Speaker
John Smoltz
Appearances over time
1 episodes
Episodes
1
Podcasts
Quotes & moments
John Smoltz argued that MLB teams now use approximately 38 pitchers per season, which he called 'insane' and a symptom of the broken pitching development system.
John Smoltz revealed he pitched an additional 7 years after Tommy John surgery, returning to his pre-surgery performance level, but cautioned the surgery is not a guaranteed upgrade.
John Smoltz disclosed he once made 29 consecutive pars in a single American Century Championship tournament, which cost him the lead due to the birdie-heavy scoring format.
John Smoltz said Bobby Cox traded for him as GM and then managed him for 20 years, calling Cox the single biggest reason his career turned out the way it did.
John Smoltz recounted that Bobby Cox kept him in the starting rotation despite a 2-11 first-half record in 1991, after which Smoltz went 12-2 the rest of the season.
John Smoltz debunked the myth that Tommy John surgery makes pitchers throw harder, saying pitchers typically return only to their pre-surgery level, and that earlier surgeries increase the risk of needing a second one.
John Smoltz revealed that in his first year as a closer he recorded 55 saves and made 81 appearances, saying it was more exhausting than his 256-inning starting seasons.
John Smoltz argued that analytics and overuse have so diluted the starting pitcher's role that he cannot identify 10 pitchers in today's MLB he would buy a ticket specifically to watch.
FreddyLA7 did nothing wrong — but the internet can't allow a genuine good-time story to exist for too long. The moment he started getting corporate attention, the pile-on began, and now he's gone offline.
Former teammate Stone Garrett alleged Josh Naylor hid in his closet with a butcher knife, jumped out, sliced Garrett's thumb open, required surgery, and received only a one-game suspension while the team kept it quiet. The front office apparently wanted it hush-hush.
Tommy John doesn't make you throw harder — it returns you to where you were before. And if you have it at 12 or 14 years old, you're not advancing; you're just setting yourself up for a second surgery.
They never said it out loud, but the competition between Maddux, Glavine, and Smoltz drove all three to be better. During the regular season Maddux and Glavine drove the car — come postseason, Smoltz jumped in the front seat.
Bobby Cox kept Smoltz in the rotation when he was 2-11 in the first half of 1991. No manager does that today. Smoltz went 12-2 the rest of the year. Cox's ability to give a player confidence during failure was, Smoltz says, a lost art.
Maddux gave deliberately terrible interviews to keep the spotlight off himself and on his teammates. While Smoltz and Glavine were doing press about Maddux, Maddux was living quietly and building every possible competitive advantage — including staying anonymous enough to walk down the street unrecognized.
The dumbest fantasy league in the world is back — nine teams, nine players, one stat: home runs. The only drama is the Sporkle draft order, Mike Trout immediately getting injured two minutes after being picked, and Matt Olson calling back to confirm his roster spot.
Chris Johnson announced he has ALS on Good Morning America. Two players from the same Titans team — Johnson and Tim Shaw — are both now living with ALS. The hosts urge listeners to donate to ALS research if they can.
Smoltz isn't anti-analytics — he's anti-analytics-as-the-only-lens. He keeps notebooks on every round of golf he plays. The Rays and Brewers are the teams getting it right because they use data and then adjust when the data proves wrong.
LeBron going to Golden State would be worse than KD's move — and the hosts think even die-hard Bron fans would struggle to follow him there. Cleveland is the one destination that makes sense for his legacy, and the mulch delivery at his Akron house might be the tell.
The US is -700 favorites to beat Bosnia — but PFT warns that's exactly when upsets happen in soccer. Lose this game and the entire World Cup co-host narrative collapses before it even starts.
Penalty kicks reduce the world's most complex sport to one man, one ball, and the weight of an entire nation — and that's exactly why they're incredible. The Paraguay-Germany shootout was a masterclass in high-stakes human failure.
Want to fix pitcher overuse? Tie the starting pitcher to the DH slot — if your starter comes out early, you lose pinch hit options. That one rule change would kill the opener strategy and force teams to develop pitchers who go deep into games.
Teams now burn through 38 pitchers a season to get through the year — a number Smoltz calls insane. Nobody running baseball has ever played, so nobody cares that careers are being cut to thirds and eighths of what they should be.
Going from starting to closing wasn't just a role change — it was a complete lifestyle overhaul. Smoltz had to be ready every single day, and despite throwing less than a third of the innings, he was more physically exhausted than in any starting season.
Analysis
What they talk about
- Sports 80%
- Health & Fitness 20%
Connections
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