The Bob McCown Podcast

EP 194 - JON MOROSI on the Cleveland Guardians, Major League Baseball & the Seattle Kraken.

Our good friend, JON MOROSI, comes back to the podcast today for some baseball talk and a little bit of hockey as well.

Mr. Morosi joins Bob and John right in time to discuss the Cleveland's name change to the Guardians. Forget baseball, have we ever seen a professional team announce a rebranding in the middle of a season?

The three talk about the new name and wonder if this will spur other ball clubs to do the same.

We then transition to the everlasting topic of how baseball can grow the game. With the gambling aspect being the most obvious one we wonder what a partnership with MLB will do for the game and will we ever see it?

Jon also throws some ideas out on what exactly the Toronto Blue Jays should do on the trade deadline and whether or not they should make a push for the playoffs this year.

To end the show, we follow through with our unofficial agreement to allow Jon Morosi to talk about hockey - Having had another day to digest the NHL expansion draft, the three briefly go over the Seattle Kraken roster and speculate on what else they should do this offseason.

 

EP 193 - Reviewing the NHL Expansion Draft w/ ERIC DUHATSCHEK & BILLY JAFFE

ERIC DUHATSCHEK from The Athletic and NESN's BILLY JAFFE join the a day after the NHL Expansion Draft to analyze the Seattle Kraken roster.

The four break down this years draft and talk about who they are surprised to see left on the board by the Kraken - What was Ron Francis' approach? Can we expect to see the Kraken mirror the instant success that George McPhee and the Vegas Golden Knights saw?

We question some of the player choices as well as speculate on whether the Kraken will be active in the offseason. The consensus being - they need scoring and they need goaltending - but who are they going to get it from?

EP 192 - GEORGE MCPHEE on his experience with The NHL Expansion Draft.

It's draft day... or Expansion Draft Day for that matter and who better than former GM and current President of Hockey Operations of the Vegas Golden Knights, GEORGE MCPHEE, to talk about it with Bob and John.

George brings his unique perspective on being a GM of an expansion team. Having gone through the process four years ago he gives us some incredible insight on what the front office of the Seattle Kraken would have looked like in the days leading up to the draft.

George also gives us a look into how some of the draft day deals went down for him four years ago, and we learn about some of the conversations between other teams went when it came to choosing players.

We find out about how the Golden Knights were able to snag players like Shea Theodore, Alex Tuch and William Karlsson as well as learn what advice George had for Ron Francis - The GM of the Seattle Kraken.

EP 191 - DOUG SMITH & BOB RYAN on NBA Free Agency, Kyle Lowry, USA Basketball & The NBA Finals.

BOB RYAN and DOUG SMITH hop back on the show to talk some hoops with Bob and John.

The group discuss the rather underwhelming free agent pool this year, and who will end up where when it's all said and done.

We also talk about potential Kyle Lowry landing spots, where he would fit best and potential sign and trade options for the Raptors, and then other potential trades to be made this off-season. 

To end the show, the foursome break down the NBA Finals between the Phoenix Suns and the Milwaukee Bucks.

EP190 - IAN LEGGATT & RICHARD ZOKOL on The Open Championship and the future of Canadian Golfers.

Two former pro's and recurring guests,  IAN LEGGATT and RICHARD ZOKOL join the show for a Monday Golf round table.

The four discuss the Open Championship, the course and the performances from Colin Morikawa, Jordan Spieth and Jon Rahm.

We also talk about the possibility of big name players not attending this years Olympics and the importance of international golf to growing the game.

The gentleman also discuss the performance of some of our Canadian golfers this weekend and who we think has a significant future in the top ranks of the tour.

EP 189 - SCOTT RUSSELL on the Tokyo Olympic Games.

Host of CBC'S Road to the Olympic Games, SCOTT RUSSELL, joins the podcast to give us a preview on this summers Olympic Games in Tokyo.

Scott talks about how different this years games will be, how the lack of fans will affect the athletes and what our Canadian Olympic hopefuls had to do to qualify for the games in the meddle of a pandemic.

We also discuss how different the games will look on television with CBC being forced to do their broadcast from home due to the safety measure put in place by the IOC.

We end the show by asking Scott what Canadian Athletes we should look out for & what we should expect in terms of a medal count and who will win them for us.

EP 188 - KEN HOLLAND on Playoff Officiating, the Duncan Keith Trade and the NHL Expansion & Entry Drafts.

President and General Manager of the Edmonton Oilers, KEN HOLLAND, joins the show to talk Oilers hockey and the recent GM meetings that have been taken place.

To begin, Bob is looking for answers on the lack of calls being made in the playoffs. We wonder if that's been a focus for the General Managers over the course of their meetings and if there is anything they can do to fix it.

Moving on, the gentlemen get into the Duncan Keith trade and what he will bring to the teams in terms of leadership and a veteran presence.

We also discuss the Oilers off season plans, who they would like to bring back and also get some insight on the upcoming drafts - Both the expansion and Entry draft.

EP 187 - BUCK MARTINEZ on the All Star Game, the Toronto Blue Jays, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. & the teams bright future.

Voice of the Toronto Blue Jays & friend of the podcast, BUCK MARTINEZ joins the show to talk about Major League Baseball's All-Star Game, and the Toronto Blue Jays.

The three start the show with some gripes over what the MLB All-Star Game has become compared to the glory days of the past. We discuss Vladimir Guerrero JR.'s MVP performance in last nights game, as the three agree - The sky is the limit for this young star.

Bob and John ask Buck if the July 30th goal to have the team back in Canada is realistic, Whether the Rogers Centre is even ready and what it would take to re-locate a Major League Baseball team for the third time in one season. 

They talk about just how bright of a future this young Blue Jay's team has but stress that patience is key for long term success before we end the show addressing what the Blue Jays should do as we near the trade deadline.

EP 186 - RAY RATTO on how to fix Major League Baseball, Pascal Siakam trade rumours, Chris Paul & the Phoenix Suns.

RAY RATTO, writer for Defector and Radio host on 95.7 The Game in San Francisco, joins the podcast to discuss some Major League Baseball and a little bit of NBA as well. 

Bob, John and Ray begin the show addressing MLB's All-star festivities and Pete Alonso's second straight Home Run Derby win. Is he really the leagues best home run hitter like he says he is?

The three also have a lengthy conversation on what Major League Baseball needs to do to "fix" the game - with Ray saying the league needs to embrace having fun. Is the focus on math and analytics making this game too boring?

We also discuss the Pascal Siakam trade rumours, whether they have any validity to them and whether the Golden State Warriors are ready to give up on Wiseman after only one year.

Ray, Bob and John talk about Chris Paul's legacy and what winning a ring will mean for him. To end the show the three talk the Phoenix suns, their route to the finals and what has been working for them to make them so dangerous.

EP 185 - The Toronto Blue Jays All-Star Break Check in with SHI DAVIDI.

SHI DAVIDI joins the show from Denver, as the three evaluate the Toronto Blue Jays season so far, heading into the All-Star Break.

Shi updates us on who the Jays may be targeting as we near the trade deadline, gives us some analysis on Austin Martin & we discuss what we have seen from Alek Manoah since he got called up to the big leagues. 

Before we let Shi go, the three talk about the AL MVP race and whether Vladimir Guerrero JR. has any chance at catching Shohei Ohtani - and wonder when we will start seeing more player like Ohtani.

To finish the show, Bob and John cover the Euro cup final and fit some Tennis talk into the mix after Novak Djokovic won his 6th Wimbledon title & 20th Grand Slam.

EP 184 - BILL SHAIKIN on the MLB All-Star Game, Shohei Ohtani, the Dodgers &Trevor Bauer.

BILL SHAIKIN of the LA times comes back to the show to talk some baseball right in time for the All-Star Game.

They talk about the significance of the game and whether or not the players actually do enjoy playing in it. The three also discuss different incentive ideas the league could use in order to make the game more enjoyable for everyone.

The conversation shifts to Shohei Ohtani and his historic season so far. Bob and John wonder if this will create an "Ohtani effect", and when we will start seeing more players like him.

To end the show, the three talk about the LA Dodgers, but more specifically the investigation surrounding Trevor Bauer. Bill informs us on the details of the investigation and the reasoning for his extended administrative leave.

EP 183 - JAMES SHARMAN the Euro Cup Semi Finals & an Italy vs. England Final Preview.

JAMES SHARMAN joins the show to talk some soccer but first, Bob and John needed to discuss the Stanley Cup Final.

With the Tampa Bay Lightning winning the Stanley Cup for the second year in a row, Bob and John discuss how good the organization has been from all directions. Not just the players have been good as the two note the stability in the front office and coaching has been key to their success. 

The two also wonder what's next for the Montreal Canadiens, and whether this success can carry over into next season.

With the hockey talk out of the way, we bring James on to go over the recent Euro Cup semi finals that saw the Italians beat the Spanish and England making their first ever final appearance after defeating Denmark 2-1 in extra time on Wednesday.

Due to the fact that James is indeed British, we spend some time talking about the English team and how good they have been. We learn the significance of their success this year as the advance to their first ever Euro Cup final appearance.

 

EP 182 - PIERRE MCGUIRE on the Stanley Cup Final, Inconsistent Officiating & The Importance of Goaltending.

PIERRE MCGUIRE is on the podcast today to chat some hockey with Bob and John.

The three discuss the Stanley Cup Final between the Canadiens and Lightning, and focus on the lack of whistles in the series and whether the fact that refs tend to call less penalties in the playoffs is a good or bad thing.

Amongst other things, the gentlemen get into the importance of goaltending in the NHL with Pierre believing a good goalie has never been needed more. 

Bob wonders why it's so hard to scout a goalie and when the next time we will see a net-minder drafted in the top 10 anytime soon.

To end the show, Bob and John cover Canadian tennis and speculate as to who the next (or first?) tennis great from the North will be.

EP 181 - Former Sports Broadcaster & Journalist: KEITH OLBERMANN.

Legendary Sports & Political Commentator and current host of  "Olbermann Versus ____" on Youtube - KEITH OLBERMANN - Joins the podcast to chat with John and Bob.

The three talk about a wide variety of topics, starting with the Stanley Cup Final as the conversation transitions into what the NHL can do, if anything, to grow the popularity of their game- especially in the playoffs. 

The three look at whats worked for the NBA over the years and wonder how you could apply it to leagues who have been fighting ratings issues - specifically Major League Baseball and the NHL. 

We look at what you should and should not do as an owner of a Baseball team, how NHL teams have to work together to promote their brand and find out about Keith's love for Roller Derby, Butternut Squash Ravioli among much more in todays episode.

EP 180 - A Recap of the Weekends Sports News with Bob & John.

Just Bob and John today as the two attempt to fit everything that happened in the sports world this weekend, into one hour. 

The two begin with the aftermath of yet another disappointing Olympic Qualifying tournament performance from the Canadian Men's basketball team as the gentlemen shift focus to the much more successful Women's squad led by Kia Nurse. 

Staying on basketball the two discuss the NBA Finals, as the Milwaukee Bucks and Phoenix Suns compete for the Larry O'Brien Trophy. We wonder if this is the end of the "Big 3" era as the game morphs back to a more team oriented style of play.

Bob briefly brings up soccer and the TFC woes, the two discuss the 4 All stars from the Toronto Blue Jays, Shohei Ohtani's historic season, Canadian Tennis and to end the show the gentlemen discuss the Stanley Cup Final - Is it over? or will the Canadiens pull off yet another cinderella story?