Hour 3: Honor The Dart

Summary

Don, Hahn & Rosenberg — "Hour 3: Honor The Dart"

Date: August 27, 2025
Podcast: ESPN New York
Hosts: Don La Greca, Alan Hahn, Peter Rosenberg

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Episode Overview

In this energetic episode, Don, Hahn & Rosenberg deliver a classic blend of New York sports banter, poignant Giants and Jets football analysis, radio industry lore, and even a deep-dive into ‘70s pop music trivia. The big theme centers around NFL quarterback development—particularly the Giants’ plan for rookie Jackson Dart—and how organizations balance fan impatience, media narratives, and actual on-field strategy. The guys also discuss Aaron Boone's handling of Anthony Volpe's spectacular slump, the philosophy behind performative leadership from local coaches, and end up on a surprisingly passionate tangent about band name origins and pop songs with “magic” in the title.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Giants Quarterback Room and Jackson Dart’s Path

Timestamps: 00:43 – 13:56

• Joe Shane on Tommy DeVito’s Waiver, Dart’s Development
  The crew unpacks the news that Tommy DeVito, the Giants’ one-hit QB wonder, was claimed by the Patriots after waivers. Joe Shane, Giants GM, explains the cold logistics:

  “We were hoping that nobody would pick him up and be able to keep him … you’re not dressing for quarterbacks, so you’re going to have to have one of them go to the practice squad and you got to clear waivers and he wasn’t going to clear waivers.” (03:24, Don Hahn paraphrasing Shane)

• The QB Room Construction Purpose-Built for Dart
  Rosenberg details why the Giants loaded up with veterans Russell Wilson and Jameis Winston:

  “That quarterback room is built specific for Jackson Dart... Russell Wilson, somebody you just watch…Jameis is the ultimate cheerleader...your perfect backup quarterback for him because he really embraces that role and understands what the pressure's like as a young quarterback.” (05:19, Rosenberg)

• Impressed by Dart’s Processing—But No Rush to Start
  Shane is “impressed in terms of how quick he was able to pick it up and actually go execute and play fast.” (07:36, Joe Shane)
  Yet the hosts push back on fan calls to play Dart immediately:

  “To throw him to the wolves quick, I think is a huge mistake. He can still learn. So I don't get the whole, he's got to play. He's not doing. He's just wasting now. You're not wasting him. You're giving him the best opportunity to succeed.” (12:04, Don Hahn)

• Draft Slot Determines Development Path
  Don notes the difference in expectations based on draft position:

  "Where you're picked ultimately determines what path you're on. If I pick you first overall, there's gonna be a pressure...If you're taking 24th overall, you're admitting, hey, you're a bit of a project." (13:00, Don Hahn)

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2. Jets’ Head Coaching Attitude & Fan Expectations

Timestamps: 17:05 – 24:19

• Media Bravado & Performance
  Don reflects on Aaron Glenn’s sometimes abrasive approach with the media, calling it partially “performance”—something fans love, but Don isn’t convinced it wins games.

  “...it's just a performance. Lay down the law, new sheriff in town, and that's great. And the fans eat it up…But at the end of the day, it doesn't matter.” (19:49, Don Hahn)

• Building Fan Expectations: Be Realistic
  "This is the one season the Jets…the one good thing they did this offseason was they laid out. They didn't give you any artificial expectations. No BS. So just sit back and let's see what it looks like…” (23:13, Don Hahn)

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3. Jets Callers & the Justin Fields Question

Timestamps: 31:03 – 38:12

• Fan ‘Wish List’ for the Jets
  Jay from the Bronx calls with a realistic hope for discipline and improvement rather than win totals:

  "I want to be top 10 and fewest penalties...If we could just have a good, competent defense...A comparable and healthy offensive line and run the ball 30 times a game." (31:27, Jay)

• Can Justin Fields Be the Franchise QB?
  Discussion about evaluating Fields’ real growth potential:

  “So you're going to have to throw the ball at some point…he hasn't played a ton of games...At some point wouldn't you like to see that he's somebody that can stick around and maybe be that franchise quarterback?” (34:07, Don Hahn)

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4. Performative Coaching and New York Media Relations

Timestamps: 19:49 – 24:19; 47:08 – 49:32

• Toughness with Media
  The hosts debate whether performative “tough guy” attitudes with the media (by Glenn, Boone, and others) are genuine or a PR show. Don is skeptical:

  “Why even listen to him anymore?...You're not being genuine.” (46:53, Don Hahn on Aaron Boone)

• On Manager Press Conferences

  “End the press conferences. They're all done. They're all stupid.” (49:32, Don Hahn)

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5. Anthony Volpe’s Epic Slump & Aaron Boone’s Spin

Timestamps: 42:17 – 49:32

• Historical Struggles
  Don shares the Katie Sharp stat:

  “Anthony Volpe has a .027 on base percentage over the last 11 games...That's the lowest OBP by a Yankee non-pitcher in any 11-game span in franchise history. Ever.” (42:22, Don Hahn)

• Boone’s Positivity & Media Frustration
  Boone stays positive about Volpe's “balls on the nose,” but the hosts criticize this as “spin cycle.”

  Rosenberg: "Yeah, I can't swing decisions. Balls on the nose...He went spin cycle." (44:05) Don: “It just gets to the point where it's embarrassing…you're twisting yourself into a pretzel, defending one for 39 and saying things that people are just not going to believe.” (46:53, Don Hahn)

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6. Music Trivia: The Bay City Rollers & The “Honor The Dart” Principle

Timestamps: 27:54 – 31:03

• Bay City Rollers Name Story & “Honor the Dart”
  Rosenberg explains how the band chose their name by throwing darts at a U.S. map—Don objects to disregarding the first dart (Arkansas) in favor of the more marketable Bay City:

  "The whole concept of throwing the dart is you throw the dart where it lands. That's our name…If you're gonna throw the dart, the idea is…I have no idea. Let's throw a dart. Let's go with that. It lands in Arkansas. No, that's no good…Now you're back to making decisions again. Honor the dart." (29:43, Don Hahn)

• Music Rabbit Holes: “Songs with Magic”
  A game of back-and-forth song naming ensues:

  “You know how many songs are named have magic in the title?” (39:07, Don Hahn)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Rookie QBs:
  “The ability to process is…that’s the holy grail of a quarterback. It’s why Zach Wilson couldn't become anything. Kid couldn't process.” — Rosenberg (09:14)

• On Franchise Pressure:
  “If I pick you first overall, there's gonna be a pressure...If you're taking 24th overall, you're admitting, hey, you're a bit of a project.” — Don (13:00)

• On Media Fandom:
  “The fans eat it up. That's why I think it's all part of the plan because the fans eat it gobbled up with a spoon.” — Don (17:34)

• On Coaching Public Persona:
  “It's just a performance. Lay down the law, new sheriff in town.” — Don (19:49)
  “I want to believe it's just him being genuine and consistent. Like, this is who I am in front of the players.” — Rosenberg (21:40)

• On Bay City Rollers:
  “The whole concept of throwing the dart is you throw the dart where it lands…Honor the dart.” — Don (29:43)

• On Boone and Volpe:
  “It's embarrassing…you're twisting yourself into a pretzel, defending one for 39 and saying things that people are just not going to believe.” — Don (46:53)

• Summing Up Press Conferences:
  “End the press conferences. They're all done. They're all stupid.” — Don (49:32)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• Giants QB/Dart discussion: 00:43 – 13:56
• Jets coaching, media, and Glenn talk: 17:05 – 24:19
• Jay from the Bronx’s Jets wish list & Justin Fields: 31:03 – 38:12
• Bay City Rollers story, “Honor the dart” & music trivia: 27:54 – 31:03, 38:25 – 42:03
• Aaron Boone & the Volpe slump: 42:17 – 49:32

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Tone & Takeaways

The show maintains its classic blend of sharp analysis, veteran sports media skepticism, and irreverent, nostalgic tangents. The tone is candid, skeptical (especially toward performative coaching/PR narratives), and full of good-natured ribbing—peppered with enough concrete info to keep diehard New York sports fans informed and engaged.

Transcript

[Don Hahn]

Get yourself ready for a trip through McDonaldland. There's fake shaped volcanoes. You'll even find a French fry patch. Now just turn around and see if.

[Rosenberg]

You won't find a hamburger patch as you're heading for.

[Don Hahn]

Order the McDonaldand meal today and get the Mount McDonaldland Shake with your very own character souvenir kit.

[Podcast Announcer]

This is the Don Hahn and Rosenberg podcast.

[Don Hahn]

That sounds like heaven to me.

[Podcast Announcer]

Listen live weekday afternoon starting at 3 on 8 80, ESPN, the ESPN New York app, and your smart speakers.

[Don Hahn]

Game time is brought to you by Tull or New Irish Whiskey. Because when it's game time, it's Tully time. It's Tully time. Mets close out their series with the Phillies. They got the brooms out coverage immediately following us here on 880 at 6:30. And the Yankees beat the Nationals 11 2. They swept that series and now they move on to Chicago to take on the White Sox Tullimore Dew, the original triple distilled, triple blended and triple cast matured Iris whiskey. Be sure to grab a Tullamore Due or try the new Tullimore Dew. Honey. During today's action, glasses up to enjoying Tullamore Due responsibly. I don't know the answer to this. Maybe Anthony does. Michael did not work the series against the Nationals. Ryan Ruko did. Because Michael's on vacation. Listening to our fine radio station here on ESPN New York, you've heard the dulcet tones of Jake aspen filling in 4K. Michael's definitely going to be in Chicago for the White Sox series. I know it's a nothing series, but he doesn't miss Chicago. That's his second favorite city next to New York.

[Rosenberg]

So he just took the Nationals off.

[Don Hahn]

I guess, which is very rare. I don't remember. Anthony, do you remember as a Yankees fan. No. Him missing a home series? I remember him missing Rhodes series, but.

[Rosenberg]

No, I don't remember this.

[Don Hahn]

He's not gonna miss Chicago again. I know it's a nothing series, but he loves Chicago.

[Rosenberg]

I don't know that. I don't know what Michael's schedule is, but I'd be surprised if he misses it if it's scheduled that way. It's scheduled.

[Don Hahn]

Unless Jody dragged him somewhere where he needed to take the whole week off. Like to Europe or something. He doesn't miss Chicago.

[Rosenberg]

Think he's in Paris with Peter.

[Don Hahn]

Michael, I think did like Paris.

[Rosenberg]

He did.

[Don Hahn]

He. He hated Rome. He thought Rome was a dump.

[Rosenberg]

Okay.

[Don Hahn]

But I think he. I think. I know.

[Rosenberg]

He loved Strong.

[Don Hahn]

He loved London.

[Rosenberg]

Okay?

[Don Hahn]

Foggy London town I believe he's been to Paris and Japan. He walked around like he was Godzilla. He said he was like a full foot taller than everybody else.

[Rosenberg]

And they all just looked up at him in wonder with great wonder.

[Don Hahn]

Yeah, just so. So he's been able to bounce around a little bit. All right. Football, football, football. Joe Shane spoke today on them parting ways with a guy that didn't make our list, but certainly one of the great one hit wonders, Tommy DeVito.

[Joe Shane]

You know, we've got three on the active roster, so it's, it can be difficult sometimes, depending how the roster shapes up, where you have some needs, where you decide to go deep. So you had certain positions and it just worked out that, you know, we're happy for Tommy. You know, he was claimed by New England. I' how many other teams put in claims? We'll be able to probably see that later today or tomorrow. But we would love to have him back. You know, he was claimed and you know, we wish him nothing but the.

[Don Hahn]

Best now, you know, when you see the headline waved, it comes across like, well, we don't want him.

[Rosenberg]

Got rid of him.

[Don Hahn]

They, in order to move him to the practice squad, he would have to clear waivers and clearly didn't. So when he said they were hoping, they were hoping that nobody would pick him up and be able to keep him, you can't. You're not dressing for quarterbacks, so you're going to have to have one of them go to the practice squad and you got to clear waivers and he wasn't going to clear waivers.

[Rosenberg]

Jordan Renan said it yesterday morning. He and Dan Grass have filled in on the morning show and they've been, they're very entertaining, the two of them together and obviously a wealth of football between them because of the jets with Grasse and obviously the Giants with Jordan. But Jordan said that the Giants were secretly was hoping somehow he'd slip through and then they could bring him back and put him on the practice squad, have the guy in house because he knows the system and if one thing goes wrong or if they end up trading a quarterback, they would love to have him around, but they knew from his performance in preseason, which tells you a lot about how far he's come from novelty act to a legitimate player who's somebody you'd love to have in your quarterback room that they didn't think would happen. And Jordan mentioned the Patriots. He had called some teams and he said he felt like the Patriots weren't going to let him buy. I think the Patriots, what, third right. The Patriots weren't going to let him pass them. I'm curious to see if the jets put in a bid for him, but I don't. I don't believe they did. I was curious if they might do it, but it didn't sound. I think Rich Samini was suggesting that they were, you know, like they might. But they feel like Dylan Cook is just as. Like it's the talent's kind of there and he already knows the system and stuff.

[Don Hahn]

Like so. But so in no way. It kind of came across like they didn't want. No, they wanted them to just too many quarterbacks. Now, if you wanted to make the case why Jameis Winston's here.

[Rosenberg]

Oh, I can tell you why.

[Don Hahn]

Well, we know.

[Rosenberg]

I can tell you why that that quarterback room is built specific for Jackson Dart because you. I think. Didn't you say it like the examples. You have all these different examples of what you can learn about in the NFL. The superstar who's won a Super bowl, who's more of a Just watch how I work. He probably won't be a big mentor type personality, but Russell Wilson, somebody you just watch and just see how he handles himself and carries himself professionally and all that stuff. And Jameis is the ultimate cheerleader who, when it is Jackson Dart's time, Jameis is your perfect backup quarterback for him because he really embraces that role and understands what the pressure's like as a young quarterback who's supposed to step in and be the savior because he was the number one pick. So if there comes a time this season, I think, Don, when the Giants go through the progression of how they're going to go through the development, if they are what we think they are and they'll kind of stumble along and be a team that gets the six, seven, whatever it is, wins. And there'll be a time either you got to move on and give Dart reps, or Russell Wilson could be a guy that you could move to a team that quarterback needed and you can make that check because it's a very easy contract to move. Then you have Dart with a guy like Winston, as a guy, you could just feel comfortable having him in that quarterback room as that second guy, because A, if he had to play in a pinch, he could. But B, he is such a uplifting, positive, energetic guy who also does understand preparation. They love him.

[Don Hahn]

No, absolutely. But it did feel when they first signed both of them, kind of redundant, two veteran quarterbacks. But remember, they had no room. DeVito was the only guy in the room.

[Rosenberg]

Anybody.

[Don Hahn]

Yeah. And they didn't know at the time they'd be able to draft back, trade back into the first round to be able to get the quarterback. So there was a very good possibility that it would have just been DeVito, Winston and Wilson if they weren't able to drape back into the first round, not sure they would have gone with another quarterback. Joe, were you surprised by darts preseason with rookie quarterbacks?

[Joe Shane]

I would just, I would always say how long it's going to take them to get up to speed and be able to go out and execute it. It's, it's one thing to be able to learn in the classroom and regurgitate it, but to go out and actually execute it and do it quickly and correctly, I would say Jackson, you know, impressed me in terms of not that he couldn't do it or we didn't think he could, but impress me in terms of how quick he was able to pick it up and actually go execute and play fast. You know, I would say that was something that was, you don't typically see with, with rookie quarterbacks at times. And he was able to do that.

[Don Hahn]

Yeah, he didn't look overwhelmed by the moment at all. Listen, I understand he's not playing with ones, playing against ones, but for the 24th overall pick in the draft to do what he did in the preseason tells you that there's something there. And what they cultivated into ultimately will be the deciding factor on what he's gonna be. But right now you gotta like what you see. But in no way I still, there's. It's starting to pile up. These people, they should just start him right away. I don't get that. I don't.

[Rosenberg]

And they won't. They're not going, no, they're not gonna listen to the pressure. They have a plan. But what he's telling you, the long winded response to what he basically had to say is, is that he has shown us the ability to process faster than most rookie quarterbacks show you, especially ones that are late first round picks. That's the thing. Look, physically, they know he has the tools, they know he has the arm, they know he has the mindset, they know he has the personality that he is a guy that the locker room loves. Right. He just, all that stuff's there. The ability to process is the, to me, that's the holy grail of a quarterback. It's why Zach Wilson couldn't become anything. Kid couldn't process.

[Don Hahn]

Right.

[Rosenberg]

It was bad enough he was small, you know, but he couldn't process and that's going to always cost a young quarterback time. They learn quickly. Like, okay, so he's got all this and he's able to turn around the classroom stuff and put it on the field. He could process that fast. So we've got something here and that's why they feel good about him.

[Don Hahn]

And finally, Joe has darts performance. Change your quarterback plans.

[Joe Shane]

I think Dave just said it a million times. Russ, our quarterback. So that's what we're rolling with. And the timeline will be the timeline.

[Rosenberg]

However it works out that. What does that mean, Don? The timeline will be the timeline, however it works.

[Don Hahn]

Well, meaning that our plan is not to start him. But what happens if Wilson and Winston both get hurt? What happens if we start Owen 5 and Wilson is God awful, so we put Winston in and he gets hurt. The circumstances are we're not going to play him, but he can't say definitively there isn't going to be a time where you got to play your third string quarterback. Heck, I remember a Jet game that I covered where they had to play their third string quarterback in a game because the first two quarterbacks got hurt. Like, I listen, if you don't dress him, you know he's not going to play. But I think at some point you're going to see him dress. Now, does he dress as the third string? Can there be a point where, hey, we're going to, we're going to deactivate Winston and we're going to dress, we're going to dress dart and have him back up Wilson. That's right. That's where I also like Winston is the fact that you make layers out of it. Right. Like. All right, your job right now is to make the team. Okay, check. Now your job is to beat out Winston for the backup. Check. That's. And then now are you ready to be my starting quarterback? Is that week four? Is that week 10? Is that 20, 26? Because if the Giants are winning games again, I think that's a stretch. But if the Giants are starting to win games, you're not going to all of a sudden decide it like seven and two. Okay, now's the time we're going to bring him in. Week no. So he can't answer that.

[Rosenberg]

That's why he said the way he said it.

[Don Hahn]

Yeah. Because he doesn't want to be held.

[Rosenberg]

Yeah, right. It's fluid because we're going to pay.

[Don Hahn]

Attention to the answer.

[Rosenberg]

He, he. Yeah, because he could, he could have said, well, you know, we could get him in at some point this season. We'll see how it goes. Or. Or he could say, our plan is not play him at all this season. He could reveal that as, what would we like? Because, look, Don, if you were. If you were Joe Shane, what's the best case scenario?

[Don Hahn]

The best case scenario is you don't play him at all.

[Rosenberg]

Thank you. You know why?

[Don Hahn]

Because you're winning games and Wilson's. There you go, doing the job.

[Rosenberg]

There you go.

[Don Hahn]

And there's nothing wrong with that. Like people. Many people have said you can't learn without playing. That's BS to me.

[Rosenberg]

Patrick Holmes, because if you.

[Don Hahn]

Exactly what did he finally get? When? Last week of the season, backing up Alex Smith. Now, for some guys, that might be the case because maybe they don't pay attention. Their mind wanders, right? But if he's engaged and he's paying attention to what's happening in front of him, he can learn a hell of a lot being a quarterback in this league by watching what the quarterbacks in front of him do. And then when he's ready, he can jump in and he can play. When he's ready. To throw him to the wolves quick, I think is a huge mistake. He can still learn. So I don't get the whole, he's got to play. He's not doing. He's just wasting now. You're not wasting him. You're giving him the best opportunity to succeed. You know why? And this is the argument that I got in with Mike Tane about. I said, he's the 24th pick. If the Giants. The Giants had the third pick. If they loved him that much, they could have taken him three if they wanted to. They would have lost out on Abdul Carter. They didn't take him at three because they didn't think he deserved to be a third overall pick.

[Rosenberg]

They knew he'd still be there later.

[Don Hahn]

And Mike's response was, once you're in the room, you're in the room. It doesn't matter where you're picked, which I also disagree with, because where you're picked ultimately determines what path you're on. If I pick you first overall, there's gonna be a pressure outside. There's gonna be a feeling of, I believe in you. I'm gonna be quick to lose my patience and put you in the lineup. If you're taking 24th overall, you're admitting, hey, you're a bit of a project. We're gonna work with you. I don't feel any pressure to play you. So it does matter because it's not. It just so happened he was there. He didn't drop the 24 like Dan Marino because there were allegations or something. He dropped there because he's a bit of a project now. He made exceeding expectations. But I'm going to be cool with this kid and I'm not going to throw him to the wolves because I think you do a lot more damage that way. If he's just not ready and if he turns out to be ready, Alan, and you lose the first two games of the season and you think this kid's ready to play gate week, then. Then you do what you got to do.

[Rosenberg]

Gives you a better chance to win then you go there. But look, the other thing, I don't like that people say, like you brought up already. I don't like the idea that you can't develop by sitting. I also don't like saying they're coaching for their jobs and so they have to show that this is the quarterback of the future so that they keep their jobs. Do you know the other way they can keep their jobs? If Russell Wilson leads them to a playoff spot, a wild card spot and they win eight, nine games, that can keep your job. You know, firing coaches and a gm if the team is. The defense is great and Russell Wilson's doing just enough in your running game, whatever it is that was working works enough to get you in the playoffs. They're not going to go well. We still don't know about Jackson. Darcy, we're firing you. No, they're not going to do that. So one thing, one or the other is going to happen. They're going to either have enough success that they don't have to play the kid and don't have to rush him, or they're not going to have success. And it opens the door to say it's time to put him in there and let's develop him this season. That will be decided at some point before we get to probably Halloween.

[Don Hahn]

Well, let me ask you this. We put everything on wins and losses. How many wins do the Giants have to have in order for Dable to save?

[Rosenberg]

Everything is wins and losses.

[Don Hahn]

Yeah, but is there a world where the Giant season isn't very good? They're competitive, but they only win four or five games. But Dart's in. Dart's playing well. Dable did a great job with Dart and he's. He's ready to go. You didn't win because the schedule was tough. He's hung in games, but he just didn't win. But the kid looks good. Is that enough to save Dable's job where, hey, you didn't win many games. But we. You drafted a quarterback. You work with him. You gave us a quarterback going into 20, 26, even though you only won four or five games. I'm giving you a contract because you.

[Rosenberg]

Know what it looks like, and that's the other part of it, but that's what you're looking for. You're looking for either with Russ, you're competitive and you don't have to make the move because everything's fine, or with Russ, you weren't competitive enough and you're starting to slip and it's, you know, we're in October now and you, you know, by October, the teams that know they're bad are bad and they just. They know. Right. The season's pretty much going to head the way you think it's going to head. You can make the switch then because you trust the fact that I could put him in and he'll be fine. And we'll probably have to go through some growing pains with him, but we'll coach him through it by the end of the year, you know, he'll show enough flash for everyone to know. We've. Well, the success of this season was the fact that we know we have our guy. That's it. But you can't say you gotta play him because you need to know by the end of the year because. Because these coaches aren't extended and these. And the GM doesn't have a contract after this year. No, you don't worry about that. It's wins and losses, and then you make the decision to make the move. You don't throw the kid in there because you're trying to save your job. That's not the reason why you play a rookie quarterback.

[Don Hahn]

Now, I wanted to apologize for screwing up yesterday when I said that Rich Samini asked the question to Aaron Glenn. It was not Rich Samini. It was Dan Leberfeld who asked the question. And Rich. Rich DM to me. I hope he. He doesn't mind. I'm going to punch it up here. What he DM to me. And if you listen to yesterday's show, you'll understand what I'm talking about. Why can't I find it? Messages. Here we go.

[Rosenberg]

He.

[Don Hahn]

He takes. He tweeted me in the dm. Don Glenn urinated on Leberfeld's head, not mine. So if you're listening to yesterday show, you understand. So I'm getting into it with Jet fans on social media because they're all listening to the podcast and good. Everybody did a great job here putting the video up of me ripping Aaron Glenn for being so negative to the media. And of course the Jet fans who drink the Kool aid are all like, we love it. I don't know what you're upset. Don hates the Jets. Don never criticized the Giants head coach like that. So obviously you don't listen because I killed Judge. I killed Dable all the time. I thought Dable should have been fired at the end of the season. So we. Whatever. But I'm just wondering why he has to be so abrasive to the media. How does that win game? The fans eat it up. That's why I think it's all part of the plan because the fans eat it gobbled up with a spoon. They want to love this guy because he was a great Jet and they hate the media and they love when the media squirms and they think that Leberfeld and Samini are anti Jet even though they covered the team for 35 plus years. I'm sure they want to cover a team that sucks and so they eat it up. So whatever. So I can't convince people that's the one negative thing about sending out the videos and people hearing quotes. They don't hear the whole segment. So they kind of cherry pick the opinion. I think Glenn's a good. I think he could be a good coach. I just don't understand playing tough guy to the media, how that translates into wins. But the fans seem to gobble it up and love it. Well, today I think this time I got it right. With Samini asking the question Aaron Glenn asked about or that he was asked about the center position. What are your plans at center? Play a center. You'll start a center. Yep. Okay, who is it? A center. Yep. Not safe. A center.

[Joe Shane]

How do you think that position battle.

[Baseball Analyst]

Played out over the course of the front of the.

[Joe Shane]

It's still playing out.

[Don Hahn]

Can you go right up, folks?

[Joe Shane]

Like Thursday before game week without deciding.

[Don Hahn]

That'Ll be my decision? No, not, not quite as bad as.

[Rosenberg]

Yesterday, but it seemed like he was saying it with a little bit of a grin.

[Don Hahn]

He did because I, I and Rich.

[Rosenberg]

Remember Rich covered him right when he was drafted by.

[Don Hahn]

And the reason that I played that is for what you just said, the little grin. To me, that's the admission that this is all just a performance. Lay down the law, new sheriff in town, and that's great. And the fans eat it up. And believe me, the one thing I will say, the jets are a miserable be run Organization. And just based on their wins and losses, I think everybody would agree their PR department's really good. All right. And they get these guys ready. And I think, you know, Jared does a great job. Jared Winley's been there forever, and I just think that that's all part of the plan. It's like, hey, we had a coach, looked a little nervous, wasn't himself. I want you to be yourself, and I want you to really send out a message that you're not taking any BS Knowing that the fans are going to gobble that up. Because any decision that you make, you want it to work. You want the fans to rally around it. But what I would say to anybody is, it's all about the wins and losses. Now, I never said. I don't think Aaron Glenn's a good coach. I think he's going to. I think he's going to do a good job here. But whether he wins or not, it'll depend a lot on not knowing. I've never seen him be a head coach. You know why? Because he's never been a head coach before. But I like the hire. But none of this means anything to me. And once you start winning or losing, that ultimately is going to be. And so for the people that are ripping me for how he's treating, the media will be right on board with me if they're 0 and 7, right? And then if they're 7 and, oh, they're going to love it and want more of it. I just want you to know what it is. It's just they. They know the fans are going to eat this up with a spoon, but at the end of the day, it doesn't matter. So I just don't know why you got to. You got to be that way. I just. I don't. I don't get it.

[Rosenberg]

I want to believe it's just him being genuine and consistent. Like, this is who I am in front of the players. This is who I am when I deal with media. So everybody sees that I'm the same guy. Because if I'm this way to the players, because I've got to be tough on these guys because we aren't an abundantly talented team. This is a team that has a core of undisciplined players who take bad penalties. There is a same old jets feel around this place all the damn time that people before me have tried to eradicate. Only one man really has ever done it. One, I guess another guy did it short term. But Parcel is the only one that came in and just completely extinguished the.

[Don Hahn]

Same old jets moniker by going nine and seven.

[Rosenberg]

Yeah. And then. And then. Right. And then Rex, you know, for a minute, also made it feel different. But it always comes back to the same old jets, doesn't it? So. But Glenn, who played here and lived through it, understands that. So does he want to just make sure I'm consistent? So who they see publicly, the players, they know if I'm yucking it up with the media, but I don't. And then I walk in and I'm pounding the pulpit, they're looking at me like, whoa, whoa.

[Don Hahn]

Why does everything. Like, we had a caller yesterday saying, well, do you want him texting with Joe Bidengo? Why can't there be a happy medium? Listen, nobody wants to talk to the media. And yes, a lot of the questions are stupid. And again, these guys are pros. Leberfield's been there forever. He's a big boy. He can handle it. That's not my point.

[Rosenberg]

I think they love it.

[Don Hahn]

That's not my point. My point is that you're judging that he's going to be a good coach based on this, and I'm like, don't bother.

[Rosenberg]

No, you can't.

[Don Hahn]

It's stupid. Love him because he's a former player and he's a Jet and he's got blood in the ground, as Alan likes to say. But ultimately, let's see how it all ends up working out at the end of the day, because believe me, and I'm. I'm not a Jet fan, but believe me, I consider myself one of you. I worked there 16 years. I took your calls, I hung out with you after games. I know the pain that you guys have been through. We're going to talk about it on Friday. Like, what team deserves a championship more? What fan base in this city deserves a championship more? And I think the jets are right in that conversation. For what you guys have been through, and I just want you, this is the one season the jets, the one good thing they did this offseason was they laid out. They didn't give you any artificial expectations. No bs. So just sit back and let's see what it looks like instead of just building up artificial expectations that they don't live up to, and then you end up hating what could be a really good coach. Like, oh, I think we could be a nine win team, and you go out there and win six, and now you want the guy fired.

[Rosenberg]

Right?

[Don Hahn]

Right. So let's. Let's just be calm. They've given you a season where you kind of kick back, just enjoy the football and see where it goes. 1-800-919-3776. Down on the Rosenberg till 6:30 here on ESPN New York.

[Rosenberg]

Okay, we have to talk about the new ESPN app, everybody. The most live sports, the best championship moments. So much more. Monday Night football, college football, NBA, wnba, NHL, nwsl, college hoops, volleyball, softball, gymnastics, lacrosse. The list goes on and on and on. Plus you get shows like SportsCenter with SVP, first take with Stephen A Get up with Greenie, College game day. The entire 30 for 30 library. It's all of ESPN all in one place. So sign up now.

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[Podcast Announcer]

Thanks for listening to the Don Hahn and Rosenberg podcast.

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[Don Hahn]

Yeah, it's corny, but it's. It's real. Bay City Rollers from Scotland. You would think, all right, maybe they're from the Bay City. You know, they're from the Bay area. No, they're from Scotland.

[Rosenberg]

Well, what's Bay City for them then? Where'd that come from? Now I gotta Google it.

[Don Hahn]

How about it? It's all there. Go to Wikipedia. Unless they lie to you.

[Rosenberg]

This is that bubble come 70s sound that just was working.

[Don Hahn]

Yeah, the 70, it was. Danny brought up a good point. Early, like, the 70s were a very strange time. A lot of good music came out of the 70s, don't get me wrong. Oh, yeah, but you're. You're. Yeah, the Vietnam War, like, so you had, like, the folk music, but then that kind of died out. And then you just had people just wanting to be happy, just sing some happy songs.

[Rosenberg]

Isn't that why disco became a thing? Yeah, just feel good.

[Don Hahn]

Yeah, just something. Feel good. Something not to think about. Just. Just having a good time. And then there was the counter of, like I said, honey and Billy, don't be a hero. The story behind Billy, don't be a hero is he's going off to war. And she said, keep your head down, Billy, I want you back home. We're gonna get married.

[Rosenberg]

It's actually a pretty. Pretty emotional.

[Don Hahn]

And he volunteers for a mission, gets killed, and then they write the letter that Billy's a hero. And she throws the letter away like, I told you not to be a hero. Now you're dead. So you did have that counter. So there was. But. But. But again, if you hear the song Billy, don't be a Hero, the dad, it's still upbeat, you know, and then it. Then it hits you with, oh, whoa. I. I didn't expect him to die. Because again, that's. That whole love story. Love Story was a movie that was a huge hit.

[Rosenberg]

Yes.

[Don Hahn]

About.

[Rosenberg]

Fairly sad.

[Don Hahn]

Very sad.

[Rosenberg]

Tatum o'. Neill.

[Don Hahn]

No, no.

[Rosenberg]

Who am I thinking of?

[Don Hahn]

Ally McGraw. Oh, and Ally McGraw. And the one that was married to Farrah Fawcett before she died. Ryan o'. Neill.

[Rosenberg]

Oh, that's. That's what I'm. O' Ryan o'. Neill. I knew there's an Oyin Paul o' Neill somebody. Do you want to hear the story about how it's. Real quick. Yes.

[Don Hahn]

I gotta hear this.

[Rosenberg]

You're gonna love this, Don. So they were called the Saxons.

[Don Hahn]

Okay.

[Rosenberg]

And. And they. They were like a cover band. They did some kink stuff and whatever like that. Right.

[Don Hahn]

Mm.

[Rosenberg]

Um, but one of them said they needed a better name for the band, so they settled on rollers, but it needed a more powerful American sounding term in front of it.

[Don Hahn]

Okay.

[Rosenberg]

So another one of the band members threw a dart at the map of the US it landed On Arkansas. Well, that didn't work. So a second dart was thrown. It landed near Bay City, Michigan, and they agreed on the name Bay City Rollers. Well, that's how an Edinburgh, Scotland, band became the Bay City Rollers. They threw a dart at the map, and the second dart was the winner.

[Don Hahn]

Now, I crazy, you know, I gotta tell you, that's a bad job out of that.

[Rosenberg]

You think so?

[Don Hahn]

Because I think it's a bad job. The whole concept of throwing the dart is you throw the dart where it lands. That's our name. Arkansas. Arkansas Rollers. Awful. But if you're gonna say no, that doesn't. Then. Now just go back to making a list because you're not honoring the dart.

[Rosenberg]

Wait a minute. Basically, roll that. The second dart worked.

[Don Hahn]

No. Look at the map of the United States. See a name that hits you and then call it that. But if you're gonna throw the dart, the idea is. I have no idea. Let's throw a dart. Let's go with that. It lands in Arkansas. No, that's no good. Well, now you're back to making decisions again. Honor the dart.

[Rosenberg]

Honor the dart. It's how they come up with the sports franchise names, right? Honor the dart. Just throw the dart.

[Don Hahn]

No, they did that back when we were at war. Like, just name it, whatever. Browns. Because our owner's brown. The name is brown. So just.

[Rosenberg]

That works.

[Don Hahn]

Make it brown.

[Rosenberg]

Well, what color should we be, Don?

[Don Hahn]

Brown.

[Rosenberg]

No. Orange.

[Don Hahn]

Yeah. Oh, that's right. The pants are brown. Yeah, they got brown. Why? Because then maybe we won't have to wash it after games because the dirt will. You won't notice it on the brown pants. Because again, we're at war. We don't want to wait. We want to save the soap for our detergent overseas.

[Rosenberg]

Do you know that two members of that band went on to form another band called Pilot?

[Don Hahn]

Oh, yeah. Oh, oh, oh. It's magic, you know. Oh, that's awesome. What great is that? You know what? That's why you listen to this.

[Rosenberg]

I'm down the rabbit hole now, boys.

[Don Hahn]

That. You can't plan that. No meeting you come up with stuff like that. Let's go to Jay in the Bronx. You're on ESPN New York. What's up, Jay?

[Caller Jay]

How you guys doing?

[Don Hahn]

Good, man.

[Caller Jay]

Thanks for taking a call.

[Don Hahn]

Always.

[Caller Jay]

So I have a. I have a very short list, a wish list, as a Jet fan, and it has no win totals. I was hoping I could share it with you guys.

[Don Hahn]

I like it.

[Caller Jay]

So I want to be top 10 and fewest penalties. I think we beat ourselves a lot in the last couple of years.

[Don Hahn]

That is huge.

[Caller Jay]

We can be in the top 10. If I could get that, I'd be happy. If we could have a defense that plays to the roster. I think we have a lot of talented guys. We were just very undisciplined. A lot of one arm tackles, a lot of miscoverages. If we could just have a good, competent defense, which I'm. You know, I think the head coach can help with that, being an old.

[Don Hahn]

Defensive guy, because the talent is there.

[Caller Jay]

On defense, so the talent is there. A comparable and healthy offensive line and run the ball 30 times a game.

[Rosenberg]

Well, I. I think I'll take whatever.

[Caller Jay]

Wins we could get.

[Rosenberg]

That last part I think you're going to get. Because they have a ton of talent in the backfield. The offensive line, this might be. Is the best offensive line they've had.

[Don Hahn]

In years, at least potentially on paper. Yeah.

[Rosenberg]

And you also saw what I thought was notable. They picked up two DBs, by the way, off. Off waivers. So they want to get some depth defensively, but they also. I'm sorry, the Giants picked up the DBs. Yeah, never mind. Forget what I just said. No, no, the two guys I'm thinking of is the defensive tackles that they went out and traded for, right? Harrison Phillips from Minnesota, who's a solid run stopper, and then Juwan Briggs, who Bart was very excited about. Bart's big thing was we got two fatties, which is the quote that Bart had. Now, the reason why Bart was excited about this was because he said this a lot last year. You know, Bart doing all the post game shows for the jets last season. He was the guy who was a clockwork orange for this poor guy, because they know how awful they were. And he was forced. Watch it. You're gonna watch it all the way to week 17. Damn it. And he had to watch really bad football and bad defense, which for Bart, he breaks out in hives when he sees bad tackling and bad defense. So for him, he kept begging, they have got to get more defensive tackles, run stoppers. And he kept yelling, get me some big fatties. Aaron Glenn was here for five minutes, saw one preseason game and said, no, no, no, we need to get a couple of big dudes. And they went out and did that. That should stabilize what was a very rickety front line for them last year. And that can make a difference, you know, going forward for them defensively. They could be a stout defense this year.

[Don Hahn]

No, there's talent there. They just Got to put it together. But he's right. They got to cut down on the penalties. They've got to get that offensive line play. Now I know they're going to run the ball out of necessity. At some point you want to see if Justin Fields can throw the ball because you're. I could be wrong.

[Rosenberg]

Why do you need to see that?

[Don Hahn]

Because. Because this is a 20 can run an offense. Wait a minute. He's a 26 year old quarterback. So it's almost like you're drafting a quarterback because he's young, he hasn't played a ton of games.

[Rosenberg]

Right.

[Don Hahn]

You're looking for a franchise quarterback. So at some point you want an. All right, listen, let's. Man, let's see if you can manage a game. Listen, he was, he was 4 and 2 with the Steelers last year so he can win games. But the idea is can you throw the ball? Can you be the franchise quarterback or when you go into. Because it'll be a little. It's a two year contract, right?

[Rosenberg]

Yep.

[Don Hahn]

Is at the end of the year. Are you. Are you somebody we're building around or are we going looking for another quarterback? So at some point wouldn't you like to see that he's somebody that can stick around and maybe be that franchise quarterback and he's only 26. You bring in Russell Wilson at the end of his career. It's not thinking about the future. You brought in Justin Fields to navigate through this year. But also can you be. Because you're so young that maybe we can find ourselves our next quarterback. He's. So you're going to have to throw the ball at some point.

[Rosenberg]

Well, I mean they're going to make the jets throw because they know they've got all that backfield talent that they're going to. They're going to take all that away. I mean if you're playing the jets, that's what you're going to do. But I mean I think. Don't we already know. I mean look he. Last year in the games he appeared, I mean he was 65.8% completion percentage. His accuracy isn't great but if you, if you control like he's not going to go downfield, he's not going to be that guy. I don't think he's. This is going to be a, like a. This is not going to be a 300 yard passing offense. It's not going to be like that. I don't think they. I don't think you have to wonder if he can throw you kind of know what he is already like. Honestly, like don, he's played 50 games in the NFL.

[Don Hahn]

Okay, 50 games. How many different coaches, coordinators he started for 44.

[Rosenberg]

So he's like what he is, is what he is. I don't think you're going to suddenly become Dan Marino out of nowhere.

[Don Hahn]

Well, then, then I think that you.

[Rosenberg]

Utilize his athleticism and you have to see if he can manage a game. Like you said, that's how I feel for me as a Jets fan, the very little bit of interest I have intrigue in this season, I don't have great anticipation. That's how I feel. I'm not anticipating anything. I have intrigue. I'm curious, but I'm not wondering is can they develop him into this great passer? What I want to see is can he become a weapon as a quarterback without having to be a guy that has to throw it up and down the field? Can their offensive line be tough? Mark Sanchez is who Mike Tenenbaum references all the time when he does the Jackson dart stuff. Mark Sanchez wasn't a big throw it down the field guy. Sanchez, it was a controlled offense, but he was slick enough that he kept the defense on its toes because he was very good at the play action pass and he could scoot when he needed to. We all know that Justin Fields can move. So if, if he's good at a lot of deception, if they're good at some of the play calling that you're expecting them to have, utilizing him in the backfield with the ability to dump off, if he's smart and limits his turnovers, that's all you're asking for. But, but Don, I'm not expecting him to turn into a high powered offense and a guy that is going to be the center of the universe of the offense.

[Don Hahn]

I don't think he's that. Listen, they bring up Mark Sanchez, Mark Sanchez, they traded up to five to get him, but they had a team that was ready to compete so they asked him, don't screw it up, kid. But the hope was at some point you're going to open it up and he's going to be a franchise quarterback. And when they did, it wasn't there.

[Rosenberg]

Right.

[Don Hahn]

I'm thinking the same thing with Justin Fields, except less risk. You didn't spend a fifth round pick on him. You're not paying him really any money at all. About $20 million a year. So yeah, we're trying to help our young head coach get through a season, but at some point I want to know if this 26 year old quarterback, not 35 year old. It's not Joe Flacco here. Okay? I know this is a 26 year old quarterback that maybe can be our next guy. And if not, no harm, no foul. We didn't waste that much money on him. We didn't have to give up a pick for the kid. I'd like to see if there's something there. If you don't think there's anything there, great. But I'd like to try to see and find that out.

[Podcast Announcer]

Thanks for listening to the Don Hahn and Rosenberg podcast.

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[Don Hahn]

Now, I know this song is a song, but a lot of you people know the song is oh O o ozam thick. That's how you know it. Matter of fact, I would think that's how the overwhelming majority of our audience knows this song. But this is a great, great song. I had no idea they had members of the Bay City Rollers in it.

[Rosenberg]

This is. As a child, like, this is one of my first memory songs.

[Don Hahn]

All right. Yeah, like 75. I want to say 75.

[Rosenberg]

It's like one of the first songs I remember singing. Like I knew the words as a child.

[Don Hahn]

You're close. 74.

[Rosenberg]

74. Yeah. I was three years old, so it was like the first song I can remember. You know how many songs are named have magic in the title? Like this is one of them.

[Don Hahn]

The Cars have.

[Rosenberg]

Yep. Oh, it's magic.

[Don Hahn]

Oh, it's magic. Manilows. Could it be magic?

[Rosenberg]

How many more can you name? Let's see, I got a list here. How many more can you name? Because you're so good at this.

[Don Hahn]

Oh, well, Triumph's got magic power. That's one of my favorite songs of all time.

[Rosenberg]

Triumph. I wasn't that.

[Don Hahn]

We played that game. I don't know if we want to do it on the air, but. But like we just keep going back and forth until somebody doesn't have one and you lose.

[Rosenberg]

Oh, well, I have. Unfortunate. I got the. Well, I was. I was challenging you and I thought. Let me see, how many. First of all, there's one that would have. Should have come right to mind.

[Don Hahn]

The Black Magic Woman. Oh, okay.

[Rosenberg]

Magical mystery.

[Don Hahn]

Yeah. And Black Magic Woman. That's a really good song. Any of the ones that I mentioned there, like magic power from Triumph?

[Rosenberg]

No, I've got, well, magic. The Cars. Yes. Heart, which I would know. Magic man.

[Don Hahn]

Yeah. Magic. Well, then it's not gonna be on that Steppenwolf. One of my.

[Rosenberg]

You don't know what we can find. Come with me, little girl on a magic carpet again.

[Don Hahn]

Another one of those songs. It's not 16, but. Come with me, little girl Come on, come on. My magic carpet. Yeah. Probably by my Chevy Impala. Hopefully daddy's not home.

[Rosenberg]

My windowless van Try to get.

[Don Hahn]

Get you home. Seeing you finish your homework. Oh, it's not going to be on there, but. And maybe.

[Rosenberg]

Maybe on here. That. Could it be magic? You had that one, but it won't be there.

[Don Hahn]

But Jacob, get it for me. One of my favorite Slayer songs is Black Magic.

[Rosenberg]

Aerosmith had Black Magic also.

[Don Hahn]

Did they?

[Rosenberg]

They did. Yeah. I know. I know America had a song.

[Don Hahn]

Well, I know America, but. Oh, I know. Matter of fact, was. Was that. Was it the song that. That when in their comeback in the early 80s was their hit? Yeah. I can't remember the name of the song. I know it's got magic in it. Play. Play Allen some black magic by Slayer.

[Rosenberg]

Because he's not familiar with their work. That's got to be good.

[Don Hahn]

How does this not get you, like, fired up speed metal? We just got to get to this one part again. I'll. I'll. I'll. I'll pay. Sag.

[Rosenberg]

I'll pay.

[Don Hahn]

There.

[Rosenberg]

We probably sounds great on a. Oh, beat drop.

[Don Hahn]

Oh, they play this in concert or back in the day? They did. It was. It's. It's really good.

[Rosenberg]

Murders were happening.

[Don Hahn]

No murders. What are you like k. Like. Oh. What type of drugs were in the album?

[Rosenberg]

You played this song and just knife fights all over the arena.

[Don Hahn]

Knife fights. Wow. All right.

[Rosenberg]

Aaron Boone spoke just breaking bottles.

[Don Hahn]

Speaking of knife fights, Aaron's baboon spoke is Vault Volpe, who is over five today. Oh, and did you see this?

[Rosenberg]

No.

[Don Hahn]

This stat.

[Rosenberg]

There's another stat.

[Don Hahn]

Katie sent another. Another.

[Rosenberg]

Leave the kid alone.

[Don Hahn]

Well, I'm just saying there was a stat. We got text from Katie Sharp. Anthony Volpe has a.027 on base percentage over the last 11 games. 38 plate appearances, one hit, no walks. That's the lowest OBP by a Yankee non pitcher in any 11 game Spanish in franchise history ever.

[Rosenberg]

Ever.

[Don Hahn]

All right, so here we here. Let's see if. Let's see. You think he's in the spin cycle or do you think he's being honest?

[Rosenberg]

I'm going spin cycle. All right.

[Baseball Analyst]

I don't think he's. Look, we're all human, so there's some level of. And. And I think everyone from the Aaron Judge's greatest superstars to me, and lesser than that, like, you go through it as hitters, man, it's hard. I don't think he's overly affected by that. What I'm excited about is he continues to play really good defense, which has.

[Don Hahn]

Been a good time.

[Rosenberg]

You don't want to play it out.

[Baseball Analyst]

To me, it's as simple as he's not quite finishing his move to get him in that strong position where you make really good swing decisions. I'm not going to get too far in the weeds in it, but, you know, that being said, like, there's. In his last few starts, he's also hit four balls on the nose. You know, I think of the Sunday night game. Hamilton makes the great play, you know, in the 34 hole on a bullet to his left, hits a ball good to left center. Last night, he flies out to the 399left center. Today with the bases loaded, he smokes the ball to third. So in and around, obviously, some struggles offensively, without question. Like, you know, he's not being rewarded when he is barreling it up. So that's part of it. That's part of the grind of hitting, and he's equipped to handle that. And we just got to get him to that good space to where he's repeating his mechanics and therefore controlling the strike zone at a better level.

[Rosenberg]

Yeah, I can't swing decisions. Balls on the nose. This is. This is like. He went spin cycle. He went spin cycle. At what point was that? Was that a dice clay line?

[Don Hahn]

Yeah, I didn't say it on the air.

[Rosenberg]

You almost.

[Don Hahn]

I. I said in the talk, the.

[Rosenberg]

Minute I saw you react, I said, oh, right, I got nervous. Right. No, but I say that on the air. Something. Tails.

[Don Hahn]

Oh, so you guys, I'm sorry, I.

[Rosenberg]

Couldn'T resist, but you couldn't play that out.

[ESPN Fantasy Football Advertiser]

He hit some balls really hard the last four days.

[Don Hahn]

Listen, his first at bat, we gave him. He had a line drive to shore, paces loaded. But you're over. You're one for 39. You're doing things that haven't been done.

[Rosenberg]

Destroying a wall. Done. He's not even just getting into account where he can get on base by drawing a walk. Ben Rice is unlucky and he's got 22 home runs.

[Don Hahn]

But this is where. And I. And I know the defenders will say, well, what is he saying to Volpe behind closed doors? But I'm sorry, it becomes. It becomes a joke when a guy's one for his last 39. You benched him for two games to get his head right. He comes back and over the next two games he goes over nine and you're, you're trying to spin it positive. I'm sorry. I really, I honestly respect him. I do. I like Aaron Boone and I think he's a good manager. For what? The constraints he has because of the Yankees being so analytical and all that. And I understand that he was hired to be positive. But Allen, it just gets to the point where it's embarrassing. Like, why even listen to him anymore? I know the reporters have to ask the questions, but it's all bs. You're not, you're not being genuine. You're not being genuine. When you feel that one of your players strikes out on a ball, that you go out and your hair is on fire and you get thrown out of the game and we've seen the emotion. He's a third generation major league baseball player. It comes across as disingenuous that you're sitting there twisting yourself into a pretzel, defending one for 39 and saying things that I'm sorry, people are just not going to believe. What would be so wrong to just say, hey guys, it is what it is. He's 1 for 39. I still believe in him, but this is unacceptable. You see, you heard Mendoza, who's from the Yankee school, say it's performance based. We're trying to make the playoffs, we're going to go with our best roster. These guys have to perform better. Why is it so sensitive? And you've mishandled them to begin with, so whatever you're doing isn't working that part. So why don't you just, why can't you be honest? You're asked a genuine question about your struggling shortstop and you're talking about barreling up and hitting in bad luck. Come on, man. At some point there is public relations, right? Where I just can't put my manager in a position to just lie to the public like that every single day.

[Rosenberg]

I don't think he's lying. I think he really believes this.

[Don Hahn]

I can't believe it.

[Rosenberg]

Anthony, to be fair, the question asked by, I believe Randy Miller was, is Volpe affected by the booing? They didn't even give him a direct question of what did you think of his over 5 today? He invited that extra information. That's why I think with Boone, he's, he's putting himself now in a bad spot. He shouldn't have to keep doing that. He probably feels he needs to. I'm sure. That Aaron Boone probably feels bad for the kid for what he's been through. He probably knows, Don, if you knew behind the scenes that this kid's just grinding like he's here early, he's putting in the work and it's just, it's just he cannot get on a roll and he's struggling and it's. I could see it in his eyes. And now these people are booing him. Like you would want to defend them too, right? Especially as one of your players. Like you would care enough when you see somebody put in the work and it's not paying off. Makes you crazy. It's the guys that don't work. They're the ones that you just get mad at. So I could see why. But this is now the time for what you just said. This is the time for Aaron Boone to say less. To instead just acknowledge it and we move on and not offer a lot. This is where he needs to almost go into Aaron Glenn where it's like coach decision.

[Don Hahn]

Well, I just, I don't need to keep. I don't know why you just can't say he's a good kid and we believe in him and we think he's going to be a fabulous ballplayer. But this is unacceptable and it has nothing to do with work ethic. They all work their tail off. But that's not enough. It's performance driven. Like Mendoza said. Right now we're battling to make the playoffs, literally. I cannot afford to have a guy go out there and play shortstop that is not hitting to this level. We went out and acquired somebody that right now is better and he's going to play for the foreseeable future. Done.

[Rosenberg]

Well, he's never gonna tell you that.

[Don Hahn]

Well, he should because otherwise this is all again, it's almost like the Aaron Glenn where it's now performative. Like why even bother talking to these coaches? It's either trying to sell some new sheriff in town garbage or just sell pap that we're supposed to be spoon fed to believe something that actually doesn't exist. End the press conferences. They're all done. They're all stupid.

[Podcast Announcer]

Thanks for listening to the Don Hahn and Rosenberg podcast.

[Rosenberg]

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

[Podcast Announcer]

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

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