Don, Hahn & Rosenberg – Hour 1: Mets Lose Diaz (Dec 9, 2025)

Main Theme & Purpose

This episode centers around the major Mets news: Edwin Diaz leaving New York for the Dodgers, what it means for the Mets organization and fans, and the changing landscape for New York baseball teams. Along the way, the hosts touch on NFL rule quirks, Knicks’ struggles in the NBA Cup, John Lennon’s historical connection to New York sports, and frustrations regarding front-office decision-making for both the Mets and Yankees. The tone throughout is deeply conversational, nostalgic, and typical New York—wry, a little cynical, sometimes sentimental, always opinionated.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. NFL Musings and Rule Oddities

• Discussion on NFL Rules: Opens with a listener question about "tush push" legality versus helping a defensive player block a kick, sparking a critique of inconsistent application of NFL rules.
  • [01:33] “If you can’t use a defensive player for leverage…why can you use an offensive player? That’s a good point in the tush push.” – Hahn
• Eagles and Chargers: Quick takes on the Chargers' win, the Eagles’ fading Super Bowl hopes, and broader playoff implications.
  • [02:09] “You turn the ball over five times…still hanging in the game. I don’t know how good the Chargers are, but that’s the death knell…” – Don

2. Kids & Sports in the Modern Era

• Late-Night Games & Kids: Nostalgia about watching (or missing) late games as kids, contrasting DVRs now with “old-school” struggles of catching the late-night action.
  • [04:30] “I remember sitting at the top of the stairs quietly listening to the television broadcast…no DVR, no videotape…different world for sure.” – Don
• Learning Sports via Print: Hahn discusses learning to read from the sports pages, recapping games he missed as a kid.
  • [05:16] “That’s how I really learned how to read—reading headlines…Most of my reading as a kid was the sports pages.” – Hahn

3. Remembering John Lennon

• John Lennon’s Death on MNF: Reflections on the 45th anniversary of John Lennon’s murder, including ABC’s historic breaking of the news during a Patriots-Dolphins game.
  • [06:19] “Howard Cosell announced it before the Patriots…were about to kick a field goal…Frank Gifford's like, this is John Lennon. We have to do it.” – Don
• Personal Impact: Hahn shares how deeply his Beatles-fanatic mother was affected, and how this moment intertwined sports and culture.
  • [07:36] “That’s really, truly the day the music died for at least our generation…” – Hahn

4. Knicks in the NBA Cup (and New York’s Quest for Winning Pedigree)

• NBA Cup Value: Explores whether the in-season NBA Cup means anything for the Knicks, or if it’s “just another regular season game.”
  • [09:44] “Do you care about this game in the sense of the Knicks advancing to Vegas, or is it just another regular season game to you?” – Don
• Knicks’ Elusive Glory: Discussing the hunger for Knicks to finally win something tangible—even if it’s not a championship, any banner feels meaningful for the long-suffering fan base.
  • [10:40] “The Knicks haven’t won really anything, including a lottery, in over 50 years…” – Hahn
• Comparison to Other Sports: Cup compared to hockey’s President’s Trophy: a symbolic but secondary accomplishment.
  • [11:39] “I guess the hockey equivalent would be winning the Presidents’ Trophy…It’s a thing, but it’s not anything that anybody really cares about.” – Don

5. Mets Lose Edwin Diaz to the Dodgers

• Diaz’s Departure: Major breaking news with closer Edwin Diaz signing with the Dodgers, leaving the Mets for a higher offer, and the implications for both teams.
  • [14:14] “Edwin Diaz now no longer a Met…goes to the Dodgers. I don’t think that’s a huge surprise.” – Hahn
• Mets’ Clubhouse & Culture Shift: Discussion on how Stearns is reshaping the team, focusing more on long-term health, chemistry, and financial prudence.
  • [15:39] “This is a business decision for the Mets…Stearns is the little angel on the right shoulder of Steve Cohen…‘He’s not worth it. Don’t write the check.’” – Don
• Fan Attachment: Emotional aspect of losing fan favorites.
  • [29:20] “Especially in baseball, you get attached to these guys…you’re watching these guys play…never gonna forget the trumpet, that was a special summer.” – Don

Notable Quotes

• [16:31] Hahn: “Now you’re using a word, trust, that you don’t have enough time with Stearns to say that you fully trust him…”
• [18:01] Don: “If you want to change the culture of a team, you gotta change the team, right?...You can’t say, ‘we need to change the clubhouse’ and just keep trotting the same players back every year.”

Cultural Commentary

• Clubhouse Issues
  • [20:57] Don: “Show me a team that gets along while they’re losing, and I’ll show you a loser.”
  • [21:36] Don: “It’s not about not liking each other. It’s just about this version of the team doesn’t work right now.”
• Mets’ Recent Identity:
  • [19:58] Hahn: “What happens with change is—players you’ve gotten to know leave and you’re, ‘oh, but I liked him’…You have to make choices on what fits in that clubhouse.”

6. Yankees, Bellinger, and Front Office Friction

• Yankees’ Outfield Conundrum & Spending Limitations:
  • [32:53] Hahn criticizes Brian Cashman for mishandling the outfield, leading to budget squeezes and potential loss of Cody Bellinger.
• Boris’s “Limerick” and Market Manipulation:
  • [34:58] – Scott Boras’s annual winter meetings poetry (listing interested teams via riddles and wordplay).
  • [35:01] Hahn (mocking): “Just give me the list. Don’t sing me a song.”
• On Agents & Money:
  • [34:35] Don: “If it isn’t just about the money, then why is Scott Boras your agent?”
• Fan Frustration at GM (not ownership):
  • [38:31] Hahn: “Don’t be mad at the owner. It’s the general manager that deserves all the ire.”
  • [39:35] Don: “This is not a want for the Mets. This is a need…he fills it, and it’s right there for you.”

7. "Metzy" Mishaps: The Overproduction of Baseball Moments

• On Losing the Magic of Diaz’s Entrance:
  • [40:31] Don: “It was a great moment that the Mets mucked it all up by…they got their fat hands all over it. The same decision…What made you think the Baja Men performing [for] Game 3 of the World Series?”
  • [42:09] Don: “Then everybody’s got to mess with it…people start planning ‘how can we make it better?’ and 90% of the time, you end up making it worse.”
• Mascot Criticism & Overmarketing:
  • [43:06] Hahn: “In a big moment…where you want to have piss and vinegar, don’t show me the big baseball face guy.”
  • [44:32] Don: “There’s great traditions…but when it becomes the face of your franchise when it doesn’t have to be anymore…sometimes it just gets a little crazy.”

Notable Quotes & Moments (w/Timestamps)

• On NFL Rules:
  • [01:33] Hahn: “If you can’t use a defensive player for leverage…why can you use an offensive player? That’s a good point in the tush push.”
• Eagles, Chiefs, Playoff Hope:
  • [02:09] Don: “That’s the death knell now for the Chiefs and the Eagles…their chances of going to the Super Bowl are on a respirator.”
• On Changing the Mets:
  • [18:01] Don: “If you want to change the culture of a team, you gotta change the team, right?”
• Fan Attachment to Players:
  • [29:20] Don: “Especially in baseball, you get attached to these guys…never gonna forget the trumpet…that was a special summer.”
• On Front Office Accountability:
  • [38:31] Hahn: “Don’t be mad at the owner. It’s the general manager that deserves all the ire.”
• On Overproducing Ballpark Moments:
  • [40:31] Don: “It was a great moment that the Mets mucked it all up by…they got their fat hands all over it.”

Important Segment Timestamps

• NFL Rule Call & Eagles/Chargers Fallout: [00:57] – [03:39]
• DVR/Sports as Kids/John Lennon Anniversary: [03:39] – [07:36]
• NBA Cup/Knicks Aspirations: [07:36] – [13:49]
• Edwin Diaz Leaves Mets/Baseball Offseason: [13:49] – [31:00]
• Yankees’ Bellinger Conundrum & Boras Limerick: [32:53] – [39:35]
• Mets’ Marketing Flubs/Diaz’s Entrance Overkill: [40:12] – [44:32]

Tone and Style

Lively, fast-paced, and true to the hosts’ quick wit and their New York sensibility. There’s both reverence and biting humor—nostalgia for sports moments, sharp criticism of coaching/management, and heavy doses of the exhausted faith that comes with being a New York sports fan.

For the Listener Who Didn’t Tune In…

You missed a wide-ranging, engaging hour covering everything from granular NFL officiating, to the agony and necessity of changing a baseball roster, to tales of personal sports fandom and the commercialization of sports “moments.” If you’re a Mets or Yankees fan, you’ll find both commiseration and challenge: what does change mean, and who should pay for the mistakes? If you ever groaned seeing a mascot steal a star player’s thunder, you’ll feel right at home.