The Ten News Baseball Classic ⚾
LISTEN HERE
The Ten News Season 3: Episode 68
In today's episode: ⚾ Catch up on the new rules of Major League Baseball with MLB reporter Nathalie Alonso 🧢 Major Leaguer Mike Montgomery stops in to answer some serious & not-so-serious questions 🤔 Trivia with Tessa: what is the most common animal mascot in the MLB?
Follow Along with Us
📧 Do you have something to tell us? Email us at: hello@thetennews.com
📝 Sign up for The Ten News-letter!
📸 Join us on Instagram
Links
Extended Interview with MLB Player Mike Montgomery ⚾ — The Ten News
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Major_League_Baseball_mascots
TRANSCRIPT:
Pete Musto 00:01
It's time for the great American pastime, baseball. We're here in The Ten News Studio for a classic showdown between our hosts. Tessa, what are we expecting today?
Tessa Flannery 00:14
This is one big matchup, Pete. I hope you brought your popcorn, cracker jacks, and hot dogs.
Pete Musto 00:19
I always do. Looks like Ryan is heading to the pitcher's mound and Pamela is up at bat.
Tessa Flannery 00:27
Ten News creator, Tracy leads Kaplan is today's umpire. She hands out the ball and bat, a stuffed animal, and a pool noodle.
Tracy Kaplan 00:34
Okay, so no real bats or baseballs today, this studio is full of delicate audio equipment. And I'm still a little annoyed about the time Ryan set up bowling in here.
Pete Musto 00:46
And of course, the bases are Ryan's leftover pizza boxes. That's what makes this The Ten News Baseball Classic. The crowd goes quiet as Ryan winds up for the pitch.
Tessa Flannery 00:59
Pamela makes contact and it is gone, literally gone, because someone left a window open. So, now that stuffy is in the parking lot.
Pete Musto 01:09
Pamlea crosses his home plate. And The Ten News Classic is over because we lost the ball, stuffy.
Tracy Kaplan 01:18
Alright, everyone take a trophy and get back to work.
Pamela Kirkland 01:22
I'm Pamela Kirkland.
Ryan Willard 01:23
And I'm Ryan Willard. It's Wednesday, June 13th.
Pamela Kirkland 01:26
This is The Ten News.
Sound Bit 01:30
10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1.
Ryan Willard 01:37
Okay, so The Ten News Baseball Classic didn't last very long because we lost the ball/stuffy. But normally baseball games can go on for hours.
Pamela Kirkland 01:47
This year, the rules of the game have been slightly altered, which could mean shorter games with more moments of excitement.
Ryan Willard 01:56
I love baseball, but I'm not really great with rules in general. So I think we should ask Ten News correspondent, Nathalie Alonso. Hey, Natalie!
Nathalie Alonso 02:06
What's up, Ry?
Ryan Willard 02:08
Could you please do that thing where you explain the rules to me and make it easy for me to understand?
Nathalie Alonso 02:12
The new MLB rules? It would be my pleasure.
Sound Bit 02:16
Play Ball!
Nathalie Alonso 02:18
If you've watched a Major League Baseball game recently, you might have noticed some big changes to the way the sport is played. That's because the league and the Players Association agreed to three major rule changes that went into effect this year. One of the goals of these rules is to make games faster because they got really long, long as in over three hours. The new rules also seek to generate more action because let's face it, watching a batter get a hit is much more fun than watching him ground out. Let's go over the three major rule changes and the impact that they're having on the game. But rule number one is the pitch clock. Before the 2023 season, pitchers could take as much time as they wanted in between batters and pitchers. hitters could also step out of the batter's box during an at-bat and take their time getting back in. As a result, the average length of a baseball game became longer than it had ever been in the history of the sport. What now with the pitch clock, pitchers have 30 seconds to throw a pitch between batters. They also have 15 seconds in between pitches when there are no runners on face and 20 seconds with runners on base. If a pitcher exceeds this limit, the hitter gets a ball added to his count. As for hitters, they need to be in the batter's box once they are eight seconds remaining on the pitch clock or they are charged with an automatic strike. The pitch clock has already had a big impact. Games are now averaging about two and a half hours, which is the shortest average game time since the 1980s. This is good news. If you want to watch all nine innings of your favorite team's games before bedtime. It's a fly ball. Number two bigger bases. The size of the bases increased from 15 inches square to 18 inches square this year. Bigger bases mean that the distance between the edges of the bases is shorter, four and a half inches shorter to be exact. That means it takes less time to get from one base to the next. It's also easier to slide successfully into a bigger base. As a result, we are already seeing base runners attempting to steal bases more often. Right. Number three limits on infield defensive ships. The third major change that major league baseball and the Players Association agreed to was limited on defensive shifts in the end field. What does that mean? Defensive shifts are a strategy that teams use to reduce the number of hits they give up. It involves moving most of their fielders from their traditional positions to the part of the field where they know a hitter is most likely to hit the ball based on the location of his previous heads. Before this year, there were no limits on defensive chips. So if you were watching the game on TV, you might have seen a large group of players gathered on the part of the field where they thought the ball was going to be hit. Under the new rules, all four of a team's infielders must be on the infield when the pitcher makes a pitch and at least two infielders must be on each side of second base. Also, infielders have to be on the side of the infield that corresponds to their position, so you can't put your shortstop between first and second base. This is resulting in more balls making it out of the infield as hits. I think MLB's new rules are fantastic. And they've made the game so much more fun to watch. But I wanted to hear from one of you. So, I reached out to a Ten'er who's a really big baseball fan.
Ten'er 06:19
My name is Raza, I'm 11 years old. And I'm from San Francisco.
Nathalie Alonso 06:24
Thanks for joining us, Raza. What do you think about the bigger bases?
Ten'er 06:28
I think that they're great for the game because it makes it a lot more exciting because more people can steal and stealing is really exciting and fun to watch.
Nathalie Alonso 06:39
I love an exciting game, too. Now, what about the pitch clock? How do you think that will impact the game?
Ten'er 06:45
Well, I think it can make the game faster, which a lot of spectators that watch at home like but when you add the game it is the experience of watching a game there is getting food hanging out with your friends and watching the game. And now the game was like an hour shorter. So you don't have time to do all that stuff.
Nathalie Alonso 07:08
That's interesting. I hadn't thought of that. You definitely need enough time to get good snacks at a game. I always have to have ice cream, any other potential changes that you're following?
Ten'er 07:19
Well, there was an AI that I think is in the works. And I don't like that because it just ruins the human element of the game. Like, I was making bad calls, I was making good calls, because that's just been part of the game forever.
Nathalie Alonso 07:34
And lastly, what do you think will happen this season?
Ten'er 07:37
I think the Tampa Bay Rays are a really good shot. They're the best team in the league right now. They have amazing players or the Baltimore Baltimore Orioles. They're, they're really good. And, let's go Giants!
Nathalie Alonso 07:51
Thanks, Raza. So Ryan, did that clear things up?
Ryan Willard 07:55
It absolutely did. Father's Day is almost here and we need your help. We want to show dads just how much we care that they care. So leave us a voice note with your first name, your dad's first name, and the most fun thing you and your dad do together. Call 1-877-TEN-NEWS to leave us a voice note sharing the most fun thing you've ever done with your dad and we might play it on the show.
Pamela Kirkland 08:33
Ryan, have you ever met a professional baseball player?
Ryan Willard 08:37
I have actually. I met Mike Montgomery. He's a pitcher that played for the Chicago Cubs and through the final pitch when they won the World Series and he just got signed to the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Pamela Kirkland 08:47
Oh, wow. I'd be so curious to know what he's like.
Ryan Willard 08:51
Well, I actually interviewed Mike Montgomery and asked him some serious and not-so-serious questions. Check this out. Question number one. Do you prefer puppies or kittens?
Mike Montgomery 09:08
Puppies.
Ryan Willard 09:09
Question number two. How dare you.
Mike Montgomery 09:12
They're just so cute. You gotta love puppies.
Ryan Willard 09:15
It's true. Everyone loves puppies but kittens are great, too. Would you rather fight a bear for a shark?
Mike Montgomery 09:22
Bear.
Ryan Willard 09:24
Why?
Mike Montgomery 09:24
Because at least on land, you might have a chance to win but in water, you've got no chance.
Ryan Willard 09:32
Okay, what's a baseball superstition that you have?
Mike Montgomery 09:35
I always run out of the dugout the same exact way. Every time.
Ryan Willard 09:40
What do you do when you run out?
Mike Montgomery 09:42
I just do a little hop and I hit my left leg. And I do that every single time I run out of the dugout. I don't know if it works, but I'm not changing it up.
Ryan Willard 09:52
What's the greatest video game of all time and your favorite video game right now?
Mike Montgomery 09:57
You know what I'm gonna go with the original Halo, for all time. Playing, you know, split screens at friends’ houses, when I'm in, you know, sixth seventh grade, eighth grade, that was some really good memories, and my favorite game right now is Rocket League, for sure. fun game to watch, fun game to play.
Ryan Willard 10:19
If you could have any superpower what would it be and why?
Mike Montgomery 10:23
Honestly, teleportation. Flying is great, but I can instantly get there with teleportation and you know, you don't have to worry about planes and birds and whatever you might run into a fly and so, teleportation?
Ryan Willard 10:39
Excellent answer. Most people say flying. But teleportation is the actual correct answer for exactly what you just said. You're getting bonus points for that. Would you rather cry uncontrollably every time you fart or fart uncontrollably every time you laugh?
Mike Montgomery 10:58
Fart uncontrollably every time I laugh.
Ryan Willard 11:01
That is disgusting. I'm sorry. Okay. Second to last question. Do you have any hidden talents?
Mike Montgomery 11:09
Um, I do. I have a pretty good musical background. I played piano for five years when I was a kid and I was the kid doing recitals. Memorized recitals and Mozart and all that stuff. Being good at video games at the time. I guess that would be in there too.
Ryan Willard 11:30
Of course, that's a talent.
Mike Montgomery 11:33
Yeah. I would say that for sure.
Ryan Willard 11:36
Okay, if you had to choose one of these three nicknames that I would give you, which would you choose? Monty the Python. Super Fast Ball Thrower, or Captain Monty Balls.
Mike Montgomery 11:47
Uhhh, Captain Monty Balls.
Ryan Willard 11:49
Okay, Captain Monty Balls it is.
Pamela Kirkland 11:53
Thanks again for joining us, Mike. We're wishing you the best of luck with the Dodgers!
Ryan Willard 11:58
Also, since Father's Day is coming up, I have to shout out his wife Stephanie, who's an awesome children's book author, their brand new daughter Zoe, who was born last May. And of course their son Max, who's one of the coolest kids I know.
Pamela Kirkland 12:10
If you want to hear the full interview with Mike Montgomery, check out our show notes for the link.
Tessa Flannery 12:19
Welcome to the trivia room.
Ten'er 12:22
Yay. Trivia with Tessa!
Tessa Flannery 12:24
Hi, Sartaaj, welcome. Hop on up on the trivia throne for today's trivia question. You ready?
Ten'er 12:30
Yeah, I'm definitely ready.
Tessa Flannery 12:46
I love going to baseball games, the hot dogs, the energy of the crowd, the hilarious mascots. Lots of baseball teams have animal mascots, but of all the animal mascots, do you know which type of animal is the most common among major league baseball mascots? Is it a) cats, b) birds, or c) fish? Ten'ers, did you guess it? Sartaaj, what's your answer?
Ten'er 13:12
b) birds. Because the Toronto Blue Jays, and the Baltimore Orioles, and the St. Louis Cardinals. They all are birds. And that's a lot of them.
Tessa Flannery 13:27
The answer is B! Birds are the most popular major league baseball mascot. There are six teams with bird mascots, four teams with cats, two teams with fish, and one team with whatever kind of creature the Philly Phanatic is. Ten'ers, do you know all of the MLB mascots? Call us at 1-877-TEN-NEWS and leave us a voice note with all the mascots you can name and we might have you on the show!
Ryan Willard 14:05
Hey, Pamela, want to go to a Yankees game?
Pamela Kirkland 14:07
I'd rather go to a Braves game.
Ryan Willard 14:09
Yankees.
Pamela Kirkland 14:10
Braves.
Ryan Willard 14:10
I know how to settle this. I have a real bat and a real baseball. I think we should do a home run derby right here in the studio.
Tracy Kaplan 14:18
Ryan, No.
Ryan Willard 14:19
Okay, so maybe we should just give Ten News Snaps to one of our listeners.
Pamela Kirkland 14:23
But before we do, here's a quick note for the grown-ups.
Ryan Willard 14:27
Time for Ten News Snaps.
Pamela Kirkland 14:33
Ten’er Sunpaw wrote this review of The Ten News: “I love the Ten News: I listen to it every night. It’s such a great news show. Here is how much I love this podcast: 161 HEARTS!”
Ryan Willard 14:47
Thanks, Sunpaw, 161 hearts right back atcha, and thanks for listening to The Ten News! Ten Things You Need to Know drops every Tuesday and our in-depth reports drop every Wednesday. But if you want some bonus content, you could join the Ten’ers Club on our website or on Apple Podcasts.
Pamela Kirkland 15:03
“The Ten News” is a co-production of Small But Mighty Media and Next Chapter Podcasts.
Ryan Willard 15:07
The Ten News creative team is batting a thousand and includes Tracey Crooks, Pete Musto, Logan DeYoung and Tessa Flannery. Special thanks to Nathalie Alonso and Ten’ers Raza and Sartaaj.
Pamela Kirkland 15:21
Our Production Director is Jeremiah Tittle, and our Executive Producers are Donald Albright and show creator Tracy Leeds Kaplan.
Ryan Willard 15:29
I'm Ryan Willard.
Pamela Kirkland 15:30
And I'm Pamela Kirkland. Thanks for listening to The Ten News. Now, play ball!
