Dan Bernstein Unfiltered – "Cubs are Playoff Bound – Home or Away?"

Podcast: Dan Bernstein Unfiltered
Date: September 24, 2025
Hosts: Dan Bernstein, Matt Abbatacola

Episode Overview

This episode dives deep into the Cubs’ late-season playoff hunt, breaking down the crushing loss to the Mets, implications for playoff seeding, and pressing questions around Matt Shaw’s absence from a crucial game for political reasons. It features classic Bernstein-Unfiltered humor, sharp baseball breakdowns, live reactions to the latest stats, and a candid discussion of the intersection between sports and athletes’ personal beliefs. The show also veers into typical lighter territory, from pizza debates to radioactive shrimp, drawing on both hosts’ signature banter and Chicago sensibility.

Key Discussion Points

1. Cubs' Blown Lead vs. Mets: Playoff Implications and Emotions

• [01:41 - 14:55] The episode kicks off with the hosts recounting the night’s rollercoaster Cubs game, in which the team collapsed after a 6-1 lead (“What a shitty loss last night for the Cubs, man.” – Matt, 01:41).
  • Matt details his evening trying to juggle errands, frozen pizza anxiety, and following the game (“I raced home…because I don’t want the pizza to thaw…then I listened in the car. When Ian Happ doubles into the gap…and it’s 5 to 1, I’m like, oh, okay, this is easy.” – Matt, 03:13).
  • Discussion includes an animated back-and-forth on the right way to cook frozen pizza—Uno’s vs Geno’s, rest time, rack placement (03:59 - 05:32).

2. Cubs Bullpen Meltdown, Relief Pitcher Trust, and Mets' Big Night

• [11:16 - 14:55] Breakdown of the Cubs’ late-game collapse with focus on the bullpen struggles and praise for Andrew Kittredge (“Yeah, that circle of trust is basically old ass Andrew Kittredge out there just, just dealing.” – Dan, 14:09).
  • The Mets’ offensive firepower is dissected, as well as relievers who gave up costly home runs.

3. Playoff Race Picture: Cubs, Padres, Mets & More

• [11:57 - 14:55; 34:38 - 38:05] The hosts lay out playoff scenarios:
  • Cubs likely to face Padres as either 4 or 5 seed, debate the meaning and advantage (or lack thereof) between hosting vs traveling given each team’s home/away splits.
  • Dan reviews Cubs’ offensive and pitching stats both home and away, noting key players whose splits matter most (“Michael Busch…much better on the road. Kyle Tucker…numbers not even close…” – Dan, 35:53).

4. Injury and Roster Updates: Cade Horton & Matt Shaw

• [16:09 - 21:11] Cubs manager Craig Counsell’s comments about Cade Horton’s back tightness due to illness and over-coughing.

  • “Likely just…the illness has caused him to cough…wanted to be extra careful during the start tonight.” (Craig Counsell, 16:09)
  • Dan and Matt muse on whether this is genuine or a cover for more serious injury (“Is this like when the Russian premier has been dead for two weeks...he is cold, he is fine, meaning he is cold because he's dead?” – Matt, 18:49)

• [21:50 - 34:29] In-depth segment on Matt Shaw’s politically charged absence from a key game.

  • Bernstein expresses skepticism about Shaw’s answers for skipping the game (“Just don't. All I'm going to ask is believe what you want to believe…But don't treat us like we're idiots. And some of this stuff just doesn't pass the smell test…” – Dan, 30:30)
  • Discussion covers the difficulties that fans, especially LGBTQ+ supporters, may feel supporting players with opposing beliefs, and the broader question of separating on-field heroics from off-field values.

5. Around MLB: Historical Comebacks and Playoff Format

• [41:14 - 44:14] Matt explores the biggest division comebacks in modern baseball, spotlighting the Guardians’ epic chase this season and recalling personal baseball memorabilia and fandom stories (“I still have a baseball autographed by…every member of the ’78 Yankees. Except Reggie Jackson.” – Matt, 42:43)
  • The hosts applaud the current playoff structure, urging MLB not to expand, as the added drama feels "just right" (43:53 - 44:00).

6. Bears & NFL Interlude

• [50:14 - 53:59] Brief NFL pivot: remembering the last Bears-Raiders game and previewing the upcoming matchup.
  • “So that was the last time Bears and Raiders played. And then looking at…the matchup for this weekend, just want to remind people what the Raiders did this past weekend against the Washington Commanders…There is an opportunity here for Caleb Williams to continue to stack on what he's been doing in the first three games.” – Dan, 52:43

7. Radioactive Shrimp Recall & Superhero Tangent

• [56:40 - 60:28] Light-hearted coverage of a real shrimp recall due to radioactive Cesium 137 contamination:
  • “We have to figure out how to deal with this, because now there is a reasonable possibility of multiple people with a superhero origin story of becoming shrimp man, shrimp woman, shrimp boy, shrimp girl, shrimp person.” – Matt, 58:54
  • Bernstein riffs: “Or we all become shrimp people…I’m going to pick right now to stay human.” – Dan, 59:47
  • Speculation on the future interspecies dynamics and possible emergence of lobster-based supervillains.

Quotes & Memorable Moments

The Pizza Debate

• “It's crucial to cook a frozen pizza while it's in its frozen state. It really is…If you cook a frozen pizza from a thawed state, your cheese overcooks while the crust doesn't get crispy enough.”
  — Dan Bernstein (03:59 - 04:32)

The Cubs Collapse

• “Yeah, that circle of trust is basically old ass Andrew Kittredge out there just, just dealing.”
  — Dan Bernstein (14:09)

On Matt Shaw’s Absence/Politics

• “Just don't. All I'm going to ask is believe what you want to believe. Support what you want to support. You're absolutely entitled to all of it. But don't treat us like we're idiots.”
  — Dan Bernstein (30:30)
• “I always thought that the teachings were of peace and love, but that could simply be…Somebody could simply say that, no, you're wrong. We believe that we're supposed to hate these people…I'm gonna need some help in understanding how one's faith connects to those hatreds, because I just don't get it.”
  — Dan Bernstein (25:01 - 26:00)

The Fan's Dilemma

• “If you went to every Major League Baseball clubhouse and actually heard what everybody really thinks about everything, you're not going to be a fan of anything.”
  — Matt Abbatacola (33:59)

Radioactive Shrimp

• “We have to figure out how to deal with this, because now there is a reasonable possibility of multiple people with a superhero origin story of becoming shrimp man, shrimp woman, shrimp boy, shrimp girl, shrimp person.”
  — Matt Abbatacola (58:54)

Important Segment Timestamps

• [01:41] – Cubs blow 6-1 lead: Matt’s game tracking adventure
• [03:59] – The frozen pizza cooking debate
• [11:16] – Playoff scenarios and Cubs bullpen meltdown
• [16:09] – Craig Counsell on Cade Horton’s injury
• [21:50] – Matt Shaw’s absence, politics and faith discussion
• [34:38] – Home vs Away Cubs splits; Padres analysis
• [41:14] – Divisional comeback history
• [50:14] – Bears-Raiders flashback and preview
• [56:40] – Radioactive shrimp recall and the shrimp person superhero riff

Notable Sidebars and Banter

• Supermarket gripes: rearranged aisles and the joys of grocery shopping (61:39 - 62:50)
• Insider tributes to long-tenured Chicago radio staff, with authentic, affectionate references to Hubbard Chicago culture (44:53 - 47:36)
• Humorous mangling of Italian food pronunciations and tales of being corrected on last names in public (55:44 - 56:00)
• Robo-umpires coming to MLB in 2026, to be discussed in greater detail in a future episode (48:21 - 48:47)

Takeaways for Listeners

• The Cubs loss against the Mets is stinging, but not a fatal blow to their playoff seeding—the numbers suggest road games in San Diego might not be such a disadvantage with this roster configuration.
• Bernstein and Abbatacola push for accountability and transparency from athletes (notably Matt Shaw) when personal beliefs or political actions affect team performance or fan experience—don’t treat fans as fools.
• The show balances irreverence and serious sports analytics, giving Chicago fans both catharsis and context.
• Life, sports, and society intermingle: from radioactive shrimp recalls to debating grocery store layouts, the show maintains a uniquely Chicago, unfiltered flavor.

For the full range of takes, stats, and side-eye, this episode is peak "Bernstein Unfiltered": passionate, blunt, funny, and as Chicago as deep dish pizza fresh out of the oven (but not thawed first).