Hour 1 - Are the Steelers set up for success this season?

Summary

Summary of "The Herd with Colin Cowherd" - Episode: "Hour 1 - Are the Steelers Set Up for Success This Season?"

Release Date: July 29, 2025
Host: Danny Parkins (in place of Colin Cowherd)
Guests: AJ Persinski, Jeff Schwartz, Ben Bolan, Nick WR

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1. Introduction

The episode kicks off with Danny Parkins stepping in for Colin Cowherd, setting the stage for a comprehensive discussion on current sports topics. The primary focus revolves around the Pittsburgh Steelers' prospects for the upcoming NFL season, intertwined with insightful commentary on other major sports narratives.

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2. Pittsburgh Steelers: A Boomer Bust or a Playoff Contender?

Danny Parkins delves into the Pittsburgh Steelers' strategic moves during the offseason, primarily highlighting the acquisition of veteran quarterback Aaron Rodgers.

• Vote of Confidence: Parkins expresses his confidence in the Steelers' improvements, stating, “I think this is a playoff team. I think this team could win a playoff game” (05:15).

• Aaron Rodgers' Impact: He scrutinizes Rodgers' potential, mentioning, “He’s objectively better than Mason Rudolph and Kenny Pickett” (07:42) and discusses the ramifications of Rodgers' one-year contract, labeling him as a “mercenary” and contemplating the longevity of his commitment to the team.

• Team Enhancements: The trade for John Who Smith is praised for adding versatility to the offense, with Parkins noting, “They can block for Aaron because I don't know if you've heard he's on the wrong side of 40” (10:03).

• Future Prospects: While optimistic about the Steelers winning 10-11 games and possibly clinching a playoff spot, Parkins raises concerns about the long-term strategy, especially if Rodgers' tenure doesn't extend beyond the current season.

• Coaching Stability: He highlights the Steelers' coaching consistency under Mike Tomlin, remarking, “It’s pretty much the single most unbelievable fact in all of football that in the history of the Pittsburgh Steelers they've had three head coaches” (12:27).

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3. Justin Herbert: A New Peyton Manning?

Transitioning to the NFL's broader landscape, Parkins draws parallels between Justin Herbert of the Los Angeles Chargers and the legendary Peyton Manning.

• Statistical Comparisons: He presents a detailed comparison, stating, “Herbert 41 and 38 win-loss record. Peyton 42 and 38” (15:50), emphasizing their similar early careers and playoff challenges.

• Leadership and Potential: Parkins is unwavering in his belief, asserting, “I am just so utterly convinced that he's one of the best players in football” (18:10), and challenges the narrative around Herbert’s inconsistent playoff performances.

• Future Outlook: He anticipates Herbert maintaining a trajectory akin to Manning's, projecting, “I think he’s absolutely in the running for the MVP” (20:45).

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4. MLB Insights: Cubs, Brewers, and the Yankees’ Challenges

Shifting gears to Major League Baseball, Parkins engages in an analysis of key teams ahead of the trade deadline.

• Chicago Cubs Needs: He identifies the Cubs' requirement for a starting pitcher, mentioning, “They definitely need a starter because if Imanaga is right and Tyon's been okay” (23:50).

• Milwaukee Brewers’ Resilience: Discussing the Brewers, Parkins praises their management and player development, stating, “The Brewers are unbelievable at finding pitchers, developing pitchers” (24:55).

• Yankees' Struggles Without Aaron Judge: He expresses concern over the Yankees' performance impacted by Aaron Judge's injury, noting, “The Yankees without Aaron Judge are a different team” (25:37).

• Emerging Stars: Highlighting Cal Raleigh’s exceptional performance, Parkins remarks, “He’s got 41 homers... he’s the best defensive player in the American League” (26:44).

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5. Tribute to Ryan Sandberg: A Baseball Legend

A poignant segment honors the late Ryan Sandberg, a Hall of Fame catcher for the Chicago Cubs.

• Personal Connection: Parkins shares a heartfelt narrative about meeting Sandberg during his brother’s wedding, reflecting on Sandberg’s humility and dedication to the Cubs community.

• Sandberg’s Legacy: He emphasizes Sandberg’s legacy, quoting from his Hall of Fame speech, “Never disrespect your opponent or your teammates… the name on the front is a lot more important than the name on the back” (45:39).

• Impact on Fans and the Game: Highlighting tributes from prominent figures like Barack Obama, Parkins underscores Sandberg’s influence both on and off the field.

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6. Closing Remarks

As the episode concludes, Parkins briefly touches upon other sports topics, including Luka Doncic's offseason training and its media portrayal, while reiterating the importance of team strategies and player performances in shaping the future of their respective leagues.

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Notable Quotes with Timestamps

• “I think this is a playoff team. I think this team could win a playoff game.” – Danny Parkins (05:15)

• “He’s objectively better than Mason Rudolph and Kenny Pickett.” – Danny Parkins (07:42)

• “We have to see how the season goes, but absolutely, you know, he's...” – Omar Khan, Steelers GM (09:55)

• “I am just so utterly convinced that he's one of the best players in football.” – Danny Parkins (18:10)

• “Never disrespect your opponent or your teammates... the name on the front is a lot more important than the name on the back.” – Ryan Sandberg (45:39)

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Conclusion

This episode of "The Herd with Colin Cowherd" offers a multifaceted exploration of current sports dynamics, with a particular emphasis on the Pittsburgh Steelers' strategic moves and the burgeoning career of Justin Herbert. Through in-depth analysis and personal anecdotes, host Danny Parkins provides listeners with a thorough understanding of the challenges and potentials facing key teams and players in both the NFL and MLB.

Transcript

[Colin Cowherd]

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[Danny Parkins]

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[Danny Parkins]

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[Danny Parkins]

Thanks for listening to the Heard podcast. Be sure to catch us live every weekday on Fox Sports Radio and noon to 3 Eastern, 9am to noon Pacific. Find your local station for the [e-mail] or stream us live every day on the iHeartRadio app by searching Fox Sports Radio or FSR.

[AJ Persinski]

Now let's get this party started. You're listening to FOX Sports Radio. Welcome in, it's the Herd. I'm Danny Parkins in for the great Colin Cowherd. They let me come back. I guess I didn't burn the place down completely yesterday. Schedule is that I'll be in tomorrow as well, but we'll see how the next three hours goes. Appreciate you watching. Appreciate you listening. We got a great show for you. AJ Persinski gonna join us in about 25 minutes. Jeff Schwartz, Ben Bolan, and my guy Nick WR. Nick will maybe admit to being wrong in a sports conversation for the first time ever coming up in just over an hour, though probably not. I will defend my ranking of Justin Herbert in just a few minutes. But I'd like to begin by talking about the biggest boomer bust team in the NFL this year, and that is the Pittsburgh Steelers. Because, man, I get why they made the move, but I right off the top, I'm going to make a confession. If I give the Steelers the vote of confidence, and I am, I like what they've done this off season. It's actually made sense to me. I have to also admit to you, for the last four years, consecutively I have predicted that the Steelers would have their first losing season under Mike Tomlinson. And I've been wrong time and time and time and time again. So now I'm like, I think this is a playoff team. I think this team could win a playoff game. I think Aaron Rodgers is a little cuckoo, but he's objectively better than Mason Rudolph and Kenny Pickett and Duck Hodges and Mitch Trubisky. Like I agree with the conventional wisdom, if Mike Tomlin can get you a winning record with those quarterbacks, he should be able to do better with Aaron Rodgers. But I think that's just the tip of the iceberg here. I thought that when he signed that contract and it was a weird number, he signed for 13 million bucks, I was like, there's more coming. They're not done and then they made the huge trade with Ramsey and John who Smith and they upgraded their squad. And I think the John who Smith, while not the sexier name, that is the move that really does create some versatility for their offense. DK Metcalf True. Number one. Play your 12 personnel with your two tight ends. With Fryer, Muth and John Smith on the field, they can block for Aaron because I don't know if you've heard he's on the wrong side of 40. Jalen Warren I actually think is an upgrade in the backfield from Najee Harris. I think that there is a real opportunity here for this offense to be good. They won't be top five in the NFL, but a good offense. And then when you combine that with we know all the talent they have on defense and the excellent regular season coaching that they get, I think it made a lot of sense. But we all would agree also that it's Boomer bust. And it feels like based on what Aaron Rodgers has said, this is a one shot deal, one year contract. He's a mercenary, he got married. He says when I'm done with football, you'll never see or hear from me again. I have my doubts. The guy said he loves privacy and then invited a documentary crew with him into the wilderness. So I got my doubts. But we'll see. And as for now, it seems like a one year hired gun situation. The Steelers general manager Omar Khan was on with Rich Eisen. He was asked about it. He said it might be a little more than that. Obviously you know, we have to see how the season goes, but absolutely, you know, he's, He's a young 41 and you know, we're obviously taking it year by year and that's where we're at. So I assume this is a one year deal. And my question though is let's say I'm wrong again about the Steelers and they're not as good as they clearly think they can be. Because you only do this if you think you can end you're going on nine year playoff drought without a playoff win. That's the only reason you sign up for the circus that is Aaron Rodgers, for the appearances, for the off season, for the three month holding pattern, for all of it. Right. Because you believe your team is ready to win multiple playoff games in January and this is the missing piece. It's the only reason you sign up for the circus if they're wrong. And then I guess if I'm wrong and this is the first losing season under Mike Tomlin and It is like the jets season last year and they win six, seven games are non competitive against good teams. Aaron Rodgers is not even a top 15 or 20 quarterback in the NFL. Is there any scenario where the heat shifts to Mike Tomlin? And I'm not saying they're going to fire him because clearly the Steelers don't fire anyone. It's maybe the single most unbelievable fact in all of football that in the history of the Pittsburgh Steelers they've had three head coaches. It's remarkable. But if I just told you that a head coach, it had been eight seasons since they had won a playoff game and in that time they were Owen 5 in the postseason. And in that time he had had five offensive coordinators and eight different starting quarterbacks. And as the defensive coach in those playoff games he's given up 40 plus to Blake Bortles and Baker Mayfield and getting boat raced by Patrick Mahomes. And it's like, oh my God, some of these are great quarterbacks, some of these are not. Some of these you are favored, some of these you weren't. You're a 13 win team. You get bounced immediately in the postseason. Any other coach in any other organization would be on the hot seat. And again they won't fire him. But if it doesn't work with Rogers and Tomlin becomes more of the reputation of high floor, low ceiling. He can only win big if he has a Hall of Fame quarterback in his prime. They're always going to be too good to draft one because he will have you at eight or nine wins as a floor. So what is his path to getting Drew Aller or Arch Manning or a top five picket quarterback? And they'll just be in this middle purgatory space in the NFL with nowhere to go from here. So I think this is going to work. And they'll win 10, 11 games, maybe win a playoff game. Like that's my definition of working. They're not a Super bowl team. I don't think that they have that high of a ceiling. But I think they're a double digit win team that can win one playoff game and end that drought. But then the question is and then what? Because the whole thing is the standard is the standard, excellence is the standard. Ten wins and a wilds card win is not excellence. And then they're still in the exact same situation they found themselves in coming out of last year with no long term answer at quarterback. So while I expect success, the much more interesting questions is what happens if there's failure? The pushback I got yesterday from my top 10 quarterback list was mostly from Eagles fans who are upset and I respect it and love it and it's a passionate fan base. But it was also centered around my guy, Justin Herbert. And I will fully admit to you that I sit down on my couch on Sundays and I just watch 11 straight hours of football and then I watch Monday night and Thursday night and I watch all these games and then I rewatch them and all that and I come from it from more of the analytical and numbers side. But then I just actually love watching the games. I don't fancy myself a scout, anything like that, but I will say Justin Herbert passes the eye test as much as any quarterback I've ever seen. I am just so utterly convinced that this dude is a superstar and that he has been the victim of Anthony Lynn and Brandon Staley and bad special teams misses and incompetence and terrible injury luck around him and two bad playoff games, one terrible comeback allowed by the Jaguars and then last year the four interceptions against the Texans. Can't sugarcoat it though. Two of those interceptions were off his receivers hands and there was a bit of a snowball effect there. But I watched this guy and I am just convinced that he's one of the best players in football and if he was just in a better situation everybody would know that and it would become conventional wisdom. And now they hire a true winner in Jim Harbaugh. Last year Justin Herbert has over 500 pass attempts, which was down because Harbaugh likes to run the ball. But he had over 500 pass attempts and three interceptions. He had more interceptions in that one playoff loss than he had all season. It was a true outlier, worst case scenario performance. And so I'm trusting my eyes on this one and a belief in Harbaugh. They were the number one scoring defense last year. They draft Hampton, they're going to upgrade the rushing attack. I love the pick of Trey Harris, the deep threat speedster form on the outside. McConkey's a stud, arguably the best tackle duo in the NFL outside of Philadelphia. Detroit might have something to say about it, but it's a top three tackle duo in the NFL at a minimum. This is the year and this is the year for what you say. This is the year for Justin Herbert to stay on the Peyton Manning track. Peyton Manning was in a bit of the wilderness early in his career. Different coaches, a bunch of interceptions, no playoff success. And if you study it, and I know some people will say different era of the NFL in terms of volume of passing and that is true. But again, a guy in Peyton who clearly passed the eye test but didn't have the team success early on in his career. If you look at years one through five of Peyton and years one through five of Justin Herbert, it is shocking how identical it is. Herbert 41 and 38 win loss record. Peyton 42 and 38, both of them winless in the playoffs. Herbert Owen two through five years, Manning Owen three. Their team scored 24 points per game. They threw basically the same number of touchdown passes, 137 to 138 through five years in their career. And again, I understand more passing in today's football than then. But the playoff numbers were also remarkably similar in terms of the types of struggles. More interceptions than touchdowns, lower passer rating, lower completion percentage in the playoffs versus the regular season. But in year five Peyton got Dungy. In year five, Herbert got Harbaugh and things started to change. And in year six for Peyton, he's co MVP of the league, he's in the AFC championship game, he's, you know, 4200 yards, they're scoring 28 points per game. It was the arrival of the Peyton Manning that became one of the greatest to ever throw a football. And I will be holding Justin Herbert to that standard. This is the last stand because I fully acknowledge at some point the results need to be there in terms of team success. But I am as convinced today as I was after his rookie year when he set the NFL record for touchdown passes as a rookie with 31. This is a Hall of Fame level talent. And I thought what Jim Harbaugh said over the weekend is how I felt about the entire Chargers organization ever since they lucked into the Miami drafting TUA over him. The rest of you gotta catch up to that guy.

[Unknown]

This is from the heart, this is the truth. Justin Herbert's biggest weakness is all of, all of those that he's counting on, on offense, coaches, offensive line, playmakers, receivers, running backs to get up to his level. You know, that's, that's, that's. I wake up every day to try to get to his level. So if you, you put us as the, as the number one duel, I mean it's 99, 90, 90 Justin, 10, 10, me.

[AJ Persinski]

Amen. Amen. Peyton Manning was the system. He went to four Super Bowls with four different head coaches. That was what it was. He got to a place where he had such dominance and such control of the game that wherever he went, he was the system. I think Justin Herbert can do that and is on his way to doing that. And if the rest of the Chargers, which I expect them to under Harbaugh, catch up to him just a bit, don't put the shackles on him, let him throw, work off your run game, work off your defense and let that guy be one of the best throwers of the football that I've ever seen. I think he's absolutely in the running for the mvp and I think they're absolutely in the running to win playoff games this year, even being in the division with the Kansas City Chiefs. I expect Justin Herbert to stay on the Peyton Manning track by the end of this football season. AJ Przinski going to join us coming up in about 10 minutes. Luka Doncic is looking good, there is no doubt about it. We saw the pictures yesterday on the show, but my God, some of you are overreacting and going just a little nuts. That's next on the Herd. Be sure to catch live editions of the Herd, weekdays at noon Eastern, 9am Pacific on Fox Sports Radio, FS1 and the iHeartRadio app.

[Covino]

Hey, we're Covino and Rich, Fox Sports radio every day, 5 to 7pm Eastern. But here's the thing. We never have enough time to get to everything we want to get to.

[Rich]

And that's why we have a brand new podcast called Over Promised. You see, we're having so much fun in our two hour show. We we never get to everything honestly because this guy is over promising things we never have time for.

[AJ Persinski]

Yeah, you blubber lips, blaming me.

[Covino]

Well, you know what it's called? Over Promise. You should be good at it because you've been overpromising women for years.

[Rich]

Well, it's a Covino and Rich after show and we want you to be a part of it. We're going to be talking sports, of course, but we're also going to talk life and relationships. And if Rich and I are arguing about something or we didn't have enough time, it will continue on our after show called Over Promised.

[Covino]

Well, if you don't get enough Covino and Rich, make sure you check out Over Promised and also uncensored, by the way, so maybe we'll go at it.

[Danny Parkins]

Even a little harder.

[Covino]

It's gonna be the best after show podcast of all time.

[Rich]

There you go, Over Promising. And remember, you could see it on YouTube, but definitely. Join us. Listen to Over Promise with Cavino and rich on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Danny Parkins]

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[AJ Persinski]

Back in on the herd, Danny Parkins in for Colin Baseball. My Cubs got to figure it out. Got to separate a little bit from those pesky Milwaukee brewers who are more than pesky. And joining us now on the Herd, old buddy of mine, 05 World Series champion, one of 11 catchers with over 2,000 hits. Terrific. Fox MLB analyst AJ Persinski with us on the Herd. AJ, as always, man, thank you very much for the time.

[Colin Cowherd]

Job from the days of, you know, back in Chicago, the little radio show.

[AJ Persinski]

Yeah.

[Colin Cowherd]

You know, Kansas City. Now here you are doing national stuff. Good for you.

[AJ Persinski]

Like I said, I'm trying to be like you. I'm trying, I'm trying to.

[Colin Cowherd]

Yeah, but nobody wants that. Nobody wants that. Nobody wants that.

[AJ Persinski]

Yeah, I used to talk to your guy, Eric Kratz, you know, in Kansas City, because he was the only guy who talked to me. And now here you and I are doing this. It's ridiculous. Trade deadline is right around the corner. And, you know, it feels like almost all of the moves come right at the deadline nowadays with the expanded playoffs. But who in your mind is like, the most needed? Like, if you said this team more than anyone else needs to make a move, who would it be?

[Colin Cowherd]

I have to look at the Cubs and I have to look at the Astros or the two teams. Your Cubs need to do something because no one thought the brewers would be here. And here they are, game up, one of the best pitching staffs in all of baseball. And the Cubs, as good as they played, as well as they played, they're in second place right now. I know nobody saw that coming they need a starting pitcher, probably maybe a back end reliever. I don't know. The problem is every team we talk about needs the same thing. A starter, a back end reliever and a power hitter. Guess what? Not every team can get those things. So I don't know what the Cubs can do. They definitely need a starter because if Imanaga is right and Tyon's been okay, Horton's been okay, some of their guys have been okay. They haven't been great, but they definitely need a starting pitcher. Who that is, I have no idea. And then on the other end, the Astros, they, they were, had a huge lead. It's faltering. They need help, but they need another starter behind Hunter Brown and from Revaldez. They need a bat. Who's that bat going to be? I don't know. Everyone says Geno Suarez, but every team wants Geno Suarez. Every team wants a starter, every team wants a reliever. The question is, when will these start moves start happening? Because the quicker you get these, especially relievers and bats, it might only be one game extra, two games extra, but that can be the difference in the division.

[AJ Persinski]

So you mentioned it briefly. They lost their general manager, they've turned over star power, they've had to trade guys away for money issues. They lose cred counsel to the Cubs. How are the brewers still this good? I legitimately do not understand it.

[Colin Cowherd]

Well, Pat Murphy, Matt Arnold start with the start of the top right. Pat Murphy learned from. Well, he coached credcounsel now he learned how to manage from right. Matt Arnold. And the brewers are unbelievable at finding pitchers, developing pitchers and getting guys off the trash heap. If that's what you're going to call it up, waivers, I mean, but then you throw in Misarowski, Brandon Woodruff has come back. Freddie Peralta has been a stud for them for many years. But you lose Corbin Burns, you lose Devin Williams, you lose guy after guy after guy. Willie Adamus, this offseason, they just keep plugging away. They make great trades. Seems like every trade they make is a win for them one way or another. And listen, look at Ariba, Abner Rebate, they're both in their eighth inning. Guy, if you haven't seen this guy pitch 100 mile an hour sinker, 90 something mile an hour slider. Reese Hoskins, we're showing right there has been a great find for them this year. They just find guys, plug them in. They know their role. And Pat Murphy is one of the best managers in baseball.

[AJ Persinski]

So if you look at the Standings, The Tigers have a nine game lead. The next biggest division lead is five and a half. And in the nl, the east is one and a half, the Central is one and the west is only a four game lead. Despite, you know, the perceived dominance of the Dodgers. Is there a best team in baseball?

[Colin Cowherd]

I'm still going to say the Dodgers because if they get healthy, they got glass now back and they get snow Snells coming, they get some of their relievers back one through 26. Actually one through like 50. The Dodgers are the best team, right, because they've used so many guys this year. They have the financial might to go out and get whoever they wanted. The trade deadline, they'll trade prospects for players. So it's still the Dodgers to me. But everyone thought they were going to go 162. And oh, baseball's hard. A lot of injuries and they sign a lot of guys that have injury concerns when they sign them and they just kind of play it up. But we have enough depth to overcome it. Well, they haven't and they're. Yes. Do I think they're going to win the division? Yes. Do I think they're the favorites to win the World Series? Yes. The National League is really hard though. Phillies, Mets, Cubs, Brewers, Padres who are not afraid of the Dodgers. Whoever gets in in the National League is going to have one heck of a run to get to the World Series.

[AJ Persinski]

Talking some baseball ahead of the deadline with AJ Pruszynski. The team the Dodgers beat in the World Series last year, the Yankees. Aaron Judge is hurt and it does seem like it might be maybe not a huge deal, but like a medium sized deal here. What do you expect from the Yankees down the stretch as they try to overcome this? IL stands for Judge.

[Colin Cowherd]

A lot of this. Hold it together until we get him back. Because we had Will Carroll on our show yesterday and he said this could be a month. And you think about a month, that puts us almost to September, Right? That's a long absence for a guy that they rely on heavily. Listen, you can make whatever argument you want about the al. I say Cal Raleigh right now is my mvp, especially with Judge out. But the Yankees without Aaron Judge are a different team. He changes the lineup, he changes the confidence, he changes everything on that team. So if he misses longer, he said he'll be back in 10 days. I'll have to see it to believe it. But if they don't get judged back, they got to figure it out. Stanton's got to perform. Bellinger, Goldschmid have to go Back Anthony Volpe, who a lot of Yankee fans are on, has to figure it out. There's a lot of question marks, especially with no Garrett Cole and now no Aaron. Judge this. There's a lot of questions on this Yankee team. And the Blue Jays aren't going away. They're hot as anybody right now and they have a five and a half game lead after the Yankees pretty much dominated the division for a long time.

[AJ Persinski]

Can you put in perspective, since you mentioned his name, the amazement for a catcher to be doing what Cal Raleigh is doing at the Dish?

[Colin Cowherd]

No, I can't.

[AJ Persinski]

What?

[Colin Cowherd]

He's got 41 homers. We're not even into August. He's a switch hitter for me. People ask me all the time, who would you start a team with? I mean, Skeens probably is one, Bobby Witt's probably two. And then I'll put this guy in the top three.

[AJ Persinski]

Wow.

[Colin Cowherd]

Because of what he does behind the plate. What he does. But he's a. He won the Platinum Glove last year, which means he's the best defensive player in the American League. So he won that and now he's leading the league in home runs. Now, will he keep it up and hit 60 or 70? I don't know. Because he's going to wear down. This dude plays every day, handles a great pitching staff and he hits homers. What else do you want out of a player from a catcher? Best catcher in the league. Best defensive player in the league, plays every day, switch hits. Oh, yeah, by the way, he's got 41 homers.

[AJ Persinski]

But you still think you, you think he will wear down. You had two homers over the weekend.

[Colin Cowherd]

Every catcher does. Nope. Nobody has.

[AJ Persinski]

No.

[Colin Cowherd]

No catcher can play. I mean, he played, what, 140 games last year or something? Ridiculous. I mean, he's on pace to do it again this year. When he doesn't catch, he dhs. I mean, Dan Wilson, you're a catcher. Give him a day off every once, but just give him a day. Right?

[AJ Persinski]

Like every.

[Colin Cowherd]

Every two weeks. Give this guy a day off. This guy's unbelievable, man. He wants to play. If you ever talk to Cal Raw, he's a great guy. Only one thing, I'm a Gator fan. He went to Florida State. That's the only knock I can put on this guy.

[AJ Persinski]

Nobody's perfect. You and I get along. You're a White Sox, I'm a Cub. You know, I guess I didn't play for the Cubs. Cubs fan. But no, nobody is perfect. So the baseball, I think, gets a bad Rap sometimes for not promoting stars, doing things to build the game. Like, I think baseball is great at events like the All Star Game. They do an amazing job. The Field of Dreams game, I think was an incredible success. Games at a Negro League stadium. What do you make of 80,000 plus tickets in the Speedway Classic in terms of a venue and spectacle for Major League Baseball?

[Colin Cowherd]

I know this. The Fox people that I work with, Pete Maczeska, Matt Gangle, all the people behind the scenes are excited because they have a chance to do something that nobody's ever done, which is showcase. 85,000. They're hoping maybe to get to 100,000 people. Yeah. And they have drones and they have all kinds of special cameras they're going to run. It's going to be like no game we've ever seen before. I was fortunate to play in a couple of these. I got to go to Fort Bragg and playing a game in Fort Bragg in front of the troops and do a couple other things. And you're right, Major League Baseball does a lot of these big games better than anything I was at. Field of Dreams. The Tim Anderson home run to walk it off. One of the best events I've ever been to. This is going to be incredible. The field's going to be perfect and I can't wait to see the shots of. Think about this. The biggest crowd of all time to watch a baseball game. 85,000 plus people. If you're a Braves or Red fan, this is something you cannot miss. And if you're a TV baseball fan, tune in because what Fox is about to do is going to be unbelievable. Yeah.

[AJ Persinski]

And I think they deserve a lot of credit for figuring out new ways to present the game. And I think baseball genuinely has done a really good job of that over the last five plus years. We got really tough news in the baseball world yesterday with the passing of Ryan Sandberg, a Hall of Fame player. And it's a cliche, but also a Hall of Fame person. Your interactions or impression of his impact on the baseball world.

[Colin Cowherd]

Well, I've only met him a couple times. Obviously being a White Sox, Cubs and Cubs and White Sox guys, they don't intermingle a whole lot. We don't get together a whole lot. But I have met Ryno a few times and he was always a class act. Unbelievable guy. Everything I heard about him from from Cubs fans and people that were in the baseball world just said what a great human being he was. I mean, we all thought he beat this. Remember, it wasn't that long ago where he's like, I'm cancer free, guys. Let's celebrate. And then it came back quickly. So, terrible news. We've had a rough go in Chicago with him and Bobby Jenks the last couple weeks. One of the big things about Ryno is, listen, I grew up in Florida. We didn't have a team, so we had TBS for the Braves and we had WGN for the Cubs. So he was on every day. They played only day games back then. So I'd come home from school, guess who was on the Cubs, and Ryan Sandberg and Ron say, and that whole group of guys. So I grew up watching the Cubs. I root for the Cubs. No, But I watched a ton of Cub games, so I knew Ryan Sandberg. I got to follow his career. And the passing was just terrible news for baseball. Anytime you lose a franchise icon like this, it's bad for the game. But hopefully he's in a better place and we can move on and wish prayers for his family and friends. And. You know, Dan, you're not going to believe this, but prayers for cup fans because this is a sad day.

[AJ Persinski]

That's big of you. That's big of you. And, yeah, I am sorry for your loss. I know you and Bobby Jenks had a special relationship as well, so I'm sorry about his passing at a way too young age as well, man.

[Colin Cowherd]

Well, thank you, Danny. I appreciate it. I got. I brought this for you today. It's my home run I hit off Ryan Dempster when I was at the White Sox.

[Unknown]

That's not.

[Colin Cowherd]

I know. It is, though. It's fun because you're a Cub fan, I'm a White Sox fan. So, you know, we have to have a little back and forth.

[AJ Persinski]

No doubt, no doubt. I mean, it's just. You would have been a great Cub. I hated you because you're, you know.

[Colin Cowherd]

Do you know how close I was to being a Cub?

[AJ Persinski]

How close?

[Colin Cowherd]

Like, so in 2003 when I got traded to the Giants, I actually got a call from the Troy Hawkins the night before and said, hey, we're trading for you. He had just gone to the Cubs. He said, hey, we're training for you tomorrow. Be ready. Dusty's already called me. It's done. And then I get the call the next day, and I'm going to the Giants. I'm like, what happened? They're like. They threw in Francisco Liriano at the last minute, and I got the deal done. I was like, dang it. Instead, they went and got Michael Barrett. They got. They traded for Michael Barrett and then we had the fight. So, I mean, you know, it all worked out.

[AJ Persinski]

Wow, what a sliding doors moment in history, though.

[Colin Cowherd]

Yeah. Butterfly effect, right?

[AJ Persinski]

Yeah, absolutely. You never punch Michael Barrett. The whole thing, the whole fight, man, that's. You would have. You would have been a good cup. You would have been a good cup.

[Colin Cowherd]

Listen, I enjoy. I love Chicago. I know in the day games, then you can go to dinner, all that stuff. I would have loved it. But not, not so much anymore.

[AJ Persinski]

Well, check out his show file territory. You do great work here at Fox, aj. Thanks for always making time, man. I appreciate you.

[Colin Cowherd]

Yeah, real quick before you got to go, the Bears are going to be any good this year?

[AJ Persinski]

If they're not, I'm going to start believing in curses, man. They got the. So they have to be. They have to be. We've waited our entire life for some sort of semblance of respectability for a quarterback in Chicago. All right, man. Thank you very much.

[Colin Cowherd]

Thanks, Danny.

[AJ Persinski]

I'll talk to you soon. That's A.J. pruszynski, terrific Fox MLB analyst. All right, again, Luka Doncic, a professional athlete exercising in the offseason. Who'd have thunk it? The appropriate reaction to those pictures next on the Herd. Be sure to catch live editions of the Herd, weekdays at noon Eastern, 9am Pacific.

[Danny Parkins]

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[AJ Persinski]

Welcome back to the Herd. I'm Danny Parkins in for Colin. Rank my top 10 NFL teams heading into the season coming up in just over 20 minutes. Then Nick Wright will join the show. From first things first, very much looking forward to doing that and looking forward to joining. First things first as they expand to three hours coming up this football season. But yesterday, I think it showed the power of the Lakers and the power of late July, that a magazine cover could come out that is straight pr, and everyone would go insane. Like, Luka Doncic was on the COVID of Men's Health. And Luka Doncic looks shredded. He looks like skinny Luca. And you put those pictures up, and we've seen him a little bit this off season. We saw him with the Yankees. We've seen him out and about a little bit. He's like, oh, Luka Doncic figured out what a barbell was. He learned about intermittent fasting. He apparently is drinking less and smoking less hookah. And, you know, being a professional athlete and all of a sudden it's, oh, my God, professional athlete works out in the off season. And I guess I didn't fully realize that in a year where Luca was traded in arguably the craziest trade in NBA history, when he had a significant calf strain, that is often a precursor if you do not fully heal it, to blowing out your Achilles, see Tyrese Halliburton. And he took his time coming back from that, and it had an impact on his conditioning appearance, all of those things. I feel like people forgot who Luka Doncic was like, Luca is awesome, and I love Chris Broussard, and I can't wait to chop it up with him more on the regular on first things first. But when we had him on her yesterday, you would have thought that Luka Doncic was reborn based on these pictures.

[Unknown]

When I saw this article, saw how Luca looked, read it about, you know, how he's changed, and this summer's different for him. I gave a big shout out to LeBron James like this. This is a testament to LeBron James's example and the impact it had on Luka Doncic. I think he played with LeBron and saw as much physical ability as LeBron has, as much natural ability, as much size and strength and athleticism as LeBron has, naturally, he goes above and beyond to become the player he is.

[AJ Persinski]

Even though Luca didn't say that in the article. And maybe this is a little media insight, but getting a magazine cover, it's not that difficult for a list superstar athletes and celebrities. Like, this was a puff piece. This was the superstar athlete equivalent of, like, you ever break up with someone and then hit the weights because you want to have that revenge look, be, you know, new year, new me. Luka got dissed by the Mavericks. They leaked a bunch of stuff to the media about his professionalism, and he's putting this out there to show them what they missed. This is the superstar athlete equivalent of getting dumped, working out and then posting a shirtless pic with pecs and biceps on Instagram. Something I would know nothing about. Not because I've never been dumped, but because I have no biceps or pecs. But the point is this. The point is people forget that Luka Doncic, I mean, people act like the guy doesn't play basketball. Before last year, 70 games played, 66 games played, 65 games played, 66 games, 61, 72. Plus his international schedule. Luka Doncic plays basketball a lot. Really? Oh, now that Luka Doncic is intermittent fasting and doing bicep curls, I'm going to bet him for mvp. Luka was already a really safe favorite type of bet for mvp. We saw him two seasons ago carry the Dallas Mavericks to the NBA Finals. We have seen him average 34, 9 and 10 in a season two years ago. Like, list of best players in the NBA. Whatever. Your order is Jokic, SGA, Giannis Tatum, Luka. Like, I know LeBron was sixth in MVP voting. I know Donovan Mitchell was first team all NBA. But Luca didn't play in enough games to qualify. He was traded in the middle of the season. He had the calf injury. It was a weird year. But I think most people would agree that Luka Doncic is in the conversation for being a top five player in the world. So good for the professional athlete working out in the off season, maybe he'll start a little faster, but he's not going to get like, better at defense. And I don't think it's possible for him to get much better at basketball than averaging 33, 9 and 10. So I'm just a little confused as to what we're talking about here.

[Colin Cowherd]

I.

[AJ Persinski]

It's pr, it's spin, it's image control, it's damage control. It's. It does. It doesn't have to be anything more than that. And I am just, I expect even if Luka Doncic, I would have seen him at the hookah bar if that would have been the thing. If he would have been on the COVID of Instead of Men's Health, he would have been on the COVID of Hookah magazine. I would be like, man, Luca could win MVP next year because he's Luka Doncic. That the talent is enough where he can win mvp. But Men's Health is apparently supposed. I didn't Know, I didn't know being on the COVID of Men's Health was supposed to change the way that we all felt about one of the five greatest offensive players in the sport, and arguably one of the five greatest all around players in the sport because he's doing bicep curls and shoving all of his meals into eight hours a day. But I'm learning things as we go throughout this life. I wanted to change gears here a little bit and talk about and honor the life of Ryan Sandberg, the Hall of Famer from the Chicago Cubs who passed away yesterday at 65 years old. And I knew Rhino a bit, and I'll tell you my connection to him in a second. But he was a larger than life figure in Chicago. He was the reason why many, many people in Chicago, and frankly around the world became Cubs fans. When he won his MVP award in 1984, the Cubs had not been to the playoffs in 39 years. And so he wins that MVP there on WGN, the superstation. And people are watching Wrigley Fields come to life. And this incredibly professional ballplayer, it's a cliche. Play the game the right way. He was just a model of consistency. And he was, he was a humble superstar. And people say, never meet your heroes. I was a little young for Ryan Sandberg to be a sports hero of mine, but my older brother was significant, 16 years older than me, and he actually married someone whose father was very close with Ryan Sandberg. And so when I was the best man in my brother's wedding, at 15 years old, Ryan Sandberg was at the wedding. And so I gave a best man speech at the wedding. And I didn't talk to Ryan Sandberg about it at the wedding. But many years later, when I'm doing media in Chicago and Rhino would come on the show and he was a Cubs ambassador and he would do things. He would say, you know, Margaret really liked your toast. Margaret was his wife. And I'd be like, well, what about you right now? And he was like, margaret really liked your toast. Like, he just had this subtle ability. People who knew him better said he was a prankster. He didn't really give off the hilarious image too much publicly, but if you knew him a little bit, he would. But the thing about him was he just loved being a Cub and he loved Cubs fans. And so people would come up to him all the time and pay him a compliment, and he would always give them the time of the day, ask them their name, ask them about him. And I went back and, yeah, so this picture that we're showing now on FS1, it was crazy because about this time last year, Ryan Sandberg came on the radio because I do this cancer event in partnership with the Cubs called Cubs for a Cure, where I broadcast for 24 hours straight. It's coming up in two days on Thursday on the Score in Chicago. And Ryan Sandberg came in because we knew he had been battling cancer. And he very emotionally announced that just that morning he had had a scan that was clear, and his doctor said he was cancer free. And he cried. And it made national news. And we raised over a million dollars that weekend with all of it going to cancer research. And we took that picture. That's the president of business for the Cubs, Crane Kenney, with us on the field. And it was just this, like, beautiful celebration. And then 11 months later, he passes away from cancer. And it was just. It was gut wrenching because people, when they talk about him, if you didn't know him, you talk about the Sandberg game. Bob Costa says it was the best baseball game he ever called. And it was unbelievable. You know, he hits two home runs in the ninth and 10th off Bruce Suter. And you know, the Cubs win 12, 11. And extras and people talk about 10 time All Star, nine time Gold Gloves, Silver Slugger, MVP, whatever it is when they say never meet your heroes. And then he actually is to so many a sports hero, and he's everything you want and more. It's just rare. So I wanted to play a quick bite from his hall of Fame speech because I really think it encompassed how he approached the game, but really how he approached life. Here's Rhino.

[Ryan Sandberg]

I was taught you never, ever disrespect your opponent or your teammates or your organization or your manager. And never, ever your uniform. Make a great play, act like you've done it before. Get a big hit, look for the third base coach and get ready to run the bases, Hit a home run, put your head down, drop the bat, run around the bases. Because the name on the front is a lot more important than the name on the back.

[Colin Cowherd]

That's respect.

[AJ Persinski]

I had an opportunity to talk to Ryan Sandberg on the radio when it had been announced that he was getting a statue at Wrigley Field. And what was the position going to be? Was it going to be hitting a home run from the Sandberg game? Was it going to be him turning a double play that he was famous for? And he said he thought it was going to be more about defense and it ended up just being him in the ready position because he just wanted to be ready to be a pro. And that encompassed who he was. He crossed over. He cut through. He mattered to a lot of people. Barack Obama posted a tribute. Hall of Famer and Cub stalwart Ryan Sandberg wasn't just a great baseball player. He was a class act who never cheated the game. Everyone in Chicago, including White Sox fans, will miss him deeply. And it's so true. He was a humble superstar. He wanted to meet you. He wanted to talk to you. And he deserved so much more than 65 years of life. RIP Rhino.

[Danny Parkins]

Okay, have you heard about this?

[Chris Broussard]

Last year, Degree changed the formula for their Cool Rush deodorant, and their fans rebelled and wanted the old scent back. And Degree listens. That doesn't happen often. They admitted they effed up and they're bringing back the original Cool Rush scent. They're bringing it back and it's exactly how you remember it. Cool, crisp and fresh. There's a reason it's the number one men's antiperspirant. And it's back in Walmart, Target and other stores now for under four bucks. So try and see what the fuss is about.

[Danny Parkins]

Head to your local Walmart or Target.

[Chris Broussard]

To try the OG Degree Cool Rush for yourself.

[Colin Cowherd]

This is an I Heart podcast.