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This is the Don Hahn and Rosenberg podcast.
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That sounds like heaven to me.
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Listen live weekday afternoon starting at 3 on 880 ESPN, the ESPN New York app and your smart speakers.
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Hey, let me give you a game time brought to you by Tullamore du Irish Whiskey. Because when it's game time, it's jolly time.
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It's totally time. Thank you.
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It's my favorite one. Mets open a series with the Cubs in Chicago. Coverage immediately follows us on. 880 at 7. The Yankees host the Whites. I saw a little New York Chicago thing going on here.705 in the Bronx Rangers, they take on the Bruins. Little preseason hockey that's on MSG at 7. And of course Don on the call of Islanders Devils preseason at the Rock. That's also at 7 on. I guess it's MSG 2 MSG plus MSG, MSGN. Right. One of them. But you can find it very easily. And also the Gotham app as well. 800-919-3776. Peter and I take you to the, to the top. And then, man, you get the Mets or this is it, Peter.
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Oh, I know, like this, this is it.
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But this like legit. Like we can joke all we want. This is it on the Mets. You couldn't believe it if I told you in May, the last week of the season is not going to determine whether or not they win the division. It's going to determine whether or not they make the playoffs, which is so hard to believe. That's why these games.
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Did you hear Michael? Michael K is not, not impressed by what's going on with the Mets.
C
What do you mean by not impressed?
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I just mean he went off on how bad this is that if the Mets.
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It's an epic fail.
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It is one. No, but like literally monster fail.
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Truly epic. Like, don't you think it does reach the point of if you're Steve Gar going like, do I have to clean house? Do I have the wrong people?
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You got to question everything because you.
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Oversaw this and didn't do anything about it. And at the deadline made some really bad decisions. But we have good decisions to make with you. And that means calls. 800-919-3776. We were talking earlier about a number of different topics. One, being old school quarterbacks that we were thinking about franchise quarterbacks all time for each franchise. We were also talking about players. We had a caller say Eli Manning was, you know, yeah, he won two Super Bowls, but you know, he really was. He only had a 500 record. And I thought, is there Another player in the history of sports that was a main character, great player for championships, but was never considered an all time great at his position or even at his time. Like Eli Manning. I don't know. Like he just is always. He's the. Yeah, but.
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Guy, great question.
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Isn't he the year. But Eli manning, he won two Super Bowls. Yeah, but he was a 500 quarterback his whole career. Yeah, but he was never one of the best. Right. Like. So we were trying to come up with some names. Let's see if you have some. Two callers have the same name. So Tracy, you were first. Tracy and Amityville. So you get the first crack at this one. Go ahead, Tracy.
D
Hi, can you hear me?
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Yes.
B
Oh, yeah.
D
Oh, great. This is my. Well, I'm a longtime listener. First time caller.
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There you go.
C
Thank you.
D
And yeah. I love you guys. Love you. Han with the basketball. Rosenberg. I love you Hot 97. And I wish Don was there because I think he is just so handsome.
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I get it.
C
Yeah. It's hard to resist.
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We all, we all understand Silver Fox.
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I'm telling you, he's so good looking. But, but my, my name was Robert Ory.
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Robert or basketball.
C
Well, talk about a guy that made the clutch. Yes. Made the biggest shots for multiple franchises to win championships. That's like. It's a good name when it comes to a main character that was part of championships and isn't considered an all time great. I don't know if I'm putting him though. The only thing I'd say in Tracy, thank you for the call. Don't make it your last call.
B
He's more. He's more Ori or he's a different Bird altogether.
C
It's like a support. A very important supporting cascade. I would almost put Ori in the category of is Posada. Is that being disrespectful?
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Yeah.
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Is that being disrespectful? Like I'm trying to find somebody that was significant to success but wasn't quite.
B
Well, was never the first, second or third guy.
C
No, never, never, never. One of the main.
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I would say Ori was regularly the.
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Fourth guy, but he made. Always made big shot. Bob always made the biggest shot. So that's all right. It's one Daryl in Roselle. Daryl.
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Hey, what's going on, guys?
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How you doing?
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Good.
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Yeah.
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You know, I thought about your question.
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And to me, I first one, I came up with all those great Islanders championship teams. Billy Smith was the backbone, but I.
F
Don'T think anybody considers him an all.
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Time Great among goaltenders. You know, that's a really good one because he was part of all four Stanley Cups. I know he. The first one. He and. He and Chico shared the net, but then he took it over later in the playoffs and then that was. That was his Finals. That's a good one because he was like, he was. He was a really good goalie for his time, but he was considered the money goalie when it mattered most. He played his best. And didn't I say that about Eli? Yep. That's not about any Islander fan that remembers those days. They know, like, he was never the best goalie in the league, but when it mattered most, that's the guy you wanted between the pipes. Mike in Ridgefield Park. Mike, what do you have?
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Hey, guys, how are you? I think I got something for you, Mike.
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Before you say anything, Peter, highest quality phone call we probably ever had.
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That's a beautiful, like.
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Listen to this audio.
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One of the great. One of the great.
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Whatever you've got going, Mike, it's that. That is a unbelievable phone call. If you could call all the time.
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I appreciate it.
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It's what you dream of.
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It's what you dream. Yeah.
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What you dream about.
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Yeah.
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I got it for you guys. 15 years in league, 10 games over.500 for his career, two World Series championships, and absolutely money in the playoffs. It's Madison Bumgar.
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Excellent. That's an excellent one. That's hall of Famer.
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I thought so. Maybe not.
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I don't even know.
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I'm not sure either.
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Yeah, I have to look it up. But that's a great one because again, multiple championships, main character. But yet, like you just mentioned, What'd you say? 10 games over.500 for his regular season career?
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130, 134 and 124 in 15 years. And I'm pretty sure Eli Manning played about 15 years, too.
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That's.
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That's a. See, that's. That's a good one. So not only does it have a high quality phone phone line, but the ERA, 3.47. Thank you.
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Mike never had a win total higher than 18, which he did twice.
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18 is a good number, though. But two of them. Yeah, a lot.
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Lot of lower ones. No, no, no. Yep. Two.
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Yeah.
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Got a 16 in there and a 15.
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Not a hall of Famer, though, right? Did he get. Did he get it? Did he get in? Because I wouldn't know off top of my head. No, but that's a good one.
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Got a great nickname, though. Mad Bum.
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Mad Bum.
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I always enjoy Mad Bum.
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Dan. In Massachusetts. Dan.
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Hi. I've been listening to you guys for years and my, my daughter Arielle and I are big fans.
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Hi. How are you?
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Hi.
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So.
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And up. I want to wish Peter Shanatova.
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Thank you. And right back at you.
G
What I was calling. Thank you. The, what I was calling about was the old time quarterback that I was thinking of is Chuck Connerly, who used to, who played for the Giants in the late, in the 1950s. And I remember, I remember watching him when I was a very little boy.
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I wish Dom was still. He's getting ready for the game because that, like, he would probably be able to give us chapter and verse on Chuck Connolly and.
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Right.
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Probably give us a game. You know, it was probably a rainy day at the Polo Grounds or something like that. Like he'd give us something like that. Right?
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That's right.
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He played. They won the NFL championship in 1956 with him.
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Was he in the game? Oh, did he play in the greatest game ever played? Yes, he was the quarterback. Okay. Yep, there you go.
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So in my, in my memory as a little boy, he was pretty good.
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Well, that fits perfectly into the category of random old timey football.
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They're right. But, but still, if you consider the fact that he played in that game.
B
Yeah.
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Which was considered. Even though the Giants lost. It was considered the greatest game ever played. That, that does say something about Giants history and quarterbacks to be named. So Dan, thank you.
B
The whole conversation started because I said it's crazy when you hear all time quarterbacks. Most teams really don't have great ones. And I certainly feel that way about, about my franchise. It's not a great history, but when.
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We went through them, you realize like when you, when you think about it, there's 32 franchises. Are there 32 all time great quarterbacks? No, all like, like, I mean legendary.
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Like all world.
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32. Did we get to 20?
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No.
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When we were naming some of these franchises, we didn't get to 20. Where you. Because hall of Fame is hall of Fame. We understand that. But when we're talking about, we're talking about all world. Yeah.
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We're starting with Johnny Unitis.
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Like Brett, when I say brand name, like when you said Starbucks, like I did it again, like that's brand name. When you bring up names like that.
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So you're saying, you're saying Unitis. Stallback.
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Yeah.
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Bart Starr.
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Bart Starr, definitely. Okay.
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Yeah, those are, those are the three. Namath. See, do you include Namath even though his play is not good enough to be on the Same level as those guys.
C
Isn't Nemeth a football brand name?
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It is. He is. No, no, no.
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Football brand name.
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Brand name standpoint. Yes.
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Yep. But the Favre brand name Brady brand name Montana brand name Elway brand name.
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That's eight.
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Where are we at?
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Or eight.
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Okay, we're trying to get to 10.
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Marino. Marino brand name nine. Brady. Oh, you said Brady.
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I said Brady.
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Manning, 10.
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Manning. All right. Manning 10. Right. Yeah, yeah, yeah. No, you're right.
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It's not Archie. It's not Eli. It's just Peyton. Who else are we forgetting that's on the all time brand?
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People are shouting names because we went through it already, so. But Rogers trying to get to. He's.
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He's close.
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Yeah, yeah.
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In terms of the absolute best to ever do it. Oh, sorry, Mahomes. I'm sorry.
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Yeah, you know, you're right. It's got to be my homes. Has to be on there. Nine.
B
That's 11.
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Don't go back past 10. We got past 10. Yeah, I realize that. I'm not paying attention.
B
And that didn't include Rogers.
C
Rogers would make a 12 if with one. With one super bowl, though. Only one Super bowl, but four MVPs.
B
Yeah, that's a lot. I think. I think Rogers is there. Like we went through the 80s and Josh Allen and Lamar can't be there quite yet. Not without a ring. It doesn't feel like.
C
No, no. I think you got to get the. You got to have the ring. And then I'm trying to think like, oh, you putting Bradshaw there. I think Bradshaw's a brand name.
B
He is. And the amount of Super Bowls is tough to beat. So I kind of do.
C
You're doing stall back. You got like, that's kind of the same era, right?
B
That would be 13. And we're including Namath and we're. We're not including Big Ben. We're not including.
C
Well, because it's like if I said this name in the middle of Times Square, everybody knows I'm talking football. You have to like, it's got to be a name like that where it's a brand name where no matter who it is, whatever walk of life, they know. Oh, yeah, that's a football player.
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So there aren't that many. Not even half the league probably has. Has one.
C
And some teams have multiple.
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Are we forgetting any? Because we didn't give Steve Young.
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Steve Young. We're not putting him in that.
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No. As great as he is, he's not. It's not that he's not Montana. We said Montana.
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We did that. Yeah, we said Montana.
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We definitely said Montana.
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I thought so.
B
We could have skipped over Montana.
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No, we definitely said it.
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All right, well, if so, Montana. If we did, we mean Montana.
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Jay in the Bronx. What's up, Jay?
F
What's good, fellas? I wanted to throw a name out there, but I also wanted to ask you guys a Jet Giant question, if you allow.
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Sure, sure.
F
Yeah. So the guy I'm thinking of, when you mentioned. I just. I just got on now, jumped on a car, and I immediately, I thought Jamal Murray, even though his career is pretty young, but he's had some, you know, some big post season moments, but his regular season numbers and his record is pretty underwhelming. I don't know how y' all felt about Jamal Murray.
C
You mean, like the Denver Nuggets? Jamal Murray, Right.
F
Jamal Murray, the Denver Nuggets.
C
Yeah. I mean, it's Jokic. It's Jokic's team, though. You know, I mean, he is a main character guy, but, you know, that's. That. That's a Jokic team. He makes. He does make big plays. I don't know if I'd put him with Eli.
F
No, no. But if you look at what he's done compared to what he does in.
C
A regular season, he turns it up.
F
It's like a different guy.
C
Yes, he turns it up. That's right. Those guys are valuable.
F
Absolutely. So real quickly, I wanted to ask you guys, Jetson Giants and his great depression that we've been in, in the past decade. I always wondered and been perplexed as to why the tight end isn't highlighted more as far as getting a real good tight end. As you see young players, young quarterbacks in good teams, when they start to progress, they always have a tight end. And I've always felt, you know, the Giants and the jets don't really, you know, prioritize bringing a good tight end.
C
For a young quarterback.
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And I've always. I've always felt like that's part of the. Especially the Jets. I can't remember us having a quality, you know, tight end who could help a young quarterback check down, who could get extra yards with that big body or block for him. I never understood why we never prioritize it in New York. And I always thought that that's part of the problem, why the quarterbacks, you know, don't really do well here. I just wanted to see if you guys felt the same way.
C
Well, they have. They have Taylor, who they think has got a chance. Oh, he's young. You know, Ruckert they like, but he was a later round pick. Great story too, a Long island kid. But it is true when you think like Detroit's a great example. Laporta draft him, fantastic player. They move on from Hawkinson, right? It was Hawkinson that was there first and they moved on from him, if I'm not mistaken. But if when you look at the, you know, what did Brady have? He had Gronk, he had, he had two of them at one point. But Gronk was really like the go to Kelsey and Mahomes. Think about all the teams that they have good offenses. It's generally they have a good tight end. Mark Andrews in Baltimore.
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I'll say, I'll say this too. Even in my little moment the last two years, Zach Ertz been huge for Jaden. Dan Philly thought he was over the hill. He's been, he's been his second target after McLaurin. You kind of have to have that piece.
C
Yeah, that's, that's a key. I'm wondering. It's a good point to ask that question too. When you think about offenses, look at the Giants, look at the jets, and you're trying to get an offense, especially with a young quarterback, because that is almost like your security blanket is to have that tight end where you just know where he is. He's big and strong. He can not only block, but more importantly, he can catch a ball in short yardage. We'll finish up with more your calls. 800 now 193776 but I want to tell you about Thrive because every aspect of your business, from the most mundane to the most complex, will operate orders of magnitude better and faster. When you add artificial intelligence, AI is literally a race to the top. Companies that engage AI first will win. Will that be you or will it be your competitors? Thrive Managed AI is your advantage over all your competitors. Founded by tech powerhouses, Thrive partners you with, partners with you on a smart and secure AI strategy for your business. Then they deploy and manage it for you. Imagine AI solutions working across every part of your business. Automating support, powering chatbots, analyzing competitors, even managing billing, collections and orders. That's just a taste of what Thrive Managed AI can help you achieve. It makes your talented team even better by letting them focus on what they do best. The race to the top will be won by those who Engage Thrive managed AI first. That needs to be you. Go to thrive next gen.com espn and get started with a complimentary strategy consultation. That's thrive next gen.com ESPN ThriveNextGen.com ESPN.
A
Thanks for listening to the Don Hahn and Rosenberg podcast.
B
I didn't listen to anything you just said.
A
Catch the show on demand whenever you want. Just subscribe to us wherever you get your podcasts.
C
So before we get back to the calls. And again, you get the Mets coming up at 7 o'. Clock, Mets and the Cubs. I mean, the Mets are playing for their playoff lives right now. Trying to just, just get in at this point. Got to win almost every game. We did not touch on this earlier, Peter, but the ABS system in baseball, now that has been officially approved. So we'll have that next season. Did you know they're going to call the ABS Challenge system powered by T Mobile 5G network, if you have to as a broadcaster, say that every single time.
B
But it makes it easy, doesn't it?
C
Now here's the thing. And again, a lot of this has already been talked about, but it's official now. Each team gets two challenges and they can keep them if they're successful. Challenges can only be initiated by a pitcher, catcher or batter. The request must come right after the pitch to signal. You have to tap your hat or helmet to let the umpire know. We saw that in string spring training. No help from the dugout or anybody else on the field. In each extra inning, a team will be awarded a challenge if it has none remaining entering the inning. So you go into like, say the 10th inning, you've already used both challenges, you get one back. We see that in other sports. Sure. Here's the thing. So you have cameras set up around the perimeter of the field to track the location of each pitch. And a graphic on the scoreboard shows the result of the challenge. I love that. It's like the cyclops thing in tennis. Yeah, it's really cool.
B
The whole crowd go, oh, you get to watch.
C
Everybody gets watch.
B
I do enjoy that now.
C
That's great. But if we can track every pitch, we need to challenge it. Can we just get it right every time?
B
That's a great point.
C
Why not just know what the pitch is? Do you think we'll get there eventually or do you think the challenge system is a better way to go?
B
I think people like the culture of an umpire. It's.
C
It's just being able to argue because you can't argue. You can't.
B
And it's just built into it.
C
What are you arguing now? Can't argue with him. You can't fight. Like, that's the one thing with the human element is you get mad like, what's Aaron Boone gonna do now? He can't start barking at umpires anymore.
B
That's the thing. Do we really want that completely gone? They get it right most of the time. I mean, like, percentage wise, they're fine to call most of the game.
C
Okay.
B
They're just the ones that are tough that they get wrong.
C
So you still want the umpire that has his strike zone, you know, the pitcher, friendly batter, friendly kind of thing. And it's just the ones that are egregious. You're like, no, no, no, that's. No, you can't call that a strike because you don't want to use them up too early in the game. But you also want to set a tone early, because if you challenge one early, that is normally like. Like a judge, you know, low and away that they'll call a strike on him, which shouldn't be. If he challenges early, does that make the umpire now think, if you get.
B
It right, you lose nothing?
C
No, no, you lose nothing. Right. You get to keep it. So the point is, you challenge it early, you set a tone to the umpire. If you see, that's not a strike, that means that's not a ball. Don't call it a ball. Don't call a strike. Whatever it is. It's depending on the pitcher or the bat.
B
You can adjust their strike zone.
C
Yeah.
B
You're going to embarrass yourself if I keep challenging you over and over again.
C
Don't make me get it wrong. My helmet just. Now, you know, that's. That's not a strike or that is a strike. So do you. So you'd still rather have human element versus if these cameras know every pitch.
B
Why, you know where I, you know, you know where I never want human element in baseball? On the bases. That's where I want.
C
Sliding into the.
B
That can be too costly.
C
But you get replay on those, too. You do, to make sure.
B
But always.
C
I mean, if it's close, they always.
B
Go to it now. Or you have to challenge it.
C
I think. Again, this is Michael K. Anthony.
B
How's the review work on the basis.
C
They call Chelsea and they look at it? Yeah, they'll.
B
They'll, like sometimes not if not because it's demanded, just because it's close.
C
No, they have. You have to challenge. Yeah, you have to challenge. But, like, I get it. This. This just feels like too easy. The cameras are now there. There's no question. And by the way, even without a challenge, the broadcast still can show you and say, see, that was the wrong call.
B
Right?
C
And that could almost be more maddening. So maybe this is something they'll do for now. And if it's just so egregious that you're constantly using it, they'll just finally just say, all right, I'll tell you what. Totally automated. Now, would that. Would that change baseball if you had automated balls and strikes called every time? All the. All the umpire did was he lines up behind the catcher and in his ear, he gets ball or strike, and he just makes the call based on what is told in his ear.
B
By the way, I'm fine with that, too, because that way you're still getting the human part of it. They're just not getting it wrong. There he is, the humans there.
C
Strike. And everybody's like, what are you talking about? Don't let. Don't get mad at me.
B
Not me. It was officially a strike. But you still get the, like, punch outs. Yeah, that's what we want.
C
Oh, you still need the punch outs.
B
Can't lose a punch out.
C
No, those are still fun.
B
Come on.
C
And you still need your Enrico Palazzo. We all need that. But it is certainly something.
B
So you are, I was thinking, Enrico Palazzo. Yes. I will be doing the show from LA tomorrow.
C
Okay.
B
And then I'm back.
C
Right. And then we've got, of course, be a long night. Don legreco on the call. Devil's Islanders on MSG N little preseason hockey, and we'll see you all tomorrow. Thanks for joining us on the YouTube channel. Have a great night.
A
Thanks for listening to the Don Hahn and Rosenberg podcast.
B
I don't want to know how the.
C
Sausage is made, man. I just want to know. It's good.
A
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.
Hour 4: Calls & ABS System
Date: September 23, 2025
Hosts: Alan Hahn, Peter Rosenberg
Notable: Don La Greca absent (prepping for Islanders-Devils preseason)
Hour 4 of the show dives into classic sports radio territory: caller-driven debates, an examination of "second-tier greats" in sports (i.e., stars not recognized as all-time legends despite championship credentials), and spirited discussion of the recently approved ABS (Automated Ball-Strike) challenge system coming to MLB. While Don La Greca is absent, Alan and Peter expertly steer a lively hour through fun sports hypotheticals, historical context, and thoughtful takes on evolving technology in baseball.
Prompt:
Is Eli Manning the greatest "Yeah, but…" athlete of all time: a main character on championship teams who is never in the conversation as an all-time great at his position?
On automation:
"Would that change baseball if you had automated balls and strikes called every time? All the umpire did was line up... and in his ear, he gets ball or strike, and he just makes the call." – Alan Hahn (21:34)
On replay:
"Where I never want human element in baseball? On the bases. That's where I want [tech]." – Peter Rosenberg (20:40)
Throughout, the tone is conversational, knowledgeable, and inviting to callers. There’s a clear appreciation for both the data-minded and the traditionalist perspectives, and the hosts interlace nostalgia, humor, and modern insight. Rosenberg’s playful skepticism balances Hahn’s analytical leanings, while both show real affection for the idiosyncrasies of sports culture.
Summary takeaway:
If you love big-picture sports debates, especially the quirks of ranking greatness, generational changes in the game, and the messy intersection of tradition and technology, this hour is a must-listen (or, with this summary, a must-read) snapshot of New York sports radio at its best.