NFL preseason, MLB PEDs, NBA rankings, MLS talk

Bye. What a great Sunday. What a great Sunday. How you doing, Victor? I'm so glad to be here. Welcome back. After my trip. I know you're a little bit under the weather, but it's good to have you back. It's good to have somebody to talk to instead of talking to myself all the time. I mean, I don't mind, but you know what I mean? It gets kind of overwhelming a little bit. You start thinking, wait, do I sound crazy? What do people at home think? It's just good to be back. I'm excited to go and talk about NFL. You know, MLB, soccer, everything, man. Let's get it started. You know what? Everything gets... All of a sudden, we have this wave. We had the Olympics, but that's over. We'll talk probably a little bit about that later on. We have everything going off because summer is about to end pretty soon. We still have that summertime, but we have all these sports kicking off. We have Major League Baseball reaching the end. The postseason is about to start. That's about the time where we all start watching. We have MLS, NBA still trending in Twitter and Facebook, which is great. But let's take off and let's talk about that sport that is going on right now and making everybody do jumping jacks, burpees, whatever you want to call it. It's a sport that we all see for about six months a year. Perhaps the most important note, in my opinion, is that Peyton Manning proved that he can take a hit. Yeah, it's about time. You know, we've all been waiting for that hit, you know, and we got it the other night. So it's good to see him bounce back and see what he's going to do this year. We were concerned for a little bit. We thought, hey, is he able to take a hit? We talked about it for the past few weeks. When it does happen, what is going to happen? Is he going to get up? Is he going to lay down for a moment? And it happened. And all of a sudden, you know, loose tackle, boom, on his back. I read that he moaned a little bit, but he got up and he bounced back in the cheer crowd. It was an incomplete pass, but perhaps the most cheered incomplete pass in NFL history. Yeah, it was good to see him back, you know, doing his thing again. You know, last year, it felt kind of weird not to see him out there with the Colts, you know, and now we can see him in a Bronco uniform. In front of his crowd, you know, yeah, it's preseason, but, you know, you got to get those kinks out of the way, you know, see how they look. And he looked impressive, you know, especially getting up after that hit. Definitely. Let's talk a little bit about Peyton. He went 16 for 23, 177 yards. He had one touchdown, two interceptions. But usually when you have a quarterback throw interceptions, usually that means something negative. That means that you perhaps are not going to have the game you plan to have. But in this case. Peyton Manning, you know, being the brain that he is, you know, he got he threw two picks, came back up and let the Broncos in a two minute drive that showed how strong and how strong mentally this guy is. Yeah. And it's good to see that because it's going to be a battle in that division, you know, going up against the Raiders and the Chiefs. And they got the toughest schedule, too. So we have to keep that in mind, too. I know everybody is picking them to win the division. But, you know, like. They say, you know, not so fast. You know, we got to see how he goes. He's going to go through ups and downs. And, you know, this is just a little taste of what we're going to see from him. You know, but those those two interceptions, I wouldn't put too much emphasis on them. You know, they were tipped, you know, here and there. Like he like he talked about after after the game, he said, you know, you can't really put a lot of emphasis on those interceptions. You know, you just have to see how the the the game is moving for them. And they they're doing OK. You know, they're not there yet, but they'll get there. The good thing is when you see Peyton Manning, it's great to see the fact that he is so gifted when it comes to the game. He his IQ of the game is so high. You don't see that often. The fact that, you know, he's been off and he's been gone for so long and he comes back and it's like he never left. He has that ability to bounce back. And my concern was always, could he take a hit? And he proved that he can. So obviously we're going to see a great season from Peyton now. How far? The Broncos are going to go in the season are is yet to be seen. I think another thing to keep in mind, I think he ranks as like the number one guy, you know, who's least gotten sacked in his career. I think he's right up there with that Marino. So he gets rid of the ball pretty fast. So that's something to look forward to, too. You know, that was that was one of the things that was being commented after the game. The fact that he's able to get out, he's able to get rid of the ball so quick and he's been looking great in camp. He's been accurate. The strength in his arm is back. Which is good. And we're going to be able to see that in a few weeks when it really matters. Talking about that same game, we had another guy come back, another guy that we haven't seen since 2010. In case you're wondering, Terrell Owens is back in the NFL. The Seahawks gave him a deal. He's been great in camp. You know, Pete Carroll has been he's been saying the fact that Terrell Owens has been really good. That's the reason they give him a shot. But he was not. He was not as successful as we thought he was going to be in his first game back. Yeah, well, you can't expect him to just, you know, after a year and a half being out, you know, to come right back in and be able to do everything he's done. You know, he is 38. He ran a 4-2, you know, when he was trying out for them. But he's you know, this is his last chance for him. You know, he knows it. He's going to try to be, you know, the best he can be right now because there's no other there's there's not going to be another team for him. So if he wants another contract. He's going to have to go out there and and, you know, and ball out. Yeah, Terrell Owens was out since 2010 with a knee injury. And I know that he he was targeted five times during the game. Yeah, and he missed a big touchdown catch. We could say that a four out of the five weren't really catchable. But that fifth, that last one, it was all up to him. And he just kind of let it slip through his fingers. Matt Flynn did a great job by trying to target Terrell Owens, trying to get him involved. Because he's been doing that during practices. And Pete Carroll said himself that he's made those same catches over and over in practice. So let's hope that he has a great comeback because it's not easy to get back into the league. Let's remember the fact that he is over 35. He's 38. I mean, I mean, you usually don't see receivers. Yeah. I mean, you know, this late in their career. So 38, you know, with a bad knee. But like I said, he still runs. You know, the thing is with him, he's a physical receiver. You know. He's always been the guy that can go up the middle and get the ball. So he's not afraid to do that. So, you know, we're going to keep an eye on him because, you know, receivers are like the divas of the NFL. You know, the thing about Terrell Owens is the fact that he's never he's he's always had an issue during the regular season. Now, when you were 27, 28, maybe that was OK back then. But now you're 37, 38, 10 years after you need to get your stuff straight. It's like one of those girls going to the club. And you're not 21 anymore. You're 35. Right. And you need to get your stuff straight because you really don't have much on the clock. If you can't go to the club at 35 and expect to still shine the same way you did 10 years prior to that, it doesn't work that way. Yeah. We're not going to see those get the popcorn ready thing, you know, you know, the Sharpies and everything. But you know what? I'm glad he got another chance. You know, everybody deserves another chance and he still can ball. I agree with you. You know. And so let's see. Let's see what happens. You know, I mean, you know, I mean, you know, I mean, you know, I mean, you know, I mean, you know, I mean, you know, I mean, you know, I mean, you know, I mean, you know, I mean, you know, I mean, you know, I mean, you know, I mean, you know, I mean, you know, I mean, you know, I mean, you know, I mean, you know, I mean, you know, I mean, you know, I mean, you know, I mean, you know, I mean, you know, I mean, you know, I mean, you know, I mean, you know, I mean, you know, I mean, you know, I mean, you know, I mean, you know, I mean, you know, I mean, you know, I mean, you know, I mean, you know, I mean, you know, I mean, he got another chance, you know. Everybody deserves another chance, and he still can ball. I agree with you. You know, and so let's see what he has, you know, and he's going to be on the short leash. Pete Carroll is not going to, you know. You know what, there's several things that motivate Terrell Owens that probably wouldn't motivate another football player. The fact that other players do it because they can't quit the game, because they can't walk away from being the star of a team or from the game they most love. Terrell Owens is a little bit different. He doesn't only want to keep playing. I mean, he's practically broke. Yeah, he's bankrupt, you know. He needs money, and this is the only way he's going to make some of that money back. Yeah, and if he wants another reality show on BH1, he's got to, you know, perform. What are you going to call that show? The Comeback. Terrell Owens. In Seattle, imagine the cameras up there. Yeah, no, you know, he needs, this is his last chance. It reminds me a little bit of, you know, sadly, last week you weren't here. I talked about Chad Johnson, Chad Ochocinco, whatever you want to call him. Yeah. You know, sadly, he really blew up. He blew a chance that is not going to be given so easily again for him. And you know what? With Chad Johnson, I honestly don't feel bad, because you know what? These two guys have always craved the attention, and now, you know, when he got cut on hard knocks, you know, you get what you ask for. And he asked for it, you know, and, you know, I feel bad that in one way that, you know, he committed a bad act, you know, towards his wife, but, you know, when it comes to the spotlight, he's, you know. I don't know what he was thinking. He released an apology statement. You know, he apologized, and I was looking at his Twitter account, and I was researching some of the stuff that Twitter has put out. The fact that he's one of the most followed athletes in the world, and this is coming after some of the most popular athletes in Europe, which are soccer players who have a large following, because that sport is global, and we talked about that in the past. Tyrell Owens has one of the largest followings, and to really ruin that, you don't get a chance to make that up so easily by saying that I'm sorry. Yeah, I mean, and he hasn't done anything. I mean, he's been popular, but he hasn't done anything. I mean, yeah, you can argue that he's had a Hall of Fame career, but the Bengals sucked, you know, all that time when he was there. You know, he went to New England. He only caught like 15 balls the whole season, and he caught one in the Super Bowl. So, I mean. For him to be that popular, I mean, at least some of the other soccer players. He's very likable. Right. That's the thing about him, you know, because Chato Chosinco, I know that he plays FIFA. FIFA is a global sport. FIFA, if you play PlayStation, you're very familiar with the game. The fact that he does that has created a large following for him. He used to be, you've seen all the things he's done. He tried out for the MLS. Right, that's what I was just about to say. He even tried out while they were locked out. So, I mean, it helps, you know, his brand. His brand is sad, but this is good. He's going to take a big hit on his brand. It's like the, you know what? Chato Chosinco is like Tim Tebow, but Tim Tebow is to the 10th power. Yeah, yeah, I can see that. Yeah. At one time, we were really concerned about every move that Chato Chosinco made. Now, we're concerned about every move that Tim Tebow does. And talking about Tim Tebow, let's talk about Sanchez and Tebow. You know, that's been a circus since. And I think that's what's been a big thing for the MLS. I think that's what's been a big thing for the MLS. I think that's what's been a big thing for the MLS. I think that's what's been a big thing for the MLS. They have a reporter. They've had a reporter there waiting to see what's going on. What's the next big news? Tim Tebow ran shirtless. Shirtless. And that makes news. But now that the preseason started, 0-2. Yeah, like I said, I don't take much stock into preseason games. But, you know, it's become a circus. And it's truly, you know, for the average fan, you're like looking at it and you're like, why are they so focused? Why are they so focused? Why are they so popular? You know, why are we have to watch like the Dolphins and the Jets and some of these other teams that haven't won anything? You know, you know, like and then the good teams like the Steelers and the Patriots, you know, they stay out of the limelight. That's the reason why. The thing, you know, I don't care about preseason as much because it shouldn't be that important. But what does concern me is the fact that we have two quarterbacks that have not been able to produce a single touchdown in one and two games. Now that's something to worry about. Well, that has to do more with the offense. If you really look at it, their main receiver is, you know, Holmes is he's injured right now. So they really don't have much to go, you know, with right now. So they're pretty much relying on on those two quarterbacks to do something. And the offensive line hasn't been great either. They they've struggled, too. So, you know, what they're known for is is their defense. And so they'll be fine there. It's just, you know, there's even bets on in Vegas about when. He was going to take over, you know, you know, so that's terrible. It is, you know, and the Jets, you know, they asked for it. And now, you know, any little thing is going to be made into a big deal. Let's talk a little bit of numbers. Sanchez went nine for eleven with fifty nine yards. So as this is going on, I'm looking at Twitter. I'm looking at at Facebook and I follow I follow Tim Tebow's page. And as this is going on, I see whoever runs whoever runs that page. Say, oh, look at Sanchez. He should be gone. Tebow should take over any time now, which one if you're rooting for the team. I don't think you do that. So it's kind of fanatic to do something like that. Tebow comes in. You know, he goes five for fifteen with sixty nine yards. Not much of a difference. Yeah. And I saw part of that game. He missed. I think it was Stephen Hill with a wide open throw there for a touchdown. And so he's going to go through his. The one thing I do think he's great for this team. And he's perfect for this team is the fact that since they don't have many receivers, he's going to be good at running the ball. So he's he's going to be able to, you know, then they need that because with Sanchez not having many, not many weapons, it's going to be hard for him to get the ball. So like we talked about before, he's going to be he was going to be great inside the 20 for them. And so we just have to see what happens with that. Yeah. Yeah. One of the another thing that was trending was the fact that Wayne Hunter, one of the Jets offensive. Line. He allowed four sacks in the first half. Now, that's his problems to me. Preseason or not, you're getting close to the start of the regular season. If you don't have that locked down yet, you're going to have problems. Rex Ryan, try to downplay it. Tim Tebow, try to downplay it, saying it doesn't matter. These games are not for real yet. But you need to get in that rhythm because this is already starting to establish a rhythm that's going to take off. So we're not going to see if you're not performing. In the preseason, at least at the point that we could expect something great to happen later on, we can expect you to all of a sudden turn on the switch and say, OK, we're playing for reals. Now, we're just playing before. We're just joking. Now, this is the real stuff. Right. And then coming in, you know, there was a big deal made up about the wildcat and how they're going to introduce it. And then the Giants were saying, yeah, we look forward to seeing it. But I think going back to Hunter, one of the things that we have to keep in mind is the fact that who he was going up against. He was going up against J.P. I mean, J.P. is a great guy. He's a great guy. He's a great guy. He's a great guy. I mean, J.P. for the Giants, the defensive line is a beast. He's like the next great defensive lineman. And so, you know, for them not to even double team him or send a tight end to chip in or something, it is just terrible. You know, Sperano needs to do a better job of calling plays and giving help because, you know, that defensive line, you know, we got to give them credit. You know, they got they got all stars, you know, pro bowlers on that on that defensive line. So, I mean, to. I mean, Hunter is, you know, yeah, they haven't been that offensive line that they were when they got to the AFC championship game. But you know what? Right now, it's all about trying to trying to, you know, get with the program with the new offensive coordinator with Sperano. I see what you're coming from. Yeah, that makes sense. The only thing that concerns me is the fact that neither quarterback has been able to produce a single touchdown in two games. That's kind of worrying for the future, for the short future, because he's in right around the corner. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. You can't score touchdowns. You're not going to win games. Yeah. And we'll keep an eye on that. But, you know, they're they're not in a tough division. So another game, you know, the Cowboys fell to the Chargers in San Diego. And probably the most notable story, besides the fact that the Chargers won, is the fact that Vincent Brown broke an ankle. And now, you know, in preseason, in the preseason, that's that's a hit. Yeah. And I was reading some stuff about the injuries that are going. And now, you know, we're we're they're being rampant this year. And so I was trying to figure out why it was that that there was a lot of injuries. And a part of it is because they're saying is that there's not a lot of practice like they did under the new under the new cap. Yes. They're they're not allowed to practice as much. So they're not used to getting hit. And so that's why you're seeing a lot of that's one of the possibilities. Another one is, you know, they're stronger, faster than they've ever been before. So that's because we had a few injuries. And in camp and we talked about that as well. And and I was concerned, actually. I was like, OK, you know, an injury here, an injury there. But now the preseason has started. You see them getting injured more often. Every player, you know, every team has had a few injuries. And obviously for for Vincent, this is an injury that might require surgery, which could hurt the team. But Nurturner said that, you know, they're prepare, they're prepare. And that makes me wonder, are they that deep? Is this Chargers team that deep that he's not concerned that he's saying, you know what? We're we're ready to step up. We have other players that are going to step up. Well, the problem is with that statement. You know, I follow Nurturner and, you know, in the Chargers for a while now. And the thing is, with them, they have a lot of guys step up for them. You know, they've they've always been able to get guys from the practice squad and and produce. The problem here is you lose your your one of your best receivers. And then you lose your running back to, you know, to a clavicle. I think it was Matthew. So, I mean, you're starting to lose players. You can't just be like, oh, yeah, we'll be fine. Yeah, that's that's what every coach is going to tell you. But you know what? It starts to get kind of, you know, serious when you're two weeks away and you're losing all your all your all your weapons. Are they contenders or are they pretenders? That's the question to me. That's always been the question with the Chargers. But once again, we have to ask it and you're going to ask it every time this team step up. And they. Create this false hope for fans to think, you know what? This Chargers team is going to do it. This is the team. Are they going to be pretenders or contenders? It all comes down to Philip Rivers. If he can cut down on his interceptions and then that defense, if they can somehow. And he had a good game, by the way. Yeah. But if you can't stop anybody to, you know, that's that's. But it always it just comes down to him. Philip Rivers. I mean, he's he's the one that that came out in that same draft with with with. I'm sorry, with Eli Manning and Rollins Burger. And he's the only one that hasn't won a Super Bowl. So he's due. I mean, and if he's going to go down as one of the great ones, he needs to win a Super Bowl soon. Chicago. Cutler looks great. Wow. Sharp. Wow. I mean, that's all I can say. Yeah. And that's another one. And now he has got his buddy, Brandon Marshall, from the Denver days. And so they're ready to go. You put him in and then you got in the backfield. I forget his name, but they're going to be. Erlacher's going to be ready for the season. Yeah, he's going to be ready. He's going to be ready for his game. He's going to be ready. Yeah. And that defense is they have so much talent on that defense. I mean, it's just they're they're one of those guys are going to challenge the Packers for that division. I mean, that division. Yes. Thinking about it. They got Detroit. They got Chicago. I mean, it's just another tight division. The same as the Redskins, Cowboys, Eagles, Giants. And I put this one. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I mean, I still I still have difficulty thinking. Who's going? Who's going to, you know, succeed in that division with the Cowboys and the Eagles and the Giants? And the problem is you don't know what you're going to get. I mean, the Giants have never made the playoffs after they won the Super Bowl. So that's one team. You know, you just don't know what you're going to get from Eli Madden. Hopefully he is that top 10 quarterback that he said last year. And we can see. But they struggle along. You know, we always talk about injuries. You got the Eagles, the Eagles. You know, we don't know what you're going to get from Michael Vick. If he can stay healthy, then, you know, he had a lot. He had a lot in the second half of the season last year. Right. That says a lot. Yeah. I think Tony Romo has a lot to prove. Right. Eli Madden wants to prove that he could go back to the playoffs after winning the Super Bowl. But the fact that he's won two tells me a lot. I mean, it's up in the air. Yeah. And then and talking about Romo, I mean, think about this. And I and I always try to I mean, I'm one of those guys that backs up Romo because if you if you go back, can you name the all the quarterbacks that played after Troy Eggman to get to Romo? I can't really. That's why. Wait, let me see. We had Drew Bledsoe. Right. You had Brad Johnson. You got. You had about 20 quarterbacks in between. Yeah. Pretty bad. Yeah. So, I mean, I agree with you. You know, he he he deserves some credit. Yeah. He's had his moments. But Chicago's being considered one of the favorite teams to win the Super Bowl, though. Yeah. He. And it's predictions on paper. It's well deserved. I mean, you know, last year before Cutler got hurt, they were they were like eight and four. They were solid. Yeah. They were on their way to the playoffs and then he got hurt and everything went downhill. So I can see. I can see that, too. You know, I can see why that is. You're listening to WWW Skid Row Studios dot com. The number to call is 1-800-893-9562. In case you want to chat a little bit, ask us a few questions, throw your comments at us, whatever you want to do. Give us a call. Once again, the number is 1-800-893-9562. Don't be shy. Don't be shy. We don't bite. We do want to hear what you got to say. So give us a call. We want listeners to call in. And get their opinions in. Hey, Victor. I know this is going to hurt your feelings a little bit because you know that I respect you. You know that we're great friends. But when it comes to telling the truth, we both said things in each sport. You know, you love baseball. Right. I love soccer. And we both made a few statements and talking about baseball. Right. It's a sport that I've learned to love and respect. Right. I mean, it's not for everybody. You know, it's. You know, a lot of people don't understand the sport. But you know what? It's hard to love a sport when things are tarnishing the sport as bad as the era that we live in. Right. Because our parents didn't live in that era. And other people who are baseball fans who are much older did not live in that era. Melky Cabrera suspended 50 games for testing positive for a banned substance at testosterone level. Come on. And at the time he did it to. I mean, you're towards the latter part of the season and you get suspended. You get busted for, you know, a PED. That's just, you know, I, you know, you want to as a as a Dodger fan, you want a good race towards the end. You don't want people. But then I thought about it. You know what? There's a saying in baseball. What goes around comes around. And, you know, you know, in earlier in the season, we lost, you know, the Dodgers lost Matt Kemp for a long time. They lost him for about 50 games due to injury. And so, you know, this is just, you know, karma here. That's a legitimate injury, though. That's an injury you he had playing the game. Right. And don't forget about Manny Ramirez, too, when they when he got busted. I understand that. That makes sense. And that hurt Dodger fans. So I could only imagine what fans feel like now that Cabrera is going through this because this guy was doing so well for San Francisco. And all of a sudden you test positive and you become another guy on the list. The thing is, the difference between Melky and other players is the fact that he did not deny it. Other players have denied it. They've said, no, I did not take any substance. No, I did not cheat. That's a lie. He manned up to the fact that he did take it. He took his suspension like a man, like he should. But the thing that gets me is the fact that he was going to get caught anyways. If you would have lied, it would have only made it worse. There's so many things here that are just really bad. I mean, if you look at it about three weeks ago, I was on I was on Twitter. I always, you know, try to get my the insides of what what's going on with with with all the teams. And one of the reporters, you know, had heard a rumor about Melky. And so he went and he asked him, hey, you know, there's a rumor going around, you know, that you that you might have tested positive for a PED. He said, oh, no, everything's good. And then. Three weeks later, when I heard the news, I was like, wow, they were right on it. So the Giants knew about it, too. That's why they went out and they got a hundred pence at the trading deadline. And so, you know, and then it's just I feel bad for those players. You know, you you you you go to war every day, you know, with those players, your teammates. And then you do this. I mean, he was almost there. I mean, he was he was like somebody said, I think it was. OK, he said he said he was he was in the getaway car like after robbing the bank. And he was, you know, and he got caught right there. You know what? I'm going to cut you off right there because this topic is too hot. We can't cut it down right here. We're going to keep talking about this when we come back after this commercial break. So stay tuned. If you have any questions, if you want to talk about this, call us up at 1-800-893-9562. You are listening to Skid Row Studios. You're listening to Skid Row Studios. You're listening to Skid Row Studios. You're listening. Skid Row Studios. You're listening to Skid Row Studios. You're listening to Skid Row Studios. You're listening to Skid Row Studios. You're listening to Skid Row Studios. You're listening to Skid Row Studios. You're listening to Skid Row Studios. You're listening to Skid Row Studios. Skid Row Studios. We're listening to Skid Row Studios. I'm not doing it with you. Please do it with me. Fuck that. Can you please have sex with me? At Skid Row Studios? At Skid Row Studios. Maybe. Hey, everyone. This is the weekly wrap-up with Ken August. And Kike Castillo. Tune into our show on Sundays from 9 to 10 p.m. Hey, everybody. This is Drew Marks, host of Bad Advice here on Skid Row Studios. Listen to us every Saturday, 2 to 3 Pacific Time. If you want to call the show, call us at 800-893-9562. You're listening to Skid Row Studios.com. This is Keith Coogan. Tune into the call sheet Saturday nights, 8 to 9 p.m. And at Skid Row Studios.com. to sound like I'm always on Queen Lud's. Wanna hear some new music? Tune into Piñata Hour every Wednesday from 7 to 9 p.m. Pacific Time on Skid Row Studios.com. Thank you for listening to my show. Moises Linares alongside Victor Corona. We're talking about MLB, Major League Baseball, and the fact that Melky Cabrera will suspend the 50 games. But this goes beyond that. This goes beyond the 50 games. This is a little bit to another level, to the point we've never seen a player, because do you recall in any of the other suspension, a player creating a fake website? When I heard this, I was just laughing. I was pretty shocked. This is something that I've never heard in my life. You created a website, and that website was not $20, $50. This website was worth $10,000 to create. Yeah, and for him to be able to tell MLB that that's where he got the illegal substance from, and so that way he can get away with it, which is ridiculous. I mean, does he not know the technology that's going on? Nowadays, I don't know what's worse. I mean, I was actually thinking about it. What were you thinking? Let me put this a little bit in perspective. I'm going to create a website, so if anything happens, nobody's going to be able to tell that I cheated, because if they do, I'm going to tell them that it wasn't my fault. But wait, not only that I paid for it, I hired my agent, which is going to lead right back to me. So what was I thinking? I have no idea. I mean, that's just terrible. I mean, it just tells you what some of these players are willing to do. I mean, if he got through with all the numbers... Is that cheating? It is. It is. I mean, there's no doubt about it. I mean, if he was able to get away with it and take the Giants to the playoffs, he was set to make about $80 million, like about a five- or six-year contract worth about $80 million. He was in the talks of an extension already. Right. And this definitely put him back, because he's not going to be worth the same amount of money he was worth before or prior to being suspended. Yeah, but you know what? You know how sports is. You know, if you can put, you know, hit and seal bases and all that, he's going to get... Somebody's going to give him... He won't get the same amount of money, but I can see him finding a place somewhere. He's going to devalue, but we'll see how much. We'll see how much he's going to devalue. You know, the thing is, as part of the collective bargaining, that covers the MLB drug program, players who test positive are allowed to prove they ingested a banned substance through no fault of their own. Is this a dumb move? Yeah. I mean, look at what happened during the offseason. We had the MVP, you know, Braun test positive, and then he was able to prove that he was... that they messed up in... from... They messed up his test sample, so he got away with it. But, you know, and then now, you know, he turns around, he's clean, and he's, you know, right up there, you know, as an MVP candidate. But the problem is with baseball right now is the fact that their testing is horrible. They really need to make improvements with it because, like Barry Larkin said, I thought we were past this, you know? You know, we left behind, you know, Maguire and Barry Bonds. And you know who this takes a hit on is Barry Bonds because he's one of the candidates to go into the Hall of Fame. And this is his first time. This is his first year. So this is going to hurt his chances again. I mean, although, you know what? I would say... I think he should go into the Hall of Fame, but this is going to hurt. I mean... Maybe they should have a separate Hall of Fame for the players on steroids or that have been linked to steroids. You know, Victor Conte, one of the biggest names in Major League Baseball, not a player, but a provider of this. Yeah, he was a distributor. He's the one that came up with the clear and the cream for, you know, players like, you know, all those... He said that 60% of the league, around 50%, more than half of the league is on juice. Right. Which is surprising because then you start wondering what the heck is going on. Yeah. And you know what? He's someone that you should believe. And part of the reason is... I believe him. Yeah. And part of the reason is because the guy created, you know, a drug. And so he knows he can pattern anything for a test to, you know, show negative. So it's... You know what? We got to take his word for it. And... It's just sad to see because, you know, the problem is, is that they get tested more when they're in the minor leagues than when they... They only get tested the first year and then it's a random the rest of your career. One of the things he said was the fact that most of the players now are not taking what they took back then. Now they're taking new drugs that could be timed. The fact that you could put them in your body and put a timeline where you'll stop using them so you won't test positive. So that makes you think, okay, you know, so... If steroids and banned substances are moving up that quick to the fact that you could work around tests, what is that really doing to the sport overall? Right. And I mean, the example I can tell people who don't probably understand what you just said is, if you've ever seen the movie, Catch Me If You Can, you know, you have a guy who makes, you know, false checks. And so once they catch him, what do they do? They hire this guy who knows how to, you know, fake checks. And so to me, the best thing to do would be to hire someone like this. So that way, you know, the testing improves, you know, because he knows how to get away with it. And so if I was MLB right now, Bud Seely, the commissioner, I would hire him, you know. Look at this. Cabrera leads the National League with 159 hits in his second at batting. Now, if he wasn't caught and they won. Yeah. I mean... Would that title be revoked? Well, and then the other, the other controversy with it is the fact that, they won the, he was able to get the National League, the World Series home field advantage. Yes. He won the MVP. I was going to tell you that. Yeah. And so, I mean... It hasn't really been talked about. Right. We have too many things going on with the fact that he tested positive. That we're not concerned the fact that he really gave the National League that advantage that they now have for the World Series. So, you know, it's really too much to swallow at once. And I think he has to give a big thanks to Felix Hernandez. I know we're going to talk about it later on. But, yeah, you know, him throwing that... You know what? Have you seen Bigger, Stronger, Faster documentary? No, I haven't. You should. You should definitely see it. I'm telling you right now, you should see it because it has a lot to do with baseball. It's steroids in this country, in the United States. And the fact that, you know, steroids, it's targeted. It makes a judgment. You have to see it. And then we'll talk about it. Yeah. And I think one of the things that we have to keep in mind, not just with baseball, I think one of the things that I, my first thought was, you know, the guys getting busted the most are Dominican players. They're, the Latin ball players, which is good. Yeah. And it sucks, you know, because it puts a black eye on, you know, on, you know, those players in those islands, you know, like Puerto Rico and Venezuela and stuff like that. And then the other thing that I think we have to keep in mind is the fact that we need better testing here. We really do. I agree with you 100%. And you know what? The league has the ability to do that. If they haven't moved in that direction, I can't really tell you why. I don't think you could tell me either because with today's, today's technology, if steroids is able to move that fast, being able to counter it should be able, should be moving up around the same speed. Right. And until you get, I mean, even with, we just got through the Olympics and then one of the topics was, you know, Usain Bolt. Yes. And, you know, it's sad that we have to, and it made me think, how come we're not talking about, you know, the swimmer, you know, Phelps, you know, we're only talking, and then you start reading about, you start thinking, you start reading about Usain Bolt, and then how some of the guys tested positive, you know, on his team. And then you're like, oh, you know, come on, like, can we just get past that? Like, talking Olympics really quick, Michael Phelps was involved in, I guess he kind of broke the rules because some Louis Vuitton pictures were taken and released before the date that the Olympic committee had issue, which was until August 15, I believe. And pictures released before that, which might cause him to lose some of the momentum, but he's still going to be in the finals. So, I think that's a little bit unfair. I think it's a little bit unfair, but those are the rules and you have to follow them just like everybody else. I don't want to get off topic. I want to give this guy credit because he deserves credit. Felix Hernandez, perfect game. You watched it. I think half of the world watched it if they have cable. Right. There's no way you could miss it. A great historical event because they don't happen often, but I believe there's a total of 24. You would know that, right? 24 total perfect games and six of those games have been pitched in the last four years. Right. Yeah. And part of the reason is because pitching, we have smaller ballparks. We have more pitcher ballparks. The other thing is too, to take into consideration, I think there's been three no-hitters in that ballpark at Safeco Field. I think there was a combined no-hitter and then two perfect games there with the one that Hernandez threw. So, I think that there's a lie. You know, the pitching has passed, you know, the batters now. And so, that's another thing to keep in mind. The other thing too is that they're using way faster outfielders to cover a lot of range. So, that's another, you know, the defense has gotten better. But, yeah, the pitchers are, it's become a pitching league now, especially, you know, in the NL. Either way, it's a great accomplishment. It does not happen. Some of these pitchers who throw no-hitters, you really don't know who they are. Felix Hernandez, he's had a good season. He's had a pass, a couple of good seasons in the, in Mitchell Speck. And, we have to give him credit. Yeah, he's thrown, he's won a Cy Young before. He, I mean, he's the leader of that pitching staff. And, I mean, he's a young guy. So, there's a lot. Not such a good team. No, you know, and they're rebuilding again. So, you know, it sucks for him. But, yeah, he's a hell of a ball player. A great pitcher. You know, I expect more and more things from him. And, he became the first player from Venezuela to throw a no-hitter. The first one? Actually, perfect game. Sorry. First one? No, the, what's his name? Santana from the Angels threw a no-hitter last year. Santana's Venezuelan as well. You're right. Yeah. So, let's move on. National League majors with the Nationals from Washington have the best record. Still holding on. I think they're going to do some damage in the postseason. If they could hang tight, we still got to see if they're going to use their whole pitching staff. We hope they do because these chances don't come around twice for teams like the Nationals. And, that's just being real. Yeah. And, I mean, a lot of, it's been, it's been made a big deal that, that the fact that Strasburg, they're going to shut down Strasburg. But, you know what? Like I, like I've been telling people, you, you have, you know, Gonzalez, you have Zimmerman, you have Jackson on that pitching staff. They're going to be fine. The only thing that worries me about that team is they're hitting. You know, I don't know, you know, they have a third baseman Zimmerman and they have some other batters there. And then the fact that they haven't seen, they haven't been there before in the playoffs. So, you know, how much is it going to be on you for them and how would they react to that? You know what? Uh, I was going to ask you something really quick. You were in Cincinnati and Pittsburgh, two of the best records. How was that? Oh, before we leave baseball, I need to know that because I know you went there. You saw two of the best teams in the league. Right. Fighting for a spot, one for the division, one for the, for the wild card. It must've been a little bit of fun to be out there. Oh yeah. I mean, I fell in love with the, the ballpark in Pittsburgh. It's just, I mean, they have a, there's a bridge called the Roberto Clemente Bridge, which takes you, you walk to the stadium and then, and the stadium is overlooking the, the back, the, the, the city. So, and then the atmosphere there was great. I mean, the, the people were so nice to me, even though I was wearing my, my Dodger gear and everything. So that was good to see. And then Cincinnati, you know what? I, I, you know, after seeing Pittsburgh, it was kind of like a letdown, which I feel bad about, but it's a beautiful stadium there too. You know, um, there, there's a reason why they're, they're in first place. And, you know, Johnny Cueto is probably the leading candidate for the Cy Young right now. So, yeah, so they're well-deserved, even though they've been out with, without, without Joey Bottle. So, um, you know what? They'll be in there too. I just, like I said, with them is, is, it's wide open this year. It really is. And the National League is wide open. Dodgers and Giants going head to head in the NL West. Are we going to see this to the end of the season? Because it's starting to look like we are. Yeah. And even with, you know what? It sucks that Milky had to, you know, get suspended. That's going to be a big hit for them. Just like it was for the Dodgers when they didn't have Matt Aken. Right. And, you know, we got about 40 games to go. And, you know, they're starting a big series on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. You know, you got Kershaw on the mound against Bogos, no, it's not Bogos, I forget his name, but you got Kershaw going Monday, you got Blanton going on Tuesday against the Freak, and then you got King going up against Capuano on Wednesday. So, big games coming up and then they finish here at Dodgers Stadium at the end of the season. I think it's October 1st, 2nd, and 3rd. So, we're getting there, man. It's, you know, this is their chance. They're half a game up right now. And so, you know, I honestly wouldn't change anything on that lineup right now. So, you know, I love the Dodgers right now, the way they're playing. You know who disappoints me? Who? You know who really disappoints me? It just, it reminds me of this sound. The Angels. Yeah. Leading 8-0 yesterday. They lose 10-8. Incredible. Incredible to see the Angels losing a game they were winning. And it just says a lot about the season they've had this season. They lose 10-8 to the Rays who come back. A Rays team who is trading the Yankees by three games. Yeah. And it starts, it starts to tell us that this team is probably not going to make the wild card. They're not going to make the division champions. You know, they're not going to be the division champions and it's a little bit concerning. Yeah. And they really, it's, it's, it's really bad because I was really hoping the Angels and the Dodgers could get in the playoffs and see that for the first time. Both, both local teams get in there, but I just don't see it anymore. I mean, they, the, the, the, the Rays just dominated them. I mean, from starting pitching to hitting everything. I mean, the, the Angels threw their four, their best four pitchers out there and they still couldn't do anything. And it just, and they were at home and it just, it's really sad to see right now. You know, they put, you know, you got to give credit to Ari Moreno for putting the money, you know. Are they going to take a year to, to, is that what, is that what they need? Do they need to like glue together? I think so. Does, does that what they need? Because they have the roster. They have one of the, the best pitchers in the world. Right. And this, perhaps the Cy Young Award winner in the AL and, and, and Weaver. And the problem is with them is, I honestly don't know what the problem is because if you look one through nine at their lineup, they're stacked and your pitching staff and their bullpen. And I can't honestly put my, my finger on why it is that this team is struggling. You know, whether at one point is they can't hit. And then at another point is their pitching. And then, and then their bullpen fails them. And it's just like, it's, it, to be an angel, right now must be really frustrating. I feel bad for them. I feel bad for them. Yeah. Let's move on. You're listening to www.skidrollstudios.com. Let's talk a little bit about the NBA. There's a ranking trending right now. How much do you care about the trick? I mean, I care about the top 20, maybe 30 NBA players, but the best 500 players, really? Well, do you care from 400 to 500? I don't care about that. Well, they're just trying to stay relevant right now. You know, there's not much going on in the NBA, you know, with, you know, free agency pretty much done with, you know, so everybody's just waiting for training camp to start. Ivaka did have a, he did sign an extension. That's about as newsworthy as we've had in the past few weeks. Which is, for extra years. It's big for them, you know. It does because it keeps them in contention to be a contender for the title in the, in the league. But, it does, it does raise the question whether James Harden will remain a Thunder after next year. I think so. I mean, they're going to have to spend the money. What, you know, I mean, when you have a team like that. If they do, they're going to go over the luxury tax. Yeah. And I mean, they, they, I'm pretty sure they've sold out like for the last three years. You know, so they'll have the money. I mean, yeah, they're a small market and then they get money from revenue sharing and all that. So, you know what? If, you know, come on. I mean, if you're, if you're a team like that, where do you want to go? Where do you want to see your team pay a little bit of money to see them, you know, be competitive, especially when you have that kind of talent. I mean, especially, and they're all young. I mean, they're like 25, like under 25 and it would just be sad for them just to be like, you know what? We can't afford you guys. So we're not. It would really ruin the chemistry they have because they're a solid team. They could compete now that the Lakers have Dwight Howard. It's going to be really interesting because the field is more, is leveled. Right. When the Lakers play the Thunder, everybody was talking about how the Lakers were old, slow, and you saw that in some games, but they hung in there. Now, you get Dwight Howard, it's going to make a big difference. It's going to say, okay, you know, you had Ivaka, you had shot blockers, you know, Bynum decided to play one game, another game he wasn't playing, but now we have Dwight Howard. He comes to play every night. And this is what that, that Howard trade does. It makes everybody go and try to play improve their team. And so with, with the Thunder is more about, you know what, we're going to resign our players and other teams are going to be like, you know what, we need to go. First, it was like back in the 80s, you know, it was like, oh, the big three. And then, you know, and then it was, you know, last year or the last couple of years, it was like, who can get the most stars on their team? You know, the Celtics had the big three and then it was the Heat. And then now the Lakers have the big four. So I'm interested to see if we'll get the big five pretty soon. Another interesting topic was the fact that Jim Bayman said that LeBron James is the only player that he's ever coached to be able to play all five positions. And that's, that's led to the argument that LeBron James is probably better than Michael Jordan, better than Kobe Bryant. You know, after he won his first NBA title, all of a sudden he is the man. And that makes us wonder. I mean, it makes me wonder, is he the man? What do you think about that? Well, so far, you know, when he's done, the kind of athlete that he is, we haven't seen it. I mean, a guy that's 6'8", 260 pounds, can run, you know, if he wanted to, he'd probably play football, play tight end, you know, that's how good he is. Nine years in the season. Right. And he does. He can guard all five positions. I mean, there's no doubt about it. But the problem is, is that, you know, we're just, we're, to me, those three guys that you just mentioned are not even, for me, the best player of all time. For me, it's Magic Johnson. You know, who said that? John Sally. Oh, yeah. I mean, and he played against him. He said that he's the best player. He didn't even put Michael Jordan. He said it was John, it was Magic Johnson. It was Larry Bird. Larry Bird. Right. Isaiah Thomas. Right. And then further down, Michael Jordan. So you say Magic Johnson. I say Michael Jordan is the best that I've ever seen. I think Magic Johnson will come number two. But I think that putting LeBron James in the same sentence right now is not, it's not the time. Everybody's riding that wave. Everybody's in the wagon right now saying, LeBron James is the man. There you go. He proved it. But you know what? Like Michael Jordan said, you know what? He needs to win six titles before we could have this discussion. Yeah. I don't blame Ben Hunt for saying that. I mean, he's being honest. He's, you know, he's seen, he saw Michael Jordan and he saw, you know, LeBron. And I mean, like I said, you know, I'm not gonna, I'm not gonna diss, you know, LeBron anymore. Kobe or LeBron in their prime? Choose right now. Who would you rather have? Who would I rather have? It just depends on what you're asking. No, you have to, I need an answer. Kobe and LeBron in their prime, who would you pick? I would pick Kobe. I have to go with Kobe. Mentally, he's always been a stronger player. Right. I mean, and we have to agree on that. Yeah. The thing about LeBron James right now is that he's being criticized at the, because he's not the most, he's not the strongest mentally. Right. But he is now. Kobe is stronger. He finished up now. Oh, now he has, but now, now he has to prove that he could do it. No, he's done it. I mean, he looked, he came through. Yeah. Again. Yeah, of course, you know. I mean, Dwayne, Dwayne Wade won a title by himself with Shaq, you know, declining Shaq. Right. Now he has to do it again. Right. And this is where, you know, you know, he's going to be able to prove, you know, if he's in that status now, you know, he needs to, you know, especially now with all those teams, he's going to have a lot of competition, you know, and that's one of the things I always talk about with the comparison to Michael Jordan. I mean, who were the great teams that he went up against? You know, the last great team he went up against was those Pistons in the late 80s. After that, you know, he played, he beat the Trailblazers. He beat Reggie Miller. Right. But I mean, come on, you know, like did they have any... He beat a Karl Malone. Right. That was a great team. Yeah, it was. It was not a Karl Malone's time and you know, he would tell you that. Yeah. He hates the fact that he had to play Michael for it. Right. So did Charles. Yeah, but see, there goes the argument though. I mean, you're looking at one or two teams that were great during that time and then you look at like the 80s, you had like the, you had the Sixers, you had the Lakers, you had the Pistons, you had the Bulls, you had the Knicks. I mean, they had to go through like six teams in order to win a championship. You know, during Michael's, you only had to go through one or two teams, you know, like, and so that's my biggest argument. I mean, I think one of the things that gets lost with Michael Jordan is the fact that he took the game globally and so that was makes him, but that's outside. Wouldn't you think that he was also way advanced for his time? In terms of what? Playing. Playing? Style. And a lot of people say, yeah, who did you play? But it was not who did you play? You came in, you changed the game. Right. He changed it for everybody else because from that point, everything that happened is always compared to Michael Jordan. Right. Michael Jordan. Is LeBron better than Michael Jordan? Is Kobe better than Michael Jordan? Well, he had, see, this is where we start, you know, we lose that, you know, pass is he had somebody like that. Michael did. And we forget about Dr. J. Dr. J was compared, he, everybody compared Michael to Dr. J. And so, and so nowadays we're like, well, he didn't have anybody. Yeah, he did. He had Dr. J to compare him to. He was, you know, a slam dunk contest. He can, he could, he could shoot the ball. He could drive the ball. He could play defense. And so I think that's another guy that gets, you know, lost is that because he played in the, in the ABA. He didn't play in the NBA that many years, you know, until he won the championship in 84 with the Sixers. I agree with you. Moving on, you know, statements that, that have been put out there, Bynum, looking forward to staying with the 76ers. Iguodala, looking forward to stay with the Nuggets. It seems like everybody who was traded, you know, is looking to stay there and is pretty happy. And in a way, everybody wants something except the magic. Right. And I mean, of course, you know, you're, you know, you're going to be, you want to make your fans happy and you want to say, hey, you know what? I'm going to stay here, you know, and say, you know, so that way the fans, you know, can say, hey, you know what? That, that, you know, that player is pretty cool. You know, he's going to stay with us, you know, like Bynum said and everybody erupted, you know, and Iguodala, the same thing. And then, you know what? If you're the magic, you're just starting over. I mean, you're just happy that the whole, the whole thing is over with and you can start over. I mean, they've done it before. That's the positive about that. Right. I mean, they've done it before. They know how, they have the blueprint. When they lost Shaq, they were able to get Howard and they made it back to the finals again. This season, we had some, we had the most injuries, you know, it was a compacted season and we saw good players go down. Chauncey Billups, Ricky, Ricky Rubio, excuse me. Right. And Derek Rose who's making his, his comeback now. Adidas has commercials. Oh, you know, Derek Rose is coming back. Right. Wow. You know, the rehab, I mean, they didn't have that back then, but it's exciting to see that stuff now because of the social media, you know, and TV. It's so reachable nowadays that you can't, you know, there's no way you're not going to see it. You're going to see it on a billboard or, or, you know, or down the street on a poster, but you're going to see it. Well, the thing with, with Rose is because he's, he's a face of that franchise. Yes. And it just, I mean, it, it really, really sucks that, that he went down at the time he did. Had he gone down before, then he would have been ready for the season. I honestly, that kind of injury, especially from a point guard who explodes like him, he's either going to have to change the way he plays or else he's going to happen again. And so he needs to be careful. And then the owner came out and said that he made a mistake with Michael Jordan when he kind of had a similar... I follow that as well. Right. Now this is the question that I wanted to ask you. Okay. Are those injuries due to the season being so tight or is it just bad luck? Well, one of the things I was able to read about that too, and, and, and it was explained to me back in the seventies when, when Converse had the shoe, there weren't as many injuries. So I was like, okay, well, what's going on here? Why isn't there as many injuries as there are now? And part of the problem has to do with the shoes. They're lighter. Yes. And so, and then the support is not as much because a lot of players don't want, don't want to have a heavy shoe because it takes form of their explosiveness. And then also that hop step that they're doing, a lot of them are tearing up their, their, their interior collateral ligaments and all that because of, of how they're landing on their shoe. If you look at how they shoot and when they land, that has a lot to do with it too. That makes sense. That makes sense. Okay. Moving on. You're listening to www.skidrollstudios.com. Let's talk a little bit about Major League Soccer. We have a few minutes left and you know, this hour has flown by every week. You know, I need to talk to Jeremy, you know, Jeremy, the CEO of skidrollstudios.com. We need to talk about an extension. This is just not enough time for us. Right. You know, I'm talking about this. I'm losing time. Let's talk MLS. All right. Landon Donovan might retire at the end of the season. What? What is, I mean, let me ask you since you're the, the, the soccer expert. What is it? I mean, is this a shock or what's going on here? What? Do you really see him doing it? What? Do I, you know what? Coward. Yeah. That's what I call him. He's a coward. Why? To even consider the fact that he's going to retire. You mean a lot to the league. You mean a lot to your team. He had, he had the chance to play in Europe, but he chose not to. He chose to stay in LA because it's a beautiful city. You have the best weather here. Why retire? But now he's saying that he might retire. He's going to think about it. But you have the 2014 World Cup around the corner. You participated in the 20, in the 2002, 2006, 2010 World Cups and you want to think about retiring now? Don't be ridiculous. Well, okay. So then the question becomes, will he play in 2014? He should. Yeah. I mean, I'll be shocked if he didn't. He, he's truly going to be seen as a coward. You're, you still have game and soccer is not a sport that you stop loving. like any other sport, like any other sport, like any other sport, like any other sport, like any other sport, like any other sport, like any other sport, like any other sport, from one day to another, you have a lot of game you keep playing, especially when a country and when you're referred to as Captain America, you know, leader of the soccer team, leader of the United States, 143 appearances, 189 MLS appearances. You have not only weight on your shoulders, you know, you are the, the face of the team. You are the face of a national team. People around the world talk about Landon Donovan when they talk about the United States. To think about retiring now, maybe, maybe it's a publicity stunt. Maybe you want attention. Maybe you want another endorsement. Maybe you want to go back to Europe because he could play there. European players usually play to 35. He has the ability to play there. He's shown and he's proved that he could play anywhere in the world. To retire now will be cowardish, in my opinion. Is he, is he still in his prime? I mean, he's a little past his prime. I'm not going to lie. I'm going to be realistic. Soccer players prime when they evolve at the right age. When you're moving through segments of your life, your prime is around 27 years old. You know what? We're out of time. So we'll talk about this next week. Thank you for tuning in. My name is Moises Linares along with Victor Corona. See you next Sunday. Thank you for tuning in to my show. Thank you.