Hey, welcome everybody to Fred and the Fantastics on BLEAV and on PodClips along with Mark Mancini, the world’s worst sports handicapper, and Art Sorce from Galaxy Sports, former kicker for the Rams and the Trojans of USC.
I want to talk about a lot of things but number one, Aaron Rogers.
We always can talk about Aaron Rogers.
He’s changed his mind on the vaccine now!
Um, so now he’s come back and instead of saying he would, he said he was sorry.
He said he was immunized, immunized when he really wasn’t, now he’s saying, uh,
he’s allergic to one of the, uh, ingredients in the shot in the vaccination.
Now, if that were true Artie, why didn’t he say that originally?
Please help me out here.
And you know, we’re talking about Sir Aaron here,
and he has a tendency to go off on his own little tangents.
I’m really interested to see how the Jets deal
with this whole process this year.
You know, him missing the mini camps,
I’m sure they gave him the pass for that.
But at a certain point in time,
it is a team environment.
You’re the leader of the team as the quarterback.
He stands on the sidelines of pre-season games,
like he’s Hackett’s assistant there, you know.
Calling plays and everything.
And I’m like, at what point in time
does the leadership part of it come into football?
Because the Jets are on the cusp
of being an excellent football team.
Robert Salah has built their defense.
You know, Aaron Rodgers needs to step up and prove
that he’s more than just an MVP level player,
but he’s a team player
that could take his team to the promised land.
I was always on his side, you know,
when he first joined the Packers and what he was treated.
And Mark, your thoughts about Aaron Rodgers.
Well, they knocked Kyrie Irving a lot,
but Irving took a stance.
He basically said, I don’t want no part of it.
And you can respect people’s opinions.
His idea was my body, my choice.
But when you look at Aaron Rodgers,
you know, to stand there and fudge on it. Yeah, it kind of loses its luster now. Now, you can forgive, but you can’t forget. That’s the hard part.
Folks, we’re taping Fred of the Fantastics on Friday afternoon, and on Saturday afternoon, it’s the Chargers against the Rams. But guess what? Sean McVay will not be coaching the Rams. He’ll be broadcasting, telecasting on the Rams television network.
I listened to him on the NFL Network last week, he did such a great job on the sideline describing the action.
I’m amazed, now I understand why two or three years ago Fox had the dalliance with him
because he brought so much excitement to a football, a preseason football game with Andrew Siciliano and Whitworth.
I tell you what, it was must-see TV Fred, I was amazed.
The guy is candid. He’s on the money. You know, he’s got that excitement a little bit of John Gruden and the way he did the game was kind of fun.
Okay, but folks, would you pay 200 bucks if the coach isn’t even on the sideline? Mark, what do you think?
I don’t think the coach is going to play either.
You know, you ain’t playing. I’ve been a big fan of getting rid of these preseason games. You know, guys, what I’ve said.
Nobody cares about the shoe salesman. No disrespect to the wannabe painters.
You know it’s back into the 84 season when they were charging big prices to see
these guys quarterback. One thing about it I will say, back when I played they
played six seven preseason games and it wasn’t about whether you’re gonna make
that team you were trying to make it on film so that another team could say
hey that guy just made a 44-yard field goal and we got to keep him around
just in case somebody goes down. And see, by playing all those preseason
games you had players getting the opportunity. 90 guys go to camp so you
have to have, but, but I don’t think it’s fair to charge full season price tickets
yeah for a preseason game a lot of people who get the packages they make
sure that the you know the family that you know that doesn’t get to go to
the games you know their uncles, their nephews, they get to go to games I
gotta tell you tomorrow there’s a there’s a quadruple header on the
NFL Network and you got some great games and I just feel bad for from the Minnesota Vikings now that they spent all that money to go get J.J. McCarthy, the quarterback of the future, and in two or three plays his whole you know his season is up in smoke.
Now Matt Milano goes down. One of the things I wanted to talk about you guys is this whole deal with teams scrimmaging two days or two practices prior to the preseason. Yeah, a lot of guys are getting hurt.
Hold that thought, and we’ll take a quick break right here
on Fred and the Fantastics.
We’re back on Fred and the Fantastics.
Artie, take it away.
No, that was my point.
You know, these teams, they go and they have
these scrimmages, and after the first day,
it was a good first day.
The second day, somebody who did something untoward
or got a cheap shot in, now you got these fights
breaking out. And let me tell you something, when you have these kind of physical guys get hot and bothered at this time of the year with the humidity back East, it’s crazy.
I guess Buffalo and then the Steelers got into it and they’re going to be playing
tomorrow evening at Acresure Stadium. And it happened, I guess, between the Eagles and the New England Patriots prior to last night’s game. So I mean, this is something that the NFL is going to really have to check up on because these scrimmages could get a little bit…
And the other thing that blows my mind is when they’re running around with their
shorts and shimels on and they have those other helmets on top of their helmets, the big padded things, what is that all about? Nobody’s hitting anybody.
Yeah. Mark, what do you think about the double scrimmages? What do you think? Well, I think it lines up for more fights. We saw that with
the Giants and Lions on you know, last week, it’s funny you know, uh the Raiders and Cowboys are going to get it on we’ll find out what that leads to.
A little, hey those tickets are going for big money for an
exhibition game in Vegas, because half of people in Dallas have probably never been to Las Vegas, so they, they figure this is the best time of the year to go those tickets are going for $200 to $500.
Artie, wait a minute, let me ask you a question – you mentioned that, again folks we’re taping Fred and the Fantastics Friday afternoon, on Saturday
there’s a quadruple on the NFL Network. Last Saturday on the NFL Network
here in Los Angeles, at least on my DirecTV, they blacked out the Raiders game.
So are the Raiders and there but but the Raiders weren’t televised locally here. So I could not get that game.
I had the same problem trying to get the Steelers game here. It used to be on the local station. It was it was completely blacked out
I had to go to NFL Plus and pay $5.95 to watch it on my phone.
And I said, you know what? It’s not worth it at that point in time.
But tomorrow just to give you an idea, you got the Bengals and the Bears Joe Burrows gonna play a little bit
You’ve got Caleb Williams. You got Detroit in Kansas City in Kansas City, which is you know, it would be a I mean
what a great matchup if it was regular season.
And then you got Buffalo at Pittsburgh at 7 p.m. Eastern,
followed by Dallas and Las Vegas.
That’s a heck of a schedule.
I would take that as my opening weekend
for key games right now, I mean. Yeah.
All right, we’re gonna take another quick break
right here on Fred and the Fantastics.
We’re back right now on Fred and the Fantastics
Art Sorce, former kicker for the Rams and the Trojans
and Mark Mancini, the World’s Worst Sports Handicapper.
I wanna talk baseball for a moment.
I’ve got the U.S. Today Sports Weekly.
Mark, where do you think they’ve got
the Atlanta Braves rated right now?
They’re rated all 30 teams.
Where do you think they’ve got Atlanta rated?
I see the top 10.
Top 10?
Artie, what do you say?
I’m gonna probably say 11th.
They’re 14th, according to U.S. Today.
And let me, let me state what I’ve said before on this show, healthy, Michael
Harris is an MVP type player.
He’s now back. Wednesday, he comes back, grand slam home run.
That’s Michael Harris.
Now they were playing badly, playing poorly.
They took three out of four from San Francisco.
I have a hunch with Michael Harris back, Lopez rejoining them and Philadelphia
scuffling right now, too.
Yeah, but you got to look at it from that.
They’re only six and a half back and they’re getting everybody healthy for the end run.
You could be right on the money with that call.
I’ll tell you another thing that’s blowing my mind, you guys.
I look at that NL West in Arizona, nobody gives them credit for going to the World Series last year.
They have won, last time I checked, six in a row and nine of their last 10 and
I believe 16 of their last 20.
So they’re playing fabulous baseball.
And of course, San Diego, they’re two games out as well.
That National League West has turned into one of the only great division races other than the Yankees and Baltimore and the AL East.
All right. Let me say this.
Merrill Kelly is back for the Diamondbacks.
That makes a difference.
Corbin Carroll played very poorly batting-wise in the first half.
He’s now hitting the ball.
That makes all the difference in the world.
He’s already one of the best players in baseball.
People don’t realize that.
So I think your point about the Diamondbacks, certainly right on, and then the other side of it, the Dodgers, every pitcher that they throw out there either needs a Tommy John surgery or just had a Tommy John surgery. Walker Buehler –
Just happened this week, Walker Buehler, just happened this week, right?
River Ryan, of course, off for the year, Walker Buehler cannot be in your starting rotation.
He of course hasn’t pitched really for two years.
He had the operation.
He’s just not dominant.
He just got clobbered again by Milwaukee.
What’s that stat you gave us last week about how many starting
pitchers they’ve pitched?
You’re not going to, you’re not going to believe this.
Dodgers now started 15 or 16, right?
I’m watching the Milwaukee telecast of the Dodger game, right?
Milwaukee actually has had 17 different starting pitchers.
The whole game has totally changed to a point where it’s not baseball
as we knew it.
No, and now the rule now the major league baseball is thinking about putting a new rule in if you don’t give up more than four runs you have to pitch for six innings.
Say it again?
Some new rule that they’re proposing now that to change back baseball back they want starters to go six innings. They’re gonna mandate that they gotta go six.
I mean really? What? Can a manager like, make any decisions at all? It’s crazy.
You’re not as old as a 127-year-old Art Sorce. How do you see baseball from your perspective now versus 20 years ago?
Quite different. I like the 70s. They had the bunts. They had the steals.
60s, 70s, 80s, and 90s. Yeah, I’m in.
A whole different style now. I want to say this before we go. The Dodgers
put Mookie Betts back in right field. Now that’s a move that they should never have made in the darn first place.
Exactly.
They pick up, they pick up Jason Hayward for nine million, who will now never play because Mookie Betts is going to play right field and so when will Hayward ever play unless they put Mookie back at second or shortstop which they now don’t want to do.
So how good a year is our boy in left field having for the Dodgers.
Fernandez is playing great.
Yeah, he’s playing great.
So I mean, I still think you can work a fourth outfielder
in on occasion, like a night game followed by a day game.
Get him in there, especially against a right-hander.
Because I mean, you want Mookie, you want Mookie healthy for the playoffs.
That’s how good a ballplayer he is.
I mean, you look at the great players in baseball, he’s right there.
I mean, every year, the guy is amazing in so many different ways.
But would you, but would they have paid pay Hayward nine million if they had
Mookie playing right field? No they wouldn’t. I’m not the general manager, I’m not the chief executive officer.
Friedman make a lot of moves like that that are a little bit questionable.
All right, uh Mark I want a 30 seconds close for Fred and the Fantastics, your opinion, talk.
Well I’m looking at the San Diego Padres and the Arizona Diamondbacks, they’re on the Dodgers, um and I think if you’re a Dodger fan, you got to adjust the mirrors. San Diego, I think have won 20 out of 23, and the Diamondbacks have won 25 of 30. Good luck holding those two teams off.
And you got two guys, two guys in Major League Baseball real quick,
Ohtani and Judge, that are on the cusp of having triple crown years.
No question.
All right, that’s it for Fred and the Fantastics. Join us next time, folks, and enjoy your weekend. And thank you for listening to Fred and the Fantastics on
BLEAV and on PodClips.
Wow! Bye everybody! That was awesome!