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Hacksaw’s Tuesday Podcast
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“THE DODGER WAY”
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They have been pioneers forever in baseball, in player acquisitions, the Stadium, the free agent contracts, and the trades made.

They are the flagship team in the National League.

They lead baseball in expenditures this off season.
Prior to that they pulled off blockbuster trades (Adrian Gonazalez-Mookie Betts)
LA landed great free agents (Freddie Freeman).
The Dodgers won the bidding wars (Ohtani-Yamamoto-Sasaki).

They pioneered players roles that changed the game, Jackie Robinson, Fernando Valenzuala and more.

They are at the head of the class in the deferred money category with what they did with the Shohei Ohtani deal.

And now this off season, where they rewrote the record book.

As of this hour the Dodgers payroll (318M) more additions are coming.
Their luxury tax number as of today is (378M) with it likely to go up.
They have deferred a record (1.03B) in salaries to 12 players
They paid out (295M) in signing bonuses this winter.

And as they prepare to go to Camelback Ranch to open Cactus League-Spring Training, they have a 23-man pitching staff of experience they are preparing to put out there on the mound.

From Cy Young Award winners to promising phenoms and everyone in between.  All have won games in LA over the last couple of years.  A number are coming off arm surgeries.  But all have proven in the past they can win up here.

It’s staggering the array of starting pitching-relief pitching they have:

GLASNOW.            KERSHAW.               KOPECH
SNELL                    KNACK                      TREINEN
YAMAMOTO           WROBLESKI             PHILLIPS
SASAKI                   STONE                      SCOTT
OHTANI                   GROVE                     YATES
MAY                         SHEEHAN                BRASIER
MILLER                   RYAN                        VESIA
GRATEROL               BANDA

Just asking this question, to Padres-Giants-Arizona-Rockies fans?

Is the season already over in the NL West? Do you want to play the season in the NL West?  Is this good for baseball, what the Dodgers are doing in the NL West?

It’s the Dodger Way.

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Hacksaw’s Weekly Podcast-rescheduled Tuesday 1pm
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“REVIVAL-RAIDERS NATION”
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Raiders football, in the off season.
It was part Tent Revival Speech..part  Hall of Fame presentation.
It was impressive.

Pete Carroll arrives as Head Coach.  John Spytek takes over as GM.
One with the reputation as a winner…the other as a roster builder.
One old dog..the other young pup.

For the first time in a long time, the Raiders have a feel good atmosphere around them.
It has very little to do with Mark Davis, the owner.
Alot to do with the input of legendary QB-Tom Brady, headed to the Hall of Fame

The press conference was fun, full of promises, but delivered by people who have won, as compared to the current owner who has 2-winning seasons in his last 22-years of sad-sack ownership.

Comments from Pete Carroll:

..A unique and special day
..The Raiders captured me as a fan growing up
..I don’t do things like everyone else
..This will be a relationship organization
..I am always curious…seeking-asking-gathering information
..A year away from the game was life changing for me

..This is a once in a lifetime opportunity with Tom Brady’s input
..I want to build a great football team around a QB
..My teams run the ball, protect the football, and play great defense
..I want people who love to play the game…be the best they can possibly be
..We will build a mentality..find unique strength of each player
..I will share all our decisions with Jon Spytech
..The success of the Davis family has been unmatchable..get back to that.

..My lessons, how we do things..move ahead
..We teach everybody..illustrate what we want
..Make the game run for everyone
..Love of the game is important…Love is the center of what we do
..The games will be fun for our team
..If you don’t want to compete..you are in the wrong place.

..Tom Bradywas an integral part of this process
..He is the greatest competitor who ever played
..Tom Brady puts a stamp on this franchise

..I don’t live in the past..my next step is what defines me
..I love to compete..jacked up by this opportunity
..Important the people you surround yourself with

..USC allowed me to find my philosophy and to build hope
..We did historical things at USC
..My 27-years coaching allowed me to build USC and build Seattle
..I expect the same results here..I have been here before ‘building things’
..We will represent the global following of the Raiders

GM-John Spytek

..I learned what Pete Carroll did at every level he has been at
..We will hire people-players-who understand our philosophy
..We want guys ‘who will ball’
..This is an iconic cornerstone franchise

..Tampa Bay-we drafted and developed
..I am open minded about how to get players
..We can draft a QB..trade for a QB
..Not afraid to  think ‘outside the box’ to get players
..My history..sign talent…trade for talent

Ready-Set-Go…Let’s see if they can fix all the things wrong with the Raiders to the point I no longer call them the ‘Silver & Bleak’..but rather ‘Silver & Black’.

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Hacksaw’s Monday Podcast..1pm
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“SUPER TEAMS-COLLISION COURSE-SUPER BOWL”
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They earned it.  They deserved it.  The fans nationwide got a super show on Sunday and the Chiefs and Eagles are going to the Super Bowl.

CHIEFS-BILLS…As close a game as you could ever want, the see saw back and forth lead changes in the final quarter.  The quarterbacks under seige.  The pass rush was extraordinary.  The chunk plays marvelous.  In the end it was the exoctic formation packages Andy Reid used that got his team big plays down the stretch.  It was the exotic blitz packages of Steve Spagnulo that came up with 4th down stops on Josh Allen at the 48-and-50 yards in the final quarter.
Patrick Mahomes engineered scoring drives by spraying the ball to 8-different receivers.  Josh Allen went to a ground and pound package in the 2nd half to get back in the game.  But in the end, Mahomes made the plays, throwing, and using his legs running, and Allen could not.  So the Chiefs, and their mad men play callers are headed to New Orleans for the Super Bowl.  The Bills have now lost 4-straight times in the playoffs to the Chiefs regardless of what type of team Sean McDermott puts together.  It was edge of the seat football all night long.  Not much difference between Kansas City and Buffalo, except the Chiefs win every close game, their 17th straight win by a TD or less over the last two years.  And that makes a difference.

EAGLES-WASHINGTON….The Commanders shocked Philadelphia’s street tough defense early with an 18-play scoring drive to start the game, but they never duplicated that dominance again.  It was vintage Eagles football in every dimension.  Jalen Hurts passing.  Saquon Barkley grinding, including a 60Y-TD run the first time he touched the ball.  And the Mean Green defense dominating, with a 4-turnover, 3-sacks game dominance against a younger Commanders team.  A great day for the rookie QB-Jaden Daniels, but he could not make up for all the balls on the ground.  Quite a testament to the Eagles, with Vic Fangio’s renovated defense, that was ranked 27th a year ago and finished this year ranked 1st in virtually all categories.  An amazing Dan Quinn coaching job in his first year, making football in Washington very special.  But the best team won so the Eagles head back to the Super Bowl, in what might look like a 60-Man Bar Fight in a couple of weeks.

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==========Hacksaw’s Football Friday Podcast-1pm
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“NFL PLAYOFFS-UNSUNG HEROES”
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Here comes the AFC-NFC Wildcard Championship games.  We know the stars of the team, but how about some other storylines worth noting?

CHIEFS…Yes it is about Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes, but it also has to be about the emerging defense built by Steve Spagnuolo.  Blitz packages.  Where are they lining up Chris Jones and George Kaftalis?  How athletic and fast are their linebackers and secondary.

EAGLES…A superb season by Saquon Barkley and the dynamics of QB-Jalen Hurts and his skill people.  Vic Fangio has taken what was a defense ranked 27th a year ago in their awful late season collapse, and retooled it with the same players to be ranked anywhere from #1 to #4 in virtually every NFL category.

WASHINGTON..People marvel at rookie QB-Jayden Daniels accomplishments, with so few named skill people around him.  Credit Kliff Kingsbury with creating mismatches and motion packages that spread the field and let Daniels create moving the pocket.  Add in what Dan Quinn has done with the ‘Washington Wall’ defensive front and the importing of smart guy LB-Bobby Wagner.

BILLS..It used to be Josh Allen against the world till he made a mistake and cost you a game.  Now the front office has delivered him two kids WRs-Khalil Shakier and Keon Coleman and an explosive RB-James Cook and all of a sudden Allen is making tons of plays with so few turnovers.  Now the big challenge, take this very good team on the road and win at Arrowhead against a suddenly healthier and more complete Chiefs team.

All four teams have stars.  All four teams have people behind the scenes who have made a big difference

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========Hacksaw’s Great Sports Weekend Podcast-Moved to Friday-1pm
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“PADRES AT A CROSSROADS”
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There is alot of unfinished business for the Padres, just four weeks out from spring training.

Alot of talent in the lineup, a still strong pitching staff, a collective of accomplished relievers.

But a team with no established left-fielder, a hole behind home plate, virtually nothing on the bench, missing one established starting pitcher, and searching for help within the rotation.

Add in a player budget that is going up to pay players who earned raises last year.

There is a real issue with ownership, the fight among the Seidler family.  There is the issue of the profits the team is raking in, but not willingly spending.

And there is the GM-AJ Preller, given carte blanche by the late Peter Seidler, who burned thru so much money in non winning seasons.

He is no longer to operate without guard rails.  Last year the Padres put themselves into a pennant race only to get knocked out right at the end of the Dodgers.

This year his 170M-payroll may be bumped up as they reward Michael King, Jackson Merrill and what they must pay Dylan Cease-Luis Arraez.

The problem for Preller, there’s nothing ready in the farm system.  They do not have Jurickson Profar.  They lost catcher Kyle Higashioka. And there will be no Joe Musgrove for 2025.  And the bench bunch has not been re-signed or replenished yet.

If they trade Arraez or Cease, they may get young players back, a less salary, but they are not getting established stars, who got the team to within 1-game of the NLCS last year.

The GM cannot take on more outside salary.  He is now a victim of the 10-12-14 year contracts he gave out to everyone, deals no one else wants to trade for.

There are few quality pitchers still on the open market, unless he is willing to gamble.

Why not a phone call to veteran Trevor Bauer, exiled for 2-years to Japan and Mexico, but who went (20-2) in those leagues.  You can get him on a 1-year, cost effective deal, and he probably has learned a valuable lesson, after blowing a big contract.

There is Max Scherzer, coming off arm issues, with alot of miles on that arm, but as a 4th or 5th starter, it’s a one year deal with hope.

You can’t sign journeyman Nick Pavetta without giving up draft pick compensation, and you should not do that.  Is Andrew Heaney, Jose Quintana, Kyle Gibson, a difference maker and at what price?  There’s no real quality left.

Jack Flaherty’s cost might be (15M) and he pitched well for the Dodgers-Tigers-Cardinals, but the cost factor is something they cannot handle.

Maybe the Padres think they will get a better year, a full year, out of Randy Vasquez or Matt Waldron, based on some success they had last year.

A potential replacement might be Adrian Morejon, power pitcher, who had a breakthru season as a 1-inning setup bullpen guy, but who also has a big injury history having been a starter in the farm system.

The options are few.  The roster issues are very realistic.  The team is not equal to what it was last year.  The financial limitations have been imposed.

And Preller’s credibility of putting together exotic deals is now being challenged by all the past deals he’s made.  Now he has to find a trade to make up for bad trades or contracts he’s been involved in before.

And out there is what the Dodgers have done (Sasaki-Scott-Yates-Snell), the add ons in San Francisco (Adames-Verlander) and the upgrades in Arizona (Burnes).

The Padres, at a crossroads.  If they cannot keep winning to the level of excitement they provided in the past, then the fan support will fade, the sellouts will end, and they will draft back to being a small market team.

The window to be a World Series team was short, and you hate to think it is closing fast, because of Peter Seidler’s passing, AJ gambles gone bad, and the Dodger Way.

A real crossroads for lots of reasons, just four weeks out from the start of 2025-spring training.
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