VSiN By The Books | March 4, 2026 | Hour 2

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1:00Let's go places. This is Vecin by the books on Vecin, the eSports betting network. Stop off the hour. It is Vecin by most daybross right here at Circus Sports, in the gamey hall in Franklin, Kentucky. A close-up just goes back. Moming Cleveland, Ohio Rex Haggard, is going to join us down in Florida at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, a little bit later on. This hour, Adam Burke, Les Reynolds, will round out our show today in hour number three. So a lot to get to, Jensen. But we do always talk about it. This being college basketball's time to shine. The NFL is always like, wait a second, not so fast, my friends. That's where we begin our highlights and headlines. Help your bottom line with today's highlights and headlines. I'm Murray's on the move. And when he's playing good quarterback, he's normally on a move.

2:00So you're going to get a mobile quarterback we know after seven seasons in the desert, the Cardinals have informed Kyler that your services are no longer required in the desert. And I thought Kyler put out a very, at least professional adult response out on social media yesterday, basically saying paraphrasing, hey, I apologize, I loved my time here. I didn't get it done. Not like a pass in the buck thing. I take ownership over the failures here, but he also added the caveat, Jensen Lewis, that he believes his best football is yet to come. And I know some people might scoff at that notion, but I think we've seen some examples here of quarterbacks that actually got better in different places than the first stop. Don't know where stop number two is going to be, but do you believe that Kyler Murray still has better football yet to be played? And with the feet, what have we seen, you know, imitation since serious form of flattery where you can have the dual threat quarterback mentioned it to you at the beginning of the show for those just joining us. I would put the Minnesota Vikings squarely in that conversation

3:02because of what Kevin O'Connell can do. Uh, the whisperer there, they're ready to win. They've got elite weapons. Uh, and I think that is a unique spot that he could be plug and play right away and the Vikings would be a contender. Yeah, it's so weird. The perception changes for me instantly now that he's out of Arizona. And then you almost go back to like, ooh, it feels like a new toy. And what's this toy going to look like in a different place? Because we know it didn't fit here. That toy didn't work in Arizona. But I think it might be able to get rebooted as we've seen so many other guys get rebooted like Daniel Jones last year, right? So all of a sudden, if you go back to the giants in the end there and Brian Dable, they released him if you remember and then it was interesting because the Vikings stowed him away. They remember that they picked them up. And yet he didn't play for the Vikings, never saw the field there. But then they let him go after the year ended up and he went to the Colts. And all of a sudden he beats out Anthony Richardson and he's moving up the MVP board. The Colts, they would have been the presumptive number one seed,

4:03if you will, in the AFC, it's seven and one to get the start to their season. They go like gangbusters and then the injuries happen and the Colts fall off in the second half because they didn't have their signal collar. So the transition tag goes on Daniel Jones, not the franchise tag. So what this means here, people is if he gets an offer from another team or other teams, the Colts can match that offer. So it's a way of potentially holding on to the end of Jones, but I wonder if the offer's really good. Will he be on the move from Indy? I think that's the one thing that the hedge is from Chris Ballard and his front office for Indianapolis. He saves $6 million with the transition tag and it allows you some time to be able to match if another club comes in. I think it's the injury timeline that would be the risk for me and the injury itself. Dave, if I'm a club that wants to go out and try and sign him for market value or at least maybe below that to try and save, that's my risk. Will I have him for the entire of the year and what is my timeline for him to be back to full strength?

5:07Because I do think we talked about Anthony Richardson earlier in the week here that their representatives have been told by the coach, you can go look for a trade if you want. I mean, the features not Anthony Richardson in Indianapolis, but if you do make this commitment in somebody else gives him an offer and you match that offer, that means you're committing to Jano Jones long term to let him heal whether this year or next year. Don't know what it's going to look like for Kenneth Walker, the third. This is not a surprise here that the Seahawks have not put the franchise tag on right now the Super Bowl MVP. So he was great in that game. We all, he was great all year long, but that's not the way they do business in the Pacific Northwest. Clearly they don't do business like that since in Addy, as they're saying, Tray Anderson, you're going to be unrestricted as well. So they couldn't work out a deal for trade to keep them. They couldn't figure out one to trade him. They might not get anything here and maybe a compensatory pick here if you lose them in free agency. But Jensen, short of that, I wonder if both these guys could be on the move.

6:09Cincinnati was not going to pay him fair value anyway and dear God, he is probably as happy as anybody. He'll do the right thing publicly. But that franchise tag or the edge tag, I think would have been what upwards of maybe $30 million or it would have been an ethical number. I may be off on the exact number, but it's still way too much for Mike Brown and company to want to be able to shell out there. You nailed it on Kenneth Walker. John Schneider does not do historically the tags. I think it was a smart move economically. I think people were projecting Kenneth Walker on nine million dollars average annual value. The tag would have put him upwards of 14 and a half. So it gives the Seahawks. And I have to believe Dave, they have a very good idea of what the return timeline and anticipation for his ex-sharbon A would be. So maybe some cost certainty here, but was still a chance to resign him. If indeed that reunion is potential for down the road. I'll be curious to see what he wants,

7:10what Kenneth Walker wants. Obviously he wants to be paid like a top guy, right? So we get that. But does he want to be the lead back? He's lead back. But does he want to be the exclusive back? Like we might see with Jameer Gibbs in Detroit now that David Montgomery's gone. It'll be very interesting to see what he actually wants out there. Because it does feel like it fits in Seattle. We had the draft here yesterday. The MLB features draft. You can still watch it here. These are YouTube channel at these in live. And you had the 10th pick out of 10 participants in said draft. So that meant you went bang, bang, back to back a lot of Seattle, a lot of Metzlove and a lot of Royals love. Boy, do I love two of those three? Cause I got some tickets and both the Metz and the Royals. Jensen, go down your board here for the people that missed the draft. Yeah, big run on the awards market to five of, I believe the first 10. So no, six, I believe, no, five, six. Yes, six, dear God, six MVP selections within the first 10 picks of the first round of this MLB futures draft.

8:11You're looking at one so to Aaron judge Bobby with junior show, Tony Calrolly, Nick Kurtz, all of them off the board there. That to me shifted where I was going to eventually go. And I still got four of the top 11 categories as far as I got four picks that were my top selections on my big board in those 11 categories. That being the Royals to win the central, my top overall selection, the Mariners at five, the one that win the American leg pennant, the Dodgers under their win total of 102 and a half wins. And then Mutitaka Murakami six to one to win the American leg rookie of the year, big power bat that the white socks. And it was a shock, Dave, that the white socks were able to get him from overseas. He'll hit the middle of their lineup. Just a year ago, it was Nick Kurtz that hit over 30 home runs to win the American leg rookie of the year. Murakami has that kind of power. Now, is he going to hit for enough average? That'll be the question. I think Chicago will be drastically improved.

9:13Are they a contender in the central? No, are they a contender for a playoff spot? No. But the rookie of the year market very fluid and more towards the position players. Outside of Luis Hale and Paul Schienz for just a couple of years ago that won it respectively in the National League and American League, you tend to want to go for more position players here. But overall, I feel very, very happy with where everything ended up from how I put my big board together to eventually how it came together. That Murakami bomb hits a 60 to one. I think we know who the winner's going to be of this said first ever. Vsyn MLB features draft. That is fascinating. Again, check it out here on our YouTube page and YouTube channel if you have not seen it yet at Vsyn Live. We know that the Yankees are always contenders, no matter what they do. We also know that Aaron Judge is with Team USA as we get the WBC starting tonight with Chinese Taipei taking on Australia. Now, Team USA winning gold and Milan of the Olympics for the USA hockey,

10:14the men and the women doing that. Sometimes you need a little inspiration. So maybe the captain of the Yankees, Aaron Judge, inspired up the boys to get it fired up for Team USA. I'm going to sacrifice for your family, Paul. You sacrifice for your country. And you sacrifice for the brothers in the treasure of what here is in the name. That's what they want us to do for us. You know, we're down, we'll beat up a little bit, man. You know, we did switch up, man. We're going to lay it all online. And we do that. We're going to bring the gold on down, it's on you. Okay, so maybe it's not fire and brimstone, Jensen, but I like the message, right? Like, so you know, everybody does it differently. What'd you make of Judge trying to get the boys to rally around the flag? It doesn't feel like him, man. You know, you're watching his facial features. I feel like he's going to crack up laughing that it's a bit. Oh, they've really, they wanted me to do this for social media or whatever because, no, man, it's hard.

11:15It's hard to equal her brooks from, from yesterday, man. So, hey, boys, just go out, watch them a little bit yesterday. This is a lineup that's got Aaron Judge hitting in between Bryce Harper and Couch Warberry yesterday, Bobby with junior leading off me, dear God. It's, it's going to be some, some tough sledding for the opposing pitching staffs that got to face them there at pool B. So it wasn't the same her brooks in the, the gold medal match against Finland. If you lose to a bunch of fins, you'll take this to your blackened graves. Your blackened graves. It's a little bit different the message that Aaron Judge is giving right now to what her brooks did back in late plastic in 1980. Jerkson Profars is not going to be playing. It doesn't look like for the entire year, Jensen, a second PED suspension. That comes with a full game, a full season suspension here, 162. I don't know what to say about this other than terrible for the braves, but for the player, you're jeopardizing your career.

12:15Second strike and it should be the last one, just EDSC beyond belief that this could happen yet again. And I mean, you reap what you sow and Profars not going to be playing doesn't look like this year. I wonder if an appeals coming. How that's going to work out. You do not have to pay full price for yesterday longer. Check out the free upside app. Use the promo code books title of this show. Get an extra 25 cents back for a gallon on your very first fill up. So download the free upside app now. Use the promo code books limited time 25 cents per gallon bonus offers vary by user location. Go to upside.com for all of the terms and conditions. So you're listening to this podcast because you want an edge. But what if I told you you're only halfway there? You've got the mindset now it's time to get the toolkit to match it. Here's the thing. Pro betters they spend thousands of on data and tools. But what they don't know and don't want you to know is that you can get the same edge for a fraction of the cost with Vsyn Pro with Vsyn Pro. You're going to get access to expert picks, public betting data,

13:17prop projections, powerful tools, analytics, and so much more. Just tap the link in the description and see why thousands of betters are already using Vsyn Pro to cash more bets. The average cost of a D wine Virginia is $11,352.47. Drinking and driving costs more than your drinks. Learn more at what's the damage.org brought to you by Virginia DMV. Hi, I'm Chandler Garcia. As a pick-unus and global health advocate, I've cared for women and children all over the world, from Costa Rica to Egypt to Kenya and beyond. And no matter where I go or how tough the conditions get, I always wear my figs. These scrubs are lightweight, breathable, and super soft, perfect for long shifts in any environment. They've got pockets in all the right places, the fit is flexible, and they're durable through every admission, surgery, and post-op. But it's not just about the scrubs. Another big part of what I love about figs is when they say they're committed to supporting healthcare workers

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15:21It is a lot of fun talking a lot of major league baseball. It is March. That means opening day is right around the corner here. Let's get to it as we continue with today's edition of the Daily Diamond. I know the JVT is getting ready for money moves later on two to four PM this afternoon every afternoon here on the network was stormed by a Tony. But I'm sure he'd love to be a fly in the wall for this segment right here. As we're talking about the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim of Orange County, JVT's team. Jensen, what are you making this team? Big trade in the offseason here. Not a good year last year, only 72 wins. And the projection this year is actually worse at 70 and a half. You did last last year. As you mentioned in the American League West and a team that is still kind of searching for not only health, but also continuity throughout their pitching staff. So as I began kind of looking at them overall, some bright spots to kind of hit your wagon

16:26too. One is their man in the lead off spot in the middle of the diamond. That is none other than shortstop Zach Netto breakout campaign for him last year, far in a way now. And this is crazy to say with Mike Trout still on the team, Zach Netto, their best position player and maybe their best overall player right now. So behind him in the lineup, Nolan Shaunawell, first base, Mike Trout will probably do more of the D.H.ing this year in between center field with Joe Adele out there and then Jorge Soler and left Josh Low coming over in a trade with the Tampa Bay race will now be the right fielder. One of the young catchers that not only is great behind the dish, but has got some juice with the bat to it'll be a length in lineup, but not in the sense that you're used to seeing with contending Lyam so you on Moncada will be their third baseman Christian more young phenom was out of the University of Tennessee just a couple of years ago, more than likely their opening day second baseman. So the lineup, I think Dave should be a little bit better.

17:29They were fine hitting Homer's last year. Number four, they don't think people realize the LA Angels were fourth and big league baseball hitting home runs last year, they were dead last in average. So Dave that tells you they're a three true outcome team here, all right. There's going to be a lot of swing and miss with this club, but when they connect, it's a lot of slug and it goes usually over the fence. So we'll see how that all plays out this year. They're going to need to improve on being 25th and run scored and they make it a little bit of help here from a little bit more of a bolster rotation. You talked about the big trade this off season, Taylor Ward, their middle of the order bat. Now a member of the Baltimore Orioles, he was traded for Grayson Rodriguez and Rodriguez, one of the top pitching prospects not only for Baltimore a couple of years ago, but also in all of major league baseball. He has front of the rotation ability, but it has been an injury that was one of the talks of the off season Dave, the angels rumored to not even look at physicals before consummating

18:32this trade. And I don't know how that happens when you have a young player who has been hurting his spent significant time on the IL. However, if he's right, then he teams with you say, I say, we say Kakuichi as the ace of the staff and Jose Soriano, a power right handed fastball pitcher, that's a big three. You could actually kind of sink your teeth into, especially with what Kakuichi and Soriano did last year. It's the back of the bullpen that gives me a little bit more of a bullish nature on their over for the win total, Dave. It's set at 70 and a half and Perryman asian, their general manager did a great job of being able to reinforce with some quality veteran free agent, Sinese, Drew Pomerance, who remember him as a set up man for the Chicago Cubs this past year. Kirby Yates was in the Dodgers bullpen. Jordan Romano was closing for the Philadelphia Phillies early in the season last year. Those three big free agent Sinese to go along with Robert Stevenson, who is kind of the

19:32closer in house at the moment. They're going to be able to shorten games a lot more this year, Dave. And I think that gives them a fighting chance to be able to get over their win total. We both will get to the A's as we continue daily diamond. We're going to break down every single team and major league baseball as we go before we get to opening day. But if we do believe that the A's are going to be better this year as well. If you believe that the angels win total, since we could be an overplay at 70 and a half, that's got to take some wins away from the perceived top of the division, which would be Seattle, Houston and Texas and whatever order. We believe those teams would be are the angels good enough to, I don't want to say win 80 games. I think if you're looking at division, you got to be looking 85, right? There's a median to even have a chance to win a division. I don't know if we have any visions of grandeur of a team like that. Well, when you look at it, Alec Manila and you look at a redeemer's there. If they are the back end of that starting rotation past that big three, if we want to call them a big three, but again, if Grayson Rodriguez is right, that's why you make the

20:33trade. Tell a word while you make a move like that with such a prominent player like Ward can be, is that is that good enough? Is that four or five good enough to get through the rotation on a weekly basis and give yourself a chance to win on those off days that the big three aren't pitching? I think so, but we also have to temper that knowing that you are in a division with the Seattle Mariners who I think have every opportunity to not only get back to the ALCS, but potentially win it. A big reason why I picked them that five to one in our Vsyn MLB futures draft yesterday. I think Houston takes a step back. I think if you're looking for a big regressor in the American League West, it would be the Astros. So many question marks in their rotation, especially without Framber Valdez and Hunter Brown's going to be great. He's going to contend for the Saiyung in the American League, but so many injuries that are littered through that pitching staff and uncertainty as well. Here's what I, if I'm an angels fan, I would, I would very much think that because you

21:35have the experience, you just added with those three bullpen arms, it allows you an opportunity to not overextend that rotation, Dave. You can be a bit more conservative if you're Kurt Suzuki, who was just hired this off-season odd deal. By the way, just the one year deal, incredibly odd, that just does not happen. But you have a group that from a bullpen standpoint, it might be one of the better, I think, roster constructions that we've seen at least in the last half decade there in the city of angels. So they'll have a much better chance to try and win series where you were so worried about leads and regardless of how big the lead was latent games, they just didn't have guys that were reliable to shut the door, Dave. So I think that allows you, if you're a cocoon, you just kind of pin your ears back. If it's five and dive, great. We got some guys that can bridge the gap to the end there. Here's my key. One of my bulltakes is that Zach Netto becomes a top 10 shortstop in all of Major League

22:37Baseball this year. Everything is there for that kid to be able to take off. So if you're looking at a potential player props, he might be a guy that could be 30, 30, 30, more homers, 30, more stolen bases this year. I think that is a very viable thing and an achievement that he could get. Joe Adele breakout last year with the power numbers, looking at some of the projections, got him at least for 30 home runs this year. The average is not going to be anywhere near 250. So that's the key for me is looking at where are you in the middle of this lineup? Jorge Salaire years past was great. Can there be enough balls put in play bottom of that lineup needs to stay healthy? Can they turn it over? It's there as far as power. Can they improve on the OPS? If so, it's all of a sudden, a little bit more positive outlook, not saying they're going to contend for a playoff spot to top the vision to be in, but I think they should be markedly better than 72 and 90 and the basement of the West from just a season ago.

23:43You mentioned the chief Kurt Suzuki coming over and he's a legend in Washington, DC for his days there, helping them win a world series title in that, you know, knowing the position of catcher and you mentioned the kind of five and dive here, what type of impact do you think Suzuki will have in the pitching staff? I always feel like when you're bringing in a catcher to be your skipper, it's more like I'm handling the pitching staff, but from the bench, you know what I mean? That's what I'm really controlling this team. Also, a guy that is just freshly removed from the game, Dave, and we're seeing that trend a lot more. We saw it here in Cleveland with Stephen Vote just a handful of years removed from actually playing and that I think is something to relate to young players. There is urgency because as I said, very awkward. You usually see when you're newly hired managers, get at least a three, four year deal. I thought that to me was, wow, I mean, I again, that's tough. You're asking a lot of a guy who's never done the role and then is going to do it at the major league level.

24:43And oh, by the way, if you don't do well, you're out of a job potentially after just one season. It seems very odd, 40 to one to win the West on extreme long shot there that we're picking up for the L.A. angels. We know that obviously it's the best time of the year here to bed. So right now we've got a great deal as we head into March, Madison, Ernest, the Hoops Mania, especially. You get decent pro access from now through May 1st, Jensen, it's just 29.99. So with decent pro, you're going to get all of our daily best best from all of our hosts and guests, real time draft King, circa, bedding splits as well, AI powered prop tools match analysis 24 seven video full show replays in the decent watch app. Plus our March Mania bedding guide, including team profiles for every tournament team. He trends for each round and all of our top and analysis from all of our analysts here on the network. So if you're going to bet determined, of course, you are. This is a must. I know today at visa.com, so I subscribe. That's V S I N dot com slash subscribe, always love catching up with Rex Hager, talking all things Arnold Palmer, invitational next on these about the books.

25:47We continue decent by the books, this show is sponsored by upside, you can earn real cash back in the month with the free upside app. Like I've used from code books get 25 cents back per gallon on your very first fill up, just go to upside.com for all of the details. And you and I get pumped up to talk golf every week. We love it. When Rex Hager is kind enough to take the time to join us here on visa by the book senior writer for golf channel does a great job. If you watch that network as I do often and give him a follow on exit, Rex Hager GC. And Rex, I guess not too far from where you are in Florida for a hopskip and a jump to get over to the API for that covers later on this week. Of course, how big is this tournament as an elevated event with the history of the name of Arnold Palmer, the dominance Tiger Woods had.

26:48And now with Rory and Scotty, seem like picking up that mantle at the Arnold Palmer invitation. I think you have a tiered system, a pretty clear tiered system right now in the PGA tour. You have the majors, you have the players championship, you have the signature events. But within the signature events, I think you can point to this one and you can point to what the genesis invitation, which of course is hosted by Tiger Woods. It's the only two signature events that have a cut along with the memorial. I think those three, just not only because they're signature events, but because of who's involved with them, the name of Arnold Palmer, he's still very prevalent around the property. I was there yesterday. His grandson, Sam Saunders, has run in the event now and they're doing a phenomenal job. I think it's always a bit of a struggle. You saw it with the Byron Nelson after Mr. Nelson passed away to sort of keep that legacy going, but they've done a really good job at Arnold Palmer doing that. No question. And Rex, again, another elevated event where we get all the studs involved here and a unique course set up here too, for people that are not familiar with how it sets up for maybe some of the big hitters on tour versus guys with some better accuracy, handicap it for

27:51us and kind of the layout for it as well. I think a few years ago, Rory probably handicapped it better than anyone else possibly could with what he did on the 10th tee. And that's just a perfect example of what you can do when you can carry the ball as far as he does, where you can stand on that 10th tee and you're not looking at fairway or bunkers or anything else. You're looking over houses and out of bounds markers because you want to drive the green which he ended up doing. And I think more and more, you're starting to see that where Scotty Schuffler, one of the longest players on the PGA tour, he's had so much success here. Rory has won here. Tiger Woods back in the day. He had so much success here. Power is one of those key statistics this week. Last week at PGA National, not necessarily the case. You need to find the fairway. You need to take advantage of your wedge play. This week you can overpower this golf course, but there is an element to it where we have seen it turn around and bite players. You look at the forecast for this week. I think Thursday and Friday could be really difficult. So if you're going to hand you cap the field, you can always lean towards those guys who are at the top statistically. Guy that came in the media center yesterday that really got my interest was Chris Godorop,

28:52where he is now won multiple times on the PGA tour this season. And he's never played this golf course before, but his game fits perfectly here. He would be one of those guys that keep an eye out. Let me give you a couple of names. I just want to get your thoughts on where they are right now. The same odds point that we have in the board. So obviously when you look at Scotty being the short shot, he's going to be every week. Roy is going to be nipping at the heels there pretty much every week. Those two guys are in at 25 to one. There's two guys that interest me. One is Columnmore Cowell. He feels like he's a different guy now. We know about the baby coming here for the family. He's one on tour again. Seems like the happy, go lucky, Columnmore Cowell that won a couple of majors early in his career. And Zander Shoffley. This was the best player in the world, arguably just a couple of years ago. And it looks like he's rounding back into shape. Where would you be on those two guys at the same price point this week? I think more. Cowell would be the one I'd lean towards simply because of what he's already been able to accomplish this season, winning a Pebble Beach, which huge, not just for his career. I think you look at what he has done winning multiple majors. I think he was satisfied with what he had done.

29:54But against that field on that golf course and those conditions, that's what Columnmore Cowell does best. He is not the guy I just described. He's not the guy that's going to overpower a course, but his iron play is just sublime. He is one of the best in the business when he is hitting it well. And he hasn't really hit it well the last few years, but everything came together at Pebble Beach. And you look at what he did here last year. He probably could have easily won this event. He was disappointed that he didn't finish it off. But I think the golf course sets up well for him with that iron play. And he's in it as you pointed out, just a much better headspace. Let's call it because he's, he and his wife are happy. They had the baby on the way. Being that probably wasn't there before the last few years as far as not quite being in the right headspace is there now. Rex, I looked in my card this week and anxious your thoughts on a couple of guys. Matt Fitzpatrick and Tommy Fleetwood, again, if you're looking at some of the big dogs that could contend against Scotty and Rory, their games kind of suited for what the expectations are of this course. And then adding in some recent form here, am I in the ballpark, especially with this

30:56course set up and where those guys mentally and physically can attack this this course as well? I mean, I don't know that I would, this is a really good reason to lean towards Tommy Fleetwood. But let's be honest, can you, you can see him in one of those cardigan sweaters, can't you? Like those are the primary cardigan sweaters, but perfect for Tommy Fleetwood. I can absolutely see where is him, I think normally in real life. So I think it'd be a perfect fit for him. And what was he, he was able to accomplish last year. We all said he was the best player without a PGA tour title. Until he decided to do it in really good style, finishing up the season at the tour championship. Not only do you get that first win, but you also won the FedEx Cup. He started the season strong on the DP World Tour. And he's one of those players, kind of call it the Joe Biden effect. He's always there. He's always just going to be around for the leaderboard. And you're right. He's going to be one of those guys to keep an eye on because there isn't any flaws in his game. Like, if you want to go down the list, so I just miss him, Chris Gotterup, he's short game probably needs to improve. He needs to get better around the greens. When it comes to Tommy Fleetwood, I would challenge anyone to give me something statistically

31:59that he doesn't do well enough. And I just think he continues to do that 1% thing, get better every single day. So I would love Tommy this week. All right, Rex, I got to ask you a million dollar question because, you know, you know, he's got his stuff. We're going to be the short shot of plus 350 heat for whatever reason. Thursday has been as bugaboo so far on the PGA tour. You could play him plus 1050 to be first round leader tomorrow. Or Shane Lowry is 40 to one first round leader to show the ultimate bounce back after what we just saw on Sunday. Out of those two juicy price points, which way would you go? I think I said it on the show on Monday when we were talking about it. Well, it depends. A Scotty Sheffler going to wake up and hate Thursday mornings again, because that seems to be the case for him the last few starts and it makes no sense. We're trying to sort of dissect this and figure out what's wrong with Scotty on Thursday. And the answer is golf is what's wrong with Scotty, even though he makes it look so easy. And he almost makes it look afterless sometimes. Sometimes golf just gets him and it just happens to be on Thursday.

32:59There's a co-host Ryan Lavender pointed out a really good stat that last year on the PGA tour, he led the tour in first round scoring. So he didn't seem to have a problem with it last year. I think this is just an anomaly. You look at what he did at the American Express at an event that I probably would have argued that, yeah, this isn't really Scotty's brand of vodka because he doesn't particularly like low scoring contest. He likes it where par is a good score. And he laughs the field by five strokes. I'm going to stick with Scotty until he proves to me that he gets through an entire season and somehow can't score on Thursdays. But no, what I've seen so far doesn't concern him. All right, Rex, maybe for off the beaten path guys and we have a lot of daily fantasy players that listen to also people that love to play the placement markets instead of the outrights. Anyone you can envision making the weekend that might be a name, maybe not readily available or readily recognizable someone or maybe a couple of guys that could be suited for this course but also find their way into Saturday and maybe eventually Sunday. Well, I lean towards some of the younger players that we were introduced to last week.

34:01And that's the beauty of an event like the Cognizant Classic. I think Austin Smotheren proved a lot to the world and himself that he's good enough to compete on the PGA tour at this level. It was more than just a top five finish last week for Austin. He needed that finish just to get in to this week. And I think he's on a good run. I think maybe fatigue might catch up at some point because he plans on playing everything between now and I think his wife is expecting their third child on March 22nd. But he would be a guy I would keep an eye on. The other one that I was talking with him yesterday, again, he needed a big Sunday at the PGA National as well as Keith Mitchell. He's played here a couple of times. His game is rounding into good form. He's one of those guys that has plenty of length off the tee where he can take a lot of those cross bunkers that aren't so much out of play. Either one of those guys I would assume have really good numbers to him. And I would actually be surprised if they don't make the cut to miss the cut at this event. It's limited field. You got to play really bad. Well, I have one guy that I just can't stop betting. It's like, I just can't quit this guy. I got to ask you about it. And that's the big sweet Ludwig Oberg. What's going on with Ludwig? He got me a top 20 at least last time out, kind of backdoored it.

35:04But what's going on with Ludwig here? Is there anything that we need to read between the lines here? Or is it just a swamp? You know how this is the golf nerd in me? You know how you can get on your phone and start doom scrolling. And the next thing you know you've been staring for an hour and you're like, I've wasted an entire hour. I did that yesterday with Ludwig on the range. I just kind of doomed watched him swing. Because I get so captivated by it. I've always said that Adam Scott has aesthetically the best swing on the PGA tour. I don't think it's the most efficient. I don't think it's the most powerful. Like I think the swing coach will tell you that there were plenty of other players who actually have better swings than Adam. But I've always felt like he had the best looking swing. I think Ludwig does now. He never misses a shot. He hits the center of the club face every single time. I'm going to try to warn you off him a little bit. And here's the only reason why he had to leave Bay Hill yesterday and go back to South Florida for the TGL match last night. And he's got an early tea time in the pro am today. So fatigue might be a little bit of a factor there. All right, 33 to one in the big suite. I'm gonna stay away. Rex, it's a real treat to have you on each and every week that we get to have you before a big tournament.

36:05Like we have this week at the API. Great coverage on the golf channel. As always, we'll catch up again soon. Thanks guys. There he is, Rex Hoggard again. Give him a follow on X at Rex Hoggard GC. So he walked me off the Ludwig Oberg ledge. So I'm not going to go down that path. Maybe it's top 20. Maybe I'll sneak into top 20. But I'm not going to do it now. All right. All right, when we come back here since let's get back into our baseball talk here. And talk about the Cincinnati Reds. A team that you and I really like a year ago. What do we think of the Reds this year and their prognosis? That's next right here. I'm decent by the book. You're having a good time. You're out drinking with the boys. Now it's time to pay the tab. $11,352.47. Wait, what? Well, there are court costs, attorney fees, higher insurance costs, damage to your car, do you why fines? Ugh. Not to mention the damage to your social life.

37:07Plan a sober ride or pay the price. Drinking and driving costs more than your drinks. It could cost a life. Learn more at what'sthedamage.org. Brought to you by Virginia DMV. The Toyota Tundra and Tacoma are built to keep going. Blending rugged muscle with precision engineering all supported by Toyota's time-tested legacy of dependability. Step into a Tundra and feel the unyielding capability with the available iForce Max engine. Tundra puts out impressive power, torque, and towing performance and the roomy high-tech cabin keeps you connected on the go. Or take a look at Tacoma made for drivers who push past the path. Agile, tough and relentless with available features like crawl control, portable JBL speaker, a power lift gate, so gear goes in fast and the adventure keeps moving. The Tacoma and Tundra are engineered to endure season after season, mile after mile. So drive one home today, visit toyota.com or stop by your local Toyota dealer to find out more Toyota. Let's go places.

38:12You're tuned in to Feeson by the Books. Right here on Feeson. We are back, Feeson by the Books. Dave Ross, since you're here every time you fill up at the pump, you could earn real cash back with the free upside app. All you got to do is download upside from the app store or Google Play. And when you're going to claim an offer at a nearby station, you're going to start earning instantly. Use the promo code books title of this show. Get an extra 25 cents back per gallon on your first fill up. So drivers are saving real money up to 200, 300 bucks a year despite doing the normal commits they have to do anyway. So download the free upside app now. Use the promo code books for your 25 cent per gallon bonus offers vary by user and location. See upside.com for all of the particulars. Great having Rex Haggard from the golf channel on in the last segment talking all things on or home or invitational. We're going to have Wes Reynolds join us at the very end of this program today. And again, if you're a Feeson pro subscriber, you already have access to West's selections.

39:13We'll break those down here later on the program. Already getting some text from some buddies about Rex's appearance saying Rex bringing that information. Yes, some really good information. I thought that was out there. And I'll just say this very quickly, Gents. And I might place Gotti Sheffler first round leader at plus 1050 to that point of it being an anomaly. You're never going to get a better number than that on Scotty. Even though for some reason he's not playing well on Thursdays right now, it does feel like some bizarre thing that's going to change very, very soon. Let's get back to our baseball conversation here. I love talking daily diamond here. And let's go to the reds today. This was a very profitable team for yours truly last year. And again, the win total last year was 78 and a half. That was one of the first plays. I think both you and I put in this time last year and I always say it. I'm looking for a team that might get five wins over that total. They got just about that four and a half more to 83 and then had some longer shots and then making the postseason. They got there in the last day of the regular season, the expense of my metropolitan's.

40:14What do we make of this year? Look at that win total. It's up three full wins from a year ago from 78 and a half to 81 and a half. Do you think that adjustment is proper? Gosh, this was one of the hardest win totals for me. I waffled back and forth and I made it just a lean to the under 82 and a half in the Veecin MLB betting guide. Here is where you look for the upside. Number one, if this rotation stays even remotely healthy, like I'm talking, if you can get Hunter Green, Brady Singer, Andrew Abbott, Nick Ladolo, if those guys can at least get you 25 starts a piece, you are absolutely in business. I know that's super conservative. If you get them all four of those guys upwards of 28 to 30 at least and then you have Chase Burns as your number five starter, that's where you start to dream on the possibilities for the Cincinnati Reds. Now, that being said, we know that the injury bug has plagued this particular rotation

41:20in many, many ways the last handful of years. So that was part of my caveat of really having to take a second look at maybe the over in their wind total. As someone who was pitched in the Great American small park, the Great American launching pad there when the weather starts to get much more humid and the ball is going to the jet stream of right center and left center field. The addition of A.O. Hennio Suarez back to this lineup, I thought was so critical not only from a continuity standpoint and line of protection for Ellie Day La Cruz and some of the other bats in the middle, but also the camaraderie and Dave, sometimes there are puzzle pieces to teams where that locker room just gels. He was a fan favorite. He was beloved by teammates at every stop he's been on. And it just so happens that his first tour of duty in Cincinnati Reds were pretty damn good. So very bullish on what he could mean as a one two punch with Ellie Day La Cruz in the middle. Couple of guys to keep your eye on in the lineup.

42:23Sal Stewart is going to get a lot of headlines here. They're young rookie phenom that at one point, it looked like he was going to be kind of that starting, you know, DH, but now with Suarez in there, that would slide him to first. And then we'll see what happens with Spencer steer because there's kind of a domino effect there. I am hearing exceptional things about Matt McLean in this spring training. Remember, just two years ago, Dave, he was kind of that cornerstone, that foundational piece with Ellie Day La Cruz, like, okay, here are the two guys that we can build this offense around for years to come. He's made a swing adjustment. He's made kind of a stance adjustment too. And that has really been very, very encouraging from these early couple of weeks of spring training games. That's a name to keep an eye on. Back end of their lineup, the wellby Marta, who did a great job in right field last year. He is going to stay there to Brian Hayes, the gold gluver at third,

43:25that allows you any Suarez to not have to play there. He can be the full-time DH. JJ Blende, a very intriguing signing form of Andy Boy, and also a member of the athletics. He hit the middle of their lineup for many years until, you know, they were able to get the lineup that they have right now with Brent Rooker. Yeah. And obviously Tyler Soderström, a company. He's going to be able to kind of be hidden, if you will, towards the bottom. But he lengthens the lineup. He'll be great defensively and left. And then you got one of the more underrated leadoff hitters in TJ Friedel who will set the table. I would envision that Tito Frank Kona would probably get some sort of speed on base combination in front of Ellie Day La Cruz. And just to see what lineup construction will be like for them moving forward. But Dave, this is a lineup that was right at league average, just above league average. And runs scored the power wasn't really there all of last year. Does it return this year? If it does, the reds are alive and well. If that rotation stays healthy. You know, in the end, they cast every ticket that I had on them.

44:27But they were frustrating to get there because they lost a bunch of one-nothing games. It could not score early in the years. We talked about on this program a lot last year. And that McLean was one of those guys watching every night like, dude, what's going on? And you know Terry from Frank Kona very, very well. And I saw him adjusting McLean last year in the line. I'm going from the two hole, eight hole, nine hole, you name it. Like, I got to move him out of this spot. And you don't want to wreck a guy's confidence here. Where do you think they put McLean? Because I'm with you. If this team is going to whether they cash a ticket to plus force 25 to win the central to make a run independent of 22 to one, right? Cash that overticket at 81 and a half. I do think McLean is that that key guy that people won't talk about. Those all look at Dela Cruz and everybody else in the pitching staff that if they can figure him out, do they put him back at the tool? Because he did offer some pop there a couple years ago early in that lineup. I makes the most sense to me, Dave, we having Ellie behind him. And knowing you still have the speed of freedom in McLean,

45:27you're not going to clog that with Ellie's elite speed. So you've got, you know, a real dynamic top of the order there. And those are great table setters in front of Ellie Dela Cruz, in front of you, Henny Oswarez. As I mentioned, you know, anxious to see if the youngster in South Stewart, you know, hits fifth or six Tyler Stevenson. Remember, he's got pretty good pop from the catching spot. Will there be sort of a platoon when you have Spencer steer? He was a guy that hit the middle order a lot. Remember Will Benson was a key part of their outfield. So they have some depth pieces there. It is, I think a much more balanced lineup than maybe they get credit for. Back into the bullpen, Dave saw two really outstanding individual performances. Emilio Pagan really took that closing role and was one of the best in the business in 2025. Tony Santillon, one of the better leverage relievers too as a set up man. That's the one to punch. Here is the big addition that I think is going to prove as a difference maker. Pierce Johnson, who is a free agent, Siney from Atlanta. I think he can team with Brock Burke, who came over to trade with the angels.

46:31Caleb Ferguson, the veteran, you remember him. Well traveled veteran. He was in Seattle at the end of the season. Graham Ashcraft has kind of been a converted starter into a leverage reliever. They've got the pieces, ma'am. They really do. It's, it's really all about health for this group. You've got the Hall of Fame manager in Tito. He's going to press all the right buttons. And if you want to look at at just kind of a line of demarcation. Terry Francona, since 2013, has had the most wins in the second half of any active manager. Okay. He knows how to make those key adjustments and in crunch time there. When you got to be winning into the trade deadline and then the sprint to the finish in August and September, I wrote in our betting guide, Dave. This was my outlook. The offensive output can't mirror. It's 20, 25 results. Or this team is destined for a 500 campaign trying to win a bunch of low scoring games, which you alluded to. If they get the early offense and they get sustained health

47:31out of that rotation, mile, my is a sky the limit, I think, for the Cincinnati Reds. And that's where I am on the, I don't have any tickets on the, uh, this, this time this year. Last year we had a bunch of already in pocket here. As my biggest play on the board was at over 78 and a half wins. And that really, yeah, it was a bit of a sweat for a while. But they, they ended up getting there relatively easily in September. That part of that was the belief in Tito, Francona that Terry would get this, this thing figured out. And he did to your point in the second half where they really made that push. So they get off to a better start. Am I going to look at that and go, why didn't I bet this team again this year? Because I do. I look at it the way you do. And I think everything on paper looks good. You got a manager I can trust. If you can get the health, there really doesn't seem to be a whole lot of weaknesses with the space ball team. And Hunter Green is going to be right in that Sion competition. It was a breakout campaign for him last year. And man, if you like a lot of swing and miss and a lot of free air conditioning, great American ballpark.

48:32When the red starters are on the mound, that's going to be the place to be. That might need to be invested in those reds again. I just like this book. This baseball team a lot. And I like rooting for Terry, Francona as well. We have a lot to get to here in the final hour. We're going to have West Reynolds, our Wednesdays with West breakdown. Everything in the API, the Arnold Palmer. And our managing editor Adam Burke talking some baseball in our baseball draft. We had yesterday right here on the network. Come on back. Let's see some other books. You're having a good time. You're out drinking with the boys. Now it's time to pay the tab. Well, there are court costs, attorney fees, higher insurance costs, damage to your car, do you why fines? Not to mention the damage to your social life. Plan a sober ride or pay the price. Drinking and driving costs more than your drinks. It could cost a life. Learn more at what'sthedamage.org. Brought to you by Virginia DMV. The Toyota Tundra and Tacoma are built to keep going. Blending rugged muscle with precision engineering. All supported by Toyota's time-tested legacy of dependability.

49:35Step into a Tundra and feel the unyielding capability with the available iForce Max engine. Tundra puts out impressive power, torque, and towing performance. And the roomy high-tech cabin keeps you connected on the go. Or take a look at Tacoma made for drivers who push past the path. Agile, tough and relentless with available features like crawl control, portable JBL speaker, a power lift gate, so gear goes in fast and the adventure keeps moving. The Tacoma and Tundra are engineered to endure season after season, mile after mile. So drive one home today, visit toyota.com or stop by your local Toyota dealer to find out more Toyota. Let's go places.