- 2 months ago
Braves manager Walt Weiss joins The Steakhouse to talk about state of the Braves, Chris Sale's dominance on the mound, the NL East Pennant race, and more
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00:00Yeah, Walt Weiss with us on Sports Radio 92.9, the game.
00:03You had a scintillating seven-game winning streak.
00:05You sweep the Dodgers.
00:07You get it done against Colorado.
00:08You win the Little League game in Williamsport.
00:11Braves fans are like, this is what we're talking about.
00:13Look at the run we're on.
00:15You know very well that, you know, the Nationals and then, what was it,
00:19the Giants are, you know, just as dangerous any given day.
00:23So is that just 162 games, last two games is kind of you chalk it up,
00:28is that what happens some nights?
00:30Yeah, I just think we haven't played well the last two days.
00:33You know, had that seven-game winning streak, which was great.
00:38But, look, I don't care who you're playing.
00:40You know, you don't play well.
00:41You don't win in this league.
00:42It doesn't matter.
00:43So we just haven't played very clean, haven't played very well against the Giants
00:48and the first game against the Nats.
00:50So, you know, inevitably you lose those games.
00:53So just got to play a clean game today and come out and score some runs
00:58and, you know, get out of here with a W.
01:03The pennant race is real.
01:05Philly within three.
01:06I was curious.
01:08You won a bunch of division titles in Oakland,
01:10and then you won other division titles post that period.
01:14The wild card started, I think it was in 95.
01:16Do you remember?
01:17I don't even know.
01:18Did Oakland ever get challenged in those divisions?
01:20Do you remember the last time you were in a pennant race where actually you didn't make the playoffs
01:25if you didn't win the division?
01:30In Oakland, I think pretty much all my years there, with the exception maybe a couple,
01:36you know, we were winning the division.
01:37There was no wild card back then.
01:39Yeah.
01:40Um, yeah, there's only, uh, heck, there's only two divisions in each league.
01:46You had, and you had to win your division to get to the postseason.
01:49Um, so much, uh, thinner, you know, postseason fields, but, um, you know,
01:56been involved in a bunch of pennant races throughout my time.
01:59And I was fortunate enough to get to play on some really good teams.
02:02And obviously, uh, finished up in Atlanta where we were in, we were in pennant races every year.
02:08Um, some of them close, some of them we won going away.
02:12But, uh, yeah, it's, uh, it's tough to win the division.
02:17I always say it's the toughest one because it takes six months to do it.
02:20You know, you can win a, you can win a postseason series in a week.
02:23It takes six months to win a division.
02:25So that's, that's, uh, that's the grind.
02:27I assume you're not surprised despite Philadelphia changing managers.
02:32And struggling three, four months ago, you know, that team, that lineup,
02:36I assume you're not surprised they continue to be in another big winning streak
02:39and that they are right on your, uh, right on your tails.
02:43You're an 82 win team and you still only have a three game lead.
02:47Yeah.
02:47Look, the Phillies, um, you know, on paper, one of the best teams in the game.
02:51We knew that coming in.
02:52Um, I think, uh, you know, coming out of spring training,
02:56if you said this is where we'd be and everyone, everyone would take it.
02:59I don't think anybody thought we'd be where we're at right now.
03:03So, um, we knew Philly would always hang around one of the best, uh, rotations in the game.
03:09And, uh, obviously, uh, you know, some star power in that lineup.
03:14So, uh, you know, we'll head to Philly in a couple of days, see what happens.
03:17Hey, uh, Walt Weiss is with us on sports radio, 92, nine, the game.
03:23How important or how much do you care?
03:25You and the Dodgers both have 82 wins.
03:28Um, and you won the season series.
03:30So avoiding the first round series, first two teams get buys.
03:35How important is that to you?
03:37And how focused as we get later into September, will you and your team be about that?
03:42Yeah, absolutely.
03:43That's, that's what we're chasing.
03:44Um, you want to win a division, you want to get a buy, you know, so you put yourself
03:50in, in position once the playoff start, you know, you get, you get past that first round
03:55right away.
03:56That's a big deal.
03:56So certainly, uh, certainly have that in our sights, but, um, you know, can't get ahead
04:04of ourselves.
04:04We got to, we, we got to win, win the day today.
04:06Let's talk about some of your guys.
04:08Uh, you know, I don't think you listen to too much sports talk radio, but people are
04:12up in arms at the trade deadline.
04:14Why didn't we go get another arm?
04:16Look at everybody else, blah, blah, blah.
04:18Tyler Malley.
04:19Who is this dude?
04:20Um, why don't you tell everybody who is this dude?
04:23Cause he looks pretty good over the last five or six starts.
04:26Yeah.
04:27Malley's been great, man.
04:28Been a great addition.
04:29Just, uh, you know, he's got the ability to, to execute pitches and he's got a three
04:35pitch arsenal.
04:36You know, Alex and his team felt like there were some things they could do to, to get
04:41him even more effective when we got them with, with his pitch mix and using the split a little
04:47bit more to righties and, uh, kind of condensed the arsenal.
04:51Um, he's been really good.
04:53He commands all his pitches.
04:54He got the, got the invisible fastball that, uh, he could throw.
04:58Throwing the zone and get swing and miss on just one of those unique fastballs.
05:03So he's been great, man.
05:05He's been a big shot in the arm for our pitching staff for our club.
05:09Talk about a couple of the other guys.
05:10Uh, Sharver doesn't have a good night last night, but obviously Grant Holmes, Bryce Elder
05:14pretty much.
05:15Listen, you don't win this many games without quality starts.
05:17You guys have done it.
05:19I know you don't want to talk about rotations and postseason.
05:21That would be foolish.
05:22But what about, um, your guys up front and how they've done this year and, and how you
05:27feel about them of late?
05:29Yeah.
05:29I think the, the pitching staff's done a great job.
05:31I mean, that, that a lot of questions, right.
05:33And come out of spring training, losing, uh, three, four starters.
05:36Um, so there was, I get it.
05:39There was a lot of questions about our starting rotation and these guys have stepped up and
05:43then, you know, Martin Perez, we found, found gold there with a, with a, you know, non-roster
05:50invite to spring training.
05:51He's been one of our most consistent starters, uh, been some ups and downs with the other
05:56guys, but the bottom line is our record is what it is.
05:59And it has a lot to do with how we pitched, um, bullpen has been really good.
06:05One of our most consistent strengths, I think throughout the season.
06:09So, uh, you got to pitch to win.
06:11Uh, that's, there's a direct correlation between winning and, and how well you pitch.
06:16I mean, so that's a common denominator denominator for every successful club.
06:22So we, we pitched well enough to be where we're at.
06:25Um, and guys have really taken hold of some opportunities that they got, uh, coming out
06:30of spring training and, and have run with it.
06:33Well, weiss with us, uh, at the ballpark, getting ready for the Braves and Nationals coming
06:38up, uh, today.
06:39Let me ask you for a second, we can go back to the homestand.
06:42I know you're not, you know, looking at stuff as a fan and you're not looking around and
06:46thinking about crowds necessarily and all that kind of drama.
06:49But when Chris Sale has a start like that, you send them out there for the ninth.
06:54When, um, Hasan Kim has that moment, um, full ballpark, you know, the juggernaut that
07:00are the Dodgers.
07:02It, it, it, those, the moments, I don't know what's the most fun for you, but sitting there
07:05and watching that ballpark and feeling that, is that something that makes it special for
07:10you and for anybody who's in the game?
07:13Yeah, there's nothing like it.
07:15There really isn't.
07:16I mean, I think there's a reason why we played so well at home.
07:20I want to say best home record in baseball.
07:23Um, you know, it's good to the moments like that.
07:27And we've had some great wins, especially at home this year.
07:30We've been earled from, from the beginning of the season on, I mean, we've had some unbelievable
07:35wins there and, uh, yeah, there's no feeling like it.
07:38When, when, when you're able to do that in front of the home crowd in a full stadium,
07:42like you said, against the Dodgers, um, yeah, there was some great moments on that, on that
07:49home stand, but there's been some, yeah, like great moments throughout the season, especially
07:54at home.
07:54Do you think Sale hits triple digits because of that crowd and because of that juice?
07:59I mean, is that a tangible thing?
08:02It's possible.
08:03I mean, Sale's always got that juice.
08:05You know, we, we, we, we've seen him go get, uh, upper nineties.
08:10You know, he, he got to a hundred, I think with Ohtani and I think the fact that Ohtani
08:14is in the box, uh, gives him a little more juice too.
08:17Um, but we've seen him do that.
08:19We've seen him sit 94, 95, and then a big moment or, you know, the, the best hitter in
08:24their lineup comes up and it's 98, 99.
08:28Um, he's got that in the tank.
08:30He's really kind of a marvel, you know, what he's doing, but, uh, glad he's on our team.
08:37And it's, I love when it's Chris Sale day.
08:40No doubt.
08:41Yeah.
08:41I mean, we do too.
08:44Hey, uh, are you thinking of him differently in terms of how you use him in September?
08:50How many days is enough days for you?
08:52What is your mindset?
08:53How often do you talk to him about that as well?
08:55And how long are you going to have a six man rotation?
08:58Yeah.
09:00Um, yeah, at first the, the sale thing, we, we've given him extra rest, uh, all season.
09:06Now you get to the post season, it's a different animal, right?
09:09Um, it's, uh, you know, every, every, every, every game is critical.
09:15Uh, there's no big picture anymore.
09:17So, uh, you going after those games and, and look, that's, those are conversations.
09:22And as far as how he's feeling, how he's recovering, but of course, we'd, we'd like to have him out
09:27there every day, if we could, and he'd probably take the ball every day if we let him.
09:31Um, but, um, yeah, I think the difference between the, the regular season and the post
09:37season is, is drastic in how you approach your pitching and that type of thing.
09:44As far as six man rotation.
09:46Yeah, probably, uh, again, that's, that's a day to day thing right now.
09:50And at some point that'll probably change, um, it, it helped get guys an extra day through
09:57the rotation, but there's a point of diminishing return.
10:01And at some point, just because your, your bullpen takes the brunt of it, even though we
10:06have an extra body out there, it's still, uh, we've been, we've been going with a seven
10:10man pen for about two weeks, which is almost impossible.
10:13Somehow we, we pulled it off, but, uh, uh, so that's, that's probably the, the, the six
10:19man rotation is those, those days are probably numbered.
10:22Talking to Walt Weiss on sports radio, 92, 90 game.
10:25Any update on Suarez you can give us?
10:28Uh, Suarez, uh, so far so good.
10:31I mean, in his throwing progression.
10:33Um, so we're, we're hoping, we're hoping, we're hoping there's a Suarez sighting here at
10:40some point, um, but he's, he's, he's passing all the tests right now.
10:45And, um, you know, if he continues to do that, I believe we'll see him here at some point.
10:51How big a piece would he be healthy down the stretch?
10:55Yeah, huge.
10:56I mean, I always feel like one of the most impactful things you can do for your club is
11:00either add a high leverage guy at the back end of your bullpen or just the other way.
11:06If you take one out, uh, both of them are very impactful, uh, in, in the negative and
11:12the positive, but so adding him to our bullpen would be huge.
11:16Now he's been out for a while, so, um, I'm sure there'll be a little bit of rust, but it's
11:23a big time arm obviously.
11:25And, and, uh, yeah, that, that's a guy that would move the needle for us.
11:29Finishing up with Walt Weiss getting ready for nationals and Braves today in the nation's
11:33capital.
11:33I was going to ask you about the delicate or maybe it's not delicate.
11:36You're the manager, so it's not, but, uh, deciding or sitting guys as long as you have
11:42to sometimes and, and being around them, a guy like Hassan Kim, who, I mean, you know,
11:47you look over on the backside of the dugout, he hasn't gotten at bats in a long time and
11:51you want to get guys at bats, but at the same time you're doing what's best every day
11:54for your starting nine, you're playing the hot hand, all that.
11:57Um, how much, uh, what goes into all those decisions of how long guys sit, when to use
12:04them?
12:05Is it sometimes hard for you to watch guys sit for two weeks and not get to bat?
12:09Talk about some of that.
12:11Yeah, I think, I think, um, uh, first and foremost, uh, I'm in constant communication with those
12:16guys.
12:16Uh, they know where they stand and, um, you know, the house on Kim was, it was a really unique
12:23circumstances, a guy that missed, uh, all of spring training really struggled when he
12:28came back.
12:29Uh, the hand wasn't quite right, went back out on a rehab assignment and started to show
12:35some signs of being the player that he's been.
12:37And then, um, you know, when he came back to us, Dubom was playing really well at shortstop
12:43before that Jarvis was, was playing well, especially defensively.
12:47So it was tough to find Kim, uh, uh, reps, you know, and then everything kind of changed
12:54with that, the big walk-off, you know, then, then as a manager, you want to reward a guy
12:59like that and, and for his perseverance, for his humility, for, he'd been a great teammate
13:03through it all.
13:04And, and what do you know?
13:06I mean, now Kim, uh, last night, he's three for three.
13:09He's starting to look like the guy he's always been.
13:12And that'd be huge for us.
13:13You know, if he, if he can, he can come around, but look, I try to watch.
13:17Guys, I, I lean on my staff, you know, get their input as far as giving guys day, a day
13:22off here and there.
13:24Um, but try to keep everybody involved because throughout the course of, of, of a season,
13:31you're going to need them all to contribute.
13:34And, you know, we, I think our, our entire roster has at some point or another, they've,
13:39they've been a big part of, uh, you know, this season in the middle of a lot of good
13:44things.
13:44So you try to keep everyone involved.
13:46You, you, you communicate with them, let them know where they stand and, and then go
13:49get them.
13:51Finishing up with Walt Weiss.
13:52We really appreciate your time.
13:53Finally going to Philadelphia.
13:55We've had Snit on a few times in the past.
13:57One of them, he said, he doesn't let his family go to Philly anymore and they weren't
14:01treated great or the energy there is not good for, uh, I don't know, at times.
14:05I'm not, what's your take on that Philly crowd or in general, is there certain places in baseball
14:12make it more difficult than others and any thoughts on trying to win in Philadelphia in
14:16front of that group?
14:19Yeah, look, I mean, there's a lot of places you go on the road, it's tough to, tough to
14:23play.
14:23You know, there's some, there's some stadiums around this league where, uh, you know, especially
14:28in the Northeast, right?
14:30I mean, I grew up there.
14:31You did too.
14:32It's a different animal up there, but, uh, look, we went in there at early in the year,
14:36we swept them.
14:37So, uh, we've had, we've had plenty of success in that park.
14:43Um, you know, they're, they've been a really good team for, for a long time now.
14:47So, uh, you know, they've, they've won their share there too against us, but, um, you know,
14:52I kind of, I kind of enjoy going into lion's den to be honest with you and just, uh, see
14:57what happens.
14:58Yeah.
14:58Mindset, right?
14:59Let these guys come at us and we're galvanized 25 guys, 27 guys now, right?
15:04Just like bring it on Jersey style, New York style.
15:08That's it.