The Knee Jerks Podcast - Eno, Nick and Big Al The Knee Jerks - Greg Eno, Nick Milanovich and Al Beaton

Detroit sports podcasters Greg Eno, Big Al Beaton and Nick Milanovich are The Knee Jerks!
This week we dive further into the MLB player pension issues we discussed with Gary Cooper and Dave Mesrey, as Max Effgen of Bitter Cup Baseball joins the show.
Max talks about his struggles to find, educate, publicize and help the 500 players who could easily be grandfathered into a partial MLB pension, how these players ended up in this situation thanks to the 1980 CBA, the labor laws involved and just how you can help spread the word about the Bitter Cup players.
Max Effgen on TwitterX: @MaxEffgen
Bitter Cup Baseball on Instagram
Spreadsheet listing the Bitter Cup players left behind by the MLBPA and MLB
In the second half of the show, topics include:
The Tigers are hotter than a firecracker as they reach the All Star break on a 10-4 tear.
For the first time since 2017, the Tigers placed 2 players on the Al All Star roster in Tarik Skubal and Riley Greene.
The Pistons named JB Bickerstaff head coach.
POBO Trajan Langton and Bickerstaff exuded competence, something the Pistons franchise has been long lacking.
Cade Cunningham signed his rookie contract extension, worth up to $265 million with bonuses.
Much like the Lions did with Jared Goff, the Pistons elected to not play money games and locked down their franchise player long term.
The Red Wings added a high scoring winger to their top 6 by signing Vladimir Taransenko to a 2 year deal in free agency.
Steve Yzerman admitted the Red Wings were in the market to make a splash signing in free agency. All signs point to their target being Steven Stamkos. That was before he inked a too rich for the Wings deal at 4 years, $32 million.
We also play Greg's Birthday Game and name our respective Jerk of the Week.
Subscribe to The Knee Jerks Podcast on Apple Podcasts, YouTube Music Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, iHeart Radio, Deezer, Radio Public, Gaana, and YouTube. 
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Nick's TwitterX: @NickMilanovich
Greg's TwitterX: @GregEno
Greg's Substack: Out of Bounds 
Al's BlueSky: @Albeat

Detroit sports podcasters Greg Eno, Big Al Beaton and Nick Milanovich are The Knee Jerks!
With all the news the Detroit Pistons have made over the past several weeks, the time was right to bring back our NBA guru, Siddy Hall!
Siddy gives us his thoughts on:
Trajon Langdon and the Pistons' new front office.
The hiring of new head coach JB Bickerstaff and shooting coach Fred Vinson.
Blowing up the bottom of the roster while adding Tobias Harris in free agency and trading Quentin Grimes for Tim Hardaway Jr.
Compares Ron Holland and Ausur Thompson.
Jalen Duren's defense (or lack thereof).
Cade Cunningham's reported max deal. 
Siddy also has a few numbers and stats for us to chew on.  
Siddy Hall's TwitterX: @SiddyHall
The second half of the episode is all Detroit Red Wings.
How did Jake Walman suddenly fall out of favor with the Wings? He was traded to the Sharks for essentially nothing.
Patrick Kane not only re-signed, but agreed to a below market, incentive laden, 1-year deal.
Were Steven Stamkos and Jakob Trouba on the Wings' radar? 
Are the Wings a worse team after trading Walman,  losing David Perron and Shayne Gostisbehere in free agency, while adding Rangers D-man Erik Gustafsson and LA Kings goalie Cam Talbot?
With the Wings poised to take a step back point-wise next season (rebuilds are never linear and they will lean heavily on unproven kids who have been in Grand Rapids), if the GM was not named Steve Yzerman, would he be on the hot seat?
 We also play Greg's Birthday Game and name our respective Jerk of the Week! 
Programming note: In two weeks we delve further into the MLB player pension issues we discussed with Gary Cooper and Dave Mesrey, as Max Effgen of Bitter Cup Baseball will join the show.
Max Effgen on TwitterX: @MaxEffgen
Subscribe to The Knee Jerks Podcast on Apple Podcasts, YouTube Music Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, iHeart Radio, Deezer, Radio Public, Gaana, and YouTube. 
Visit us on Facebook
Follow us on Twitter aka X
Nick's TwitterX: @NickMilanovich
Greg's TwitterX: @GregEno
Greg's Substack: Out of Bounds 
Al's BlueSky: @Albeat

This week, The Knee Jerks Podcast with Eno, Nick and Big Al, discusses the weirdness that has defined the Detroit Pistons off season. We also talk about our frustrations with the Detroit Tigers and team president Scott Harris. As always, we also play Greg's birthday game and name our Jerk of the Week!
Programming note: this is a barebones version of the show, with no intro, music or editing. Al is in northern Michigan, and we tried recording the episode with his limited bandwidth. The YouTube live stream is audio only as well.  

Detroit sports podcasters Greg Eno, Big Al Beaton and Nick Milanovich are The Knee Jerks!
This week we welcome Connor Soblom, Western US Sales Manager at TrackMan Baseball, to the show. We discuss baseball analytics and how it affects the approach and methodology to pitching and hitting. Everything from spin rate and bat speed, to calling balls and strikes, and everything in between. We also delve into the different ways TrackMan technology is being used in all manner of athletics, at all levels, including football, softball, golf, and tennis. 
Connor on Twitter: @Connorsoblom
TrackMan Baseball on Twitter: @TrackManBB
Click here to learn more about TrackMan Baseball 

In the second half of the show, we discussed the Detroit Tigers and Detroit Lions. Topics include: 
The Tigers have fallen back to earth, playing .300 baseball in the month of May after their best start in several years.
The Tigers are now 9.5 GB of the first place Guardians in the AL Central. Is the season over before Memorial Day...again? 
How much blame for another lost season should go to team president and roster builder Scott Harris?
Should manager AJ Hinch catch any heat, despite being given a roster which can't hit?
Lions QB Jared Goff got PAID.  Did the Lions have any other choice? 
Pro Football Focus is bad, ranking Goff as only the 16th best QB in football. PFF goes for usual "Goff isn't mobile and struggles under pressure" trope. Yet 2 older, immobile QBs coming off Achilles surgery are ranked higher. And try to name any QB not named Mahomes who doesn't struggle under pressure.
 PFF is also good, naming 5 Lions to their "Top 25 players under the age of 25" list. PFFs number one player under 25 is the Lions' 23-year-old stud right tackle, Penei Sewell. It's fitting Greg's latest Substack newsletter is about Sewell.
The NFL remains the gold standard for marketing, as the 2024 schedule release dominated sports talk last week.
The Lions have become the NFL's must watch darling, a new America's Team. Driving the point home is the Lions have 9 nationally televised games in 2024, including 5 in prime time.
The NFL knows exactly which teams drive TV numbers. As long-time fans, it's just shocking to see the the LIONS be one of those teams.
The Lions open the season with a wild card rematch on Sunday Night Football, as Matthew Stafford and the Rams come to Detroit. 
 We also play Greg's Birthday Game and name our respective Jerk of the Week! 
Programming note: Al will be traveling, so we'll be taking time off in early June.  Our next episode is scheduled for June 17th.
Subscribe to The Knee Jerks Podcast on Apple Podcasts, YouTube Music Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, iHeart Radio, Deezer, Radio Public, Gaana, and YouTube. 
Visit us on Facebook
Follow us on Twitter aka X
Nick's TwitterX: @NickMilanovich
Greg's TwitterX: @GregEno
Greg's Substack: Out of Bounds 
Al's BlueSky: @Albeat

Detroit sports podcasters Greg Eno, Big Al Beaton and Nick Milanovich are The Knee Jerks!
This week journalist, author and long-time friend of the show Dave Mesery returns. He joins us to spread the word about former Atlanta Braves outfielder Gary Cooper, who is ONE DAY short of qualifying for an MLB pension.
Gary also joins us from Georgia to discuss his major and minor league career, his advocacy for the 500 former big leaguers who were left out in the cold by the powerful MLBPA, and how a rain out essentially cost him a pension.
A GoFundMe page has also been established to help Gary. You can sign a Change.org petition here.
To learn more about the 500 players MLB and the MLBPA forgot, head over to Bitter Cup Baseball.  We also suggest reading the book "A Bitter Cup of Coffee: How MLB and the Players Association Threw 874 Retirees a Curve" by Doug Gladstone.
The second half of the show is all Tigers and Lions. Topics include: 
The Tigers introduced new City Connect alternate uniforms. We aren't fans.
It's becoming more and more difficult to watch baseball. The latest hurdle is a carriage dispute between Comcast and Bally Sports, which has removed the Tigers from many local TVs. 
The Tigers have several black holes in their offensive lineup. Who could've have seen that coming? 
With 3 years worth of plate appearances and about 3 months total of actual production, the fan base is all but ready to move on from struggling former 1st overall draft pick Spencer Torkelson. As for the Tigers, they have to realize something must change, and soon.
The Lions also have new uniforms, and they aren't half bad.
The city of Detroit has never looked better than it did during the 3 days the NFL Draft was downtown. Fans, media and the NFL all praised the event. It should open the door for even more big events, including a long overdue NBA All-Star Game.
The Lions signed cornerstones Amon-Ra St. Brown and Penei Sewell to massive four-year contract extensions that made them the highest-paid players at their respective positions.
No news on a new contract for Jared Goff.
We also play Greg's Birthday Game and name our respective Jerk of the Week! 
Subscribe to The Knee Jerks Podcast on Apple Podcasts, YouTube Music Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, iHeart Radio, Deezer, Radio Public, Gaana, and YouTube. 
Visit us on Facebook
Follow us on Twitter aka X
Nick's TwitterX: @NickMilanovich
Greg's TwitterX: @GregEno
Greg's Substack: Out of Bounds 
Al's BlueSky: @Albeat

Detroit sports podcasters Greg Eno, Big Al Beaton and Nick Milanovich are The Knee Jerks!
This week we welcome Keith Gave back to the show. Keith is a former Detroit Red Wings beat writer for the Free Press and the author of several hockey books, which can be found on Amazon. 
Keith joins us for a Red Wings season post mortem.  We discuss the state of GM Steve Yzerman's Yzerplan and how the team narrowly missed the playoffs, what changes we could see on the roster, who stepped up during the failed playoff push and who disappeared, what size contract offers RFAs Mortiz Seider and Lucas Raymond will receive, and if there will be a "playoffs or bust" mandate for head coach Derek Lalonde next season.
We also take a look back at Red Wings history and discuss just how close Yzerman was to being traded to Ottawa in 1994.
In the second half of the show, our topics include:
Lions QB Jared Goff has a silly belief that the Detroit media is somehow overly negative. Good thing he doesn't play in Philly or New York.
The Pistons are going to shake up the front office by hiring a new President of Basketball Operations. More than the front office needs shaking up.
Stan Van Gundy may have been a bad GM for the Pistons, but he is not wrong in his negative assessment of the team's young core. To be honest, the core is just one player - Cade Cunningham. The rest of the roster can be blown up.
There a pitching injury pandemic in MLB, as elbows are exploding everywhere. What could be causing it? Is there a solution?
The Tigers are playing solid baseball. The .565 win % has them 3rd in the AL Central, behind the Guardians and overachieving Royals. 
The Tigers pitching has been exceptional. The offense hasn't been, but Riley Greene and Kerry Carpenter have been playing damn well. 
Thanks to the Tigers push for players to have the ability to play multiple positions, AJ Hinch is practicing what he preaches by playing the entire roster.
We also play Greg's Birthday Game and name our respective Jerk of the Week! 
Programing note: In two weeks long-time friend of the show Dave Mersery returns. He joins us to spread the word about former Atlanta Braves outfielder Gary Cooper, who is ONE DAY short of qualifying for an MLB pension.
You can sign a petition here. A GoFundMe page has also been established to help Cooper.
Subscribe to The Knee Jerks Podcast on Apple Podcasts, YouTube Music Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, iHeart Radio, Deezer, Radio Public, Gaana, and YouTube. 
Visit us on Facebook
Follow us on Twitter aka X
Nick's TwitterX: @NickMilanovich
Greg's TwitterX: @GregEno
Greg's Substack: Out of Bounds 
Al's BlueSky: @Albeat