Should Aaron Judge or Shohei Ohtani be the AL MVP?

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This is the gold show we had about eight games to go in major league baseball season we are down to brass tacks. As the saying goes, with a week and 1/2 ride. Fagan baseball writer, sporting news, my friend, this there are a lot of races to talk about.

We have only one division race that is still up in the air and it's a good one with two great teams. I think Braves admits everything else is pretty much decided almost officially is really not even a lot of wildcard this and jockeying for position, but we don't have a lot so let's start with the National League East because that's basically where our focus is on yet.

Thinking of baseball by branding the wildcard adding an extra team neatly. They wanted to create more dissipation worsened her races and it just hasn't happened. You know that's not planning didn't work out right (how it happens sometimes with it is seaweed.

We get to this point, you expect to have all of these were die, will they get him documented and really the only change on the outside that have any further chance of the Brewers in the oriole of the oriole it would it would take a lot right right in a lower grade story of love watching out for the last two losses. On the one yesterday, but the two losses over the weekend and heartbreaking fashion to the Astros think that probably did it for games out is out with not a whole lot left Seattle team are taking the closes had literally every game that they played with toys at home talk, but you know think it the other AL RLE scheme and the facilities that probably anyone and now is not going to be and then sit Phillies are just two games ahead of the loss column of Milwaukee. Once we get into the middle of August. I never look at anything but the loss, because you can't ever lose a game so and so, let's go to the NL East not just because I'm a Mets fan but because we have a high concentration of Atlanta Braves fans here and I think it is been incredibly fascinating to watch these two teams essentially mirror each other over the last say four or five weeks there have been just pockets here and there where one team was winning or losing, while the other wasn't. But for the most part they just been matching each other. One game separating they will play this weekend in Atlanta had handicap this Ozzie Albee's injury is in a very bad for Atlanta. Obviously.

But how do you handicap a situation us.

You know I'm a race like this with two teams that have slightly different strengths your brain.

And you're not loving the way things have been trending in terms of injuries to tell you that I'll be come back after being away for a long time but immediately an unrelated yeah you got a writer with an oblique ill Dave talked about how they're trying to just be very careful.

Be very cautious not let her turn anything more. Quite frankly, if that's all it is.

That's fine because here he is lending club about it. He's not been happy for him to breathe right before the postseason might be a good thing the left.

Jan the guy the different writers were talking about.

No one comes to the forefront wouldn't be whoever lives up in the wildcard spots and seeing the difference maker more than 20 strikeouts and 100 hit Cheryl out. That's crazy… Swinging the stuff that plays in the postseason so the breaking of the lint got I think Braves global. They need him but I mean they want to vote for starting pitchers by the end of October.

Leslie matter, but together this brazen and bedridden thing is been fun to watch. Not often crate because they have both an excellent but they've also had a couple of picked up and it seems like they have the hiccups at the exact time. You know at the moment that the bracing like there's no hope. Mexicans and others know this is on the watch going back and forth to me and while the Braves are getting injuries to Strider and I'll be the crime all of a sudden looks human. Ever. You will see what happens with that as well the last couple starts from the ground have been like Jacob the ground before he became superhero Jacob the ground so I and you know match surgeries back. Who knows if he came back to soon because this is the second she had two stents on the injured list this year that he comes back and he throws six perfect ending.

So who are we to judge. I went back and forth with a friend of mine is an orthopedic surgeon like why is he pitching just give him another week off and then Max goes and throws six perfect innings so Atlanta is in Washington both teams. Essentially, other than playing each other should be okay to win a bunch of the other game so it's going to come down to that series in Atlanta, Dr. Munoz what what impact were going to see from Ian all up and down the East Coast of the Mets will think a Mets play in Miami.

I think the Mets are home against the Marlins.

They are, that's her home against the Marlins, Braves, or at the Nats but I probably doesn't matter where you play either of those two teams.

Atlanta's offense without all these hasn't been a great year for metal. Somebody's got a lot of big cats how how does Atlanta's offense stack up without all these, I kinda think they're okay. They still might be better than New York. Anyway yeah, I've got so much power of an outline of a new one the world. Last year their pictures with that letter writers at home on your they have the same type of ability up and down the lineup again this year you I think you would with all these out.

You'd love to get back to what he was when the first month or two that he climb up you something will the marketplace. I mean look.

He was better than anyone could possibly hope for the first month at half where was Michael Harrison been phenomenal. He still been back.

I have so many guys to compete. You know you make a mistake at any point in the Atlanta lineup and your three-run homer, not what you want, but at the same time you can know if you can. There are there are swinging the lineup was say that there that's that that goes with the home on power so you know you're knocking to see a ton of extended rallies that lineup you argosy quick strikes and a lot of multiple running that's the key. That's what the Mets have to avoid.

Yeah, I think it is fascinating. I one of the few could go represent the NL in the world.

One try doing that and said it's important to win the division like major-league baseball's always wanted to stress winning the division is important to know more know you are more important than this.

Because if you don't win the division. Not only not only do you have to go through the wildcard round, but you're stacked up against the Dodgers as the number one seed. So it's avoiding the Dodgers meet let somebody else worry about them. So that's there.

There is a huge carrot by the way, to pitching matchups for the weekend are Bassett and freed on Friday. It's to grow and Kyle Wright on Saturday and Scherz and Charlie Morton on Sunday. I said this before, I think the Braves starting pitching is good enough. It's not as good as the Mets, but it doesn't have to be the bullpen.

The bullpen is good. You're starting pitching just has to give you a chance and then you let the chips fall. So I'm not I'm the Mets have obviously the advantage when the game starts, but that doesn't really mean anything. Let me ask you two quick things before, let Ryan Fagan from sporting news go. You can follow him on Twitter at right-thinking makes it easy right so in your neck of the woods.

Explain what happened to make Albert pool holds Albert pool holds again II think Albert will rise on winning right. I think it is a lot of things you help you with your reader better than little bit better shape, but I think the biggest thing is he he he rises to the moment you look at his career clear. He's always done even in a time in Anaheim. He was better with butter's position that he was with no real basis career OPS with wonderful scoring position is 100 points higher than it is with the bases empty.

He's a guy just rise on those situations. They didn't have them in Anaheim we saw last year when he when he went to the Dodgers. He was better than he was in Anaheim and I think the Cardinals this year have done a really good job especially early only putting them in putting him in advantageous situations against left-handed pitching and it gets right-handers who didn't throw hundred and 5 miles an hour breaking stuff right they put them in position to succeed and he responded very well, and as the season went along had to take her for some hundred home runs. He's even kinda started to hit those other guys to do it. He just is playing a level that it feels like foldable tools you know Adam Wainwright is a couple times. He liked people would actually work. Albert pool like what was Albert pool like this is exactly what he liked. If you need a big hit you get you new home on he gets it and he stuck up, you think there's no way you can run here and then he does it inequity, but I think that's one of the cool thing about this case for 700 so many of these homeruns have mattered if come in high game they come in situations where the Cardinals were trailing late and all of these things have happened in it day doesn't do what he's gone over the last couple months were not talking with the Cardinals cruising in the postseason while talking with the dogfight with the Brewers in fact it was so much fun about this is not just the tasting number doing it in a way that has been essential for the Cardinals getting into the post. I would just point this out as I ask you one more question pool holds first half of the year 215 batting average 676 OPS second half of the year 315 batting average 1053 OPS 15 homeruns in the second half, six in the first.

He is been amazing is Erin Judge. The runaway MVP in the American like you I saw that you had were T-shirt on the front.

Okay Erin Judge. And on the back.

Sohail Tommy is the best player in baseball right I need to get that shirt because everything Erin Judge Wright and you know I've never really been one to say your team has to be intending to win the VP because it's crazy to me to think that an individual award for best player in baseball automatically eliminates Players in baseball right if your team think you Repeat that's crazy… That's not how it works at work nearly put whatever valuable spend. You want on it. There's no denying judges been unbelievable and is not just a home run.

You talk about this couple times a night. I looked up his numbers last week with two outs and runners in scoring position and explore 15 with a 590 on base that's ludicrous and there've been times which are well documented of how bad the Yankees often bent other than Erin Judge business. Where he scored all of Yankees run in the three games against the rate right couple homeruns. Then he scored a couple times when he got on base and so you drove the men that's how good he's been. Sohail Tommy has been one of the five best pictures in AL and one of the five best powers doctrine.

My fear is that were were already taking him for granted ludicrous, but that yeah I think Erin Judge will get my if I was voting time not he would get my first place vote, but it would not be he's just it makes me laugh again on the Mets fan I don't like what you may hear me praising Albert pools Cardinal legend and Erin Judge Yankees legend. I mean I'm in turmoil right now, but our loss and alive.

There were great for the hopefully the postseason will just be spectacular and will make me kind of put all of that aside, and hopefully the Mets will love will hold off the Braves and maybe the Mets and the Yankees will meet in the World Series that will be fun, although I don't know that either team is going to reach the World Series to be perfectly honest right-thinking.

We gotta talk again my friend appreciate your time on every break and we come back with John R and the sports business Journal and the more Shannon RN podcast about TV sports. I will point this out.

Erin Judge earns no more recognition when above replacement for pitching. None is more is 10 while showing Otani whose pitching war is 5.5 his war is 9.2 is he's had a good offense of season 30 some odd homeruns, but Erin Judge this year. All my gosh historic showing Otani is that a good offense of season and I'm not knocking that if winds above replacement is a guide. This is in close's knuckles because of what George is done offensively, my friend, the one and only John Oran from the sports business Journal but you might check out the podcast because I do.

He gives Andrew Marsh in the New York Post top billing unjustified in my opinion John around and we never talk to Andrew we did. Maybe I would. Maybe I would flip that. Probably not, but is also not only a Marilyn fan but a Baltimore Orioles fan before we even start you still in it. There's still hope so. I hope you are keeping the flame lit. You know hope is the next decade.

Now on season. However, the there's no chance of heartbreak that the Orioles should decade or all of a sudden expecting more than 100 losses and a surprise team has really good young talent.

A lot of fun to watch.

As I'm sure it has been. I'm sure oriole Park at Camden yards has been a blast.

Every time every time I contact you like a want to talk about this this this this and you guys drop another podcast and I can't talk about all the stuff I wanted to because we have new stuff that we have to get to so let me do let me start this way because the Martian RN podcast is amazing. I was at all times even when they get your name wrong, and I appreciate the shout out a few couple months ago.

The ESPN Monday Night Football booth. It's not that the Steve Leavy's of the world and the previous iterations. Joe test tours weren't good at their jobs, but it definitely has a different feel with with Joe Buck and Troy Aikman. It does bring us back to the days were Monday Night Football was a big deal always is not just perception or is that reality actually block his for the past 21 years when we hear their voices to hear the voices you know you're watching a game on a Sunday, probably one of the captured hearing the championship teams that she stopped to think this is the thinking and I like to test tort doesn't have that I not miss anything like she just didn't have that you can develop. I don't think Kevin Burkart box yet, but I think that you can develop to become that voice but the list is not very long how Michael did you stop, stop Eagle. Maybe if you want to get get out of the number one Québec like I see somebody stop. I don't want people wonder why Eugene decided to spend so much money to attract those two those two announcers part of it is apperception mining almost as a marketing expense. More than anything else and it's not just for the network lot about the audience of one doubt they're happy with the telecast also better team to get a better schedule and everything sort of closer, you can certainly see what you can schedule a lot stronger than it has been and is also to be flex possibilities as well for Monday night football does have a big feel you set audience when I was having flashbacks by John around sports business Journal is joining me here on the Adam gold show let's get to the the Apple or the Amazon portion of this NFL I know the ratings were lowered but the way I looked at it and you tell me if I'm wrong. The ratings were still really good and it just proves that streaming is real and we are headed will working to see more of this. Whether it's an innovative Sunday ticket is headed to Amazon or Apple but may be NBA league Pass may be some other streaming.

We know MLS is already on Apple TV. So I went what is the future of this based on the success early on for Amazon. This is a constant topic on on the podcast. It is hard to talk about because the meeting more so than streaming talks about the power of the NFL fell is such a good brand and all you can put a Pittsburgh should gain make people go and try to string the viewers to come watch it. There's no place else on collision mask 11 story right. The greatest story a couple weeks ago I talked to different networks football now going to how we got the program and all the network is nothing to get you still can't quite cut. It's not like counter programming something just to get like you know a billionaire have to look to live without taking up a lot of their agile hard right now. The media executives all streaming certain things are going. Streaming certainly while the stringer needed income numbers more than anything, let me let me just push this forward just a little bit more because I know you guys talked about on the podcast is our only headed we any closer. Anyway, I guess we are because every day we go by. We were closer to it like an ESPN direct to consumer, yet we we are getting out will were a lot closer to that than I thought but I not be an almost certainly not be where you can buy ESPN one channel for certain money on everything in there so you can buy the networking to Klos, etc. not charge a monthly jet be all includes ABC network there, many package that's gonna have to live sports, live news and have this incredible library defected and that package jogged everybody's trying to record so tired of you want to watch yesterday and paying for food network were more likely unbundled big media companies like taking all this stuff going to the market package for those of us that kind of know we cut the cord so to speak, even though there's really not that much difference between YouTube TV and cable TV. I have basically every channel I want. I had that I watched via either a cable or DirecTV. I have basically on YouTube TV with some differences so so a lot of us did that because all minutes. I'm saving so much money as we keep adding services and I'm a sucker guy so I added Peacock and we've got Netflix and all of a sudden I'm not that far away from where we were with DirecTV or the lower it still is still less money but there's also for those people who are not technologically inclined. There's there's like there's those layers to overcome right if you want to watch this you have to click on this and then you have to go here yet the bet it's just it is in some ways a nightmare but all of these things are pretty much available. How do you when is the Apple MLS my pet peeve that would cut the cord but you still got a multichannel cable going to route traffic tickets. I like to share, but you didn't quite cut the cord to the court provided this to so many things and you need really good Internet.

All of that stuff to work with some of us who live in areas that don't have really good Internet have. I have had challenges I write.

I want to schedule a one or two more things in here before have to say goodbye to John around. You can follow him on Twitter at our end_SB J, I sent Greg Norman, who is the CEO of live golf was quoted in the story about two weeks ago by saying that the the interest from the TV networks in live is enormous. So we haven't heard anything since then about a future TV deal for live but I don't do math. There's one TV network left that might have interest and that's Fox and if the bidding against themselves.

I can imagine they're going to go too far deep into their pocket. So what are we looking at if you had to look in your crystal ball in terms of live golf and maybe not network TV, but the possibility of it being on a channel somewhere. It's going to be a hard road because NBC, CBS yes can which courses ABC Turner internationally. They all have long-term deals with the PGA tour. There is going to be very difficult to get in there and convince them to take it yet. One reason why am not certain lacking a great morning on the court that the one thing that I do know about television television. If she can convince these people that he can bring a audience audience audience on television. People will figure out a way to get it still kind of a long way from doing that. They have big names. I think that the problem is that it feels much more live events you much more like exhibitions you can get to work at what will it cost ratings points from them that there is there a lot of other hoops today have to go through but I don't want to say like there is no path forward for them to get a TV deal because if they can prove that they can bring an audience.

Do we think that 100,000 streamers on YouTube.

TV or disown. I think you can get on his own mature but you think or through their website live golf.com is 100,000 average viewers is that good for something on YouTube now. It's so hard to count them in a different way. I want to get inside baseball too much with audiences online expect have not been huge events is not been huge.

They do have.

They do have big name golfers and if they can get out of working exhibition in its actual an actual event. There they can still claim the majors can still be part of the world golf ranking system. There could be a passport lot where they should go is streaming which is which is what they're doing, you know what I want to couple of events. I think you the way you characterize it. It does seem like an exhibition at this point, but maybe that will change going for our John around. Good luck two euros. The rest of the way I hope they hanging all the way to the end, but I know it is been a fun year for you and Marilyn almost beat Michigan Marilyn football we talk about them for looking good moral victory will put another to another column up there. We don't have ties anymore so we can have an MV column just for a just for a seven point loss to the Wolverines John around sports external the March NRM podcast is a must thank you very much meant always love catching up with John around real quick about live. Phil Mickelson pulled out of the lawsuit. Initial lawsuit against the PGA tour was fronted by Phil Mickelson once lived doing that Mickelson had kind of hinted that he was willing to pull his name off of it.

He has. I'm not sure what that means, if he's going to be deposed as part of the lawsuit.

He's going to be deposed.

Whether his name is on the lawsuit or not, since the whole reason he got suspended was because he was actively recruiting players off the PGA tour to join live.

He also helped write a lot of the rules for live which is why he is been treated more harshly by the tour than anybody really did anyone else Dennis before we get out here. What is your team name in our fantasy football league definitely reef invoice Devon Larry family, how are you doing so far through two weeks undefeated light we don't do it. I do not play this week I'm playing the pink Panthers, whoever that is. That's our friends Jody from Digital oh campaign plane to digital.

She has a much better team and I do.

She is a 15 point favorite ON the matchup. I have a terrible team decimated by injury. I don't know how I'm doing one, it's the stupidity of fantasy football yeah I I had James Winston going up against Tom Brady and outscored Tom Brady at quarterback Lamar Jackson is my quarterback some film. Oh gosh, you know I'm I want to jail and hurts and didn't get. This is the Adam gold shell