The Cam Smith & Astros Breakdown

Today on the A-Team, we’re talking all things Astros, a bit of Rockets, some football at 5, and of course, Cam Smith!

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:02):
Two lifelong Houston Sports guys named Adham, raised.

Speaker 2 (00:06):
By Earl.

Speaker 1 (00:09):
Nolan, volted by the magnificent roller coaster ride.

Speaker 2 (00:17):
That is Houston Sports.

Speaker 1 (00:22):
Chill lage down for the only homegrown afternoon team is
talking your teams? Adam Clinton and Adam Wexler are the
A team A.

Speaker 3 (00:40):
Honestly, it was epic. I won't ever forget it.

Speaker 4 (00:44):
And Samatha's sharp ground ball over on the right side.
That's fair and down into the right field corner. That's
gonna let Diaz come around and score. Payne is getting
the wave. He'll come in and heading for third with
a feet first slide.

Speaker 3 (00:57):
Is Cam Smith.

Speaker 5 (00:58):
You know, I'm not afraid to let out that roar
that you know you get extra base hit, get the
guys going.

Speaker 3 (01:05):
Every now and then. I'll do that for sure.

Speaker 4 (01:07):
It's a two RBI triple twenty sixteen. This one's lifted
in the air to right field. Smith going back, reaches
up and he makes the play. Nice play out there
in right field by Cam Smith.

Speaker 5 (01:21):
After I had a tough read on that first one.
Just to get that next rep and play it correctly.

Speaker 6 (01:27):
It was Yeah, it was cool.

Speaker 4 (01:29):
Banging into the wall and robbing is Sesser Salazar up
extra bases.

Speaker 3 (01:34):
But it's just a beautiful park.

Speaker 5 (01:36):
And I really enjoyed playing on that stadium, in that field.

Speaker 7 (01:40):
Tonight, the same thing Cam Smith will be doing tonight.

Speaker 3 (01:45):
It's a beautiful park.

Speaker 7 (01:46):
Just love playing on that field tonight in the lineup
in the now familiar right field spot tonight familiar batting
fifth in the Astros line up against the Sherland Space Cowboys.
As we welcome you in to the Tuesday edition of
the at WEX and ac here with you, the last
exhibition game of the twenty twenty five spring training portion

(02:09):
of your Houston Astros baseball season right here on Sports
Talk seven to ninety comes tonight between the Space Cowboys
and the Astros. That what you heard was welcome to
your home ballpark night for Cam Smith opening his at bats,
and there'll be many thousands of them. A minute made
park over the next handful of years with an RBI, triple,

(02:31):
two runs coming home, circling the bases, not getting to
the paystation yet, but he would. And then he had
an adventurous evening in right field, some good, some not
good at all, but it doesn't derail the Cam Smith hype.
Pray not anywhere, and certainly not here where it was born,

(02:51):
where it was built, where it is engine has been
fired up for weeks. That's here on the eighteen, right
here on your home for Astros Baseball Sports Talk seven ninety.

Speaker 3 (03:03):
Well, thank you. First of all, I was waiting for that.

Speaker 8 (03:07):
It's way too long, especially after we hear both a
highlight and a voice sound by field Caps to both.

Speaker 7 (03:13):
Garrett Green and Gerald Sanchez last night's voices of Astros
Baseball handle their work most of the season right there
down the road a little bit, they will. You'll hear
them throughout the year Constellation Field on Space Cowboys Baseball
and heard both of them over the course of the
last couple of weeks.

Speaker 8 (03:30):
Will you last night asked what you considered are the
biggest questions for the Astros this year?

Speaker 3 (03:37):
Huge and the second one? But has it been answered? Yeah?

Speaker 8 (03:42):
I think it asked that one would be by the way,
for those of you who don't follow at Adam J.
Wexler on Twitter slash x, which you should, Will camp
Smith make the club?

Speaker 3 (03:53):
But I didn't tell you what the answer is.

Speaker 8 (03:55):
No, No, you just said that that was one of
the biggest quess the other one being how will al
Tuova be as a left fielder? In the third one,
who are the new leaders? And of course the most
important question, what's going to be in the train that
Wax continues to do a better job of impersonating than
maybe even the train itself.

Speaker 7 (04:12):
Yeah, we should be among those that know as early
as anybody else, although I'm sure they'll keep it under
wraps for everybody all at the same time. But we'll
be out at the ballpark very very early on Thursday
morning and start our broadcast on site after the Sean
Salisbury Show wraps up. So ten am our live broadcast
for a minute May Park Thursday morning, all the way
up until we hand it over to Robert and Steve

(04:33):
around two forty for the three to ten first pitch
for win number one of the Astros season from er
Valdez against Clay Holmes and the New York Mets, and
the Astros will see a familiar face later in the series.
Griffin Canning, one of the cast offs from the Terrible Angels,
is the third pitcher in the rotation for the New
York Mets, so he will pitch in the finale of

(04:53):
that series, which of course ends on Saturday, with an
off day on Sunday before they welcome in the the
San Francisco Giants. And unfortunately, I think, as I expected,
it does not line up for Justin Verlander to make
an appearance on the mound at minute May Park. He
slotted in actually at number two, So they will go

(05:15):
web Verlander. Robbie Ray, the first starter in their rotation,
will make an appearance here, that's their sixth game of
the year. But the second starter in the rotation, JV.
He'll make his debut against the Reds and then in
their series that follows the Astros series. Unless something changes, nonetheless,
that'll be well into the Astros new campaign. Joe Aspata

(05:37):
now very comfortable as Astro's manager. But two monster sized
questions in the outfield. That third question is a monster
question for a ball club that clearly isn't as talented
on paper as pretty much any of the ball clubs
they've had during this golden era of Astros baseball. So
there are very very big questions and you probably could drop,

(05:58):
you know, how many areas of the team do you describe?
There's a starting rotation, there's a bullpen, there's an offense,
there's a defense, there's leadership. Do you feel good about
any of them? I'm being dead serious, do you feel
really good about any of them? And we're gonna dig
into each one of those five groups as we get

(06:19):
you to opening day. A lot of that coming today,
but at two six, as we open up our four
hour ride to another night of baseball and basketball, we'll
take you into Rockets basketball at six o'clock. At seven o'clock,
just before first pitch tonight, we'll catch that over on
KTRH with the Astros and Space Cowboys, Rockets and Hawks
you'll have here on Sports Talk seven to ninety from

(06:41):
Toyota Center. But I do want to get my answer
out right now since I pose that question, and it's
probably a surprising answer with my voice modulating every time
we talk about trains. What happened in right field should
have been all the Astros need to see. No, I mean,
he should not be on the Astros to start this season. Really,

(07:06):
what happened in right field when a fly ball to
right field landed twenty feet away from him, should give
you all you need to know. He's not gonna get it.
He's going to get better at it, but at what cost?
We're watching Jose Altuve on one end of the outfield
give away ninety feet like it's nothing, sometimes one hundred
and eighty feet, and you want the guy on the

(07:27):
other end of the outfield to do that too. It's
just it makes no You can't do that. You just can't.
This is all defense related. I don't care how many
runs he can drive in. It is a bad decision
to play this type of defense at the major league
level when they spent the whole off season recognizing a
problem but act like it's only in the infield. They've
created a defensive problem by sending away their best right

(07:50):
fielder by no longer playing their best left fielder, and
that's Jordan Alvarez, which I'm not saying I disagree with,
but this is what's happening. We can't have a first
base defense like we used to. So ringing Christian Walker
talking about defense all off season, how great he's going
to be. You're worse, and right you're worse, and left
you're worse at second or the same, and you're worse

(08:10):
at third.

Speaker 3 (08:11):
How the defense get better?

Speaker 7 (08:12):
It's way worse if this is the alignment you're putting
out there.

Speaker 8 (08:16):
So then doesn't that if you, if you insist on
having his bat in the lineup for opening day, why
can't we go back to the original point, which is
that just play him at third base. If east Soak
perettist says no, well then.

Speaker 3 (08:31):
Get rid of them.

Speaker 7 (08:32):
It's not about him saying no that they're the ones
saying no.

Speaker 3 (08:38):
The team is saying that.

Speaker 8 (08:39):
That's what I'm saying. Why are you doing this? You're
making your team worse when you don't have to. Don't
you agree if.

Speaker 7 (08:48):
Third base today uh huh is also not major league
but ready.

Speaker 8 (08:53):
Not as non major league ready as putting him in right,
it's just because of where you are.

Speaker 7 (08:58):
But you want a thirty ye but it's thirty error
third baseman because that might be what he is this year.

Speaker 8 (09:04):
Well, I've seen Shay Whitcombe so but that's not the
point I know. But what I'm saying is his natural
position just lends itself to it's not going to be
as much of a disaster, if at all.

Speaker 3 (09:14):
It's just more.

Speaker 7 (09:15):
I think it's more about how it impacts it. And
it's the same reason if you look at Altuve, that's
what they're doing. Altuve is not a good second basement defensively,
he's not a good outfielder or left fielder defensively, and
they believe he will be less of a liability as
he improves in left field, because they don't there's no
improving to be made at second basis Obviously headed in
the wrong direction. He's improving from ground zero, though to

(09:35):
what level do you think he can play? I mean,
I totally am with you, and I don't mean to
not investigate and not go down that path, but it
to me for us to discuss it, we should acknowledge
that I think what they're doing is not how I
would do it.

Speaker 3 (09:51):
But they're not.

Speaker 7 (09:52):
Their minds are made up. They are where they are.
It's going to have to go badly. They're going to
say the only way that Isak Cretis is playing second base,
and jose Al Tuvey isn't playing in the outfield, or
Cam Smith is playing third base, like all these things,
they're gonna have to be shown. It's gonna have to
play out badly. They're gonna get games in the lost
column that they should have had wins in. They're gonna

(10:14):
have to see plays not being made or the other
which they're standing on. Business the plays are gonna get made.
I mean, they could just point to me right now
and say, did you tune out after his poor play
because you just played the highlight of his very very
good play in right field. Look how quickly this player
can improve.

Speaker 3 (10:34):
I get all that, I really do.

Speaker 7 (10:36):
But yeah, I mean, if you could, if we sat
here today and offered you this as a scenario, first base,
Christian Walker, Jose al Tuove at second, Jeremy Payne at
short stuff Isak Perritis at d H, Cam Smith at
third base, just play ord On Alvarez and left field
and whoever you want jazz and right Which would you

(10:58):
go with that at the expense of seeing Yordon out
there one hundred times, one hundred and twenty times a year. Okay, Well,
because the Cam Smith Esak Perettis Jordon Alvarez DH third
base situation is not permanently sustainable. Jordon Alvarez is essentially
a designated hitter and we all know it. So anytime
I try to put him in left field, that's not

(11:18):
really reality. This is the problem that they have. They
have too many play Even with all this positional flexibility
they're trying to create, they still have issues with with
what they're doing. I'm all for the excitement. I have
literally zeroed out, even though I could be wrong, that
Cam Smith's going to be great. He's going to be
a great outfielder eventually, or he's going to be a

(11:40):
great third baseman eventually, and he's gonna hit. He's going
to be a star. He is going to be great.
I really truly believe that. But I don't think the
best thing for this twenty twenty five Astros and this
Cam Smith in twenty twenty five in March is to
put him out in right field and act like you're
also trying to win games immediately. I think it's really

(12:00):
really gonna be hard to do. You're gonna have to
get like the first two days of the season. Hey
from ber, I know you're number one in ground balls, uh,
And Hunter, I know you're in the top five too.
Can you maybe bump that up to infinity level ground
balls because we can't have fly balls.

Speaker 8 (12:15):
We just can't have them. That's kind of a JV.
This offseason they knew.

Speaker 7 (12:20):
Yeah, Jake Myers made an unbelievable Jake Myers like play
in the outfield. It was fun to have the guys
back at minute made park. But I can't help but
tell you what I thought when it happened that it
was not he missed. He You couldn't have been further
away from that ball. I don't remember seeing a major
leaguer make that poor of a play on a ball
before an outfield.

Speaker 8 (12:41):
Maybe he was getting rid of read, Maybe he was
getting used to those led lights we were talking about yesterday.

Speaker 7 (12:46):
Yeah, and again he talked about it at length after
the game, so we'll hear more from him on that.
That's just one of the many things it gets us
going here on a Tuesday listener of the show, You're
obviously welcome to join us throughout at seven one three, two,
one two five, seven ninety. It is a night for
the Rockets to get back on the court. An interesting
night last night in the NBA that they got to
watch as it relates to the Western Conference in both

(13:08):
spots right below them and much further below them, and
Pro Day yesterday the University of Miami, the Tennessee Titans
number one overall pick pro Day today here in the
great State of Texas at the University of Texas. Among
the many things we get into here on a Tuesday,
Ed ish of the eighteen.

Speaker 1 (13:28):
The eighteen on Sports Talk seven ninety. We now return
to Adam Clinton and Adam wexlerth on Sports.

Speaker 2 (13:38):
Talk seven ninety.

Speaker 8 (13:48):
You know, it's one of the more interesting aspects of
the world of sports and really just life in general,
is going back and listening to what people say before
a big seminole event in their life. And in this case,
Cam Smith mere hours before making his minute made Parks,

(14:10):
he already did it once Dike and Park debut, and
then seeing what happened afterwards, both good and bad. By
the way, at least one person already thinks you're overreacting,
just saying after the first segment, they think you're overreacting
to Cam and right field.

Speaker 7 (14:26):
I know, it's shocking, shocking, he's after what four and
a half innings, he was zero for one in plays
in his career at the ballpark.

Speaker 3 (14:34):
I'm overreacting.

Speaker 7 (14:35):
It's definitely not gonna happen all the time, right, that's
what you're gonna tell me. You're right, it probably won't
happen all that. You said it yourself very next. What
the magnet make some of these plays when they're not
made is enormous.

Speaker 3 (14:49):
Well, that was a spring training game, didn't matter, didn't count.

Speaker 7 (14:51):
You're right, there was zero magnitude on it. Renel Blanco
got through his five innings. He doesn't really care that
there was an earned run against his ledger in a
spring training game. You're right, neither do I. It's a
spring training game. I have one more day to make
it till tomorrow to fulfill my pre spring training exhibition
season goal, which is an annual goal of mine, and

(15:13):
I succeed every single year.

Speaker 3 (15:14):
You know what, I can't wait for it.

Speaker 7 (15:15):
I do not mention who wins the games. I do
not mention their record. It could not matter less. So
I don't tell you, and you probably are happy about it.

Speaker 3 (15:23):
But you know what you also do.

Speaker 8 (15:25):
You don't let me panic about anything until you say
it's okay, sometime in August or whenever you determined. And
I'm the one coming in here mad about games that
end up winding up mattering down the stretch. If you
had just not been dumb that night or whatever happens.

Speaker 3 (15:41):
The infield's gonna make airs.

Speaker 7 (15:43):
You're gonna have a first basement that drops a throw,
makes a bad throw, can't make a scoop. A lot
of bad throws from the other three infielders. You know,
balls that aren't turned into double plays that should be.
It's a given no matter how awesome you're infield is.
You just try to limit it. And we watched eight
ears of the Astros playing really, really good infield defense.
This last year far from their strongest, arguably the worst
of the eight years and still not egregious. And from

(16:06):
an outfield perspective, the number is much much lower most
of the time, and I hope it's much much lower.
You're not going to see that many bad outfield plays.
I wouldn't think you don't see that many bad outfield
plays in any given season, no matter how poorly outfitted
your your three spots are. But this is, honestly, it's
beyond belief the Astros. I don't even know what year

(16:28):
I'd have to go back to the cold forty five's
when they would have employed a less impressive defensive outfield.
If Cam Smith is starting and Jose Altuvez the other starter, which.

Speaker 8 (16:40):
Because everybody witnessing it would have been in just enormous
triple digit temperatures.

Speaker 7 (16:45):
Shit of a mosquito problem, probably that too, but you know,
Jake can only do so much. If the ball is
hit in between Altuve and Jake, he can help. If
it's hit in between Myers and Smith, he can help.
But if it's hit to the other directions, he can
back it up, he can watch. He can only cover
so much ground. And I'm fully aware. Yeah, that's probably

(17:09):
an overreaction. You want him to see these plays so
they won't happen in the future, but they're going to happen.
It's a guarantee he will make very bad plays in
the outfield at the onset of his career. And he
is both Altuve and Cam Smith. I can't tell you
not to play Jose Altuve in the outfield because he's

(17:29):
playing in the outfield.

Speaker 3 (17:30):
That is a fact.

Speaker 7 (17:31):
I can tell you currently to only play Cam Smith
in the outfield if he's wearing a Hook's jersey or
a Space Cowboys jersey, so he can learn to play
the position. And we haven't even gotten to the other
part of it, Like he's got this what he's trying
to do and what everybody's so excited about happening, and

(17:52):
I don't want to dampen any of that excitement.

Speaker 3 (17:55):
With your wet blanket. Nobody does this.

Speaker 7 (17:58):
Yeah, nobody doesn't play minor league baseball as a as
a hitter, as a position player, and just immediately comes
to the major leagues and rakes. And when I say
no one, I mean why at Langford's probably the closest
camp we could have for it, not just for recency,
but just at all. He barely played any minor league baseball.
He was a shock how well he played in their

(18:19):
camp last year for the Rangers, and so they major
leagued him to begin the year and that's where he
was all year.

Speaker 3 (18:26):
And he's really good and he's going to be really good.

Speaker 7 (18:28):
And I won't even say it was necessarily a mistake
for them to put him there. And then you also
had a season that was going away from them, So
what difference did it make? At that point? They weren't
trying to win. He had a seven to forty ops
and he hit two fifty three. That's really pretty good
for someone who probably wasn't ready. Do you think camp
Smith's gonna hit two fifty You think he's gonna bring

(18:50):
a seven forty ops this year to the Astros and
five hundred and fifty plus plate appearances. I know everybody
else thinks, No, he's gonna be way better, which again,
it doesn't happen.

Speaker 3 (19:01):
It just doesn't. There aren't examples of this happening.

Speaker 8 (19:05):
What happens when Jake and Chaz hit a combined two
oh two with eight home runs.

Speaker 7 (19:09):
That is like the most unbelievably awesome answer to my
ranting so far today. That is one hundred percent correct.
That is dead solid perfect. That's exactly why it's even
a thing. If there was no question about the rest
of the outfield, he could hit five hundred in spring
training and they we would not be talking about this.

(19:31):
If Chas McCormick didn't have a fall apart year last year,
if Jake Myers could hit over you know, seven to
twenty five ops, and if either one of them raked
and credit to Jake, he was really good offensively in
spring training, but.

Speaker 3 (19:43):
Chaz wasn't well.

Speaker 7 (19:44):
If Chaz hit two fifty with you know, a bunch
of hits or a bunch of contact that would have
been for extra bases or was for extra bass, didn't
strike out a lot, he did walk a lot during camp.
But if all those, if any of those positive offensive
trends we're delivered by Chaz, I really don't think this
would be a consideration, but I can understand why it is.

Speaker 3 (20:08):
Well.

Speaker 8 (20:08):
I brought up the fact that it's fun to look
back in hindsight about what people say because of some
of the things that Cam Smith said yesterday before that game,
and one of those will actually work backwards, because I
do think this is something and I need to bring
up something else.

Speaker 3 (20:24):
This fielding stuff, that's only half the battle.

Speaker 8 (20:27):
You're assuming that he's going to as you said, rake
at the plate.

Speaker 3 (20:32):
He's not. We'll see. I mean he starts now when
pitchers starts seeing him.

Speaker 7 (20:36):
Yeah, the more they see him, And yesterday's matchup wasn't
any kind of this is a top flight starter that
they were facing.

Speaker 3 (20:43):
Obviously, it wasn't even a major league.

Speaker 7 (20:45):
Player period because they were playing their exhibition game against
the Triple A team and doing so again tonight. The
things that he does at the play, the way he
approaches like through the roof, which is why I never
get mad at what the people are saying over the
course of camp. His swing decisions is disciplined. At the play,
him swinging at the right pitches, him driving the ball
to all fields. He's homer to right. He's Homer to

(21:07):
left the triple last night. Was you know, between the
first base bag and the first basement. There's so many
profiles for his hitting that are tremendous. And when I
say nobody's ever done it, that doesn't mean nobody ever
will do it.

Speaker 8 (21:18):
So whether it's at the plate or whether it's in
the field, wherever that may be. Because again, his natural
position is not right field, He's not, according to him
before the game, putting any sort of pressure on himself.

Speaker 3 (21:31):
I'm being honest with you. It's the same like I'm
I'm right here.

Speaker 5 (21:34):
I think, like I was telling you, my foundation with
the man above is keeping me where my feet are at.
So I'm very grateful for that relationship I have. And yeah,
I'm just you know, whatever happens happened, So I can't
really control where I end up, but I'll tell.

Speaker 3 (21:48):
You what I'm ready. Yeah, it's funny.

Speaker 8 (21:49):
Is that reminds me of something we did not get
to yesterday, but that I wanted to. So camp Smith
is one of the already one of the hottest young
athletes in the city of Houston's correct, sure, who's the
hottest by default because of the position he plays.

Speaker 3 (22:06):
CJ. Stroud, Right, you heard what he said.

Speaker 8 (22:09):
He's trying to not swear as much because he can't
be giving glory to the man above. If he's saying
F this and s that, right, I mean I'm paraphrasing.

Speaker 3 (22:20):
I mean, if that's what he said, I'll go. You know,
he's got a point, by the way.

Speaker 7 (22:24):
I believe in that exactly what CJ. Strout is saying
wholeheartedly between two and six every day.

Speaker 8 (22:32):
You know what's funny, I always if I'm on television, Yes,
on an FCC regulated dost of them are right. So
I loved when I would get into it with people
on the socials back in the day, you know, when
I still did that sort of thing on the regular
and you would just shake your head or sometimes test.

Speaker 3 (22:49):
A genius play.

Speaker 7 (22:50):
If you do sports talk radio in a major market,
to go after people on the X platform, really smart
thing to do. Definitely won't come back to bite you,
no matter how much heritage you have on your side
and legacy in tradition, the voice of the city, which
I'm not referring to you, no random hypothetical situation in
the Midwest, Right, that's.

Speaker 3 (23:08):
A good point.

Speaker 8 (23:09):
I liked it when people would start just going, I mean,
you've we've It were a few posts or tweets in
at the time, and this, according to their bio, Man
of God starts just I mean syllable after syllable and
some of these names I'm being called, and I'm like, yeah,
that's why you don't put that in your bio. Anyway,

(23:30):
back to the subject at hand, No matter what has happened,
this has been a spring of his dreams.

Speaker 3 (23:37):
According to camp Smith, it's been.

Speaker 5 (23:39):
So fun and I talk about all the time, Like,
you know, being home for spring training is huge. You know,
you think you're changing environments, but at the end of
the day, you're living with your parents. You're sleeping in
your own bed. It was really a very easy transition,
I could say. So you know, I had, I had
the best of both worlds and I'm on I'm on
the winning, winning team out the Astros. So I mean,

(24:02):
that's as as exciting as a gift.

Speaker 8 (24:04):
Hey is someone who lived with his parents way too
long before making a horrible mistake of marrying my first wife,
I can relate.

Speaker 7 (24:11):
So your first job out of school, would you would
leave work at the end of the day and go
back home to live with your parents, right, Uh huh.
He was doing the same thing, two jobs this time. Now,
technically his first job was with the Cubs, and he
wasn't living with his parents. They did not go with
him to while he was playing for the Smokies or
the Cubs or the third I think believe the Pelicans.

(24:32):
But now considering the Astros as opposed to the Cubs
who spring train in Arizona, the Astro spring train close
enough to his home he has literally been living with
his parents as he enjoyed his first ever spring training.

Speaker 8 (24:47):
My thing was that I was working two jobs and
basically free to quote sleep for four hours of a
twenty four hour day.

Speaker 3 (24:55):
There was no point having my own place.

Speaker 7 (24:56):
But the same thing then happens as it does now.
You still well, Now, I doubt you are texting your
parents like you might be texting tea, but you'll make
a phone call.

Speaker 8 (25:07):
Hey, I'm headed to the house. What are we doing
for dinner? Well, now, do you make it the same
amount of sleep. I'm just making more money. That's the
only difference.

Speaker 3 (25:14):
I'm good for you.

Speaker 8 (25:14):
Yeah, progress, Some people will call it that, other people
will call it other things.

Speaker 3 (25:19):
So all right, we will take a quick time out
right there.

Speaker 8 (25:21):
We will get to what we always do this time
of day to thirty ish or so.

Speaker 3 (25:26):
The best of X coming your way.

Speaker 2 (25:28):
Next the a T on Sports Talk seven ninety.

Speaker 1 (25:35):
We now return to Adam Clinton and Adam wexlerth on Sports.

Speaker 2 (25:39):
Talk seven ninety.

Speaker 3 (25:44):
Did you all see this?

Speaker 9 (25:45):
Put it out?

Speaker 8 (25:46):
Between five and fifteen posts a day, four hundred people
were arrested for things of day seven on social media.

Speaker 7 (25:52):
History repeats itself type bang.

Speaker 3 (25:55):
You'll succeed.

Speaker 4 (25:57):
Never doubt that you're the one who puts no one
building lead YO, the best.

Speaker 10 (26:04):
X.

Speaker 3 (26:05):
Nothing's gonna ever talk.

Speaker 4 (26:06):
You know you're the best post an ever single day.

Speaker 7 (26:11):
You're the best of X breaking the entire in tonight.

Speaker 8 (26:22):
It is the time of day where we go to
the mean streets of social media. We go to X,
we go to Instagram, we got to Snapchat, we.

Speaker 3 (26:31):
Got to Facebook.

Speaker 7 (26:33):
Sometimes we have to revisit items that have been found
on our show on previous days. And so this is
not a huge, huge story today as much as it
was tomorrow, but probably worth a follow up. You remember
what happened yesterday and without social media X. As a
matter of fact, this never would have become a story.
But because a member of the media doing his job

(26:54):
or whatever he felt like doing, which I was totally
allowed to do, decided to catch little video of coach
Hurley rolling off the court this past weekend and giving
a tip to the Baylor basketball team or maybe a
suggestion or a little heads up on try to avoid
in their game, regarding the officials with some expletives. And

(27:15):
then one of the communications execs inside the program for
Yukon decided to threaten the reporter's livelihood, ruin his life.
As a matter of fact, it was Joey Ellis Joey
has headed back to the X platform. We mentioned what
mister Mullen, the deputy the director of communications through Yukon,

(27:38):
had said in his own statement about, you know, the
lasting image of this game and Coach Hurley should be
him embracing his players off the court, not some I recognize.
I got your moment when I could see it, et cetera.
He posted two hours ago this reporter Joey as you
call him jealous Jealous ten sixteen Just a quick and

(28:00):
hopefully final update. Bobby Mullen and I spoke a short
time ago. What do you think he followed that up
with the context the meat of the post.

Speaker 3 (28:10):
What do you think? What do you think? He says
about their meeting. I can't.

Speaker 7 (28:15):
I yes, you can, he said. This is hopefully the
final update. So what happened at this brief meeting?

Speaker 3 (28:22):
Everything was put on the kabash.

Speaker 7 (28:24):
I spoke with him a short time ago, during which
he apologized for his behavior.

Speaker 3 (28:29):
I accepted it, and life rolls on. That's too neat,
there's nothing this is over.

Speaker 7 (28:38):
Is Yukon gonna say, man, we can't have one of
our people acting like this.

Speaker 3 (28:41):
We've got to fire him.

Speaker 7 (28:42):
Is ellis gonna say, I mean, is there a reality
show that might want to hire me? And I can,
you know, go make some big bucks? Or should I
immediately start a podcast me versus everybody?

Speaker 3 (28:51):
I don't.

Speaker 7 (28:51):
I don't think so. I don't think either of those
things are gonna happen.

Speaker 3 (28:55):
But at least no one's night life's getting ruined.

Speaker 7 (28:57):
Right, Joey's life appears to be in this position it
was in before.

Speaker 3 (29:01):
He may have a few more followers.

Speaker 7 (29:03):
He may have been lauded for his Hey man, you
got a couple of extra clicks on your story.

Speaker 3 (29:08):
I mean, I don't think that was your intention.

Speaker 7 (29:10):
It's not like this is the first time Coach Hurley
was videoed yelling at people with expletives. That's what he
does from the beginning of the season to the end
of the season, in game, out of game, at the podium,
on the court, walking off the court during the game.
That's just who he is. It's who he was when
they were winning titles too. It's just now that he's
won titles and he's playing with a little bit lesser group.

(29:33):
Although a team that certainly had a chance to advance.
They played very well. They nearly had the huge upset,
but they went home first weekend. It'll play a lot
less and I'm sure his actions and antics probably will
be on a lower scale. It's there's a little bit
of Belichick and his disciples that follows this path. I mean,

(29:53):
Bill Belichick. Can he do this at North Carolina if
they don't win what he did all of his years
after winning Super Bowl one, two, three, four, five, sixty
seven at New England and then Charlie Weiss and Josh
McDaniels and Bill O'Brien, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera.
When they hit podiums when they had back and forth
with intensity with media members. Of course, it didn't play

(30:16):
well because they were acting like somebody should give them
that latitude in that leeway because of what they had done,
which you probably shouldn't give it to anybody, but certainly
not those who are coattail riders at that point in
their respective careers. Why do you have to go to
why do you have to go to your job, your
new job, you're now head coach for the first time,
and do it the way Bill did it. You're not him,

(30:37):
Definitely not Josh McDaniels. I think Bill O'Brien has learned
maybe to do things a little bit differently. He had
a lot more success than Josh did. And Josh somehow
I believe has had more head coaching success than Charlie Weiss,
who had not a whole lot. That's not very few others,
but those are the three I picked immediately.

Speaker 8 (30:56):
He didn't have a whole lot. That's an understatement, all right,
So well keep it here quickly. For the college basketball
side of things. First of all, I don't know what
I'm more fascinated about the fact that a women's basketball
head coach from Grand Canyon taking a job at Arizona
State has gotten as much attention as it has.

Speaker 7 (31:17):
Well, you're leaving out the reason why I got so
much attention, and it isn't the great basketball coach record
in the country or the fact.

Speaker 8 (31:26):
That one of the school's biggest nil donors is former
Rocket James Harden, who cannot stop writing checks.

Speaker 3 (31:33):
He has plenty to of course he does.

Speaker 8 (31:36):
We've all seen the honey Buns videos, right, I guess
there's just the one, Yeah, the one. Okay, So you
might wonder how Grand Canyon reacting, Yeah, and how they're
handling this, the breakup that is, because that's what this
comes down to a lot of times in sports.

Speaker 3 (31:54):
Yeah, it's very shocking.

Speaker 7 (31:55):
You got a lower level program or a light leaguer
regarded program. Your coach is really really successful, win loss wise,
you hit the tournament. I don't I have no idea
what might happen next? Right, you have no idea?

Speaker 8 (32:08):
Well, very new path. I don't know if it's Brian
Is it Brian Muller? Sure, the Grand Canyon president who
will probably never hear from again after this.

Speaker 7 (32:19):
What if the next coach is super successful?

Speaker 8 (32:22):
Super successful is a way to characterize it.

Speaker 7 (32:26):
I mean, the current coach was super successful. Why can't
the next coach also be super successful? Why do you
think it's an impossibility?

Speaker 8 (32:32):
It's I guess it's technically not an impossibility, But I
do know this. The president of Grand Canyon liked to
throw shade at Molly Miller and didn't seem particularly surprised
that she made the decision that she did.

Speaker 7 (32:49):
Well, first of all, you got to re establish who's
Molly Miller.

Speaker 8 (32:52):
Molly Miller was the former head coach at Grand Canyon
and the current head coach for women's basketball, of course,
at Arizona State Universe.

Speaker 7 (33:00):
And describe why as opposed to she's super popular because
they won thirty plus games and they went to the tournament,
that she's actually become so popular and a fairly recognizable
figure now in the college sports landscape.

Speaker 8 (33:12):
Well, let me see if I can put this very eloquently.
She's super hot, like married whatever, She's really hot. They
know it, he knows it. He's get a hot wife.
Whoever this guy is that she's married to with the
two kids.

Speaker 7 (33:27):
I mean, I don't know this for a fact, but
I think it's mister Miller.

Speaker 3 (33:31):
Do you think so I think it is. So that's
not her maiden name.

Speaker 7 (33:34):
I her, Like I said, I have not researched her
background enough to know that one way or the other.
But I'm gonna go with mister Miller. It's not a
hyphenated name. It's I mean, I would I would watch
it again. Well, I mean she could have started that probably,
So so you thought he threw some shade, Yeah, I
mean this is his.

Speaker 3 (33:53):
He'd be the judge though, Yeah, you be the judges.

Speaker 7 (33:55):
Grand Canyon fella throwing shade at miss Miller.

Speaker 3 (33:58):
The new Arizona state head coach.

Speaker 11 (34:00):
She's interviewed for jobs after every single year, which is
her prerogative. But and so, no, we were not caught
off guard by that at all. And we wish her well.
You know, I hope that she does well. But we
wanted somebody who wanted to be here. And when you
have somebody who's been at the level he's been at,

(34:22):
say this is the job I wanted, you know that
he sees and appreciates what the potential of this is.

Speaker 8 (34:30):
He being Winston Gandhy, longtime assistant at South Carolina.

Speaker 7 (34:37):
Best program in the country. You could argue, Okay, I
mean They're not number one in the country this year
in a lot of ways depending on how you see it. Well,
I want to be here.

Speaker 3 (34:49):
Guess what. When Molly took the job, she wanted to
guess what.

Speaker 7 (34:54):
The now four time NCAA college basketball coach Sean Miller
probably said it today on the forty Acres this morning
when he was introduced as the new Texas coach.

Speaker 3 (35:03):
My feeder here in Austin. I want to be here.

Speaker 7 (35:06):
And I definitely didn't say this either of the two
times Xavier hired me to the head coach to be
their head coach, or when Arizona hired me to be
their head coach, because nobody ever says that when they
get their job and say this is where I want
to be. This is new territory. Mister Gandy wants to
be here. He wants to coach the Lady Lopes. He
wants to be here.

Speaker 3 (35:25):
I can't wait to go to an ASU game this year.

Speaker 7 (35:27):
Good stuff, Thanks, mister administrator. That's best of expert today.

Speaker 1 (35:34):
The Age. On Sports Talk seven ninety, we now returned
to Adam Clinton and Adam wexlerth on Sports Talks seven ninety.

Speaker 3 (35:52):
Rockets and Hawks play tonight.

Speaker 8 (35:53):
Do you know how mad I am that the Bulls
beat the Nuggets last night? Actually I'm not because it
I guess it helps the Rockets as far as solidifying
the two seed, but it just reminds me that they
lose games like that that they lost on Sunday night.

Speaker 7 (36:08):
The Bulls are mad that the Bulls beat the Nuggets
when the Rockets couldn't.

Speaker 8 (36:13):
Yeah, I mean, that's the dumbest thing ever, but it's
who I am. Wex, It's just how I am. I
know it helps the Rockets that that happened. I also
hate that Jamal Murray once again went off for twenty
eight points, but it wasn't enough to beat the Bulls,
who apparently are now beating everybody good.

Speaker 7 (36:33):
They're playing some ridiculously strong offense, and the Rockets did
a really nice job when they beat them during their
nine game winning streak to keep that from happening until
very very late in the game when they almost opened
the door for a ridiculous near upset. But he just
had more help, which surprisingly offensively last night, and they
they simply could not keep the Bulls from scoring. Bulls

(36:55):
hit seventeen threes. They also hit their free throws and
only turned the ball over ten times. The Bulls blew
out the Lakers within the week, and now they've beaten
the Nuggets rather handily. The Western Conference playoff picture. Couple
that loss by the Nuggets with the Lakers loss last
night to the Magic, which is now a common theme
for Lakers basketball, and they did have their quote unquote

(37:17):
top I won't call them a big three. Their top
three players were all out there last night, and they
didn't They had the lead at the half. They actually
had a nine point lead late in the second quarter
and got outscored by twenty five in the next ten
minutes and then lost the Orlando Magic, Hawks, and Rockets tonight.
Grizzlies and Jazz also tonight. Lakers and Nuggets both play

(37:37):
the following night. Rockets are a game and a half
better than the Nuggets. They're two and a half games
better than the Lakers and Grizzlies heading into play tonight.
Warriors are close enough to catch somebody. Clippers and Tea
Wolves probably are also probably not Houston. Houston still four
and a half games better than the Warriors and five
and a half games better than the team who's in
the first playin spot, which is the Clippers. They also

(38:00):
have a game remaining with I know there's some emphasis
on trying to keep the seed you have, or at
least keep two, three or four, or at least be
five or six. I don't envision anything other than those
as possible scenarios. Math says yes, but Wex says no.
They will finish in the top six.

Speaker 8 (38:21):
Yeah, no, that's not a question. It's just a matter
of matter of whether or not they hold on to
the two seed at this point. I mean, it's not
a big lead yet. Everything you just mentioned that happened
last night, I mean, this was why I was so
upset when the Rockets didn't finish off the comeback against
the Nuggets. I'm like, well, all these teams that aren't
playing right now on Sunday night, while the Rockets are

(38:42):
losing to the Nuggets, they're all idle and they're gonna
all play tomorrow night. So if they just take care
of it, and then none of them took care of business,
they all lost.

Speaker 7 (38:51):
But if you guys were listening closely, he's mad. Yeah,
makes perfect sense.

Speaker 8 (38:56):
Because it because when I look at games, there's another
game that maybe mad last night out of their last ten.
There's another game that made me mad last night that
has even less bearing on any of this conversation, but
the principle that I'm talking about it makes me mad.
Did you see who was able to beat the Nets
this year? The Rockets didn't, not once, but the Mavericks
did last night.

Speaker 3 (39:15):
The Mavericks have most of their team back. Makes me mad?
Why could the Rockets got healthy?

Speaker 8 (39:21):
No that the Rockets got swept by the stupid Brooklyn.

Speaker 7 (39:24):
Nets because they gave the game away. One of them,
just literally of them, gave it away. The other one
they got out played. They got beaten by the bad
Nets in that game. The other one they gave away.

Speaker 3 (39:35):
On my birthday. No less, at least they didn't have
to work that night. What number?

Speaker 7 (39:39):
What number losses in an eighty two game season for
this year's Rockets or would you have been okay with?
Or are you okay with? Because it's not gonna happen
like they got at it.

Speaker 3 (39:49):
Here's the They.

Speaker 7 (39:49):
Balance out wins against teams that are good versus losses
against teams that are about.

Speaker 8 (39:53):
I said it during the broadcast last night, and I
mean it even more now. And it's gonna happen in
the playoffs, and it's gonna make come in here on
a homicidal rage bender. They have left, and they left
one the other night. It's Sunday's game against the Nuggets.
Certainly qualifies as one of these games when you lose
by five and you miss twelve free throws, they've left,

(40:13):
in my opinion, and haven't done any mouth on this,
and I certainly haven't done spreadsheet. This is just eyeballing it.
I think they've left five to seven wins on the
table this year because of missed free throws. Five to
seven When you think about an eighty two game schedule
and you think about how bad they are dead last
for much of the season free throw shooting or somewhere
in those parts bottom three.

Speaker 7 (40:35):
All right, I will do my best to be myself.
That's thirty seconds or less. Yeah, the Rockets worst nine
free throw shooting games.

Speaker 3 (40:44):
I love it.

Speaker 7 (40:44):
They won six of them, huh. And the three that
they lost were they lost by thirteen nine and seven.

Speaker 3 (40:52):
On nights where they missed how many free.

Speaker 7 (40:54):
Throws thirteen eight and eight, So maybe they could have
gotten to overtime. Maybe if they shot one hundred percent
on their free throws, which would be an NBA record,
But yes, they are a very bad three point shooting team.

Speaker 3 (41:08):
No math, no spreadsheet could change.

Speaker 8 (41:10):
The throw and three point yeah, like I said, you
said three point I thought, is that a fact or not?

Speaker 3 (41:16):
We'll argue about it in the three o'clock hour.

Speaker 2 (41:18):
Facts the eighteen on Sports Talk seven ninety two lifelong
Houston sports guys named Adham talking your team. Adam Clinton
and Adam Weckler are the eighteen.

Speaker 3 (41:42):
Welcome in to the three o'clock hour.

Speaker 8 (41:44):
If you've been listening on Sports Talks seven ninety Hi,
good to see you again, but literally good to see you.
If you have just flipped on Space City Home Network
watching the simulcast over on the Home of the Rockets
and Astros on the television side, where well, look, let's
face it, you're gonna have Rockets and Astros baseball suon.
It's one of the best times of the year. You

(42:06):
will be able to see those two teams in action,
both in games that count. Astros pre tend games are
winding down, they're dwindling.

Speaker 3 (42:14):
Wex to just one.

Speaker 7 (42:16):
There's one left, one left tonight, so we'll have it
over on KTRH tonight we'll have Rockets basketball here on
Sports Talk seven to ninety. You'll find the Rockets basketball
game right there on Space City Home Network this evening.
As they attempt to push themselves further ahead of those
chasing them in the Western Conference, as we're just talking about,
with just ten games remaining, and a host of those

(42:37):
games are within that group of well now the top
seven teams in the Western Conference. They see the Clippers,
they see the Lakers two more times. They've got a
game with the Nuggets, They've got a game with Oklahoma City,
they've got a game with Golden State, all still remaining
within that ten game slate before they get to the postseason.
Also have a pair of games with the Utah Jazz.

(42:58):
But most of these teams, who the Rockets have obviously
seen at least once, most twice or more, they're not
necessarily the same group then and have different things on
the line at this point in the season, even Utah,
as they watch their own particular chances for excellence, and
they're like many bad teams in bad markets where nobody
ever wants to go no matter how much money they're offered.

Speaker 3 (43:21):
They need to build through the draft, and they.

Speaker 7 (43:23):
Hold a half game disadvantage for the number one overall
chance to land the top pick in the draft. But remember,
and you should remember this, because the Rockets were playing
their own lottery basketball for three consecutive seasons. The team
that finishes with the worst record in the NBA, and
the team that finishes with the second worst record in
the NBA, and the team that finishes with the third

(43:45):
worst record in the NBA, they have the exact same
lottery chances to land the number one pick. They have
the exact same lottery chances to land a top four pick.
Now they get specific numerical combinations. So yes, finishing second
versus finishing third versus finishing worst maybe lands you a pick.

(44:05):
Happened to the Rockets when the weembin Yama lottery took place,
winning quote unquote a coin flip gave them the lottery selections,
cupball numerical combinations with the third pick, and ultimately the
team with the second pick.

Speaker 3 (44:23):
You know how it goes. Yeah, So it does.

Speaker 7 (44:25):
Mean something for pretty much everybody out there, just not
necessarily the same thing. Rockets have a lot of things
on the line. Last night, one of the games we
didn't mention, probably the most entertaining game of the night
between the Bucks and the Sons. Kevin Durant in the
corner with his team up to fouled Kyle Kuzma on

(44:45):
a three, which he made and then made the free throw,
So from Sons up to Sons down.

Speaker 3 (44:51):
To discount eminem but his.

Speaker 7 (44:54):
Teammate Devin Booker really nice out of balance play, got
a wide open mid range jumper. He drained it, and
Durant in the corner seconds later defended the Brook Lopez
attempted game winner fairly well, went off the rim, and
the Suns kept pace with the Mavericks and they have
the tiebreaker, so they are in the ten spot and
would only be in the lottery if they either lose

(45:17):
their first playing game or their second playing games. Soon
as they lose, they'd be out until they potentially the
eighth seed, and even though they would lose to the
Oklahoma City Thunder, they would not have any lottery opportunities.
They would have been a Western Conference playoff team, which
simply cannot happen if they don't finish in the top
ten in the West. They're currently tied for tenth with

(45:40):
the MAVs, who did welcome back Anthony Davis to the
lineup last night twenty eight minutes minutes restriction. He played
twenty seven and they won rather easily over the Nets.

Speaker 8 (45:50):
Well, I'm just glad that we don't have to see
his only highlights in a Mavericks uniform in the first
half against the Rockets anymore.

Speaker 7 (45:56):
He did his post team his postmatch interview was met
with the little bit of comedy about getting through the
game and not getting hurt.

Speaker 8 (46:03):
I'm just looking at so you gotta landed to nine.
If you're the Rockets, you go to Utah, by the way,
you owe them since they beat you the last time.

Speaker 3 (46:12):
Oh my god, another loss to a bad team. When
did that happen? I mean all season long, where have
you been?

Speaker 4 (46:17):
Man?

Speaker 3 (46:18):
Exactly?

Speaker 8 (46:18):
They actually have to exactly all the talk about the
Rockets down the stretch having a brutal schedule, which they do.
Don't get me wrong, It's not easy. They are blessed
with two games against the Utah Jazz peppered in there.

Speaker 3 (46:34):
Were the West. The Rockets haven't beaten the Jazz or
one of them.

Speaker 8 (46:37):
Yeah, as Amin Thompson eloquently put that there tonight. Yeah,
along with the Sacramentic Kings. I just love the way
he said, like amn Thompson among like everything else I
love about him.

Speaker 3 (46:47):
I don't know if you've gathered that lately from some
of my assession up and you are absolutely ramax and giddy. Yeah.

Speaker 8 (46:54):
The other night he was talking about I can't remember
exactly what the subject was at the time, but he
was like, there's only two teams that we haven't beat.
But he's like a smooth jazz DJ when he talks.
Well that he would be so firm with the information. Yeah,
it with two teams like that, both under five hundred
and one of them awful. Yes, but this whole your
schedule is hard. Your schedule is easy. The Lakers had

(47:16):
among the easier schedules according to those who come up
with those numbers, which are strictly numbers based. This team's
record is blank, thus they're easy. Doesn't factor in anything
about how they're playing, anything about how healthy they are,
anything about that.

Speaker 7 (47:31):
It's just these are the numbers we can give you. Well,
as the Lakers set sail on this easy cushion filled
finished to their season, they only lost to the Bulls
by thirty one, and they only lost to Orlando by twelve,
two teams way behind them and wins and losses.

Speaker 3 (47:48):
You've got Atlanta tonight. You should win this game. You should.

Speaker 8 (47:53):
You should go to Utah and you should beat the Jazz.
You should go to Phoenix and beat the Suns again.

Speaker 7 (48:00):
You realize everywhere the Rockets go the rest of the year,
barring a change in the standings or their.

Speaker 3 (48:05):
Standing, they are considered the better team.

Speaker 7 (48:07):
Other than they have one game left with a team
who has a better record than they do, because there's
only three.

Speaker 3 (48:11):
Of them, right, Oklahoma City being that team.

Speaker 7 (48:15):
Twenty six teams in the NBA's thirty team league have
a record worse than Houston's.

Speaker 8 (48:21):
And that's why when people say, I mean who they
beat during their streak? Who did they beat all season?
You moron, watch games before you talk. That's all I'm asking.
You can have your opinion if it's educated on this
kind of stuff.

Speaker 7 (48:32):
Yeah, just go back to this, the simplicity of a
men's statement. Well, Sacramento's ninth and you mentioned them among
the teams in the West that they haven't beaten. So
are you also saying, in the same breath without saying it,
they've beaten the teams that are one, three, four, five, six, seven,
and eight multiple times, double figure times.

Speaker 8 (48:52):
The answer is yes, and the answer is yes, and yeah,
you've I mean, you've got another game with Denver, the
last game of the season.

Speaker 3 (48:57):
It is here again.

Speaker 7 (49:00):
Yeah, that stretch, it's it's going to be tough, and
that could be the game de Andre Jordan does get
his triple double. He nearly had one last night. Look,
I'm sorry, I'm thinking that's a that's a yokic sit game.
You know, we always so he could avoid playing against
the Rockets at all this year because then when they
see him in the playoffs, they'll have no intel at all,
no clue.

Speaker 3 (49:20):
What do we do with this guy? Where he come from?
Multiple time MVP.

Speaker 8 (49:23):
But yeah, I just I look at the fact that
basically everybody they're going to play down the stretch is
right behind them in the standings.

Speaker 3 (49:32):
More often than not, it's always on them, and it
was on them against Denver.

Speaker 7 (49:35):
They need to they take care of their own business
by playing the way they need to, by getting after
it on the boards, by preventing those long stretches defensively
where they're not getting the stops they would normally get,
and second chance opportunity they're allowing that they don't usually.
And then the other thing is they're constant ability, which
is a disability to have offensive droughts. It's not because

(49:59):
they're not they don't get into offensive droughts and they're
getting the looks they want. I think some people might say, oh,
they're just missing, or this is a bad shooting team,
and it's bad. They can still get the shots they
want more often than not, even during these periods of time.

Speaker 3 (50:12):
A lot of them the.

Speaker 7 (50:12):
Second half, the second half of the season, and they're
unable to do the things that the fallback most teams have. Well,
let's just stay aggressive because if nothing else.

Speaker 3 (50:22):
We'll get to the line.

Speaker 7 (50:24):
Well, unless it's Jalen getting to the line, it can
be troublesome. Thompson gets fouled a ton, Shangun gets fouled
a ton. They don't make a ton of free throws.

Speaker 3 (50:33):
It's just it was so debilitating.

Speaker 7 (50:35):
There is a player on their roster who other teams
hack of him. Hack of Adams has happened this year
more than once.

Speaker 8 (50:42):
Are you surprised that people don't hack Shingoon? At this point,
he airball the free throw.

Speaker 7 (50:48):
Not surprised by it because he's not so dominant that
well we got we can't stop him because you can
also stop him. And a sixty eight percent free throw
shooter isn't forty five and Steven Adams is a forty
five per cent free throw.

Speaker 8 (51:00):
Correct, that's Shakian as sixty eight percent free throw shooter
is also somebody that can improve on that because they
clearly have the skills to make more often than not.

Speaker 7 (51:10):
Just the bigger picture of it is Jalen shoots eighty
and change and Shengoon's roughly seventy. So if you fouled
them each five times and give him two free throws
a pop, Jalen is still only outscoring about one. When
it's Adams in one of those players, well, now you're
getting possessions of zero or one point.

Speaker 3 (51:26):
That's the difference.

Speaker 8 (51:27):
It's just to me to have a guy who's as
skilled in so many ways as Shingoon is offensively, if
you want to kill his defense, fine, I'm not gonna
there's no argument for me. I think it frustrates Ima.
You don't at times, but this guy's just got to
make free throws. There's just no put it this way
Calvin was beside himself the other night, and again, this

(51:49):
is Calvin Murphy. He's got one of I think Mark
Price has the all time free throw percentage, or at
least he did for a long time. Calvin was right there,
just absolutely insane at the free throw line. Ye know
how badly I want him to just go into practice.
We talk about this over the years, all the time.
He's right there in the building.

Speaker 3 (52:07):
He could do it. So I'd like Shinggun to get
better at free throws. I don't think that's too much
to ask. I don't think it is either.

Speaker 7 (52:14):
It's just it's not gonna happen, not this year, and
I'm concerned about whether it will ever happen. Enter the
league seventy one percent four years later, this is year four,
sixty nine percent basically has been no change, and that's
not a good thing.

Speaker 8 (52:29):
Do you want to break the news now or do
you want to wait until the next segment. Well, you know,
you got people on the edge of their seats. I
wouldn't want you to have them fall out of them now.
Would rather have them fall out and come back and
listen to us. Really surprising news concerning one of the
teams in town. We'll tell you what that is when
we come back. It's a Tuesday edition of the eight

(52:50):
team Sports Talk seven ninety plus. Something that wex mentioned
a few well, probably about last week, is when we
were talking about this, I want to see if he
still has that opinion on an AFC South related item.

Speaker 3 (53:02):
We'll get to all of that next the a t
on Sports Talk seven ninety.

Speaker 1 (53:10):
We now returned to Adam Clinton and Adam Wexworth on
Sports Talk shout.

Speaker 8 (53:24):
Out to miss the ultimate Spurs fan. Nope, it's not
Spurs breaking news. It is Astro's breaking news. Our own
Chandler Rome breaking it among others. Is it Worth?

Speaker 3 (53:39):
Does he know the game.

Speaker 8 (53:49):
Four?

Speaker 7 (53:51):
I'm not really counting. I'm just playing until you get
to it.

Speaker 3 (53:54):
What if I made him play it again?

Speaker 7 (53:55):
You're not making him do anything. I can make him
play six times if I wanted to go ahead. Yeah,
see not literally not doing anything.

Speaker 3 (54:09):
All right? Camp Smith is making the opening day roster
for the Astros, so as predicted. See wait, I can
win it both ways.

Speaker 7 (54:18):
As I mentioned when I made my last and final
guess and what the Astros opening day roster would look like,
and he was on it. I did waffle between why
he should and why he shouldn't it was asked on
our Question of the Day today on our show tweet,
but been informed that he will be a part of
the Astros. After a glorious long road to the major leagues,

(54:44):
Cam Smith toiling in the minors in hopes of one day, minutes,
one day, after exactly one spring training he would be
a part of a major league baseball outfit. In twenty
twenty four, he was wrapping up his college baseball career

(55:04):
and playing minor league baseball for the first time and
maybe only time. Played for the Pels, played for the Cubs,
played for the Smokies, none of them played him more
than fifteen times. He only played thirty two minor league
baseball games. He amassed a whopping one hundred and fifteen
at bats at the minor league level, none above Double A.

(55:29):
He had a whole nineteen at bats at Double A,
where his production cratered in five games. And now, after
a robust performance at various Florida based spring training ballparks
and one night of baseball at dyk In Park, he
is a major Major League baseball players in the lineup tonight,

(55:52):
it's bat in fifth playing right field, and all indications
are if Cam Smith is a major League baseball player
to start the year or whenever he's here, if he
has to go down and come back, he's not here
to watch them play. He's not here for the occasional
I can get him into the lineup today. I love
the matchup. He's going to play a lot, and he's,

(56:16):
like everybody else now, going to need to perform a
lot or else they'll have to make a different decision than.

Speaker 4 (56:25):
Wow.

Speaker 7 (56:26):
Zero games played by the Astros as a franchise between
Kyle Tucker's exit and Kyle Tucker's replacement, Well, zero games
played by the franchise follow.

Speaker 3 (56:39):
Me in between.

Speaker 8 (56:39):
And I know that it's not normal, and I know
that this is very very soon and all that kind
of stuff, But but shouldn't you get a guy that
can do this in return if you're giving up Kyle Tucker?

Speaker 3 (56:53):
Of course you should, but not that, not that next year.

Speaker 7 (56:56):
The twenty twenty five Major League Baseball Draft has not
taken place. Yep, he's not been a professional baseball player
for even ten months. He didn't begin his professional baseball
life until late last baseball season.

Speaker 3 (57:14):
To the tune of only being into thirty two games.

Speaker 7 (57:17):
He played more games in college in twenty twenty four
than he did as a pro in twenty twenty four.

Speaker 3 (57:23):
Yeah, yeah, that's great. What number is he wearing? That's
all I care about. I think you care about more
than that. I mean, if he's going to be all
the things you said you think he's going to be,
that's a hot item.

Speaker 7 (57:35):
Now with each of the other prospects over the handful
of years they've brought up with this much necessary hype,
none of them had the camp Smith hype train because
they're not named Cam Smith. But Alex Bregman, Kyle Tucker,
for sure, I'm pretty I don't know that I said
it so obviously with George and Carlos, but I want

(57:55):
to believe that I did. I just know for a
fact I did with Kyle and Alex, and I don't
know that I'll be able to say it here. They
were never going back ever. Alex Bregman, literally, no matter
how poorly he performed, was never going back to the
minor leagues. He had done all he needed to do,
and then he did not perform as a major leaguer.
He had a horrible start game after game after game

(58:18):
of after O for after OPH. He wasn't going back
to the miners. There was no purpose. He would figure
it out. There was too much that they knew about
who he was, his makeup, it's going to work. Kyle
Tucker was the same way. There was no why would
he ever go.

Speaker 5 (58:31):
He was bad.

Speaker 7 (58:33):
At the end of the first year they brought him up,
he had nine hits and sixty four at bats.

Speaker 3 (58:37):
He was not good.

Speaker 7 (58:39):
And then he started the next year at the major
league level and was immediately the player they knew he.

Speaker 3 (58:42):
Always would be. And it's different.

Speaker 7 (58:45):
This is, to me is different with so little minor
league experience, so little it's just standing in the box
against men. He's barely done it. Who's to say he
isn't forced to go to trip to go to double
at some point in the next month. Yeah, six weeks. Well, okay,
and I know you're aware of this already because you're you.

(59:08):
How about the news we got out of Arlington a
few hours ago.

Speaker 3 (59:11):
Well, there's a couple of different things, so you just
tell me which one it is. Evan Carter. Evan Carter
was sent down.

Speaker 7 (59:17):
He had an awful and injury riddled season a year ago,
and they're expecting him to be just fine and come
back this year and be the player he was that
helped them beat the Astros into the postseason two seasons ago,
but he.

Speaker 8 (59:29):
Did not make their club series is becoming more and
more of an absolute asterisk.

Speaker 3 (59:35):
Yeah, I said it with each passing day.

Speaker 8 (59:38):
Yeah, unless the Dollas Garcia has royed it up and
he's gonna be the guy that was, you know, hitting
home runs with reckless abandon in twenty twenty three, that
team that beat the Astros to go to the World
Series in seven games because they couldn't win a freaking
home game.

Speaker 3 (59:52):
It's so much more frustrating now almost when you think
about it.

Speaker 7 (59:55):
Yeah, your Southwest home, deep Southwest home for Texas Rangers baseball.

Speaker 3 (59:59):
You can't do that every how I talk about another team,
I mean, we're there at least.

Speaker 7 (01:00:02):
A minute into camp. Smith made the team and we
want to go Rangers talk.

Speaker 8 (01:00:06):
I'm just showing you the contrast and how things are
good here and bad there. That's all I'm on brand man. Okay,
bad things happen in Dallas, I guess. I mean a
lot of people think bad things aren't going to happen
in Dallas. But like I said, we will get to
that when we get.

Speaker 3 (01:00:21):
To that, when it's not gonna happen. What's what you
think people are gonna they're gonna win it again? Is
that what you're saying.

Speaker 8 (01:00:26):
I don't you just predicted they're gonna win it again.
I wouldn't call myself people.

Speaker 7 (01:00:30):
I'm talking about other people that I need to say
to the other people, people who follow baseball and make predictions.

Speaker 3 (01:00:36):
Oh, because they think the Rangers going to win the
Division this year, that would be other people think bad
things aren't going to happen. That is a bad thing.

Speaker 8 (01:00:43):
Though by definition, the Rangers winning is bad. Doesn't matter
who you are, Houston otherwise, that's a rule on this show. Okay, ok, well,
I'm glad you know.

Speaker 3 (01:00:53):
It now I do.

Speaker 8 (01:00:55):
It's oky long enough to figure it out. Sorry, I
didn't mean to interrupt your thoughts.

Speaker 7 (01:01:01):
I told you at the beginning of the show that
was just it would now be a surprise to me.
It would now be something I thought. They've got to
consider the other side of it, And we haven't spent
one second on the bigger, huge picture because normally you
don't because you feel like, why should we We're a
big market club, We're a big money club.

Speaker 3 (01:01:20):
We're up against the CBT.

Speaker 7 (01:01:21):
We spend money. Well, they don't do one thing. They
don't extend their players when they get to free agency.
They don't sign their players when it's the biggest deal
they're gonna sign. They sign them when they can. They
tell you know, Jose al Tuve will buy out your
arbitration years. They tell Christian Javier Jordan Alvarez, Alex Bregman,
we want you here for longer than just those early years,

(01:01:43):
and you're our years. But when you start playing through
the end of each of those contracts, well you're not
gonna You're not gonna get the best offer from us.
We're gonna hope you stay with us. We're gonna give
you a good offer. Because I don't want to lie
to you. I think the offer they gave Alex Bregman
was a good offer. And I believe they've negotiated themselves
into reason positions with some of the others. But they
all knew they were going to he was whoever he is,

(01:02:04):
was going to get up better up they're leaving. Did
you just accelerate Cam Smith's Astro's departure, by putting them
on the big club now, by starting that clock.

Speaker 8 (01:02:13):
Now is just if you are telling me that talking
about the Rangers when Cam Smith just made the roster
is depressing.

Speaker 3 (01:02:21):
Boy, did you just that is the West if.

Speaker 7 (01:02:23):
The Astros weren't where they are now, And you shouldn't
expect any club, the Yankees, the Dodgers, any club to
always be the team they're the best team in baseball
year after year after year. They're going to the World Series.
They're going to the ALCS or NLCS every year. That
is not a realistic expectation really for any club. So
the Astros aren't quite what they are over the last

(01:02:45):
seven years. They aren't quite what they were. That's part
of why what's happening is happening. They weren't considering this
with Alex or Kyle or any of the other absolute
can't miss top ten pick prospects they've had and or
top fIF team.

Speaker 3 (01:03:00):
Let's say so we can include George and Cam. He's
the only one, and.

Speaker 7 (01:03:05):
He's being accelerated on the path by so much more
than any of them because of where the team is,
because of what the product is now, because of they're
trying to tell you the window is always open. Well,
they must believe he can help them right now. Well,
most of the time, that's not the case with the
Astros because they don't need it. They need help from

(01:03:26):
a player, because they don't have enough offense, because they're
not going to be good enough to win their division,
which is not the best division in baseball by any means.
That is a factor that is part of who they
are now. And again, specific to his position, I mean,
if Kyle Tucker was your right field or a player
of that caliber was set to play right field, they
wouldn't be moving camp Smith the right field because it
would not be an open position. It is McCormick's position.

(01:03:50):
It is an open competition position, which essentially Cam Smith won.

Speaker 3 (01:03:54):
Cam Smith is.

Speaker 7 (01:03:56):
A Houston Astro. We're talking about it on Sports Talk
seven ninety.

Speaker 2 (01:04:01):
The ad on Sports Talk seven ninety.

Speaker 3 (01:04:07):
Hey, it's a man to.

Speaker 5 (01:04:12):
Every Rockets game Sports Talk seven ninety and streaming on
the iHeartRadio Home of Rockets.

Speaker 8 (01:04:20):
Men Thompson and Company in action tonight over at Toyota Center,
Rockets and Hawks getting together as the Rockets will try
to stop a one game losing streak to the Denver Nuggets.
The other night they stopped the nine game winning streak
of the Rockets, and Rockets has got some help behind
them in the standings last night, as they were idle

(01:04:40):
with a lot of the teams dropping l's to their opponents.
But the big news officially last segment the fact that
Cam Smith will make the Astros opening day roster. Sorry
to John Singleton, this is about Cooper Hommel.

Speaker 3 (01:04:58):
Zach Decenzo was also the opening day roster.

Speaker 8 (01:05:01):
Oh, okay, your thoughts on that, obviously, but we also
want to get Yawl's thoughts.

Speaker 3 (01:05:06):
Houston.

Speaker 7 (01:05:06):
My thoughts on that initially are they can't both play
every day, and the claim was that's the only reason
they would be here.

Speaker 3 (01:05:13):
So that's very interesting.

Speaker 7 (01:05:16):
As in someone else's well, I don't know who that
someone else would because there's really nowhere else to go.
Jake Myers isn't going anywhere, Estochparatis isn't going anywhere, and
Christian Walker isn't going anywhere.

Speaker 3 (01:05:26):
Maybe they've traded Jake Myers and we just don't know
it yet.

Speaker 7 (01:05:28):
I'm one hundred percent certain that would be an interesting
thing to do.

Speaker 3 (01:05:33):
It would, wouldn't it? You would be weakening the already weak.
Let's take biggest deficiency on our team and make it
way worse.

Speaker 7 (01:05:42):
Yeah, So essentially that would be like trading Laramie Tunsil
trading Jake Myers.

Speaker 8 (01:05:47):
You it's going to take you a long time to
get over the departure of Laramie Tonsel, aren't, isn't it.

Speaker 7 (01:05:52):
Yeah, Joe a Spot in his normal meet with the
media kind of going through some of the things we
may have already been able to report thanks to a
Chandler rome when others but Spotted did say that Zach
and Cam have made the opening day roster.

Speaker 3 (01:06:06):
Remember this is the opening day roster.

Speaker 7 (01:06:08):
We've you know, you spend six weeks of spring training,
so I get why it becomes such a huge deal.
But you're you're not restricted from a transaction standpoint as
a major league team. Sorry, man, if you put him
on the on the opening day roster, he's there to stay.
You can't get rid of him. He's here for the
next There's no timeline on it. When when a move
needs to be made because you know something's happened, an

(01:06:30):
injury or poor performance, or somebody else gets healthy, then
they'll make the necessary adjustments.

Speaker 3 (01:06:37):
In due time.

Speaker 8 (01:06:38):
Well, that would be as I guess, as much of
a downer as that would be. He makes the opening
day roster and then he's sent down. I don't know
what the downer wouldn't be that he's sent down. The
downer is he gave them a reason.

Speaker 3 (01:06:53):
That's but that's what I mean.

Speaker 8 (01:06:55):
It's it's a double whammy because not only did he
not perform at the big league level, now he's not
even here to kind of gut his way through it.

Speaker 3 (01:07:03):
He's gonna go work on things.

Speaker 8 (01:07:04):
And that's that's also another lesser risk that you run
when you do something like this, because, let's face it,
I know that sometimes you know more is made of
this kind of thing. I don't know if it's made enough.
Golf and baseball, man, the mental acumen need we just talked,
got done talking about Alpera and Shingoon's free throw shooting.

Speaker 3 (01:07:27):
That's one of those things.

Speaker 8 (01:07:28):
But there's so much more of baseball and especially golf
that is between the ears that you can really kind
of not I'm not overplaying this. You can mess with
the guy's career sometimes if you don't handle this kind
of thing the right way. Now, that's probably for a
lesser mentally tough type player. I don't know what cam

(01:07:51):
Smith's made of mentally, yet nobody does.

Speaker 7 (01:07:53):
Cam Smith advanced the information. You're gonna find out a
lot faster than if he was not here, right, and
then you're gonna find out if he can handle it.
If he doesn't play well, how does he then recover
from that? I mean, I can't say there's no chance
he's awesome and never goes back and is one of
their better players and makes this team better. That's essentially there.

(01:08:14):
That's what why he's here. It's not here because he's
a prospect. He's not here because they really are awful
and they don't have anything to lose.

Speaker 3 (01:08:21):
They're trying to win.

Speaker 7 (01:08:22):
They're trying to win the division again, they're trying to
win in the playoffs, which are six months away. But
he's here because they believe he can make them better,
which I cannot believe where we were just again, he
has only been with the franchise for a couple of months.

Speaker 3 (01:08:39):
This trade was made.

Speaker 7 (01:08:41):
You know, into the off season he found out he's
going to be an astro and he's literally going to
play his first game with the organization Thursday, I'm sure
he's gonna be in the opening day line. I don't
know if Joe already said that, but that's what he's
here for.

Speaker 8 (01:08:56):
It's it's incredible. What be even more incredible as if
he does stay put, because that just means he is
everything that we thought he would. Look I don't think
he's not. It's just like you've been saying, you're being
the prudent one in this situation. It's is not normal.

Speaker 3 (01:09:12):
It just isn't.

Speaker 8 (01:09:14):
And all of these guys that have come up over
the years, most of well all of which for the
most part, the Astros drafted, they weren't acquired in this manner.
They ended up paying off Forrest Whitley being the loane
I think exception to mostly the I mean, we're talking aboutmans,
the Springers of the world.

Speaker 7 (01:09:36):
Right, But I mean, I know what you're saying, and
they're clear as day.

Speaker 3 (01:09:39):
You're right.

Speaker 7 (01:09:39):
As a top prospect, he has not panned out the
way they have, but he is also a pitcher.

Speaker 3 (01:09:44):
But this is the first one that they acquired for
another one of those guys.

Speaker 7 (01:09:48):
In Kyle Tucker, right, because they've never why, they've never
needed to or felt compelled to pull the trigger. That's
all timeline stuff. Why would you trade Springer early? Have
meant you hadn't even gotten to the Golden area yet.

Speaker 3 (01:10:02):
Why would you.

Speaker 7 (01:10:02):
Trade Korea early? And there's no reason to now trading
Kyle Tucker one year early? Well, because he's not teammates
with Alex Bregman, Carlos Carrea or George Springer or Justin
Berland or a Garrett Cole. And technically the timeline this offseason,
you could say he was teammates with Bregman. I guess
because Bregman didn't have a new home yet.

Speaker 3 (01:10:24):
Alex Bregman isn't even teammates with those guys, That's what
I mean. You wouldn't.

Speaker 7 (01:10:28):
There was no impetus to say, in order to help
us win longer, we need to say goodbye, we need
to push them out the door. They only pushed them
out the door when money was involved. Alex Bregman, you
want to go make more money, well we'll try to
keep you here. Correy, you want to make more money,
well we'll try to keep you here. Kyle Tucker wasn't
negotiating with any other team. He's under contract. He's playing

(01:10:48):
for the Astros this year. And the final year of
his year of control, a figure had already been realized
in their arbitration possibility, which they got to without needing it,
and then he had to do. So he's making seventeen
and a half million this year for somebody else at
their request.

Speaker 8 (01:11:05):
This is wild, though, Like I'm happy, but I do now, Okay,
now the rubber meets the road, and we'll see if
what he had to say about not putting pressure on
himself really holds true, because again, it's so much between
the years, especially at the plate. I mean, his struggles
in the field, whatever they may end up being, that's

(01:11:26):
just part of the process. But those can so much
more easily be overlooked if he's hitting at the plate.
But that's a huge if.

Speaker 7 (01:11:34):
Yeah, I'll tell you one thing. I said this the
other night on Sports Sunday. The opening day lineup probably
includes both Jose Al Tuve and Cam Smith, and from
that moment forward maybe forever, Cam Smith's a better outfielder
than Jose Al Touve from day one.

Speaker 8 (01:11:52):
Wow.

Speaker 3 (01:11:53):
So I don't know that they haven't seen that many
chances for us to really gauge that.

Speaker 7 (01:12:00):
But Jose Al Tuove as his athleticism gets worse, which
is going to happen. He's a human and Cam Smith's
in his early twenties learning to run around in the
outfield like.

Speaker 3 (01:12:15):
There's Opening Day.

Speaker 7 (01:12:17):
By the way, huge element of this, like jose Al
Tuove is gonna run ten times as much than he
ever has before, just defensively. That's not gonna hurt him
offensively at all. His legs are gonna stay with him
for one hundred and fifty plus starts all year in
his first year at age thirty five as an outfielder.

(01:12:39):
Granted it's not the biggest outfield for half of his games,
but he's got to run out there. He's got to
stand out there. He's got to you know, the balls
hit to center I got to run over there. When
the balls hit to center field, to your second basement,
you turn your head and stay there. When a ball
hit to center field and you're an outfielder, you make
your steps over to that. It's interesting. Cam Smith starter Thursday,
Opening Day, Love It.

Speaker 2 (01:13:01):
The Age on Sports Talk seven ninety.

Speaker 8 (01:13:11):
All right, Cam Smith is not only on the opening
day roster, he is your starter.

Speaker 3 (01:13:16):
In right field.

Speaker 8 (01:13:17):
As if there was a doubt about that, I guess
there could have been a doubt about that. But yeah,
if the astros are you know, say it confused, but
they're not.

Speaker 3 (01:13:31):
Man.

Speaker 7 (01:13:31):
We really think he was so good in the spring.
He sees humility and pins the way he goes about
his business. He's usually the first one here and just
swing to citizens. Are great that this kid just gets it.
He's got star star written all over him. He's available
if I need him. But Cam's gonna watch Chas McCormick
play right field and Jose play left.

Speaker 3 (01:13:52):
You imagine your on d H.

Speaker 7 (01:13:54):
But we we just wanted him to see what it's
like in the dugout a major league Going to be
a non starter for one of the games on the
home stand, I would imagine maybe two. But if you're
gonna put him up here and you're gonna, you know,
lean into the Cam Smith hype train, you might as
well start him on opening day while you're at it.
But yeah, that one didn't kind of not go with

(01:14:16):
the other. He's here, play him, that's why he's here.

Speaker 3 (01:14:20):
Here's the thing. What number are he wearing? That's all
I want to know.

Speaker 7 (01:14:25):
We'll keep asking until you have an answer, because I
won't be the one that has it, so you might
keep asking.

Speaker 8 (01:14:29):
I realized that the team shop would have to like
turn around something fierce, but not really. I guess if
they can make them, not make make them in like
mass production. But that is going to be the especially
with all the new gear that is, it's gonna be
like the hottest item that Astros fans are gonna want
opening day.

Speaker 3 (01:14:46):
Wet blanketed you this entire offseason.

Speaker 7 (01:14:48):
I mean, there's a chance it won't be on the
new jerseys, certainly won't be on the City Connects yet,
but there's a chance to just say, well, this was
we had a hard off season with all the changes
that were made, the guy's in the equipment room and
everybody getting them ready for the season. We just got
back to town. I mean, can he just wear thirty eight?
I've got ten Joe Smith jerseys right here? Can we

(01:15:11):
just come on, cam?

Speaker 3 (01:15:13):
What do you say? Can you just wear thirty eight?
That's so mean he's a.

Speaker 7 (01:15:17):
Bigger deal than that. I obviously am joking, but I do.

Speaker 8 (01:15:20):
Wonder because he had so many jerseys over his very
brief but yet lots of jerseys worn tenure in different
teams organizations.

Speaker 3 (01:15:30):
What have you, I do wonder what it'll end up being,
because you can't clearly.

Speaker 8 (01:15:34):
Well again, I'm not kidding when I say this, Like
every every Astros fan that is hearing this right now
that even is remotely a jersey guy is going to
want this article of clothing in all of the various
forms it comes in.

Speaker 7 (01:15:50):
And that's why we have at least two voices here.
I love jerseys, I love numbers. I like history, I
like baseball, I like memorabilia. I'm looking at the baseball side,
little less than the gear side. He will be wearing
an Astros jersey. Do I need more than I don't
need more more concerned about what he does in it?

(01:16:11):
I mean, I'm I'm I know what you're saying. I'm
not trying to poop poo that in any but you
could have fooled me. Yeah, he's gonna wear a number. Yeah, well,
they're gonna sell a lot of them, right, that's what
they're thinking, the Astros are actually, but it also doesn't
matter what it is. He could wear ninety nine, they
would sell it. I wish he could wear ninety three,
keep ninety I think it would look cool. I mean,

(01:16:32):
why not Aaron Judge wears ninety nine for the Yankees.
Why can't Cam Smith wear ninety and be better than
Aaron Judge. Okay, now I'm really putting the card ahead
the worst. I mean, he if he hits, if they
make it the playoffs this year, and he goes three
for eleven, I think he'd have a higher career batting
average than Arson. So I think he goes two for ten,
it'd be close, but maybe that one extra hit get

(01:16:54):
three for eleven, that'd probably be a better spot. Three
for twelve, two fifty that's probably around our.

Speaker 3 (01:16:58):
Way, and what fielding gas would be equivalent series.

Speaker 7 (01:17:02):
I'm sitting here going on and on about camp Smith
non catch early in last night's game, and Aaron Judge
played center field in the World Series and the ball
was hit right at him. He made a handful of
steps to come in to get it, and he missed it,
and the inning basically opened right there, and they couldn't
stop it. They couldn't close the inning, and they gave
up five runs, they gave up the cushion, and they

(01:17:22):
lost the World Series.

Speaker 3 (01:17:24):
Not long after. Errors will happen. That error happened for.

Speaker 7 (01:17:29):
A player who is a plus fielder with a plus arm,
with tons of experience.

Speaker 3 (01:17:36):
That's not what camp Smith is or has sence. It
happens all right. Seven seven ninety is your telephone number
if you want to wag in.

Speaker 8 (01:17:42):
Apparently, the Astros have also released a video documenting his
quote call up yep, top of the r we'll share
that with you. But I mean, it's got to be
I know it's a whirlwind for Astros fans. I can't
even imagine what it's like for this kid right now,
Like he's gonna have to settle down and play a
game tonight.

Speaker 7 (01:18:03):
By the way, I don't think the concern should be
about tonight's performance. So but about Thursdays? Well, okay, but
it's todays from now.

Speaker 3 (01:18:12):
Yeah, very very high.

Speaker 7 (01:18:15):
Come back down a little bit, spend the day tomorrow
at the ballpark to the little preparation, and.

Speaker 8 (01:18:20):
He needs to hang out with you, is what he
needs to do. Where's my locker right now? I don't
know my way around Dyke and Park at all. I'm
lucky that I was gonna had the Uber drop me
off in the right place. I mean, I appreciate them
having a spot for me to park my car, but
I don't even have one.

Speaker 3 (01:18:34):
Where's the team garage? He doesn't know anything. It's crazy.
If I'm not mistaken, he's more familiar with Florida than
he is.

Speaker 7 (01:18:40):
First became an astro. I believe he was asked if
he'd ever been to Houston and the answer was no.

Speaker 3 (01:18:47):
He's about to find out what HEA's like. So yeah,
all that stuff.

Speaker 7 (01:18:50):
He has a lot to do when he really only
needs to focus on one thing is which is the baseball.
But that's what you're able to do when you're player
like this. He even said about last night's game, beautiful Ballpark.
I took my camera out there so I could document
this moment that I will never forget. His first walking.

(01:19:11):
He's now going to play a major league game there
in two days. He's gonna play a bunch of major
league games there. He's gonna make his first road trip
with the team. He's gonna play against one of their
division rivals on that opening road trip. He's going to
shake hands with Carlos Korea on their first road trip
most likely, and they're going to talk about their respective
paths to being the next great Houston Astro. That's gonna
be his first meeting with somebody other than Altuve and Alvarez.

(01:19:34):
That is a part of all this, and he's gonna
end up meeting them along the way if he stays
in the majors. But Carlos is first in line, and
when I guess he could have a conversation with Justin
but I don't really put them in him in the
same game.

Speaker 8 (01:19:46):
But what is before all that happens. You know, it's
even more impressive. He's already going to be a year
older than twenty one year old Juan Soto who comes
to town for opening Day.

Speaker 3 (01:19:54):
Twenty six year old Wan Soto will be here on Thursday.

Speaker 7 (01:19:57):
It's just like, you know, Juan Soto has been awesome
from the jump, awesome with the Nationals.

Speaker 8 (01:20:03):
Yep as he's now on his fourth team. Yeah, Nationals, Padres,
Yankees and now Mets. That's crazy. Probably his last team,
nobody wanted.

Speaker 7 (01:20:14):
To pay him, Nobody wanted to pay him what he
was worth because he was asking for more than they
were willing to pay.

Speaker 3 (01:20:20):
But clearly it is what he's worth.

Speaker 7 (01:20:22):
And now he found a team as he truly got
out of team control and out of the contract that
he was under. It's time to go get paid. He
got paid, and he's with the Mets. Mets have an
interesting team to bring to town. They clearly are better offensively,
even with kind of top heavy lineup. You know, Lindora
Alonso and Juan Soda are really really good, and there
are a couple of other players that came up last year.

(01:20:45):
We're a big part of the Viento's and others. I
think they'll be pretty good. They have some major question
marks with their rotation, even though it could turn out
to be a pretty good one. And then they got
the Giants, and then they finally come back to their
own league with the Twins and Mayor, and by then
we'll be talking about his first homer. Camp Smith's going
to hit. I think I'll take this. I'll lay this early,

(01:21:08):
Campsmith wager on you. Camp Smith hits his first major
league home run on this homestand I want to say
during this series, but I'm gonna give myself a little
bit of I don't know how much he plays, give
me four or five games, and he will hit his
first major league home run during this first ever homestand
as a ballplayer.

Speaker 8 (01:21:28):
The major league level, the hype going to overdrive yees
bad could you imagine that place?

Speaker 3 (01:21:33):
We can imagine it's mine.

Speaker 7 (01:21:35):
What did it sound like when the message was given
to the team and Cam, We'll share that with you
next four o'clock here on the eighteen.

Speaker 2 (01:21:43):
The eighteen on Sports Talk seven ninety.

Speaker 1 (01:21:49):
Teen, lifelong Houston sports guys named Adham talking your Team,
Adam Clinton and Adam Wexler are the A Team.

Speaker 8 (01:22:04):
Four o'clock hour underway here on Sports Talk seven ninety
and Space City Home Network.

Speaker 3 (01:22:09):
It is the A Team.

Speaker 8 (01:22:10):
The news of the day obviously the fact that Cam
Smith is not only making the opening day roster, not
only starting in right field on Thursday during the home
opener against the New York Mets, but the call up
was captured obviously.

Speaker 7 (01:22:28):
Yeah, the Astros or their manager probably his decision, decided
to do it in a very dramatic way. Had everybody
in the clubhouse before they went out to the field
and took care of prepping for a baseball game, the
exhibition game tonight, and going through the some of the
media that they would take part in later. So he
has the whole team in there. He addressed the team,

(01:22:50):
talked about how special these days are and you know
everyone's here for a reason. We're all trying to get there,
but you know, these are moments you want to remember
and recognize, and so I I wanted to bring somebody
in so to help me with this.

Speaker 3 (01:23:03):
And I imagine there's.

Speaker 7 (01:23:04):
People in the clubhouse that may have thought they could
kind of sense what was happening here.

Speaker 3 (01:23:09):
So he took out his phone.

Speaker 7 (01:23:11):
Manager Joe A spotted did and he was, I'll see
if I can find the number here, and he was
looking for it and then he looked up and he said, oh, okay,
I think I've got it here, and that's when Cam
Smith's parents walked in, his girlfriend walked into the clubhouse.

Speaker 3 (01:23:24):
Cam Smith.

Speaker 7 (01:23:25):
For those of you that have been in the Astros clubhouse,
normally the entrance for regulars like ourselves is at one
end of the clubhouse, and the outfielders sit on the
far end of the clubhouse.

Speaker 3 (01:23:36):
That's where he's sitting.

Speaker 7 (01:23:37):
He's seated next to Jake Myers, and he realizes what's
happening immediately puts his head in his hands. His mom,
his dad, his girlfriend make their way across to the clubhouse,
through all the players over to his lockers. Obviously, he
gives his mom a hug. He gives his family a
hug and he's in tears. He gathers himself and there's
some thanks for this, thanks for that. This is a

(01:23:57):
big moment. Joe comes over, shakes his head and then
he met with the media and he was still clearly
get yourself together, kid, emotional about what we've been talking
about for the better part of an hour. Cam Smith,
after being drafted last year number fourteen by the Cubs,
traded to the Astros and a Kyle Tucker deal. First
spring training as a professional is with the Astros. Here

(01:24:19):
he Rakes made his Dyke and Park debut last night,
first at bat a two RBI triple, made a great
catch in the outfield, and met with the media today
after the news and the emotion still going for Cam Smith.

Speaker 6 (01:24:33):
Thank you get great.

Speaker 5 (01:24:36):
Yeah. I always thought it was possible, you know. I
think I had a great, great group of guys around
me to help me out to get here today. So
I always saw it as it a possibility, you know,
for it to happen, and you know we're here today talking.

Speaker 6 (01:24:52):
About it now. So I'm very blessed.

Speaker 12 (01:24:55):
I know this is very emotional for you, but just
the special nature your mom delivered that you said you
broke down, But can you just take us through the
idea that she would be the one after all she did.

Speaker 1 (01:25:06):
For you to tell you that you made my league.

Speaker 5 (01:25:09):
Yeah, I mean, you know, at one point it was
just me and her in the house. She's struggling to
take me into baseball games and practice, and.

Speaker 1 (01:25:31):
I'm just happy to do.

Speaker 8 (01:25:32):
It for her. Yeah, I'm I'm watching the video alongside
the sound here because Ari Alexander of KPRC Channel two
had posted that, and it's just, you know, we talk
about this every single time this happens. It's just incredible
the emotion, and there's nothing really like it, but this guy.

Speaker 3 (01:25:53):
I mean he.

Speaker 8 (01:25:55):
There's guys that come up and they have promise, not
like this guy's as close as it gets to you thinking,
all right, maybe they've got another like insanely big fish here.
And for it to happen right out of spring training
with as little time as we've been talking about him
being at this level, and then to do it in
this dramatic fashion, it is he just got done talking

(01:26:18):
about all the pressure that he's not gonna place on himself.

Speaker 3 (01:26:20):
But man, this is gonna be It's gonna be interesting
to see how this all fold.

Speaker 8 (01:26:25):
So far, so good, but it's so early in the
process right now, so I'm dying to see how the
first chapter of his major league career is written.

Speaker 3 (01:26:33):
In what it looks like, Well, I have to wait
long for it.

Speaker 7 (01:26:36):
Obviously, he's gonna be a big part of their first
handful of games. I would imagine they've got to do something.
Also with Zach Decenzo has been told the same thing.
He's a part of their opening day roster. Really no
reason for them to have them here if they're not
going to be regulars, and it's going to be difficult
to make them regulars with everybothing else unless there's negative
news that I'm unaware of with Christian Walker, but there isn't.

(01:26:56):
He's gonna start at first, Jordon's gonna start at DH,
jose Al Tube, Star dar in the outfield and left field,
and a combination of Mauricio Dubon and Brendan Rodgers are
starting at second eastak Paritis is the everyday third baseman.
They need Jake Myers in center. There aren't two open
positions for the two young players they want to play.
Often there are spots to find them time, but you're

(01:27:20):
here to be a regular, and I kind of believe
that they're indicating that, Yeah, one of them is, and
it's Cam Smith.

Speaker 8 (01:27:27):
Yeah, Cam Smith starting in Rye Field opening Day against
the Mets. We all remember how last season started with
the New York team coming to town for a four
game series and the New York team leaving town with
four wins and the Astros still looking for win number
one and then of course a no hitter thrown by
Renel Blanco after that. But I have no idea how

(01:27:51):
the start of this season is going to get off
to I just know that it's It's fascinating in about
fifty different ways.

Speaker 3 (01:27:57):
And this just became the latest thing. Yeah, I mentioned they.

Speaker 7 (01:28:00):
I put out what I thought the opening day roster
would be, and along with it the opening day lineup,
and it shockingly, as I tweeted it out, I said,
here's my best guess. Tell me where I'm wrong, because
inevitably I will be. I had Ryan Gusto making the
team with the last spot in the bullpen. That was
confirmed by Joe Spotty yesterday that in fact will be

(01:28:20):
the case. I had Cam Smith making the team along
with Descenzo and that was met by many on the
X platform saying I could see either, but I don't
see a scenario where both of them make it, And
I responded to a lot of them saying, you're probably right.
I kind of don't think that will be either, but
that was my best guess.

Speaker 3 (01:28:39):
Well, they were.

Speaker 7 (01:28:40):
Everything so far was, and again most of the roster
was already decided. It was not as difficult. I'm trying
not to make it sound difficult, but the opening day
lineup with Cam Smith in it, I would put him
in the seventh spot. I would put Altuve, Perettis and
al Tuove one, two, three, and again now that's also
been confirmed. That's what Joe Spotty will do Thursday, and
I will imagine for most of this season until the

(01:29:02):
performance tells them otherwise, it tells him otherwise. I would
slot Christian Walker in behind him at four. Janer Diez
goes five, Jeremy Pania six, and you're seven, eight nine.
I gave Mauricio Dubon the opening day's start, but I
do believe Brendan Rodgers will play second base more often
because of what Dubon can do for you in games

(01:29:22):
at any position. But if Dubon's out there, I think
I would go Smith, Dubon, Myers. If it's Brendan Rodgerson,
probably just flip the two of them and still bat
Meyers ninth and bat Smith's seventh.

Speaker 8 (01:29:36):
Uh debt kind of would curtail the automatic out portion
of the lineup at the end.

Speaker 3 (01:29:43):
I would assume.

Speaker 7 (01:29:44):
I don't I mean, I don't know what to say
to that, because Mauricio Dubon and Jake Myers are the same.
They're they're gonna hit, You're gonna give you a seven
hundred ops unless and Dubon's not gonna be different. Du
Bond's been in the league too long.

Speaker 3 (01:29:55):
This I think this is who he is.

Speaker 7 (01:29:57):
That's what his OPS will be. He'll be just under
a hundre plus OPS guy in the nineties. Jake Myers
at least there's some Maybe there's a little more from him.
Maybe he makes more contact, he continues to drive the
ball like we know he can, and maybe there's more
extra base power there, so maybe he gets a little
bit better than that. But neither one of them walks.
They don't get on base a lot, and I don't

(01:30:18):
know that that changes. But Jake Myers at least profiles
as a hitter who could do more if things work
out well. But they're batting at the bottom of the
lineup because this is who they are last year at least.
Clearly Jake has more power, but they're really not that
different as hitters. You don't want them in the everyday lineup,
but clearly Jake is going to play every day well
because you want his glove.

Speaker 8 (01:30:39):
What I'm in the field, yeah exactly, But what I'm
in is putting Cam in the seventh hole. Just it
feels like it's not as I don't know, I'll tell
you what. It makes the bottom of the lineup or
the last third of the lineup more interesting each time around,
just because he's it makes any part of where you're
gonna put him interesting. I'm just still kind of stunned.

(01:30:59):
I'm still getting over the fact that it actually happened.
I thought, Okay, there's an outside chance everybody is hyping
him up, but this happens all the time. I don't
know that I ever really convinced myself that the Astros
would do this. It was hard not to with how
they treated it. They weren't making sure we knew, but
they pretty much were he's gonna play some right field
in the miners this year. Thanks Dana publicly said right

(01:31:24):
here on Sports Talk seven ninety and on Astro Line
and when he was giving visits there at West Palm Beach, because.

Speaker 7 (01:31:30):
That's what their plan was. He made them change it.
That's why we weren't believing us. Why some of us,
I'm sure me for several weeks.

Speaker 3 (01:31:37):
Stop. It's fun.

Speaker 7 (01:31:39):
I love playing the train sounds, I love being part
of the creation of the cam Smith hype train.

Speaker 3 (01:31:44):
But he's not going to be here on opening day.
I mean, why would you do that to him? What
could he pop?

Speaker 7 (01:31:49):
He didn't have ten homers, he didn't hit five hundred,
but my goodness, he did enough to give them the
realistic viewpoint of he's going to help us win and
it's not going to come at the expense of his development.
You know, Zach Decenzo, the top five Astros prospect, he's
here too. I'm not sure how they're going to fill
out everything because there are a couple of decisions to

(01:32:11):
be made.

Speaker 6 (01:32:12):
Well.

Speaker 7 (01:32:12):
When they take on the Mets and the Astros exit
the dugout for the first.

Speaker 3 (01:32:15):
Time to hit the field.

Speaker 1 (01:32:18):
Back to Adam Clinton and Adam Wexler the eighty.

Speaker 8 (01:32:31):
And wex here on a Tuesday to show the program
Sports Talk seven to ninety. Of course, the big news
of the day, Cam Smith making the opening day roster.
If you missed it last segment, we played a little
audio from him and obviously the video of him getting
the call. I hate to say call up. I mean,
technically it is, but he's already there. I mean he's

(01:32:52):
not really being called up. He's being called over by
Joe Spotta, called over. Well, he's not on the roster.

Speaker 7 (01:32:58):
I know, he's a minor league we prospect, so he's
being called up to the majors.

Speaker 3 (01:33:03):
We do semantics here.

Speaker 7 (01:33:06):
Okay, the call up, as they called it themselves on
their own social media post.

Speaker 8 (01:33:12):
It was a pretty cool moment, though. I couldn't help
but notice this is where I become the wet blanket.
Who's the odd man out in the outfield here as
it stands today, heading into just the opening day. Chas McCormick,
he was sitting right there observing it all, and I'm
sure he knew this day was coming sooner rather than later,

(01:33:36):
seeing his al That's that's who Cam was.

Speaker 3 (01:33:40):
That's where he was likely going to be playing all
this kind of stuff.

Speaker 8 (01:33:45):
That's a guy who's wanting to bounce back to where
he used to be for this team as a starter
in the World Series.

Speaker 3 (01:33:53):
This doesn't help that there was no one has nothing
to do with the other.

Speaker 7 (01:34:00):
I saw somebody in my opinion like, could this be
the final last push to say, well, if this isn't
going to help you snap out of it, nothing, Well,
now he's not going to play a lot. So that's
where you're right, and I shouldn't say one definitely has
something to do with the other. And the most important
part of it, which I was completely omitting because I
was thinking of the other parts, how can he play

(01:34:21):
better if he's not on the field. He's not going
to play unless cam Smith plays poorly. That's what's happened here.
So to what you said, I should not have said
what I said. It's absolutely the case, but could it
be a well, this is kind of your last chance.
You've seen the writing on the wall that now it's
as loud and as bright as you can ever be.
The opportunity to get on the field is essentially gone.

(01:34:44):
So to have this bounce back year, he needs somebody
else to not succeed to get back on the field.

Speaker 8 (01:34:52):
I saw somebody say this during the break. It just
happened to fly past on my timeline. I'd feel a
lot better about this if Cam was in right field,
Chaz was in left field, and al tuove was back
at second base.

Speaker 3 (01:35:07):
That's the thing.

Speaker 7 (01:35:08):
I wish we could spend more time talking about it,
and we probably should, because at some point they might
have to consider it if things don't go well, or
if they think it's impacting al Twovey's offensive numbers because
he's on his feet or running around more whatever, or
he's mentally for as awesome as he is. I doubt
this would happen, but has it mentally warn on him
that he's out there every day in left field, not

(01:35:30):
smiling and laughing with his mates around the infield, not
making mound visits, and just simply not playing well.

Speaker 3 (01:35:35):
It's more to it. Is it getting to him to
a certain degree.

Speaker 7 (01:35:39):
But in order for al two bay to play second base,
something pretty dramatic seems like it would need to happen,
But it definitely would put them in a totally different
situation that would make room for what they're hoping will
be the next wave of helpful talent. I mean, if
jose Al Tuove is a second baseman, which he's been
his entire career, then between McCory mc Descenzo Smith, and Myers,

(01:36:03):
you've got four outfielders every day to play three spots.
Now you have four outfielders to play two spots, and
one of them you shouldn't count because he's in the
outfield every day, and Myers he has to play every day.
McCormick is now your reserve, your first reserve, I think
at all three spots. He's probably your best defensive left fielder, centerfielder,

(01:36:23):
and right fielder among the non starters.

Speaker 3 (01:36:25):
So that's someone you would have to turn to.

Speaker 7 (01:36:27):
But now, what are you getting from him? It was
such a down year he was sent down last year.
He also has options, which most of the players they
have that are advanced and certainly on the pitching side,
do not. They also maintain, according to Chandlerome, they've not
yet made the decision on the other infielder. I've basically

(01:36:48):
been talking like Brandon Rodgers is on the team. I
don't want to apologize for it because I can't believe
it's not true. But between he and Zach Short. Apparently
the decision has not been made and really.

Speaker 3 (01:36:58):
Not sure why. I don't understand that. It's pretty obvious.
What is it, Rogers, Well, that's what I mean. So
what are you waiting for? I don't know. Well, I
mean you're asking me to determine how the Astros goes out.

Speaker 7 (01:37:10):
There because Zach Short quietly do something during spring that
indicated his baseball career is not accurate. I know Brendan
Rodgers is a bad split player leaving Colorado. I totally
get that they don't want him there anymore.

Speaker 3 (01:37:25):
I get that too.

Speaker 5 (01:37:27):
Ha.

Speaker 7 (01:37:27):
Zach Short made his major league debut in twenty twenty one,
has been with four different organizations prior to this one. Detroit,
New York, Boston, Atlanta have all used him as a
major leaguer in some former fashion, usually fairly briefly. He's
a career one sixty seven hitter in five hundred plus
played appearances.

Speaker 3 (01:37:45):
He can't hit at the major league level. Brendan Rodgers
probably can, I think if he's in Colorado, at least
we know that. So they haven't made the final decision
on that. We will see what goes but it should
be fun watching tonight.

Speaker 7 (01:37:59):
If you thought Cam Smith was excited about playing in
front of the people last night, I imagine they'll be
that much more excited to see him hit the field,
both as they go through their pregame routines as he
hits the field to bat fifth and play right field
again this evening. And you know, he even noted, you know,
as it relates and compares to spring training atmosphere, even
with a small crowd. They had a small crowd last night,

(01:38:21):
They'll have a small crowd tonight.

Speaker 3 (01:38:22):
It is different.

Speaker 7 (01:38:23):
It is louder, and you're in a major league ballpark,
and every the ballpark is five Cacti ballpark of the
Palm Beaches could fit inside Minute May Park. It's it's
just a different atmosphere completely, and he needs us much.
He's only going to get seven to nine more innings
of experience before he makes his major league debut in
this ballpark's tonight.

Speaker 8 (01:38:44):
Part of me wishes he was not playing the Sugarland
Space Cowboys in that ballpark.

Speaker 3 (01:38:49):
I know that's not how it works. I know this
is what they do more often than not.

Speaker 7 (01:38:53):
They they are lucky. I think that they get to
play them. I mean, most other major League teams Braves
and Cubs, for instance. They're playing either other major league
teams the Royals and Rangers played today, or they're playing
a local team of some sort or an international team
of some sort in their final games, not in their
spring training site. When they go home and they have

(01:39:13):
a couple of games. I think it's good that they're
playing this group.

Speaker 8 (01:39:16):
Well, don't use what I'm saying is facing a major
league pitching specifically for him in a major league ballpark.

Speaker 3 (01:39:22):
That's what I'm getting here.

Speaker 7 (01:39:23):
Yeah, Jacob de Grom pitch today for the Rangers. That
would probably be a little bit better test than the
pitching he will see.

Speaker 3 (01:39:28):
Tonight, especially since he'll be hurt before you know it.

Speaker 7 (01:39:30):
But he hasn't seen any Triple A pitching either. Literally,
he's never faced a Triple A pitcher. I mean, granted,
during spring training you face guys that pitched in Triple A,
but he hasn't even played in a Triple A game.

Speaker 3 (01:39:40):
This is wild, man.

Speaker 8 (01:39:41):
I mean, like twy I said, I just I couldn't
quite convince myself that they would do it because of
things like that that you're saying, and everybody knows, But
I guess it's learning on the fly and not just
at the plate. He's gonna be in right field doing
this highlight at the top of the show. But here

(01:40:02):
we are, man, this is it. There's no look, there's
no turning back now, unless, of course it's not. You're
allowed to go to the minors after you make the
opening day roster. I know, But that's that goes back
to what I was talking about before. That is the
part where you find out what you're really made of mentally.
If indeed, that's what ends up happening. And there's a
better chance that that happens, by the way, than it doesn't.

Speaker 7 (01:40:24):
Odds are he'll face somebody who will make his major
league debut this year. Aj blue Ball is going to
be the opening pitcher, the starter tonight for Sugarland, and
he will probably make his way to the Astros roster
this year. Just all things consider Ryan Gusto, who pitched
well enough in spring training to now hope again to
make his major league debut.

Speaker 3 (01:40:42):
If you forgot he was with the Astros last year.

Speaker 7 (01:40:45):
When their final regular season game was canceled, he was
set to start and make his major league debut. They
did not, obviously need to make up the game. The
playoff situation they were in was already decided. He now
will make his major league debut, most likely in an
it could be in an unfortunate situation. If a starter
is struggling in this three game series or probably in

(01:41:05):
the next three game series, he's probably getting up. He's
probably the first pitcher they get up. If it's somebody
needs to get loose in the third, fourth, fifth inning
of a ballgame. He can go obviously multiple innings. Rafael
Montero back with the Astros. On the opening day roster
mentioned Cooper Hummell was kind of the last other player
that were deciding among the three outfielders him, Descenzo and

(01:41:28):
Cam Smith. We've told you Decenzo and camp Smith are
Astros on opening day. Cooper Hummel will not be an
Astro on opening day. John Singleton was officially waived cleared waivers,
but he has his option on where he plays baseball next.
Could still end up in the organization, but not necessarily,
And my best guess is he probably has an opportunity

(01:41:49):
somewhere else. His season last year was I thought good
enough where his spot here wasn't even in question. Remember
I basically thought he was a lot to make the
team as a left handed batter, and you know your
reserve first basement. Zach Decenzo becomes your reserve first basement.
Victor Carratini is another player who can play first base.
Same with Mauricio Dubon, even he socked Perettis. Maybe, although

(01:42:10):
I'm not sure who you put a third base that day,
Maybe Cam, maybe Marie.

Speaker 3 (01:42:15):
I don't know.

Speaker 7 (01:42:16):
They do have a lot of options, but it again
takes me back to all the years where they had
very few options because their lineup was awesome, because you
didn't need tons of roster flexibility. Your roster flexibility rested
with one player.

Speaker 3 (01:42:30):
His name was Marwin. A led miss Mauricio. That's it.

Speaker 8 (01:42:33):
I'm still old enough to remember when minor leaguer Kyle
Tucker was untouchable in trades because Jeff Luno refused to
part ways with him.

Speaker 3 (01:42:44):
It's a long way from that situation as the Kyle
will be in the opening day line up for the Cubs.

Speaker 8 (01:42:48):
That's the guy, yeah, that you got Cam Smith for
is already out the door and a Chicago Cub. Now
it's just a wild, upside down world we're living in
with a few hours left before the start.

Speaker 3 (01:43:01):
Of the twenty twenty five baseball season.

Speaker 8 (01:43:03):
All right, we've still got a lot to get to
here on the program, We're gonna catch up with our
old buddy Frank Caliendo coming up in the next segment.
He is going to be in town before you know it,
beginning of next month, when we will touch base with him.
He has all the hot takes on Cam Smith. I
was joking with him about it before. He's like, man,
I do not know anything about baseball these days.

Speaker 3 (01:43:22):
No, we will.

Speaker 8 (01:43:23):
We'll touch base with him. He's got some shows coming
up at the Improv. Always a good time with Frank Caliendo.
That is straight ahead here on the eighteen, the A.

Speaker 2 (01:43:32):
Team on Sports Talk seven ninety.

Speaker 3 (01:43:37):
Hey, it's Hunner Brown.

Speaker 6 (01:43:39):
Catch every Ashros game on Sports Talk seven ninety before
the iHeartRadio app.

Speaker 3 (01:43:45):
Home of Your Ashros.

Speaker 2 (01:43:46):
Myers crushes it just said goodbye, Hey.

Speaker 3 (01:43:49):
Jake Myers.

Speaker 5 (01:43:50):
Catch every Astros game on Sports Talk seven ninetyfo the
iHeartRadio app Home of Your Astros.

Speaker 3 (01:44:01):
It's the eighteen. It's Wex and AC.

Speaker 8 (01:44:03):
It's a Tuesday edition of the program, and it's time
to catch up with our good buddy Frank Caliendo, who
is gonna be joining us here in our fair city
coming up on Saturday, April fifth and Sunday April sixth,
two shows Saturday, one on Sunday. You can get your
tickets at IMPROVTX dot com. Houston Improv is where he

(01:44:25):
will be performing. Frank, how goes it today on a Tuesday.

Speaker 6 (01:44:29):
I'm doing so super well.

Speaker 3 (01:44:31):
Thanks. I don't know, I don't know. It just happened.

Speaker 6 (01:44:33):
I turned under Rick Moranas after Okay, I gotta have
a shower.

Speaker 3 (01:44:36):
What was that?

Speaker 8 (01:44:37):
By the way, I've been on radio ghosts Rick Moranas
really yeah?

Speaker 6 (01:44:42):
Wow, Vince Glortho, Yeah, I.

Speaker 8 (01:44:47):
Was gonna say, I just showed WEX the skit that
Rick moranis did where he's Michael McDonald and he keeps
getting back into the studio to cut the the It's
like the yacht rock thing.

Speaker 3 (01:44:57):
That's so good.

Speaker 6 (01:44:58):
That's an sc TV sketch, isn't it.

Speaker 8 (01:45:00):
Yes, way back in the day. Did you watch that
yacht rock documentary? By the way, I did not, but
I've heard quite a few people talking about it. Yeah,
it's it's good stuff. I was gonna ask you because
you do and we were texting about this the other
night a little bit. Because you do so many political figures,
and because you do so many well current and former presidents,

(01:45:21):
do you have a favorite of the because you do
a number of them.

Speaker 6 (01:45:26):
Yeah, I mean Bush was the first one. I guess
maybe Clinton was in office when I first started, but
Bush became big man. That was a you know, one
of those that whatever that kind of thing, and Oliver Stone.

Speaker 3 (01:45:43):
And uh and uh.

Speaker 6 (01:45:46):
Who is in w That's when my now, I got
the I got the Bush thing goes went into the
impression too much. Josh Brolin and they watched video of
me to work on the Bush impression for that movie.
And I talked to Josh Sprolling about it. He's like, man,
that's just me doing you that whole time. I was like,
could you why not tell everybody that I have an
interview where he talks about me a little bit, but

(01:46:08):
not like that. I'm like when he said, that's just
me doing an impression of you doing an impression of
Bush the whole time for that movie, I'm like, that's
pretty cool. I would love for more people to hear
that from you.

Speaker 10 (01:46:17):
You know.

Speaker 3 (01:46:18):
So the Bush was a big one.

Speaker 13 (01:46:22):
And then Barack Obama, which was the just pausing in
between h and every phrase.

Speaker 9 (01:46:33):
And then quite frankly, Donald Trump. It's a great job.

Speaker 6 (01:46:36):
And I do library Trump now I call him because
he used to be all it was always loud when
Trump was talking. When I did a sketch with him
at Trump Tower years ago, he just would as soon
as the camera went on.

Speaker 3 (01:46:46):
He became like super Trump, like he was this different guy.

Speaker 6 (01:46:50):
But now he's got the the gangster lean, like the
way he's just leaning on the podium and he's just like,
I'm comfortable, man, I'm a very comfortable president. And I'm
doing the I just take can and a lot of
people are talking about how great this sh We're going
to look through some books.

Speaker 3 (01:47:04):
We're going to do a picture book.

Speaker 1 (01:47:05):
It's going to be very good.

Speaker 6 (01:47:06):
And then Biden, which is now my Biden impression is
basically me just wandering around stage going.

Speaker 3 (01:47:12):
Folks, come on, but a guy with the thing.

Speaker 6 (01:47:15):
I don't have to tell you now you do have
to tell us you were the president, I would have
told you it's not your turn. It is again you
went paying attention.

Speaker 7 (01:47:24):
Now, people here, because of what we've been talking about
all day, are doing some very violent and very outward
and clear fist pumping because cam Smith has made the astros.
Now when you without caring how the country is necessarily
going to run and how politics are going to go
whatever direction it is. But over the last twenty thirty years,
even was there one kind of individual personal fist pump

(01:47:47):
you gave for I'm glad this person has won the election,
not only for that impression, but all the other impressions
that clearly go with it because that particular person is
in office.

Speaker 6 (01:47:59):
I mean, I mean, it definitely makes it easier with
Donald Trump as present, right, because he's always somewhere talking
about something. Biden was you never, regardless of political affiliation
or what however you feel about whatever, on all these guys, Uh,
these people to me, you know, Biden, you didn't hear
from him very much, and then Trump you hear from

(01:48:21):
him constantly. So there's always something. Although there are just
tons and tons of.

Speaker 8 (01:48:28):
Tons, tremendous amount of tons, it's not a good connection.
I think all of a sudden there we'll have to
see if we can get reconnected with Frank Caliendo.

Speaker 3 (01:48:37):
But by the way, he's going to be at the
Houston improv.

Speaker 8 (01:48:39):
It's coming up on Saturday, April fifth, two shows, and
then Sunday, April sixth, there is He's back, what's up?

Speaker 7 (01:48:46):
Man?

Speaker 6 (01:48:47):
You know, I just turn it off and turn it
back on. It was it was transmitting the whole time.
But well, see that's the problem. There's a lot of
bad people out there, and they're trying to they're trying
to step us from talking to you because we're telling
the truth.

Speaker 9 (01:48:59):
And Elon fixed doing a great ye.

Speaker 8 (01:49:02):
By the way, you said you did a skit with
him for what Again? With Trump at Trump Tower for
NF believe it or not, it was the NFL on Fox.
I think around two thousand something, I don't remember.

Speaker 6 (01:49:16):
At Trump Tower, I'm dressed as Trump and I look
like mini me version of Trump because he's six to
two and I'm five to six. But I get there
and he's wearing a pink time wearing a blue tie.
He's like, should we have the same tie. We should
have the same tie. We should have a very similar tie.

Speaker 9 (01:49:29):
You don't have their eight tie.

Speaker 3 (01:49:30):
And then he sends somebody to get me a pink tie,
so then we have two pink ties.

Speaker 13 (01:49:34):
We're doing.

Speaker 6 (01:49:35):
We're both doing the Trump hand motions and stuff like that,
and then Evanka Evana which Ivanka that's his.

Speaker 3 (01:49:42):
Daughter, which was his daughter? Yeah, I think it's Avanka.

Speaker 6 (01:49:44):
She walks by and she just looks at us and
like nods or head like what is he doing? Like
that kind of a thing. So then we finished the sketch. Uh, well,
we're part of the way through the sketch and with
the camera stops down. Somebody made a bad camera move
and he's.

Speaker 9 (01:49:59):
Like, is this okay? It seems funny? Is it funny?

Speaker 3 (01:50:01):
Is it good?

Speaker 9 (01:50:01):
Is you good?

Speaker 6 (01:50:01):
And everybody's like, yes, mister Trump, It's fantastic, mister Trump,
it's great, mister Trump. I was like, wait, wait, wait,
does anybody ever tell you.

Speaker 3 (01:50:06):
Something isn't good?

Speaker 9 (01:50:07):
He goes, no, Frank, And that's part of the problem.
I can't get real answers.

Speaker 3 (01:50:10):
So I'm like, okay, too many yes men.

Speaker 6 (01:50:12):
Yeah. So then he says, uh, do you have a
second I'm like sure. He goes come with me, and
it was like Willie Wonk. He's like, come with me,
you will see an end of pew Trump and Niche.
So we go to the Trump Evader and which is
like a walk evader, but it goes in a circle
and then flips back, kind of like Trump's here. So
we go down and he takes me to this Kiosk
or but I'm kind of in awe of the whole situation.

(01:50:35):
Donald Trump walking me around Trump Tower and I'm dressed
as Trump and people are just looking at the two
of us, like is that Russian nesting dolls or what?

Speaker 9 (01:50:41):
So I we go to this Kioska thing and he goes, uh,
do you uh?

Speaker 3 (01:50:49):
What did he go first?

Speaker 6 (01:50:50):
He's like, do you want ties?

Speaker 3 (01:50:51):
Do you like ties?

Speaker 9 (01:50:52):
I'm like sure.

Speaker 6 (01:50:52):
He starts giving me these ties. You can wear these.
You can wear these when you're pretending to be me,
it'll be very good. Do you wear cufflinks? I'm like,
not yet, but if you're giving them out, I'll take him.
So then he goes, are you married?

Speaker 3 (01:51:04):
I go, uh, yeah. He goes, here's a better question,
do you like your wife?

Speaker 6 (01:51:07):
And I was like, what kind of question is that?
He goes, well, here and he gives me this watch
and he takes the price tag off of the watch
and hands it to me. So I don't I don't
know if it's but it looks like it's got diamonds
and it's gold and all sorts of stuff, but it
is a kioskin Trump Tower. I can't tell him we're to,
you know, jewelry, so I don't know what's going on.
And he sends me off into New York City with

(01:51:28):
this gold watch with diamonds on it. And I call
my wife and I'm like, Donald Trump just gave me
a watch. I think it's like it might be worth
a lot of money. She goes, send me a picture.
So I sent her a picture and I was like,
oh uh.

Speaker 3 (01:51:45):
She goes, is it real.

Speaker 6 (01:51:46):
I'm like, I'm not sure, and she goes, don't worry,
I'll call our jeweler, and I'm like, we have a jeweler. Yeah, yeah,
that Trump. Trump helped me find out more stuff about
my life. So it turns out it was the Melania
collection and it was just costume jewelry that he was
selling at Trump They were selling at Trump Tower. But
he sent me out in the New York City and
you're gold see him at homes like I got him back.

(01:52:06):
He's doing all these voices and he's he's now feeling
the rest of Trump got him. And I've heard he
did that same kind of thing to Charlie Sheen one time.

Speaker 3 (01:52:16):
I agree, geez.

Speaker 6 (01:52:17):
Charlie Sheen tells a story where he's, you know, giving
him a watch and he takes off the price deck.

Speaker 3 (01:52:22):
So he does it all the time.

Speaker 8 (01:52:24):
Those two getting together in New York is dangerous, especially
with what Charlie did at the well, it was the
Plaza Hotel at the time.

Speaker 3 (01:52:30):
But right, well, Frank, you are gonna be at the
Houston Improv.

Speaker 8 (01:52:34):
It's gonna be Saturday April fifth, two shows six and
eight thirty, and then Sunday, April sixth another at six o'clock.
You can get the tickets at improv tx dot com.
It's the Houston Improv. WEX and I are planning on
being there. We're gonna bring our better halves and we're
looking forward to seeing you.

Speaker 3 (01:52:50):
Man. It's gonna be great. It's gonna be incredible.

Speaker 8 (01:52:53):
It's as all of your imperson impressionations would say, it's
gonna be incredible. But Trump's Trump's to be the best
when it comes to that exact phrase.

Speaker 6 (01:53:01):
Probably the best of all time. And there a lot
of people are showing that. The other people that can
do a very good one, and there are some great ones.
System tremendousments. But I'm getting very quiet and then I'm
going to tell you that you're wrong, but you're also right.

Speaker 3 (01:53:14):
It's what he does.

Speaker 8 (01:53:15):
Frank, We appreciate the time. We're looking forward to seeing
you at the beginning of next month. Thanks again, man,
see you soon, all right. Frank Calliando here on Sports
Talk seven ninety looking forward to seeing him out at
the Houston Improv. He always puts on a fantastic show,
So if you're looking for a very very fun night out,
that is definitely a good recommendation.

Speaker 3 (01:53:35):
We will take a quick time out here. We'll come
right back.

Speaker 8 (01:53:37):
We'll jump right back into the Cam Smith conversation among
other things when we return here.

Speaker 1 (01:53:42):
On the eighteen, the eighteen, on Sports Talk seven ninety,
Azy cranked Cold Beverage and the Cup Holder and Clampton
slamming the baseball teams from the other.

Speaker 8 (01:53:57):
Coasts Suck Itmerican League and National League and.

Speaker 1 (01:54:02):
World Serf's Up bro hu DDA team Summer continues back
to Adam Clinton and Adam Wexler.

Speaker 2 (01:54:10):
Fine Sports Talk seven ninety.

Speaker 8 (01:54:16):
Thanks again to Frank Calliando for stopping by, and shout
out to Brian who already got his tickets to the
Saturday show. Looking forward to seeing Frank out there all
three of those shows at the Houston Improv. He is
a good dude. He's even better guy off the air
and off stage. Just an absolutely fantastic guy who happens
to be really famous. You would never know it if

(01:54:37):
you actually have a chance to talk to the guy.
But yeah, looking forward to being out there next weekend.
In the meantime, a lot of baseball in between, and
of course the opening day just got significantly more intriguing,
more interesting than it already was gonna be. This is
where Hope springs eternal, obviously, but Hope springs eternal for
you know, the latest big name the it hopes to

(01:55:00):
kind of add himself to Astro's lore. You know, during
this time of just unprecedented winning and success and young
talent becoming season vets all before our eyes. The fact
that Cam Smith can garner this much attention from the
big league roster to get himself on that opening day

(01:55:22):
roster and start in right field. It's a very interesting
storyline of many to start the twenty twenty five campaign
for the Astros. And if you don't know about him nationally,
you're about to find out really fast one way or
the other.

Speaker 7 (01:55:36):
It is very interesting. That's just one of the things
like they'll have from ber Valdez making the opening day
start for the last.

Speaker 8 (01:55:45):
Time, probably because if you we didn't even talk about this.
He was asked point blank about it, and he's like, no,
I'm probably gonna go to free agency.

Speaker 7 (01:55:53):
Well, because the question before that was have they approached
you about a new contract? And the answer was no, right,
I haven't, which I didn't expect. I mean I would
expect it. I think you should.

Speaker 3 (01:56:04):
You're stuck. I guess one way or the other. He's good.

Speaker 7 (01:56:08):
You want him here, But do you want him here
enough to give him a deal he actually might say
yes to, because that is maybe dangerous if you really
don't want him here. But if you give him an
offer you think he's gonna say no to, then have
you insulted him as you need him to pitch well
this upcoming year, or you just let things play out
as they are. I mean, maybe that's taken as an

(01:56:28):
insult any number of ways. I imagine it won't have
much of an impact on the season. They need him
to pitch very very well. I brought it up at
the beginning of the show, not knowing that camp Smith
was part of the outfield but offensively defensively, bullpen, starting, rotation, defense,
five generic areas of the Houston Astros. What do you
feel best about? What is the biggest concern? And aren't

(01:56:51):
all five of those areas worthy of having some concern about.
We don't have to go round and round about defense.
Clearly it's a concern specifically to the outfield. Offensively, well,
guess why cam Smith is an Astro because they're concerned
about their offense. Starting pitching, we can tell you how
awesome it might be, but beyond from ber Valdez, the

(01:57:14):
word might applies to every other pitcher in the rotation.
And there's only five of them, and you get I
just gave you one good one. For sure, I have
full belief in Hunter Brown. He's done it once last
year for most of the year, not even the full year.
Spencer Araghetti did it kind of once for even less
of the year. Renel Blanco has been a major League

(01:57:34):
baseball starter or a starter period for one season. Last
year was year one, and Hayden Wiznski has been a
major league starter from start to finish in a season
zero times, and they have no depth behind them that
have major league experience. Ryan Gusta's on the roster lance,
but Cullors won't be on the roster for probably thirty days,
though he could make his return right after that. And

(01:57:56):
everybody else is just a pitcher in the system. They
don't have any other veteran ars. There aren't other pitchers
that are certainly capable of starting that are on this
big league club to start on opening day. Clearly the
bullpen has questions. Brian Abrady was so good. I do
feel silly as I did last year, even saying what
if he's not as awesome? And last year you could

(01:58:17):
tell me and I could tell you, we would all
agree he wasn't quite as awesome he was last year.

Speaker 3 (01:58:22):
Ever worked compared to what's new, right, this is going
to be year.

Speaker 8 (01:58:26):
Four in a rug didn't feel like being over work
was a little bit more egregious.

Speaker 7 (01:58:31):
He threw six more innings. That's a lot of innings,
six more appearances. He was over He felt like more
one in his first full season fifty five games, sixty innings.
Twenty twenty three was year two, add twelve innings and
seventeen appearances, but he got better. He was also twenty

(01:58:51):
six last year at age twenty seven, his third consecutive
year of being a workhorse out of the bullpen, an
even bigger workhorse.

Speaker 3 (01:58:58):
He was terribly out of three.

Speaker 7 (01:59:01):
Like. He was still really good, but he was nowhere
near as automatic as he was. He had a forty
appearance streak of scoreless baseball two years ago. So now
he's in a position where you don't really have any choice.
Paint me a scenario where he's not overworked. Well, one
of them is, they're awful, and the other one is

(01:59:23):
there isn't one.

Speaker 3 (01:59:24):
He's hurt.

Speaker 7 (01:59:25):
He's going to be overworked again this year. They have
two pitchers, neither of whom are coming off anywhere close
to their best seasons as professionals. Josh Hater and Brian Abrad.
You can count on them still in the eighth and
ninth inning and extras maybe, but you cannot sit here
and tell me that about any other pitcher in their bullpen.

(01:59:46):
Taylor Scott probably gets the ball in the seventh After
his one successful major league season. It was last year
he came to camp as a let's bring another arm
in here. And see if he can earn a spot
on the roster, and he turned in one of their
most dependable arms after many years of not being able
to do that elsewhere. You're counting on him and then

(02:00:06):
the other five guys in the bullpen. Steven Okerk much
like Rafael Montero in the past, much like Taylor Scott
in the past. There is a good portion of his
career in the past, but he didn't have it coming
into this year, which was why he was available to you.
And then young arms essentially will fill things out. Whitley
and Ort will be back at some point soon. Brian

(02:00:27):
King earned his spot here after making his debut with
the Astros last year. They could be good. I'm not
telling you that all these parts of the team are
going to be bad. I'm not by any means, but
you got to recognize the massive question marks with every
single part of a team that I'm still going to
pick to win the division though most other people are not.

Speaker 3 (02:00:46):
Why is that really across the board? Is it Texas
or is it Seattle or is it a mix. I'll
just hit you with this one thing.

Speaker 7 (02:00:52):
I mentioned it the other day and we just never
really got to it to the twenty five Athletic Baseball
writers where asked to predict their twenty twenty five World
Series champions and pennant winners. Twenty five of them sixteen
excuse me, eleven said the Texas Rangers would win the pennant,
let alone the division.

Speaker 3 (02:01:13):
What do they think?

Speaker 7 (02:01:14):
One said the Astros? Really, but again, that's the pennant.
Doesn't mean they're not gonna win the division. But clearly
eleven people think the Rangers are gonna win the entire
American League. Yeah, you don't want to talk about that
at five o'clock us either.

Speaker 3 (02:01:27):
Football at five?

Speaker 8 (02:01:28):
Is that.

Speaker 2 (02:01:31):
The eighteen? On Sports Talk seven ninety.

Speaker 1 (02:01:37):
Adam Clinton and Adam Wetfler are the eighteen? A?

Speaker 3 (02:01:51):
Oh, there it is. Well, it's actually two different types
of music.

Speaker 1 (02:01:56):
There we go.

Speaker 3 (02:01:57):
That Football at five music just seeps.

Speaker 8 (02:02:00):
In no matter what time of year it is, because,
let's face it, we live here in Texas. And so
for those of you who are like, oh my gosh,
can we take a segment off from Cam Smith and
the hype train, I'm just kidding. There's nobody like that
out there. I know Astros fans are excited and you
should be. One way, or the other. The twenty twenty
five season just got very, very much more interesting than

(02:02:23):
it already was going to be, and it was going
to be interesting for a variety of reasons. But the
fact that Cam Smith is on the opening day roster,
the fact that Cam Smith is starting in right field
against the Mets on opening Day, which you can hear
right here on Sports Talk seven ninety and see on
Space City Home Network, it's a big deal. So we'll
definitely get back to the Cam hype train. But football

(02:02:45):
at five, we try most of the time to kind
of tie it into something local, and if it's not
directly with the Texans, like today, it's at least somewhat
in the vicinity. Like if there's any sort of news
going on in the Texans division, that would be the
AFC South, a just stalwart of excellent football over the

(02:03:06):
last few seasons. Let me tell you, if your name's
not the Houston Texans, chances are you're not a very
good football team. And some could argue that the Texans
weren't exactly awesome, albeit a big, big turnaround from where
they were before, but nobody is confusing them with the
Indianapolis Colts of the world, and certainly not the Tennessee Titans.

Speaker 3 (02:03:28):
The Jacksonville Jaguars. Make of them what you will think.

Speaker 8 (02:03:33):
I think Wex and I are pretty much consistently on
board with the fact that we don't think Trevor Lawrence
is a franchise quarterback. It's just a matter of when
everybody else figures that out, and maybe he'll surprise us
all by bouncing back and having the greatest season ever.
I wouldn't put money on that. What I would put
money on though, And if you're reading the tea leaves
leading up to the draft, and look, it's March twenty fifth,

(02:03:55):
so we got about a month or so before we
find out what the Tennessee Titan do with that number
one pick. And I think a lot of people, myself included,
when they saw that the Tennessee Titans wound up with
that number one pick, they thought to themselves, well, yeah,
they need a quarterback because I don't think Will Levis

(02:04:18):
is the guy. And I don't think anybody that they've
brought through there lately is going to have to be
the guy or is going to be the guy.

Speaker 5 (02:04:24):
But is this the.

Speaker 8 (02:04:24):
Draft in which you can find that guy? And I
think a lot of people didn't necessarily think there was
one out there. And I feel like every season this happens,
where even if there is a bunch of surefire guys,
even if there is a quarterback talent rich type draft,
there's always somebody that maybe people overlooked or they thought

(02:04:47):
weren't going to be all that, and they get to
the NFL level and for whatever reason, they exceed expectations
and then some if that was going to be this year,
I don't know who you would pin that on, but
I do know this, there is a lot of people
that are looking at that number one pick and saying, Okay,
maybe we're going to need to take a look at that,

(02:05:08):
because we want to get our hands on cam Ward.

Speaker 3 (02:05:10):
Now. He he had his pro day yesterday and apparently
the Titans liked it. They liked it a lot.

Speaker 8 (02:05:18):
They're going to have an additional private workout and a
throwing session with him, and they're becoming, according to Adam Schefter,
for example, increasingly impressed with That's what he was told today,
Adam Schefter. So, but they're still willing to listen to
offers for the pick. But now because of this and this,

(02:05:38):
does it just screams of agents speak a little bit,
but sooner or later, you're going to see it for yourself,
pro day, you know, throwing session, whatever you're going to say.
Whoever the talent is, all right, what is this guy?
Do we really think that he's worth, you know, trading
up for That's always been the question every time I
bring this scenario up with Wex. He says, all right,

(02:06:00):
you got to have somebody that's willing to trade up
to get that pick for whatever, whether it's cam Ward,
whether it's somebody else that's worth trading all that draft
capital to get to the number one spot. So you're
sure your team gets your hands on whoever this is,
is cam Ward that guy? We'll see some of what

(02:06:21):
he had to say afterward. I told them I'm solidifying
it today. They finally got to see me throw in person.
You talk about the Titans, that should be all they
need to see. And if I'm hearing a guy say that,
of course he's saying all the right things. These guys
are coached at nauseum with what to say, not only
in a media setting like this, but how about the
interviews they go through leading up to the draft. But

(02:06:42):
he's saying all the right things. And you know, if
if you're the Tennessee Titans and you gave up a
second round pick or get you get, you went to
go get Will Levis, I should say in the second round,
you went to go get him and he's not the guy?
Is cam Ward enough? Or do you want to have
what I've kind of brought up a few times a

(02:07:04):
band aid situation so that you can maybe get your
franchise quarterback in a future draft. Me stupidly, I was
saying that about the Houston Texans for the twenty twenty
three draft, and never knowing that CJ. Stroud would be
what he is, never was convinced that Bryce Young was
the guy. And that's still a mixed bag. But I
have no problem saying I was wrong on that. And

(02:07:25):
then some but you know, some teams, if they don't
have the guy or they don't feel that confident in it,
I'm with them. I don't think you should invest that
kind of a draft pick or that kind of capital
in somebody who you're not absolutely positively sure. It's one
thing to get a Will Levis in the second round,
and even that's kind of high, but it's quite another

(02:07:47):
to say, all right, number one pick in the twenty
twenty five NFL Draft, I'm absolutely putting my you know
that is my horse, cam Ward is my guy, or
whoever in a draft that maybe you don't think that
there are guys like that in this draft. It'll be
interesting to see what the Tennessee Titans do if you
know they can maybe up the process of getting that

(02:08:12):
pick away from them, resting it away from them if
you will, then certainly I would think that that's what
I would want them to do if I were a
fan of that team.

Speaker 3 (02:08:20):
You don't have so many other things. It's kind of
like the Texans in that way.

Speaker 8 (02:08:24):
Going into the twenty twenty three draft, I really thought
you're better off maybe trading that pick, not drafting a quarterback. Specifically,
Will Anderson Junior is who I wanted them to take.
We interviewed him prior to the draft here in town
at the Lombardi Awards, and I basically was campaigning for him.

(02:08:46):
But they ended up getting both guys, and kind of,
like Wex said at the time, you're giving up whatever
picks for the next year to get that best pass
rusher that's going to be the best pass rusher in
the next two drafts, and so far, so good. He's
definitely going to get extended by the team, and he's
definitely looked like he was worth the risk. But as
it pertains to a team in the Texans Division, if

(02:09:08):
you're the Tennessee Titans and you turn around and you
trade that pick because someone else wants to get cam
Ward or whatever else, I think you're better off going
forward with the amount of talent you can get back.

Speaker 3 (02:09:20):
And I don't know what they'll do. It's a long
way to go.

Speaker 8 (02:09:23):
A month is such a long time, especially, and the
funny thing is when it comes to picking these guys,
sometimes teams talk them out, talk themselves out of it.
And I'm not saying it's because if anything they hear
in the media or anything like that, but just like
I say, a month is so long to try and

(02:09:43):
determine what you're going to do with a pick like this.
In a draft like this, sometimes it's just fascinating to
see what ends up happening. On draft night, after everything
you hear, you think you know what a team's going
to do. I had no clue the night of the draft,
and I think we were all stunned, even those of
who were on the air that night, and it was
a live broadcast, a remote broadcast, and it was like, oh,

(02:10:06):
the Texans took CJ. Stroud, Okay, that's fine, he's who
fell to them because Bryce Young went number one. They're
doing what they're doing, what trading with Arizona to get
to the very next pick and take Will Anderson and
the rest is history. So it'll be fascinating to see
what happens. And of course, as it pertains to the

(02:10:28):
AFC South, they're all playing catch up right now to
the Texans, who are, like it or not, a lot
weaker at their most weak position. And so what the
Texans end up doing in this draft in the first
round specifically, and does it address the offensive line or

(02:10:50):
is it a wide receiver or something like that. I
don't know what's going to happen. I do know that
I am far less confident than I was a year
ago and the quarterbacks situation in Indianapolis, and I already
said what we think about Trevor Lawrence, this should be
the Texans division to win for the foreseeable future. But

(02:11:12):
they kind of threw a wrench in those plans with
what they did with Laramie Tunsel, because as much as
I criticized the guy, to get rid of your best
offensive lineman just means you weren't confident in the unit
to begin with overall with or without him, so you're
just trying to give it a different look. But man, a,
what a risk in the still rookie contract years of

(02:11:35):
a CJ.

Speaker 3 (02:11:35):
Stroud.

Speaker 8 (02:11:36):
I guess maybe the division as it stands might be
a part of that that thinking for the Texans, you know,
maybe they think they can survive. But again, going back
to this draft, going back to what's available, not from
a quarterback standpoint as it pertains to the Tennessee Titans,
but just what you're gonna do with your offensive line

(02:11:58):
in a under whelming free agency signing class.

Speaker 3 (02:12:02):
Let's just put it that way. That's being very polite,
right Nick Cassario.

Speaker 8 (02:12:07):
Fascinating to see what's going to happen and fascinating to see,
you know, where they go. From a talent standpoint, they've
got I feel like, if it's possible, they got better
on the defensive side of the ball. But again, going
back to what happened last year, same record, same culture,
nobody's worried about the head coach. Nobody's even I don't

(02:12:28):
think I'm not worried about the quarterback. You do have
the new offensive coordinator. But if you have all these
pieces in place and the offense can't do what it
needs to because of that line in front of CJ. Stroud,
I think it might even actually be more frustrating than
it was last year watching it, because that's certainly up
for That's certainly a scenario that is honestly more likely

(02:12:50):
than not. Even if you go and draft a high
caliber offensive lineman, the confidence in that offensive line going
forward is is suspected best, Let's put it that way.
We'll continue to discuss all things Cam Smith. He's on
the opening day roster for your astros. He's starting in

(02:13:10):
right field. And what jersey number is he wearing? By
the way, I know that Wex is making fun of
me for that, but I want to know because I
think a lot of you guys want to know. The
gear will be available before you know it. We'll continue
to discuss Cam Smith when we return here on the program.

Speaker 1 (02:13:27):
The A Team on Sports Talk seven ninety. It's live
and local, it's uncut and unbiased. It's Sports Talk seven
ninety The best coverage of your teams continues. The A
team continues continues on Sports Talk seven ninety.

Speaker 4 (02:13:53):
Three.

Speaker 8 (02:13:54):
With four home runs, That's what Cam Smith did, among
other things, this spring for your Houston Astros.

Speaker 3 (02:14:02):
It's a big reason why the big news of the day.

Speaker 8 (02:14:05):
I don't even know what's the most surprising aspect, Like
I say that it's surprising that he's making the big
league roster out of spring training. And then if you
watched this spring, if you kind of listen to how
the team was addressing him, and I'm talking about Joe Espada,

(02:14:26):
I'm talking about Dana Brown, I'm talking about everybody involved.

Speaker 3 (02:14:29):
I'm talking about Cam Smith himself.

Speaker 8 (02:14:31):
If you listen to how he was speaking about his
own very young career he's twenty two. If you're listening
to how the team was talking about him, if you're
just looking at how he was covered in the media,
is it really that surprising? And yet the other side
of it is, this guy's making the opening day roster

(02:14:52):
and he's starting in right field on Thursday afternoon against
the New York Mets in the opener of this season.

Speaker 3 (02:15:01):
You saw and we talked about this.

Speaker 8 (02:15:03):
If you haven't seen it, the Astros posting a video
on their ins or on their x account, the call
up to the big leagues as it were, Joe Espada
addressing the team before the game and just basically revealing
it to Cam Smith that he's making the big league roster,
and then obviously his reaction to it still in tears.

(02:15:27):
It's crazy. He played thirty two games in the miners
last season. He was drafted fourteenth overall by the Cubs
in July. That's the third fewest games played by a
position player before he made it to the big league
since nineteen sixty five. And it's just the last guy
being John Olrud of the nineteen ninety Toronto Blue Jays,

(02:15:49):
which I'm sure all of you listening are familiar with.

Speaker 3 (02:15:54):
Just two guys made it to the big leagues faster.

Speaker 8 (02:15:56):
So the fact that he's on the field on the
Thursday afternoon, the fact that Kyle Tucker was just there
last year and the two game mini wasn't even a
playoff run that culminated in the Astros being swept out
of the Wildcard round by the Detroit Tigers. The fact

(02:16:20):
that the team that walked off the field that day,
Alex Bregman, Kyle Tucker, Ryan Presley, Justin Verlander, who remember
the big controversy.

Speaker 3 (02:16:31):
Well, hopefully the Astros.

Speaker 8 (02:16:33):
Aren't going to have to tell Justin Verlander that he's
not starting in the postseason at all. It all got
taken care of by itself because their appearance, if you
want to call it, that was a vapor in the
twenty twenty four postseason.

Speaker 3 (02:16:47):
To the point where you traded for a guy.

Speaker 8 (02:16:51):
You traded Kyle Tucker for a guy that's now as
a twenty two year old going to make his big
league debut on Opening Day, and all the pressure in
the world is on this kid, and you're starting him
in an outfield that also features jose Al Tuve. I
feel like if you took an Astros fan, even from
twenty twenty two, like maybe they're at Johnny cum lately.

(02:17:14):
They're on the bandwagon, right, They're just like, oh, Wow,
the Astros are the latest team to win the World Series.
I'm gonna be a fan of this club, Like forget
the scandal and all that kind of stuff. But you
PLoP them in a time machine to just three years later,
go to the future and see what the Houston Astros
are that Christian Walker is starting at first base, that

(02:17:36):
Alex Bregman is a Boston Red Sox, That Kyle Tucker
and Ryan Presley who combined for the final out in
that twenty twenty two Championship clincher over Philadelphia in Game six,
at the minute made park at the time, that they're
both Chicago Cubs, That Justin Verlander is now on his
fourth team and it's the National League and it's the Giants.

(02:18:02):
It's just incredible to think about how fast it all went.
And I know there's a lot of turnover baseball, especially
you know, with the size of the rosters with all
that kind of stuff, but this team having this fast
of a turnover, and then just the play the pieces
that are still in place that you're going to look

(02:18:23):
at on Thursday afternoon and think, what like, just looking
at Jose Altuve and left field is bizarre.

Speaker 3 (02:18:30):
That's the only other word for it.

Speaker 8 (02:18:32):
And so there's plenty of storylines, right, There's plenty of
things that will take some getting used to, not the
least of which is you know, the stadium name and
everything looking different from that standpoint, you know, for the
first time since early two thousands, mid two thousands. I
guess you're gonna walk into a stadium with a different
name here in Houston, you know, basically twenty years or so.

(02:18:56):
But then everything that happened with the roster, you know,
added to it. From Bervaldez opening day starter, that's some familiarity.
The fact that you'll see jose L Twove leading off,
that's some familiarity when he finally bats, but when they
take the field and from ber Valdez is your starting
pitcher on Thursday afternoon, Joseel two bay has got a

(02:19:19):
longer jog, and it's just it really is going to
take some getting used to. And don't think, don't think
it's not going to be a sky is falling the
first time.

Speaker 3 (02:19:30):
There's some quirky defensive play.

Speaker 8 (02:19:33):
I mean, wex came in here talking about Cam Smith's
miss in right field last night. The only reason, the
only way that jose Al Tuove starting in left field
for the start of the twenty twenty five season is
being overshadowed is because this guy just found out today
he's making the big league roster and he's starting on
opening day.

Speaker 3 (02:19:53):
This was Cam Smith.

Speaker 8 (02:19:54):
Courtesy of Ari Alexander of KPRC Channel two initial reaction
and after finding out he was going to be making
the big the big League club.

Speaker 5 (02:20:03):
Yeah, I always thought it was it was possible, you know.
I think I had a great, great group of guys
around me to help me out to get here today.
So I always saw it as a possibility, you know,
for it to happen. And you know we're here today
talking about it now, so very less.

Speaker 12 (02:20:23):
I know if it's just very emotional for you, but
it's just the special nature of having your mom delivered that.
So you broke down. But what kind of can you
just take us through the idea that she would be
going after all what she did for you to to
tell you that you may make a lea.

Speaker 10 (02:20:36):
Yeah, I mean, I'm sorry, Okay, you know, at one
point it was just meet her in the house. She's
struggled to take me to the baseball games and practice.

(02:20:58):
I'm just happy to do it for her.

Speaker 8 (02:21:02):
Pretty emotional stuff right there from Cam Smith, who, by
the way, when he starts, is gonna be the second
youngest Astros position player to make his MLB debut as
a starter on opening day Rusty stab back in nineteen
sixty three. You're also all familiar with his career. He
was nineteen way back when, and it's just it's crazy.

(02:21:26):
It's absolutely crazy. Knew it was a possibility, kind of
felt like it was going this way all spring long.
But you know, it's like when you I don't even
know what to compare it to. Would you just say
to yourself, I didn't think they'd actually do it. I
didn't think he'd actually go buy that sports car. Oh,
is he having a midlife crisis? And no, far be
it from me. I'm not saying that the Astros are

(02:21:47):
having a midlife crisis here, although it is.

Speaker 3 (02:21:52):
It's never easy to transition from that dominant dare I say.

Speaker 8 (02:21:58):
Close to dynasty status, because even though they weren't winning
the championship every year, they were sure going to the
World Series a lot more than other teams out there,
even if they weren't winning them all. To go from
that to this kind of hybrid of old standbys, veterans
and new blood, some of it older, but a lot

(02:22:19):
of it younger, because remember, Zach Dezenzo is.

Speaker 3 (02:22:21):
Also making the opening day roster.

Speaker 8 (02:22:26):
Odd weird times for Astros fans here, and that's just
that's two things, by the way, that are at play
you know, you're you're realizing how spoiled we've been as
a as a fan base here in Houston for this
particular club. But you're also realizing that, you know, it's

(02:22:47):
it takes them getting used to from the standpoint of expectations.
You know, you come in and we're just talking about
Wex and I was talking about the last segment he
was on. He's on his way over to Toyota Center
right now to call the Rocket Hawks game. You know,
there's other teams by a pretty decent margin being picked
to win this division, a division that I feel like

(02:23:08):
is maybe while if it might not be up for grabs,
it's just it's not penciled in now that the Astros
are gonna win it. When's the last time we could
say that? And in a lot of ways, in a
lot of ways, I feel like this is the type
of scenario and the type of uncertainty in a lot
of ways that we haven't felt about this Astros team since. Frankly,

(02:23:30):
going into the twenty seventeen season, it's real easy to
forget that the Astros missed the playoffs in twenty sixteen.
It's like that overlooked year you had the fifteen run
the painful loss at home to the Orioles, and then
you wind up losing that series and they go on
to win the World Series or go to the World Series.
And then sixteen was more of the same franchise that

(02:23:53):
could not get over the hump against the Rangers, and
they it was still you know, and then seventeen happens
in boom, You're off and running.

Speaker 3 (02:24:00):
Last time.

Speaker 8 (02:24:01):
This much uncertainty surrounding an Astro season coming into play
probably prior to that first championship year, but you had
so much of a if not certain, then mapped out
future ahead of you.

Speaker 3 (02:24:14):
This is more of a hybrid.

Speaker 8 (02:24:16):
That's That's kind of how I'm looking at twenty twenty five.
I'm using that term going into the twenty twenty five
Houston Astro season. Very hybrid situation here in Houston.

Speaker 14 (02:24:27):
The age on Sports Talk seven ninety, nice stream Davis
talking about Frog baseball, House Strike one.

Speaker 3 (02:24:39):
Hey you dummies, listen to Astros baseball and Rockets basketball
games on any device with the free i Heeart radio app.
All right, that music can only mean one thing. It's
time for in case you missed it.

Speaker 8 (02:24:56):
On a day where we find out for sure that
Cam Smith is headed to the Astros big league roster
and we'll start in right field in Thursday's opener against
the Mets. He's not even the only kid basically skipping
the miners. Angels second rounder Ryan Johnson is doing the

(02:25:20):
same thing. You know, it's in the Astros Division. This
is according to Jeff Passen. He is expected to debut
in the major leagues without having played a single minor
league game. He's twenty two, drafted in the second round
last year, signed for one point seventy five million, but
did not pitch after throwing one hundred and six innings

(02:25:40):
in his junior year.

Speaker 3 (02:25:41):
At Dallas Baptist.

Speaker 8 (02:25:44):
He's expected to work out of the bullpen, and so
he would be the first player to skip the minor
leagues entirely since Garrett Crochet, who joined the White Sox
in twenty twenty when the minor league season was canceled
because of COVID nineteen.

Speaker 3 (02:25:59):
So he's legit.

Speaker 8 (02:26:01):
He doesn't need a fake outbreak to make it to
where he skips the miners into entirely. He's the only
only the third player since two thousand and one to
play in the big leagues without a minor league appearance,
joining Crochet and right hander Mike Leak back in twenty ten,
and since the implementation of the draft in nineteen sixty five,

(02:26:23):
only twenty three players before Ryan Johnson have been moved
straight to the big leagues. Now he's going to join
a bullpen that currently includes veteran closer and noted eye
blow games against the Astros pitcher ken Lee Jansen. He's
also been Joyce's in there. They've got a mix. I

(02:26:45):
asked Wex this question probably last week. I wonder Iflake,
even if they don't end up doing anything with it,
I wonder how much surpriser would be if the Angels
get off to a better than average start, just with
Kakouch being their opening day starter, and just with some
of the guy I mean, Mike Trout's healthy right, as

(02:27:05):
long as he plays, you would think they would at
least have a chance to score. I don't know the
Angels are. They're absolutely an enigma in Major League Baseball.
I can't believe a team that had Mike Trout and
Shoheo Tani did nothing next to nothing. And I know
injuries factor in, but my goodness, it's not like they
weren't trying to spend money anyways.

Speaker 3 (02:27:26):
I don't care about the Angels.

Speaker 8 (02:27:27):
All right, do you care about Tom Brady and why
he and Bill Belichick got a divorce?

Speaker 3 (02:27:32):
I only bring this up because he's talking about it.

Speaker 8 (02:27:34):
But I do think, like when you think about dynasties
and sports, Obviously, the Chicago Bulls had that run in
the mid nineties, you know, the all time the goats
of the Goats.

Speaker 11 (02:27:44):
Right.

Speaker 8 (02:27:44):
If Michael Jordan's the greatest basketball and the basketball player
in the history of the game, and he is, don't
worry all you lebron fans out there, It's okay, It's
okay to be wrong. Tom Brady has to be the
undisputed goat as far as quarterbacks, right, So when he
he talks about why things went the way they did,
and he's like, actually finally shedding light on it. So,

(02:28:07):
if you're a Patriots fan, March twentieth, twenty twenty a
day that lives in infamy. Right, that's when Tom Brady
left to put on a different jersey for the first
time ever. And it took a little while to get
used to seeing him in a Tampa Bay Buccaneers uniform,
but he's pretty good at it. Right, He won a
Super Bowl and went back to the postseason. Anyways, he

(02:28:30):
gave the following info on his relationship with Bill Belichick
and why he decided all right, I'm gonna bolt. He said, quote,
I was only involved in free agency once, at the
tail end of my career, talking about when he went
from New England to Tampa.

Speaker 3 (02:28:49):
When free agency means something very.

Speaker 8 (02:28:52):
Different than it does for a backup coming off a
disappointing season or a young guy coming off the last
year of his rookie deal. For me, it was a
crew decision that I lived passively in the back of
my mind for two to three years until March of
twenty twenty, when a whirlwin of a few days made
me realize that a decision was coming sooner rather than later.

(02:29:13):
Reality was, after twenty years together, a natural tension had
developed between where Belichick and I were headed in our
careers and where the Patriots were moving as a franchise.
It was the kind of tension that could only be
resolved by some sort of split or one of us
reassessing our priorities. And he goes on to explain that

(02:29:33):
he was like coming up with a list of twenty
things that he gave and graded on a weighted scale
from one to three. You know, one being not that important,
three being the most important presence of skill players. He
talks about Mike Evans and Chris Godwin that was a three.
The coach that was also a three. You're going from
Bill Belichick right, Well, Bruce arians was there at the time.

Speaker 3 (02:29:55):
That was a three. Game day weather was a two.
Practice weather was a three.

Speaker 8 (02:30:00):
But financial compensation was on the list, obviously, but it
wasn't first. It probably wasn't even top ten, and it
definitely didn't rank as a three in importance. In the end,
I chose Tampa almost exactly five years ago because in
the aggregate it graded out higher than New England along
those twenty or so dimensions, it's not much more complicated

(02:30:23):
than that. It's interesting to see what happened to Tom
Brady at the tail end of his career. Not a
lot of guys that are in the position that he
was in so visible, had won so much, had basically
put that franchise in a different stratosphere as far as
how it's considered really moving forward, because you can't dispute

(02:30:45):
history and historical value like the Packers, the Steelers, franchises
like that that won so many things, even the Cowboys.
They still get you some sort of attention in some
ways because of what they'd done thirty years ago now.
But for Tom Brady to kind of like shed some
light on that, I thought was interesting because he doesn't

(02:31:06):
talk that much about this kind of thing, and you know,
with he and Belichick at the roast, I think that
surprised a lot of people. And if you haven't seen
the roast of Tom Brady, oh my gosh, it's so
uncomfortably great, which most roasts are, but I would highly
recommend checking that out unless you're squeamish. Of course, speaking
of squeamish, I bet Lakers fans are feeling a little

(02:31:29):
bit squeamish these days. I was told that when they
got Luka Doncic excuse me, stole Luka Doncic in that
trade with the Dallas Mavericks, that yeah, they were just
going to lock up a new NBA championship, which I
thought was hilarious because they weren't going to be good
defensively and they actually had a chance to be atrociously
much worse on that end of the floor and now

(02:31:50):
here they are. They're now three and seven in their
past ten games. And I know that Lebron didn't play
it for some of those, and Luca's injury was being managed.
But a one eighteen to one Zho six loss to
the Magic, and again this counts or this this is
this counts for something because they're one of the teams
chasing the Rockets for that two seed. Right now, it's okay,

(02:32:12):
see and everyone else, right but Lakers are the team
immediately behind the Rockets, followed closely by the Nuggets, and
then you have everybody else kind of gapped in there.
But there's just eleven games remaining, and Donci just saying
all the right things. I think we just got a
little bit satisfied. We can't afford that right now. He
went on to say, I think me and Bron, I

(02:32:33):
think we should be the guys to do that when
it comes to, you know, winning, that's on me.

Speaker 3 (02:32:39):
Obviously.

Speaker 8 (02:32:39):
I've got to do better. I've got to talk more.
I talked in the first half than just kind of
let my voice down, and I shouldn't do that.

Speaker 3 (02:32:46):
They are a.

Speaker 8 (02:32:46):
Fascinating team, but it's gonna take more than Luka doncic
Ch after Lebron ships off for them to win anything
of note, but lucky for them, Nico Harrison delivering yet
another franchise on a silver platter to the LA Lakers,
something I think we all are very very excited about
around the NBA. Just kidding, I'm being very sarcastic. Final

(02:33:10):
segment of a Tuesday edition of the program. It's coming
up next here on a Tuesday edition of the eighteen.

Speaker 2 (02:33:19):
Eighteen. On Sports Talk seven ninety.

Speaker 1 (02:33:24):
Adam and Adam take Houston sports very seriously.

Speaker 2 (02:33:29):
It's everything else in life that they take lightly.

Speaker 3 (02:33:32):
I'm a bad bother and their wives love them for
it all.

Speaker 2 (02:33:37):
He cares about his many back to the team on
Sports Talk seven ninety.

Speaker 3 (02:33:56):
The eighteen is Sports Talk seven ninety.

Speaker 8 (02:34:00):
So I'm told during the break that George Sports Talk
seven ninety and the eighteenth, Well, I'm not told about
that Russell Wilson has signed with the Giants.

Speaker 3 (02:34:12):
So there's a lot going on here, guys. All right,
Grimlin's in the board over there.

Speaker 8 (02:34:17):
Final segment of the eight team, Sports Talk seven ninety
Russell Wilson signing with the Giants, to which I responded, well,
that's almost as fun as if Aaron.

Speaker 3 (02:34:25):
Rodgers had signed there. What sent me this meme?

Speaker 8 (02:34:31):
It was more like a it's where they superimposed someone's
face on actual footage. So it's Rick Flair. I mean,
one of the I don't know one hundred times he
was in a WWE ring saying he was never going
to retire and he's not going to retire until he
dies in the middle of the ring essentially, but somebody put,
of course, Aaron Rodgers face on Rick Flair's body, So

(02:34:54):
it was Aaron Rodgers saying those things, and it's so
perfect because I feel like that's where he's at right now.
But Russell Wilson pretty much that's intriguing too. Now know
if it's as intriguing as Aaron Rodgers going from one
New York team to another.

Speaker 3 (02:35:09):
But I'll take it. I'll absolutely take it.

Speaker 8 (02:35:10):
That apparently just now coming down Rockets basketball right around
the corner.

Speaker 3 (02:35:16):
The Atlanta Hawks are in town tonight.

Speaker 8 (02:35:19):
That is the opponent before the Rockets really begin this
final stretch of games where yeah, they got a couple
of games against the Utah Jazz sprinkled in there, one
here and one in Salt Lake City. But some seriously challenging,
if not outright difficult opponents. Now, the Thunder are in there,

(02:35:40):
but the Thunder have locked up the number one seed,
So I don't know how you know how much they're
wanting to play their starters all forty eight minutes all
that kind of thing. They might have a scale back
version of the Thunder the Rockets when they play them.
But the Nuggets are in there, the Lakers are in
there twice, the Suns are in there, the Clippers are

(02:36:01):
in there, everybody that's right behind the Rockets, the Warriors
are in there, and a lot of these are on
the road.

Speaker 3 (02:36:08):
By the way, you may or.

Speaker 8 (02:36:12):
May not not find out what this team is actually
going to be made of, because remember, a lot of
these teams you're facing, you probably weren't facing them at
full strength. I know that's for a fact. With the
last time you faced the Denver Nuggets. I mean because
as much fun as it was to see Jamal Murray
absolutely tort you, they didn't have the joker out there

(02:36:33):
that night. So there's teams like that that you're gonna see.
I know that the Clippers have not been healthy when
they faced off against the Rockets. There's a lot that's
going to be interesting about this final stretch of games,
But it all starts tonight with the with the Atlanta
Hawks in town, Astro's calling up Cam Smith.

Speaker 3 (02:36:53):
That's been the big news of the day.

Speaker 8 (02:36:56):
The Astros releasing a video on their account that showed
manager Joe Espada actually bringing in Cam Smith's parents to
reveal to him that he's made the big league roster.
According to our own channel of Rome, they called Cam
Smith's mother last night, got her on a flight this morning,

(02:37:21):
and had her deliver the news that he had made
the opening day roster. Now that's a you know, kind
of a a surprise type thing, but you can't make
those arrangements until you've made the decision. That's what's interesting
about this. The Astros seemingly were really, if not struggling,

(02:37:43):
then they weren't. They weren't for sure that this was
the play, that this was the move until relatively late
in the game. They knew by last night apparently to
get his mom on that flight. But that just shows
you maybe how late in the game they were wrestling
with a decision like this. So again, the hybrid of

(02:38:06):
the old and the new kind of mixing is how
I would describe this Astro season upcoming, it will be
nothing if not interesting.

Speaker 3 (02:38:17):
It might not be with all the winning that you're
used to. Maybe it will. I don't know.

Speaker 8 (02:38:21):
They could come out of the gates like Gangbusters. But
it's just there are so many intriguing things about this
year that even if the even if the Astros were
a World Series contender a year ago, I don't know
that it would have been as intriguing. In the truest
sense of the word. This is the first season you're

(02:38:42):
not going to see Alex Bregman at third base and
how long. This is the first season you're not gonna
see Jose Altuve at second base at all. Because he's
playing left field, not because he's not here, not because
he left in free agency, not because he left in
a trade or retired.

Speaker 3 (02:39:00):
They moved him to left field.

Speaker 8 (02:39:03):
Then they decided that they were going to bring up
a twenty two year old with basically thirty two games
of minor league experience who had a fantastic spring by
all accounts, looks like he's going to be the next
big thing. Oh he's, by the way, what you got
in the Kyle Tucker trade Because he's no longer here
along with Ryan Presley. They both went to Chicago, and

(02:39:24):
Justin Verlander is a giant out in San Francisco, and
you're going to start him on opening Day in right
field where Kyle Tucker played. The last time this team
was on this field for a game that counted, losing
in the wild Card round to the Tigers. It's just
storyline after storyline after storyline from ber Valdez's swan song.

(02:39:47):
Is he the latest of that championship corps that's going
to be playing his final year in an Astros uniform?
The betting money says yes, he's your opening day starter,
which means Hunter Brown's the the proverbial next in line
next year if he does indeed depart. All of this
before you've played a single game. Oh by the way,

(02:40:08):
Christian Walker is your first baseman, but you're still paying
jose A.

Speaker 3 (02:40:12):
Bray You.

Speaker 8 (02:40:13):
You're also paying Rafael Montero, but he at least is
on your team, whereas JOSEH.

Speaker 3 (02:40:19):
Brew is. That's a bad deal.

Speaker 8 (02:40:23):
He's continuing to collect that money to not play for
the Houston Astros. Again, all of this before they've even
played a single game that counts. Interesting spring making its
way into an interesting summer of twenty twenty five Houston

(02:40:43):
Astros Baseball, and of course all of it is going
to be right here on your home for Astros Baseball,
Sports Talk seven ninety and Space City Home Network. Oh,
by the way, Jainer Diaz, does he take the next step?
Jeremy Paania, is he flying? Well, it's not even a question.
He's absolutely flying under the radar with what he's done
this spring. And you know that might be the sneak

(02:41:07):
attack of the twenty twenty five season. Hey, this is
a pleasant surprise. We weren't expecting much from Jeremy pana
but look at what we've got from him. The best
season that we've had since his rookie season here in Houston,
where all he did was win the World Series MVP
and they clinched that second championship. There's a lot of

(02:41:30):
things to keep an eye on in a spring that's
going to include your Rockets in the postseason. Yet again,
that's happening. It's just a matter of what their seed
is and how far they go.

Speaker 3 (02:41:42):
I love it.

Speaker 8 (02:41:43):
I love these two teams both mattering at the same
time of year. It's been a long long time since
that was the case twenty nineteen, twenty twenty for the
Rockets last time they were in the postseason, and of
course we know what the Astros were doing at that
time of year.

Speaker 3 (02:41:57):
That's going to do it for us.

Speaker 8 (02:41:59):
We will step aside Rockets basketball coverage right around the corner,
and of course Wex and I will be back at
it again tomorrow afternoon, right around two o'clock to get
you caught up on everything that happened tonight, both with
the Astros and the Rockets, as well as everything else is.

Speaker 3 (02:42:14):
Going on in Houston. Sports.

Speaker 2 (02:42:16):
Have a great night, everyone, The eight on Sports Talk
seven ninety