Then we continue on Fred Rogan, Ben mallerin today for Rodney on a five seventy LA Sports Dodgers take the first game last night against the Phillies. Back at it tonight, Clayton Kershaw on the Hill, Ben, Let's welcome in our good friend Jack Harris of the LA Times and Jack, thanks for jumping on today.
Yeah, no problem.
All right, Before we move forward, let's go back just the mood, the emotion, the feeling you had with Freddie Freeman coming back last night.
Yeah, now, that was It was something I think, you know, especially for a guy who, you know, when it comes to baseball, one of his big things is being in the lineup every day, posting every day, being locked in, you know, to have that be the guy who went through what he went through the last couple of weeks with his son being in the hospital and you know, them making trips to the er and then the ICU to figure out what was wrong with him, and then you know, having this, you know, he called it a
miraculous recovery yesterday. It's one of those stories that I think puts a lot of the rest of the baseball season in perspective. And you saw all of that come out when he returned last night from the pregame stuff that his teammates did wearing the T shirts with his son's name on it too. Obviously the ovation he got, you know, the Dodgers obviously missed him on the field. But I think, you know, in his three years here, Freddie Freeman's becomes.
Such a.
Core piece of the team and the way that fans interact with the team that you know, it all kind of culminated in that moment and one that you just don't really see a lot in the course of a normal MLB season or with a lot of players in these kinds of situations.
And Jack, as far as tonight, the big night we've been talking about it, Clayton Kershaw, who looked terrible in his last start against the Padres. What's the vibe about there, Jack, around the Dodgers and Kershaw, what they expect tonight?
I mean, I think Kershaw is one of the one of several kind of interesting wild cards, and in the course of the season right now for the Dodgers, there's a path where if he looks pretty good over these these last couple of months, similar to you know, how he looked last year, even when he was battling the shoulder injury, that he could be a big part of what they're doing in October of how they look at their pitching plans, not only to get to the postseason,
but once they get into the playoffs, and then there's another path where, you know, if he looks more like he did last week in San Diego, if he's struggling to get above ninety miles per hour with the fastball, if he's struggling to keep guys off the slider, it's going to make him a difficult guy to count on in the big picture this season. So, you know, it's still early. This is only his third start back from
his offseason shoulder surgery. His first start was sharper both in terms of the results and the way his actual stuff looked. But until he strings you know, two, three, four of those kind of outings together, there's going to be this question about where is he at, just stuff wise, at the stage in his career, and is he still somebody that the Dodgers can count on, you know, in the way that they've been so accustomed to over his
even you know, the latter stages of his career. The last couple of years.
Jack, I'm no doctor, although some people thought I was a trainer many years ago, but I was not there either. I played that in high school football. But I don't know. If the guy is struggling, he's at eighty nine in his third start, struggling to get over ninety miraculously, is his arm and his shoulder going to come around and all of a sudden he's gonna be throwing ninety five miles an hour. Don't you think it gets worse, not better? And I really don't know.
Yeah, well, you're not going to see ninety five. I think you're gonna be lucky to see ninety Two's now with somebody like Clayton Kershaw, who you know, when it just comes to the art of pitching, knows it and knows how to navigate it as well as probably anybody
who's who stepped on a big League mound before. No, if he can be ninety to ninety one with a sharp slider and you know his trademark curveball and mixing in changeups, like there are still ways that he can be successful on the margins again, like he was pitching through a serious shoulder injury last year and had like a two five VR and was an All star pitcher. Like he knows how to pitch even with diminished stuff.
The question is how diminished is it now? How consistently can he get that extra tick or two out of his fastball? Can he still snap the slider the way that you know he has so successfully over his career and two starts, I think you've seen one start where he did that a little bit better and one start
where he couldn't really do that at all. And that's why the Dodgers, because they still believe in, you know, just his his veteranability and his track record and you know, his kind of an eight way of getting guys out with whatever he's got. They're gonna give him some runway, as Dave Roberts likes to put it, to try to prove that he's still a reliable guy, to try to prove that he's still you know, one of the better pitchers or in the game, or at least somebody that
you can count on in a postseason environment. But he's at the point of his career now where he does have to prove it right where it's not a given anymore that playing Kershaw is going to be in the Dodgers postseason rotation or anything like that. So, and I think there's a couple of pictures on this team that are going to be in that same boat, whether it's Gavin Stone, whether it's Yoshinobu Yamamoto when he returns from entry.
And that's what makes I think the whole pitching dynamic for this team over the rest of the season interesting to follow, because outside of Tyler Glasnow and Jack Clarity right now, there's not a ton of guys that you're probably feeling great about as it pertains to starting games in October. So or they're going to give Kershaw opportunities, they're going to give other guys opportunities because they need to figure out who can they trust once they get to the playoffs.
Yeah, and with that said, if they don't trust him, let's let's assume we'll go the worst case scenario that Kershaw just can't get guys out consistently. Would they even put him on the playoff roster? Jack, if they don't trust him to start and he's throwing in the high eighties, would they go that direct?
Yeah? I mean maybe, I think it's definitely on the table. I think it's also one of those things that you know, they're still pretty far away from having to make that decision, and the short term they still need them to make starts and eat innings and give some coverage to a
pitching staff that's been dealing with absences all year. But yeah, I mean the makeup of this team, not just when it comes to the rotation, but the roster at large is right now they have once they're fully healthy, they're going to have more bodies than spots to sell a
playoff roster. So for somebody like Clayton Kershoff or guys at the bottom of the batting order, some of the utility players that move around a lot bullpen, same thing applies, Like there's a lot of guys that have a lot to prove over these last couple of months, you know, if they do want to be in the Dodgers' long term plans and want to be key contributors for a team that's trying to get to a World Series. And I think honestly that's where you know talked of like
pressure or urgency or those sorts of things. I think it's coming internally more right now for this team than it is from the standings or anything else. So yeah, it applies to Clayton Kershaw that he's not performing over the last couple months of the season. He's probably not somebody that Dodgers will be counting on in October. But it applies to a lot of a lot of other
players on this roster too. Is they try to figure out, you know, what their best twenty six man group looks like over the final two months.
Here. They got the Pros win last night, so I got to three tonight, is this a must win series for the Dodgers? Jack?
And I mean nothing is a must win when you have like a four or five game lead in the division and you know, you seem pretty safe in terms of making the postseason, even with how they've been playing the last month. I think though, that coming off the road trip that they had last week, given the fact that the division race is tightened, and given the fact that they have a lot of tough teams coming up,
this is an important series to win. It's one that I think would fully steady the ship after what was a pretty bad July for them. That would be a statement either within the room or just you know, externally around the league, like, hey, they've maybe the Dodgers have Freddy Freeman back, they have Tyler Glass now back, gonna get Mookie Bets back soon. And look, they just beat the Phillies in a series like they're back to themselves.
I think that's what they can accomplish this week. And it would be a good time too, because the rest of this month is a pretty tricky schedule, and I think, you know, if this month goes south on them, then suddenly you know, we're not just talking about the division race being tight, but you're talking about maybe being in a real dog fight with the Padres, with the Dbats getting into September. So you can take two or three
from the Phillies this week, or maybe all three. I think it sends a message about, Okay, the Dodgers have gotten over what was a bad stretch of play when they were missing a lot of guys. They beat the best team in the NL, and they're in a good spot going into what's probably the toughest stretch of their season the rest of this month.
And we're shaut with Jack Herrish. Jack, what about the situation of the bullpen? Is it's going to be a rotation at closer by how's this going to play out playoffs? Obviously, the bullpen is massive in October because the pitchers go five innings, But how do you see this shaken? How are they going to rotate guys at the end of games?
But right now, that's basically what it is. It's trying to, you know, Dave Roberts is effectively going into every game, not saving any particular arm for the ninth but rather knowing which parts of an opposing lineup he wants to match guys up against, knowing, you know, at the highest leverage moments of games, which guy on that night he trusts. And I think the Dodgers, you know, as they've they've dabbled with this a few times since Kinley Jansen left
the organization a few years ago. They're comfortable not having a designated closer now. Dave Roberts will be the first one to tell you that life's a lot easier when you have one guy in the night that you trust. When you had Evan Phillips down there, you know, converting saves and pitching, you know, like a reliable guy like he was up until you know, a month and a half ago now, But in the absence of that they
don't want to force anybody into that spot either. Now, I think over the last couple of months, if one particular reliever emerges, maybe it's Evin Phillips, you know, regaining the role. Maybe if it's Daniel Hudson who has gotten the plurality of save opportunities since Evan Phillips was removed from the closer's role. So they're not opposed to putting, you know, to designating somebody as a closer again and
having a set ninth inning option. And I think in an ideal world for them, they will have that by the time they get to the end of the season. But at the same time, they think that, you know, they can win games just as effectively by identifying matchups and picking specific moments for guys and not necessarily saving any one arm for the night. So that's the mode
that they're in right now. There's a lot of time for things to change, and I think there's a lot of potential candidates, whether you know, Bruce dar Grat or all Is coming back. That's a guy that I think people have always looked at as a potential closer. You know, Blake Trying's done it before. So there's a lot of routes they can go, but there's not That's not something that they're eminently trying to address. I think they're more
kind of letting it play out. And again, like with a lot of the rest of this team, seeing who performs and who doesn't down the stretch this season, Well.
It's good Groatorol's coming back because now they put Trenton on the IL and.
Yeah, he goes.
Yeah, and you know, Trining is so good. I wonder if he'll ever be what he once was.
Jack Yeah, I mean even this year, you know, his fastball has been down. He used to be a guy that was ninety six ninety seven. Now he's more ninety four ninety five on a good day.
Now.
Again, he's a pretty talented pitcher. He's an experienced veteran pitcher, and he knows how to work with what he's got and get guys out, which is why you know, he was having a pretty good year even with somewhat diminished stuff from where he was a couple of years ago before his own shoulder surgery. I think the bigger point with the bullpen is and somebody like trying in somebody like Daniel Hudson somebody like Alex Vezia, Like they all
fall in this category. If you have a lot of guys that are having good seasons, but they're doing it with lesser stuff in terms of fastball velocity and just you know, overall swing and mis capability than they've had. Like one of the interesting things about Michael Kopeck joining that group, you know Michael Kopeck came to the Dodgers is you know, not having a great year with the
White Sox and he's really talented but is inconsistent. But then he gets on the mound and he starts throwing one hundred mile per hour fastballs up in the zone and getting swing and miss, and you go, oh, yeah, you know, the Dodgers haven't really had a guy like that. I think Crews, our Grat are all same thing. Like you're going to get a real hard thrower that is an important kind of guy to have in an October environment.
So that's where the makeup of this bullpen is interesting and why I think there's still a lot that could change in terms of roles and who's getting leverage situations and who could potentially become a closer, because just the makeup of stuff is going to look a little bit different down the stretch, and the Dodgers hope is that they're going to have more options and more ways to get match up against opponents and neutralized hitters and and and utilize that group down the you know, over the
rest of the season.
Chat with Jack Yreson with the Times covers of the Dodgers. Obviously, hey Jack, last one for me. We were singing the praise as I was. And Fred likes him too. Ti Oscar Hernandez, but he's only on a short contract. Is this just gonna be a fling? Is he going to go somewhere else next year? What are you feeling? What are you hearing on Hernandez? Is he going to be here in the next couple of years or is this just a one and done situation for him?
Yeah, I mean it's certainly possible. Part of why the t Oscar Hernandez signed the deal that he did with the Dodgers this year was the way he put it, It was like a bet on himself, right, Like he didn't have a great year and Seattle last year, he didn't get the kind of offers on the free agent market he was hoping to get, and so rather than settle for a you know, less annual salary on a longer term deal, he decided to take a one year deal with the Dodgers and hope he could rebuild his
doctor the league while also contributing to a winning team. He's certainly doing the former. I think, you know, he's probably looked at as the biggest deal of this past offseason.
The long term repercussion of that, of course, is he's going to be more expensive and he's going to be one of these players I think falls into this category of, you know, do the Dodgers look at him as, hey, he was a great one year piece for us on a pretty good value, and now we can try to figure out, you know again, for a better value, play some other direction to go with one of the corner outfield spots, or do we want to lock him up long term and make him an integral part of this
team moving forward and trust that, you know, his performance will be sustainable. So that's a decision the club's going to have to make over the next couple of months. I think it's one they're definitely going to entertain, given how well he's played, you know, to me, it's almost like a plus version of Jason Hayward and Miguel Rojas last year, and those were guys that the Dodgers brought in on short term deals and then extended both of them.
So I think that's definitely a possibility with Oscar hand As, especially what you start. You know, if you're not going to plan to have mookie bets in the outfield long term, and maybe you don't trust some of your young guys to be ready to step up into full time roles yet.
But that's probably also a decision that they're going to wait till the off season, see how his market looks, and see if it makes sense for them financially to sign him to what will almost certainly be a longer term and much more lucrative deal than they got him on this year.
Outstanding, Jack, Thanks for coming on man, love the info.
Yeah, thanks guys, Thanks Jack.
Dodgers back in LA to take on the Phils tonight, the first pitch at seven ten. You can listen to every play of every Dodger game an AM five to seventy LA and stream all the games in HD on the iHeartRadio app. The keyword is AM five to seventy LA Sports and it's powered by LA Care for all of LA five hundred thousand dollars a day. Anybody worth that, Hey, figure it out.
Hey, if Don's listening, i'd like that.
Yeah. Yeah, well, first time doesn't listen. If he did, I don't think he'd agree. That's coming up next. Ben Maller is in today for Rodney. Okay, have you watched a lot of the Olympics.
I've watched some.
I have it on you because of the time difference when I'm doing the overnight show their events going on, so I've watched it while I'm at work. Mostly I watched the basketball fact they're playing today, Fred, But I think right now exactly, yes, I have that on the background. But yeah, that's about it when I work in the basketball What about you.
You know, it's so weird. For so many years I did the Olympics.
I know you were a staple the Olympics. Fred, That's right. I remember watching you back in the day.
I'll bet you I've watched five minutes. It's weird. I'm not doing it and for whatever reason, I'm just not inclined to watch it, and I don't know why, but I know this. These games for NBC are doing in today's world exceptionally well. Numbers are way up over the Tokyo Games. Of course those are weird games, but they're way up and people are consuming the content differently. And one of the big reasons ben is something they call the gold zone, and the gold zone is like, what is it? Red zone?
A red zone for Olympic cover?
Yeah, right's red zone for Olympics and they have the red zone guys doing it for.
Yeah, I have Chris Hansen and uh Sicilianowa I think is in there as well.
Yeah, it's really good. In other words, when something is going to happen, they're right there. When somebody could win a medal, or there's going to be a point of decision, they're right there. It's really good. It is doing exceptionally
well for them on Peacock. And when you aggregate all of the numbers, unlike when you and I were growing up and you could watch TV, now all of these numbers are put together, so whether you're watching on Peacock or NBC or USA Network, they all get put into a big bushel and people are consuming this and they are watching it now.
If I had a question for you like that, the numbers on the streaming How do we know those are authentic? I'm always I always wonder that, like, how do we know how many people are actually watching this? I know they give numbers out and ratings, but how can those be validated?
Ratings or streaming numbers?
I'm talking about streaming numbers. I just feel the same way, Like I do a podcast on the weekends too. This show's podcast that you know you do my radio shows? How do we know how many people are actually listening to it?
Though? It's pretty simple. The streaming numbers are far easier to work with than ratings because you're streaming numbers. Somebody clicked on it, and that registers.
But how long do they listen?
Well, and that, by the way, is fair, And that's also determined because in the metrics they use, if they listen to your podcast for twenty minutes, they'll know because the person left, they're gone streaming TVs the exact same way they click on their watch and it just shows when the person leaves. So, by the way, how are your podcast.
Numbers surprisingly good? I don't know why, but there are?
Right? So you love this this is spreen.
Well, I guess, but I don't. I've always thought, I don't know, because you could just make them any number.
How to Like, what I'm saying is how how it comes to be validated, Like like I watched My wife loves Netflix, right, watch a lot of but how like, how.
Do you know how many people are?
Actually I know that they have the numbers, but can somebody They can just make any number up they want, right right, if they wanted to, they could say there's ten million people watching, and there's.
No in theory. They could in theory. But when advertising agencies spend money and buy spots, those numbers have to be quantitative. You have to give them the number because you're selling it on that and you're promising them a return on that. So if you're promising them a three whatever, then that has to Those numbers have to be a three or these people are getting their money back. So that's how the numbers work.
Gotcha all right?
One thing NBC is doing differently this time, And I always thought it would have been fun when I was doing it, but you know, oftentimes it's the wrong time for things. Kind of lighten it up, kind of lighten up the coverage because it is a sacred, sacred event. The Olympics at NBC, and there was not a lot of time for you know, have a laugh, goof around. That didn't exist when I was doing it. It was
very serious right down the middle. When I would try to do things, sometimes I went, now, we're not doing that. We're not doing that, because that's not what the Olympics are. This go round, it's very different and there's far more personality from the people on the air. It's less structured from the perspective of everything is really serious. And one of the guys that they use and he did it last time and it worked, so now they've given him a bigger role is Snoop. Snoop is an integral part
of the primetime coverage. And what are they paying him? Five hundred dollars a day.
Yeah, that's the story that's being reported. Five hundred thousand dollars a day. And the Olympics last I did some malord math on this. But so the Olympics last what eighteen days?
I think? Am I correct on?
Officially sixteen sixteen days?
Oh okay, so my math is wrong. Let me do this again. Here, I gotta I got my calculator out here, So let's do the math.
On day, so he sixteen days, So that means he's getting Snoop Dogg for the sixteen days.
Eight million dollars, right, good work if you can get it. Yeah, but it sounds but it doesn't.
I eight millions great, but five hundred thousand dollars a day it sounds even better, right, I mean five hundred. Now I've watched a little bit, like I said, overnight when I'm doing the show, and it's like I've seen Snoop around Paris, wandering around doing different things and whatnot. How many people are tuning in because of him?
How do you know?
How?
You can't? You can't measure that, can you?
No, you can't. I mean their primetime numbers are good. You can't specifically say, although they do all kinds of research, how many people are tuning in specifically for him?
Like you could argue he makes it more enjoyable, right, because he's Snoop Dogg and all that, But five hundred thousand, my goodness, who's his agent?
Fred? Well?
I gotta get his agent.
But look at it like this. Do we know if they're tuning in for him? We don't, But given their rating, we believe they're not tuning away to get away from them. Maybe they're waiting for him. I mean, the Olympics are in primetime coverage of the Olympics, especially when everything is completed, you're just telling stories now. And NBC was very serious with that in primetime in the past, when everything was done, you still have to do the primetime show. Now they've
given it a little pizzazz, little personality. I've seen some of Snoop stuff, and I think in my five minutes, honestly, I think I've seen him three times. Some of it I like, and some of it I think is okay, But it's Snoop and people like Snoop.
Yeah, no, for sure.
So this is now because of the success. I know the Olympics aren't over yet. It's fair to say when they come to LA a few years that they're gonna bring Snoop back or will he be too old at that point?
Are they gonna have to find the next Snoop?
No, no, no, no, no no no. That's one thing. If it works, they'll do it. You'll the difference. The difference with the LA Games though, because it will be on the West Coast. It'll all be live. Yeah, the only tape so you'll get tapes on the West Coast, probably starting at nine o'clock at night, which is late night on the East Coast, but they'll call it Primetime Plus here and then everything will be done basically, so
they'll go to tape. But the West Coast Olympics, that will blow the roof off everything because everything will basically be live. You don't need to tape anything. It's all gonna happen live.
Yeah, it is annoying because I don't know when I'm watching the Olympics often, whether when I'm watching already happen or I know when I'm there at night doing the overnight show. I know that that stuff's going on because of the time preference, but sometimes even during the day, like I don't know, Like I have the basketball game up by the way, the US team kicking the snot out of Brazil.
Fred.
I know you had that.
I don't know if they're going to cover the spread, but I don't know. I'm not sure, Like I'm like, is that live? Is this has already happened. I hate watching sports that have already happened. I don't want to do it. I want to watch it live or else. I don't want to watch sports. That's just so I'm wired.
Yeah.
I also, by the way, that's why I haven't watched the primetime coverage because by the time prime time has happened, literally everything is done right at the final event over there, I think is finished by like one o'clock in the afternoon our time.
So by the time we're off the air here, Ben, you'll know everything that happened today already.
Yeah, I'm right there. I can't do it. I can't watch it.
Yeah, But that's why the LA Olympics will be so highly rated across every platform because you'll be able to see everything live. The other thing I want to say about the games coming to LA in twenty eight and there are people concerned, what's it going to do? They'll be cost overruns and the taxpayers will have to make up for it. There's a good chance there'll be some cost overruns. Yeah, that's going to happen. And the other thing is traffic's gonna be a nightmare. It's gonna be
a nightmare getting around everywhere. It's awful. It's going to impact everybody.
Spoiler alert, Fred, It's always awful, Fred, It's always terrible.
Right, that's the spoiler alert. Here's the reality. When the games are here in eighty four, everybody said the same thing, this is going to be a nightmare, worse than it normally is. So try not to travel, try to stay off the roads. For sixteen days, nobody drove anywhere. For sixteen days. You could go from La to San Diego. It seemed like in fifty minutes, no one was on
the road. Everybody stayed off the road. And I gotta tell you, I think a lot of that is gonna happen when the Games come in Los Angeles in twenty eight. I don't think, oh God, this is gonna be awful. We've already had this one and nobody was on the road. I'm dead serious. It looked like a ghost.
Well remember a few years ago, I guess been a few years of many years, we had Karma Gaydon. They were closing out of the four h five and I think the company got me a hotel room because they were worried I would not be able to leave the studio in Sherman Oaks.
And no, nobody's on the roads that day.
But the thing, also, you talk about the Olympic experience, we mentioned this last week when you were traveling go to baseball Gainst me and Jonas, we were like, they're going to clean up like all the a lot of the things we hate right now, like you know, people down on the skid rows everywhere these they're going to clean all that up, right for the Olympics that they're
going to clean up the entire city. It's gonna be amazing in twenty twenty eight because they're going to present that to the world and so they're gonna get rid of a lot of things that are just annoying to us on our day to day lives.
They're gonna clean all that up.
Well, they're going to try to clean it up. This is another complaint that the coverage will not truly reflect what la is. So here's the thing you have to understand. NBC coverage always No, they're not going to show homeless people on the street. They don't do that. They're going to show the motest picturesque shots they can find. The Hollywood sign, right, it's going to be a travelogue. It's going to be a picture postcard. And that's what will happen.
If you think they're going to show some guy knocking off of seven to eleven and acting in a freeway chase. It's not gonna happen. Well, you're not being fair and you're not being honest, and you're not showing what it really is like here. Well, first, to be honest with you, no one cares. No one around the world cares. If there are people on skid row. It's terrible. We don't want them there. But do you really think somebody watching in Brazil wants to see homeless people on skid row?
So no, they're not going to show that. And yes, every angle of everything they shoot is going to be from the perfect angle because that's what they want to portray. You can't get into a situation where you think, well this is just as an honest, honest to who honest to you? Well, maybe they don't think what you feel as important is and I read that, Well, they're just not going to be on about what the city is.
They're gonna be honest. They're gonna give the world the view of La that La wants the world to see. And there's nothing wrong with that.
Really, Well, they're doing it right now in Paris. Right, you see things on the internet that are not being reported about certain issues in the local community there in Paris, they're not being talked about. So the same thing's going on there.
That they didn't soach you as well.
By the way, well documented the issues out there a few years ago for the Winter Olympics.
When we would go when we would go to the Olympic seminars and Dick Ebersol was still in charge, and it would stand up in the front with David Neil who now runs Fox Soccer and he was the executive producer of the Olympics, would dig and they would have this meeting and they would tell us every single time, you don't work for NBC News. That's not why you are here. NBC News will be here and they will cover news. You work for NBC Sports and NBC Olympics
and we will do the Olympics. That's our job. So don't start making political statements, are talking about things that you have seen that you think are wrong, because that's not why you're here. We have a whole news department to do that, a news division, and if they choose to do it, they will and that's really how they do it. They tell you ahead of time, you're here for the games. That's it.
And the political stuff. I agree, you want to unplug. I'm old school for it. I watched my sports. I want to unplug from all the nonsense. Yeah, watching the game. I don't want to hear about it. I don't want to have it shoved down my throat.
I'm good.
I can make my own decisions when it comes to that, and I don't need you to you direct me one way or another.
So I'm all right. I'm fine with that.
All right, here's a question. Yes, let's say your one, for argument's sake, five hundred thousand dollars. We're just talking about that. You wonderful, Ben, congratulations, you want five hundred thousand dollars. Yes, and your family member comes and says, give me some of that money because I'm in trouble. Do you do it?
How close a family member are they?
Fred, We'll have to get into that.
By the way, since Ben did ask twenty seven minus twenty seventh, the United States was against Brazil. There are currently up by twenty nine late in the third quarter.
Oh, it's gonna be a nail. By the lot of time left, A lot of time left, a lot of it.
Yeah, a lot of degenerate sweating right now, there.
Back door cover, possibly backdoor cover for Brazil.
Listen, so many people interested. You're right, Brazil USA Olympic basketball. I think the United States will cover. That's my pick.
Okay, yeah, you also with that, Anthony Rendau won't be healthy the rest of the year too, So I'm not taking confidence in your bets there, Fred.
I'm taking. I'm taking Brazil plus the points as am I record.
Yeah, all right, well fine, don't listen to me. But then again, I'm never right, so you shouldn't listen to me.
What's that.
Is it? Ben Maller in today, Rodney, Ben, we really appreciate you sitting in.
It's good to be here, Fred, it is what are you? What are you laughing at? I laugh at?
I no, And we do appreciate it. All right. So here's the deal. On Reddit, we found this story. You tell me what you would do.
Okay.
Woman wins a lottery. She wins five hundred thousand dollars pre tax. All right, She's going to use that money to pay off some student loans, do some stuff. She's twenty eight years old. Her brother her Her brother calls her. He says, hey, you know what, I got my own problems? Give me thirty grand. Give me thirty grand. I need thirty grand. The woman thinks about it and says, well, he's been struggling financially for years. He can't manage money, He's had some bad luck, he's got a ton of debt.
He says, I've seen him go through the money before. The sister said she sympathized with him, but she's not sure giving him a large amount of money will solve the problem in the long term because she's seen him blow through it. She said she was willing to help him create a budget plan, give him a smaller amount like five grand to help with immediate needs, but then he got upset. There are people that suggested she was being selfish and not caring about the family. What would you do?
All right, So, based on what you told me, Fred, I think she's right that if this guy blows every family, my family, all my friends, we all have at least one or two people that are really bad with their money and make poor choices and end up going broke and messing around. And so if he's that person for the family, I think she's doing the smart thing not giving him thirty thousand, because they'll just blow through the money.
But if you set him up, if you set him up on some kind of plan where like, if you you're discipline, you'll get more money. I think that's the way to handle situation. Absolutely, I say you should do it.
Okay, but that makes her look selfish, and that makes her look controlling, and that makes her look like she doesn't love her brother because her brother needs the money and she didn't give it to him. By the way, I agree with you. I agree with you.
You're on the right side.
Fred, Yeah, I do. You know you have trouble managing money. You've blown through your money. Granted you've had some bad luck, we all have, but you're basically pissed through your money. You know people like that. I know people like that. Sure, you give somebody ten grand and two weeks later there's no money left, you know people like this. Yeah.
Well, the first thing you do is you take the tax money out. That's the first thing you do, right, so.
That it's five hundred thousand, But after how much is that after taxes?
Right, it's gonna be about two seventy.
About two seventy al right, so you have two seventy to play with. Then he wants thirty thousand, So now you're down to two forty. But she probably wants to buy house or put it down pay I know where she lives, but put it down, payment down or something like that.
Now she, by the way, Ben, she had already calculated, so she's gonna get about five hundred thousand after taxes.
So get.
How much he's taking from after taxes, that's all you get.
All right?
All right, Well that changes a little bit, but still it's five hundred thousand, and money's not what it used to be today.
So yeah, I still would.
I would put him on a plane and say, hey, you got to follow the rules and then you'll get more money.
But instead of saying thank you, you know what, I need help. You're gonna give me a little bit to get started here, and then thank you, I need help. The mindset is, well, why are you being so cheap? Just give me all the money?
How do you How do you find out about it?
Though?
If you win the lottery, shouldn't you not tell anyone?
If well, she told her family.
She told her parents, and her parents told her brother. That's how he.
Found out the parents the parents.
I mean, what would you do?
Uh?
Listening there's a less Think about it for a second. What would you do? You win money? Family member comes to you and says, give me some of that money. You know I'm in trouble, but you know the history of the family member, and you know that they're really gonna blow right through that money and be right back to where they were. You come up with a plan. I'll help you, I'll help you get to where you want to be. And the other person says, well, now
you're being selfish. I'm not a child, you can't control me. Just give me the money. What would you do? Listening right now, I'm gonna just I'll give out the number. Maybe somebody will call after the break eight six six nine eighty seven two five seventy. You one family member needs help. You agree to help them with conditions because you know how they've been. They say, you're being selfish A six six nine eight seven two five seventy. Yeah,
what would you do? Oh if they'll be along next hour as well with the high coup and we have.
A you know what Vick would do. He'd just give out the money. Wouldn't he just say you get money, you get money, you get money. He'd just give all the money, Yeah, exactly, he'd have nothing left. He'd have to win the lottery again, right, and with his luck he would