← Dan Bernstein Unfiltered
Dan Bernstein Unfiltered
Wayne Randazzo, Angels' play-by-play announcer and Apple TV MLB guy.
00:50:14
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- [00:00]
A
Dan Bernstein unfiltered unfiltered on 312 sports. Hello there and welcome into another episode of Dan Bernstein Unfiltered. I am Matt Batticola. Today's episode is brought to you in partnership with my bookie. Dan is off today. He's enjoying some food and well needed family time down in New Orleans with his son and his wife. So we're all very lucky to be joined by an old friend of the score. You may recognize his face already. I believe he left Chicago to New York and now is out on the west coast. Is that right?
- [00:38]
B
That's right. Yeah.
- [00:39]
A
He was New York first. He's the current television play by play man for the LA Angels. You can also hear him as the voice of Major League Baseball on Apple TV for Friday Night Baseball, which is very, very cool. But most importantly though, he shares a birthday with my youngest son, Jackson, May 2nd. So Happy belated birthday and happy all your future birthdays, Wayne. And of course it is none other than our old friend, Wayne Randazzo. Wayne, what's up, pal?
- [01:07]
B
All is good. How about you, man? It's good to see you guys.
- [01:09]
A
Yeah, it's great to see you, man, and I appreciate you. We connected a couple weeks ago just over the podcast with 312 sports and it was great hearing from you and love, love the work you're doing. Dude, I can't remember what Cubs game it was, but the Cubs did a Friday night Apple TV game and Natalie and I, we sit down on the couch, you know, we watch all the Cubs games and I'm like, holy shit. I'm like, that's Wayne Randazzo. She's like, who's Wayne Randazzo? I'm like, he worked at the score. I go, he left us for New York. Now he's in LA and he's doing Apple tv. It was so cool to see you, man.
- [01:42]
B
Well, I appreciate it. It's been, the Apple TV games are really fun. I mean, they, you know, we get to go, go around the country to, to all the teams that are, you know, doing things important, you know, in a pennant race or big rivalry matchups. You know, we did Cubs Cardinals at Wrigley on the fourth of July. That was the game the Cubs hit, you know, a million home runs, set the team record. It, it's cool. I mean, Dontrell Willis does the games. Me, he's awesome. You know, even though the 03 Marlins do come up quite a bit with D train. But he's, he's the best. And, and I It's really a good time to, to, you know, the, the Angels are, they struggle and, and they're, it's tough for them to put together a full season. So you know, it's, it's not bad to, to break away once a week and, and see some of the other teams and, and call some really fun games for, for Apple tv.
- [02:30]
A
Well, dude, you, you do great work. You always have. I mean, you, you sound great. You know, it's just, it's, it's, it's a really, it's a really easy listen when, when you're doing games and when you, when you left the score, you, you would go out to New York and you were doing radio in New York, right?
- [02:46]
B
Yeah, I was doing pre and post for the Mets and you know, basically filling in every now and then on, on the games, which came out to be about 25 games filling in, but mostly it was pre and post and you know, just kind of the first big league opportunity that I had. You know, I filled down the score. I filled in once in a while for rangy on, on sock stuff. But you know, I was in the minor leagues for a number of years and, and doing the stuff at the score and you know, grabbing little freelance TV jobs whenever I could. So I was kind of doing a lot all at once while I was in Chicago at the score. And then the Mets opportunity was, was huge for me. It really broke me out and gave me an opportunity to be in the big leagues and covering a big league team every day. And you know, it was exactly what I needed at the time. And, and that turned into opportunities with Mets TV and then I did Mets radio as a play by play full time. So it kind of grew from there once I got there and you know, opened up all these other opportunities that I have now.
- [03:48]
A
Now what was now you're originally from Chicago? Born and raised. What was that experience like being in New York? Had you been in New York before working for the Mets?
- [03:56]
B
I'd only been once. I, you know, I went to visit there one time a few years before. Before that I'd never been to a Mets game. You know, I'd never been to Shea Stadium, which, which you know, they still talk about and have a lot of reverence for as, as their stadium. I'd never been to a game there. My biggest concern going there, you know, Chicago can be this way too, but New York is very provincial and I, I never thought I was gonna get the job in the first place. I thought a New Yorker would get it and Then when I got it, I was like, well, now they're gonna hate me because I'm not from there. I grew up a Cubs fan, which, you know, to the previous generation, I mean, us a little bit, but the generation before us, especially Cubs and Mets, hated each other.
- [04:36]
A
Yeah.
- [04:36]
B
And, you know, I. I thought it would be. They'd be like, oh, this guy's from Chicago. We don't like him. But they never were like that. They actually embraced me from the beginning, and, you know, they opened me. They were open arms, and they welcomed me in and. And everybody was really, you know, giving me a shot to. To. To, you know, do a good job there and. And prove that I belonged. And it went great. I mean, I had eight seasons with the Mets. They were fabulous. I had so many friends and people that I'm still close to there. You know, I don't know how my grandfather would feel, but I have things to say about the New York Mets.
- [05:14]
A
Yeah, it's. I can't believe you were there eight years, because the, you know, as you get older, time just kind of all blurs, and I'm. It's hard to put a timeline together. I can't believe that you left the score and you did eight seasons with the Mets. I thought. I knew you were there for a bit. I didn't think it was that long.
- [05:27]
B
Yeah, eight seasons there, 15 through 22. And that's already. It's already been three years with the Angels, so it's. Yeah, it's my 11 years in covering the big leagues, and it's. It's been everything I could have hoped for and a whole. A whole lot more. I mean, some of the. Some of the games I've covered, especially on Apple tv, have been unbelievable. You know, the. The funny thing about the Mets job was the first year I was there was. Was 2015, so that's when they played the Cubs in the NLCS and knocked him out. And, you know, I'm. I'm standing on the pitcher's mound at Wrigley Field after the Mets win the pennant and tears. Yeah. It's like, how do. I don't even know how to feel like, this is awesome to go cover a World Series, but they just beat the Cubs to get there. So it was. It was a weird feeling, but it was an interesting. My first year to go to the World Series, and it was. I'd like to go back. You know, I haven't. I haven't even been to. Covered a Division Series since then. So you kind of. You take it for granted, the first year, it's like, wow, this is going to happen all the time. But it doesn't.
- [06:28]
A
What, what was that like living in New York? Because I visited for the first time last December and fell in love with the city despite hating it for years, mostly because of the Knicks. And I never wanted to go, but I go. And it was, you know, Christmas time, December in New York, and we did all the stuff and I spent. I went three, three separate times back to Little Italy and dude, I just. I fell in love with the city and cannot wait to go back. What was it like living there?
- [06:55]
B
Yeah, it's a cool city. I mean, I still think it's a better city to visit than to live, but you still have a lot of obstacles and, you know, there's always something, some sire. I lived right by NYC Hospital or NYU Hospital, so it was quiet. Yeah, exactly. For a few years I was right by the hospital. So it's loud and it's, it's. There's so much happening and it, There's a lot of fun there. It's a good place to live, but it's also a tough place to live. And, you know, there's a lot of long commutes and, and even to Queens. It was not. Not always, you know, smooth course to get there. So, yeah, there were challenges, but it was, it was an awesome time. And, you know, I'm glad I had that experience and being in the number one market and kind of seeing how media operates there, I mean, it was, it was all a very positive experience.
- [07:41]
A
That's awesome. Very cool. Yeah, we stayed in a hotel in Soho and we were up high. And I remember the first time I opened the blinds of the windows. And I remember the first time I really got to see the skyline. And I was like, okay, so this is what they mean. Because I was like, you know, Chicago, we have a sky, we have buildings, we have a skyline. Come on, it's Chicago. And I was like, oh, okay, now I understand. It just doesn't stop, right?
- [08:08]
B
It's like 100 downtown Chicago. It is, again, take your breath away. I do think, like, living and being from Chicago was a good training ground, you know, it wasn't. New York didn't overwhelm me because I've been in a big, major city for most of my life. So it's funny you mentioned the Knicks because one year Knicks made the playoffs. Everybody's getting excited about them. That was when they had, they had Thibodeau, they had Derrick Rose, they had Tosh Gibson. They all these Bulls. So, like, I'm gonna, you know, I'm gonna root for the Knicks in the playoffs. Everybody's getting into it. It's game one at the Garden. I turn the TV on, I see the Garden, I see the Knicks logo, I see the uniforms, and I'm like, nah, I'm good. I'm not rooting for these fools. I don't care who's on.
- [08:51]
A
That's awesome. Yeah, we actually. We took in a Knicks game while we were there, and it was Knicks Pistons, and I, you know, begrudgingly went, but loved it and loved the experience of being at Madison Square Garden. It worked out really well because the. The Pistons won, and it was Knicks homecoming game, so there was probably 30 or 35 former players that were there. Big ceremony, big to do. Sat three rows behind Michael Irvin. He came for like a quarter. But, you know, to see the Knicks lose, it was great. And to see John Starks, you know, have to. Have to watch a loss was. Was even. Was even more fun, so.
- [09:26]
B
Exactly.
- [09:27]
A
That's great. So tell me, what's going on in life outside of baseball? I mean, I know it consumes probably pretty much your entire entire day while it's through the season, but what else is going on?
- [09:37]
B
Yeah, I'm just. I actually come back to Chicago in the off season, so I still live. So I just got. I just got back this week, and, you know, now it's just dad mode from here. Got two daughters, and I'll be driving them to school and picking them up and doing all that fun stuff on the weekends. Cheerleading and acting and all that kind of stuff is happening in this world. So, you know, try to keep it pretty smooth in the off season. I am going to be actually doing some. Some Bulls broadcast. You know, Adam Amin misses for football every weekend.
- [10:12]
A
Oh, nice.
- [10:13]
B
One of the guys that fills in for them this year, which will be cool, and I'll do some college basketball, but I probably won't work more than 20 days in the next five months.
- [10:22]
A
Oh, that. I'm sure you. You need that. That break, too.
- [10:25]
B
Yeah, it's good. It's good to have it, for sure.
- [10:27]
A
How old are your daughters?
- [10:28]
B
The older one's 11, the younger one's 5.
- [10:30]
A
All right, 11 and 5. Awesome. Those are fun ages. My boys are almost 13 and 11. Yeah. So my son Jackson, born May 2nd, and I saw. I was looking at your bio, and I saw May 2nd. I'm like, there you go. That's something I didn't know.
- [10:41]
B
That's us on The Rock birthday.
- [10:43]
A
Yeah, the Rock. Oh, Jackson always tells me about it. I hear about it every year. He's like, dad, you know who has his birthday? And I know I can say Wayne.
- [10:50]
B
Randazzo and he'll go like nobody had it. Was nobody. No famous people. Like Keith Moreland was probably the most famous person that I could have related to that had May 2 as a birthday. But now the Rock I think has saved us.
- [11:02]
A
I think. Yeah, I think he's probably at the top of the top of the list. You know that one guy in your group chat who had a five leg parlay week one? It won't shut up about it for the rest of the season. Well, before you block him on your phone, just remember that could be you. My bookie makes it stupid easy to get in on the action. College ball, NFL super contest and survivor pools. If you haven't gone to my bookie yet to set up your account, do it today and make your first deposit. Start playing along all the sports you want, all the bets you need. Make that deposit today and ride with us on our DBU picks, all the spreads, player props and in game lines you could want all under one roof. And, and if you're new to my bookie, use our code DBU. And any bet you choose up to $500 is fully covered. Make your play. If it doesn't hit you, get it right back when you opt in using your bet back bonus token. No better time to jump in. No better place to play. Football's back, buddy. Let's make some money with my bookie. All right, so the Cubs advance for the first time in several years in the playoffs. They win a really tense wild card series against the Padres. They took two or three at home, which I think both teams did that earlier in the year. In April when they played Padres won two there, the Cubs won two here. So they take two out of three. The series itself wasn't really much of a surprise the way it laid out. You had two of the better bullpens in baseball with quality starting pitching and then some timely hitting. What was your, what was your thoughts on that series overall before we jump into it?
- [12:30]
B
Yeah, I thought for the most part Craig Council managed really well. I think he pushed all the buttons that he needed to correctly outside of one move that, that backfired against Machado in the, in the second game. But I, you know, he, he matched up exactly the way that he, he should have. There wasn't a ton of trust in the starters at this point. They're probably you know, you have those guys on short leashes anyway. You know, Jameson Tyo was big for them. I thought if, if Tyone could just give them what he gave them yesterday, I thought they would win game three. He, he stepped up and performed really well. You know, you'd like to see more of the offense. Kyle Tucker had a couple hits yesterday, which is good to see, but it's, it's going to be tough to score runs against Milwaukee too, I think. I think the next series is going to lay out very similarly. You know, as you said, the home field advantage ended up being important. I think it's, it's going to be interesting in, in the Cubs Brewer series because what kind of home field advantage is Milwaukee going to have, you know? Right. The atmosphere there is going to end up probably being close to 50, 50. I would think there's going to be a lot of cup fans that, that jump in and buy tickets. Certainly an easy drive to, to get to Milwaukee from the Chicago area. So I think they're going to infiltrate, you know, American Family Field pretty, pretty hotly over the, over the couple days this in the start of the series. And I think the brewers, you know, they might feel a little bit bewildered by the fact that they don't have the home field advantage that they thought they were going to going into the playoffs. So it's going to be a really interesting series. Going to put a lot of smoke into that Cubs brewers rivalry, which, which some people, you know, don't see as quite a hot rivalry, but they're going to see it, they're going to see it quite differently over the next week. It's going to be an interesting series.
- [14:12]
A
Yeah, we, we get up to at least one Cubs game up in, in Milwaukee every year and we actually got tickets for Monday night. So we'll be there Monday night. I think it's a 808 start and there always are a ton of Cub fans. Obviously the. Going back to the Cub starters at Taion with four innings yesterday, Amaga Shota Imanaga with four innings in game two, and then Boyd four and a third. So that was, that was your longest outing from a starter. I thought Boyd looked really good. I thought Tyon looked really good. Imanaga's had his struggles going into the playoffs and you know, we saw that one mistake that he gave up, that, that two run homer. That was really it. But the bullpen was the key. Just look at these numbers or listen these numbers bullpen guys for the Cubs, 14 1/3, 7 hits, 2 earned runs, 11 Ks, 2 walks over the three game series. Now, you know the Padres not going to be outdone. 15 and a third, 13 hits, two earned runs, 17 Ks, no walks. So it was everything that we thought it would be, that it was going to be bullpen games, bullpen dominated games and they certainly came through. You know, if, if the Padres are going to look back on one thing or one area, what's the one area you think they're going to say? Gosh, this is where we just, we lost this, this three game series.
- [15:27]
B
They, they didn't hit. I mean they, you know, they, they don't have a lot of reliable bats. You know, Tatis struggled badly in the second half and he wasn't a huge factor in this series arise. You know, I don't know if the balloons pop there but, but his style of hitting, he just doesn't make enough hard contact to really be a threat, you know, get base hits. But he's not, he's not a guy you, that scares you really. Unless there's a guy in third, he's gonna, it's a tie game. He could drive him in with a single. You know, Machado has to carry the load there, but I don't know that he's enough of an offensive player. He can't dominate like the judge or a Schwarber. Like he's not that kind of offensive player. Great player, but he, he needs some help around him. Jackson Merrill was hurt some and I don't think he was exactly 100 going into this series either. And then their lineup really falls off. From a playoff standpoint, you need, you need a lot of, you need some guys who can really bring, bring an offense to, to the table here and they don't have that. And I think that would be one area for them where they can, they can improve that offense and just be a little bit more like who was their, like Jose Glacis, their bench, their best guy off the bench. I mean he was looking for a job up until the beginning of the season. So they were short offensively and I, I think that really showed in the series. The Cubs were able to match up the way that they did and, and just put them away. I mean they, they had a lot of left, pretty left handed, dominant three lefties in a row toward the bottom of the order. The Cubs were able to expose that with, with their left handed relievers. So I, I think San Diego was just way short offensively and they never really scared you at any point that they could put together a beginning Yeah.
- [17:06]
A
I think they were, they were towards the bottom for the regular season in home runs hit as a team. So not much of a power hitting team but still get the 90 wins playing good defense and of course solid pitching starter wise. And that bullpen is dominant. But yeah, if you look at that Machado, his slash line for the series. 100, 250, 650 arise 182, 182, 237. Tatis 083-154-237 and Cronenworth zeros across the board for the entire series.
- [17:38]
B
You know, Cronenworth is some of these guys putting up numbers in, in the regular season and then when the playoffs start, you see because they're so meticulous about game planning and the pitchers meetings are, are so heavily driven toward the weaknesses of the hitters, each individual hitter. Whereas in the regular season you don't have as much time, you're not, you're not digging in as deeply in the playoffs you are. And it really exposes guys who are kind of mid level hitters in the regular season that they become a lot less, even great hitters become a lot less in the postseason. But you, you do have the, the talent to overcome that and you'll still see great players be able to put up numbers and do good things in the playoffs. And it's really tough on the average hitter to, to perform highly in postseason and you see that come into play all the time. And why teams don't have the kind of big numbers in the playoffs because they don't really have the kind of hitters that can swing out of their weaknesses in, in a, in a one game setting like that, I think you're going to see that in the next series because the brewers profile, even though they scored a lot of runs during the regular season, they do it in a way with, with kind of softer contact and a lot of speed. And they're not a necessarily a home run hitting team either. And I think it's going to play out very similarly. I think you'll see a lot of low scoring games and you're going to see the Cubs try to expose Milwaukee's lack of power with the way that they match up.
- [18:59]
A
Yeah, and I think if going into the Padres series, if I said to you that Freddie for Mean is probably their, their best player defensively in the game because he was, he was outstanding yesterday, first of all, but offensively he might have been their most consistent hitter too. And if you, if that's the case going into It. You're probably like, all right, the Cubs probably should sweep this thing in two.
- [19:18]
B
Yeah, it was just. I think, even for me, and there was just some lack of execution. I think if they would have executed a little better to him, he would have. He would have been quiet, too, offensively. I mean, you saw him at the very end making the last out. I mean, that was. That was a very hittable pitch going that he just didn't do much with. So I. I think the. In the brewers case, you're going to look at a lineup that has a lot of guys who've. Who've put up decent seasons, but really only a couple guys that. That will scare you, which is Cheerio and Yellich and maybe. Maybe William Contreras, but they're not going to have a lot of firepower either. They're going to have a lot of guys that will try to put the ball play and just steal bases and do that sort of thing, which doesn't play as well in the postseason, which I think is why Milwaukee still doesn't look like the team that's going to make a World Series run this year. I think the Cubs can knock them off as well with a similar style of play, but I do the Cubs in their own right have shown some offensive issues, and if Kyle Tucker's not 100%, you know, it's going to be tough for. That's going to be a really tightly played, close series where the Cubs are going to have to just, you know, strangle their fan base, basically, and make everybody a nervous wreck for five days, see if they can pull this thing out or not.
- [20:31]
A
Yeah. And I think I like the fact that the, you know, and let's congratulate the, you know, the Brewers. They deserve it. They were the first team in the playoffs the last two years, you know, as far as earning their. The playoff berth. They've won the NL Central now three years in a row, best record in baseball, the one seed. But I'm glad the Cubs got the brewers here in the divisional series instead of having to go to either LA or play against the Phillies in this divisional series. Let. Let those two battle each other out and take one of those teams out, and hopefully the Cubs can get past the brewers and then get into the NLCS against the Dodgers or. Or. Or the Phillies.
- [21:06]
B
Yeah, it certainly seems to me that the. The fuller rosters are in those other two. In that other series of those other two teams, even the Dodgers, you know, they've had bullpen issues and, and they don't exactly know where they're going after the starter comes out. But they have so many starters that now they're able to put those guys in the bullpen for postseason. Roki Sazaki looked good as a reliever the other day. They're going to have Kershaw in the bullpen in the next series, so. And Tyler Glass now is probably going to pitch out of bullpen at some point too. Behind, behind the starters. So they're gonna, they're gonna look different in, in postseason playing in that next series than what they look like toward the end of the season. They still are scary to me. I, I still think they have a chance to win it all. I think the Dodgers Phillies winner is going to be the team that is toughest to beat down the rest of the way.
- [21:54]
A
What do you think of Ohtani making the start in game one?
- [21:58]
B
Be cool. I think people, you know, for everything that you, that you see about Shohei and read about him and, and for all the perception of what is the ultimate baseball player, it's going to be cool for fans to see it on such a large stage to see the two way player. I mean it's. When he was, I was. My first year with the Angels was his last year there. And on the days he pitched, it's just, it's, it's something like. You can't even describe how insane it is that he is out there pitching like an ace. I mean he's not, he's not a, a back of the end kind of pitcher. He is a frontline starter and then he 1, 2, 3 inning in the first, gets a couple strikeouts and he's got the bat in his hands and he might have won 700ft. It is, it is a sight to behold. There's, there's nothing like it. There's never been anything like it. And he really is kind of a unicorn act and I'm glad it's going to be on that stage for, for everybody to kind of witness and take, take your breath away with how he could perform both sides of that as well as he can.
- [23:04]
A
Yeah. And if we just can close the book on the Cubs Padres. I think there's a couple areas for me that will stand out for the Padres. It was, and I will say Bogarts got completely screwed in that, that ninth inning strikeout. I mean that was, that was, you know, six inches out of the strike zone. But still it doesn't make a difference if he's on, who knows. But I think for me it was a couple of things. It was Runners on third with less than two outs and not getting them in through all three games. And then that, that you Darvish start that, that just. That just put them in a hole to nothing. And in this series, you know, they were. No, no one's going to score 7, 8, 9 runs in a game in this series. And just being by being behind two nothing right away with was. Was eventually too much to overcome as.
- [23:46]
B
An interesting guy to pitch in a winner take all game like that. You know, he's had his problems before in elimination games. Michael King is really good. He pitched a couple innings out of the bullpen. I'm surprised King didn't start the third game there for the Padres. I don't know what they were trying to get out of Darvish there, but there was going to be that moment where it might have gotten too big for Darvish. It's happened every time he's been in one of those games. So I think the Cubs were fortunate that Darvish was the choice there. You know, also the Padres, you know, Adrian Morhone pitched a lot the first two days of the series. We didn't even see Miller Game 3, but more home gives up that home run to Michael Bush that gave the Cubs just a little bit of extra breathing room, which I think helped in the last couple of innings. And you know, the Padres relied a lot on, on their bullpen. It was very heavy usage for Mora. Home pitched all three days. And the Cubs had to do it too with Kittridge. I don't know if they wanted to do it. They were hoping Keller was going to finish that out, but yeah, Bogarts gets on base there. Who's to say Keller is, is even out there anymore? You know, after a home run and a walk to start the inning, they might have gone to Kittridge right there. So there's far from a guarantee that the Padres are gonna have that same inning occur after that. The two hit batsman. I don't think Keller's even around to hit those guys.
- [25:01]
A
Probably not.
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B
If Bogarts takes ball four there, so it changes the inning and yeah, it's an out. And certainly they were precious at that point. Padres had a legitimate beef there. But as you say, you ran the numbers on the offense. That's why they lost, not because of the umpires. They had plenty of chances to score runs and they just didn't.
- [25:19]
A
Yeah, and you look at. I'm glad you brought up Kittredge. So he in his series pitched all three games, obviously as a setup man, an opener and a closer. 3 innings pitch, 2 hits, 1 earned run, 3 K's, 48 pitches. What an outstanding, outstanding series for him.
- [25:34]
B
Yeah, it takes I think a lot of guts from the, from the Cubs management to put him in those positions and know he's going to succeed. You know, you can trust him in, in any spot and, and be able to deliver which, which he did. I thought it was interesting too, they had Matthew Boyd up in the bullpen toward the end of the game too, just, just in case that worked out. You know, the Cups don't without Kate Horton and without, you know, Palencia can kind of be that guy. But they're using them in the middle innings right now. They might change that for the next series, but they don't really have that blow you away type of pitcher that's going to come in and get six outs and just be and dominate the way that the Padres do with Miller. They don't have that guy like they did, you know, 16. They had it with Chapman. They even used, they were able to use some of the starters and John Lester pitched out of the bullpen sometimes too for 2016. They don't have those kinds of guys right now. Maybe if Horton is healthy in the later rounds they can use him that way as kind of a starter and then a swing man when they need them to, to shut down an inning. But they don't have that guy. It's tough to get through October without a couple of guys like that. And I think that will be something that comes into play more as they go is that they just don't have that trustworthy, dominant six out guy that you really know will come and slam the door, you know. You know, the guys they have are good, but you're still just kind of hoping that they're able to do it. And unfortunately against the Padres they were.
- [26:58]
A
Yeah. And to be fair too, there aren't many teams that have a guy like Miller right now in Major League Baseball. That dude is something spectacular. Do you think that was the most 100 mile an hour pitches by a staff in a playoff series ever? Because that was insane.
- [27:13]
B
It would be interesting to find out, you know, it was a three game series instead of, you know, I think five or seven game, maybe you'd see more. But it was, they had an unbelievable bullpen. That was what they built their October hopes around, that they'd score enough to at least make their bullpen come into play and win, win some games that way. They just didn't. They just don't have enough offense and, and it, it bit them but it was an impressive display of arms that they ran out there, especially the way Miller was ridiculous.
- [27:38]
A
Yeah, Dansby Swanson, I thought he was spectacular in the field. Didn't do a whole ton at the plate. Ian Hap struggled big time at the plate. But then you have three guys ops of 1200, 1250 and 1000. That's a bush. Kelly and Suzuki came through and hit the ball. Pete Crow three for four yesterday. You mentioned Tucker yesterday with a couple of hits. So the Cubs got the hits when they needed it and they really got the dominant pitching out of their bullpen that, that, that they, that they needed to, to advance onto Milwaukee.
- [28:09]
B
Crow, Armstrong was selective and he was, he was not chasing as much yesterday and he was swinging at strikes. And if, if they get a little more of that from pca, he could be a much sharper offensive player. You know, I will say the Cubs up the middle, you, they talk about up the middle defense. You want to be shut down at shortstop, second base and center field. The Cubs have the best trio of defenders of anyone in the league in those three spots. You could argue they might have the best defender at each of those spots between PCA and center field. And Horner at second base. And Swanson, who's extremely sure handed at shortstop, you know, they are very blessed and then they put that together with a purpose. But they are lucky to have up the middle defense that no other team can boast. They really have an edge there that teams don't, I think, think enough about, especially in these kind of games.
- [29:00]
A
Yeah, and it was, it was crazy to see that graphic they put up yesterday for pca. He's, he was over six with five strikeouts and they showed all the pitches and not one ball was thrown in the strike zone in those, in those, those six at bats, which was insane. So, yeah, much more selective yesterday and looked a lot different at the plate.
- [29:18]
B
That's huge. And if he can keep that momentum going. Yeah, the brewers, the brewers are. There's a, that's a, that's a team that really relies on its, its scouting and its advancement and its technology and, you know, it's probably a smarter team than what they saw against the Pilots Padres. So you're going to have, I think a very well pitched series on the Milwaukee side, but they're a little banged up too. Brandon Woodruff isn't right. Quintana got hurt toward the end of the season. They got a lot of arms in their bullpen. They got some guys who can really pitch. So it'll be, it'll be tough again, but it's nothing that they haven't seen already. From San Diego.
- [29:56]
A
Do you have a to do list for this weekend? Well, I do. And at the top of that list is Call Russ Armstrong from Chicago Window Guys now. You've heard Dan talk about Russ at Chicago Window Guys for years. Hell, I've heard Dan talk about Russ for years. I can't ask you what you're waiting for when I haven't called Russ yet. And that changes this weekend. I am calling Russ tomorrow. We should all protect our homes from Chicago's cold windows and hot summers with energy efficient windows and doors. I know I have some windows in my house that need to be replaced. I'm sure most if not all could probably go. And Chicago Windows guys, they provide a lifetime warranty on all products and installation, a price match guarantee and and insured and licensed installers. People that Russ knows personally, not some third party vendor. These are high quality windows that are made right here in Chicago. So call Russ today for a free quote at 847-512-3516. You can check out all their five star reviews online. I did and here's some of what I read. Working with Chicago Windows guys was seamless from start to finish. We had an excellent experience with the Chicago Window Guys. Now my wife and I, we just had some work done in our basement and it's not always easy communicating with contractors and vendors. But Russ will take all the hard work out of getting your windows and doors replaced and installed. So check them out online at ChicagoNowNowGuide.com or call Russ today at 847-512-3516. Alright, taking a look at the wild Card series overall, Dodgers move on against the Reds. They're the only team to take it in two games. Guardians and Tigers with a really fun series as the Tigers move on. Cubs obviously beat the Padres and then the Yankees and Red Sox. Yankees take that game or that that series in two games. I was looking at home run numbers in the wild card round. Wayne Dodgers with five, Reds with zero. Guardians three, Tigers one. Cubs three. Padres two. Yankees two, Red Sox one. Dan and I were talking about the other day in a in a playoff series, in particular a short playoff series. When you out hover your opponent, you win 80% of the time and we were trying to find some kind of counterbalance to that. We found that if your starting pitcher gets a quality start with 10 or more strikeouts, you can overcome the home run deficit. We saw it one time in this wild card round. Garrett Crochet had 11 Ks. The Red Sox were out homered that game 110 by the Yankees. I think Anthony Volpe had that home run for the Yankees, But Crochet had 11 strikeouts. Two other games we saw, Skubal was outstanding in the opening game for Detroit with 14Ks. And then slitler last night for the Yankees pitched a gem with, with 12 strikeouts. What was your, what was your take on some of the other series that you watched in the wild card round?
- [32:39]
B
Yeah, Yankees, Red Sox was fun. It was interesting. People were saying, well the, the first game basically decides the series, which has been the case every time in the wild card round except for this Yankees Red Sox series. I think that's more coincidence than anything else. I, I don't think it's, it's impossible for a team to come back and win Games 2 and 3 in A, in these short series just hadn't happened yet. And I think that was just more, I think that was just kind of how it just shook out. I don't know that that's something that's going to be a trend forever in these best of three series. So I wasn't surprised to see New York come back and win. They just needed to tighten up a little bit and they got an extremely well pitched game from Schlitler. You know, the Red Sox, they, they without Roman Anthony after the Devers trade, they had a hard time scoring runs and, and they really needed to find a way to hold down the Yankee offense. And if they weren't able to do that the way that Crochet was in game one, you know, it was going to be tough for them to get that second win. I was surprised they pulled Brian Baio as early as they did in game two. He's dominated the Yankees over the years and I, I think he was surprised. He only threw like 28 pitches and, and he could have come back yesterday.
- [33:50]
A
I don't know why.
- [33:51]
B
The Red Sox were a little slow yesterday, I thought going to their bullpen. Not that, you know, the bullpen can't play defense for them, but yeah, it was sloppy.
- [34:00]
A
Oh boy, bad defense.
- [34:01]
B
They did leave Connolly early out there, kind of to, to dry a little bit more than I thought they would in an elimination game. You know, the Yankees, they're going to, that's their style. They're going to try to hit home runs and beat you that way throughout the postseason. It's going to be a really interesting series against Toronto, Detroit. The only reason why they could beat Seattle is because of school. I mean, he Is he's, he can, in a five game series even he can still almost single handedly win it by taking two of the games himself. So it's still, the Tigers I think are still going to give the Mariners a hard time just because of school's dominance and the way that he can take a series over in a seven game series he can't really do that. But in a five game series he can. And I think Seattle will have their hands full just based on school alone. The Dodgers, that was no, that was almost a buy for them playing Cincinnati. You know, somebody had to be sixth in the National League. It happened to be the Reds. They got in and the Dodgers made short work of them. But it'll be a much tougher series for them against the Phillies. That's going to be a really good one.
- [35:04]
A
Yeah, and I think that that four game sweep by the Reds over the Cubs was super helpful. After the Cubs clinch their playoff berth, they go to Cincinnati and they just, you know, they, they basically didn't show up for the four games and that really, you know, an opportunity there for the, the Mets to get in that sixth spot. Six and final spot. But that, I think that four game series is what propelled the Mets on top of the Reds. But you know, back and forth all the way to the very end. So very exciting race to get the honor of playing the Dodgers.
- [35:32]
B
Yeah, I mean it was a race to 83 wins and I, you know six playoff teams is a lot there, there isn't always six quality teams that deserve a spot every year. It just isn't. And you know, the, the National League this year there wasn't the, the Reds got in. Somebody had to. But I, they weren't a playoff team. Neither were the Mets who had four months to correct their course and never did. So you know, I, I, I, the, the unfortunate part about that is at some point you're going to see even more playoff teams than you do now. So you're going to see more 82 and 83 and maybe even 81 win teams make the playoffs down the road at some point, which I don't think baseball is suited for that. But you know, owners like playoff money.
- [36:16]
A
Yeah, absolutely. You mentioned the, the Red Sox too and they had a hard time scoring runs. But despite that, with some pitching and some defense, they had like the second or third best record in the second half of the season, which was a surprise. I didn't from where they were when they traded endeavors. I never thought they'd be a playoff team.
- [36:34]
B
Yeah, they pitched Pretty well. You know, their, their pitching really stepped up for them and not just crochet either. Their bullpen was really good. Chapman was unbelievable this year. Even as he approaches 40, he still looks at every bit the way he did 10 years ago. So they, they did have a good, a good pitching staff. Their defense let them down. I mean, they made a lot of errors over the course of the season. They tend to make a lot of mistakes in the field and play, play sloppy defense, but also like Nathaniel Lowe's on their team in the, in middle of the order, a guy they picked up along the way. They, Romy Gonzalez was one of their best hitters this year. They just didn't have enough offense and without. If Anthony wasn't going to be there for them in the postseason, I didn't think they would last long. And you know, the Yankees punched them out. If, if they hadn't, Toronto probably would have. So it's, it's probably better this way that the Yankees and Blue Jays will play each other. It's gonna be a really good series.
- [37:28]
A
Yeah. And I'm quietly a Detroit Tigers fan. I'm not even sure how it started for me, but it was fitting that they get past the Guardians in this wild card series despite the major collapse, the unbelievable historic collapse in the regular season to even lose a division.
- [37:46]
B
Yeah, 15 and a half games and up 11 in September at one point. It was unbelievable. And it is a sign of the modern baseball era with all the extra playoff teams that the Tigers are still alive and the Guardians aren't because of an extra three game series, they got to play against each other. But you know, Detroit's got one great hitter and one great pitcher and, and they're going to try to ride those two guys as long as they can. And maybe they throw an upset at Seattle too. I don't, I don't see the Tigers being a World Series team, but I do, I do think they can give the Mariners a run for their money. I also think Seattle's the most complete team maybe in the entire field right now. That, wow, Mariners have a lot. There's no shortages. Their rotation is good, their bullpen is good, their offense is nice. So they, they, they play defense well enough. They, they have a lot happening there. Where you're going to look at Seattle and be like, oh, where's, where's the hole here? Maybe they strike out too much. Other than that there. It's going to be tough to poke holes at what the Mariners have at this point. They have a really good team who's.
- [38:51]
A
Your, who's your pick for AL mvp?
- [38:54]
B
I would have, I would say Cal Raleigh. I think that, you know, and I, and I, and I know there's a lot even on this show, there's, there's a lot of looking at numbers and diving into, you know, what's, what's beyond the box score or whatever and, and Judge wins in all of those categories. But I do think there still needs to be a human element of, wow. A catcher just hit 60 home runs in a season and a switch hitter just hit 60 home runs and it's never happened before. And the Mariners win their division for the first time in 24 years and Cal Raleigh was at the heart and soul of that. I do think, yeah, Judge probably had the better season. If you look at the numbers. Judge is the best hitter in baseball. There's no question. But I, I do, I would vote for the narrative and for the story because there's still a human element to baseball that is, is sweet. And I think that Cal Raleigh story and the 60 home run plateau is something that is so rarely reached. He's the first non Yankee to ever even do it in the American League. And I think that there was something special about that story and finishing it off as the mvp. To me, it would be, it would be Cal Raleigh.
- [40:08]
A
If you're waiting for Sunday to start betting, you're missing half the fun and half the money. College football's already cooking upsets, blowouts, wild covers, and my bookie lets you hit it. I'm so in on college football this season, whether it's my Vanderbilt Commodores, Heisman hopeful Diego Pavia. Yep, I have a Heisman futures bet on my guy or I'm watching Illinois and all the Big Ten games with my sons. I have consumed more college ball than ever. And playing along at my bookie makes it even more fun. What are you waiting for? Set up your account today, make your first deposit, and start playing along with DBU picks, game lines, player props, and more. Everything you need before the bros. Even the bros. The pros even kick off when Sunday rolls around. You're already up. Yeah, the bros play on the pros play on Sunday. My bookie's got it all under one roof. Win big on the NFL super contest and Survivor pools. And if you're new to my bookie, use our code, DBU. And any bet you choose up to $500 is fully covered. Make your play, and if it doesn't hit, you get it right back. When you opt in using your bet back Bonus token. My bookies where betters win together because bragging is good, but cashing in is better. All right, Wayne. Oh, thanks for all your time. And final thing that I want to just get into with you is just where you're at right now with the Angels. Looking at the LA Angels, they finished 72 and 90. Mike Trout obviously missed a bunch of time this year. Still finished 26 home runs, 797 OPS. I mean, he's a career player of a.976 OPS, one of the best ever to play the game. But, you know, in his time there, I think one, one playoff appearance, if I'm not mistaken, and then nothing, you know, recent, I think it was, that was going back to 12 or maybe 13. Okay. A sweep by the Royals.
- [41:51]
B
Right, Right.
- [41:52]
A
Yeah. So it's just, you know, you don't see the postseason stuff. What is, what's the, what's the atmosphere? What's the feeling like around, around the Angels?
- [42:01]
B
They still, you know, they still have a very solid fan base. I mean, they drew over two and a half million fans for the third year in a row. So they, they still have a lot of support there in Southern California and around Orange County. Trout has. He's not the same player that he was. I still think he's going to have another really good season at some point and be in the MVP conversation again. You know, he had. He started to turn it on toward the end. He just. 400th career homer. There's a ground swelling certainly around Trout. He's beloved there, and, and they want to get him to the postseason again, which is something they haven't done in a while. But it's another transition period. They're going to have a new manager next year. There's some rumors that it's going to be Albert Pujols, which it could be. You know, that would certainly put a lot of. More of a big name into that spot and, and generate some interest that way. But, you know, they need better players, too, around Trout. They, they have had some development, you know, over the last couple of years. Zach Netto, their shortstops turn into a really good player. Joe Adele had a big year. Almost hit 40 home runs and had close to 100 RBIs this year, which was good to see. So some things have started to trend in the right direction for them, and they just got to keep, keep adding players to this roster and try to make them a contender again around Trout. I think they have a very winnable division. You know, Houston has fallen back. The Rangers had a Weird year. And they're changing managers now. You know, Seattle played really well down the stretch, had a great September and took the division, but it could be wide open again next year. So I think the Angels will have a chance to add some players in the off season and try to win more games and get that ship in the right direction because it has been a while. 11 years. Especially as we talked about the expanded playoffs. That's a long time to miss the playoffs without all these teams that get in. So they're, they're thirsty for it. They, they want it and, and they, they need to have a full season. They haven't even had a winning season in 10 years, so it's something they'd like to start heading in the right direction with. And, you know, Trout was healthier this year. This was the first time he really played the second half of a season in like six years. So it, it's, it's been a while for Trout to even be as healthy as he was this year, which wasn't all that healthy, but, but healthy enough to be out there for most of the season.
- [44:21]
A
What's, what's his contract status?
- [44:23]
B
He signed for five more years. 20, 30, so.
- [44:26]
A
Five more years. Do you, do you ever see a possibility of Mike Trout not in an Angels uniform?
- [44:33]
B
No, I, I think that that's still a lot of money on the table. He hasn't really shown that he could be the player that he was in his, in his MVP years. You know, you get an aging player at, at a time, whereas he's owed a lot of money. Plus he wants to stay an Angel. He wants to be one of those guys that, that has all these numbers with one team like a Cal Ripken or Tony Gwynn or George Brett. And I think he will end up doing that. And, and I hope that they get him back in the playoffs over these next five years. I hope that he gets a chance to taste the champagne and be at the center of that because he, he deserves it. He's had an amazing career and, and I, I think the Angels would love to see him get one more crack at least at postseason play.
- [45:17]
A
What's, what's Albert Pujols done, you know, post playing career to, to merit that.
- [45:22]
B
That look, you imagine the Dominican League last year and he won the championship.
- [45:27]
A
Okay.
- [45:28]
B
You know, those, those are certainly hotly contested games and it's a big deal down there to, to have a good team and there's a lot of pressure to, to win, which he did with his team last year. So. You know, he did have some experience that way. You know, we've seen, we've seen it before where some of these guys that have had great careers just kind of announced their intention to manage and, and you know, they get the opportunity whether they deserve it or not. So I, I think Albert certainly with, with his career and a Hall of Famer and his ties to the Angels organization that he would be an interesting name. Tory Hunter's name has come up too. You know, he's been around the ball club a lot. We, we see Tori in uniform and working with players every now and then. So he's another guy who's. If Albert doesn't end up with the job, Tory Hunter might. So it's certainly going to be possibly somebody along those lines that the Angels decide to go with.
- [46:24]
A
I'm sure you saw the recent story of David Ross, former Cubs manager, Cubs catcher, longtime Brave, putting his name in the hat for that Braves job. Would love to, love to do that. What are your thoughts on David Ross maybe getting a second chance?
- [46:38]
B
Yeah, I've worked with some games on Apple. He's filled in a little bit. He's, he's a great guy. And I, you know, I think that would, that would spoil some of the plans for next year's for the 10 year Cubs championship celebration if David Ross isn't able to show up because he's managing the Braves. But I, I think that's an interesting name. He certainly knows the game extremely well and I think that, you know, the Cubs kind of had a strange exit with him with the way they went about going to get counsel and, and kind of leaving David Ross out in the cold. So I'm sure he deserves a second chance. You could probably say that about a few other managers as well though. He has certainly the ties to the Braves organization and they do like, they do like that. They, they are a team that, you know, values the, the history and, and the guys that have been there. So I can see it and I, I hope he gets another chance to manage somewhere because I think he belongs in the game every day.
- [47:33]
A
Well, Wayne, this has been, this is an absolute treat. Love, love hearing you talk baseball. This is really good stuff. Thanks for taking so much time to join me today and be a part of Dan Bernstein Unfiltered.
- [47:43]
B
Well, appreciate that. And as you guys talk a lot about go Bears, we need them to be straighten this out.
- [47:50]
A
Yeah, I hope so. I mean, you know, being two and two going into the buy, I didn't, you know, especially after the Lions game, I didn't expect them to be two and two, but here we are. And with some injuries on other teams and things down the road, there's some possibilities of other wins opening up for us, too.
- [48:06]
B
I hope so. It would be nice to see them make the playoffs. You know, for a team that also hasn't had much postseason success in the last 15 years, it's time. And Caleb looks good. It's. It's time for this team to start turning a corner.
- [48:20]
A
All right, Wayne. I appreciate the time, man. He's the voice of the LA Angels on their TV broadcast. You catch them on Friday night, Apple tv, MLB broadcast. And just a Chicago guy and doing Bulls games, filling in for Bulls games this season. That's exciting to hear.
- [48:34]
B
Yeah. Thank you. Appreciate it. It's good to talk to you, Matty.
- [48:36]
A
You too, bud. You take care of yourself. We'll talk to you soon. All right, Wayne Randazzo, our guest on Dan Bernstein. Unfiltered. What an absolute baseball treat for you. Hey, DBU picks are brought to you by my bookie. I'm going to give you my picks here. I have a game for you and I know this is going to make my friends up in Minnesota very unhappy, but I apologize, I'm doing a little parlay. Within a game, we are taking the Cleveland Browns and three and a half points. They're playing at home, getting three and a half over Minnesota. We're taking Cleveland and three and a half and the under of 36. I know my friends in Minnesota, if they hear this, they're going to be very upset at me. But Cleveland's defense, I think, is going to be too much for Minnesota's offense. I'm going to take the three and a half points at home and the under of 36. So we'll take that as our DBU picks for this week. DBU picks are brought to you by my bookie. My bookie where betters win together because bragging is good, but cashing in is better. What an absolute treat to talk to old friend Wayne Randazzo. Hope you enjoyed the show. This is Dan Berenstein, Unfiltered. We're back to you on Monday. Enjoy the weekend. Enjoy the time without a Bears game to consume yourself and we'll talk to you on Monday. Thanks for tuning in to today's episode, brought to you by my bookie.
- [50:08]
B
Dan Bernstein.
- [50:09]
A
Unfiltered Unfiltered on 312Sports.