Hour 1: Mets Struggles

Summary

Podcast Summary: Don, Hahn & Rosenberg – Hour 1: Mets Struggles

Podcast Information:

• Title: Don, Hahn & Rosenberg
• Host/Authors: Don LaGreca, Alan Hahn, Peter Rosenberg
• Episode: Hour 1: Mets Struggles
• Release Date: June 30, 2025
• Description: Featuring ESPN New York and New Jersey legend Don LaGreca, sportswriter Alan Hahn, and Hip Hop vet Peter Rosenberg, the podcast delves into New York sports and beyond.

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1. Introduction and Weekend Recap (00:24 – 03:28)

The episode kicks off with Alan Hahn discussing his recent activities, including attending the Beach Bash event with friends. The hosts share anecdotes about their weekend gatherings, highlighting camaraderie and missed guests such as Bart, Rick, and Dave. Alan mentions the Mets hoping to regain their footing after being swept by the Braves, setting the stage for an in-depth analysis of the team's current struggles.

Notable Quote:

Alan Hahn [02:00]: "There’s a place, there’s a sports bar in Neptune, New Jersey... it was nice, it was fun to get together. And that’s the way the weekend started."

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2. Mets Struggles: Performance Analysis (03:28 – 07:14)

Alan Hahn dives into the Mets' disappointing performance, highlighting their sweep by the Braves where they were outscored 30 to 4—a record differential for a three-game series in Mets history. He contextualizes this by referencing the Mets' historical lows, such as the 1962 expansion team’s poor start.

Notable Quotes:

Alan Hahn [05:15]: "30 to 4, that's bad."

Peter Rosenberg [05:25]: "26 run differential in their history."

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3. Pitching Issues and Injuries (07:14 – 14:19)

The discussion shifts to the Mets' pitching woes, exacerbated by injuries and overuse of pitchers like Blackburn. Alan expresses frustration over the bullpen's inability to maintain performance, emphasizing that the team has only won three of their last 16 games. They analyze individual performances, noting Lindor and Alonso's struggles at the plate.

Notable Quotes:

Alan Hahn [07:14]: "Our injured pitchers will come back over the next few weeks."

Peter Rosenberg [13:54]: "You can't be a one-man band in Major League Baseball. It's ridiculous."

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4. Ownership and Payroll Dynamics (14:19 – 29:53)

A significant portion of the conversation revolves around Mets’ owner Steve Cohen and his financial strategies. Alan Hahn discusses the implications of Cohen’s willingness to invest heavily in the team, questioning the ethics and sustainability of such spending without a salary cap in baseball. They compare this to other sports, debating whether spending money guarantees success or if strategic team-building is more effective.

Notable Quotes:

Alan Hahn [25:20]: "$200 million over four years."

Peter Rosenberg [27:13]: "Can't beat him. Join them."

Alan Hahn [28:25]: "I didn't listen to anything you just said."

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5. Comparisons to Other Teams and Sports (29:53 – 36:24)

The hosts compare the Mets’ situation to other MLB organizations like the Astros and Dodgers, discussing tanking strategies and player development. They also touch upon dynamics in the NBA and NHL, emphasizing how different leagues handle team building and success.

Notable Quotes:

Alan Hahn [29:09]: "The Dodgers, because I think I know where Pete's getting. Are the Dodgers well run, or do they just spend more money than everybody else?"

Peter Rosenberg [34:12]: "They legally did something and, but it just feels like you're just kind of taking advantage of a situation."

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6. Listener Calls and Audience Feedback (36:34 – 40:32)

Engaging with listeners, Alan and Peter address concerns about specific player performances, such as Vientos and catcher positions. They discuss potential trade moves and managerial decisions, reflecting on how roster structure impacts the Mets' performance.

Notable Quotes:

Listener Keith [38:40]: "If I see Vientos at DH instead of Martell, I’m going to go to New York. I’m going to be in disguise and..."

Alan Hahn [39:26]: "You got the deadline coming up at the end of July... something's going to have to happen sooner than later."

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7. Closing Thoughts and Music Discussion (41:31 – 48:37)

As the podcast winds down, the hosts engage in a light-hearted discussion about music, specifically Whitney Houston's songs and the national anthem. This segment provides a personal touch, showcasing the hosts' personalities beyond sports commentary.

Notable Quotes:

Alan Hahn [44:14]: "Would you put the national anthem in a mix and listen to it? Just because of the performance."

Peter Rosenberg [46:25]: "I agree. What's wrong with that? That's a great song."

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8. Community and Upcoming Events (43:11 – 44:01)

Alan and Peter promote upcoming community events, such as the ESPN New York Tee It Up Golf Challenge, highlighting their involvement in local philanthropic activities. This segment underscores their commitment to the community and offers listeners ways to engage beyond sports discussions.

Notable Quote:

Peter Rosenberg [43:11]: "It's all happening Monday, July 21st... the proceeds support the Garden of Dreams foundation."

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Conclusion

In this episode of Don, Hahn & Rosenberg, the hosts provide a comprehensive analysis of the New York Mets' current struggles, delving into performance issues, pitching problems, and ownership dynamics. They engage with listener feedback, compare MLB strategies with other sports, and maintain a personable tone through light-hearted discussions and community highlights. The episode offers valuable insights for Mets fans and sports enthusiasts, capturing the complexities of team management and the emotional investment of the fanbase.

Total Duration Covered: Approximately 48 minutes

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Notable Timestamped Quotes:

• Alan Hahn [05:15]: "30 to 4, that's bad."
• Peter Rosenberg [13:54]: "You can't be a one-man band in Major League Baseball. It's ridiculous."
• Alan Hahn [25:20]: "$200 million over four years."
• Peter Rosenberg [27:13]: "Can't beat him. Join them."
• Alan Hahn [29:09]: "The Dodgers, because I think I know where Pete's getting. Are the Dodgers well run, or do they just spend more money than everybody else?"
• Peter Rosenberg [34:12]: "They legally did something and, but it just feels like you're just kind of taking advantage of a situation."
• Alan Hahn [44:14]: "Would you put the national anthem in a mix and listen to it? Just because of the performance."
• Alan Hahn [05:15]: "30 to 4, that's bad."

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Note: Advertisements, intros, outros, and non-content sections have been excluded from this summary to focus solely on the informative and engaging discussions pertinent to the Mets' performance and related sports topics.

Transcript

[Don LaGreca]

5:00Am I'm up with a crisp Celsius energy drink running 12 miles today. Grab a green juice, quick change and head to work. Meetings, workshops. One more Celsius. No slowing down. Working late, but obviously still meeting the girls for a little dancing. Celsius live fit. Go grab a cold refreshing Celsius at your local retailer or locate [e-mail].

[Alan Hahn]

Don, there's no tush push if you're not pushing the tush ton.

[Peter Rosenberg]

I want you protecting my blind side and Rosenberg.

[Unknown]

I was seven. I was riding shotgun and smoking cigarettes.

[Alan Hahn]

This isn't North Dakota, this is New York.

[Unknown]

This is Don Han and Rosenberg.

[Alan Hahn]

The best threesome I've ever heard on.

[Unknown]

880 ESPN and the ESPN New York.

[Alan Hahn]

App 301 in the big city. Don Hahn and Rosenberg. It's a full frontal today right up to 7 o' clock because there's no Mets. Mets needed a break. Man. When you get outscored 30 to 4, you need a day off. No players only meeting. That worked. Give up 12 runs. Oh, dear God in heaven. What an awful weekend. How was your weekend, Alan?

[Peter Rosenberg]

Good? It was fantastic.

[Alan Hahn]

Started out amazing because I got together with the boys after the Beach Bash, which was phenomenal.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Has anyone shared that? I did not share that photo yet.

[Alan Hahn]

I didn't want to tweet it out because I just didn't know if people were into.

[Peter Rosenberg]

I was thinking like, you know, put it in like the photo dump from Friday, which I haven't gotten the pictures yet. I'm waiting on them and maybe you just throw it in there. But there was something special about. We'll let the people know. We had a family dinner after the event, the Beach Bash. And it was Michael, it was you and I, Peter Carlin, Anthony Pusick. Who? Boy, when he gets out, you can't get rid of him. I know Andrew. So the only ones missing show wise was Bart, Rick and Dave.

[Alan Hahn]

Right.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Bart was busy. He had things to do.

[Alan Hahn]

Yeah. Rick is a mess.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Why is he a mess?

[Alan Hahn]

Because he was going the whole time until he realized his car was picking.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Up at 6 o' clock and he.

[Alan Hahn]

Couldn'T change it and he couldn't change it because I don't know, some of these athletes just can't function beyond.

[Peter Rosenberg]

He couldn't have canceled. Gone home with me. He lives 20 minutes.

[Alan Hahn]

There could have been some forward thinking that could have been done all the time.

[Peter Rosenberg]

That was his.

[Alan Hahn]

Well, that, that's, that's a bad shit. That's typical athlete as well.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Yeah.

[Alan Hahn]

Either not knowing or not caring But I was on him because I know I've worked with enough former athletes. You got to stay on them.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Yeah.

[Alan Hahn]

And he was in the whole time to the point where when we were gathering everybody up, which is. It's like herding sheep. Like is. Once you get somebody, you got to hold on to them because all of a sudden they'll, they'll, they'll take off and then somebody else will replace him. And now we're looking for the other guy.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Yes.

[Alan Hahn]

You know, and I was trying to corral Rick and in our pinhead suit, John Winthorpe said, no, no, you left already. He's in the car. He's gone.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Yeah, like I said, I feel like that was the out. Yeah, I'm just going to leave.

[Alan Hahn]

And Bart, it never materialized because like.

[Peter Rosenberg]

I said, Bart had plans.

[Alan Hahn]

Bart had plans.

[Peter Rosenberg]

But when I saw plans, I said, those are good plans.

[Alan Hahn]

So there's seven of us. There's a place, there's a. There's a sports bar in Neptune, New Jersey, about, you know, 15 minutes away from Bar A, where we've gone the last three, four years. But it was nice, it was fun to get together. And that's the way the weekend started. And we had the Met game on, we had the NHL draft on, we had the Yankees on.

[Peter Rosenberg]

And, and a whole lot of hope going into the weekend.

[Alan Hahn]

A lot of hope.

[Peter Rosenberg]

And then.

[Alan Hahn]

And outside of the Islanders who feel like they got their guy, and that's a great story. We'll get to that in a little bit.

[Peter Rosenberg]

But the Met phone, by the way, is buzzing Today. Busy day today.

[Alan Hahn]

Busy day. And we're going to tell you.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Six o' clock, NBA.

[Alan Hahn]

So Allen's on top of that. And the LeBron stuff, we're going to put that to rest at some point.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Next coaching news, too.

[Alan Hahn]

Yes, that. That could happen because you'd like to have a coach when free agency starts. And free agency is going to be starting very soon, as you said, six, Ron till seven. So I have a full hour. And you usually know in both the NBA and the NHL, like, the second free agency opens, all of a sudden you start seeing signing bing, bing, bing, bing, bing. And even though you're not supposed to talk to anybody until the allotted time, NHL is usually midnight. 6:00 clock here with the NBA is that the groundwork has already been done, phone calls made, I'll take the offer. Bang. So there's a very good chance we can have some signings already in the book before the Show's over at 7:00. So we're looking forward to that. And then Ty Butler is going to be on at 7 o' clock. So he's filling in because Dan Gross is filling in for Dave because Dave went on vacation. That's why he couldn't hang with us after the show on Friday. But we want to start with the Mets because they win the last two games of the series against the Braves. And as a Met fan, I'm thinking to myself, all right, well, now you're going to Pittsburgh Pirates are on pace to lose 100 games this year and now the Mets can win five in a row and get back on track and maybe if they're lucky, be able to retake first place, which they could have done if they took care of business against Pittsburgh because Philadelphia struggled over the weekend too. So the Mets, you know, stay only a game and a half back, two in the loss column despite being swept. But here's the thing. Out they got outscored 30 to 4.

[Peter Rosenberg]

30 to 4, that's bad.

[Alan Hahn]

Against one of the worst teams in baseball. And get this, it's the, it's the biggest route in a three game series. The most they've ever been outscored in a three game series.

[Peter Rosenberg]

26 run differential in their history.

[Alan Hahn]

Do we need to remind Met fans of their history? A team that lost 120 games in 1962, not that much better in 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68, starting to get a little bit better and then 69 to win the championship. Some of the worst teams I ever saw when I became a fan back in the mid to late 70s, never got beaten like a drum.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Speaking of the way, they lost 62, 1962, first, first, first season, three straight games, losing by seven or more runs. The last time they did that was their inaugural season in 1962 and they.

[Alan Hahn]

Were an expansion team.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Think about that for a minute.

[Alan Hahn]

That's rather. How bad?

[Peter Rosenberg]

Well, I'm saying I get your point. Put it in perspective. That's how bad it's the longest streak in the last hundred years is four. They have three. So who's up next?

[Alan Hahn]

Oh, one of the hottest teams in Major League Baseball, the Milwaukee brewers, who have percentage wise, the best record in the National League.

[Peter Rosenberg]

So if they lose by seven again, they would tie a record in Major League Baseball history.

[Alan Hahn]

Not good, Bob.

[Peter Rosenberg]

No, not good. But as you always say, it's a long season, you can't overreact. There's still only, what are they, a game and a half out or whatever it is. Right. They're right there. So you keep telling me that we can't get crazy about this stuff. So I just, I said okay, well. But at some point though, because of what you're going through here, there has to still be a correction the other way because you have now lost everything you've gained from may. Lost it all. You gotta get. You can now. You gotta make this up. Can you make it up by September?

[Alan Hahn]

You have to now. Steve Cohen tweeted out about six hours ago. Tough stretch. No sugarcoating it. I didn't see this coming. I'm as frustrated as everybody else. We will get through this period. Our injured pitchers will come back over the next few weeks.

[Peter Rosenberg]

That's a major issue.

[Alan Hahn]

It is unlikely the teams hitting with runners in scoring position will continue at this weak pace. That.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Do you agree with that? Do you agree with that part?

[Alan Hahn]

Keep the faith is what he said. It's been going on all the year.

[Peter Rosenberg]

I was going to tell you like the pitching thing. Okay. I'll give you that because the injuries have been a major issue. They have missed a lot of guys and they have to make up for it and that's hard to do in the middle of a season. So you want to get some guys back. You want to get them healthy at some point. Saying he'll be back. Mania should be I believe tomorrow. Right. Is he this week?

[Alan Hahn]

Well, it was two, three days off because of the bodies in his elbow as far as. But they said he wasn't going to need another rehab.

[Peter Rosenberg]

They were going to have him go right into the majors. Like they didn't think he needed another rehab. I thought that was the story.

[Alan Hahn]

Well, the pitching matchups this weekend, we know it's going to be homes on Wednesday.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Okay.

[Alan Hahn]

For the Mets, Tidwell is going to go on on Wednesday and then Thursday's game is going to be Peterson.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Okay. So.

[Alan Hahn]

And then Friday for the. For the Mets. Yankees undecided. So neither team has made determine that. So it will not be at least for the foreseeable future here.

[Peter Rosenberg]

We don't know yet.

[Alan Hahn]

We don't know yet. But. But I can tell you saying when is he coming back? I did not hear when he's going to come back from the hamstring. Good luck it being a couple of weeks.

[Peter Rosenberg]

I just heard he's feeling pretty good.

[Alan Hahn]

Montas came back, gave up five runs in the first inning. Yesterday was only a second start. But again the bullpen is smoked. They're cooked. I mean because they've had the pitch so much. 12 consecutive games. All right. The Mets have only won three of their last 16. But in the last 12 consecutive games, Allen, the Mets starters have not recorded an out in the sixth inning. So that means for 12 consecutive starts, their bullpen would have had to go out and get 12 outs. Now, they didn't have to in most of those games, Allen. Why? Because. Because when you're on the road, you don't have to get 12 outs because there's no ninth inning when you're losing. And so they didn't have to worry about having to get 25, 26 and 27 outs in the three game series against Pittsburgh because there was no ninth inning for the Bucks as they clean sweeped the Mets in dramatic, disgusting, awful fashion the way that they did.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Now the owner puts out a statement. Right. Stearns has talked twice, by the way, throughout this ordeal.

[Alan Hahn]

Yeah.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Like we've heard him twice address the media. When you start hearing from upper management. Right. When you start hearing from ownership and all those, you know, when you come, when you're not just getting the manager every day, it does show you, number one, everybody's trying to be accountable. I'm available. I'm not hiding from it. All that.

[Alan Hahn]

Which is nice.

[Peter Rosenberg]

That's.

[Alan Hahn]

Which is nice.

[Peter Rosenberg]

But it also shows you that what you got everybody's attention.

[Alan Hahn]

Oh yeah.

[Peter Rosenberg]

And that's why as we now, tomorrow it'll be July and we know now. And what did Stern say last week that caught my attention about how like we're gonna, we're gonna find out.

[Alan Hahn]

Yeah.

[Peter Rosenberg]

If we need to make these changes, we're gonna find out. Well, I think you find it out, which would tell me that it's kind of forcing the Mets into a place where they need to be proactive and aggressive if they want to be a team that is not only just a playoff team, but a team that can get back, at least get back to where they were last year to. That was the plan for this year. So is this more of Steve Cohen is now going to be forced to open up the wallet and pay for improvements to this team in the midst of the season, the middle of the season. Is that what this is? Because a lot of times what you like is young players who can fill in the gaps to save you from having to spend. But last year the Mets made changes at the, at the deadline and added some pieces that were suddenly impact players. Winker was one, Iglesias was one. You didn't see it coming, but didn't.

[Alan Hahn]

Even think about it when it happened.

[Peter Rosenberg]

But he gave them a little punch that all of a sudden, there was just something special going on with them. Is that going to have to happen again? Yes.

[Alan Hahn]

Absolutely. No. The answer is yes, it's going to have to happen again. Because the one thing that was not addressed by Steve Cohen, he's focused on not being able to hit with runners in scoring position, which didn't matter this weekend because they were blown out. All right, they were down five, six, nothing yesterday, early. It didn't matter. For the most part, the bullpen was giving it up. They're just not hitting, period. Lindor 0 for 4 yesterday. Soto 1 a 1 for 3, a harmless single. Look like Alonzo was kind of turning it around. 0 for 4. Alonso's not hitting home runs anymore.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Yeah.

[Alan Hahn]

Is that. Yeah, they haven't hit with runners in scoring position all year. But the other problem is the four runs you scored in Pittsburgh. Four in three games, you scored four runs. So, yes, the pitching's a problem, but a lot of that has to do with, you know, Blackburn's not supposed to be a starting pitcher, and yet he had the pitch and you were forced to bring him back after an hour and a half rain delay because, quite frankly, you hate to say it, but you don't care about him, damaging him, because he's not a part of your future. They wouldn't have done that to Peterson or Montas or Senga was healthy or if Mania was healthy, he's disposable. And then you have no Mania and your Montas is coming back and Senga's on the il. You lost Canning now for the rest of the season. You know, they've got injuries, they've got some excuses, but what's not an excuse is outside of Winker, which is somebody that is not nobody. Okay, he's a nice addition to the team. But you bring up Mauricio getting nothing. All right, you're not getting anything from Bates. Batting.228. Vientos comes back off the IL 1 for 13 over the weekend. So again, he's coming back from injury. I get it. But he wasn't doing well before he got hurt. And I thought Rick DiPietro, former athlete, brought up something. I don't know if you heard it in the morning. He said it a couple of times, is that it can't be the league catching up to Vientos because you would think the adjustment would have came in the postseason when they really would have done the work on the kid and he still raked in the postseason. Rick thinks it's. Maybe he got a little, you know, Big headed didn't put in the work that maybe he needed to during the off season. Because it can't be about adjustments because he's right. Those Philadelphia and Milwaukee and LA would have put in the work in the postseason. And yet he still hit. Now he's not hitting. So maybe, maybe that's part of it. I don't know. That's Rick's opinion, not mine. But I'm not going to throw it away. You're getting nothing from Beatty again. So it's basically Lindor, Nimmo, Soto, Alonso and maybe a little McNeil who's only batting.255.

[Peter Rosenberg]

That's the bottom of your order.

[Alan Hahn]

You're not getting anything. Basically six through nine, maybe, maybe five through nine and that's that. It's not sustainable. So yeah, Lindor is going to go in a slump because he raked early in the year. You know, Soto so much for, you know, him carrying this team. He's been hitting well and it's still not helped because nobody else is hitting one. You can't be a one man band in Major League Baseball. It's ridiculous.

[Peter Rosenberg]

It's literally what you were saying to me at the start of the year when I was, I was trying to forecast the summer of baseball here in New York when the thing, the thing that I really was excited about was the Judge versus Soto thing.

[Alan Hahn]

Yeah.

[Peter Rosenberg]

And how the bragging rights of who has the best player in the sport and all that stuff. And that was quickly as quickly dismissed because Judge got off to such a historic start that Soto has now by the way, turned the tide a little bit. And while Judge got his 30th home and he had two home runs yesterday to really wake up that offense.

[Alan Hahn]

Yeah.

[Peter Rosenberg]

But if you really look at the numbers, Soto has really climbed back into the conversation again. But because of judges start, it's hard to really have fun with that debate. But it still felt like Yankees, Mets, two of the best teams in the sport. When have we had that in this market where two of our teams, because we have two of everything. Two of our teams are the best in the sport. We always one of them maybe, but we never seem to have two. And so this is a first time in a very long time we've had that. And you kept saying to me, I don't care what Soto does if the Mets are winning. And now what's happened? Soto got hot. The Mets are winning.

[Alan Hahn]

And when Soto was lost, garbage couldn't lose.

[Peter Rosenberg]

They couldn't. They couldn't. Right. So it does bring us back to that the team success still matters most and you start getting right. That's important. But now the most important thing is now that he's found himself, the Mets have got to get right. Because the National League's a lot harder to come back if you fall out of the pack, it's a lot harder than the National League.

[Alan Hahn]

The one thing that's working in the Mets favor and if I have to hear, you know, Terry Collins said the other day, you know, in 2015, when we went to the World Series, we had a miserable month of June and we overcame it. And then last year the Mets had the awful start and overcame it. And everybody's going to tell you that it's too early and baseball's a long season. They're right. Because the other part that they're not telling you is, is that baseball's kind of become basketball and hockey in a sense that you wonder exactly how important is the regular season. Because you sometimes, if you're a good team, you can't bury yourself. Just make sure you're hot at the right time. Because the Mets have lost, have won just three in their last 16. They're still only a game and a half back now. They once upon a time had a five game lead in the division, but they're still number one in the wild card. Why? Because you've got teams like the Giants who've fallen out of it. Only four wins in their last six. Cincinnati was hot, they're five and five in their last ten. Arizona was hot. They've lost four in a row. Like everybody's going to go through their hiccup. Philadelphia went losing eight of nine and now they're back in first place again. You don't want to bury yourself. Luckily, as good as the National League is, nobody is really running away. The one thing the Mets have done is now allowed other teams to get involved here. Their margin for error is shrinking by the day, but if they could write this Allen, they could be right back on track. Turn around, win four, the next five. Problem is you've got Milwaukee coming up. Milwaukee's hot. They lost yesterday, but they've won eight of their last 10. They're hot. And then you know, all the pomp and circumstance that comes with the Yankees coming to town and Yankees just took two out of three. Didn't look great against Sacramento, but they got two out of three. And we'll see what they do against Toronto. Just trying to be correct here. The A's, the Athletics.

[Peter Rosenberg]

The Athletics.

[Alan Hahn]

But yes, ath, as they'd Put in the scoreboard.

[Peter Rosenberg]

An awful. An awful Saturday that we'll discuss.

[Alan Hahn]

Oh, my God. That was all. But listen, in the first two games of that series, the Yankees scored three run.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Yeah, no, no, that was not. It was again, not a great week.

[Alan Hahn]

But again, the Yankees are good because again, Toronto, they allowed Toronto and Tampa to kind of get back involved. But.

[Peter Rosenberg]

But they got Toronto now. But they can push them.

[Alan Hahn]

Yankees were awful in the middle of last year. In like a 35 game stretch. They went to the World Series. So both could be true. Where. All right, you don't want to panic, you don't want to fire anybody, but at the same time, you want to take care of this before it becomes a legitimate problem. And I think more so than the pitching, they've got to get some bats in here. Like, at what point do you just say, I got to go out and get a third baseman? Like, I don't know if I can wait for Vientos to kind of find it. Beatty's not working. Mauricio's not working here.

[Peter Rosenberg]

But what do you do with Vientos?

[Alan Hahn]

I don't know.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Like, there's the problem. Like, what do you do with him then?

[Alan Hahn]

Well, then at some point do some of these kids that aren't hitting, is there some organization that thinks, hey, maybe I could fix them or maybe I'll take on somebody cheap and if you're gonna add salary, then bring in some salary because you hold on to these kids, just ask the Yankees. You hold on to these kids like grim death. And then if they don't perform for you, then what do you do?

[Peter Rosenberg]

Well, the Vientos, the theory that Rick has about Vientos, that is so similar to how I always felt about Gary Sanchez. It was like Gary just never took his career seriously enough.

[Alan Hahn]

Didn't seem like to see his talent.

[Peter Rosenberg]

He'D had that good year early on and. And you're thinking to yourself, all right, he can build off this and he shows up and you're like, dude, are you heavier? How's that possible? How do you come out of the off season heavier? So that's the thing with some young players, that is that if you see it as an organization, you know what I do, I'm out. Because, you know, well, he's young and he'll learn. Willie, let him learn somewhere else. Because if you're going to do that here, then I can't trust that you're ever really going to get right because you're either coaching or allowing it to happen. And I can't let it happen. The regular season theory that you have though, it is and it isn't correct. It's right in the sense that for good teams, it's a matter of just like, stay in a float. Just stay. Like I said, get off to a good start so you're ahead of the pack and then finish strong. The middle 500 best. All you have to do is be 500. Just don't be. Or be a little one under 500, one over 500, whatever it is, but play 500 ball the rest through the middle of the year and just have a good start and a good finish and you know you're in there. But if you're a team like the Atlanta Braves, like now, this regular season matters, it's desperate.

[Alan Hahn]

You can bury yourself in the NBA and the NHL, too.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Yes, but.

[Alan Hahn]

But I'm just saying that, like the.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Indiana Pacers almost did, right? Fought back and look what they did with their season.

[Alan Hahn]

Everybody seems to forget 12 out of 30 teams make the playoffs in Major League Baseball. So you take a look at the American League, which is the weaker league, let's be honest. But still. All right, you have the Minnesota twins, who are four games under.500 past the midway point of the season. They're three and a half games out of the final wildfire.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Even the Royals at four and a half are right there. The Orioles are the ones that feel like to me, they're on that line of demarcate. They're kind of falling down. We're more than halfway through the season, right? That is going to take a run and they're going to try to make.

[Alan Hahn]

And you got to climb over a bunch of teams. But really you're. You're never really dead in baseball like you were back in the day, how long we grew up. You had to win your division, otherwise you're done.

[Peter Rosenberg]

There were seasons were over. There was season in July. You knew it was over.

[Alan Hahn]

And then when they added the wild card. But now with the three wild cards, crazy. Like, I know you're going to have to play three games on the road, but hey, you're in it, right? So the point is you're never going to bury yourself, but at the same time, you don't want to. All of a sudden, this is who you are as a team and then waste what could be a really fun season. I don't think the Mets, as much as they'll take it because it's a playoff spot. And as I say, many times, the Mets only twice in their history, have gone to the playoffs, back to back years, 99, 2,015 and 16. It doesn't happen that often for this franchise, although 60 years have been in.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Existence, although it's happened twice in the last 26 years.

[Alan Hahn]

But it doesn't happen a lot.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Right.

[Alan Hahn]

So the point is, is that they'll take it. But really, was this season about being the third wild card and playing three games on the road to advance to the divisional round? No, that's not what this is.

[Peter Rosenberg]

And you cannot change that conversation now because it didn't work out. This is setting up for failure. That's a real thing. It is setting up for failure. Now will it be a failure? No, I don't think so because I think they're, they're being pushed to be aggressive at the trade deadline again. And unlike in the past, you have an owner that's not afraid to say how I'm taking on more salary. I do it if it makes us better. I think it's a real thing. But I'll also say this for David Stearns, who's done a good job here, at some point there's going to be some accountability with him and how he's building these teams.

[Unknown]

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Thanks for listening to the Don Hahn and Rosenberg podcast.

[Alan Hahn]

I didn't listen to anything you just said.

[Unknown]

Catch the show on demand whenever you want to. Just subscribe to us wherever you get your podcasts.

[Alan Hahn]

We'll take your calls on the metal 1-800-919-3776. But, but now this is. I'm a Met fan, you know that. So I'm thrilled that Steve Cohen is the owner of my favorite baseball team. But I, I was listening to Michael when I was driving in, and he had John Heymon on, and Michael was suggesting, you know, the Mets have huge payroll. They're already paying a tax. Would Steve add more payroll to trying to get over the hump here? Or is he going to be, you know, like Stern's kind of laid back and try to find maybe cheaper ways to improve the team? And John Heyman said, you know, Steve Collins lost $200 million with the Mets, so he's.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Wait, wait, give me that number again.

[Alan Hahn]

$200 million.

[Peter Rosenberg]

How many years you been the owner officially? How many seasons?

[Alan Hahn]

That's a good question.

[Peter Rosenberg]

The surge of Orlando was the first year, right?

[Alan Hahn]

Y. So four.

[Peter Rosenberg]

This is your four. This feels like you're four.

[Alan Hahn]

Yeah.

[Peter Rosenberg]

$200 million over four years.

[Alan Hahn]

Yeah.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Or three and a half now.

[Alan Hahn]

He spent a lot of money and he had to eat a lot of money to get rid of Scherzer and Verlander, and that's probably why. But listen, when you're sitting on $16 billion, $200 million is no sweat. I mean, he, he, he makes and loses that every day.

[Peter Rosenberg]

It's perspiration, but it's perspiration.

[Alan Hahn]

Listen, I'm not saying, I'm not saying. No, no, no. I'm not saying he wants to lose it, but I don't think it scares him like it did the Willpons. Right. I'm not gonna spend Any more money? I just lost $200 million. I need to make it back. Let's start getting rid of players.

[Peter Rosenberg]

That's true.

[Alan Hahn]

No, he's listening. If he's got to lose another $200 million, but he can win a championship, and then once the championship comes, all the money will start pouring in, right? Then you can raise ticket prices. And now you're, now you become a destination for teams and everything kind of changes. So like John was saying, he's not gonna be scared off by him. And I'm thinking to myself, all right, good. As a Met fan, cool. They can raise payroll. But then a part of me was saying, is that really the way it should be in sports with baseball having no cap that you can have a guy that's sitting on $16 billion, that has lost $200 million with his team over the last four years, but yet, because he's sitting on a mint, continue to sink money in the team to make them better. We're at least in other sports with a cap, it's like, hey, I've got to figure out a way. I got to be creative. I've got to have smart minds. I got to draft well. I've got to make shrewd trades. Or I could just be like, ah, my team's not going to. All right, I'll throw another $50 million on the problem and fix it. It's like, listen, I'll take the championship, Alan. But at some point, all these Met fans were like, oh, the Yankees bought their championships when they won four in the last five years. Well, aren't you kind of doing the same thing?

[Peter Rosenberg]

Yes, of course. Can't beat him. Join them.

[Alan Hahn]

Is it okay for me to feel away about it? Yes.

[Peter Rosenberg]

But you're not new to baseball.

[Alan Hahn]

Of course I'm not new to baseball. And I've been screaming forever that there should be a cap in this sport.

[Peter Rosenberg]

This is because you've never had to deal with it yourself before. You almost have like a little bit of a guilt feeling right now. You feel guilty about the fact that you have now an owner, and it feels pretty good, if you ask me. You have an owner or a franchise that can fix problems by throwing money at it. And that's a pretty good feeling to have. I guess in some sports you can't, but in most sports you still can because not everybody can make a trade for a high. A high end player willing to give up other areas. There is a hard cap in some situations, but, you know, in football. Right, but there's always ways around it. In football too. In basketball it's luxury tax. Now it's getting worse. But there was a time recently where it's like, oh, I just gotta pay three times the amount of tax. Well, that's fine, I'll do it. The warriors were willing to do it. Teams are willing to do it. This is the first time you've had to deal with this as a Mets fan. But the Dodgers have been operating like this for a couple. For a handful of years, half a decade at least. And they are winning championships because of it. You want this problem, Don.

[Alan Hahn]

I know.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Don't feel guilty about it. What you should do is demand it.

[Alan Hahn]

I know, I get it.

[Peter Rosenberg]

But you haven't owned that. Walked in saying, I got deep pockets, I love the Mets, I'm willing to do whatever it takes to win a championship. Then that's the standard he set, not you.

[Alan Hahn]

No, I know. I'm not mad at him. I'm not.

[Peter Rosenberg]

But you feel away about it.

[Alan Hahn]

But I feel away about it because part of winning your championship is to say I've got the best team, not I have the richest owner.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Well, that sounds nice, but teams that.

[Alan Hahn]

Spend win sometimes, sometimes they don't. That's what. See, that's the one thing that makes me feel better about it, is that. Listen, you go back to the 90s when the Yankees always beat Baltimore. Baltimore always had a really high payroll. The Mets, The Mets spent money before the, before the Madoff situation. They spent money.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Yes.

[Alan Hahn]

You know, they went and spent money on Bonilla and Saberhagen and Coleman and still lost. I mean, there are team money can buy. Yeah, Listen, it doesn't guarantee you anything. You still have to be smart and get the right players.

[Peter Rosenberg]

But you know what else doesn't guarantee you anything? Having a low payroll. The Marlins. They would spend. They win a World Series, then they blow it up.

[Alan Hahn]

Right. And I don't think that was good for baseball either.

[Peter Rosenberg]

It's not good. But they showed you that if we spend, we can win. But when we have to. But when we what we don't want to spend, we got it. And we are, we're bad again. It was almost like a mockery that they went 97 and oh three in that six year span. They won two World Series and they were a joke. Like that's just a reality.

[Alan Hahn]

Something. I guess there's something.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Don't feel guilty about it.

[Alan Hahn]

Don't. I'm just. I'm just telling you how I feel. I'm very honest.

[Peter Rosenberg]

I know you are, but I don't think.

[Alan Hahn]

But if I've got the best, if I got the best car or if I got the best house in the neighborhood, you. Right.

[Peter Rosenberg]

I know what you want.

[Alan Hahn]

And I built it myself.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Yes.

[Alan Hahn]

And I got a gorgeous house.

[Peter Rosenberg]

I know.

[Alan Hahn]

And next door is, I got a guy that's got, you know, as good a house. And you know, he, you know, he paid $3.5 million for it. I think I take a little bit more pride in my home than he should take in his.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Because this is you. The Oklahoma City Thunder is more of a legitimate NBA championship than what the Lakers did when they, you know, you got Anthony Davis, they got LeBron, they got all these pieces. Well, you know, like you're looking at it like that's legit. Cause they built it through the draft. That's a team that I developed and all that stuff. I didn't have to go out and chase high price free agents to build the champion. But unfortunately, those are, those are the once in a lifetime.

[Alan Hahn]

I know. But, but, but that one hits a little different. You can take some pride in that.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Because you feel like there's more pride. You know what I have pride in? If I root for it to my, the Yankees, my pride is that they won.

[Alan Hahn]

Right. I want them to be competitive.

[Peter Rosenberg]

They're really good.

[Alan Hahn]

I want them to be competitive. I'm just telling you how I feel about the situation. But you look at the NHL, right? What do people say? Oh, Tampa won because, you know, Kucherov was on IL and then all of a sudden he got healthy. They circumvented the salary cap. So you're admitting it bothered you, if you were a hockey fan, that Tampa, Vegas and Florida were able to circumvent the salary cap. Didn't break any rules. Didn't break any rules. But everybody looked at it and go, mm, they kind of. Jimmy switched the system to win a championship. Well, how is it any different here? The Mets aren't breaking any rules. The Dodgers aren't breaking any rules, spending all the money. Yankees didn't break the rules, you know, 20 years ago when they had a higher payroll than everybody else. But is it okay for me to feel away about it and go, how is it any different than Tampa, Vegas and Florida? They legally did something and, but it just feels like you're just kind of taking advantage of a situation. It has nothing to do with baseball that Steve Cohen bought the team and is sitting on $16 billion. At least the Yankees, when they spend money, say, listen, we're the richest team because we, we could spend the most. Because we make the most. Because we're the most popular team and we win the most.

[Peter Rosenberg]

I earned that, right.

[Alan Hahn]

I knew it. So I earned something about it.

[Peter Rosenberg]

I earn success. I earned business.

[Alan Hahn]

I'll take it, by the way, I'm taking this. This mystical, you know, fallacy, because they haven't won anything anyway, you know? So, yeah, I'm sitting here saying I feel a way about it, and it hasn't even happen. May not happen. Hasn't happened for 39 years.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Feel guilty about something that hasn't happened, Right?

[Alan Hahn]

Like I. Like I feel guilty for cheating on my wife. I didn't cheat on my wife, but.

[Peter Rosenberg]

I thought about it.

[Alan Hahn]

I thought about what in certain circles, like.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Like, you thought about what it would be like. And then you feel like. That doesn't feel right, though. Listen, Don, when it comes to professional sports, the one thing you never apologize for is winning, I guess, right? Well, never.

[Alan Hahn]

I'd like. I'd like to be in that position one day, to at least have to apologize.

[Peter Rosenberg]

The Houston Astros ever apologize for that? 2017?

[Alan Hahn]

They should. It's still. But. But, but that's a bad example, because you know what? Maybe the Astro fans don't feel bad about it, but everybody outside of Houston still looks at least that 2017 is being tarnished.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Did the league take away the championship?

[Alan Hahn]

No.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Okay, but he's still a championship.

[Alan Hahn]

But isn't part of winning, even in the few times that I've done it.

[Peter Rosenberg]

I'll give you another one. The Toronto Raptors feel bad about that championship. You know, Kevin Durant got hurt and Klay Thompson got hurt. They apologizing for that? No, no, of course not.

[Alan Hahn]

Because they were the one team that were able to take advantage of. There were other teams that could have taken advantage of it. They did. I'm not talking about that. I'm talking about when you win a championship. And the last time the Mets won a championship was in 1986. I was a freshman at Ramapo College. And to strut around those hallways the day after they won, to say, I'm a Met fan. I've been a Met fan my entire life. And the first time that I can remember they won a championship, and you're walking around saying, my team's the best and no one can take it away. Now, people can make excuses here, there, but nobody can really take it away. But when a Houston Astro fan walks around, yeah, in Houston, they all pat each other on the back, but there are people outside of Houston go, all right. Yeah, but you know you cheated to get that.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Give you another one, you know, or.

[Alan Hahn]

Yeah, I don't want to walk around when they finally do win and go, yeah, well, you know, thanks to Uncle Steve throwing around, you know, a quarter of a billion dollars every year for you to win. I don't want to have to. Have to not apologize, but to have to now fight that my championship is legitimate.

[Peter Rosenberg]

All right, let me give you this one, all right, because you're right, the Astros won. I'll give you that. Because as a fan, deep down, you know it's not legitimate. You know, it's a bit. It was cheated, right? But it's still. They didn't take it away. I'll give you this scenario, okay, LeBron, we'll get to that later. But just quickly here, LeBron opted into his. But his agent now setting up this scenario of, you know, he's not sure he really wants to stay with the Lakers if they don't want to build a championship because he wants to win. Right? Now let's create this crazy thing that we're seeing now, all the bloggers are doing because this is content season. And what you do is now put LeBron in a, in an edit in a Knicks jersey. What a great story to be. He ends his career in New York winning a championship in New York. So LeBron comes to the Knicks in some type of crazy trade. You want to come up with, fine, it's all fantasy world, but let's do it. He does that and then Chris Paul's like, you know, my last season, I'm going to New York too. I'm going there. I'm playing with LeBron. We're going to do expendables. He goes there and then you have like Al Horford. Well, I mean, if they're going there, let me go there too. Because if they win a championship, there'd be nothing like it. Now all of a sudden you have all these like guys that are coming for like dirt cheap vet veterans minimums because they just know this will be fun. And then we'll call it a career. The Knicks win a championship. You know what everybody's going to say, right? Well, the only reason why you won that thing is because LeBron put this whole thing together and you know, and.

[Alan Hahn]

It wouldn't bother you. You finally, in a lot of nick.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Fans in 50 years, you finally win a champion.

[Alan Hahn]

You know what?

[Peter Rosenberg]

You don't apologize.

[Alan Hahn]

All right?

[Peter Rosenberg]

The Miami Heat, when they brought those three together, do you think all these Heat fans were like, yeah, I don't Know if I. I feel weird about that one because they put this super team together, there was nobody going to beat them.

[Alan Hahn]

No, I don't want to change subjects, but I want to address this at 4. All right. Because I want to take these met calls. But you brought up something that I wanted to bring up at 4. Anyway, I'm just giving you. I want to answer that question.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Apologize.

[Alan Hahn]

Don't apologize. Not. But I'm sorry. I think there are certain layers to it.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Okay, fair enough.

[Alan Hahn]

I think there are layers to it. All right, let's go to Pete in Brooklyn. You get us started off here on Don Juan and Rosenberg.

[Unknown]

Hey, Don. Hon, how's it going?

[Alan Hahn]

Yeah, I can hear you fine.

[Unknown]

All right, thanks. I want to ask for a question I. I know I let. When I. When I. When I got screened at a point, but what would you say are the best organizations in the OB right now over the past couple years?

[Peter Rosenberg]

Major League Baseball.

[Unknown]

Yeah.

[Peter Rosenberg]

The best run organization.

[Unknown]

Yes. Or any. Like, just list them off because I got a couple.

[Alan Hahn]

Well, I mean, I know the Yankee fans will disagree, but I still put. The Yankees is very well run. They finish above.500 every single year. I think the Cardinals are very well run. Not a ton of payroll, and yet they were always kind of hanging around.

[Peter Rosenberg]

The Dodgers, very well run.

[Alan Hahn]

But the Dodgers, because I think I know where Pete's getting. Are the Dodgers well run, or do they just spend more money than everybody else?

[Unknown]

You guys got to mention the Astro. They.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Well, they're back. I'll tell you that. But they are back.

[Unknown]

They're back, but they farm and develop their players.

[Alan Hahn]

Yeah, but there's also people, Pete, there's also people that believe they tanked to get a lot of those good young players. Cubs did, too. I give the Astros credit, but a lot of people felt that they tanked to get those draft picks, to get those young players. So is that ethical?

[Peter Rosenberg]

Milwaukee brewers well run very well.

[Alan Hahn]

Wrong.

[Unknown]

Look at it like the Heat success with buying their big Drew, and then the warriors bank to get their draft picks. It's similar. You know, dynasties and sustained success are built in different ways. I mean, but you're right. Don't apologize for anything.

[Alan Hahn]

This call will be recorded.

[Peter Rosenberg]

We're recording the call, so we don't want to do that.

[Alan Hahn]

As he's at work. He shouldn't be doing that. But again, I think he's right. I think the Astros are very well.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Right.

[Alan Hahn]

But there are people that are going to say you that they were able to get a lot of their good young Players, including Altuve, by tanking and then drafting down low and up high and being able to get those players. No, you're right. Especially in baseball. Right where? Listen, look at the five guys that were taken before Derek Jeter. Look at the thousands of guys that were taken before Mike Piazza. Let's go to Keith in New Jersey. You're on. Don Hanna, Rosenberg.

[Unknown]

What's going on, guys? Met fan. The Met fan, Don, I'm telling you now, if I see Vientos at DH instead of Martell, I'm going to go to New York. I'm going to be in disguise and.

[Peter Rosenberg]

I'm going to be doing.

[Alan Hahn]

Because who's at third that's going to do any better than him anyway?

[Unknown]

I'm just saying this has got to be. There's no fundamental baseball being played or situational hitting. I would have kept. I would have rather you kept a coon on the bench for speed. And he can lay down, drag a bun and you got some hope. You've given Atlanta hope. You probably given Pittsburgh hope. But something's got to be done. Something's got to be done to shake this lineup up. Because next thing you know, we're going to be talking about Mendoza out of there two years after he's over the buck.

[Alan Hahn]

You know, it's really good point you make, Keith, because I don't think that'd be fair to Mendoza. I don't think this is a managerial problem. I know a lot of Met fans might disagree with that, but I think this is a structure problem with the roster and I trust Stearns is going to try to fix it. Because, you know, you got the deadline coming up at the end of July, but you've got these three games here in Milwaukee, then three more against the Yankees. If it continues to go sideways and it's three wins in the last, you know, 22 games, something's going to have to happen sooner than later, and you might not be able to wait until the end of July.

[Unknown]

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[Peter Rosenberg]

I think you're on mute.

[Unknown]

Workday is starting to sound the same.

[Alan Hahn]

I think you're on mute.

[Unknown]

Find that sounds better for your career on LinkedIn. With LinkedIn job collections, you can browse curated collections by relevant industries and benefits like Flexpto or hybrid workplaces so you can find the right job for you. Get [e-mail] jobs finding where you fit. LinkedIn knows how with a Venmo debit card, you can Venmo more than just your friends. You can use your balance in so many ways. You can Venmo everything. Need gas? You can Venmo this. How about snacks? You can Venmo that. Your favorite band's merch? You can Venmo this or their next show? You can Venmo that. Visit Venmo Me Debit to learn more.

[Alan Hahn]

You can Venmo this or you can Venmo that. You can Venmo this so you can Venmo that. You can Venmo.

[Unknown]

The Venmo MasterCard is issued by the Bancorp bank and a pursuant to license. My MasterCard International Inc. Card may be used everywhere. MasterCard is accepted. Venmo purchase restrictions apply.

Thanks for listening to the Don Han and Roast Luxembourg podcast.

[Alan Hahn]

I didn't listen to anything you just said.

[Unknown]

Catch the show on demand whenever you want. Just subscribe to us wherever you get your podcast.

[Alan Hahn]

This song might have been on the radio as I was driving the campus after the Mets won.

[Peter Rosenberg]

That's how long it's been, huh? I would have left the Whitney.

[Alan Hahn]

I I forget which Whitney song came on because there's so many good ones, but you've got something more important. I was just going to say I think I need to get a best of or something. Something. Because I don't hate any of them. I love a lot of them.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Yeah, there's. It's hard to find a Whitney song to not like now.

[Alan Hahn]

This one is not. Wouldn't be in my top list.

[Peter Rosenberg]

But if you did a top five Whitney, this wouldn't be top five.

[Alan Hahn]

No, for me. No, listen, I think it is a top five.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Well, number one is obvious, right?

[Alan Hahn]

Which one I like, I can't tell you. I can rattle.

[Peter Rosenberg]

I will always love you.

[Alan Hahn]

That would probably be up there.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Bodyguard, right?

[Alan Hahn]

I do love that song.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Yeah, that's a great one. Okay, well, we can, we can.

[Alan Hahn]

I just. I they come on. And if I looked at the names I I again, I don't know it like I do.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Jake knows what he's gonna do the rest of the show now.

[Alan Hahn]

Yeah, it's gonna be a Whitney Houston.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Gonna be a Whitney Houston. Let's see.

[Alan Hahn]

I was just like, you know this song or maybe I should get a best of. Sometimes that hits me and I'll go to my Apple account and I just do that.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Just, just. That's usually what I do if, like, if I hear an artist, I'm like, let me get a best of. And I just have. Because there's millions of playlists. Say it. And they'll play the play songs until you hate them.

[Alan Hahn]

Yeah.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Did that the other day with Sting. I told you about that.

[Alan Hahn]

Yeah, See that?

[Peter Rosenberg]

Somebody mentioned Sting, and I was like, you know what? Sting in the mix wrong with that? And I really enjoyed it.

[Alan Hahn]

All right, so you had a read. Well, get ready.

[Peter Rosenberg]

It's not Sting, but swing big at the ESPN New York Tee it Up Golf Challenge presented by Jake's 58 Casino Hotel. It's all happening Monday, July 21st, just a couple of weeks, at Colonial Springs Golf Club in Farmingdale, New York, where teams will battle it out for amazing prizes and bragging rights. This was a lot of fun last year. It's the same club, too, by the way. It's a gorgeous day that it was. Lock in your foursome now on the ESPNY app, you can join Rick and Dave, Bart, myself as well, and special guests like Larry Johnson, John Starks, Justin Tuck, and more. All the proceeds support the Garden of Dreams foundation, which is something that is near and dear to both my heart and Don Lagreca's heart as well. It's the ESPNY Tee it Up Golf Challenge presented by Jake's 58 Casino Hotel. For more details, find the Tee it up tile on the ESPN New York app.

[Alan Hahn]

The song that was playing, now that I had a chance to think about it, where do broken hearts go? I'm like, you know, I like this song.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Yeah.

[Alan Hahn]

But that's not one of her biggest hits.

[Peter Rosenberg]

No.

[Alan Hahn]

So I'm like, you know what? I think this is one of them.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Is that one of her first ones.

[Alan Hahn]

Might have been 87 years.

[Peter Rosenberg]

So that's gotta be one of the first ones. Right?

[Alan Hahn]

So I think I'm gonna dabble in that, if you don't mind.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Go for it.

[Alan Hahn]

And then the national anthem, too, which everybody played after the John.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Would you put the national anthem in a mix and listen to it? Just because of the performance.

[Alan Hahn]

It was really good. Because now, even if she had the.

[Peter Rosenberg]

National anthem in any of their mixes.

[Alan Hahn]

Right.

[Peter Rosenberg]

We just don't do that.

[Alan Hahn]

I do.

[Peter Rosenberg]

But you.

[Alan Hahn]

I do have one in my mix.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Jimi Hendrix. No, no.

[Alan Hahn]

Which I do like that, but it's not in my mix.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Okay.

[Alan Hahn]

Is the Jose Feliciano.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Oh, yes, the.

[Alan Hahn]

From the 68 World Series that got. Got him, like, booed out of the stadium. But if you listen to that, punch that up. We do it every once in a while. Jacob, just play a little bit of it. It's. It. The reason that it was disrespectful because he changed the tune and.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Which. Nobody did this then, but now we do.

[Alan Hahn]

But it was. It was amazing. So listen, I had. Oh, proudly. We had.

[Peter Rosenberg]

I don't know why this wouldn't be received well.

[Alan Hahn]

Because he changed it. I dare you.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Come on.

[Alan Hahn]

We're at war. When you're at war, everything changed.

[Peter Rosenberg]

But sing it the way it was written, dude.

[Alan Hahn]

I don't know whether it's so good or whether I'm so sick of the original that I just hearing a different version of it. Like, again, I'm not being disrespectful, but just. You hear the same song, so it's.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Like, technically you hear a different version of it, like, constantly.

[Alan Hahn]

Yeah, but that's different now. Some people sing it a little differently, but it's still the same rhythm. But you hear it when you're as many games as Alan and I are, you know, it's. Unfortunately, you're numb to it now. You're not supposed to. I still stand I still hold my hand on my heart I take my hat off I'm respecting the country and the anthem. But to say that I actually enjoy the song after hearing it a billion times, the answer is no. That's why I always like, God bless America should be played more.

[Peter Rosenberg]

I agree.

[Alan Hahn]

What's wrong with that? That's a great song.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Completely agree.

[Alan Hahn]

But also, is it great or just you haven't heard it a billion times? So it's something new and different.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Yankees fan, you hear it every day? Yeah, every game.

[Alan Hahn]

Like, it's weird how they commandeered that. Like, everybody does it on Sundays. The Yankees do it every day.

[Peter Rosenberg]

I love it, though.

[Alan Hahn]

But that's a good song. Difficult to sing, too.

[Peter Rosenberg]

A little bit.

[Alan Hahn]

This land is your land is also very good.

[Peter Rosenberg]

That's. Yeah, that. That Woody got three.

[Alan Hahn]

Yeah.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Yeah.

[Alan Hahn]

Arlo did the city in New Orleans. Also good. But had nothing to do with the conversation. Let's go to Tony in Brooklyn. You're on espn. New York. What's up, Tony?

[Unknown]

What's going on? I'm discussing with this Met team. I mean, this will be another year where they get zero production out of a catcher position, which is hard to believe.

[Peter Rosenberg]

And we thought. We thought he'd be an All Star like, you Thought Alvaro primed to be an all Star.

[Alan Hahn]

It's easy to forget because he's down in the minor leagues, but yeah, another failed young kid on this team.

[Unknown]

It's amazing. Now that's a hard position because get at the trading deadline. What do you think about Byron Buxton?

[Alan Hahn]

I like him. What is it going to take to get him? I was thinking of Aaron Otto at third. Like, if you're going to be spending money, I would have no problem with that.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Does he have any bat left?

[Alan Hahn]

I know he's got 10 home runs this year. I mean, I, I, you're so right, Tony. That's such a difficult thing to go out and get, but I don't think I'd have a problem with that. You're getting nothing out of the catching position. Although Terence did at a home run yesterday. Again, it was 7 nothing at the time he hit it or 6 nothing at the time he hit it.

[Peter Rosenberg]

But he did.

[Alan Hahn]

He did. But he's not, he's a backup catcher because Alvarez was supposed to be our guy and he's not. And it's just frustrating and I'm just, I'm just tired of it. But LeBron, oh boy, might be on the market as he opts in for next year with Los angeles at what, 52 point whatever, Knicks ware, Lakers, we'll discuss. And I want to answer Allen's question from before because it relates to LeBron James right here on ESPN New York.

[Unknown]

Thanks for listening to the Don Hahn and Rosenberg podcast.

[Peter Rosenberg]

I don't want to know how the sausage is made, man. I just want to know. It's good.

[Unknown]

Hear more of Don Allen and Peter weekday afternoon starting at 3 on 8 80, ESPN, the ESPN New York app and your smart speakers.