This is I on the Ball with Steve Rivera on Fox Sports fourteen fifty powered by Nova Insurance Services Ensure your most prized possessions.
Hey, good afternoon, everybody.
Welcome to you Eye on the Ball here on Fox Sports fourteen fifty. I'm Steve Rivera in with me the days. Look who we have here? Andy Brown? Downtown?
What's up? Steve? Got me man? Got away from whatever you were doing? Uh sweating because everybody else is right now? Yes, well I hadn't even gotten to be hot yet. And this is covered parking out here, that's not reserved out here. That's right. I'm wanna get back on the farm. I can check that. I can check that because you don't have the reserve spot. But I didn't see it, don't. They don't even know who I am?
Really?
You know?
Yeah, we know you take that parking states right there.
I saw you like to punch in your coat like three times in there and they change Did they change it on me? You might have got ray here to celebrate. Not much. You would need baby for the summer, because everybody else is gone here we are you would need because I'll be doing the board, which you're not doing. The board. Yep, rare university guy. You're on loan from the university. Like all his guys, he gets yeah, nice, Yeah, you're nice. He's a kid, do that though. He's been
through the war. You know, you know all the buttons. Yeah, I do know the buttons. Nice. He's not like a he's not like a fresh face. Don't stay near that. Stay away from that ejection button right there, raise my guy a cough button ready to go though, Yeah, gotcha, No, we got right here. We've been knowing to drop some bombs, Yes we have. It's been before andy. What's the word? Man? Are you? Are you busy?
The summer?
We just finished season eighteen. Security just finished uh twenty seven graduations at the Universe. Oh oh, because all over you to do that? Yeah, so that's we're done. I mean QSD was our last big weekend of graduations and now we regrew group, re hire, retrain, and get ready for the fall season. No concerts coming up, there's a few out there. The big one that got postponed was Kevin hard Right, so a couple of weeks ago. That's
all right, should come back. But yes, I think he's scheduled for October something it's like it's going to be hot. I ain't going I'm gonna I'm gonna come back in October. Yeah, it's hot out there, it does.
Last year was probably the hottest I's ever been here. If I can remember usually that I'm getting too old for this stuff.
That might be right. I'm starting to get warm anyway, wrinkling up and yeah, you know, no, there's not a whole lot of big stuff going on right now. It's a slow season for Tucson. You know how it goes.
Yeah, even with you a, it's gonna be a struggle for me getting guys who got you luckily this morning? Yeah, try to get some guests. But we have a pretty good one here in the first hour. Jenny Dalton Dalton Hill, she's in the ESPN Softball person. She's not doing the games now, but she's gonna be. She's a coach now in in the New Women and So Softball. Yeah, she's in Chicago, gonna be a coach out there. We'll talk to her about that. Talked to her about have you
been watching softball? I have, okay, so I and I love the game. It's last night. Yeah, did you watch well, did you watch the previous weekend when she didn't touch the plate. And then they said, we know she didn't touch the plate, but she's safe. Oh my goodness, I don't even know the rule on that one. I was I was in communication with said, is this the jit that tag out?
She was gone for by a mile, right, but she's safe. I'm thinking, when did this happen? The obstruction by the umpire, But then there was an obstruction by the batter, and it doesn't doesn't matter. I think the girl went back to first anyways, Yeah, they call her out. They could they could have called the batter was already out. Yeah.
It was just crazy crazy And then and the steal or the attemptancy. It was she was in the way. How was she in the way? Her foot was in the way. That what I said, foot was in the Did you play baseball? Did you play ball?
No? And you you could? You could do whatever you get song as they don't reach the base, you're done, get it away.
Remember when they used to have fights, when the case came in hard and all that stuff.
Yes, I loved watching the Pete Rose that those are the days that you could just run people over, spike people slide in the second, legs up. You're not bleeding, bro, You didn't slide hard, that's right.
Yeah, not that that happened last night, but it was it was like it wasn't excited they got him out, No they didn't. I'm thinking, what are they arguing? She was out pat.
And then they scored the run and you're thinking that's going to create a problem. But then they came back and then they came back to.
Another What the hell is she doing? What the hell is she doing throwing strikes for a pontential? You see like she just swinging. She just hit that ball. No, but did you see the other pictures? The other pictures could have been. I think finally she just kind of looked that I wanted to swing.
Yeah, hell with this? What I saw it on today? This that hasn't happened in a game, and they replayed it like I don't know, thirty years ago. Oh it happens in baseball, Oh where somebody actually reached out and hit the ball. I think it was the White White Sox game. I think, Oh, I just saw this morning getting ready they were doing it.
Now.
Okay, to me, it's been it's been great, great stuff watching it baseball too.
Baseball starts tomorrow. You the Batcats, those were those dudes just started hitting dingers left and right. Yeah, and they're pitching. Yeah, it's coming through. They're they're confident. They get up there and you can tell that cow Poly team did not want to be there. No, they had already gotten to that. First picture was just like, can I sit down now? The guy don't want to be here. You can see in his face. I don't want to be here. Yeah. Do you remember?
And yesterday we had Lopez on coach Lopez and we had uh Wes clements before. Steve Strong the day before talked about the Andy didn't talk about this, but the other guys how they kind.
Of got through the catching a break. You know, everyone catches a break. Yes, when you were there two years at you yes, ninety three, four five, I graduated ninety five. Okay, so you were on the team, right, No, I took stats. Oh they moved you, yeah that one day your GPA. No, they did. They brought in a guy named Ben Davis. Oh yeah, yeah he was gladly gave him my spot. Yeah, loot loot love Ben. That's a good, great, great guy man. Yeah, I talked chat we chat on Facebook. So yeah, he
he still thinks he's the best reboundary. Oh yes, and he still looks like he can play though.
Yeah, I say, hey, let's get Pete over here real quick. Oh yeah, he still looks like he could play. Oh Pete, Yeah, yeah, I think he just had he did, remember two years ago? Yeah, he still he's a grandpa. He's a two time guys.
He's having great time being a grandpa.
Man.
Yeah, sold my business called him just to get him on the phone. Jesse Barky was out there. He's the grandpa again. He's your guys. He's my business partner. He's doing great, enjoying taking his granddaughter to him from preschool. Shout out to you, Jesse, doing a great job. Did you hear me questions for us? You have any questions? He asked him this? Why the hell are they doing this? He usually gives me a whole list of stuff to ask.
You tell him to tell the truth too. Well, we did. Uh, we did go about a month and a half before we pulled the trigger on renewing our football tickets. Oh, who's the we? Me and Jesse? Oh okay, so you have a team, does okay? So we buy basketball and football tickets. After last Jesse was like, I'm done, Come on, man, give him one more year, bro, one more year? Who we did? On more year? We re upped. Well.
You know the funny funny thing about that is I think a lot of people feel the same way.
Yeah. I mean they got to sell tickets, you guys. They have to have believers like you guys, because if they don't, I don't know what's gonna happen.
Because they need money. They need yeah, and they needed it's a it's a catch twenty two. They need to give you a good team, yes, and you need to spend money to see the good team.
Right. So how many years can you go without product? Right? Yeah? So you got to have a good product, consistent I wouldn't even say you just got to be consistent, right, consistently good. You can't not be consistently good. I mean right, people want to see uh, I mean people want to know you have a chance, right right, See, your team has a chance going into any game. That's all you need. Right.
Well, here was the problem last year, and you may you and I may have talked about this before the season started. What do you think you have you have a chance. Yeah, you have a fighting chance.
Because of the people that came back, right right, And then you think, I mean the second game, I went as a spectator, not as a as a sports writer, and I was leaving the New Mexico game and people were saying, we're screwed, and they weren't saying screwed, they were saying something else, and I'm thinking you got to kind of give them a chance.
But there were not just one people one person. Well, it was a bunch of people say oh, we're screwed you. Oh yeah, they struggled. Yeah, and you're thinking, how they struggling. You got to put up numbers against that team. That's your stat game right there, right, you look at no.
And there was a season two where it was like, you know, Texas leaving, Oklahoma left like well.
And we were sitting up there with the guys that got back and the preseason hoop lot. So, by the way, how many tickets you have just in case I need to when start? We got to Oh that's all you got two football tickets?
Yeah, okay, I thought you got maybe for the people, Well, you've got people working.
Everybody's working. If you're not working, you're sick. You called out, So we got everybody working those games. That makes sense. Yeah, you can get you about fifty people. People more than that. Oh at football game. You need to tell me, probably confidential. It's north of the way. North of that. Yeah, we got a lot. But that's you know, there's more stuff going on on football days now. I mean this town used to shut down football games on Saturdays. Now there's
all kinds of stuff going on, right, different venues, different events. Yeah. Spreading, uh, you're spreading the dollar pretty thin here into something. That's that's the other issue.
I mean, you have a certain amount of dollars in your pocket, you having a lot of people asking you to do and go and see blah blah blah. Oh, by the way, we have nil nil obligations. Sorry, here's a dollar from the pizza. Pizza, I mean there's not enough pizza to go around, no, or dollars.
For the pizza. No, not a big piece of pie, right, the pie is not thinking in fact, did you mean one you met one or other? Intern? Yeah? I remember, Okay, so so and rate I don't think is going through this.
He's grady. The recent grads. Oh, everybody getting calls Hey congratulations, Oh yeah, can you you know, can you help the funny story story. I know the phone number that comes up by sixty two six number, right, just put in your phone. Sixty two six number comes on my phone and go And it's usually about eight o'clock at night. Oh really, I'm like, oh, this is where I go. So the first few years, I'm like, oh, somebody from your base call me because we worked there. And now
I go, oh, that's a call for money. Oh and I just go delete. So the other night I was sitting there watching TV and my phone rings and I'm like, oh, I swipe it, and my wife goes, what's that?
I go, ah, this is U a call for money. Two seconds later, her phone calls because she's like the second number and she's like, oh is that sixty Then I go yeah. She was like, yeah, they call me. Now there you go, don't you answer? Yeah, it's usually seven thirty eight o'clock at night. Feature like a booty call me. That's uh, that's that is usually from the department that you graduate from. Okay, yeah, that comes from Eler. Yeah. Every it's about every other month, yeah, persistence. Yeah, one
day you can get tired. Just answer the ptentional phones. Give them ten dollars, give them undred bucks. Yeah, give him on a gibribera right, Yeah, that's a lot of money. I appreciate every pen of the night that you know. That keeps my life. Baby nice. Yes, So it's through starting to slow down. Sports fly stuff, man. As soon as that's what we're talking about this, I know, as soon as NBA is over. Yeah, I mean you're a baseball guy though, No, no basketball, but I'm not any of it anymore.
I mean, come on, are you gonna watch I think you're gonna watch tonight's game probably, yeah, absolutely, I'm gonna watch the softball game, the softball Trump's NBA.
Well, I have this fancy TV. Now you can watch both of the picture picture. I was always wondering about that because I had Picture of picture twenty years ago. Oh now it's not now, it's right now that the YouTube TV does it for you. Oh, you can select I want to watch those four Okay, really look into that. Me. I just gotta run new TV that doesn't do that. No, you gotta get the YouTube TV subscription. Okay. No, So I'll be flipping back and forth. But that's as soon
as you get that my another hockey guy. So it was no not I heard, good. Who was overtime right, Edmonton? Yeah, I went to overtime.
Someone asked me because I was coming to real quick about the softball game. So you're not watching the soccer, I said me.
And soccer? Yeah yeah, but I heard, oh it's overtime. I watched the friendly the other night the US women and Jamaica watch or something like that. Oh my goodness, yeah, U S women crushed. They were crushing it. So I watched. I like to watch those. So I watched the watch a couple of soccer matches.
Last week Champions League, yeah, Saturday. Yeah, yeah, it was well, it wasn't like on score, it wasn't a good one, but it was a good storyline.
Do you see I was watching the I was watching the French Open, right, the tennis thing whatever it is, and uh and they had to shush the crowd because the French team had scored, right, and so everybody in there was watching on their phones inside the tennis match, and so the umpire in the chair had to go, PARTI quiet, please, quiet please. Everybody's like watching the game on their phones. At the tennis match. I can't imagine what Paris was like that night. That's funny. Yeah, I
was like that that they were speaking Spanish. Poor for war shut those down. Yeah, I couldn't think of the French for poll. I don't know how to say one of those. Let's take a break, get ahold of Jenny on the other side.
Are you ready ready to discover your soul, your wild side, your passion, your joy and excitement. From the latest slots and table games, to award winning dining, to world class entertainment to a luxurious resort.
Discover all this and more.
Discover with Soul Casino del Soul, the soul of Tucson.
Are you ready enterprise so Fasco Yucky?
Try The Window Depot has everything you need to create the kitchen or bathroom of your dreams, frowsy aisles of instock cabinets, available in a variety of sizes and configurations, and instantly elevate your space. Today, visit a showroom and let our experts guide you. Whether you're choosing for ready to go designs or creating a custom masterpiece.
We can help you.
That's like the perfect wood type, color and style and top it off with unique hardware to complete your look. Find a location near you at the window deepot dot com. The window Depot more than a windows store.
Steve Rivera here to talk about Dorato Rock Materials. I needed a lot of gravel for my driveway, so I called Eric at Dorato Rock. He found out the amount and color I needed and boom, it was taken care of and at a great price. How do I know radio commercials work. I heard one of his on the radio. Dorato Rock Materials provides a wide range of landscaping materials, including decorative rock, boulders, gravel, soil, and sand for residential
and commercial use in the Tucson area. They are locally owned and have been around for more than fifteen years. Given well call at five two zero four zero zero for two three three. Spring is in the air and the school year is coming to a close. Time to order your academic and spring sports awards for your student athlete. Creative Awards with fifty two years as your top awards and promotional products supplier.
Give them an award they can be proud of. They have trophies, plaques, acrylics, art class fine crystal, metal, name badges, stock and Custom Awards. Come visit the Creative Awards Idea Center at two twenty eight Westtrackman Street across the street from PEMA College Downtown campus, or visit them online at Creative Awards az dot com.
At Nova home Loans, we believe everyone deserves the opportunity to enjoy the independence that comes with home ownership. Paul Volpi is ready to help you find an option that best fits your needs. Whether you're a first time or veteran home buyer or want to get cash out with the refinance. Nova has a variety of home loan programs
to meet your unique situation. Visit voltpeteam dot com, that's volpe team dot com or call five two oh six eight five six two six today in MLS three oh eight seven, arizon A b K nine two nine to four two Equal Housing Opportunity, Got to Commitment to Lyndrix, Syncredit, Greats and Avaiable loan programs of subject to change with n't notice.
Did you know?
Collecting sports cards is one of the fastest growing hobbies around. Whether you're looking at a chart or expand your collection, Showtime cards is your ultimate destination. As one of the leading card shops in the country. We've been serving our community for over twenty five years with the best in sports cards and trading card games, from rare fun to the latest releases.
Showtime Cards has it all.
Check them out at showtimecards dot Com or visit them on East Speedway and discover why collectors everywhere FRUH Showtime Cards for their passion.
Richard Bacall Law Office, defending Arizonans for over thirty years and a Wildcat fan for over sixty. If you need an experienced criminal defense attorney, call Richard Baccall five two oh seven to four to Roh twelve thirteen. Broud sponsor of I on the Ball.
Go Cats, got bugs, termites, bees, or rodents, Arizona Pest Control will hunt them down. Arizona Pest Control is your complete desert pest management specialist. That's can't run or hide from Arizona Pest Control. They use only the latest and most technologically advanced methods of pest elimination available, which minimizes the effects on the environment. Let Arizona Pest Control get
rid of your bad bugs, termites, bees, or rodents. Serving Tucson and Southern Arizona since nineteen forty seven, Go to azypest dot com to schedule your free evaluation today.
By mining so important, It's a foundation of everything that defines the society.
Everything you see is a product.
Of mine, no matter when, no matter how, no matter why. Every society on this planet has developed, grown and modernized based solely on the minerals in the process.
That's why my name is so important.
DONNYBM dot com.
Looking for quality windows without the weight, come to the Window Depot. We carry a huge selection of mill guard windows in stock now and ready for pickup. Need something custom no problem, from new construction to full home replacement. Will help you order the perfect mill guard windows built to fit your space, style and budget. Whether you're a homeowner or contractor, the Window Depot makes it easy to
get the windows you need fast. Visit the Window Deepot dot com to find a location near you and see why we're your mill guard window experts.
This is I on the Ball on Fox Sports fourteen fifty. Want to take part in the show Call up Steve now went five to two oh four, one, six, seventy four to forty.
Hey, welcome back to the ball Here on Fox Sports Fortune fifty, I'm Steve Event and with me today is Andy Brown. Now on the phone, we have Jenny Dalton Hill, former U of A All Americans Softball players.
Are you doing Jenny?
I'm good. How are you guys?
We're doing well. You all are very popular.
You did a great job on your ESPN outing when you did your stuff a week or so.
A goal, right, Well, espan is something I do all season long.
It starts with that Clearwater tournament back in February where they get all the postseason teams. It feels like that start off the season in the second weekend playing against each other, and then I go all the way up until Super Regionals and uh yeah, I finished off with Texas and Clemson for Super Regionals and lo and behold, Texas is in the Chance Series this week.
Yes, and they look fantastically good. Last night I thought, well, they were on the ropes until they weren't. Right did you did you have a chance to watch it at all?
I mean, come on, do you even have to ask that question?
Of course, to verify the facts.
So here we are so nobody who isn't And in fact, before you came in, I was telling Andy tonight's NBA and softball at the same time.
I'm watching softball. I've been watching softball for the last two weeks.
Yes, yes, because tonight is can be the deciding factor in it, right with Texas winning Game one. If they win tonight, it's all over. So Texas tech up against the Ropes, has to win tonight to be able to extend. But yeah, the thunder obviously putting a little kick in the works playing too.
Yeah, yeah, the game last night. Well, I was texting can Dre throughout the game last night. I think I can't remember seeing so many crazy stuff going on in the last two three weeks. I mean, you've seen it because you've seen a number of games, but maybe not to this extent last week. Usually doesn't step on a plate. It still doesn't matter. They score the run, all the home runs, all the craziness, you lived it, You lived it.
But have you seen all these crazy things?
Well, and I think that's the key word. I think that stuff always happens.
It's just now with the visibility of TV, now everybody sees it, where before it maybe just kind of fell through the cracks and nobody was paying attention. Now you can't hide that step.
You're exposed because everybody's watching.
Yeah, and the obstruction one was bonkers to me.
Oh yeah, that can take a long discussion, but let me make it short and sweet.
It was not obstruction.
I think they missed that call and it absolutely changed the trajectory of what could have.
Been the end of that game, no question, no question. I'm thinking, since when did that become a rule?
And yeah, he texted me, Kendre had said to me, Yeah, they need to look at look at the up again.
That needs to change.
Yeah, that rule has has gone through a couple iterations. It's it's tried to find kind of place to protect the players, right like we've all we've all seen those huge collisions in baseball and they look like they're playing football, not baseball.
So I think the I think the intent.
Of the rule is in the right spot, but right now, the way that it's being interpreted is taking.
Away from the just the the soul of our game. I mean, she played it perfectly.
The girl was host she was hung out to dry, and unfortunately they they ruled in favor of the wording of the rule rather the intent of the of the play.
Yeah, I'm offering wondering you, uh, ninety five, do you think I know this, This is dumb question, So apologize for dumb questions because I've dumb question. I was there for a couple of the championships for you Bay back in the early nineties, and I'm sure the game today, you guys still would have crushed it.
You guys would have won a number of titles.
Well, the crazy thing is everybody like applauds Oklahoma for being the first team to win four in a row, but if you actually look back in the record books, there is an asterisk next to nineteen ninety five because that title has been vacated by UCLA. And who played UCLA in the finals that year, a little school in Tucson, and that would have made actually my career four national championships.
But that title has been vacated and they have not reassigned it.
So I mean, like if you look at the Olympics, if they take a gold medal away from an athlete, they give the gold medal to the other team or the other person. But so far I have not received that national championship trophy. So but I would say that that the UFA teams from ninety three to ninety seven, because actually they won in ninety seven as well, which would have made it five in a row. I think those teams were stellar and could have put up a pretty good fight.
Has a game changed since then?
In your opinion, it definitely has. It definitely has.
And when you think about how it's changed, it's changed in the sense that there's so many more analytics that are able to be tracked and watched and viewed and studied. And so I mean back in the day, we literally had a shirt that coach made that said chuck.
And duck, meaning like, throw the ball, we're going to hit it. And that was the extent of the analytics.
I don't know that coach Candrea ever talked to us about this is a rise ball picture we're facing today, or this is a dominant curve ball pitcher that we're facing today.
We never talked about it.
We literally stood in the box and said throw whatever you got because we're going to hit it, basically right back down your throat. So now you have these scouting reports and the spray charts and the heat maps, and teams are studying those and we've seen the evolution of a hitter just grow because of the information.
I will say that the rules need to catch up.
I think we're calling too small of a strike zone, which is giving the hitters the advantage.
So while the hitters are still strong and powerful, they have more information stepping in to the box.
And then we're really limiting our pitching staff by shrinking the zone to a point that we're making them throw the ball in very hitable zones rather than expanding the zone and making the hitter improve.
I was just gonna say, oh, oh, I'm sure she'd been watching you. Pay attention, you've been doing all this thing. Hey, Today there's a story in the Athletic The Texas Tech picture is the face, they said, the face of the of the softball world today.
Would you agree? And I really think she's fantastic.
Nigerie Kennedy at Texas Tech is who you're speaking of.
Yeah.
So, I had the pleasure of being around Nie when she was fourteen years old, and she was a strong specimen of an athlete back then, but.
She was also like a newborn giraffe.
She had legs and arms going everywhere, and the ball would hit the middle of the backstop when she'd let it go. She has done such a good job of allowing herself to be coachable and teachable, and she's our first million dollar athlete.
In the sport. Right She transferred to Texas Tech for a million dollars, and.
We can talk about how an Il is affecting collegiate athletics perhaps for another decade, but with the way that she is playing right now, she truly is one of the most dominant players in our game. And one of the reasons she went to Texas Tech was so that she could hit two because she's good on both sides of the ball, and when she was at Stanford she didn't really hit.
So is she the face of our game?
Yeah?
Right now, she definitely is.
But she made a huge mistake last night by not knowing how to throw a pitch out to be able to intentionally walk a batter and reseat would take advantage.
Yeah, that was very bizarre.
Even when the other pitches, the first two that were close, I'm thinking, what's she doing because the catcher didn't really go for her outside and think, what is she doing that's hittable? And then lo and behold that third pitch was like, holy crap.
Well, when you think about it, that's not something she's had to work on. She has intentionally walked three people in three years. So it's not a skill that she unfortunately has been using regularly. Because she's so dominant in the circle, she usually attacks everyone. So when that call was made last night, not only was she unprepared, but so was her catcher. Her catcher didn't didn't give her the correct location either to be able to throw that ball.
In the right spot.
And reefe Atwood is one of the best catchers in the country and just a junior has another year to go at Texas. But when you watched the way that she was watching how Nijerie Kennedy was throwing her, she swung at a three and zero pitch like that was supposed to.
Be ball four, put her on and because of that, the defenses on their heels. This is what allowed that ball to get through.
If they were playing that regular Nigerie cannedy defense behind her, they would have gotten that ground ball and gotten out of the inning.
But they were all waiting on their heels for her to just take the walk.
And so I appreciate how aggressive refat was was and her ability to stay on top of her rise ball, but she wasn't throwing with the same velocity either right, Like, if she throws that pitch at seventy three seventy four miles an hour like she had been humming them in there, that's a much different at that. But when she's just when she's let off and is just throwing maybe sixty
four or sixty five. I actually wasn't looking at the velocities on those, but she took off, she took her foot off the pedal, took some velocity off of it, made it a hitable velocity and in a hittable zone.
All of a sudden, she opened herself up to a big loss.
Right, So if you're I'm playing like armchair quarterback here, yeah, I love that, and you're going eight? Was that a coaching error? I mean, if I have a number one pitcher, why don't I let her go? Like, let her go, let her throw.
Yeah, I appreciate wanting to throw, like, let her just like take the reins and go. That was one of those players that's a little bit scary. And you had first base open because they stole like after the first pitch. It was the first and third situation, and they stole the runner at first the second, so first base was open. They were intentionally walking her anyway, and the hitter behind her, Julie Mitchell, only had three home runs on the year.
I would much rather throw to Julie Mitchell than I would to Reef that would so I appreciate that coaching decision to put her on. However, if you have not practiced that skill, you're in big trouble.
Yeah, and we saw that last night.
And not to disregard the Texas pitcher because she was fantastic as well, and obviously two of the best teams out there, you know, and in my mind the Tennessee pitcher may be the better.
Of all of them.
Well, and it's hard to say, right because Carlin Pickens at Tennessee has now the fastest recorded pitch in the history of our sport. It's being said that the equivalent of her seventy nine mile an hour pitch is equivalent to one hundred and eleven mile an hour Major League fasketball. So we've not seen that in baseball. So you can't say softball is an easy sport. I challenge anybody to face Carlin Pickens to tell me that softball is an
easy sport. But when you look at the way teague in Cavan, the picture for Texas has been throwing at the end of her season, She's done such a good job of trusting her defense, probably the last through the postseason and maybe the last couple games of like during the SEC tournament. Her ERA during that span was over seven. Like it was like seven point three to three or
something like that. And so after super Regionals or after Regionals heading into super Regionals, she took a step back and I think realized she needed to trust her defense more and stop putting all the pressure on herself to be a strikeout pitcher, and in doing so has relaxed in the circle, is throwing more efficiently, hitting her spots, trusting her defense, and all of a sudden, you're seeing a very dominant Texas team now able to score runs
and play better. They're starting shortstop in the fall to an ACL injury, and with that it created some waves defensively for them. They've made more errors than they have in the past, and with those errors it gives you moments of pause, right Like as a pitcher, you have to hold your breath at times if you know you're going to throw a hitable pitch that's going to yield the ground ball to the left side.
You think, is it going to be an out or is it going to be an error? And they moved that.
Stuart, who is now playing and left was playing shortstop, and she made some critical errors in their Super Regional that made them actually lose a game to Clemson and pushed it to the if necessary third game. They made the change to move Leanne Good into the shortstop slot and move the shortstop Stewart into left field, and that's made all the difference.
Yeah, be remiss to not to ask you about the juve. I thought Clinton had a fantastic year. When you go forty eight and thirteen, it's a very very good year. And now we have all these transfers. It's happening in other places. But what are your thoughts on what's going on here?
Yeah, you know, if you want to play for a quality coach at a quality school and have a great fan base, Tucson is the place to be. Love Arizona obviously I chose it myself, But if you're a home run hitter, it's where you want to go because the ball flies and you get to track a whole lot more left turns in your career by hitting at Arizona But.
More than that, you've got you've got graduation, which.
Really hit Arizona hard. It really hit the pitching staff hard with graduation. Losing Branda Soddard and Devin Nets difficult, right, But then you've got the transfers that hit on top of it, and obviously everywhere you have to re recruit your staff every single year because the transfer portal has become just a hotbed and everybody's looking for where they can go and put their hand out and ask for money.
I'm not sure that this is the land. I mean, this may be the last year that you can do that because of the the rulings of the house that are going to be coming out and changing the way that nil is done and profit and revenue sharing is going to change the way that the money looks in the athlete's hands. But I don't know that the transfers that you're seeing out of Arizona are a bad thing.
Sometimes you do need to shake things up, and not to say that any of them are bad seeds, but sometimes a culture is created that you need to shake it up a little bit. And Caitlin Lowe is such a good coach. She has established such a great coaching staff. It hurts my heart when I see the when I see the I'm gonna just call them twitter trolls.
I'm old, but that come on and bad.
Mouth the coaching staff because, like to your point, it's hard to be an armchair quarter or a just a what's it called an armchair quarterback?
Cude, thank you, I'm like, it doesn't sound right, and share quarterback when you can look back on, oh, you should have done this.
Yeah, it's easy to see everything in the rear view mirror a little bit differently. But moving through a season like this, they had a fantastic year. They just ran into an old miss team that caught fire there at the end.
Yeah, no question. And then now, what are you up to? I know you're in Chicago.
I am. I'm in Chicago.
I am at the inaugural AUSL, which is the Athletes Unlimited Softball League, which has been endorsed by MLB. They've invested into this professional softball league. I'm the general manager for the Bandits. My head coach is Stacynuveman. Denise who was the all time home run queen for over a decade. Now, granted she was a Bruin and I'm a wildcat, and usually those two things don't mix, but we have chosen to put our past behind us and join forces for good.
But I mean, Stacey's such a good coach. Four teams in the league. We've got the games starting this weekend.
I heard that Joe Torre isn't going to be in the house at our.
Games this weekend here in Chicago. We've also got two teams that are starting their season in Wichita. So it's a barn storming tour this year of four teams all around the country, and then next year we'll be expanding to six teams settling in markets all across the country. And just really excited to see the way that these athletes are being treated like finally treated like professionals, with
teams of support staff all around them. And every time I turn around, I think, well, maybe this is my.
Job as a GM. I realized, Nope, there's somebody already in that position. I don't even have to worry about it.
So I'm just so encouraged by the way that it's being supported and the endorsement of MLB and actually the financial backing they became. Like I think, if I read the article right, twenty five percent partners in the league. So with that kind of support and backing, it's just bodes well for the future of our sport that has seemed to just taken the country by storm. Everybody seems to love the game, and not just those that played
it are. My boss at ESPN created a shirt for us that says, there's those that love softball and those who just don't know it yet, and so I think that's that's kind of.
Where the country is at it.
You're going to probably see higher viewership of the champ Series in Oklahoma City over that the NBA game tonight.
Yeah, no question, I'll be one of those.
In fact, I saw a shot of the stadium, the overall shot of the stadium, and I'm thinking that wasn't the stadium I went to a ninety one when you guys are winning the first row.
No, definitely not. It has added on layers.
There's no more green berms. Now on the side, You've got stadiums all around. Yeah, that place is amazing and I'm so grateful. I was a little bit worried with Oklahoma or Oklahoma State not in the finals, would they really fill the stadium?
And you know, what they're showing up.
They did.
It's the best softball in the country.
Right, Jenny, appreciate your time. Thank you, good luck than you you too, thank you, great stuff, great stuff GM GM.
I need a title like that. We'll talk about that later. Maybe I can give myself a raiz or something you could Yeah, we'll take a break.
If you're an Arizona Man's basketball fan, you know it's been successful for nearly forty years. Now take a look back at the Ludolsen era. In my new book, Lessons from Lut It.
Was a labor of love through the eyes of twenty five former players, coaches, and friends to give insight to the coach and the man who led them, competed against them, and inspired them. Twenty five chapters for his twenty five years as Arizona's beloved coach. Lessons from Lut is an insight to how he built the program into a national powerhouse. Want one Email me at Steve dot RIVERA ninety five at gmail dot com.
Where do you buy exercise and question man Arizona.
Health, Arizona Health, Arizona Health.
Of course, to feel better and look better, it makes sense to buy your fitness equipment from the people who know it better than anyone else. At Arizona Health, our goal is to help you choose the equipment you need to reach your goals. Your health and fitness deserve the best you deserve. Arizona Health the lead match and exercise equipment on.
Twenty second just west of Wilmot.
What's your goal a new career or career advancement? How about transferring to a four year college. PEMA Community College can help you make Someday today and reach your goals affordably on your schedule. With over one hundred programs to choose from and financial laid available, It's time to earn the degree or certificate you need to prepare for the career you want. PEMA offers free career exploration classes so you can choose the field that's right for you. Learn
how at PEMA dot edu. Slash Someday, Hey.
Tucson, Steve rivera heir, and I've got a tip for you. Want to be in good hands while cruising the desert or kicking back at home, then you need to call my friends at the Edmond Markets All State Agency. These guys are the MVPs of home and auto coverage. Whether it's a fender bender or a leaky roof, They've got you covered. Don't fumble your chance to say call them today and score big on your insurance. With the Edmund
Marcus All State Agency, You're always in good hands. Visit them at twenty seven nineteen North Campbell or call them at five two zero three two three nine three three three.
Where do you buy exercise equipment?
Arizona Health Arizona Health Arizona Health.
Of course, to feel better and look better, it makes sense to buy your fitness equipment from the people who know it better than anyone else. At Arizona Health, our goal is to help you choose the equipment you need to reach your goals. Your health and fitness deserve the best you deserve. Arizona Health the.
Lead manage and exercise equipment on twenty second, just west of Wilmot.
Craving, Tucson's best burger, the Fourth Avenue Legend is back. Lindy's on Fourth is celebrating twenty years and Lindy himself is back behind me the grill. We've got new mouthwatering burgers and great daily drink specials. Don't miss our upcoming twentieth anniversary summer Bash and year end celebration. So come down to Lindy's on Fourth or order online at l fourth dot com. Lindy and Tucson's Best Burger are waiting.
At Pyramid Federal Credit Union. We believe less is more. Let's pies need more money in your pocket. Less hassle means more time for what matters, and less stress means more confidence in your financial future. Pyramids Less's More philosophy is coming to your neighborhood with a new branch opening at the Tucson Spectrum Pyramid Federal Credit Union where less is More federally insured and by NCUA an equal opportunity lender.
Steve Rivera, He's got his eye on the ball. On Tucson's sports station, Fox Sports.
Sports een fifty, Welcome back to.
One of about here Fox Sports fourteenth of the I'm Steve Rivera. You or Andy Brown got ray with us, been helping us finish off the show here they thanks to Jenny Dalton.
Jenny's a very impressive lady. Yeah, yeah, that's I was reading up. She's still she still holds some records and Packed twelve Kids Packed twelve and n C double A and for R rby eyes.
Yeah, and that was during the tough time when the balls weren't flying that there now oh yeah, yeah, it is some great some great former players here. Yes, and now there's a few of them, you know, doing TV our her a couple more probably.
Well, when you played at the best program for in the nineties, you have some credibility. And I still believe.
I still believe this, and I know that people at you maybe if they listen to me, that because they were allowed to speak to the media openly and freely and communicate like you know, Richard and Steve and all these guys you know JT they were, and Richard Jefferson that they were. They learned, they learned how to be in front of the media, talk like the media. Now they become us, you know. Now it's like you go behind a podium and send the podium five minutes and then you're done.
Yeah. I know I talk about that party too much, but to me it means something. They're more accessible than than the Oh, without question, yeah, you feel we went to I won't use that for to go into the locker room with you guys, right we yea, you know afterwards everybody come in Now, you guys select to they go down the hallway. Well, you're walking with them, don't you, Yeah, you're protecting them from the coach.
Yeah.
The coach goes that, who's he walk He's bogging Sean Miller. No, I don't do that. I have a guy does that, Jerry. Jerry escorts coach around. It's kind of superstitious.
You know.
Those coaches they get to their their methods, their methods, and they're like, no, what are you doing. You're changing my guy. I'm like, he's sick. I'm not changing. He's just he needs a break. I mean, yeah, Jerry. I'm like, well, Jerry's sick. Oh no, it's like I deflated the ball or something like that. You're still playing on the basketball. You can't do that. It's like looting his superstitions with
the popcorn. Oh yeah, popcorn. We did I told you, I did a. I did a. I did a paper on that in one of my psychology classes about superstition and how it's not really superstition, it's you getting in the right frame of mind to play your best ball. So you go through your process, and if you're not doing your process, you don't feel like you've prepared right, and you just feel off. So what do you feel about superstitious fans? Superstitious fans with him? With him? That's
another paper. I have to sit in that chair, I have to watch it from that that angle. I have to have this that and that was your extra credit paper. Yeah. Yeah, well the popcorn, right, and then you have some gum. Didn't you miss up gum? No? I didn't mess up gumb. Nobody he always had. You had red gum or blue gum. And he basically you would yell down down the bench to me what color I want? Like, hey, Brown, I'm like yes, coach Blue. I'm like, okay, Blue, I bring
a blue stick and go right. Yeah coach, No, you're not going in give me the blue gud. No, that's the first game, he said Brown, And I jumped up like I was going in because we're up like thirty two minutes left in the game. I was like, it's got to be my turn. I jump up and he's like red and I'm like, god, dang it. I turn around and coaches like, no, no, no, I'm just messling you go in. Did you do that?
Yeah?
Well, he doesn't have that sense of humor because he was dry. He was right, and I didn't see it, and the guys told me it was gonna happen, but I was like, I don't see it. Actually had your your right uniform. Oh, I had everything ready to go. I just didn't get taped. I usually didn't get tape for games you were was getting in, especially the Michigan game when we got in. Yeah, I wasn't tape. I barely have my shorts on. I'm like, should I put
shorts on underneath these warm ups? Yeah? Better kiss in case. I think there was a time or two when someone didn't. Oh, yeah, that was before me. They warned me, right, you should always have your shorts on in case. Yeah, but that's yeah. I haven't even got told that. You're probably not gonna play, So we're not gonna put tape on you because we got a budget. Do you want to I'm a practice. Can you wear braces instead of getting tap? Its like, no tape cuts this money for you to get at
the game. It's like, I'm still practicing.
Yeah, So we're gonna have just the last minute to add to the show. I didn't have him on the social Pete Williams come on at four seventeen, a good friend of ours. Uh, one of the more one of the greatest guys ever. Got your lot for the ludols in camp. But just eccentric because we all hell too. In the last Spy.
Yeah, but he he commands the room when he walks in, he just has that presence about him and it's yeah, you want to be and you want to listen to what he says. And I liked watching the this last two years. When he sits down in front of him and starts talking about, you know what we did, how we laid this out for.
We explained that because Tommy has brought some of you guys, the guys in to talk about the history of the game.
Yeah, there were what nine or ten of us stand sitting in front of the whole group. And and Pete's the guy that led to charge, right, He's the guy that came out and said, listen, the reason why you're sitting in these nice chairs, and the reason why you have this nice locker room, the reason why you have those nice shoes is because of us up here, the ones that brought it first. So you're not we don't
expect you to play for us. We want you to play for the guys ten years from now, the guys that come in after you, you're playing for them like we played for you. And I just like I almost cry. I was like, damn, Like what was I doing then? Was heading out gum? So yeah, guy, it better be a good gum passer out our guy that water. Yeah.
No, I've known that story, but I didn't know to that extent. We'll ask Pete to talk about that. But I knew that Tommy had gotten you know, some of the guys that were here for Lukeke.
Yeah, and that's big kudos to tell me about that, bringing guys back right to teach and to keep that culture going of it's it's it's Arizona basketball right right right.
Well, Sean didn't erase the past. No, no, for whatever reason, you know, he just didn't. And because we had you guys in with him too, and he he didn't do that. But Tommy, you know, Tommy goes to the event every now and again, yeah, and mingles with the guys and you know he knows you guys are important, No, he is.
And then and that's I think that was what was missing between Lute and Tommy. That was kind of that was missing a lot. Yeah, because obviously Lute loved you guys and he loved seeing you guys come back. Yeah. The biggest I think the biggest kudos are the most impressed me the most when Tommy came was the zoom that he had with just the players ex players, Right, he invited players and managers and guys that and we did a zoom. He goes, this is players only. You
guys can ask me whatever you want. He goes, I'm just asking you give me a chance. Because there had been some concerns, Yeah, that he was not the guy because some other guys thinking, who all, Yeah, he's an outsider. Yeah, and Pete was a big part of that as well. I'm giving his candid response endorsement. But he also asked the tough questions, right, So that was that was ideal for a coach coming in to say, Hey, what do
you guys need to see from me? As alumni and as guys that built this program, Right, what do you need to see from me? Because all I'm asking is you give me a chance. Right, And he's done a pretty good job. And he also said, if you come into town and to come visit and you don't knock on my door. I'll be pissed because I want you back here, and I asked you to do one thing. Is that bring me a story. Bring me a story
from when you played. Something I can pass on you the kids coming in, like why Arizona is such a great place. I want to be able to tell these kids coming in why Arizona is a problem. Yeah.
And he's got good, good people, you know, Gamon, Josh and these guys who can tell those stories. Ohne, Steve Kurrz obviously.
Yeah, well, yeah, you get those guys together though, Pete and his boys, Joe, Joe Turner and those guys got great story. Yeah, well, Joe Turner the story before there was social media. Oh my god. Those guys are like, if we had social media, we be in jail, probably still writing stories about it. Is something over there. And it was public already.
Sewan and Sean and Joe were Shawn and a C were driving the car right your car and flipped the car and got.
It after and he looks at me.
You knew what that? Yeah, of course you knew about it. But it became public. He was in the papers and stuff.
I didn't know that, yeh. Yeah, but yeah, those guys could write books. Oh yeah, yeah, yeah, what do you think I'm still trying? Oh yeah, you know some of those inside stories you got the tip of the Iceberg books. There's stuff that we'll all take to our great It's funny with some people. I've had two complaints at least one for sure. They said, Rivera, I have one complaint about your book is up? How come you didn't write more more? I can't even fit so much twenty five guys.
You can get twenty five more players talking about crazy stuff, you know. Yeah, the problem is we don't. We don't go too crazy with the stories though. We kind of keep those in the house. But those are the fun times. You get to back together and it doesn't matter what decades you played or what year you played under Loot, you still have similar stories. But it was still a culture and you have a brotherhood and that's what's cool. It doesn't matter if you did pass out gum or
you scored fifty, right, you're still belonging that brotherhood. And that's the fun part. Yeah, meeting guys and talking to guys nowadays, it's fun. I mean, it's just it's a golden years you look back on sure, no, no, And then Pete's exactly right.
I mean, had it not been for him, the Craig McMillan's, the Steve Kerrz, the Sean Elliotts, Kenny Loftons, those guys, this thing would never have happened, Especially Pete.
You know, Pizza cornerstone. To me, he's a cornerstone first.
And you know, Craig is the first McDonald's all American, and all of a sudden in eighty eight, the magic kind.
Of just came about. Craig is no nonsense guy too. He's yeah, but he's yeah, he is. I mean, just another level of athletes, right. I hang out with a guy named John Fiena. You know John, He's got a different level of competitiveness. Yeah, even on a golf on a golf of course, You're just like, I can see why you were in NFL. Yeah, there is, there's a different gear level. There's a different gear, a different gear or the mentality right now. Yes, and you're like, that's
that was missing in my game. Dang it, you were too nice. It was nice.
Yeahs doesn't win, man, it wins, but you know, it wins to a degree.
And then you said, you know gets you on the bench. Though he guess what color My ring was the same color as everybody else. It's your red and blue. We gotta go come back and talk about breaking new