Can the Cubs bounce back against the Pirates? (Hour 3)

0:00Ron Kummer on deck. Ron he's been red hot. He's been in his zone. Ron Kummer. Let's see if the Cubs can respond. We're helping him out. Humbert runs one in the right center field. Ron runs to the air. Pierre Dodge misses it. It bounces all the way to the wall. That's a nice knock for the old hometown boy of him. Chicago Cubs radio announcer. The wave is over. The wave. It is over to Cubs. A world series champion. How does that sound, Parker? 1999 American League All-Star. And now the American League All-Star Infielder. Ron Kummer. The CUMDA. Ron Kummer. They're not going me folks. They're just yelling CUM. With Haim Peyton on 104-3, the score. Welcome back. It's Haim Peyton. Chicago Sports Radio 104-3, the score. Beautiful Friday morning. In Chicago, Ruthie Polinsky is in for Jarrett. Who's attending Matt Sui's funeral later today.

1:01condolences to the Sui family and to Jarrett. Welcome to our Chicago Sports Network audience. You recognize Ruthie from the Big Profit Ball Show that Chicago lead in various other things. She'll be on the call tonight. White socks pre-game and post-game with Ozzy. I will be. Socks are playing. Police fun with Ozzy. The Cardinals. The Cardinals. Down in St. Louis after they got done with the pirates. They got swept by the pirates. And the pirates are going to, as Dustin said, take the red line and be it regly. If you're on the red line, you run into pauskins. Crazy. And that would be crazy. They're going to be there for three games. Big game today against the Cubs. 12.45 pre-game right here on the score with Zach Zayman, and our good next guest, Ron Cumer. Cubs radio analysts all around good guy. He joins us on the Plumber's 9-1-1 hotline. Plumbing emergency call 1-8-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-1-1. Local 130 plumbers. Get the job done right the first time. Good morning, CUM. How are you? Morning, David. Ruthie and Ruthie tell Ozzy I said hi when you say him later today.

2:01Old Ozzy is always playing against him. He's always a trip. He has more energy than any five guys on a baseball field you could ever imagine. He's doing that. You had to get out. Oh my guy, no. But I can remember being an older player in the league. And I'm standing on that second base, taking the lead off. I've got one knee blown out. I'm going from base to base. He keeps trying to pick me off that second. Finally, I turned around and started swearing at him. I'm like, what the hell are you doing? What else? I can't go from here to there. I probably just laughed. We laughed. Totally. It was just joking. Yeah, it was pretty funny. Great stuff, CUM. So you come back after a road trip that was not kind. I think that series of Milwaukee might have been the toughest one of the year for the Cubs. Just because of when it happened and what happened. So now, how difficult is it for the Cubs to regroup? You've got the pirates here. Instead of chasing the brewers, you're chasing the fillies for the number one wildcard spot that means a lot. It given home field advantage, CUM. How would you assess the state of the Cubs psychologically and where they are as a baseball team?

3:01Well, I think that's a tough series. There's no doubt. You lose two games to walk off type plays where you're, you know, one game you're down to one strike and a game's over and it didn't work out. So, you know, they're just a tough series and I think the one great thing about baseball players and baseball is no matter how tough that last series was the players in the clubhouse will show up today. And you have turned the page by now. You've had an off day. Yeah, it was a brutal yes, but you know you have to turn the page and you got to move on. I just think, you know, in general what the Cubs need is they need a good couple wins in a row. And Pittsburgh, as you said, they just played great against the lights. So you need to have a good series and then you need to have a couple guys in the bullpen do their job and just get the outs and then, you know, just kind of put the past in the past and play forward and keep looking at filly.

4:02They've always been looking to filly last two weeks. David, when you're eight games behind the team, you're really, you know, you're that that's a long way off that they even think you're looking at them. So I don't really think, you know, the Cubs have them in their sights. It was more wanting to have that wild card series the first one at home. Ron, what's your confidence level that showed up can be the one to write the ship today and sort of set the tone for the series this weekend. I would say it's high, you know, shoulder, but he's this has been the time of year, Ruthie where he's had some issues. Counts, he had a couple bad ones in a row and didn't have command of his pitches and his velocity was kind of turning down a little bit, which is not good for him. But then his last start was very good and he had, I think he changed his arm angle a little bit to get the ball inside a little easier. At least that's what it looked like to me. I don't confirm that, but, you know, I just go by the hitter's eyes of what I see.

5:06And he had great command of a split. So he threw the ball much better. So, I think he's got a good chance of pitching right here at Wrigley Field today and getting the team back and track. I'm not a pitch deep in the game though. That's a big, you know, to go for five innings makes it difficult on this bullpen if he can go six or seven innings, that would be huge for the cops. Kumi, you know, I really value your wisdom on a night on the basis. And I'm a regular listener and it'll text you during the games and I'll distract you if you need to. That's all right. So, after a day later, I want to take a deep breath and see if there's a different way of looking at this decision by Craig Council late in Wednesday night's game that I'm not seeing here. Because Carson Kelly a night earlier had just cleared the bases or hit a double in a big moment. And I feel like he deserved the opportunity to try to do that again or come through in a big way in the ninth inning on Wednesday night. Instead, because it was a right hander on the mound who he had not gotten a hit off in seven previous debates in his career.

6:11Craig Council decides to go to a rookie. B.J. Murray puts a tough spot for a rookie with one major league hit. That's an infield single. I didn't like it. I thought it was too much of a reliance on analytics and the lefty righty matchup and handedness. And I think that Carson Kelly deserved better. But I know that it's a defensible position because of the splits against your rebate at that point. How did you see it and how would you explain it? I don't think I was a little surprised they pinch hit for Kelly. I'll say that no matter who it was. He's got, you know, he's one of your hitters to me that plays big and big situations. I've always thought that whether he's catching, you know, and calling the game and doing making great calls behind a plate or getting big hits like you did today before. The thing about yet you. Those are managers calls right at the, you know, right at the end of the game. You got to make a call. Who do you want to go with?

7:13And obviously counts went away from Kelly and to Murray is that was there another reason or were there other reasons why, you know, obviously the numbers show that Kelly and got hit off the guy. I think you could make a case either way, you know, to me or you're asking to roll the dice, David and say, okay, which one do you want to go with? I think if they both fail, you could say, well, why didn't you go with the lefty? If he, you know, I mean, it's one of those things you can. I don't know what to tell you the benefit of the man. Yeah, yeah, you do. So, you know, and I'll tell you what Murray got a pitch to hit the last pitch. It was a breaking ball industry. So down and in he just swung over the top of it. So he did get a pitch to hit and that ended the game. But, you know, I always lead to I'll say this. I always lead towards the guys that have done it a little bit. But, you know, I'm not managing either, you know, I'm just not so to me, those are decisions that we don't get privy to all of the information that you know in the dugout. And that to me is the most important.

8:24Ron, how much better are the brewers than the Cubs? And should that make Cubs fans feel better or worse about what just happened in that series? That's a good question. They're better than everybody right now. The record proves it. They're the best team in baseball record wise. They just are. They are a team that believes they can win every night. They are a team that does little things right to help win every night. And when you do all those things and you play unselfishly, you know, like how many times that they look to bump in that series and they, you know, got guys in motion, they hit behind them. So they do all those little things right here. This would be my take on that. If you look at those games that the Cubs have played over the last seven. Five of them were right down to the last few pitches of the game. That could easily flip over and go the Cubs way in October. It just couldn't.

9:31You get a couple guys pop up instead of ground a ball through the infield. So to me, I look at it and go, that's a really tough series. The big, the big thing that Milwaukee has over the Cubs is they've got three guys coming out of their bullpen that have really locked it down here in the last couple months and they're really good. And that's the big, that's the big difference I see. But could the Cubs find a little bit of that here, you know, in the next two weeks, three weeks and then find it knocked over. And if they do that outcome could be totally different. You're so right. Just a few weeks. There's so much variance in the postseason, especially for a team that has been so wildly streaky as the Cubs win 10 in the row, lose 10 in the row. Breggman is a night and day between the first half and the second half. And you just don't know how that could shift which clay homes and gozman combination are we going to get the one that shut down Milwaukee in Chicago or the one that melted down in the last two starts because I don't know if we can tell that and I don't know if there's any predictors.

10:34It's just baseball. It drives you crazy, but it's irresistible. Right? It is. It drives you crazy. We have to say it drives you to drink more. Exactly. So cool. In that context, you look at the bullpen and that's been the most disappointing aspect of this Cubs season, I think, especially lately over the next two weeks before we get to the postseason. Do you expect Edward Cabrera and or Justin Steele to play a role in the bullpen coming out in relief in the next couple weeks? Possibly, but I don't think steel to me that's asking you know and we've all talked about this and you and I probably have in the booth, you know, when we're just hanging out. I think that's asking an awful lot of Justin Steele or hoping an awful lot that he can participate at the end of a season in high leverage situations after not pitching basically for two years. That's what you're asking.

11:43I don't I to me that's miraculous if this is anything even remotely close to that happens now will we see him pitch sure maybe and you know a blowout game here there that's quite possible if he gets activated. But to have him in a big role, I think that would be it would be almost a miracle after not playing for two years Cabrera on the other hand now that's a different story. I think if he gets back, you're going to look at him probably going to the pen. It'll be less wear and tear on the blister on his finger that he said issues with you know where he's not throwing 85 pitches. He'll throw 25 pitches and that might be better. I also think David that the Cubs are probably better set to play in October than they are right now because if you go with a three even a four man rotation that puts another guy in your bullpen. That the Cubs could use right now. You're exactly right. Gowsman against the Brewers in Chicago at Regley last Thursday night was the guy that you remembered from oh yeah he pitch in the World Series.

12:50That's a blue jet guy. Then he did what he did the other night. I don't know if there's any way to predict what will happen next. In that way, he reminded me of what James and Tyron was last year. Sometimes he was really solid and sometimes he was really a liability. I don't know if he can figure it out before the playoffs, but you're right because of that possibility. You can't rule the Cubs out. Same with Clay Holmes. Clay Holmes tomorrow could shut down the pirates and last time out he couldn't get a Marlins out. So I don't know what to expect from those two guys. Here's what I saw from Gowsman the other day and this can happen to any pitcher at any time when you lose command to your fastball you're in trouble. And not out of his own in the zone when you lose command to the middle of the plate over and over you're going to get hit. And that's what he did. He lost command of his pitches in the middle of the plate. He hung some splits middle of the plate in or half to hitters and a good swings on the ball. If he pitches like he's capable of and he has command which we see him do a lot like you spoke about two outings ago.

13:56He's very tough to hit because he does the thing of get inside on you with the fastball and then the split becomes very effective. And then on occasion he'll paint fastball away and you're just that's so far out of your thought processes the hitter. You just end up taking it and you end up you know let's strike three so if he's on with his fastball. He's really good. No pitcher is good when they don't have command of their fastball and that's what we saw. Ron I know. Excuse me. Craig council said that dance be sponsor could return during the brave series. How big of a boost could that provide especially when you look at this team defensively. How much has his absence sort of made us all sort of re appreciate what he does bring to. Yeah. Field. Yeah. I think whenever you have you know players that are really good players and you miss them. You miss a lot of aspects not just the game you know or what he's doing on the field.

14:57I think you know Ramirez has done a very good job of of. Subbing in as a rookie and play great baseball. He's hitting close to 300. He's done very well. But there's no mistaking the defense that the Cubs get when you put dance be it short and. Niko back in second base. That is as a lead as it gets and then you put Pete and center field. The Cubs are the strongest defensive team up the middle in baseball. I would put them up against anybody and they are very very good. So I think you definitely get a boost and if the ends becomes back and he's swinging the bat well. So I think that's a good thing to do. I think that's a good thing to do. Or at least good. He's a real threat to go deep and that's another thing that will add to the Cubs. But his defense is. You know it's elite. It really is. There's just there's some other good short stops in the league. But you know would you say you take one over dance be and defense. I don't think so. Cume Saturday is a great matchup. Clay Holmes for the Cubs.

15:58Paul Schien's for the pirates. You hope that it's a game that Cubs can pull out but Schien's versus Holmes. That's that's an October like matchup between two guys who were really the aces of their staff. I think that's the fun part of our game David. I think when we play every day. You know like we we're going to have a few off days here in the next two weeks. Does it it's like we're handed gold bars getting some off days now. But that's the great thing about baseball is every week you if you're a good team and all of a sudden you're playing some other teams that. Have some star players that's the great thing about our game is you're going to you know you're going to watch today's game if you're a fan. But yet in a vacuum mind you're going to go one of the elite pitchers and baseball is pitching on Saturday. And it comes got a really good guy throwing to it's going to be a fun game to watch. That's the great thing about being a fan of baseball is you. We day after day there's something that you know some star player that's either coming in or you're going to see him compete against beat.

17:01I mean that's the first of bad in the game for the Cubs that's going to be a great matchup right I mean we're all going to look forward to that spot on deep facing schemes to start the game. That's going to be fun. Great stuff. Come enjoy the weekend. Welcome back home. I hope you enjoyed your off day. Really appreciate your. Thanks. Come absolutely David Rootty upgrade to talk to you. You say it was all I got to have a great weekend guys Ron Cumer Cubs radio analyst here at the score all around good guy. Good stuff. And I think he'll be having one eye on the Cubs Sunday and one eye on the bears because he is a bears fan. And Sunday morning we start something new here also on the score the debut of inside the North. This is going to be a lot of fun. It's a new show dedicated to the team you love and the teams you love to hate. It's all about the NFC North bears, Vikings, Packers, Lions, features analysts from all four teams in the division. Dave wants that you know him from Chicago Chad Greenway from Minnesota Mason Crosby from Green Bay T.J. Lang from Detroit.

18:06The show will be hosted by me going to do that. Another job a lot of fun another show and it's going to be inside the North sponsored by five hour energy eight o'clock Sunday morning on the score. It'll be available on YouTube as well. We got a lot of things going on and it's going to be a lot of fun because this is a year the division is hard to predict. I would say and everyone talks about the NFC West as being so talent because you have the Rams you have the Niners you have Seattle and then you have the Cardinals who are like kind of the bottom. At the bottom where I was like the the NFC North is like four teams that could and the Vikings are the big question mark right with what happens with Kyler Murray but like you have four teams that could win the division. I've talked to people who think the Vikings are going to be the surprise team in the division. I know but you're right because the NFC West might be better with the top three all four teams in the NFC. The Cardinals are going to be horrific yeah the Cardinals could be up for that first overall pick right they could be in the archmaning sweepstakes if that's who they want to pick or whoever it might be.

19:13I will continue talking football when we come back because bears fans were paid a compliment by someone they love to criticize. We'll hear it next right here on hot paint Chicago sports radio 104 3 the score. Welcome back to hot and Peyton on 104 3 the score. I hated missing it with I mean I just could not grip a ball. Yeah you know I work asked for like four or five weeks but I could not grip the ball that week it was you know six days after I broken in four spots but I'm like I desperately wanted that was like in the beginning season. I was like yeah I want to play green Bay. Yeah but it was in Pittsburgh. I could not wait to go back to soldier field. That would have killed me and fans were awesome. Yeah it was a great environment. I love Chicago I know they hate me I love Chicago fans. Yeah even when I told them it was because everybody in the front row was flipping me off and screaming at me. I was like but I love that they are great sports fans. Yeah and the interactions were amazing. I mean people were flipping me off in the stands. I love it. Welcome back to hot paint Chicago sports radio 104 3 the score.

20:19Ruti Polinsky in perjuret today. That was none other than Aaron Rogers complimenting bears fans on the not just football podcast friendly audience. So he was feeling very free. He talked about a lot of different things. We saw a lot of different clips about a variety of topics that aren't as interesting as what. He said about bears fans. Completing them in a way that only he could. But Aaron Rogers. He's he's been done a lot of talking. He's talked a lot this. I know you're ready to roll your eyes and going to rant. No I just didn't read breath. One time I went on and Aaron Rogers rant and it caught fire and there were a bunch of Aaron Rogers defenders that came at me. I had to mute my Twitter notifications that got ugly. Are there still Aaron Rogers defenders? Perhaps we're going to find out North of the cheddar. You know what there will be a key wins. If he plays well. Do you remember how many arguments we had about that specific week?

21:19Yes. Up to that. Oh my god. You wanted to face Aaron Rogers. You want to face Aaron Rogers. Yes. I do remember that. I'm trying to remember exactly which side of that equation I was on. You wanted to play Aaron Rogers David. You wanted Aaron Rogers out there. I remember vividly. And I think I just wanted them to have that opportunity to win. I think that's what it was. You're like you were you were. Pro Aaron Rogers playing. No, maybe not. No, maybe I think it was ever since I think you wanted Aaron out there. Because it's all like me. I think that I was like it was definitely an absent. Yeah. Okay. Okay. Dustin Dustin wanted Aaron Rogers to play. It's just like I want to face the news. I want to face Paul screens. I want to face Aaron Rogers. Proviable. So like Paul Schien's David puts his pants on one leg at a time. That's right. There's no need just like Drogo. But Aaron Rogers at the stage of his career is not the Paul Schien's of the NFL or the Miz of the NFL.

22:20I think that he was their best quarterback coming into Chicago at that time, which is why I thought you wanted to miss him if you could. Because if you're the Bears, you want the easiest path to victory. That's what I think it's not even about having the easiest path to victory. I think it's more about that this is the NFL. You play who's on your schedule and a win against Aaron Rogers counts the same as a win against Mason Rudolph. I was in crossby. That's his on your show not to be confused with Max crossby. Who's going to be on the Bears? No trade deadline. You think so? No. Well, this is a conversation. This is a conversation we had. Yeah, we had this conversation the greener and the other day. If the Bears are putting up 35 points a game like David thinks they're going to do in week one. I said 31. The Bears are putting up 45 points a game and are the highest scoring offense in football, but are losing by one or losing because of all the defensive issues. I would not put it past Ryan Poles to go out there and do something dramatic at the deadline to fix his team on defense if he needs to do that.

23:31I think there's a difference between saying that he should do that and expecting him to do that. I don't have a ton of confidence that he would be that aggressive and be able to pull it off. I just don't. I don't have a ton of confidence in Ryan Poles's ability to improve this team in real time during the season. I would love for him to prove that wrong. I would think the Bears are being a great position to get off to a good start. Say start six and two. You're going to have to look like a NFC championship game contender. Sure. Then go out and trade for Max Crosby and then go out and give up whatever is necessary. And be at the top of the list. Be the team that others have to beat the best offer for. The problem is they don't always have the same assets as other teams. If they're six and two and they're a playoff team and looking like the favor to come out of the NFC, they're not going to have a high draft. They're not going to give you next year's first round pick.

24:32I disagree because every team that's going to be after Max Crosby is going to be a team drafting low. That's true. So the Bears are going to be drafting theoretically at the bottom of the first round. So I think about the teams that are playoff teams. We're talking about the Bears being six and two and trading for Max Crosby and they haven't played one game yet. Yes. Beauty of the season. I love it. We are. And the Bears be six and two to start. Let's see. That's going to be tough. That's going to be very difficult. Given the schedule that everyone has looked at and said, oh, they're ripe for regression. Thanks, Gronk. Thanks, Bill Barnwell. Bill Barnwell, highly respected ESPN dot com analyst. Am I overstating that? He's highly respected, right? Bill Barnwell? Incredible. Incredible. He said the Bears are going to miss playoffs. Right. I respect that. It's the end of this preseason. Heck, who saw the Rams? Look at the division. Who saw the Rams scoring seven points last night? Right. Nobody. Nobody. Miles Garrett, 27 past rushes, zero quarterback pressures. Who saw that coming? Nobody.

25:37But the same reason everyone thinks that the Rams are going to win the Super Bowl is the same. And like what we saw last night is the same thing as Bill Barnwell saying the Bears are going to miss the playoffs. Like any nobody knows. Nobody knows. Nobody knows. All right, David. Let's play the six and two game. Okay. Because I feel like the six and two game is it tells you a lot about what the first half of the season. Okay. So six and two is a possible. Panther's week one. If they win week one, I think anything is possible. That's a win. I'm just going to say that. They're going to win. You can't lose week one. Yeah, you can't lose week one. They're going to win. If you have the kind of goals that the Bears have and the kind of focus that they have shown, you better beat the Panthers regardless of whether it's home or around the road. Yeah. And we didn't even talk about this in the in the picks. I'm and we're making our picks. The biggest advantage that the Bears have in this game is the head coach. Like I'm sorry. Seven fourth quarter comebacks inside two minutes. Like he is a good coach.

26:44He's good at clock management. He's good at managing the game. He's good at managing the players. He's good at managing expectations. He's good at the mindset. They have a hat. They have an advantage. He has the answer to every question. They need to he is. They need to win week one. Okay. Vikings week two at home. You better win that game. You better win that game. Okay. Two and a. Eagles at Bears Monday Night Football. Tough one home game. Tough one. I don't see that happening. The Eagles are such a question mark to me because. Like no a. J. Brown. What's going on with Jalen Hertz. Nick Seriani. I don't know. I don't know. I don't know that big Seriani guy. I'm not a big Seriani guy. But I think the Eagles with that defense could be trouble. This is a big year for Seriani. It could be all right. What's okay. Jets at Bears win. Yeah. It's a win. All right. So now you have to start three and one. Three and one. So then you got to go three and one. The second part. The second quarter. And then you can lose at the Packers. I'll give you that week five. No Micah Parsons. No Josh Jacobs. See I know. So why should you Chalked it up as a lose. Okay. But it's on the road. Like if you split with the Packers, it's a good year. All right. Keep going. Okay.

27:47And then Falcons. You got to win that one. You might see Cooper Rush playing quarterback. This is the game I played with Clay Harbor on the charter podcast when the first when the schedule came out. And I had the bears going 13 and 4. Because like you just look at this and you say, but again, you just never, never know. Okay. Four. We got four and two. All right. There we are. What's after the talk? It's Patriots. There's an iPhone ball. All right. Look at they look. They look terrible. They J Brown and Drake May. That's going to be the Drake May versus Caleb Williams referendum. And we know who's going to win that one. It's not going to be Drake May. That's it. That's it. That's it. So it's good. That's it. So it's a winnable game. So that's okay. We had in the window when they have three of four and prime time. Well, that's that's week seven. So you already have bears beating the Panthers, beating the Vikings at home. Eagles is a question mark beating the jets at home. You had them beating the Packers on the road. And then you have the Falcons. I say I could lose

28:47them. And you see, seeably in that conservatively to the Packers and the Eagles and that five and three is not bad either, by the way. They can start six and two. I'm point is that they start six and two. They should be in the Max Crosby conversation because at that point in time, the Ragers very well could be one and seven. And they should be looking for draft picks. Unless Diode Angbo has a coming out party and is not the issue on the defense. That's something you can say in the Friday before the Friday night, another Friday, the rest of the year. Okay. April seven texts and David. He pretty much did that for Montez at the deadline to green Bay was in on him. What do respect? With respect trading for Montez sweat when the bears traded for Montez sweat, they were going nowhere fast. But they didn't think they were they were. You weren't going out and trading for a pass rusher to aid your asset to the playoffs or to make yourself legitimate as an NFC championship contender. You're going out to get Montez sweat because you needed talent in your building in a way that is different in terms of the dynamic.

29:52To me, that was Ryan polls, comma, roster builder, not Ryan polls, comma, GM, capable of putting the bears over the top guy. That's a difference in a pro. He's aggressive. He has been aggressive. He is right. You had no talent. He has been aggressive at times. I don't know if it's always panned out the way for. I hate to bring it up, but like a Chase Claypool. That was a situation where he was aggressive. He took a risk and gave up a lot for a player that he thought was going to help. And it didn't it didn't go well. I think also that trade hasn't exactly reached expectations because you don't have a like game changer necessarily. Right. I think at one point Montez was a game like he needs to be a gamer for the bears to get where they want to go in 2026. Montez sweat, Jalen Johnson, they both have to play like their top 10 at their position.

30:52I don't know if the Montez sweat is a top 10 pass rusher. He might even not even be a top half of the league pass rusher, but he's got to flash that on more times than not. Jalen Johnson has to behave and play like a top 10 cornerback. He's closer to being at the top of his game and the top of his positional value than Montez sweat is. But those are your two elite players on the bear defense. Yeah. They're weak. They've got to remind you of that 100% and listen by week seven Dylan, the Inamin could be coming around. We haven't really talked much about him in a positive way. He's a guy that they have expressed more hesitation. I think then confidence. You know who I hope is a game record by week seven. Oh boy. Who Jordan vandered. Oh, he is your favorite bear ever. No, not ever. We've gotten pretty dramatic. No, no, no, no, no. Come on out. I said, oh, yeah, the Michigan. You have your favorites. You do. You have Ruthie's favorite. Well, Colcomat is my OG favorite bear, but he's an OG for, you know, since the time I've been here. You think by week seven Dylan, the Inamin will have removed some of the doubts that seem to exist. And it's not even like observers outside of the building. It seems the way they talk about Dylan, the Inamin. They have their own reservations about predicting too much too soon. I think they've been very careful.

32:18They've been very careful about that with all rookies in Ben Johnson's tenure. Like last offseason the way he talked about. Remember, Colston was coming off of a shoulder entry. Luther was kind of banged up. Had some soft tissue issues early. Didn't participate. I remember in some of the many camp offseason program stuff. And Ben had a lot of reservations. We never felt like he was all in on rookies. That's a good point. He's very careful with that. And really it reminds me of it reminds me of the billbellic check sort of patriot way of like earning your role, earning your position. You're new. You just got here. I don't care where you were drafted. I don't care what we're expecting out of you this year. Like you have to show it to me. You're going to have four rookies contribute Sunday, possibly. The Inamin, Mohammed, Van and Berg and Rausch. And maybe Xavier and Thomas and maybe Xavier and Thomas, depending on if he's active. And if he's active, he better be in there for maybe 10 to 12 plays. That could be five rookies on a team that is, you know, got to the second round of the playoffs. That's that's trusting your draft.

33:26Yeah. And your ability to evaluate talent. Yeah, it's going to be a lot of fun. Chicago, Carolina, Bears, Panthers. You're going to want to listen to it here on the pregame show Sunday morning, 9 to noon, brought you by your local four dealers. And so your local four dealers pregame show on 104 three, the score. Mark Grote, our guy, along with all the crew, some Patrick Manley, they'll get you set for the game. Then immediately after the game, Grote, Olin and Pat, they'll have instant reaction on the Timbertech decking and railing post game show presented by the Warman Automotive Group. This week's post game show also can be seen exclusively on YouTube and on Twitch. I'm not thinking that we just went on a max cross-bita and tangent. Like that's so funny to me until he's traded. He's not he's not on the Ravens, right? Not on the Ravens. What does that mean? Because he didn't because they tried to trade him there, right? Because I always picked the Ravens. No, I did pick the Ravens to win the AFC.

34:28I am the biggest Ravens fan of all time this year. You are because of Declan Doyle? Declan and the coaching staff. Yeah, yeah, you like the coaching staff. Yeah, I think Declan's going to be the head coach of the New York Jets next season. That's my theory. Wow! That's a hot take. That's that's interesting. I wonder what the odds of that are. We'll ask Mike Paul maybe. Next, so join us here on Han Peyton, Ruthie Plynski and for Jared and Chicago Sports Radio 104-3, the score. And now, ladies and gentlemen, probably presents the star of our show. Mike Paul. Vice President of Operations of Circa, the D and Golden Gate. Host of Paul Saturday's on 104-3, the score. Why don't I take you somewhere out? That you've never been. Where's that? Let's add to Vegas with Mike Paul, sponsored by Circa Sports Illinois. Sports betting the way it should be on 104-3, the score. Remember what happens in Vegas days in Vegas.

35:34Welcome back. It's Han Peyton Chicago Sports Radio 104-3, the score, Ruthie Plynski in for Jared today. And time now to go out to our Plumbers 9-1-1 hotline. Plumbing emergency call 1-8-33-plumb 9-1-1. Local 130 plumbers. Get the job done right the first time. Join now by Circa's Vice President of Operations. Mike Paul of Palm Saturday's right here on the score. Good morning, Mike. How are you? Good morning, David. Good morning, Ruthie. Good morning, Mike. Thanks for joining us, Mike. Let's get right to it. Big weekend in the NFL week one. We've already seen some very interesting outcomes. The Ramscore 7 points. The Seahawks come back. But they only score 13. What's your best upset Sunday in week one? Oh, well, that's an interesting question. I think the dolphins might be live now that we get the Brock Bowers news here. Who'd be applied to everybody in Las Vegas saying everybody was healthy even though, you know, a day earlier where he knew he went underwent surgery. I think a lot of people were thinking about using the Raiders and Survivors as well.

36:38Completely have to back away from that. I have to tell you guys, I said this this week that I had a theory for week one this year. And that was to play every first half under the total. Because these starters don't play together at all in the preseason. It's just so changed. What it's been, I mean, the lines, not just the quarterback, but the offensive lines don't play together. I know you get to joint practices. But so far, I mean, it hasn't even been close. It's been too rocking, cheers, unders. We'll see how it goes the rest of the way. But just a theory. Mike wanted to talk baseball with you with Shohei Otani on the injured list. Did that move the odds for PCA or increased the odds, I guess I should say to win MVP? Yeah, well, he's unbedduable now. He's like a 40 to one favorite to that market. So that market's over. He says, he says, heavy a favorite as Alvarez is in the in the American. I have to tell you, I had a look because what are the odds to miss the playoffs for the Cubs in the White Sucks? I know I don't want to be doom and gloom here in Chicago. But it's sub shockingly high.

37:42I mean, the Cubs are like 40 to one to miss the playoffs in the White Sucks are like 22 or 25 to one. I mean, if you're if you were trying to protect some positions, you could look at. I mean, the leads aren't that big. I know where we're two weeks to go. But those are some interesting crisis. Tune in tomorrow between eight and nine circus sports presents Palm Saturdays. Mike Palm is the host. You'll be able to listen to the score on the on the Odyssey app or watch live on YouTube and Twitch. I'll presented by the official sports book of the score circus sports sports betting the way it should be with no bet fees. Mike, I was viewing the bears and the Panthers in Caroline on Sunday. Anything stand out in terms of an opportunity? I just played the number grab the two and a half. I mean, it's at a two and a half all summer, David. I grabbed the two and a half because I thought the game would close three. You know, we actually went to three and a half Wednesday morning. It came back to three, but it's three minus one 15. So we're really close to going to three and a half again. So if the betting market will tell you anything, I just

38:45didn't think the market would tolerate two and a half. I think it's a good if you had to start on the road. I think it's a pretty good landing spot for the bears. We got in the show tomorrow, Mike. It asked us to you can tell you you can tell me. Well, look forward to whoever you have starting we're efforting efforting efforting efforting. Everting some some guests for you Mike, eight to nine o'clock circus sports presents Palm Saturday's looking forward to it. Thanks guys have a great weekend. My Palm vice president of operations out at Circa and his show every Saturday morning precedes inside the clubhouse at nine tomorrow between nine and nine and 11. Juts and Richards is going to join me. We have Carter Hawkins. General manager at 1030 looking forward to that Connor McKnight at 930 talking a little white socks. Love, Connor. So yeah, there's a counter doing a little play by play yesterday. Yeah, it's not a great. He's versatile. Isn't he versatile? There's really nothing he can't do there. He knows so much about that team. It's great like his brain is so big when he talks about mechanics of each guy

39:49and what they're working on and Connor's just so he's awesome. Plus he interviewed the guy that caught the home run with one hand. Did you see him there last day? Yes, I did. What's bad practice? Yeah, they had him as a guest. I know that guy. I mean his hand was probably still sore. Hey, can I shut out Mike Palm for having me over at Circa? Yeah, I should have done it while he was on here, but I had a great time at Circa. I heard you did a great job. It was fun. I spoke on the football panel that they had for their big contest weekend. Uh, speak on homes are out there. Got to pop on the afternoon show with the ex-Kateland. I brought Katelyn Cherokee with me just for a little girl's weekend. We went to a backstreet boys at the sphere. That was for fun. It was unbelievable. That's a great trip. I was like nine years old again. Like I was literally, it was so crazy how I knew every single word to every backstreet boy song, every single one. Anyways, that was a lot of fun. You did a great job. All right, don't go anywhere. We got another hour. You're not done yet. We're going to talk to John Schoep, the former Bears offensive coordinator, one of

40:52several people that Ben Johnson has considered a mentor in his career. Their lives intersected at the University of North Carolina. They're both from Carolina and they're familiar with each other. We'll talk to John Schoep next on Hawn Peyton, Ruthie Polinsky in for Jarrett on Chicago Sports Radio 104-3-2-Score.