from the left side, and I had some success, and like, you think about the success you had and then there was no shift, and I go to Maddox. I went to high school of Greg Maddox. He might not have got drafted today. I mean he maybe through eight s, eighties seven. If he was lucky, There's no way they'd even look
at him. Because it's all about the gun. Now, if you're not throwing, it really really doesn't matter at all what you do, because getting people out isn't really where it's at anymore. It's what are you doing on that gun, and what are you doing on your spin right and your V low and then exit velocity and everything else. That's all. That's all the stuff that's when you get
into that kind of analytics. It's really crazy there's been managers and I'm certain not to name anybody that have been fired because they went with their gut and they didn't go with the analytics, they didn't go with the probability. Yeah, correct, And that's and that, and that's the thing you love about baseball. It's there's so many different ways to play things in baseball. So my question is is it about the wins and losses or is it about the strategy?
Because if you've got a horrible strategy and you don't win, you don't get fired faster. But if you go with the probabilities and analytics and you still don't win, don't you still get fired? Um? And I'm not trying to be an idiot. I'm because what I'm hearing you say, what I heard you say as in a football mind, which is why some folks gonna get fired, you know in Chicago and some of these other places, because they have a great system, they got good analytics, but they've
got no points on the board. So you can have you could be the smartest guy in the room. But if you don't have it, if you got more else,
then w's then what is it about? Then? And I'm just trying to get it, because I've on this side of the football field now, I see so many coaches who are the smartest people in the room, who have all answers, and who get players who don't even get the players anymore that can fit, you know, fit the scheme and get They just have a scheme in which these square pegs are gonna fit through this round hold,
and then it doesn't work. And then you know, two or three years, like here in Carolina, where you're gonna fire the offense coordinator because his system isn't good. But yet possibly some of your quarterback play has some deficiencies because you're trying to implement your system without really knowing the deficiencies of your players. I think that's such a key point. I think there's so many times that we have guys running teams now that have never played the game.
I know there, yeah, they're and not to disrespect their education, their pedigree, everything, but you can't tell me that you're going to teach these guys how to catch on one knee when there's a man on third, a ball gets by them, that guy on third is going to score. And this is you know, these these types of catching gurus never not not have they have not even caught in T ball. They got a Texas instrument, so they
are general manager. It's just it's frustrating, and I think that there's there's so much you know, there's so many people now with the the Ivy League degrees and this type of stuff that doesn't know what it feels like to be a player in that locker room in football
or a player in the clubhouse in baseball. Doesn't know what it's like to do that daily grind of a hundred and sixty two games and um, you know, you just some days you just lose your you you lose your feel at the plate, and I don't know, it's it's a it's a tough it is at the end of the day. It's about wins and losses, certainly more in football than in in baseball over the course of the season. But look at the Dodgers a hundred and
six wins. The Giants had a hundred and seven wins, and then they had to play each other, you know, and and you went a hundred and six wins and you got a car you're playing wald card. It was interested in what you just said. Uh, it made me think and you probably haven't noticed it, but that's why they're They are very few former players in high ranking positions with teams because what you're talking about as a player, I'm going, man, that's great. Like we had one time
a guy stand in front of team. He was an analytic guy. He was standing in front of team. He said, hey, in the third quarter, in your first possession, if you don't it convert the third down into a first down, your probability of winning that game decreases. No, No, I got even I got a better response for you. I said, really, no, no, line. You know why because there's only two damn carters left and you're running out of time. So let's call a play that that's not called the screen on thirty ten.
Let's call the play that a get us the first down so we can keep the ball and play keep away. And that's why you don't have a lot of players because the play former players get frustrated because they're they have a guy who what you said is was interesting. I love what you said and set me up. These guys go to IVY League. But when you go to IVY League, they don't play freaking sports. These IVY League teams don't have really good teams because they're all in
the classroom for nothing. You have to know what it's like to be in that person's shoots. You have to know what it's like to be in that clubhouse and go through that grind. And and you cannot simulate game time. Nope, no matter how I don't care how many times you practice. I don't care how much you take BP, I don't care. The timing is just different. You can't simulate game time.
And again, there's there's value in the knowledge, and there's value in disseminating the knowledge to your players in the way that they can understand it, because everybody learns differently. But to take out the field and the personal part of the game, I think is is a huge disservice to the players and to the fans. So last question before we get off off of this, and this has
been educational, I love it. Do you believe they will be the Tony Gwen's, the Rows, the Ozzie Smith's that ever come back, that are allowed to kind of play this, to play the baseball game in which we all, whether
you like baseball or not, you admired their athleticism. You you admired there how they harness their craft and learned how to play the game as a person, not just as a Texas instrument with analytics and numbers and you know, shifting all that stuff where it's just like reacting and athleticism and you know, making that double play in all those unspoken rules that now seem to be going going away, because now it's all about home runs and you go change and what you look like and and and all
the other stuff that no longer exists anymore. Yeah, I think that if you want to get paid, I mean, the way that the game is going is that you better you better have power, or you better be able to, you know, really be a tremendous defender. That I don't. I don't think the people avo you um small ball anymore. UM. I guess it depends on on what on what you want. I mean, I hope that I think catchers make the best managers because they are like, you know, the quarterback
of the team. They're the only person involved in every single play. Um. I hopefully you know, some of these former players will get into management. But the problem is that you're not really managing anymore. As the skipper you're kind of the puppet, you know, and it's it's it's the front offices that are they're kind of managing and
and putting in the lineups. Not for every team interesting, but that's that's that's a lot that happens a lot where it's you know, more of the buy on the computer saying like well this is who matches up, Well, this is we're going to put this person in the lineup today. Um, you know, it's it's an interesting dynamic. I mean, I think there's a lot of good in our game. I do think that, you know, I do miss the the Ausie Smith's of the world and the
Ricky Henderson's of the world. And you know, when when a guy came into the game, you know was game over. You know, either the days when I mean the days of complete games and god forbid a complete game shutout, that's over. I mean, now now you get two guys on base and you're out, you know, like you don't they don't let people work through adversity anymore. With that said, who do you think are those players that would change the game or right for change in the next ten years.
I mean, I love the Buster Posey's of the world. Um you know Freddie Freeman's of the world. Um, I mean obviously Buster just retired, and Atlanta better bring Freddie Backer or that city is going to burn to the ground. Um. You know. I love guys that still have that, the Bryce Harper's I mean people that you know, and and younger kids too that we may not know very well yet.
But Juan Soto, watch Wan Sotos that bats and see how see how patient he is and how the command he has of the strike zone at such a young age is really impressive. Um. Those types of guys you know, and I love the guys that that are really good players, but have flair. Um, I think that's important. If you want to attract the younger generation, you have to have
the Fernando to jrs of the world. You have to have the wander Fronts of the world and the Azzie Albis and um you know Kunas of the world too. So UM, I like, I like the the old school style of baseball, but I also understand from a marketing perspective and the younger generations coming up, I understand the need for a little bit of flair back in the day that bat foot gets you hit. Next time, your head.
It definitely gets you here. You are a unique person, you are well worth it, you are competent, and most of all, your lovable. I'm Steve Smith Senior, I'm Little John and this has cut to It. Cut to It with Steve Smith Senior. That Is Me is a production of Cut to It LLC, Balto Creative Media, The Black Effect and I Heart Radio. For more podcast from I Heart Radio, visit the I Heart Radio Apple Apple Podcast, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows from Cut
to It. Executive producer Steve Smith, singer co host Gerard Little John, talent in booking manager Joe Fusci, Social media team Wesley Robinson and John show from Balto Creative Media. Cut to It is produced by Brian Baltaschevic and Meredith Carter, with production assistance by Alex Lebrek. Production Coordinator Taylor Robinson. Theme music by Alex Johnson, Lyrics and vocals by Anthony Hamilton. You ain't heard am about it, then we're about to let you know. It's all