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“AZTECS FOOTBALL-AZTECS AIR ARRIVES”
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Meet Sean Lewis-new head coach at San Diego State.

His resume speaks for itself.
It’s his time on Montezuma Mesa.
The Aztecs new head coach inherits a program that has slipped.
It’s a different era too, with the NIL and Transfer Portal part of everyday life

SDSU brought in 32-transfers.  They had 42-players leave the program within weeks then months after Brady Hoke stepped aside.  The era and success of Rocky Long seems a long time ago.

This suddenly has a feel of what the early Don Coryell years at SDSU became-high octane offenses and explosive Saturday nights.

Lewis’ accomplishments everywhere he coached have been impressive:
..Kent State..(6,907Y) in total offense…(606YPG) on offense
..Syracuse..(456YPG) on offense
..Bowling Green..(546YPG)..(42PPG) on offense
..Colorado..(330YPG) passing on offense

Meet the new leader and what he had to say at his Preseason press meeting.
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Sean Lewis

 

Get in camp..get team connected…get on field
See where we are at..what we got…how it come together

Players have good idea about Aztec Fast
We have maximized this summer to get foundation laid in playbook
Talk about it…now do it on field

All about the people…we have opportunity to take all the people in building
Build this team..understand-know each other
Players learn then executive what we will teach them

Preseason polls don’t concern me..we have our expectations
This team has incredibly high season based on talent
Day in-day out-grow this thing

We will practice in early mornings..transition get them up-get them fed
Get them into classroom later in the day in afternoon-evenings
Get attention in the morning..and develop solid rythm
Always practiced in morning

QB-AJ Duffy-Danny O’Neil…develop at same time-learning curve
Now we pour into how to execute what we call…but now make the play
We have 24-practices plus walk thru
Both similar kids in terms of talent..both gym rats..love playbook-process
Football IQ hight…very accuarate throwing ball
They feel the speed of the game
Who can make plays and make them around them better
Can they elevate the skill guys around them
Find a way-regardless of circumstance-to get the job done as trigger man
QB must know what each component has to do on each snap
No hard-fast date when we choose a starting QB
Be ready for experience..get better by doing
Think fast-go fast-know fast..that is next
Neither QB has played this type of speed game-that will come

WR-Polk..RB-Cooper..transfers played at Kent State
They have shown Aztecs how to play this playbook
They have put some time and knowledge of this playbook
Cooper production speaks for itself
He is so consistent on field-exceptional player
His production has been amazing-carved out role
We have deep running back room..Marquez Cooper is a proven talent

Kent-SDSU were differently
I inherited winning-success at SDSU
Started at square one at Kent
Whole new staff here
50%-roster is brand new
Each team-each season is different
We are jumping into the water together
Pass information in our systems-up and down in our systems
Roster is eager to know…they want to know how-and-why
The seniors are holding each other accountable

Have to be aware of what’s going on in the trenches..OL-DL
Need to lean on player development..add size-strength
Pieces up front-cohesion of OL are really important
We need body types and skill set upfront to compete
Our 8-week summer conditioning was excellent

We work hard-new foundation in place..get stakes in the ground

MWC coaches have an idea of what we will run..cat-mouse game-speed
SDSU game predicated on speed-skill in space..
Have to match the people with the scheme

New NCAA rules..105-rosters..great to know what rules will be
We will get deeper into the weeds to find out more
115 in camp…30-walkones with this team

Great schedule…great home schedule..yeah let’s go get it
Lost 4-veteran head coaches in MWC..old guard-stepped down..passing on.
8-new head coaches in MWC this year
Fresh faces-great space for league to be in.

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“PADRES DEADLINE DEALS”

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AJ Preller is like Frank ‘Trader’ Lane.

He might be the modern day version of former Padres GM ‘Trader’ Jack McKeon.

Modern day fans likely don’t know who Frank Lane was.  A General Manager who built and wrecked the Cleveland Indians and the Chicago White Sox.  A man who inherited a great Indians team, then tore it down.  A man who laid the foundation that became the 1959 Go-Go White Sox of World Series fame, and tore them down too.

I mention Frank Lane, because even Preller did not know who he was, though AJ sure carries alot of the traits ‘The Trader’ had.  An addiction to deals, a compulsion to make trades for today regardless of the cost in the future.

History shows Lane dealt a 40-home run hitter, Rocky Colavito for a 40-doubles hitting batting champ Harvey Kuenn.  He moved popular pitching stars Early Wynn and Herb Score.  Lane even traded his unhappy Manager Joe Gordon for Tigers manager Jimmy Dykes.

Fast forward to this week, to update your score sheet on Preller’s Padres.

In a span of 48-hours, he dealt for All Star closer Tanner Scott of Miami, Tampa Bay’s outstanding setup reliever Jason Adam, long reliever Brian Hoenig and ex Texas-Pirates starter Marco Perez.

Instant help for a tired bullpen and a wafer thin-starting rotation.

The price, the shredding of the farm system, again.  In his latest deals, he moved 3-prospects to get Adam, and then shipped 4-elite farmhands in the Miami transactions for the Scott-Hoenig package.

A big price to pay considering Scott has ‘wild streaks’ and is a 2-month rental, heading to free agency in the fall.

Add in the bold trades early in the season for Dylan Cease and Luis Arraez  and the tab shows Preller has dealt away 14-of-the top 16-players in the once highly rated farm system.

This comes after the deal 3-years back costing the club 5-prospects in the two year rental of Juan Soto from Washington.

Hard to tell what Dylan Lesko, Rob Snelling, Adam Mazur or Graham Pauley might have turned into at the major league level.  We do know Preller spent upwards of 12M in signing bonuses over a three year span, and virtually all those drafted or international free agents are gone.

But if you look at rosters in Washington and other places, there are alot of ex Padres prospects playing well.

When the Dodgers lined up against the Padres on Tuesday night in the continuing chase for first place, the only home grown players Preller had on the field were Luis Campusano, Jackson Merrill and Adrian Morejon.

Oddly, just last week, in their series in Baltimore, the first place Orioles had 7-home grown draft picks on the field, yes the first place Birds against the Friars..

The Padres are still in this dog fight pennant race even with Fernando Tatis still out and without front line starters Yu Darvish and Joe Musgrove.

There was excitement at Petco Park among the fans, optimismi from Padres employees, that these deals put them back in the fight for 1st place.

Of course the guys in the other dugout did the same thing at the deadline, getting Detroit Tigers ace Jack Flaherty, setup reliever Michael Kopech, all purpose Cardinal Tom Edman, utilityman Amed Rosario and Gold Glove outfielder Kevin Kiemayer.

The Dodgers somehow are still in first place, and are doing it with 17-pitchers on the DL and the serious injuries to star Mookie Betts and home run hitter Max Muncy.

The difference between the Dodgers, who have won 8-NL West titles in a row and the Padres, is that the Dodgers did all these last minute deals giving up just 1-top- prospect Miguel Vargas, the rest of the players being in Class A or rookie league.  Their top 4-young pitches, top shortstop, two catchers and their centerfielder are still in the Dodgers chain.  All the Padres bluechips are playing somewhere else now.

If these deals can get the Padres to the World Series, then the city and its fans will be happy.  If the Padres fall short again, in Preller’s 10th year of doing baseball business his way, then he might be charged with ‘Arson’ for burning the farm system down again and failing to deliver.

On paper we know they can score runs and now they have a 6-man deep wipeout collection of relievers. Do they have enough starters over the last 2-months of the season?  Better win in the next two years, because there does not look to be much of a future with what has become an older roster with no farm system behind it.

At least Trader Jack McKeon, known for cigars and late night trades, got a Padres team to the World Series.

Preller and Frank Lane might have more in common than anyone knows.  See me-October 1st.

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Hacksaw’s Baseball Trading Deadline Podcast
You Tube Channel-Lee Hacksaw Hamilton
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“BASEBALL TRADING DEADLINE”
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Waiting for the other shoe to drop in baseball.
Waiting for 3pm-Pacific on Tuesday and the trading window to close.
Waiting to see who gets the top two starters from Detroit
Waiting to see if the Dodgers-Yankees overpay to get an arm
Waiting to see if the Giants move Blake Snell to the Yankees
Waiting to see if there is something else for the Padres to get
Waiting to see how many more trades are made, on top of the 28-so far.

Waiting so inviting you to listen to my Monday podcast (link above) and a synopsis of the first day of Deadline deals.

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Hacksaw’s Monday Trading Deadline PODCAST..1pm
You Tube Channel-Lee Hacksaw Hamilton
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“A BASEBALL WEEKEND”
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Baseball fans-do you have enough hours to follow everything going on right now?  Spraying opinions to all fields.

PADRES…What a road trip, this (7-2) junket against 1st place Cleveland and 1st place Baltimore.  Tells me a couple of things.  Padres starting pitching can dominate against singles hitting teams live the Guardians and Orioles.  Also tells me Cleveland and Baltimore are not deep enough nor complete teams right now in any pennant race.

PADRES ON THE ROAD..How impressive is this.  They go (7-2) on the roadie, are now (31-23) away from home and are doing all this without Fernando Tatis, Yu Darvish, Jos Musgrove.

JUST ASKING…Don’t the Padres owe the fans and the media full explanation as to why Yu Darvish has left the club.  It is not a physical-health issue, but even if it is a private-family issue, shouldn’t there be an explanation.  This absence could cost the Padres a playoff position.  Transparency answers alot of questions, ends speculation.  They want to be fair to the player.  About fairness to the fans buying the tickets?

TRADE DEADLINE..AJ Preller fills a weakness by trading 3-more prospects including last year’s #1 pick Dylan Lesko and OF-Homer Bush in the Tampa trade  for setup reliever Jason Adam, a struggling journeyman who reinvented himself once he got to Tropicana Field.

LOOKING GLASS…Better appreciate this year and next, for there won’t be much of a Padres future.  Preller has dealt 9-prospects this year in the trades that brought him Dylan Cease, Luis Arraez and now Adam.  The farm system is virtually devoid of depth and bluechip talent.  Preller wants to win-better win, because there won’t be much in the future, and he won’t be here if they don’t make the grade this summer and next.

STILL TO COME…That trade deadline is Tuesday at 3pm and the Padres are still rumored to be trying to rent a starting pitcher.  Jack Flaherty-Detroit and Nathan Eovaldi-Texas are out there as short term rentals, but what does Preller have left unless he moves a veteran off his roster now.  Does he really want to trade Ha Seong-Kim or Luis Campusano?

X MARKS THE SPOT…Some two week stretch for Xander Bogaerts coming off the DL.  Goes (22-45) with big hits virtually every game, and pushes his average, that was (.219) when he got hurt, to (.272) and now the Friars are coming home.

THE SCHEDULE…Big couple of nights at Petco Park.  It’s ringing in my ear right now ‘Beat LA-Beat LA’.  This Tuesday-Wednesday series will be huge because the Dodgers still hold a 6-and-a half game lead over the Friars in the NL-West, and while the Padres were winning on the road, the Dodgers still posted wins.

NEXT UP…Here’s the real storyline.  Once the Padres-Dodgers series is over, the Padres get 15-straight games against the struggling teams in baseball, Colorado-Miami-Pittsburgh.  15-in a row and a chance to grab a playoff position.

DODGERS DEVASTATION…We are seeing something this year, probably never seen before.  No, not the Ohtani 700M-deferred contract.  But rather a war ravaged roster.  The Dodgers have had 17-pitchers on the disabled list this season, and then you add on the extended time on the DL for Max Muncy and Mookie Betts, and they are still in first place.

CALVARY COMING…Clayton Kershaw is a start to start situation, coming off the year long battles with his shoulder.  Walker Buehler is back on his rehab schedule in the minors.  Yosh Yamamoto could be a month away.  Bobby Miller seems to have hit a wall.  Gavin Stone is beyond his innings cap.  They traded James Paxton to Boston.  There is no Dustin May return till next spring.  Brusdar Graterol and Mike Grove are still in the minors trying to put healthy starts together.  The bullpen looks like it is eroding away.  The trade deadline is two days away.  That’s where the help may come from.

TRADE CHIPS..Andrew Friedman still has a wealth of farm system talent and the likes of James Outman, Gavin Lux, and Diego Cartaya he can use as trade bait.  The rumor he is going after  Tigers ace Tarik Skubal remains out there.  Stay tuned in the next 36-hours.

ANGELS IN HELL…They keep losing, they keep dealing away players at the trade deadline.  Relief ace Carlos Estevez goes to the Phillies for two more prospects.  Luis Rengifo, former top pick Reid Detmers, and a host of role players could be the next to be dealt by Tuesday lunchtime.  Left behind is alot of wreckage, a failing farm system, and aging superstar Mike Trout, who has a no trade clause.

WISHING LIKE HELL…’the next trade the Angels would make would be the exit of owner Arte Moreno, who has overseen this wreckage for the last decade. His team, his budget, his management people.  His failure.

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Hacksaw’s No Hitter-Thursday Podcast
You Tube Channel-Lee Hacksaw Hamilton
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“NBA-TV-War”
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The NBA has a new 76B-TV contract.  ESPN-NBC are back in.  Amazon Prime Streaming has come on board.  TNT is out.  Get ready to lawyer up.

TNT claims it had the right to ‘match’ any contract offer’ to stay with the NBA.  The NBA maintains it was only for ‘over the air broadcasts’, and that Amazon offers something no one else can, streaming, to build a very different base.  The matching contract clause is not for streaming.

Wonder what Charles Barkley thinks about that now that Inside the NBA is no longer a player.  TNT should have read the fine print about what they could and could not match.

Here’s what to look for next year as TNT and the NBA prepare to go to court, off the court, infront of a judge.

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NBA on TV Breakdown:

Disney:

Disney will broadcast 80 regular season games per year, including 20+ on ABC and up to 60 on ESPN. ABC’s games will air on Saturdays and Sundays, with ESPN’s airing on Wednesdays and some Fridays.
ABC and ESPN will broadcast about 18 games in the first two rounds of the playoffs each season.
In 10 of the 11 seasons in the agreement, ABC and ESPN will air one of the two conference finals.
ABC will continue to air the NBA Finals.
ABC/ESPN will continue to air the draft, the draft lottery, and half of the Summer League games.
NBCUniversal:

NBCUniversal will distribute as many as 100 regular season games per year. More than half of those games will be broadcast on NBC on Sunday and Tuesday nights. Peacock will stream Monday night doubleheaders throughout the regular season.
The All-Star Game and All-Star Saturday Night (including the dunk contest and three-point competition) will air on NBC.
NBC and/or Peacock will air about 28 games in the first two rounds of the playoffs each season.
In six of the 11 seasons in the agreement, NBC will broadcast one of the two conference finals. They’ll rotate with Amazon beginning in 2025/26.
Amazon:

Amazon will distribute 66 regular season games per year on Prime Video. Those will include Thursday doubleheaders (beginning in January), Friday doubleheaders, some Saturday games, and at least one game on Black Friday.
Prime Video will broadcast the quarterfinals, semifinals, and final of the NBA Cup (in-season tournament).
Prime Video will broadcast all six games in the play-in tournament.
Prime Video will air approximately a third of the games in the first two rounds of the playoffs each season.
In six of the 11 seasons in the agreement, Amazon will air one of the two conference finals. They’ll rotate with NBC beginning in 2025/26.Note: Because NBC and Amazon will each broadcast six conference finals, there will be one year in which they each get one and Disney doesn’t.
Prime Video will air half of the Summer League games.
A lawsuit from TNT Sports – a longtime NBA broadcast partner and the odd man out in this round of negotiations – is possible after the NBA rejected TNT’s right to match Amazon’s deal.