As the calendar turns to September, the entire baseball world’s sights are set on the 2025 Postseason and who will ultimately be crowned champion. While the playoff field is becoming more clear, there are still some notable questions that will need to be answered down the stretch.

Jake Mintz and Jordan Shusterman ask one big question for every postseason team currently in the mix including whether the New York Yankees are capable of beating good teams, how the Milwaukee Brewers will deploy Jacob Misiorowski, if the Los Angeles Dodgers’ pitching staff can stay healthy and whether the Chicago Cubs’ offense can get its groove back.

Also on this episode of the Baseball Bar-B-Cast, Jake and Jordan take a look at the Texas Rangers surging toward a postseason spot, now just 1.5 games out of a Wild Card berth. They also highlight some notable September call-ups from the Cincinnati Reds, Seattle Mariners & Kansas City Royals and discuss the Atlanta Braves making an interesting acquisition.

1:56 – The Opener: Rangers make playoff push
11:42 – Around the League: One question for AL postseason teams
34:39 – One question for NL postseason teams
1:06:15 – Jordan’s Prospect Hut: Notable September call-ups
1:12:17 – The Braves make a move

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After getting swept by the New York Mets this week, the Philadelphia Phillies were looking for a way to jumpstart their final push toward an NL East title at home—and were given an incredible boost on Thursday night. Kyle Schwarber swatted four home runs, a feat that has only been accomplished 21 times in MLB history, helping propel the Phillies to a victory against the Atlanta Braves.

Jake Mintz and Jordan Shusterman discuss the feat—which, oddly enough, has already happened twice this season—and how Schwarber’s stellar season could impact his upcoming free agency. They also debate how many home runs Schwarber would need this year to give Shohei Ohtani a run for his money in the National League MVP race.

Also on this episode of the Baseball Bar-B-Cast, Jake and Jordan talk about the upcoming MLB debut of Boston Red Sox pitcher Payton Tolle, Nolan McLean’s impressive first three starts for the New York Mets and why the Milwaukee Brewers could be facing some tough times after losing Trevor Megill. The guys close the episode by making their picks for The Good, The Bad & The Uggla.

1:18 – The Opener: Kyle Schwarber’s 4-HR Game
14:01 – NL MVP Race Heating Up?
24:19 – Around the League: Payton Tolle Debut
34:40 – Mets Bring Up Big Arms
41:55 – Brewers Take a Blow
45:38 – The Good, The Bad & The Uggla

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The 2025 MLB season has not even reached the postseason yet, but we already have the schedule for what the 2026 season is going to look like. That schedule was released on Tuesday with some very notable takeaways. The season will get started in primetime with an Opening Night on Wednesday, March 25th as the New York Yankees fly across the country to visit the San Francisco Giants. The other 28 teams will start their seasons the next day for the earliest traditional Opening Day in MLB history, on March 26th. The New York Mets and Yankees will play each other in a series starting on September 11th for the 25th anniversary of 9/11. Every team will be in action on the 4th of July to celebrate the United States' 250th birthday. The All-Star game will be in Philadelphia on July 14th. These are just a few of the many notable dates on the 2026 MLB schedule. Jake Mintz and Jordan Shusterman discuss their thoughts on the schedule, what stands out to them and how they feel about a balanced schedule. Plus, the World Cup arrives next summer. How will these games affect MLB games?

Then, the guys talk to a legend as Cal Ripken Jr. joins the show! He talks with Jake and Jordan about his Hall of Fame career. He chats about breaking the record for most consecutive games played, what he thinks about current players not playing all 162 games, his transition after baseball and more!

Next, the guys chat through some notable news. The new Women's Professional Baseball League held tryouts recently, finishing up with their final day of tryouts at Nationals Park on August 25th. Over 600 women from 10 countries showed up to try out! Jake and Jordan talk about the impact this is having on the sport and where they hope to see this grow. Plus, the Mets call up a top pitching prospect to start Friday, Junior Caminero continues to impress at just 22-years-old and Garrett Crochet continues to make a case for the AL Cy Young.

Finally, the biggest news of the day, on Tuesday, didn't come from the baseball world, but it did come from the sports world as Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift announced they are engaged. Jake and Jordan discuss who are the biggest celebrity couples involving an athlete. Are Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift bigger than Joe DiMaggio and Marilyn Monroe? Where might David and Victoria Beckham land in this debate?

All of this and more on today's Baseball Bar-B-Cast.

(1:54) - MLB 2026 schedule release

(29:39) - Cal Ripken Jr. interview

(56:50) - Women's Professional Baseball League

(1:03:54) - Mets call-up, Caminero impresses & Crochet pushes for AL Cy Young

(1:13:31) - Ranking Travis Kelce & Taylor Swift's celebrity couple stardom

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The 2024 season saw the New York Yankees go to the World Series and the Boston Red Sox fail to make the playoffs. One year later, the Red Sox have beaten the Yankees in eight of their ten matchups and lead the AL Wild Card race by a half game over the Yankees. Three of the Boston wins came this weekend as Boston took three of four from the Yankees in New York. The Yankees continue to have issues figuring out their lineup with an injured, but playing, Aaron Judge. Anthony Volpe also continues to struggle massively. Will the Yankees be able to survive this for a deep postseason run? How is the rest of the season going to shake out for the Red Sox? Jake Mintz and Jordan Shusterman discuss both teams' seasons thus far and how they see them playing out the rest of the way.

At the same time that all of this was happening, the Padres were hosting the Dodgers for another huge NL West series. Unlike their previous matchup, the Padres came out on the winning end and are now tied for the lead in the NL West. Los Angeles has the tiebreaker for the division, but with 31 games remaining, and the easiest schedule in baseball, the Padres have a real shot at the NL West crown. Jake and Jordan discuss what they saw out of each team and what they think the postseason may end up looking like.

Those two series may have stolen the headlines, but there were also three sweeps this weekend as the Cubs, Rangers and Pirates all brought out their brooms. For the Pirates, that also included another impressive display from Paul Skenes as he threw seven scoreless innings and officially eliminated the Rockies from playoff contention. Through his first 50 starts, he now has an astonishing 2.02 career ERA. The guys marvel over Skenes and look at each of these sweeps.

Plus, they go through every other series from the weekend and talk about what stood out to them. That includes Cal Raleigh reaching 49 home runs and setting an MLB record for home runs by a catcher. Might he break Judge's AL home run record? That feat may be in reach for the Mariners catcher. Jake and Jordan discuss this and everything else you may have missed from every series over the weekend.

Start off your week with us here at Baseball Bar-B-Cast.

(1:06) - Red Sox take series over Yankees

(20:43) - Padres take series over Dodgers

(30:47) - Cubs, Rangers & Pirates sweep

(45:48) - Mariners, Phillies & Mets series

(59:07) - Turbo Mode

(1:11:52) - What to watch this week

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The Baltimore Orioles have extended Samuel Basallo a week into his major league career. The 21-year-old reportedly agreed to an eight-year, $67 million extension that can max out at $88.5 million with incentives. The Orioles seem to like what they see in the young catcher, but that leads to questioning what will become of Adley Rutschman. Nothing will happen to him right now as the former top prospect has gone to the IL with an oblique injury. What does his future with the Orioles look like, and when does Basallo become the guy? Jake Mintz and Jordan Shusterman discuss this surprising turn of events.

Basallo hasn't been the only young player making moves as multiple teams have recently called up star prospects. The Pirates, Rays, Red Sox, Reds and Guardians have all made moves that caught Jordan's attention. He fills you in on all of the prospects who have been brought up and shares his insight on each of them.

Later in the show, the ever-evolving world of media rights is the hot topic. It appears that Major League Baseball's media rights situation is starting to wrap-up with ESPN, Netflix and NBC all being involved. Apple is also, potentially, joining the group. What does this mean for the fans' ability to watch games going forward? Jake and Jordan give their thoughts on the whole situation. Plus, Jake gives a special Little League World Series report. With the championship games to be played this weekend, the guys reflect on the tournament and Jake reviews who the players' favorite MLB players are. They discuss what kind of insight this gives to the state of the game and the players who were selected.

Lastly, everyone's favorite time of the week. The Good, The Bad & The Uggla. A former MLB player announces his new baseball academy, a current MLB player notches his first steal in the majors and a potential future MLB player's father takes to X about his son's fender bender incident. Plus, an ugly Red Sox vs. Yankees matchup.

Close out your week at the Baseball Bar-B-Cast.

(1:48) - Samuel Basallo gets an extension

(22:23) - Top prospects who have recently been called-up

(35:08) - MLB's TV rights decision

(44:26) - Jake's report on the Washington Nationals

(49:36) - LLWS favorite players

(58:25) - The Good, The Bad & The Uggla

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Kyle Tucker was in Atlanta, Georgia, on July 15, playing in an unforgettable MLB All-Star Game. Just over a month later, Tucker finds himself headed to the bench amidst a cacophony of boos. The All-Star has not been putting up All-Star type numbers. He has been hitting a dismal .160 average in August and has not hit a home run since July 19. Tucker hopes to hit a reset and figure a way out of his slump from the dugout as the Cubs, who currently lead the NL Wild Card race, look to make a push for the postseason. Jake Mintz and Jordan Shusterman discuss the lead-up to this benching and how Tucker and the Cubs can figure out a way forward.

“I’ve never seen anything like this from a Brewers team” is a strong statement, especially coming from Milwaukee Brewers and Turner Sports broadcaster, Brian Anderson. Anderson joins the show and chats with Jake and Jordan about the magical season the Brewers are having thus far. What is it about this team that makes them different from everyone else? Anderson talks about what he is seeing out of Brewers' manager Pat Murphy and how he has seen him change over time. The three also discuss Brewers' associate manager Ricky Weeks and how vital he is to the team's success. Finally, they discuss Christian Yelich and the leadership role he now plays in the clubhouse.

Later on in the show, the guys fill you in on what is happening Around The League. In Toronto, Shane Bieber is preparing to return on Friday from his 2024 UCL tear, and subsequent Tommy John surgery. Plus, Seattle Mariner Victor Robles has been suspended 10 games from his bat-throwing incident. Jake and Jordan fill you in on their thoughts of these situations plus everything else around the league.

Get over that mid-week hump here on Baseball Bar-B-Cast.

(2:41) - Kyle Tucker gets benched

(18:23) - Brian Anderson talks Milwaukee Brewers

(56:01) - Kansas City Royals playoff push

(1:00:38) - Francisco Lindor's misreported injury

(1:04:49) - Shane Bieber returns & Victor Robles gets suspended

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The San Diego Padres walked into Dodger Stadium, on Friday, with a one-game lead in the NL West over the Los Angeles Dodgers. They left, on Sunday, two games behind the Dodgers after being swept over the weekend. The Padres struggled at the plate in the series. Is this a sign of an improving pitching staff for the Dodgers? Jake Mintz and Jordan Shusterman discuss their takeaways from the series and preview what it may be a sign of for the rest of the season. These two teams will meet up again this weekend in San Diego.

The Little League Classic was over the weekend. All of the little leaguers competing at the Little League World Series got to meet and watch some of their favorite major leaguers. Jordan, who was in attendance, shares some of the stories he witnessed from the weekend. The guys dive into the importance of these events and the memories they have from years past. In contrast to the little leaguers' unadulterated joy, drama across Major League Baseball came from the broadcast. Commissioner Rob Manfred spoke about realignment and expansion plans for MLB's future. Jake and Jordan discuss what they think an actual timeline for this is and how they see it playing out.

Amongst all of this drama, there were so many other series played. Three other sweeps occurred this weekend by the Yankees, the Braves and the Royals. Giancarlo Stanton may be injured. How might this change the Yankees? The Guardians have a huge misstep against the Braves. How can they recover? The Royals are trying to work their way into the Wild Card conversation. Jake and Jordan dive into all of these topics and every other series from the weekend.

Start off your week with us here at Baseball Bar-B-Cast.

(2:47) - Dodgers sweep Padres

(11:49) - Yankees sweep Cardinals

(29:12) - Scenes from the Little League Classic

(51:11) - Zack Wheeler goes to IL w/ blood clot

(56:35) - Victor Robles throw bat at pitcher

(1:00:26) - Turbo Mode

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The Los Angeles Dodgers sat on top of the NL West with a nine game cushion, on July 3rd, and looked ready to run away with the division. Not even a month and a half later they've fallen out of first place after going 12-21 in that timespan. In the same timespan, the San Diego Padres have gone 23-12 and taken sole possession of first place in the NL West. All of this leads up to back-to-back weekend series between the two teams. First up, it's the Dodgers turn to play host. Jake Mintz and Jordan Shusterman talk about the Dodgers' slide and everything that led up to it. They also discuss where the Padres are right now and how they see the rest of the season playing out for both teams.

Later in the show, a star from the Dodgers joins Jake and Jordan as they chat with Mookie Betts! They chat about Mookie's career in podcasting, what it has been like being a part of the Dodgers, the struggles of both the team and himself this season and how impressive it is to watch Shohei Ohtani pitch and hit.

The guys wrap up the show with some distraught, but funny, mentions that plagued the Minnesota Twins' socials coming on the heels of the announcement that the team was not being sold. To finish, Jake and Jordan share this week's edition of The Good, The Bad and The Uggla. The Milwaukee Brewers come through for free burgers, a Bob has returned to Major League Baseball, betting on children's baseball is discouraged and more!

All of this and more to close out your week on Baseball Bar-B-Cast.

(3:04) - Padres take the lead in the NL West over the Dodgers

(31:45) - Mookie Betts interview

(43:32) - Sorry for you mentions Minnesota Twins

(50:43) - The Good, The Bad and The Uggla

(1:12:24) - weekend preview

Subscribe to Baseball Bar-B-Cast on your favorite podcast app:

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