Hello, Canada! Baseball talk on Edmonton’s TSN 1260

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Major League Baseball’s “Summer Camp” preparations for a shortened 2020 season are off to a shaky start with delays in player COVID-19 testing. That process has created plenty of doubt among players and frustration among coaches and executives who were assured constant testing would help to create a safe environment for everyone involved.

Baseball is forging ahead with workouts and plans to begin the season on July 23. But there’s still a question of whether more players, particularly stars like Mike Trout, might still opt out of playing.

I’m always happy to talk with Dave Jamieson (and Matthew Iwanyk) of Edmonton’s TSN 1260. We discussed the chances of playing a 2020 season and which teams are best suited for a 60-game season that could be unlike any we’ve ever seen.

WISE Sports Radio MLB update: July 6, 2020

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Major League Baseball is preparing to play its 2020 season now that players and team owners reached an agreement on salaries and schedule. But COVID-19 always put a season in doubt and problems with testing could be the reason no baseball is played.

Some players have tested positive and others have opted not to play this season. The game’s top star, Mike Trout, is considering a similar decision. That’s the main topic on my WISE Sports Radio baseball segment, along with the Cleveland Indians saying they’ll consider changing their name.

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WISE Sports Radio MLB spot: July 1, 2020

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Minor League Baseball confirmed what seemed inevitable for months: There won’t be a 2020 season, which affects hundreds of teams and ballparks throughout the United States. But there’s no way for those teams to make money without fans coming to games.

On our baseball segment for WISE Sports Radio, Pat Ryan and I talked about that, the effect canceling the season will have on our Asheville Tourists, and an uncertain future for many teams that may not be able to survive this shutdown.

Also, what will be different for the 2020 Major League Baseball season? How will the schedule work? What rules will be changed? What motivated the Colorado Rockies’ Ian Desmond to sit out this season? And why is July 1 a happy day each year for Bobby Bonilla?

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‘My Spy’ review at Mountain Xpress

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Dave Bautista is officially a movie star. He demonstrated his comedy talents in the Guardians of the Galaxy movies and in Blade Runner 2049, he showed he could be good with dramatic roles.

But successfully headlining a family-friendly action-comedy will take Bautista to another level and he’s done that with the surprisingly fun My Spy, available on Amazon Prime.

I reviewed the movie for Asheville’s Mountain Xpress:

My Spy wouldn’t be nearly as fun without Dave Bautista carrying the entire venture on his formidably muscled shoulders. Any doubters who dismissed Bautista as another pro wrestler trying to be a movie star like Dwayne Johnson were likely silenced by the comic timing he showed in the Guardians of the Galaxy films.

Bautista has continued to use that talent for deadpan humor in comedies like Stuber, and with My Spy, he’s taking the step to family-friendly action star, which elevated the careers of Johnson, Vin Diesel and John Cena. (Bautista is also a producer here, showing he knows this is the right move, balanced with his roles in upcoming spectacles such as Dune, Army of the Dead and a third Guardians movie.)

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WISE Sports Radio MLB update: June 29, 2020

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We began Monday’s baseball update on WISE Sports Radio with some football talk, reacting to Cam Newton signing with the New England Patriots. Big NFL news regardless, but this story has some local flavor since Newton played the past nine seasons with the Carolina Panthers.

Also of local concern is the Asheville Tourists since it looks like there won’t be a Minor League Baseball season. Nothing official has been announced, though Baseball America is reporting that MLB teams will allow their minor leaguers to play in independent leagues if affiliated leagues continue to be shut down.

Apologies in advance for the part about celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Negro Leagues being kind of choppy. My recording dropped out a couple times, probably because my computer was doing too much. But I got most of it, which was a relief because it’s an important subject to me.

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