Grant and Danny
Mark Zuckerman On The State Of The Nats
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Whether you love true crime or comedy, celebrity interviews or news, you call the shots on what's in your podcast queue. And guess what? Now you can call them on your auto insurance too, with the name of your price tool from Progressive. It works just the way it sounds. You tell Progressive how much you want to pay for car insurance and they'll show you coverage options that fit your budget. Get your quote today at Progressive.com to join the over 28 million drivers who trust Progressive. Progressive casualty insurance company and affiliates price and coverage match limited by state law. Mark Zuckerman of massandsports.com joins us to kick things off. Mark, why don't we begin with what was an extremely sloppy series for the Nationals. They were coming off of the impressive three gamer and back-to-back wins against the Yankees. And then they ran out of steam against the Cubs. They gave up seven, five and 14 runs and they committed all of the errors. Mark. Yeah, Sunday's game was just atrocious. I mean, it was officially three errors, but it should have been five. And I feel like they kept getting worse as the game went on. And it was a really disappointing series, obviously, given what they had done against the Yankees. And I know we can look at this and say, hey, they're young. The lineup the other day, I think it was seven rookies in there. Nobody over the age of 26. So you understand to some extent that you're going to have things like this. But the bad defense and the bad base running, which you saw earlier in the weekend. This is happening way too much. And Davey can talk about it all he wants, but this is something that does have to clean up. But I don't care if you're in your second month in the big leagues or your tenth year in the big leagues. These are things you have to be better at and hopefully the message is getting across and that they understand that that's just not going to cut it any longer. Mark, how do we view Mitchell Parker's season? Big picture. He's got a couple of these starts. And it wasn't a meltdown. I mean, it was late bullpen, you know, and give up a touchdown in the extra point. And you mentioned some of the, you know, the, the, the, the errors in there. But overall still viewing his year as a guy that we weren't sure was a big league or not as a pretty smashing success. Even if he's maybe we're not a bit of steam here towards the second half of the season. Yeah. I think that's the way to look at it. This is a guy that we thought maybe we'd see at some point during the season instead he gets called up two weeks in when Josiah Greg got hurt, makes a debut at Dodger Stadium. It looks really good that night. And I think has exceeded expectations along the way. I mean, is he a finished product? No. Is he have the ability to turn into a frontline start in the big leagues? I don't know. But he has shown a little bit of resiliency here. And even when things kind of go bad around him like we saw the other day, he still found a way to get through six innings. He has a way of just kind of keeping a demeanor that doesn't get too high or low. And I think that consumed him well. The biggest thing he's got to work on, we talked about bad defense. He was among the culprits. You've got five errors this year, most by any national pitcher in a single season, he only had 12 defensive chances. That's an atrocious percentage there. That is something he's got to clean up. It's probably not going to happen in season, but this winner, even more than pitching, I think he's just got to work on his defense. Yeah, I've never seen a worse season defensively for a pitcher building the ball in the infield. And I almost, you know, you worry it's like yip territory now or it's so mental. Anytime he leaves the mound, bad things happen in trying to go get to the baseball. I want to go back to something you said an answer ago though, Mark, when you were talking about some of the defensive miscues otherwise. And you mentioned Davey without going full next Twitter and assuming like every ground ball is dictated by the coaching staff and they're the worst. I am curious about Davey's place in it's been years of base running blunders. The fundamentals defensively can somewhat be explained away with youth and guys playing at a position, but I mean, at what point is the message either not getting through or is there no fear that, hey, if I screw up and do three stupid things on the base pads, I'm not getting benched anyway. So what's really the ramification from me being bad at it? Right. And I think it's fair to ask that question. Absolutely is. And you heard him after the game, I think a little stronger than he has been in the past. He was pretty set up with it the other day. And he even said something, the effect of, you know, hey, if you don't want to play defense, you'll have to find something else for you to do. So it's got a little bit of a threat there and now it would be followed through on any of that, I don't know, or even who specifically he's talking about. But the time for this stuff has come and gone, it does not, this should not still be an issue. And, you know, we're down to the last four weeks of the season, so there's only so much you can expect right now. But I do believe that next year there is increased pressure on Davey, on his coaches, on Mike Rizzo and the front office, to see the, the fruits of all this, they have the team out there, they're close to having the team out there that they've been counting on for a few years now. And we kind of gloss over the wind in the losses because you say it's a rebuild. But then by the time we get to next year, there should be pressure on everyone to perform and actually see the results at the big league levels. And if it doesn't happen, especially early in the year, I think there are going to be some conversations and some pressure and questions about what are they going to do moving forward with all of those people. I think right now, you kind of understand why it's not the case yet. But I do think 2025 is huge in that regard, and there should be pressure on everyone to be better next year. Along those lines, before we let you go, Mark, real quick, my point is if they don't spend some money as a front office this off season, speaking for myself, I'm going to be loud and I'm going to be angry. I mean, at some point it's time, like you had several years to kind of pack it in and do this rebuild thing and you've shown enough now that if you could supplement with some power in right field or first base, whatever you want to do, you're not that far away. Aren't we there as well to put some pressure on ownership, even higher up to actually go spend some money now? 100%. I think that is the biggest unanswered question and biggest issue of the off season. They have now shown who their core group of players is going to be. They've developed that from within, but you can't do it all from within. You have to have veterans who've done it before. The whole idea of this year was figure out what you have and figure out what you don't have. I think we have a pretty good idea right now. They need a first baseman. They need at least a starting pitcher, probably a couple of relievers, maybe another bat somewhere in there. They don't have to break the bank, but they do have to start acting like a major league team that is trying to win again, and that includes commitment from ownership to spend money on veteran players. So that to me is the pressure of the off season, and then if they do their job, now there's pressure on everyone else to perform come April. Mark, thank you as always, man. Have a great week. Thank you guys. Hey NFL fans, you can start the season with a big return on FanDul, America's number one sports book. So when you get a hunch in the middle of the game, you can check out the latest stats, view live, play by play, and so much more on the same page where you place your bets. You'll get started with $200 in bonus bets guaranteed when you place your first $5 bet. That's fandul.com/sportsfan. Never waste a hunch, and make every moment more with FanDul, an official sports book partner of the NFL. Must be 21 plus and present in Colorado, first online real moneyweights are only $10 first deposit required. Bonus issued is now a throwable bonus bets that expire seven days after receipt. Restrictions apply. See terms at sportsbook.fandul.com, gambling problem, call 1-800-522-4700. The seasons may be changing, but the deals at the sharpest rides are unbeatable as ever. Hey, what's going on? It's your girl, Tasha Mckia, and I need you to join the sharpest rides for their fall into savings events, where they're offering incredible prices on their massive inventory. That's right, everything is on sale now. Shot from sleek sedans to rugged SUVs and sporty convertibles. The sharpest rides has the perfect ride to match your fall adventures. Plus, with their exclusive financing options, getting behind the wheel of your dream car has never been easier. Go on and shop online at the sharpest rides.com, right from the palm of your hands. Or check other massive inventory in person at the sharpest rides, located 2250 South Sea Home Street in Inglewood. Either way, you will fall into savings. Don't miss out. Head on over to the sharpest rides.com today and explore the deals that make every season better. And tell them that your girl, Tasha Mckia, sent you the sharpest rides, affordable, sexy, sharp. This episode is brought to you by Progressive Insurance. Whether you love true crime or comedy, celebrity interviews or news, you call the shots on what's in your podcast queue. And guess what? Now you can call them on your auto insurance too, with the name of your price tool from Progressive. It works just the way it sounds. You tell Progressive how much you want to pay for car insurance, and they'll show you coverage options that fit your budget. Get your quote today at Progressive.com to join the over 28 million drivers who trust Progressive, Progressive Casualty Insurance Company and affiliates, price and coverage match limited by state law.