The New York Mets will be without their star closer Edwin Diaz for the foreseeable future, as he was ejected for a sticky substance violation on Sunday night.
How can they get by without Diaz and could the suspension lead to Tylor Megill getting demoted to Triple-A?
Host Ryan Finkelstein breaks down what happened to Diaz and what comes next.
Also, a look into Luis Severino's future with the Mets after he pitched a gem during Sunday Night Baseball.
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It's the Lockdown Podcast Network, your team every day. Metstar Closer Edwin Diaz is heading towards a 10-game suspension. Was it fair and what do the Mets do? We'll talk about it on today's show. You're a Lockdown Mets, your daily New York Mets Podcast, part of the Lockdown Podcast Network, your team every day. Hello to all you amazing Mets fans, you're listening to Lockdown Mets, part of the Lockdown Podcast Network, your team every day. Thank you for making Lockdown Mets your first listen every day, Lockdown Mets is free and available on all platforms including YouTube. The New York Mets won their series against the Cubs on Sunday, but Edwin Diaz getting rejected for sticky stuff is our headlining story. Unfortunately, I'll talk about the DS situation in the first segment. Was it wrong what happened to him and what will be the ramifications, how can the Mets get by without him? Then in the second segment, I'll touch on the game a little bit more, give you your recap. Talk about Luis Severino's great performance as well as another good night for the Mets offensively. Then in the final segment, I want to talk a little bit more about Severino in the long term. Is he untouchable with the trade deadline? Could the Mets keep him beyond this year? We'll go through some of that to close the show before we get to any of it though. I'm your host Ryan Ficklestein, if you want to find any of my work. Follow me on X at Ficklestein Ryan, I can also find some of my writing at justbasebo.com where I work as a managing editor. This episode is brought to you by Prize Pics, the easiest and most exciting way to play daily fantasy sports. Go to prizepicks.com/lockdownmlb and use the code on the lowercase, Lockdownmlb, where it first applies a match up to $100. Right now, we should be talking about the fact that the New York Mets have won four straight series by taking their game against the Cubs on Sunday night baseball. We should be talking about the fact that since Jorge Lopez threw his glove into the stands on May 29th, the New York Mets are 15 and six over the last 21 games, they had the best record in Major League Baseball. With their one game back of a playoff spot, they'll always severino through an absolute gem on Sunday night, Francisco Lindor, Brandon Emo and Mark Vantos all homer. We should be going through all of that to open up what is a very exciting show. Instead, we're talking about sticky stuff because Edwin Diaz comes on for the save and he is not allowed to throw a pitch. They look at his hands and say, "Ah, that's way too sticky, he's out." Now, there was a zoomed in angle of the broadcast that showed Edwin Diaz his hands and there was absolutely stuff there. But differentiating whether that stuff was some type of foreign substance or just sweat and rosin and dirt, which is what Edwin Diaz said it was after the game, there's really no way of telling because you can look at that image and you could see what would look like rosin with dirt on top of it. And Edwin Diaz, when he explained himself after the game, he said, "It's the exact same routine I do every time." You grab sweat, you grab rosin, you grab dirt, and we've heard this same thing over and over again with the other Mets pitcher should have been suspended, Max Scherzer, Drew Smith. Drew Smith, ironically enough, comes on and he is the one that relieves Edwin Diaz in that spot. After the game, Drew Smith was asked about the whole situation. He said last year there was never any clarification given to him about why or how he violated the rules and he said he's been doing the exact same thing that he did that game ever sent for the past year without getting in trouble. Here's the problem with the rule because I know there's some that are just going to look at that image, they're going to be frustrated that the Mets have lost Edwin Diaz, they will point the finger at him, and they're going to say Edwin Diaz is a cheater or the Mets are cheating because they've had three guys of the seven that have ever been suspended for this. Three of them are Mets Scherzer, Smith, and now Edwin Diaz. And of course, all of this comes after the New York Mets accused Joe Muskgrove of sticky stuff in a playoff game in 2022. Since then, three spent suspensions, and honestly, I'd have to look at what the breakdown is. I wouldn't be surprised if it's three of the past five guys that have done it because I know Ronald Blanco did it this year or got suspended for it, but I couldn't tell you any other names. And I only know that because he was the most reasonable when I was trying to figure out how many guys have been suspended. There's somebody else since Blanco before Diaz, then maybe it's eight, regardless, a majority of the guys are Mets, is that just a coincidence? Is it bad luck? Who knows? But what's frustrating about this situation is there is not a set plan in place for majorly baseball on how the umpires should enforce this rule because there's been other pitches in the past who show up with sticky stuff on their hands without anything on their belt and glove, which there was nothing on Edwin Diaz's glove because they gave it back to him. We're in the past. If a guy gets ejected and there's stuff on the glove, they'll confiscate the glove. They didn't do that. So there was nothing on his belt, nothing on his glove. He said he allowed them to smell his hand. They didn't smell any foreign substance, but they said it was too much rods and sweat dirt. And so they kick him out. He didn't get a chance to go into the dugout like other guys have in the past to wash his hands. So the whole situation is messed up because that one umpires crew made the decision and now the New York Mets feel the consequences for the next week and a half. Now, if you tuned into my show on Sunday and I encourage you to go back and listen to it because a lot of that is still very relevant. We'll talk about some of it more than the final segment today, but I was breaking down Tyler McGill's bad start on Saturday and why the New York Mets should option him to triple a and part of my reasoning was you have an opportunity here with two off days this week with the subway series being played on Tuesday and Wednesday. The Mets are off on Monday and Thursday where they do not need a fifth starter until July 2nd. So my argument on Sunday was make that move, put a ninth arm in your bullpen, why not? And then when you eventually need a starter, you can go to Christian Scott or Josebudo who I believe are an hour better pitchers than Tyler or McGill. Now that decision seems to be even more obvious because you're going to be down a man for the next 10 games and this isn't a 10 day suspension. It is 10 games and you're not just without Owen Diaz, you are without that spot on your roster. So the Mets have to get by here. How are they going to do it? That is one way around it for now. You option Tyler McGill on Tuesday. You call up a pitcher and that pitcher can be with your team for the first six games of that windy as his 10 game suspension. So there's only four games where you would have to go a man short in the pen. Here's how it all break down. Yeah, David Peterson and Sean Maniah pitching against the Yankees. Then it would be Jose Cantana's turn against the Astros. I actually think that Severino might pitch that game on Friday because it would be regular rest and you could break up the three lefties. Although on the back end of it, if you're going with the four men rotation with three lefties, they're going to be stacked either way. Regardless, let's just say it's Severino, then it's Cantana, then it's Peterson, then it would be Maniah to open up the DC series and then you can insert a fifth starter. So that could either be Scott or Budo and then you would go back to Severino and Cantana to wrap up the DC series. Peterson and then you could insert a sixth starter into the mix and that would be the same day on July 6th that you would get a windy as back and so you'd basically remove two guys from the pen at that point, go to a seven-man bowl, pen six-man rotation that could carry you throughout the rest of that stretch where you're going to play 17 games in 17 days with, I guess, the first eight of them without your closer. I'm doing the math on that correctly because you're playing two against the Yankees and that stretch starts. So yeah, the first eight games of that stretch down DS, that's how I think the Mets should manage it where they can get by without being short in the pen for too, too long. But then there's questions of who would eventually get that start, would it be Scott, would it be Budo? We'll talk about all that stuff as the story unfolds and of course if they in fact option McGill. But I think that is the easiest path the Mets have to try to get by right now because this is going to be very tough. The bottom line is down an arm or not, whatever it is, you are down your closer. That's the bigger thing. It's back to closer by committee and this team looks so much better having Edwin Diaz look like himself in that closer role with everybody else knocked down a peg. Now someone else has to step up in the closer role. I imagine it's back to Jake Deakman and maybe Danielle Nunez, the Nunez gave us some runs today. We'll talk about that in the next segment that doesn't phase me and I'll explain why. But I believe when it comes to the high leverage guys, you have Garrett, you have Nunez, you have Danny Young who just came back and I think it's going to play a big role and you have Jake Deakman and then to a lesser extent, you have Drew Smith who got thrown into the fire today and Adam Antavino who have been pitching mop of duty lately now, they're back to leverage and then you're going to have Adrian Houser as your long man and I would imagine Cole Solsler comes up as the eighth arm to give you more middle relief if the Mets choose to option McGill, which again, I really think they will based on this set of circumstances. The loss is Sean Reeve Foley is felt even more now because he would have been a closing option as well as a guy that can pitch as a set up man. So now you're down Foley and Diaz in a couple of days and if Drew Smith ends up hurt after this, well, you never know, you can be down another arm on top of it. Just a real quick run through the options that Mets have in Triple A on the 40 man roster. I mentioned Cole Solsler. He is the most likely guy. He has been up and down a lot this year. And that's clearly like him since he's been back in Triple A, seven games. He's allowed four hits, one run that was unearned, six walks, eight strikeouts. So a zero ERA over the last 30 days in Syracuse. I imagine he gets the call if it's not him. You can look at Josh Walker, who we've seen this year hasn't had a ton of success at the big league level, but since going back down in this most recent stint, 13 strikeouts in his last six and a third innings pitch, one hit four walks, zero runs beyond that tie. Adcock was added at some point in the past month here. He was picked up off waivers. He's been with the Mets, three, one, two ERA, nine strikeouts and eight and two, third innings pitched, but batter's in 306 against them and his whip is 1.85, whip is walk and hits over innings pitch. So if you're nearly giving up two base runners and anything, not very good. I don't imagine we see adcock beyond that. The Mets could still slide Brooks really to the 60 day IL to free up a 40 man roster spot. They also have a outfielder that they just picked up in Duke Ellis that they could easily DFA. So they have options if they wanted to add a non roster guy into their bullpen. And the guys that I would look at, it's Max Kranick. He was a starting pitcher. He's never converted into a relief role. He has in his last 13 and a third innings pitch, given up four runs, that's a 270 ERA, but batters are only hitting 167 against him and his whip is 0.83. If you want another guy that can give you length, maybe it's Kranick. The last one I'd mention is Eric Orrs, who has yet to make his MLB debut. He has a 3, 4, 8 ERA in his last 30 days, 1, 6, 5, whip, 60 strikeouts and 10 and a third. And the reason why I sort of these by the last 30 days is with relievers, you really kind of want to ride whatever the hot hand is, whoever's throwing the ball the best. And I believe that's probably going to be solcer, a walker, assuming the Mets take me up on my little strategy advice here, option Tyler McGill, eventually get to a rotation with a better pitcher in Budo with Budo or Scott. And in the meantime, give yourself another arm to deal with this loss of Diaz. But it's a tough stretch regardless if the Mets are going to have to get through. They can navigate these waters and get Diaz back. Well, in the stretch that they're going to have coming up beyond this Yankee series, this team can still roll. I want to talk about the game finally, the rest of the game beyond the suspension, our injection that will now lead to a suspension. So we'll talk about that, Severino, everything else, first, do a word from our sponsors. Today's episode is brought to you by FanDuel. I love sports. I love them so much. I never want to stop. But as the playoffs wind down, we get fewer games and the sports aren't sports in like I want them to, but FanDuel lets me keep the sports going whenever I want. All I have to do is open up the app and dream up bets anytime I'm in the mood. In this summer, FanDuel is hooking up all customers with a boost or a bonus daily. That's right. There's something for everyone every day all summer long. So head over to fanduel.com/lockdown and start making the most out of your summer. My dad and my brother-in-law were at the game tonight and there's always a trend tradition for myself and my brother-in-law when we go to a game that we bet on a Peter Lonzo home run prop. Apparently, he took Marc Vientos tonight instead. I wasn't there to tell him to take a Lonzo and I guess it was a good thing. Because Vientos went yard and he was able to win a nice little bit of going home money after the game. So, FanDuel is the place to go with all of your baseball betting this summer. And remember, they're going to hook up all customers with a boost or a bonus daily. FanDuel, official sports betting partner of Major League Baseball. Today's episode is also brought to you by prize picks. Prize picks America's #1 daily fantasy sports app with over 5 million active members. Prize picks is the easiest and most exciting way to play daily fantasy sports unlike other apps on prize picks is just you against the numbers. All you do is pick more or less on 2-6 player stat projections and you watch the winnings roll in. You can get it on the daily action with your friends and become part of prize picks community. Today, you can win up to 100 times your money on prize picks with as little as 4 correct picks. So, you can turn $10 into $1,000. If you're looking for promotions, prize picks get you covered every week from lowering select player stat projections on Tuesdays or getting your entry fees back if you have a losing lineup on Fridays. If you want to play down with the prize picks app today, use the code locked on MLB for a first deposit match up to $100 that's code locked on MLB on prize picks for a deposit match up to $100. Take more pick less, it's that easy with prize picks. If you want to stay up to date with all the latest in the world of sports, make sure you check out Lockdown Sports today streaming 24/7 on YouTube. Let's talk about this baseball game because it was a really good one. The Mets were just on it from jump offensively and a double in each of the first two winnings that did not result in a run but showed a fret each time against a really good pitcher and Javier Assad. And then in the third inning, the floodgates open for the Mets a little bit. Harrison Bader ripped the first of two doubles that were identical down the third baseline. And Francisco Lindor then worked a full count in a great at bat, went eight pitches, got a cutter that was outside, but right in his wheelhouse, Bell High, he went with it to left center field. That's where the wind's been blowing out at Riggly throughout this series, hits a huge two run homer. Then Brandon Emmel follows it up as well with another great at bat. He also homers left center field and the Mets all of a sudden had a three nothing lead. And it was really all they needed in this game as it proved to be with a five to two final score. But Luis Severino is the story of the game. This guy was unbelievable in this start. He allowed just two singles, no walks. That was over the first five innings pitch where he just scattered a single here, a single there and was just untouchable, never even felt like he was at risk of giving up a run. Sixth inning, the game changed a little bit because he gave up base hit his third single of the night and then he hit a batter. So he had runners on first and second, nobody out, he gets a big strike out against Michael Bush. Mendoza comes out and you think with Cody Bellinger coming up, maybe the Mets are going to make a move. Mendoza just basically wanted to talk him up, say it's his inning. It's all him and he strikes out Bellinger, gets a fly out, gets out of the threat. When it's all said and done, Luis Severino gave the Mets six shutout innings, allowed just three hits, all singles, hit a batter. He struck out 10 and that's been something that we haven't seen from Severino this year. The strikeout has eluded him a little bit. He's been more a ground ball pitcher and a great one at that. But you want to see the strikeouts come into that is a validation about how good your stuff is. And of course, a strikeout is always the best out because a ball put in play and you think it happened. So Severino going out there and dominating this way on Sunday night baseball, it makes you think. And that's what we're going to talk about in the next segment because he did that in front of everybody. Everyone in baseball is watching Sunday night baseball. So this guy could be a great trade chip at the deadline and I still do not think the Met you move. And we'll talk about that in a minute. But just to close a book on this game, Danielle Nunez came on after Severino hit a rough outing surprisingly because he has not had too many eggs where he's given up runs. But this one, he allows a base hit, ground up the middle and then a home run. And it was a one two pitch where he just threw a fastball over the heart of the plate. It was really a bad pitch against Christopher Morel. You've got to be nervous about, I have to look back. I'm pretty sure it was supposed to be a fastball up and he just pulled it down a little bit too much. And there you go two runs. But what I loved about that appearance from Nunez is if this was a guy that was flappable, he would have walked the next batter. He would have hung more pitches up in this zone that could have been driven. He could have really cratered and hurt the Mets, but they let him stay on. And he just shaped it off, got the next three guys out and maintained a lead. There's sometimes where you're pitching with a five nothing lead, where you don't have to throw up a zero, but you got to get those outs. And he did a great job with that. And I have not seen my confidence waiver on Nunez at all. I honestly believe they should have Nunez closing games right now because I think Reed Garrett is not meant for that role. But I imagine we're going to see a lot of both of those guys getting big ads and big spots. Now, after Nunez gave up too, Marc Fientos got one back. He absolutely destroyed a fastball that he got down the middle and he crushed a dead center field, 451 feet, 109 miles per hour off the bat. As I just mentioned, during our fan dual spot there, my brother-in-law, Brad O, was able to cash in on that with a home run prop. And I got to acknowledge this. The Finkelsteins are six and oh this year. I went to a game in Miami, Mets won. We actually also went to a spring training game. I'm giving myself and my dad an extra game credit here. So we're actually five and oh in the regular season. I won or I won. The Mets won when I was there in Miami, then my dad and I went to DC. We caught the first two games of that series sweep. So if you want to give us the third one because we were still in town, you can, but regardless, the Mets at that point had won the first three games that a Finkelstein had been in attendance. And then my dad, my brother-in-law, as well as my sister today, my dad, my brother-in-law were there on Friday and then again on Sunday, my sister, today, nothing but wins with the Mets. So if you're listening, Uncle Stevie, he'll help us out with some tickets although unfortunately we don't live in New York. So, you know, the season tickets would go to waste on us. But I promise any game in Miami this year that's left this season that I'm in town for, I'm going to be there. I'm going to try to keep this good luck rolling and there is a series at the end of September that if it matters, I'm eyeing that's in Atlanta that we might make the drive up for. So cool that they got to enjoy some wins this weekend and then just final note here as far as the game when it comes to the pitchers, Reed Garrett allowed a double in the eighth but worked around it for a scoreless inning. And then Drew Smith came on after the ejection, got the first two outs. There was some concerns about whether he was good to go at that point. There was a mound visit. He stayed on to face Swanson, gave up a hit. They went to Jake Deacon. Deacon got the final strikeout of the game to complete the save. So that wraps up this series. But I want to go back to what I was just talking about on Severino. Should the Mets cash in on the trade chip or should they hold? We'll talk about just a minute first though, another word from our sponsors. Today's episode is brought to you by supply house. This applies from the site that's made for skilled trades supplyhouse.com. Supplyhouse.com is the reliable way to order plumbing HVAC and electrical products online with their easy to use website, which is packed with helpful resources in the latest product info to help get the job done right. Get expert support and industry-leading service from the friendliest folks in the business and talk to a real person every time. 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This is our test and service where we get updates from me anytime something breaks in the Mets. You can also ask me questions anytime. Take part in our Locked On Met sign photo giveaways. You also can get the line of graphic sent to your phone each day so you know who's going to be in the starting lineup for the Mets. If you want to be a Locked On Met Insider, find the link in the episode description at subtext.com/lockdownmetz. Now on yesterday's show I discussed some roster moves that could be coming for the New York Mets. If you're interested about my take on the Starling Marta situation, for those of you who missed the show aren't aware, Starling Marta was pulled for the game on Saturday and held out of the game on Sunday due to a knee issue that has been plaguing him for a while. He's going to get imaging done on that knee on Monday when the Mets get back to New York and he could be heading towards an IEL stand. So I broke down what I think is going to happen on that front. All the different options the Mets could call on ultimately to give you the Cliff Notes version of what I talked about DJ Stewart probably going to get a lot of run out in the right field. We saw that in this game. He hasn't been swinging it well lately but he hasn't gotten consistent playing time and he has shown the ability to thrive in the big leagues. So I think he is the first option. There's other guys in the Mona Leafs that I talked about yesterday's show but ultimately if a roster move is made I believe it's Brett Beatty that comes back up ultimately because I think he's the best player on that roster in Syracuse that can join the New York Mets and they can use him in multiple different ways. I think Jeff McNeil would become more of an outfielder at that stage and Brett Beatty and Jose Iglesias will be playing some second base. And that's notable because Brett Beatty started to get on Sunday. So Thursday and Sunday Beatty got starts at second so he's had three starts in Triple A at second base. So far he's had 12 chances, he's gotten four put outs, eight assists, a double play ball, no errors just yet. So I think that's probably the move. Beatty will play some seconds in third regardless. Go back to yesterday's show. I talked about all that at length. Now another little note here before we talk about SEVY. Kodas saying they faced live hitters on Sunday through 22 pitches against Batter's in Port St. Lucie. Now he's going to fly up to New York to meet the Mets. Obviously they'll all get a look at them, see what they think the next step should be. Probably throws another live BP in New York this week you'd imagine. And then beyond that probably if all goes well it checks all the boxes, starts a rehab assignment whether that's in Brooklyn, Binghamton, Syracuse, whatever it is. BC Code I sang a back at some point at the earliest, earliest, earliest end of July but probably early August which leads me into the conversation that I wanted to make the headline of today's show which was is Luis Severino untouchable at the deadline for the New York Mets. Because here he was on a national stage and he absolutely carved. If there's one piece that will get the Mets the most at this year's trade deadline it is Luis Severino more than Petalonso, yes Petalonso is the big sexy name. Everyone would love to sell their fan base, we got Petalonso at this year's deadline. With that said, pitching is what teens are after at the deadline more than hitting. Yes, there'll be some bites on Alonso at the Mets aren't a selling position but Severino I can almost guarantee you there's going to be some teams in on him and if the Mets are out of it yes, deal him but I really think the Mets are going to be in this race all the way through and they still got to do it in July but they're only one game back right now they have nearly climbed all the way out back to 500. I talked about this going into the road trip got to go in and win four of those games win both series they did that and they have checked every box now he got the Yankees coming up and then you got a stretch that starts off with the Astros which would be pretty grueling I think even though they're not a winning team the next five games are going to be tough particularly without Edwin Diaz but if you find your way through that and you win three of those games and you win the series against the Astros you split the one against the Yankees then you have a really easy schedule to start July which includes a lot of games against the Nationals who are hanging in this race but the Mets handled the Nationals the last time these two teams faced so if you do what you're supposed to you're going to be in a good position where you're at least close to the race at the deadline and to me Severino is a guy that you cannot trade if you have any hopes of making a playoff push and then if you get there and you want to make some noise you need them you look at the Friggen class here's the other layer to this as well you got Garrett Cole who technically can opt out but then if he did opt out the Yankees could opt into a ninth year on the kind he's not going anywhere that a tenth year on the deal regardless Garrett Cole could be a Friggen but really not Blake Snell has an opt at his contract is he going to take that Jordan Montgomery has an opt at his contract is he going to take that I don't think so Robbie Reigh coming off TJ has an opt at his contract is he going to take that I again don't think so Justin Verlander there's a very interesting conversation that's going on our well that has happened every time the Verlander hits the IL where you wonder is he going to get to the 140 innings pitched I believe he has to get to for his club option to vest if you don't know Verlander in his contract with the Mets had a 35 million dollar club option that would invest if he hit 140 innings pitched in 2024 now the Mets will cover half of that salary if the options available to the Astros so they would love it to have Justin Verlander at 17 and a half million but there's a chance he doesn't get there and he becomes a free agent and there's Max Scherzer could be a Friggen Scherzer returned off of the injured list with a very good start in his first outing five innings like four hits four strikeouts I want to say actually I mean five things one hit four strikeouts regardless didn't do up a run he'll be a Friggen do we think the Mets are going to circle back to Verlander Scherzer I doubt it you have Max Fried and the Mets can decide Max Fried so you're going to leave the Braves to go to the Mets depending on those money maybe but I would not count on it Shane Bieber now coming off TJ so who knows if even signs with another team he might just go back to the Guardians to rehab because it won't be available for at least the first half of the year Walker Bueller coming off Tommy John this year not looking like a top top tier starting pitcher and free agency and you have a couple other names like Nathan of Aldi but Luis Severino could be a pretty highly regarded pitcher come free agency and you might want to keep him quite honestly there's a world where the Mets just want to resign Luis Severino there's also Corbin Burns out there so those would be the two guys if the Mets would be most in on Burns of course played for David Serns for a long time we'll see what happens in free agency but I look at this situation and yes the Mets would only get a fourth round pick because they're a luxury tax team if you extend Luis Severino a qualifying offer any signs elsewhere but fourth round picks not nothing and you'd have him for this run and there's still the chance that you could resign him to me you hang onto Luis Severino for the rest of this season assuming you're remaining the race if you're not in the race if July is a collapse of a month for the Mets yes at that juncture I would be totally okay with the Mets cashing on a what will be their best trade ship come the deadline anyway that's going to be all for today's show we'll see if the Mets make all of their roster moves and an announcement on Monday for the off day I sort of doubt it so assuming that there's not a bunch of crazy news the plan for Tuesday's show it's going to be a fun one could penal Anzo and Juan Soto switch places 2025 break all that down tomorrow it should be a lot of fun if you're listening on the audio side make sure you follow wherever you get your packets you don't miss it rate the show review if you're watching on YouTube hit that subscribe button we're getting really close through might be within 250 subscribers away from getting up to 9,000 subs so I appreciate all of you who continue to subscribe to inches closer and closer to that goal you want to be locked on that's inside our final link in the episode description go to subtext.com/lockedonmet thank you for making 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