Legendary sportscaster Jim Powell continues an in-depth conversation with Hall of Famer John Smoltz, focusing on the future of the Braves' off-season and the significance of developing young pitchers. They discuss changes in pitching philosophy and the impact of health on career longevity. The dialogue also shifts to the evolving landscape of college football, touching on issues like NIL deals and the controversy surrounding biological men in women's sports. The episode concludes with reflections on the importance of fundamentals and the influence of social media on sports culture. Tune in for expert insights and engaging discussions on key issues in sports today.

IN THIS EPISODE:

• (00:33) Holiday Bonus Edition with John Smoltz
• (00:59) Braves Offseason Prospects
• (01:34) Pitching Strategies and Challenges
• (05:50) College Football Dynamics
• (09:48) Controversies in College Sports
• (14:03) Reflections and Future Plans
• (21:17) Closing Remarks and Fan Engagement

KEY TAKEAWAYS:

• The Braves' success hinges on staying healthy and fostering young pitchers’ long-term development.
• Modern baseball's analytics-driven approach risks stifling player autonomy and longevity.
• The shift in college sports dynamics poses challenges for coaches and athletes alike.
• Advocating for fairness and tradition in sports is essential amidst evolving societal norms.

ABOUT THE GUEST:

John Smoltz, a Hall of Fame pitcher, is widely regarded as one of the most versatile and dominant players in Major League Baseball history. Known for his impressive career with the Atlanta Braves from 1988 to 2008, Smoltz achieved 213 wins, 154 saves, and a career ERA of 3.33. He remains the only pitcher in MLB history to record both 200+ wins and 150+ saves.

As part of the legendary Braves rotation alongside Greg Maddux and Tom Glavine, Smoltz was instrumental in Atlanta’s 1995 World Series championship. He also earned the 1996 National League Cy Young Award, thanks to his standout 24-win season.

Following his retirement in 2009, Smoltz transitioned into broadcasting, becoming a respected MLB analyst known for his insightful commentary. Beyond baseball, he is an avid golfer, a philanthropist, and a passionate advocate for youth sports development. Smoltz's legacy extends both on and off the field, embodying excellence, adaptability, and leadership.

Stay connected with us:

• X: https://x.com/Jim_Powell
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jim-powell-38715a5/
• Website: http://fansfirstpodcast.com/ 

We’d love to hear your thoughts! Send in your voice memos or written submissions to Jim@fansfirstpodcast.com and join the conversation on our next episode.

BaseballCommonSense, JohnSmoltz, FansFirstPodcast, PitchingPhilosophy, MLBInsights, GoldenAtBat, BaseballHealth, RuleChanges, MLBContracts, HallOfFame, TylerFlowers, JimPowell, MLBLegends, SportsPodcast, PitchingEvolution, BaseballTalk, AthleteHealth

FFEP11SMOLTZ

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Jim Powell: We hope you all enjoyed last week's podcast with John Smoltz, a very entertaining and interesting conversation. And guess what? Something that good We can't just cut it off and stop there. We're going to bring you instead a holiday bonus edition of Fans First with Sports Podcast. It's part two of our conversation with John Smoltz, the Hall of Famer, right here.

John Smoltz: Well, I just think if they can get health, they're right back to the forefront of one of the favorites, even though the Dodgers have loaded up. I hated the Max Friedrichs. Had to go somewhere else. I'm a big max street for a fan. Um, I think he hasn't reached the ceiling yet. I don't know what they're going to do to make up for that.

They have some young pitchers. Again, it goes back to developing young pitchers. You've got to be able to develop so that they're ready to pitch long term in the big leagues. You can't bounce these guys back and forth. I hate it. I hate it for them. There's an unfair to expect a 21 year old to be able to.

I

Tyler Flowers: think that's a good point, John, uh, talking about sticking with them for a period of time. You're like early in my career, it was a little bit of up and down. I was a backup. Okay. You're going to be the starter. You're not doing that. Well, now you're not, I think there's a lot of mental capacity, a lot of mental, uh, strength that can be gained by having that sort of commitment.

You know, like, Hey, you got these next two months. Show us what you got instead of, Hey, you got this start. If it doesn't go well, go ahead. I 85 and head back to go net.

John Smoltz: Yeah, I, I, that's the one part of industry that I'm telling you. I've already answered it. They don't know how to help these guys. They can only show them the results to the test.

And because we're looking for quick fixes, we're looking for the Cinder guards. We're looking for the, all the studs that just show up on a vine and dominate. Well, what happens to them? They don't last. We've got to get the ability to repeat your mechanics. Give them 35 starts, 30 starts. I know it's not 35 anymore.

Quit babying everybody and giving them six and seven days off. Allow the rotation and their athleticism to be the biggest part of what gets some confidence. If they did that to Glavin, Maddox, myself, we'd never hear our names in the hall. You'd never hear of our names. We're two and seven. Glavin almost lost 20 games.

There used to be, you were always a starter until you couldn't do that. And then you became a reliever. Now they're bouncing everybody around because of their arms and lack of ability to pitch deep into the game.

Jim Powell: So you've always said that the Braves will make some splashes here in the offseason. Will Ad Papolis get really aggressive or just sort of fine tune what he's got?

John Smoltz: I think he's gonna, without knowing, you know, their whole game plan, he's not a guy that's going to sign a picture to a long term deal. It doesn't seem that way, which I don't, I don't really, I don't blame him that even though that's in vogue right now, I think there's always those under the radar quality moves that maybe you look at it and you go, this team is going to be known for their offense.

They don't have to have a rotation that strikes out 14 and see where strider fits in. And when he comes back, that's a whole nother subject. Um, and I think then they're, they're one of the teams to beat, because if you can get to the end of the year, With health, you can beat anybody and the Dodgers basically almost forego their chance to win a world series with all the injuries they had to their pitching staff.

And now I think they have a seven or eight man pitching staff. They're going to go into next year with

Tyler Flowers: other stacks. They're pretty deep up and down offensively and pitching wise. I've always kind of had the train of thought if you can make it to the end of the year, you give me two starters, hot three relievers, hot three batters, uh, We've got a really good shot to really get deep in this.

Um, in recent weeks, I've been watching what happens mostly after the games, more than so, more so than in the games where. You know, opposing teams, they come into a place and if they win, they go out there and want to plant their flag in the middle of the field. The other team comes back out, you have fisticuffs.

We had the Texas Georgia college football game earlier in the year where, uh, basically the Texas fans fought their Longhorn defense some time by, uh, peppering the field with everything they could get their hands on. There was a length, lengthy delay to allow that defense to rest. Didn't, you know, necessarily change the outcome of the game, obviously didn't change the outcome of the game, potentially could have, but I'm just, I'm a little concerned with the way, I mean, it used to be that you tear down goalposts, if you won the national championship or the sec championship or whatever.

John Smoltz: Well, I'm I'm I'm bothered by this whole notion that college sports has turned into professional sports and they're professionals now.

Uh, N. I. L. Had no cap. Um, you could be making more as a backup in college football than a starting quarterback. In the NFL, which is already happening. So now college football and college coaches are thinking differently. The whole landscape's different. It's professional sports. And when I say professional sports, good luck trying to, to have a college mindset, team concept in a professional, that independent contractors make a lot of money, they'll just go somewhere else.

I think college, um, there was no doubt they had to do something, but they didn't, they didn't stop it from becoming uncontrollable. And I think that's where it is now. And it's too bad. Um, I love college sports. I think the aspirations to making it to the, to, to all their professional dreams is, is great.

But now Now, with everything that's involved, it is hard to maintain some sense of sanity when it comes to those subjects you're talking about.

Yeah. Not being enforced at an earlier period of time.

Jim Powell: That's probably spot on Tyler. Uh, you know, I, I don't know every generation, of course, looks back at the generation that's chasing them and says, well, those guys don't know what they're doing and we were doing, you know, we were better behaved and we handled the game the right way and they're not doing that anymore.

And they just laugh at us because we're old geezers. So, um, you know, I don't know how, what, how you stop it. I think a great point about the social media. Because somebody can go viral and it turns them into an influencer where they can sit in their house and make a million dollars. I mean, they're not going to stop.

And then all of a sudden, some man walks in with no clothes on and no, uh, apparent way to, feel like they have anything in common with women at all. And, and they, they, that's terrorizing those, those players. I mean, how many players playing college athletics, chasing scholarships, trying to take advantage of title nine, which was a very noble, um, piece of legislation that now it's basically, basically been crumpled up and thrown in the trash can.

And I'm like, how, how stuck in mud does a one organization have to be for somebody to say something that dumb?

John Smoltz: Well, you know, for me, it goes all the way back to the social media. We need heroes again, and we need people not afraid to get canceled. I don't care if I get canceled because I don't have any social media, so anybody can say whatever they want.

I don't pay attention, but we need fathers to stand up and, and be heroes again, because it's not right. There's nothing in it. That's right. And people that cow down to in leadership, they're afraid of getting canceled in my opinion. And I think we've now been given a second chance and in philosophies that can start working, uh, and get back to the basics.

We absolutely know there are physical sports that have no chance between a biological man and a biological woman. So I think your point is spot on, but it goes back to people turning away from standing up what's right, allowing a foot to enter the door. And then it's no different than some of the conversations we've had about people before they, they let it happen.

Next thing you know, it becomes an inherent right. So, um, I, I, I don't even know how I would be if I had to go back in time and raise my five daughters, uh, in this timeframe and run into that situation, uh, would not be, probably be, uh, you would be hearing a lot about, uh, John Smolt standing up in the right way.

John Smoltz: No, you're right. Right.

Tyler Flowers: I'm not there yet, but I'm not, I'm not excited to experience it.

I got two daughters and three boys. Um, my youngest daughter is a decent athlete. Luckily, my oldest daughter is a genius. I don't, I don't really have to worry about the athletic gene in her, but, uh, my youngest one, she's seven, like there's no talent and I hope there's changes made if she does continue down that athletic path before she gets there.

Cause yeah, I think I'd be in the same boat. I wouldn't condone that.

Jim Powell: And somebody asked me, you know, what, why, how is that fair to the, to the biological men, if they're not allowed to play in the women's sports and like, they can still go play in the men's sports. I mean, that's, that's where they belong.

Um, really, really entertaining. Um, I know Smoltzy, we're going to try and rope Chipper in one time. We'd love to get you and Chipper on too and let you guys feel back and forth. You guys had a lot of history and know a lot about each other. I think that would be very entertaining, both in terms of knowledge you would share as well as the fun we would have.

So I hope we can get you back on with us.

John Smoltz: Yeah, I look forward to it. And obviously, um, I love the game. I played baseball. I think the athletes are so great. I think they're in best position to be, uh, and to endure greatness. My biggest plea is please find a way to keep them healthy. This is becoming such a problem.

Jim, they gotta be able to stay healthy to live out their greatness.

Jim Powell: Yeah. A hundred percent. John Smoltz was great. Wasn't he? Uh, Tyler, that was a, We got an earful as we always do with John, but, uh, he is very interesting, interesting to listen to

Tyler Flowers: is, is one of the best, man. Um, I'd love to, don't worry about talking about arms and health and everything, not just at the big league level, but every time we see him on TV, if he has like an open mic situation, he's talking about the health of the arms of our youth coming up and everything.

And that's something I think I'm actually going to reach out and talk to him about just coaching too. Two of my boys travel teams, get his thoughts on it and everything. Cause obviously it's easy when you want to win a big championship game on a Sunday to pitch your number one guy for 75 pitches. But is that really the best move when they're 10 years old?

Jim Powell: Absolutely. I mean, the, the only advice I got when I was a young, very young pitcher was, Yeah. Just work on your fastball command and your change up.

And I was like, well, my fastball is my change up. So do you have any other ideas?

Tyler Flowers: You got to change off your change. Honestly, like we're playing in a few tournaments, uh, just this, this fall, they're like Sunday only tournaments. So if you end up winning, you have three games in one day. If you're going to win the whole thing, we're facing kids, 10 year olds.

They were throwing breaking balls, sliders, and, and some of my players were coming back, like, it looked funny, it was spinning weird, like, what do I do? I'm like, wait for it to get there and hit it. But in my brain, I was like, that's a 10 curveball, and a slider, and a fastball right now. Like, I have like, two pitchers on my team that throw a fastball and they're always only because they can actually throw strikes with their fastballs.

Jim Powell: Seems simple. Um, you and, you and John make it seem easy that way, but for some reason, yeah, you, you still see the 100 miles an hour coming out, like all day long in Major League Baseball games.

And, and it starts obviously much earlier than that. You don't get to 100 overnight. So they've been, they've been pushing it for a long time. At the behest of someone who's probably a lot older and has more financial interests than they should have in, in these kids.

Tyler Flowers: And so what are your thoughts? Like, do you think there would have been more?

Guys approaching a hundred miles an hour in the nineties, if it was more the current philosophy, or do you think it's some of the science and physical development type things we try to do with our players now that is getting a lot of them to make that jump? Cause I kind of feel like

Jim Powell: it's a little bit of both.

Cause you didn't have a hundred pitching coaches along the way. So, um, yeah, I, I think it's a, it's, as with most, most things, it's a bit of both.

Tyler Flowers: Yeah. Yeah. It's so funny when he was talking some of that, uh, you know, about the ability to pitch instead of just a hundred percent on everything. And I've thought about this in years past, but like, I felt like.

Some of the best pitchers I caught, maybe not even necessarily in the big leagues. They were guys that didn't have high velocity, but they knew how to pitch. They changed speeds, uh, changing direction ball, frontboard cutter, backboard sinkers, changing speeds off of each other, elevating and everything. So you just, you just haven't been thinking about that.

So that was probably a big part of it. Cause when he became a starter, it's like he would hump up to 96, 97 when he had to. But you know, first pitch of the game is a little 91 mile an hour to see him or down on the way. You want to roll it over? Go ahead. Wow. I felt like Verlander was that way too and Scherzer similar, I guess, and now we're talking about it all kind of coincides, right?

Jim Powell: I, I still laugh at, I mean, there's so many legendary stories about Greg Maddux and, you know, mound visits where somebody wants to come out and take him out of the game because he's too good. You know, deep in the game, whatever the circumstances. And he's like, I'll tell you what, if this next guy doesn't pop out to the third baseman, you can take me out for next pitch popped about it.

Third baseman doesn't move, catches it in his tracks. If you can do the same thing with Lempke on the second baseman, you know, tell Lempke move three steps to your right ground ball, right to that spot. I mean, they weren't throwing hard. They were just throwing smart.

Tyler Flowers: Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. They're even knowing what they're doing with it to, to, to Spelter's point, they knew how to put it where they wanted to, for the most part, you know, mistakes still happen, but, um, yeah, a lot to be said for that.

It turned into a two parter with a holiday bonus for you. If you like our Fans First content, you can help us by making sure you're subscribed to all of our social networks. And don't forget about our Fans First website at fansfirstpodcast. com. To be included as a guest on an episode, send your voice memo, your video file, or written memo to jim at fansfirstpodcast.

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