“Harvest Time”

Summary

The Tony Kornheiser Show: “Harvest Time” - July 11, 2025

Hosted by Tony Kornheiser and Produced by This Show Stinks Productions, LLC

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Introduction

In the episode titled “Harvest Time,” Tony Kornheiser delves into significant changes in the sports landscape and examines legislative impacts on professional gamblers. The show features insightful conversations with two prominent guests: sportswriter Bob Ryan and gambling expert Jeff Ma. Additionally, Tony pays tribute to a local inspirational figure, Tim Strachan, sharing heartfelt memories and reflecting on his legacy.

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Discussion with Bob Ryan: Evolution of Sports Rules

Timestamp: 00:00 – 33:35

Bob Ryan, a renowned sportswriter from the Boston Globe, joins Tony to discuss numerous rule changes across major sports and their implications.

Baseball: Pitch Clock and Game Pace

• Pitch Clock Implementation: Bob Ryan expresses strong support for the introduction of the pitch clock in baseball.
  • Bob Ryan (22:12): “Hallelujah. It was so long overdue... It’s just too bad it took so long. Look at the effect it's had on game times. It’s been enormous and all positive.”
  • Tony (22:39): Notes the rarity of violations, emphasizing the clock's effectiveness.

Baseball: Ghost Runner and Larger Bases

• Ghost Runner in Extra Innings: Ryan discusses the controversial addition of a ghost runner to reduce game length.

  • Bob Ryan (23:18): Criticizes the necessity of ghost runners, calling it a “needless thing.”

• Larger Bases and Infield Shifts: The conversation shifts to larger bases and the elimination of infield shifts.

  • Bob Ryan (23:59): While ambivalent about infield shifts, he supports larger bases, acknowledging their positive impact on the game.
  • Tony (24:43): Appreciates changes that encourage more stolen bases, enhancing game excitement.

Basketball: 24-Second Clock and Three-Point Shot

• 24-Second Clock: Both hosts agree on the positive influence of the 24-second shot clock in modern basketball.

• Three-Point Shot Critique: Ryan delivers a passionate critique of the three-point line.

  • Bob Ryan (25:45): “I honestly believe what I'm about to say is not hyperbole. It is my belief that the three-point shot is the worst thing to happen to basketball in my lifetime.”
  • He laments the shift away from traditional playstyles, highlighting the negative impact on player roles and game dynamics.

NFL: Kickoffs and Overtime Rules

• Abandonment of Kickoffs: Ryan expresses disappointment over the NFL's move to eliminate kickoffs for safety reasons.

  • Bob Ryan (27:50): Describes football as inherently dangerous, skeptical about the effectiveness of safety measures.

• Overtime Regulations: The discussion turns to NFL overtime rules, with Ryan advocating for formats ensuring both teams possess the ball.

  • Bob Ryan (28:44): Emphasizes the importance of fairness, suggesting that both teams should have the opportunity to control the game in overtime.

Hockey: Shootouts vs. Traditional Play

• Shootouts in Hockey: Ryan shares mixed feelings about shootouts, acknowledging their drama but preferring traditional game resolutions.
  • Bob Ryan (29:53): “I think you want to play the game right and I don't like it at all. But there is tension I can’t deny that.”

Playoff Expansions Across Sports

• Expansion of Playoffs: The conversation explores the trend of expanding playoff opportunities in various sports.
  • Bob Ryan (30:40): Advocates for limits on playoff expansions to maintain competitiveness and significance.
  • He criticizes the motives behind expansions, attributing them to financial gains rather than sporting merit.

NCAA Basketball Tournament Expansion

• NCAA Tournament Growth: Ryan vehemently opposes the proposed expansion of the NCAA tournament beyond 64 teams.

  • Bob Ryan (32:33): “64 was perfect. Perfect. And so no, and it's all this... influence of the power conferences is just insidious.”

• Future of College Sports: He forecasts dire consequences for college sports, citing financial and structural disruptions.

  • Bob Ryan (33:09): “Manuel, the biggest story in all four that's going to take place in our lifetime is the implosion of college sports.”

Key Takeaways:

• Bob Ryan appreciates rule changes that enhance game pace and excitement, such as the pitch clock and larger bases.
• He critically assesses the three-point line in basketball and the removal of NFL kickoffs, highlighting their detrimental effects on traditional play.
• Ryan warns against the unchecked expansion of playoff formats, stressing the importance of preserving competitive integrity.
• The potential overhaul of the NCAA tournament alarms him, foreseeing significant upheaval in college sports.

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Tribute to Tim Strachan

Timestamp: 33:35 – 18:42

Tony honors the memory of Tim Strachan, a high school quarterback whose life was tragically altered by an accident, leaving him paralyzed. Strachan's resilience and inspirational contributions to adaptive sports, particularly the Adaptive Open, are celebrated.

• Tony (16:08 – 18:42): Shares personal anecdotes, emphasizing Tim’s impact and unwavering positivity despite his circumstances.
• Expresses admiration for Strachan’s motivational work and highlights his collaboration with Johnny Holiday on Maryland football games.

Notable Quote:

• Tony (16:08): “Tim Strachan became an inspirational figure in this area, made motivational speeches, wonderful motivational speeches. Never complained about the circumstance that he found himself in for the overwhelming majority of his life.”

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Conversation with Jeff Ma: Tax Implications for Professional Gamblers

Timestamp: 33:35 – 63:25

Jeff Ma, a professional gambler and industry expert, discusses the ramifications of a new tax bill affecting gamblers, particularly the stipulation limiting the deduction of gambling losses to 90% of winnings.

Understanding the Tax Bill

• Current Deduction Practices: Gamblers can traditionally deduct losses from their winnings, similar to capital gains and losses in investments.

• New Regulation Impact: The proposed bill restricts this deduction, allowing only 90% of losses to be offset against winnings.

  • Jeff Ma (36:22): Explains, “...you could net out your losses versus wins. So this is just like if you were an investor and you had wins and losses...”
  • Tony (37:50): Expresses shock at the sudden revelation of such a provision.

Consequences for Professional Gamblers

• Financial Impact: Professional gamblers, who often have substantial wins and losses, will face increased taxable income.

  • Example: A gambler with $8 million in winnings and $6 million in losses would now be taxed as if they had only $5.4 million in net income.

• Industry Response and Representation: Jeff highlights the absence of lobbying groups advocating for gamblers, leaving them vulnerable to unfavorable legislation.

  • Jeff Ma (40:29): “There are no lobbyists, there are no groups that are protecting the rights of gamblers.”

Potential Unintended Consequences

• Shift to Offshore Bookies: The new tax regulation may drive gamblers towards unregulated or offshore betting platforms to avoid taxation.

  • Jeff Ma (44:40): “That could be an unintended consequence of this.”

• Reduction in Legal Gambling Activity: Increased tax burdens might discourage professional gambling, reducing industry participation and revenue.

Broader Implications

• Comparison with Other Industries: Jeff draws parallels with potential taxation on unrealized gains in the tech sector, underscoring the complexity and unforeseen challenges in legislative processes.

Key Takeaways:

• The new tax bill imposes stricter limits on the deduction of gambling losses, significantly impacting professional gamblers' net income.
• The lack of advocacy groups for gamblers exacerbates the vulnerability of this community to unfavorable tax legislation.
• Potential shifts towards offshore and unregulated betting platforms pose further challenges, including loss of revenue and increased financial insecurity for professional gamblers.

Notable Quotes:

• Jeff Ma (36:22): “It’s just what your income was, right. You shouldn’t pay. You shouldn’t just pay for what you won.”
• Bob Ryan (33:30): Reflecting on the broader impacts of college sports' structural changes.

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Listener Mailbag: Community Stories and Interactions

Timestamp: 33:35 – 63:25

Tony engages with listener emails, sharing personal stories and interactions that reflect the diverse experiences of the show’s audience.

Stories Highlighted:

1. David Loose Cannon from Hampton, Virginia:

   • Recounts attending the USGA Adaptive Golf Tournament, expressing emotional connections with participants and memorable moments shared with his father.

2. Jason Kunik from Hagerstown:

   • A prosthetist shares his experience supporting amputees through golf, highlighting events organized by the Eastern Amputee Golf Association.

3. Josh Cromwell from Moselle, Mississippi:

   • Contributes a haiku about potatoes, adding a poetic touch to the show.

4. Terry Douglas from Grand Island, Nebraska:

   • Reflects on the legacy of football and memorable sports moments attended with his father, emphasizing the emotional bond created through sports.

5. Ken Scudder from Takoma Park, Maryland:

   • Shares anecdotes from attending baseball games, including memorable performances by players like Wander Suero and Sung Chae Chung.

6. Jay Yander from Old Ford, Pennsylvania:

   • Queries about making boiled chicken, drawing a humorous parallel to techniques used for boiled eggs.

7. Lisa G. from New York City:

   • Discusses her love for cherries, interweaving it with a humorous take on competitive eating showcased on ESPN.

8. Hardy Watts:

   • Appreciates the promotion of independent artists on the show, sharing personal connections and experiences with musicians featured on the podcast.

Notable Quotes:

• Tony (54:02): “I told him how Mr. Toney would rage Suero's outings on the pod to the delight of all, and told him to buckle up for the ride.”
• Jeff Ma (55:09): Shares a poetic rendition embedded in a song lyric: “I offer up excuses and dance around what's true and you keep believing.”

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Conclusion

In the “Harvest Time” episode, Tony Kornheiser masterfully balances discussions on pivotal sports rule changes with critical insights into legislative impacts on professional gambling. The conversations with Bob Ryan and Jeff Ma provide listeners with a deeper understanding of the evolving dynamics in sports and the challenges facing the gambling industry. Additionally, heartfelt tributes and engaging listener stories enrich the show, highlighting the community’s diverse experiences and shared passions.

Final Thoughts:

• Sports Evolution: Rule changes are reshaping traditional sports, eliciting mixed reactions from enthusiasts and experts alike.
• Legislative Impact: New tax policies pose significant challenges to professional gamblers, underscoring the need for advocacy and informed discussions.
• Community Engagement: Listener contributions and personal stories enhance the show's relatability and foster a strong sense of community among the audience.

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For those who haven't listened to "The Tony Kornheiser Show," this episode offers a comprehensive exploration of contemporary issues in sports and gambling, enriched by personal anecdotes and expert opinions. It's a must-listen for fans seeking both informative and heartfelt content.

Transcript

[Tony Kornheiser]

Tony. On today's show, we'll talk with Bob Ryan about the proposed expansion to the NCAA Tournament and other big changes we've seen in sports over the last few years. And we'll chat with Jeff Ma about some potential trouble for professional gamblers. And I'm not sure I'm gonna understand anything Jeff says. But first, let's keep the sales weasels happy.

[Bob Ryan]

Oh, hey.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Hey.

[Bob Ryan]

Thanks for meeting me here.

[Tony Kornheiser]

It's just you're my only lawyer friend.

[Jeff Ma]

And I need your professional opinion.

[Tony Kornheiser]

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[Unknown]

This is the Tony Kornheiser Show.

[Tony Kornheiser]

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[Unknown]

Previously on the Tony Kornheiser Show.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Michael would know better than I but I think the rules are show up, keep up and shut up.

[Michael]

I don't think he's going to handle.

[Tony Kornheiser]

The third one very well. No, he's not going to handle the shut up. No, he's not.

[Michael]

Can you imagine being the other players in that group?

[Tony Kornheiser]

Yeah, they're going to laugh a lot.

[Unknown]

Yeah, that's a good group to be in.

[Tony Kornheiser]

So we're rooting for two things. One is either Bargazzi wins or he has a tremendous blow up and he and Greg punch each other in the head. What else could you root for?

[Unknown]

The Tony Kornizer show is on now.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Apparently they're playing in threesomes, neither pairing. And the threesome with Bargazzi is Larry the cable guy, who has played in this a lot and is probably pretty good and wears a silly outfit, you know, like with a cover off flannel shirt or something because he's Larry the cable guy.

[Unknown]

It's his brand.

[Tony Kornheiser]

And Charles Wade Barkley. And that's the greatest. Like if you're playing with Charles, that's the great. That's all you could ever say hello to your family. Yeah. You know, it's just wonderful. So we will find out next week. We'll have Greg on. We'll have Greg on Monday or Tuesday or something like that as we, as we slouch towards 150. I like to do 150 shows in a. In the year, the contract year, which ends for me on August 31st. I mean, I like to do that just because it's a nice round number. It's three a week and it gives you two weeks off. So we will take those two weeks off, not consecutively, but we will take two weeks off in August to make everybody happy and not go to 151 or 150. We'll just stop at 150. That's a nice number, right, Michael? That's okay.

[Michael]

I'm now looking at the T sheet for this tournament.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Okay.

[Unknown]

Well, we reserve the right if we get bored at the end of the month to come back and do shows though, right?

[Tony Kornheiser]

Sure. And I get bored very easily. All right. So there's a couple of things. First of all, I sent. Chris had an intern task today and that was to pick tomatoes. We have.

[Michael]

I was wondering. You were so focused this morning. You and the dog are pacing.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Yes, yes. It's a harvest we have very, very small tomatoes. I thought I had bought two cherry tomatoes, but cherry tomatoes are twice the size of these tomatoes. Grape tomatoes are twice the size of these tomatoes. These are tiny little tomatoes. To give you an idea, they are basically the size of a stone in a ring. That. That's all they are.

[Michael]

That's a pretty big ring.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Well, these are small, really small tomatoes. They're tasty. I've been eating them for the last three or four days, so.

[Unknown]

Very good.

[Tony Kornheiser]

The Internet today was to go out and pick about 10, 15 of these things. The darker reds, not real dark red, but the ones that look ripe. So if he. If he had come back in with green ones, I would have said, what are you doing? You're killing us. But no, he knew what he was doing, and he picked out about 15, 20. Did you have doing that?

[Michael]

Yeah, I'm a lot of things, but I'm not colorblind.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Okay, so then that was good. And. And. And this is a real intern task. Has nothing to do with a podcast, but it's something that he can do. Larger aggro gets me to the next thing that I want to talk about, and that is zucchini. Not the great zucchini, but the zucchini that we have planted. We have planted zucchini.

[Michael]

Great zucchinis all in for the 2025 Commander season. Love to alternate jerseys, I'm sure.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Yeah, well, because they're super bowl jerseys, we have put zucchini in two different spots in the backyard, separated by distance, separated probably by amount of sunlight. The zucchini that we planted more closely to the house, that zucchini was zucchini plants. Yes. That was not seed. That was zucchini plants.

[Michael]

Like a zucchini sapling.

[Tony Kornheiser]

They started out very well. They looked the part. They produce those yellow blossoms. Right. No fruit. This is second year in a row that I planted zucchini in the same spot in the same discipline. No fruit. Both times last year, we had one small green zucchini and nothing else. Michael, tell the story of your zucchini on another part of the yard.

[Michael]

The zucchini that is now flourishing.

[Tony Kornheiser]

That is flourishing.

[Michael]

The zucchini that we threw to the wind.

[Tony Kornheiser]

And literally. Yes, literally threw to the wind. Seeding. It was seeds. We had no faith in those. Those were provided to us by our previous intern, Harrison. Yes, Michael. And did. Harrison did not plant them. We. You plan.

[Michael]

We planted them, but we thought. I thought there was no way that the plant would grow quick enough to be ready for the growing season. And they are twice the size of every other zucchini plant we have.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Yes. And they have fruit. Not just green zucchini, yellow zucchini as well. You're getting ready to harvest.

[Michael]

Yeah. And so this is what's tricky, because I know zucchini do need to be pollinated, so there's something about the male and the female plants there, and I think bees have to be involved. So I'm just wondering if we're not getting bee traffic to this other part of the backyard, because this has happened at my house as well.

[Tony Kornheiser]

This is the second time I've tried this with zucchini and the second time that I've had what looks like a flourishing plant but produces nothing.

[Michael]

And what I've also noticed is the ones that we have had a lot of success with the seed, we just put these into essentially cleared backyard dirt ground. We put this straight into the ground, which I think has helped because we've had so much rain versus these. We've had planters that have baked in the sun.

[Tony Kornheiser]

But also we have.

[Michael]

I think it's sauteed the zucchini, but.

[Tony Kornheiser]

We have some in planters in the same general area.

[Michael]

But it's a different material. It's a different. I think that one might be more porous or something.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Well, whatever is going on, that. That's the state of our zucchini. I have one tomato, one real tomato that I've taken in and putting in a brown. Put in a brown bag, and I will have that.

[Michael]

Slicer tomatoes.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Yes.

[Michael]

I love the marketing for the small tomatoes because every couple years, they have a new term for, you know, flavor bomb that, you know, it just. Everything used to be the cherry tomatoes.

[Tony Kornheiser]

It's just tiny little tomatoes. And then, Michael, it says I should take in some of the peppers today, but they haven't turned red. They're just green.

[Unknown]

Well, the job there is to figure out if, you know, if I leave them out for one more day, will the beasts get them right?

[Tony Kornheiser]

Well, no, the animals don't usually take the peppers. They take the tomatoes. Okay.

[Unknown]

So, by the way, I'm seeing that the very small tomatoes are called current tomatoes. Is that about the size? Yeah.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Yeah. Currency. You are. Are E, N, T. Yeah. Or ant. Ant, as in current. Yeah, as in a small raisin.

[Michael]

And now we have trade in the currency.

[Tony Kornheiser]

So tomatoes. Other things to take. Market. Yes. Other things to talk about. I'm just going to say this. I know we're going to get stuck today on pti. I know we're going to have to Talk about Cooper flair. I know it. And I'm going to say on the air, I am philosophically opposed to this story. I am philosophically opposed to drawing any conclusions from exhibition games, whether it's football, you know, like, oh, Jaden Daniels, his first game. Oh, boy. It's an exhibition game. Doesn't mean anything.

[Unknown]

Yes.

[Tony Kornheiser]

You know, Paul Skeen's going out there for the first time in spring. Trent, no Cooper flag. I understand he shot 4 for 21 or 5. 21. I watched some of it. I was watching the Nats. I was watching that. It doesn't mean anything. He's playing against people who are not going to be in the league. If he had had 45 points, I would have said, oh, he looks pretty good. But the fact that he had 10 and shot poorly, he didn't look for it. So what? It's not a real game. There's nothing real about it. Nothing. Zero. And I'm going to be stuck talking about it. And I'm going to say this, and everybody's going to get mad at me. Keller and Ride Home are going to get mad at me. And I say, then don't do it. Don't put it in the show. Don't put it in the show. Because it's how I believe. I don't. There's nothing he could have done last night that would have in any way influenced his professional career. To me. To me now, a couple of other things. One is that we have two great patrons on this show. We have. We have people whose services we solicit and we pay for. Right. Bells Up. Yes. I buy wine from Bells Up. I have bought wine from Duska Jensen. I have bought wine from Cindy Wenslow. They listen to the show. They watch pti. They're wonderful people. They make great wine. I've spent my own money on this wine, which you don't have to throw a benefit for me. Right. I'm fine doing this. But we have two people who have not allowed us to spend money, and they are great patrons of this show. And one is Katie from Cake Bread.

[Unknown]

Oh, yes.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Katie from Cake Bread sent us cake Bread wine and then sent from Cake Bread sellers and then sent us.

[Michael]

Besides the bezel.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Yeah. Bezel or bezel.

[Michael]

Bezel.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Okay. And that was great.

[Unknown]

Did she send the chips as well that were supposed to be paired with the wine? I can't remember.

[Tony Kornheiser]

I think so. Yeah. I think so. And so. That was great. And then we have Sarah, the Ice cream queen from McConnell's ice cream.

[Michael]

Did it arrive?

[Tony Kornheiser]

It's down. It's. It's right there. It's right there in that refrigerator off your right shoulder.

[Michael]

You're checking the temperature to make sure it's constant.

[Tony Kornheiser]

It's. I am not. It's a freezer. Okay, Here are the three new flavors from McConnell's Fine Ice Creams and sees Candy SC Apostrophe and that's the.

[Michael]

That's the regional like chocolatier, right?

[Tony Kornheiser]

Yeah. And in San Francisco.

[Unknown]

That's right, yeah.

[Tony Kornheiser]

San Francisco Ghirardelli and their Seas. Those are the two famous ones, right? I think.

[Unknown]

Yes.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Says with over 175 years of combined California confectionary heritage, McConnell's fine ice creams and seas candies are teaming up once again with three all new limited edition flavors, each blending beloved seas candy pieces into McConnell's house made from scratch ice cream for the ultimate nostalgic treat. And we're thrilled to give you a first taste Cali sundae style. To celebrate, we bundled all three flavors with everything you need to build your ultimate summer sundae. Cherries, sprinkles and seized chocolate galore. They sent me an ice cream scoop.

[Bob Ryan]

They?

[Tony Kornheiser]

Yes, an ice cream scoop. They sent me a parfait glass.

[Michael]

It's like an old diner look.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Yeah, they sent me a parfait glass. They sent me the long spoon.

[Unknown]

Oh, I love that.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Okay. And here are the flavors. We have not had them yet. We are going to have these flavors before vacation. Okay. Before vacation. Brown sugar with milk Bordeaux. The sea's fan favorite. Buttery brown sugar and milk chocolate sprinkles reimagined in brown sugar sweet cream. PB&J with peanut butter patties. Creamy peanut butter meets house made raspberry jam in this nostalgic nutty sweet throwback strawberry with strawberry creams. A dreamy swirl of strawberry ice cream. Chocolate ganache and sees iconic chocolate covered strawberry creams. Scoop, swirl, sprinkle and share. Tag us and show off your Sunday masterpiece. We're gonna do this again. One of the great patrons of the show, Sarah, the ice cream queen. She's great.

[Unknown]

Some people have the Medici's, we have Sarah and we're very happy about that.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Very happy. Right? You excited about that? I'm excited.

[Michael]

Not that you share with us.

[Tony Kornheiser]

We're all gonna sit and eat these.

[Unknown]

Do you think McConnell's would ever pair up with Necco to get Necco wafers in part of some ice cream?

[Tony Kornheiser]

McConnell's seems to be willing to extend itself. Yes, seems to be. So we will see.

[Michael]

Got to make an egg cream with that also old school glass.

[Unknown]

Absolutely.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Here is what we received in the mail. Email an invitation for Tony Kornheiser and guest says, we have not yet received your response. Please note the RSVP deadline below. The Right honorable Lord Mandelson, PC His Britannic Majesty's Ambassador to the United States of America, Niger's country, invites you to a Wimbledon reception, Saturday the 12th of July. They don't say July 12th. They say 12th. July. Yes. This is tomorrow at 11:00am at the British Ambassador's residence. Isn't that fantastic?

[Unknown]

That is. That is wonderful.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Fantastic. It's a Wimbledon brunch and you're supposed to wear Wimbledon white.

[Unknown]

Yeah. Wimbledon casual whites. I'm not quite sure what that.

[Tony Kornheiser]

I don't know what that means. An informal live screening of the Wimbledon's Ladies Singles. Finally. So it's from 11am to 1pm and it's at the British Ambassador's residence and gardens. You all know me. I'm not going. I mean, but I'm so honored by this. I think it's so nice. It's lovely. It's just so nice. I think Michael should go. Oh, absolutely. I think Michael should go.

[Unknown]

I'm legally not allowed to step into.

[Tony Kornheiser]

I don't know. Do they listen? Do they watch?

[Unknown]

Yes.

[Tony Kornheiser]

We've done a lot of Wimbledon on pti if and Wimbledon here.

[Unknown]

I don't know.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Christopher Clary yesterday.

[Unknown]

I don't know if we discussed this on the air, but we did get an email from them many months ago that said we're fans of the show.

[Tony Kornheiser]

That's so nice.

[Unknown]

And periodically, we would like to invite Tony. Those are certain events.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Those are the workers. Well, I would go to a dinner. I mean, a dinner is different for me than Saturday morning. You know, I'm just.

[Michael]

So you're playing golf then?

[Tony Kornheiser]

Of course. I mean, I don't have limited golf.

[Michael]

You don't take photos on your phone. But what's so great is that this time of year I get punted these memories. And it's pictures of me and Liz were at semifinals from over 10 years ago. And then there's this great picture where Bootsy's a baby and he's in the carrier and we're outside of center court. I let Liz go in so she can watch Rafa, her favorite player, and just get Chris walking the grounds with my kid.

[Tony Kornheiser]

That's great. So we have to go. Somebody has to go to this.

[Unknown]

Chessy.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Somebody from the show. No, Michael or Liz or somebody has to go to this. I mean, come on. This is the British Ambassador's residence and garden. How often are you going to get that chance? I'm an old man. I haven't had that chance before.

[Michael]

Do you dare do it Saturday. Go full headband.

[Tony Kornheiser]

It was McEnroe.

[Unknown]

So anyway, it sounds like a very lovely thing.

[Tony Kornheiser]

That's just so nice. It's just so nice. We're very, very grateful.

[Michael]

Tea, sandwiches. Imagine.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Just tremendously. Come on now, ladies. Ladies. Finals. And that's going to be good, I think. Saba, not Sabalanka. Anisimova, Anasimova and Chianta.

[Unknown]

That's right. Anisa over. Yeah, that's right.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Yeah.

[Michael]

Did you hear that Wimbledon warning from the Chair Empire the other day about like. Please refrain from opening bottles of champagne before players get it.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Is that right? And I didn't hear that. That's. I did. I love the. I love the royal box where people wear ties. Yeah, I love that. It's 85 degrees, 90 degrees.

[Michael]

It's going to grant.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Yeah. You great.

[Unknown]

Falling asleep taking a nap.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Yeah. What's wrong with that? It's really nice. One other small note, sad note, but it's very, very local and I think that we should mention it. Tim Strachan, who was a great high school quarterback at DeMatha in the Washington, D.C. area, great enough that Penn State and Maryland were competing to get him to become the starting quarterback at their schools in the early 90s. And when he was a senior and had not, I don't think he had decided between Penn State and Maryland. He might have, I don't know. When he was a senior, he went out to Bethany beach and had a terrible accident that left him paralyzed and in a wheelchair for the rest of his life. He died the other day at 49 years old. He became. And now we talk about the Adaptive Open and how wonderful and inspirational it is. Tim Strachan became an inspirational figure in this area, made motivational speeches, wonderful motivational speeches. Never complained about the circumstance that he found himself in for the overwhelming majority of his life. Worked with Johnny Holiday on Maryland football games, did all that. Had had a career to be proud of, not the one he wanted. He wanted to be a professional football player, obviously, and had a chance. But fate steps in in strange ways. And he, Tim Strachan became to me, anyway, I met him a couple of times, became a beacon of light in what could ordinarily be a very, very dark world. And he was inspirational to people and will obviously be missed. And we will take a break and we will come back, I think, with Bob Ryan I am Tony Kornheiser.

[Unknown]

This is the Tony Kornheiser Show.

[Tony Kornheiser]

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[Tony Kornheiser]

This is a group called Paul Cody and the Edsel Brothers. I owned an Edsel once. We are Paul Cody and the Edsel Brothers, a rock and roll combo made up of four 60 plus aged musicians. We perform regularly at bars and clubs and make records as often as we can in a tiny basement studio in the great city of Chicago. It has been a delight to be featured previously on your show and it is really fun to hear from people from different aspects of my life who call or text Did I just hear you on the Tony Kornheiser show? Here are two tracks from our upcoming record There Comes a Time that will be released on August 1st. This is called the fool youl Know, we have played them before. We're always happy to play them. Yes, called the fool youl Know, and it plays in the quintessential American sportswriter, Bob Ryan. These are summer shows. We don't have a lot going on that we can focus on. They are more thoughtful shows and more random shows. And it occurred to me the other day, Bob, that you and I should talk about this in our lifetimes and particularly recently. There are large changes in sports. There are rule changes that have had enormous impact on. I mean the 24 second clock, which is a long time ago, and a three point shot, which now is a long time ago because it goes to the aba, have had enormous changes. One for the good and one for the bad as far as I'm concerned. We'll get to that. But let's start with some baseball stuff. Your thoughts on the pitch clock? What do you think of the pitch clock? Good or bad?

[Bob Ryan]

Hallelujah. It was so long overdue and I stressed at the time that it's. The people brought it on themselves. The people who play baseball and who manage it brought it on themselves. They made this mandatory. And it's just too bad it took so long. Look at the effect that it's had on game times. And it's just been enormous and all positive.

[Tony Kornheiser]

And by the way, no one gets flagged on it anymore. Everyone pitches within the amount of time you're supposed to.

[Bob Ryan]

It always every once in a while. I've seen maybe two or three total already this year and that includes clips of stuff on highlight shows. So yes, it's very. It's very rare.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Okay, this one is. We all like the pitch clock. There's some pushback on this one. I like this, but not everybody does. We no longer have infinite games. We don't have that. And we have a ghost runner in the 10th inning. Your thoughts on that?

[Bob Ryan]

First of all, I would like the documentation on exactly how many lengthy games. By lengthy, I'd say more than 1212 innings games there really were that had people in a dither. I don't think there were that many. I had no problem with it. It was part of baseball. That's what baseball, the Manfred man as we like to call it. Those of us who like to deride it and hate it despised this thing. And it is a needless thing in my judgment and so I'll tell you once again.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Okay. I'm gonna stay with baseball. Larger bases and no infield shifts. I like both of these. How about you?

[Bob Ryan]

I have a. I'm ambivalent about the shift thing. The larger base find. People call it like the pizza box. You know, I don't care. It doesn't bother me. I don't think. I'm fine with it, but I'm just ambivalent. I don't like the idea that you would dictate how people play a sport. Although basketball has always had its rules about zone defense and so forth in the NBA, so. But I learned to live with that. Yeah, I think it's been, I think it's been a plus for the game. Yeah. And you still see hits taken away because the shortstop can stay, you know, so close to second base that he's, you know, that, that 10 inches doesn't matter whether he's on right side or left side second base. But I think by and large it's helped the game. Yeah. Okay.

[Tony Kornheiser]

I also like, I like restricting how many moves you can make to first. I do like that because it leads to more stolen bases. It's much better.

[Bob Ryan]

We've had a ration. Much improvement in stolen bases. Yeah, absolutely. And I think people, I think that makes the game juicier and definitely it stimulates the game. I think that that's been a good thing. So I'm not going to. I would have had a philosophical objection about it, but now that I've seen it in action, I'm okay.

[Tony Kornheiser]

The, the biggest rule change in the history of sports is probably the 24 second clock in. In basketball, everybody has learned to live with it every bit. It's been very, very good. The alternative is terrible. Everybody knows that. But the three point shot, which when it came in, you and I watched it come in in the aba, we thought it was pretty good. It has now led to a different style of basketball where people take advantage of the three point shot to the exclusion very often of two point shots. And there's been a lot of complaints about it. You know basketball better than anyone. What are your thoughts on the three point shot and what it's led to?

[Bob Ryan]

Before I address that, there was one other significant change in basketball that did predate us and that was the elimination of the center jump after every battle.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Oh, yeah, yeah.

[Bob Ryan]

Well, people have no conception. Most people have no idea this ever existed. But you know, historians that we are, we know that until the mid-30s, I don't know what will, what year it was eliminated. That after every basket team assembled at mid court it had a jump ball. Okay, that obviously that was, that was a great advancement. And you're right about 24 second clock. It was necessary and it's, it's, it's unimaginable to have the game without it. I am one of the most vocal opponents of the three you'll ever find. I honestly believe what I'm about to say is not hyperbole. It is my belief that the three point shot is the worst thing to happen to basketball in my lifetime. That it has totally distorted the game at every level, right down to 8 year olds cranking up threes. And now the byproduct of this is Stephon Curry is the most influential player of the 21st century. You know, we can argue who was the most influential player or players of the 20th, but we know who the most influential player in the 21st century is. And this is internationally. He's the guy people want to be. Including seven footers who are told they.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Have to be that guy.

[Bob Ryan]

And it has totally distorted the game. Eliminated the low post play that no more Kevin McHales. You know, you'll never see that again. And one of the worst sights in basketball to me is the seven footer getting the pass three feet six feet from the basket. Instead of taking a jump hook or making a move, he throws it out to the corner for some guy to clank up a three. And they're taught to do that. That's the way the game is being taught. And I think it's changed the game. It's not the same enjoyable game it once was. I still like it, don't get me wrong. But I don't like it as much.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Okay. The basic abandonment of kickoffs in the NFL for safety reasons. It is said most exciting play for me in football is the kickoff and we rarely see it anymore. Your thoughts on that?

[Bob Ryan]

I think football's the laughable attempt at creating safety quote unquote is ridiculous because look, you're not going to. You can now you can only make football marginally safer. You can never make it quote unquote safe.

[Tony Kornheiser]

That's right.

[Bob Ryan]

It is a collision sport. If you put the rules out to people, an alien invader and said this is the most famous game, popular game in America. An alien invader will look at the rules and say that's legal. You know, I mean these 350 pound guys crashing into each other. No, however, I agree with you. I want the kickoff and too damn bad, you know, you want to play football, you might get hurt, period. Sorry. If you want to play football, if you're crazy enough to want to play football, you know you're going to. You're probably going to get hurt. And meanwhile, I agree with you. We want more kickoff returns.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Okay. The overtime rules in the NFL that they tinker with all the time, what is your thought on overtimes and how they should proceed?

[Bob Ryan]

I think that you really want to do something. I don't have this. Anything that involves both teams touching the ball and getting a chance is necessary. I think, you know, teams and Patriots benefited greatly from winning coin tosses and then kicking field goals to win championships. They're not the only one. That was always frustrating. I don't think that's fair. Anything, whatever specific you want to put in. But as long as it has to involve both teams getting a chance for the ball, you know, I think. And that would be me. Now, I'll be honest about this, Tony. I don't really ultimately care what they do about football. In other words, they can do what they want. My sports of passion and interest and, you know, running through my blood are baseball and basketball. Football is part of the deal. It's part of the sporting experience. I've known it my whole life. I can enjoy a good football game. But I'm going to tell you right now, if they stop playing football in the next five minutes, it wouldn't bother me. I could live without it.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Okay, well, let me get to hockey, which is also part of your heritage, hockey. What do you think of shootouts in hockey and not go in the distance, the infinite game.

[Bob Ryan]

I think shootouts are, they're very dramatic. The thing is, it's a two edged sword here. I remember, you know, covering Olympics with shootouts and boy, its tension is incredible. But it's, it's. I don't like it. I think you want to play the game right and I don't like it at all. I. But yet they. There is a tension, I can't deny that, but it's just somehow wrong for me. So I will. I'm not a big fan of shootouts.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Okay. Overall in sports, the great expansion of playoff opportunity, the wild cards, for example, in baseball, the play in game in the NBA which allows 20 of 30 teams to actually be in the playoffs. That expansion of playoffs, are you for it or against it?

[Bob Ryan]

It's got to be a limit. No, I'm not, I'm not for any more further expansion of that type because you want to make it mean something at number one. You Know, that's for sure. I just don't. I just think when you have that kind of a. And we all know the reason for it. The reason for it is. Well, the number one reason, of course is money somehow. You know, more broadcasts, more sponsors, blah, blah, blah. Okay. And the other thing is, the commissioners will say keeps more fans interested.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Yeah, for the whole season.

[Bob Ryan]

No question. I mean, you know, we were sitting here and I'm sitting in Boston and now. Oh, wow, we're really involved in a wild card now, you know, whereas, you know, up to 1969, you. You had an American League champion that season. That was it. Yeah, yeah. Okay. Yeah, we can learn to live with that. I think the most amusing one of all was hockey when you consider that, you know, for it in its so many years there were six teams and four of them made the playoffs, you know, and that was, that was the Stanley cup playoffs. And you know, in the 16 in the original six.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Yeah, the Rangers didn't.

[Bob Ryan]

Now they're over 30 teams and you know, okay, fine. Okay, so. But it does keep more people, you know, involved. I will, I will agree to that. But it's given us lengthy, really terribly lengthy playoffs scenarios that months and months.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Months.

[Bob Ryan]

I mean, I believe the NBA playoffs start on April 19, as I recall.

[Tony Kornheiser]

When they go to late June.

[Bob Ryan]

Yeah, I mean that's two months. That's a whole, you know, it was a 28. They each played 23 games. The two. The finalists in the NBA. I did, I actually did the math on it was 28% of a season. In addition.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Let me get to the last one. Let me get to the last one. The expansion of the NCAA basketball tournament.

[Bob Ryan]

They had lucked into the perfect scenario at 64. And then those despicable, greedy power conferences influence couldn't, couldn't stand having their seventh place, not having their seventh place team in the tournament, you know. So anyway, now we go to 68 and we got the Dayton scenario. And now they're talking, apparently it's almost a done deal.

[Tony Kornheiser]

76.

[Bob Ryan]

We're going further. I hate it. 64 was perfect. Perfect. And so no, and it's all this.

[Unknown]

Whole.

[Bob Ryan]

Influence of the power conferences is just insidious and. And now, Manuel, the biggest story in all four that's going to take place in our lifetime is the implosion of college sports. You know, the nil and the portal and the money and the whole concept of what college sports were about is gone and gone forever. And it will never be the same.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Thanks for coming on the show. It's always a pleasure for me. Thank you, Bobby.

[Bob Ryan]

Thanks for having me. Tony.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Bye bye. Bob Ryan, the quintessential American sportswriter many, many years at the Boston Globe where he wrote fabulously in what was for many, many years the best section, best sports section in America. And kids today will grow up and they won't even have any idea what sports writing is. We will come back. Jeff Mann I won't have any idea what he's talking about because I talked to him yesterday. I have no idea what this is. I'm Tony Kornheiser. Brooks running reminds us that we're all powered by something, whether it's the me time energy of a run after a day at the office, the electrifying energy of your first marathon, or the infectious energy of a group run with your friends. No matter what energy powers you, Brooks has gear specifically designed to unleash it. So lace up and let it out. Let's run there. Visit BrooksRunning.com today to learn more.

[Unknown]

The Jack Welch Management Institute at Strayer University helps you go from I know the way to I've arrived with our top 10 ranked online MBA. Gain skills you can learn today and apply tomorrow. Get ready to go from make it happen to made it happen and keep striving. Visit strayer.edu Jack WelchMBA to learn more. Strayer University is certified to operate in Virginia by Chev and has many campuses, including at 2121 15th Street north in Arlington, Virginia. This is the Tony Kornheiser Show.

[Bob Ryan]

Tony Korniser Show.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Once again we have Paul Cody and the Edsel Brothers. And this one is called Everyone's a Suspect, which I think is a really good title and it's my orientation towards life, everyone is a suspect. Paul Cody and the Edsel Brothers MICHAEL if independent artists like Paul Cody and the Edsel Brothers want to get their music played on this high quality podcast, how do they do it?

[Michael]

Send us your music by emailing it to jinglesonyquinizershow.com and they play in our.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Great friend Jeff Ma. And we've stopped doing politics on this show. And so this sort of is tangentially politics, but it's not really about politics. What this has to do with is the Trump bill in front of Congress right now, economic bill. These things are hundreds of pages long. Hundreds of pages long. And they have great effect on areas that none of us understand and none of us are ever going to understand. But from Jeff's point of view, as somebody who gambles and understands what gambling is and the risks involved in gambling. There's a couple of lines in this bill that have you upset and anxious. Can you, in your best synopsis, explain what about this bill is, you know, uneasing you?

[Unknown]

Yeah, I mean, it's uneasing me, and it's uneasing an entire industry now that's looking at this because it's basically saying that now, 90%, previously, if you were a gambler and you had wins and losses in a year, and you itemize those wins and losses, and this is what if you are reporting gambling income, which is essentially gambling win, you have to itemize and you have to have a personal log as a backup. And so in order to do that, you basically could net out losses versus wins. So in other words, you could deduct your losses. So this is just like if you were an investor and you had wins and losses, you get gains and losses, capital gains and capital losses. You'd be able to net out your capital gains and your capital losses, and you just pay taxes on the net that you made. It's just what your income was, right? You shouldn't pay. You shouldn't just pay for what you won. You should be able to net out what you lost. And so now this bill has a small line that people discovered that says you can only deduct 90% of your losses. So if you happen to end up even, let's say you won $100,000 and you also lost $100,000, which means even you would actually have to pay taxes as if you had won $10,000 because you'd only be able to deduct 90% of your loss.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Okay, I follow that. I am, of course, agape at this. The notion that gamblers can deduct losses. I mean, I understand the way you explained it, but it never even occurred to me that anything like that could happen. But if you are a professional at this and you are recording everything, then the analogy to stock investment makes sense to me. How did this thing get in the bill?

[Unknown]

I don't think anyone knows for sure. I mean, I think the theory is that there's, you know, someone just added it in kind of at the last minute. Whether it was a staffer or for someone that just was looking for another way to try to drive a little bit extra revenue, tax revenue, out of this. You know, nobody knows. There's a lot of theories around this, where this came from. None of the theories really make a ton of sense. You're familiar with the term Occam's razor, which is like, that. The Idea that the explanation for something is whatever the most logical explanation is, which is that people aren't generally that smart when they write up these things and they don't think about all the consequences of them. Because there are a lot of consequences essentially to our friends that are, you know, like our friend Rufus Peabody, who is a rational better who routinely has probably something like, you know, millions in wins and millions in losses. And let's say he ends up in a year with say 8 million in wins and 6 million in losses for $2 million income. Now that $6 million will actually have to be reduced down to, you know, five and a half million and he's going to have to pay an extra taxes on an extra half million. Now with this, with this bill.

[Tony Kornheiser]

So there are organizations in the country like the American association of Retired People, like people who are involved in Planned Parenthood, like people who are involved in, you know, I don't know, stocks and bonds. And if this happened to them, they would have an organized response to this particular line in this bill. Does this mean there is no such thing and maybe not as an organized group to protect the rights of people who are professional gamblers who weren't even legal like 20 years ago. Right. So there's no organization.

[Unknown]

Well, first of all, there have been professional gamblers for some time, right? Professional poker players, all those types of things. It doesn't have to be sports betters.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Oh, okay.

[Unknown]

Professional blackjack players, which I think we might know one. There have been those for many, many years. Right?

[Tony Kornheiser]

Yes.

[Unknown]

So. But there is no lobbyists, there are no groups that are protecting the rights of gamblers. There is the American Gaming association or the sort of the American Gamblers association, but that, that is a gaming association, the aga, let's just call it that. But that is actually for the operators, that's not for the gamblers. So there isn't someone representing the consumer side of gambling. And that is a big problem. Like we've gotten into this how some of the ways that the sportsbooks operate is incredibly predatory because there's no one out there representing the rights of the gamblers themselves.

[Tony Kornheiser]

So how many people, when you talk about professional gamblers, and this is not somebody who just is making a bet every once in a while. There's some. Does this for a living. This is dedicated. How many people are we talking about, Jeff?

[Unknown]

Well, so, I mean, I think it's interesting to think about that. I mean, I think there's more than you would think. I mean, I think there's, you know, thousands and thousands and hundreds of thousands. Like, again, you're talking about poker players, you're talking about sports bettors. You know, there are professional gamblers out there. But the real problem with this bill is that if it's executed correctly. And again, like a lot of these things, these tax bills, like, even. Even the tax bill they had out a while ago where they thought about how can we tax unrealized gains for people in Silicon Valley? Meaning, like, all of us have that work in this industry, we have stock in these companies, and we have stock in companies that are not public yet. So, in other words, there's no way for us to liquidate the stock we have. But there was a. There was ideas a while back where people wanted to tax these unrealized gains in Silicon Valley or generally in stocks specifically. But again, the problem with this bill is that it's really hard to understand what it means to have losses versus wins in every situation. In sports betting, you could add up all your winning bets and add up all your losing bets, but there's professional poker players who go play all the time, and, you know, in a session, in a day, they might win a bunch of hands and they might lose a bunch of hands. So what's their win and what's their loss? If you walk into a casino and play blackjack, you're going to play a bunch of hands, you're going to win a bunch, you're going to lose a bunch. Is it based on every trip you take? So it's every trip you take. Again, let's just say you are a recreational gambler, but you are a whale. Right. So casinos make their most money off of, you know, a small percentage.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Yeah. Who really gamble a lot.

[Unknown]

Yeah, yeah, they're whales. And let's say you turn around and you play so many hands of blackjack, the average blackjack player loses about 3% of the money they put on the table. And the more that you play something, the more that you attend towards what the average outcome would be. So, in other words, most blackjack players that bet a lot of money are probably going to lose about 3% if you do this properly. You will actually have to pay taxes if you lose 3% of the money you put on the table. So all of a sudden, these big whales that used to be able to go and play and lose and not worry about tax implications should theoretically have to worry about tax implications now. I mean, when we think about, yes, this is a big impact on professional betters, how many are out there? Probably somewhere in the. You Know, six figure, no, sorry, five figure kind of number. But this has tremendous impact beyond that.

[Tony Kornheiser]

So let me get to this. This is the only other question I have. I thought about these questions because I knew I would sound like a moron, but I thought about these. And I'm not talking now about casino betters now. I'm just talking about sports bettors, which is. Which is different. You know, that sports bettors are not sitting at a table. It's. It's a different deal. But it would seem to me if this thing goes through that this would drive more people back to bookies. Right. They would just get out of organized sports betting and just go back to bookies.

[Unknown]

Yeah, I mean, I think that's one of the things people think is an unintended consequence of this. And again, like, it's probably just a general way of, like, how do I. Yeah. The problem is, I think at the highest level, right. The professional betters that use what we call there's bookies and there's offshore books and there's like black market and gray market. A lot of the offshore bookies that people are, offshore books that people work with, they'll still report that income because a lot of that is still. That. That money is still tracked. But yeah, no, I think there is a real way where if this money can't be tracked and you don't need to pay taxes on it and you know, like, if you want a bunch of money from FanDuel, it's reported.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Yeah.

[Unknown]

If you win a bunch of money offshore, it's not. So you just have to figure out like where that money is and where that you know how to get that money. You know, again, I don't know the specifics of how you're going to move your money around, but yes, you're right. That could be an unintended consequence of this.

[Tony Kornheiser]

This is the best I can do. I. You probably will say to your friends, he's a moron. He sounds like a panda. He doesn't know what he's talking about. But I find it interesting. So thank you. I do. You got up to do this. Thank you.

[Unknown]

Thanks, Tony.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Jeff. Ma. Boys and girls, who is our good friend. And we will take a break and we will come back with email and jingle. I am Tony Kornheiser.

[Unknown]

This episode is brought to you by State Farm. Knowing you could be saving money for the things you really want, like that dream house or ride, is a great feeling. That's why the State Farm personal price plan can help you save when you choose to bundle home and auto bundling. Just another way to save with a personal price plan. Prices are based on rating plans that vary by state. Coverage options are selected by the customer. Availability, amount of discounts, and savings and eligibility vary by state. You're listening to the Tony Kornheiser show.

[Jeff Ma]

Here comes Tony Mailbag. Got your emails, your faxes and your notes. Here comes Mr. Tony's mail bag. Gonna reach out for all of you folks. Have mercy.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Don't you wish you could play like that and sing like that? That's Bruce Griffin. Which reminds me, we haven't played the Tom Masser one in a long time. Oh, we'll play that because he stretches to hit notes and makes us laugh. And it's wonderful. And he's a great fan and we love Tom.

[Unknown]

We love Tom's paintings.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Yes, yes. So we should play that Bethesda Bagel ad, please.

[Bob Ryan]

Yes.

[Unknown]

Bethesda Bagels.

[Tony Kornheiser]

We love them.

[Unknown]

You will as well just go to Bethesda Bagels.com forward a location in the DC area nearest you.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Then they catered the Adaptive Open.

[Unknown]

That's right, they did.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Yeah. So that's very, very nice. Pop it in.

[Unknown]

You'll be thrilled.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Yeah.

[Unknown]

All right.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Before we get to the mailbag, let me just say imagine me and you I do I think about you day and night it's only right to think about the girl you love and hold her tight so happy together. For those of you who have seen the wonderful movie adaptation, that's closing number in Adaptation, the Turtles singing Happy Together. Thanks to our guests today, Bob Ryan and Jeff Ma. Thanks as well to today's sponsors. Remember, you can listen to us on Apple podcasts Spotify and Odyssey. If kept show through Apple. Please leave us a review from David Loose Cannon. I love that he calls himself that. David Loose Kennan in Hampton, Virginia. Aloha. On Wednesday's pod, you and Michael urged listeners to support and watch the USGA Golf Tournament. And I took you up. I'm glad I did. Those amazing women and men are not only good golfers, but wonderful examples of two others of what one can accomplish. And as you predicted, I did shed a tear or two. Absolutely wonderful. Thanks for the suggestion, laughs and entertainment you and the team provide us littles. That's the USGA Adaptive Golf Tournament Woodmont. And of a similar note from Jason Kunik in Hagerstown. I just wanted to write you to thank you for the show's coverage of the USGA Adaptive Open in recent shows. While I am not an amputee myself, it is my chosen profession to design, fabricate and fit artificial limbs and braces for those with limb loss and or limb difference. I doubt you remember me since you are unburdened by memory, but I met you at Chatter many years ago when I was a prosthesist or thotist at the Washington D.C. medical center and you commented on how rewarding my work must be and how it was far more important than what you do. You are correct, it is very rewarding and one of the most rewarding things is seeing our patients regain their independence or discover a new passion after the life altering change an amputation thrusts upon them and their loved ones. My company, Ability Ottobock Care often sponsors first swing events in conjunction with the Eastern Amputee Golf association where people with limb loss and limb difference can come and learn how to golf for beginners, improve their game for more seasoned players, or reconnect with the game for those that may have felt they might never be able to play again. They are free to participate and open to amputees, wheelchair bound, stroke survivors, etc. Even if they've never played. Equipment can be provided along with the instruction. We have two more coming up this year in September, one at Fox Chase Golf Club and one at Honey Run Golf Club and next year we're planning two in Frederick and Hagerstown for those in the dmv. There are still spots available at these and all the events the EAGA hosts this year and I would courage encourage anyone interested in attending or volunteering to go to E A G A golf.org firstswing clinics to check for events. If it's not already taken. Can I be the official prosthesis or thotist of the Tony Kornheiser Show? Yeah, and if you deem me worthy, can you tell John Siem Chesky to eat it? John was one of my first mentors in the field of prosthetics and he actually introduced me to your show on AM radio back in the 90s. Or as the kids say, the late 1900s. Thanks for all the years. Isn't that nice?

[Unknown]

That is very lovely.

[Tony Kornheiser]

We have a haiku for potatoes from Shad Bacon sour cream potatoes. Destiny is inevitable from Josh Cromwell in Moselle, Mississippi. In case you don't already feel old enough. Your reference to Leighton you would on Wednesday reminded me of the fact that Leighton's son Cruz was in the juniors draw at Wimbledon this year where he even won a round. No word on whether the the younger you would have signed any merchandise for Wilbond Signed shorts like you would Send Wilbon shorts. You really had a nice shirt on PTI last night. Never saw you this a couple of nights ago. You never. Never saw you in a spread collar before. The tie I'm not sure about was in the suit back with the mauve jacket. Regards, DG Terrence Douglas in Omaha My wife and I recently returned from celebrating our anniversary with a vacation in Jamaica, where, of all places, I encountered my first loyal little in the wild. After meeting Nick from Stevensville, Maryland, our conversation quickly moved to sports and I learned that Nick attended Maryland. We both expressed our dismay with conference realignment and how he longed for the Terps to be back in the old acc. I noted that I had heard that exact sentiment several times on a Washington, D.C. area podcast in the most generic terms, when Nick suddenly looked at me and asked, are you a little? I said yes. He gave me the official Tony Kornheiser show salute and we were off to the races. From there. The drinks flowed and we discussed all things TK and the pod. In an effort to impress Nick, I mentioned that my wife and I are friends with the Jolene Wojcick from Grand Island, Nebraska, and I quickly received the affirmation. I was thinking, connective tissue indeed. Terry Douglas, Grand island it's not Omaha, it's Grand Island, Nebraska. Isn't that nice? Connective tissue, yeah. Hardy Watts writes, I continue to be awed by the musical artists you promote on your show, but today was extra special for me. Edie Carey I know Edie Carey. She and I grew up in Dedham, Massachusetts, and went to school together for a couple of years. After reconnecting with her years later at one of our concerts, I've enjoyed supporting her music and seeing her in concert, most recently in 2023. Here's my personalized copy of the Veil, from which today's selections were taken. Thank you again for all your support of independent music. Yeah, and it's signed. It's lovely. That's really nice. Ken Scudder in Takoma Park, Maryland Monday's POD gave me the closest thing I've had to a David Aldrich moment. My dad and I were at Jim Abbott's no Hitter that is the focus of Jeremy Shapp's documentary. In my life, I've been to Game seven of a Stanley Cup Final, a World Series game at Yankee Stadium pitched by Greg Mannix, the Monday night miracle at the Meadowlands, and a clinching game in the NBA Finals. But none of those were as exciting as watching a man with only one hand no hit a tough Cleveland lineup. The next day, my dad and I took our usual seats at the jets game and watched Dennis Bird, who had been paralyzed a few years earlier in a game, walk to the middle of the field to receive a full throated ovation from the faithful who aren't braving the beer lines. Truly an amazing weekend, made even more special by sharing it with my father. He and I still reminisce about Abbott's gem. Wish we lived closer to each other so we could watch Southpaw together. I'll get back to my normal sarcastic email soon, I promise. Ken Scudder Dan Rice, Indianapolis I just got back from a Triple A baseball game in Indianapolis against the Braves affiliate, the Gwinnett or Gwinnett Stripers. After the seventh inning stretch, Gwinnett made a pitching change and introduced none other than Wander Suero to the game.

[Unknown]

There he is.

[Tony Kornheiser]

I was the only one in our section. Maybe the whole stadium had any clue who this member of the 2019 Nationals and constant source of complaints from you was. Even my two sons looked at me confused as I started laughing uncontrollably. I told him how Mr. Toney would rage Suero's outings on the pod to the delight of all, and told him to buckle up for the ride. Long and short, it was everything I would expect you to complain about. Came into the game down 5 1. Left the game in the 8th, down 8 1. This included the first Triple A career homer by Sung Chae Chung, who was slugging a mighty.275 coming into the game. Funny enough though, he recorded five outs, all by strikeouts.

[Michael]

I wonder what happened to him.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Jay Yander, Old Ford, Pennsylvania I'm catching up on the pod you're currently discussing boiled chicken. Could you please share the steps involved in making boiled chicken? Is it anything like making hard boiled eggs? It's you take chicken, you put water in a pot, you boil the water, and you wait. From Justin Johnson in Arlington, Virginia. When you yelled out, that's it. I'm boiling eggs. Did Joey Chestnut reply, that sounds good. Could you make about 468?

[Michael]

By the way, I've changed my boiled egg technique. I use a steamer basket now. Game changing.

[Unknown]

Oh wow.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Instead of.

[Michael]

Instead of just putting into the boiling water.

[Tony Kornheiser]

But the steamer basket is in the water.

[Michael]

The steamer basket is above the water. The water has been salted. Or maybe a little bit of baking soda in there.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Okay.

[Michael]

The easiest eggs to peel. Game changer.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Okay. All right. But you don't do that with a chicken.

[Michael]

No, I'm not. I tend to avoid Boiled chicken.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Okay. Lisa G. From New York City. I figure it's worth noting that cherries are also my favorite summer fruit, albeit they have to be perfectly crisp or I won't eat them. And as I sit here typing to you, I have a bowl of cherries to my right and a pit bull to my left. You should try it sometime versus wasting time standing over the trash can. That's how I eat them. I stand over the trash can, I spit the pits. That's how you do it. Yeah, that's how I do it. Anyway, I'm writing because I got outside's.

[Michael]

Only way to go with cherries out.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Of the pod the other day talking about competitive eating. And last night I saw ESPN featured some Joey Chestnut records on Instagram that I think you will find both amusing and utterly disgusting. 121 Twinkies in six minutes. It's unbelievable.

[Unknown]

It's impossible.

[Tony Kornheiser]

126 Tortilla tacos in eight minutes. 141 Hard boiled eggs in eight minutes. This one really made me gag. 390 Shrimp wontons in eight minutes. Until I saw this one. This one has to be worse. 182 chicken wings in 30 minutes. 118 jalapeno poppers in 10 minutes. 81 eggo waffles in eight minutes. And 15.75 pounds of bologna slices in eight minutes.

[Unknown]

No, thank you.

[Tony Kornheiser]

You can't be near this guy. No, you can't. And this on a serious note. It's a serious note. And this is from Brother Guy Consolmagno. Okay. Who's in the Vatican?

[Unknown]

In the Vatican.

[Tony Kornheiser]

In the Vatican. Not near the Vatican. In the Vatican. I have no idea if the new Pope is a fan of pti, but I can tell you that at least one expat American at the Vatican, me, has been a faithful listener of both the PTI podcast and your own high quality podcast for at least 20 years. Of course, I'm not involved in anything you might normally think of as Vatican stuff. I am a Jesuit. Brother. Yes, I have met fellow Jesuits who taught Wilbon at St. Ignatius with planetary astronomy degrees from MIT in Arizona. Hello, MIT. In the conversation, it's probably a legacy. Planetary astronomy degrees from MIT in Arizona. Now I work at the Vatican Observatory, the National Astronomical Observatory of the Vatican City State. Why does the Vatican have an astronomical observatory? Check out our website. And speaking as an astronomer, I must take exception to the way you constantly mispronounce the name of that noble planet located between Saturn and Neptune, following the decree of the noted Dutch planetary scientist Gerard Kuiper. Nobody could pronounce his name either. That planet is probably called Uranus. Uranus. Accent on the first syllable, not Uranus.

[Unknown]

Uranus.

[Tony Kornheiser]

Uranus. Accent on the first syllable. This avoids a world of scatological jokes until you realize that studies of this planet are properly called urinal science. A longer screed than you probably have time for. Following up on your discussion with Wilbon on Monday about fashions and the sports that Americans follow. I think a large part of that medium is the medium we use to follow them. Baseball was a radio sport. I recall summer afternoons listening to Ernie Harwell. I'm a Tigers fan. On a transistor radio while sitting at the beach or painting the fence or weeding the garden. Football is a television sport. Watch when it's too cold to be outdoors. And the reason the AFL succeeded was television again. In the 60s, the NFL was broadcast on CBS, but they were the last network to stay in black and white. NBC, with its famous peacock, broadcast the AFL in full, glorious living color. And the difference was astonishing. I am old enough to know this. Yes, the games were better on cbs, but the better watching experience was on NBC. They got the ratings and the rest is history. What a lovely email. If you're out on your bike tonight, everyone, as always, to wear wife who.

[Jeff Ma]

Made the egg salad sandwiches I sit up I'm sorry I know it's not enough I made you worried and made it oh so rough But I'm the fool, you know I'm the fool, you? I got some habits I know they ain't no good I left you hanging and making up for what I should But I'm the fool, you know.

[Unknown]

I'm.

[Jeff Ma]

The fool, you it's been years and it's been constant do you really expect change? I offer up excuses and dance around what's true and you keep believing.

[Unknown]

What'S.

[Jeff Ma]

That say about you? Guess you're the fool I know you're the fool I know Sam. Ain't no consideration no benefit of the doubt Everyone's a suspect, yeah. Don't want to hear about your clip I don't know who you are nor do I care Chip Will fall, will fall Everyone's a suspect, yeah Just because you're paranoid don't be laid after you? You best keep in mind two opposite things can be true, yeah. Questions will be answered motives laid back Nothing will be overlooked Everyone suspecting, yeah let's cut to the chase.

[Tony Kornheiser]

The truth.

[Jeff Ma]

Is the truth is the truth Everyone's a suspect sa.