Episode 53: The pod is a year old and Jeff Passan is on

Andrew Marchand and John Ourand celebrate one year of the sports media podcast. They are joined by ESPN MLB insider Jeff Passan, who details why he always wears a suit to the ballpark, navigating ESPN rivalries, the angst of being glued to his phone and his Elmo impersonation, among other topics. Marchand and Ourand have all the usual elements, picking “Who’s up” and “Who’s down,” plus they go deep on subjects, including what does the Sling-Disney deal foretell, what is the NBA up to with its reimagined app and Rachel Nichols’ comeback. They end with “Call of the Week,” which has a Manning slant. 

Mentioned this week: Troy Aikman, Joe Buck, Chris Russo, Doug Perlman, Abe Madkour, Chris Shaw, Scott Van Pelt, Shaquille O’Neal, Gary Bettman, Steve Phelps, Roger Goodell, Aaron Judge, Derek Volner, Peyton Manning, Eli Manning, Charlie Ergen, Chris Ripley, LeBron James, Fred Hickman, Nick Charles, George Michael, Rachel Nichols, Mark Hale, Adam Silver, Maria Taylor, John Blake, Rich Passan, Adrian Wojnarowski, Adam Shefter, Pete Thamel, John Branch, Joe Posnanski, Jason Whitlock, Wright Thompson, Liz Merrill, Adam Teicher, Blair Kirkhoff, Bob Dutton, Sam Mellinger, Kevin Kaduk, Candace Buckner, Mike Fannin, Dan Wetzel, Charles Robinson, Tim Brown, Kevin Iole, Greg Wyshynski, Buster Olney, Rob Manfred, Rachel Ullrich, Ken Rosenthal, Jon Heyman, Joel Sherman, Adley Rutschman, Elmo, Sean Connery, Dan LeBatard, Manny Machado, George King, Tom Verducci, Bobby Wagner, Acie Wyatt, Chris Mason, Pedro Martinez