Christian Yelich on Baseball's New Rules and the Never-ending Ass-Eating Bet
A truly insane sports weekend leads the show, starting with a Saturday in college basketball that felt like the first weekend of March. Big Cat is convinced the absolute chaos of nine ranked teams losing was sparked by one specific moment in the Iowa-Michigan State game.
The college basketball chaos on Saturday was triggered by Fran McCaffrey's stare down with the referee
I think Saturday we got the chaos all because of Fran McCaffrey's stare down. It was from that point on the day, just went off the fucking rails. There's nothing like a good old fashioned coach just staring at a referee so close and neither one of them was gonna walk away.
While college hoops was stealing the spotlight, Major League Baseball tried to make noise with the debut of new spring training rules. PFT has some high-level intel regarding the side effects of the new pitch clock that might change how we look at the radar gun this season.
MLB pitch velocity will decrease by 0.02 mph this year due to the new shot clock rules
This guy Corky knows his shit. He is projecting right now an average decrease in pitch velocity this year of 0.02 miles per hour. Whoa. Because the new shot clock rules. So yeah, keep that in the back pocket. We're gonna see slower fastballs this year.
Speaking of baseball, Big Cat and PFT check in on the broadcasters as well. Keith Hernandez is already in mid-season form with his name pronunciations, though PFT has a medical theory involving Keith's lavish cat-friendly home decor as to why he's struggling with the roster.
Keith Hernandez has toxoplasmosis from his cat, which is why he's messing up player names
Keith Hernandez has toxoplasmosis from living with his cat. Oh. That's why he's messing up names. But I mean, is it really a mess up? Because Chaz Chisholm [Jazz Chisholm] is just a Hall of fame name.
The Misery of the Fan Experience
Big Cat and PFT take some time to wallow in the absolute state of their franchises. With the Bears and Commanders reaching new lows, Big Cat defends his right to be absolutely miserable online after a tough loss, arguing that being an emotional wreck is a sign of a healthy fan.
I would rather be a grumpy, triggered sports fan after a loss than be numb to it
I absolutely let my team's success dictate my mood. I was very upset, grumpy, mad... people should be applauding the fact that I'm a grumpy triggered bitch after my teams lose. Because I could easily just remove myself... but I don't. You'd rather care way too much than be completely numb to it.
Between the Nate Oats era at Alabama and the total disaster that was the 2022 Denver Broncos, there was plenty of dysfunction to go around. PFT wasn't a fan of the pregame antics in Tuscaloosa given the gravity of the situation surrounding the team.
Brandon Miller should not have participated in the weapon pat-down pregame introduction
I'm just gonna say, I think Brandon Miller probably should have not done that. Just because you're 18 years old, you should probably not do the weapon pat down.
When the conversation shifts to the NFL draft, Big Cat floats a terrifying "process" style idea for the Bears to truly reset the clock, even if it means moving on from their franchise quarterback for a haul of picks. It led to a larger debate about whether the QB position is losing its luster.
The Bears should consider trading both the #1 pick and Justin Fields to maximize draft capital
The Bears Trade, the number one pick. Okay. The Bears also trade Justin Fields. Then you're loaded. Just have like eight first round picks. The Eagles were able to load up because they were able to, to take advantage of a cheap contract with a quarterback. What if we just strip it all the way down and get all the picks and have all the Cap and Caleb Williams, Drake May coming up.
The quarterback position has become interchangeable and devalued just like the running back position
Are you basically saying that the quarterback position is like the running back position and it's almost interchangeable?
Christian Yelich and the Big Bet
Friend of the program Christian Yelich returns to the show to update everyone on his back health and the upcoming season. Of course, the conversation eventually turns to the most infamous bet in PMT history: Big Cat and PFT eating each other's asses if Yelich wins a Home Run Derby. Yelich admits he feels the weight of the bet every time he's in public and fans scream at him to make the hosts pay up.
He also weighs in on the new shift rules, which he expects to be a massive boon for guys who hit from the left side like himself.
The shift ban will significantly benefit every left-handed hitter in MLB
Any left-handed hitter, it's gonna be good because even if you weren't a guy that was full shift, you're still losing hits because of it. Analytically teams don't care, it's just more so like just don't hit a homer or a double. You'd get blown up and a ball that would stop in the infield grass basically ended up being a hit, and then you lose the one where you hit a line drive to right field and it hits the third baseman right in the chest.
Beyond the hitting, Yelich gives a player's perspective on the possibility of technology replacing the human element behind the plate. He's firmly in the camp that keep the umpires involved, largely for the entertainment value when things get heated.
Robot umpires will have unintended consequences like calling strikes on balls in the dirt
I don't want robot umps. No. Because I think there's gonna be a lot of unintended consequences with that. Because if you just have a square that buzzes ball or strike... there are a lot of breaking balls that'll be like in the dirt that'll clip the bottom of the strike zone technically. I don't want robots.
Manager and umpire arguments are good for the entertainment value of baseball
I need to see managers getting right up into an umpire's face. That's so good for the game because people, it's entertaining. At the end of the day it's an entertainment business. So make things that are entertainment. It reaches a large audience.
Who’s Back and a Huge Lottery Ball Win
Who’s Back features Sam Hurd getting out of prison at a very convenient time for a certain movie release and Billy's obsession with finding ancient remains in the East River. PFT is convinced there's a marketing conspiracy afoot with the former Cowboys receiver.
Sam Hurd was released from prison early to serve as viral marketing for the movie Cocaine Bear
Sam Hurd has been released from Federal penitentiary... after serving a 10 year sentence for distributing cocaine. Timing is very suspicious with the release of Cocaine Bear. A lot of people are saying that this judge might have taken some money to do some gorilla marketing for the movie.
The East River is full of prehistoric bison bones dumped by a developer
Dirty Water Don... he's found a bone. He found a jawbone of a steppe bison, which is just a prehistoric, gigantic bison. He found the jawbone in the East River. So that means that it is true. There were tons of bones dumped there.
We close the show with the most monumental lottery ball segment in recent memory. After months of practice and thousands of guesses, someone finally hits it. PFT secures a massive bag of cash, leaving Hank in a state of absolute devastation as he watches the champagne flow for everyone but him.
If you see Hank on the street, don't tell him your favorite number.

