00:00But if we look at the National League playoff picture, Joe, if the season ended today, the top three seeds, the Brewers, the Dodgers, and the Mets.
00:09Behind them, if the season ended today, the wildcard teams would be the Cubs, Phillies, and the Padres, followed closely by the San Francisco Giants and the Cincinnati Reds.
00:18We look at that leaderboard here and say, wait a second, Cubs aren't up there?
00:22No.
00:22You haven't been paying attention.
00:23The Brewers are playing unbelievable baseball.
00:25Cubs slipping up just a little bit.
00:26The Dodgers, who are still in first place, not playing their best baseball because teams behind them aren't playing their best baseball either.
00:33And then the Philadelphia Phillies and the Mets just seem to be on that roller coaster.
00:36Two days first place, two days second place, two days first place, two days second place.
00:40As we look at the top shelf teams, like the division leaders, let me ask you this question.
00:44Brewers, Dodgers, and Mets, is that the three that we're going to see as the division winners here?
00:50Or are we going to get some changes?
00:52Because the Dodgers, for me, feel like, yeah, that's going to be there.
00:54But the Brewers and the Mets, man, day to day, it's going to be a crazy finish, isn't it?
00:59Well, I mean, when you think about it, right, Dodgers have a five-game lead over the Padres, a six-game lead over the Giants.
01:08Arizona was interesting because they are, yes, they're 10 games out behind the Dodgers.
01:13But if they could get hot, you know, we've seen this Arizona team ride it right to a World Series appearance, right?
01:20So, you know, if they're going to be sellers, that's a locker room I'd be a little bit worried about right now with Josh Naylor being the first piece.
01:28But the other two, it's going to be Mets, Philadelphia, and it's going to come down to the Cubs and Milwaukee.
01:34I don't see any other team involved in those races outside of them.
01:39I don't see Cincinnati all of a sudden getting red hot and making all of these moves.
01:44They're a 500 club.
01:46They're not in the same conversation as the Cubs and Milwaukee.
01:49I think those four teams, it's just going to matter of, okay, who does the best, you know, next month when the season comes down to end?
01:57That's who's going to win it.
01:58But they're all very dangerous as wildcard teams as well.
02:02Yeah, you take a look also at the remaining teams, right?
02:06You say, okay, well, if the season ends today, the Padres would be that final wildcard spot.
02:09That's a pretty good, you know, top six that's going to head into the playoffs here for the NL.
02:13But the team's still on the cusp of it, a game or two back.
02:15The Giants, the Reds, even the Cardinals there, who's really a surprise, not playing their best baseball right now, picked up that victory yesterday over the Padres in that wildcard race.
02:24The Diamondbacks, who had 50 wins.
02:26So, essentially, they're five games, let's just say, out.
02:29They'd have to jump a few teams, but they're selling.
02:31So, they're going to bottom out sooner than later.
02:32The Marlins, Braves, Pirates, Nationals, and Rockies, probably not going to do much either, which is so crazy to say the Braves in that same sentence as the rest of those baseball teams.
02:40Just nothing went right for them.
02:42But if I gave you those two teams here, the Giants and the Reds, as if the Padres would already make it in as that last team,
02:49which team would you feel would jump the Padres, Phillies, and possibly Mets, let's just say, or anybody else to get in?
02:55Do you feel the Giants or the Reds have what it takes to actually make a playoff run and get in the playoffs?
03:00I do not.
03:01I don't like the Giants offensively, and I do not like the Reds' bullpen in any way, shape, or form.
03:09They've been hot and cold all year long, the Reds.
03:12You can't trust them, Donnie.
03:13One game, they'll score 12 runs.
03:15The next, they can't hit water if they fell out of a boat, and they'll score one or two runs and get blown out.
03:21That bullpen is a problem for the Reds.
03:23They're not going to jump into the market and start improving that bullpen.
03:27And so I think both these teams, you already got the Devers move if you're the Giants.
03:32At this point, you are what your record says you are.
03:35You're a flawed team that is not as good as the teams that are ahead of you.
03:41So I don't see either of them making a run at any of those teams in front of them right now.
03:46Yeah, it'll be fun teams, too.
03:48The Reds are a fun team.
03:50They'll be really interesting to get in there.
03:51Young pitching, a couple of hammers on the mound.
03:53They got great players, you know, Ellie De La Cruz, and away you go with that.
03:56But it is interesting to see the top of that, where just a week ago, it's like, no, the Brewers aren't there.
04:00It's the Cubs.
04:01And no, the Mets aren't there.
04:02It's the Philadelphia Phillies, where the Dodgers have always been that mainstay.
04:04And the Dodgers have 60 wins, no longer even the best record in the NL.
04:08Cubs got 60 wins.
04:09And the Brewers, the best team in the National League at 61 and 41.
04:14When you ask most casual fans out there, can you name some players?
04:17Yeah, it's Yelich.
04:19Yeah, Yelich is Christian Yelich, right?
04:22Yeah, exactly.
04:22Like, who is the rest of the eight players in that starting lap?
04:24And who's that part?
04:25Oh, Peralta's on the team.
04:28Congratulations.
04:29You hit two guys out of, what, 30 baseball players on the team.
04:32But somehow they're getting it done, and we'll see if they can wind up finishing the job
04:35and also winning a Major League Baseball championship.
04:39The Brewers, man.
04:40Boy, it's been a long time since we certainly said that.
