Leadoff Talk: A Baseball Podcast With Katelin and Gabe · Leadoff Talk: A Baseball Podcast

Episode 47: AL East Preview (plus a rant about the pitch clock)

·36 min·2 clips

Max Scherzer used the pitch clock to make a batter burn his timeout and still struck him out.

1. Leadoff Talk: A Baseball Podcast With Katelin and Gabe previews the AL East and frames it against the show’s earlier NL division episodes. 2. Katelin and Gabe host the episode, and their team focus matters because both are Cleveland Guardians fans planning the AL Central for later in the schedule. 3. The core question is which AL East club can finish first when the Blue Jays, Yankees, Rays, Orioles, and Red Sox are all in the same division. 4. The hosts say they will rank the teams from five to one and then explain why each club landed there. 5. Boston draws the harshest skepticism because the hosts call the Red Sox “the most confusing team” and list Xander Bogaerts, Yoshida, Rafael Devers, Chris Sale, and Corey Kluber. 6. They question Boston’s roster construction by naming Justin Turner, Jarren Duran, Triston Casas, Bobby Dalbec, Mondesi, Yu Chang, Cutter Crawford, Tanner Houck, and Kenley Jansen. 7. Baltimore lands fourth because the hosts like Adley Rutschman, Gunnar Henderson, Anthony Santander, Austin Hays, and Félix Bautista but do not trust the rotation. 8. The Orioles’ pitching discussion names Kyle Gibson, Cole Irvin, John Means, Grayson Rodriguez, D.L. Hall, Spencer Watkins, and Bruce Zimmermann as reasons for caution. 9. Tampa Bay finishes third because Shane McClanahan, Jason Adam, Pete Fairbanks, Kevin Kelly, Randy Arozarena, Yandy Díaz, Wander Franco, Brandon Lowe, Harold Ramírez, and José Siri keep the roster strong. 10. The main Rays concern is Tyler Glasnow’s health, plus the idea that Zach Eflin was the club’s biggest free-agent spend at four years and about $43 million. 11. The Yankees get second because Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton, Anthony Rizzo, Gleyber Torres, Harrison Bader, and DJ LeMahieu still give them a deep lineup. 12. Their Yankees conversation also names Kiner-Falefa, Josh Donaldson, Jose Trevino, Frankie Montas, Carlos Rodón, Luis Severino, Clarke Schmidt, Domingo Germán, Clay Holmes, Wandy Peralta, Oswaldo Cabrera, Oswald Peraza, Anthony Volpe, and Jason Domínguez. 13. Gabe argues the Yankees can cover injuries because they have money to trade for help, and he specifically mentions Brian Reynolds as the kind of target they could pursue. 14. The Blue Jays take first because the hosts like Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Alejandro Kirk, Danny Jansen, George Springer, Bo Bichette, Matt Chapman, Kevin Kiermaier, Whit Merrifield, Santiago Espinal, Cavan Biggio, George Bassitt, Alek Manoah, Eric Swanson, Jordan Romano, Adam Cimber, and Anthony Bass. 15. Toronto’s second-base mix is a recurring concern because Merrifield, Espinal, and Biggio all appear as options but none is treated as a clear lock. 16. The show also revisits the Dalton Varsho and Gabriel Moreno trade and treats it as a move that made sense for both Toronto and Arizona. 17. The episode sounds conversational and reactive, with both hosts interrupting, agreeing, and building lists player by player. 18. The pitch-clock rant changes the tone into a long, personal argument about bathroom trips, ballpark pacing, Jim Thome’s stance, Ichiro’s timing, and whether the rule helps or hurts in-game tension. 19. Listeners who follow AL East roster construction and baseball rule changes. 20. People wanting tight analysis without long rule debates.

As heard by us

An AL East preview that tracks wild-card stakes and roster questions, with a loose, conversational feel.

The episode sketches the AL East with an eye on how a few wins can swing a wild-card race. It moves through team quality, injuries, prospects, and roster questions, and it gives the Yankees especially close attention as the conversation weighs offense against pitching.

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Why you'd press play

You want an AL East preview with injury questions and pitching concerns attached.

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