 Hey everybody yes we're back and it's Bob Lorenz, Jack Curry and John Flaherty coming at you we've got that great news coming out Tuesday night major league baseball has a plan to get back on the field in late July and we'll dig into it guys in depth but flash from a players perspective you heard the news what jumped out at you. Well I think the players right away the excitement level just goes through the roof guys because you look forward to having a season and to be quite honest with you all of these guys have been working out but they're not working out with that same intensity that they know they're going back to spring training next week so I imagine guys got up this morning got their workouts in probably a little more intense than they happen and you're just trying to figure out a way am I in New York this is gonna be easy if I'm not in New York how am I gonna get to New York but you're looking forward to all of that but at the same time you're a little cautious on what is this new reality going to look like when we show up at Yankee Stadium and we begin spring training part two. Yeah I think we're looking at an unprecedented unusual season that's going to be in front of us we all know the health and safety of the players and everyone around the game is paramount the coronavirus is going to hover over it but when you dig into the fact that baseball is back John I agree with you it's a relief it's a reason to rejoice it's a reason to celebrate cautiously and I think the team that evolves adapts and adjusts is the team that can win this season because every hour of every day there's going to be something you experience that you've never experienced before in a baseball season and you can't let those whatever you want to call them obstacles and pediments distractions you can't let that get in the way of you have to win a baseball game that day however you can get that yeah flash I think that's what stands out to me is the difference for players right it's a different level of discipline now as Jack mentioned extraordinary unexpected circumstances hopefully won't see anything like it in any season ever again but if you're a player you've got to find a way to adapt all these things stay disciplined when where you're staying where you're eating if you're on the road what level of commitment from an athlete is that going to take compared to what they give right now well I think Bob all athletes and players have this discipline about them that they know what their schedule looks like every day when you get into the rhythm of a big league season so the health and protocol issues are going to be part of that rhythm every day for these guys but I think they're going into it knowing there are going to be some positive tests along the way and they're going to have to jack's point these organizations these players are going to have to adapt and figure out a way to win that game on that night I just think that the pressure is on these big league managers because how do you manage now you can't manage with that long season mentality and I might not throw my best guy out there tonight because we have to save him down the road at the same time you want to keep players healthy on the field it's going to be an incredible balance for these managers and front offices to juggle yeah Jack we've talked about that already the fact that it's always been a marathon not a sprint for a season it's a sprint now it's 60 games and and to me that's part of the excitement of this season again we're not going to see anything like this ever again so that's part of the the new reality and a wrinkle that I think is going to be interesting we're almost every game in a way is a playoff game oh there's a ton of urgency to everything that's going to be going around every game that we see and to John's point I think a few things are going to happen first of all the teams with the best bullpens you're going to lean on your bullpen heavy this isn't an April situation where as John said well let's let's save Chapman and not use him today so I think it's going to be the team with a stacked bullpen I think roster depth is going to be vital I think having a killer instinct is going to be vital you're playing games in July and August you better treat those games as if you're playing in October and then if I was Aaron Boone on my wish list I'd wish I had three or four Chad greens going back to that bullpen point you want a guy who multiple times a week can give you multiple innings so I look from a Yankee perspective somebody like Eliza got and how important he can become someone like Luis Sessa even a Davey Garcia if he works himself into the mix those extra arms are going to be so vital right so flash let me ask you this Jack mentioned some of the players who could have a big impact or maybe in a 162 game season they wouldn't about the fact that for the Yankees they were scheduled to start the season without some players but given the Corona virus guys have rested up John Carlos Stanton Aaron Hicks James Paxton should all be back when the season begins in late July how much of an advantage does that give the Yankees I think it's a huge advantage from where they would have been a couple of months ago but you know is Aaron judge going to be a healthy player when this opening day comes that's still a big question mark and guys I just keep going back to you know in my mind what if a guy like Stan gets hurt and that's you know a three or four week deal I mean that's half of a big league season now so it's such a big situation but Jack I was thinking about when you were mentioning all of these things you know from a player standpoint these guys have to get off to a good start right away right I mean they it's not like okay I got a couple of weeks or a couple of months I'm a second half player I'll find my stride you have to get off to a hot start right away and if you don't the organization has to take a look and say we can't have the patience we might have to make a move here that we didn't think we were gonna have to make because we only have 30 games left in the season so when we're gonna be doing our shows I mean it's gonna be so many things to break down and analyze it's gonna be it's gonna be fantastic it's gonna be different and I know the traditionalists out there say oh it's not gonna be a regular season I get all that I just think 60 games is fascinating and getting to the playoffs and how you get there is really gonna be wonderful to watch we always knew 2020 was going to be different well once the pandemic occurred we all knew that so I say embrace what is in front of us a 60 game season could have a ton of excitement I use the word urgency and I use the word evolve and John you spoke about it from a player perspective how about this if you're a team that starts out the season two and 12 you might have buried yourself you might be done and that's why those those first 14 16 20 games whatever you want to say that's why there is an urgency and how about this factoid Washington Nationals were 19 and 31 after 50 games last year and won a World Series we all know you're not starting 19 and 31 and winning a World Series this season you're not gonna make playoffs if you have that kind of long slow start really changes the mentality now one of the other things I wanted to bring up there are some different wrinkles that we're gonna see and among them and this is where I don't want traditionalists heads to explode keeping it under the microscope of a 2020 season only it extra innings to help preserve players health speed up the games a little bit a runner will start on second base so flash this is intriguing to me I'm actually embracing it I know it's getting away from the norm they did in the minor leagues but now on a national scale in the major leagues a lot of people are really gonna get their first taste of this viewers and seeing this I find that a little intriguing for this year yeah I don't love it but I'm with you Bob I'm going to embrace it and see what it looks like and again I go back to managers and strategies does the sacrifice pump come back into play which really hasn't been a big thing recently in our game the pinch runner the speed factor is obviously gonna be huge does Aaron Boone hold the Tyler Wade in a tight game knowing that he might have a pinch running situation at second base and to utilize his speed so there are so many things that go into it you know and I understand the health and safety of the players and being able to manage bullpens you can't have 16 in games I get all of that so if you understand that part of it you try to embrace it and see how each club is going to take advantage in that type of a situation in a normal season guys I'm like John I would have scoffed at this rule this season this is not the year to complain about everything if you happen to be on that maniacal crazy side of liking to see pitchers hit which I'm not on that side don't complain about the DH this year by the way it's long overdue let's have the DH and that extra runner we keep using the word embrace it and John brought up a great point the player who will start on base in extra innings is the player who made the final out from the previous innings well for the Yankees if that's Luke Voight and you've got a Tyler Wade stashed away in the dugout you're absolutely pinch running for him you're going for the kill right then and there that's exciting that's baseball that's what we've missed for the last few months don't be screaming at your TV that this feels like little league or American movie scream at your TV I'm so happy that I get to see this again alright so final questions for each of you I'm gonna start with you flash again some of the new rules no spitting no tobacco no sunflower seeds you are allowed gum would that be tougher for you or on an off day for you non-playing you're gonna be sitting in the stands socially distancing which would be tougher for you to kind of wrap your head around well I mean the the instinct right away for players you know whether you shoot tobacco gum or seeds is spitting whether it's disgusting or not it's all part of the game and it was just something that you didn't even think about when you're out on the field so I think that's gonna be interesting but the whole idea of playing games in stadiums where there are no fans is going to be fascinating for me because I think on TV it's going to look and feel a whole lot different but but I actually think that picture batter confrontation where where you're just locked in in the battle that's never going to go away so I still think there's gonna be intensity out on the field it just might look and feel different from what we see on TV and Jack as we talk about doing things differently in this season hopefully this season only gonna be a completely different perspective for reporters covering the game as well the way we do it as broadcasters and I wonder your thoughts isn't this a time for the broadcasters in the league to get creative in terms of how we cover these athletes ask them questions etc what are your thoughts on that yeah I think creativity is key I think being clever I think being intriguing being interesting I think knowing the players and having interviewed them in the past and knowing some of their habits and some of their routines I think that will help you going forward if you see an at bat from DJ LeMayhew and he inside outs a ball to right field and you had a conversation with him about that a year ago well that's the time to resurrect that conversation here's what he said about why he likes to do that at Yankee Stadium I keep using the word and break the ball but that I think that's for all of us we're going to have to cover the game differently a lot of the interviews are probably going to be just like this via zoom but I think the fact that we have baseball back that we have something to talk about and then we have some clarity in front of us I think that is a reason to rejoice and guys just about time to dust off the suits and ties let's just hope the slacks and the pants fit thanks for joining us we'll see you next time good to see you guys