Hang Up and Listen

Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin are joined by ESPN’s Howard Bryant to discuss the militarization of sports, Slate’s Christina Cauterucci talks about Jaelene Hinkle, and Deadspin’s Dom Cosentino assesses the future of flag football.Sports and the military (1:56): From flags the size of football fields to veterans throwing out the first pitch, sports and the military have become so closely tied since 9/11 that some forget it wasn’t always this way. What do veterans think of these patriotic pre-game displays?Jaelene Hinkle (19:08): Last year, the pro soccer player turned down a spot on the women’s national team because she didn’t want to wear a rainbow jersey during LGBTQ Pride Month. What should we make of U.S. Soccer’s decision to extend her another invitation?Flag football (36:39): The American Flag Football League just concluded its first complete season. As more and more kids are choosing not to play tackle football, is the flag version the future of the sport? Afterballs(56:12): Stefan on the Icelandic club Vikingur Reykjavik F.C. and Josh on Mississippi State’s search for a “ball coach.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Henry Grabar and Josh Levin are joined by Men in Blazers’ Roger Bennett to discuss the World Cup. Racquet Magazine’s Caitlin Thompson talks about Wimbledon. And Sports Illustrated’s Emma Baccellieri assesses the terrible Baltimore Orioles and Kansas City Royals. World Cup (2:33): France won the World Cup with an average age of 25 years and 10 months. Is this the beginning of a French soccer dynasty? Wimbledon (20:12): Is Serena Williams’ remarkable comeback truly unprecedented: Also, Kevin Anderson and John Isner’s semifinal match lasted 6 hours and 36 minutes. Is it time to bring fifth-set tiebreakers to Wimbledon? Should men play three sets instead of five? Baseball (39:40): The Baltimore Orioles and Kansas City Royals are on pace to be some of the worst teams of all time. Is that a problem the major leagues needs to try to solve? Afterballs(55:18): Henry on horse racing tracks and Josh on the bizarre shooting of Cubs shortstop Billy Jurges. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Nick Greene and Josh Levin are joined by Sports Illustrated’s Grant Wahl to discuss the World Cup. The New Yorker’s Vinson Cunningham also joins to discuss Stephen A. Smith. Plus, an interview with Sports Illustrated’s Jon Wertheim about Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.  World Cup (1:25): How will a young French team fare against Belgium’s front three? Will England’s reliance on a set piece–heavy offense end its tournament run? And is Croatia headed to penalties for the third straight game?  Stephen A. Smith (18:20): How did the talking head go from being one of the most hated people in sports media to becoming the face of ESPN? And what’s he really like in person? Federer-Nadal (38:04): Ten years ago, the pair went head to head in the greatest match ever played. The new documentary Strokes of Genius looks back at the 2008 Wimbledon final and their 15-year rivalry. Afterballs(55:22): Nick on a Chilean soccer scandal and Josh on flipping the order of penalty kicks and extra time. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin are joined by Slate’s Ben Mathis-Lilley to discuss LeBron to the Lakers, Sports Illustrated’s Luis Miguel Echegaray talks about the World Cup, and the Political Gabfest’s Emily Bazelon assesses the controversy over Luke Heimlich. LeBron (1:16): How will the NBA’s balance of power shift now that the league’s best player is on the West Coast? What does LeBron’s departure mean for Cleveland? And will the Lakers be able to compete with the Warriors? World Cup (27:26): How disappointed should Mexico be after yet another Round of 16 departure? Also, does Russia have a chance to win it all? Luke Heimlich (44:43): The Oregon State baseball star went undrafted after it came out that he’d pled guilty to a sex crime as a juvenile. Should he get a chance to play in the major leagues? Afterballs(1:11:58): Stefan on Pele in America and Josh on a new perspective for the penalty shootout. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin discuss the World Cup with Ken Early of the Irish Times, the fate of the DH and Major League Baseball expansion with Ben Lindbergh of the Ringer, and killing the NBA draft with Jay Caspian Kang of Vice News. World Cup (2:00): Ken Early joins for a conversation about Argentina’s fall from grace, England’s impressive play, and Neymar’s meltdowns.Baseball (20:20): Ben Lindbergh explains why likely expansion and realignment in MLB will lead to the welcome death of pitchers hitting.  NBA draft (38:27): Jay Caspian Kang talks about how replacing the NBA player draft with an open auction would end tanking and empower players. Afterballs (58:05): Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin discuss the World Cup with Slate’s Nick Greene and Slate’s Jim Newell joins to talk about golf’s U.S. Open. Plus, an interview with BuzzFeed’s Ken Bensinger about his book on corruption in soccer, Red Card.  World Cup (2:20): Stefan, Josh, and Nick Greene discuss the start of the men’s World Cup in Russia, including exuberant Spanish-language goal calls, the World Cup debut of replay review, and whether American fans should root for archrival Mexico. U.S. Open (25:28): Stefan, Josh, and Jim Newell assess Brooks Koepka’s back-to-back wins at the U.S. Open, Phil Mickelson’s weird, possibly unethical putt, and everyone’s whining about the difficulty of the Shinnecock Hills course. Red Card (43:00): Stefan and Josh interview Ken Bensinger about how the U.S. got involved in investigating FIFA and what it was like to hang out at Sepp Blatter’s house. Afterballs (1:01:12):  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin are joined by ESPN’s Dave McMenamin to talk about LeBron James' next stop; by Bruce Arena to discuss why the U.S. missed the World Cup; and by Slate's Jayson De Leon for a conversation about who to root for in Russia.LeBron's future (2:21): Nobody knows where the world's best player will end up. But where should he go? (Josh thinks New Orleans.)U.S. soccer (21:52): Former U.S. men's national team head coach Bruce Arena shares his thoughts on why Team USA missed the World Cup for the first time in 1986. Who to root for in the World Cup (39:28): Slate's Jayson De Leon stumps for Peru. How about Argentina? Perhaps Egypt?Afterballs(57:48):  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin discuss the NBA finals between the Cleveland Cavaliers and Golden State Warriors and the crazy story of anonymous Twitter accounts linked to Philadelphia 76ers GM Bryan Colangelo. Hockey writer Greg Wyshynski of ESPN joins the show to discuss the Stanley Cup finals between the Washington Capitals and Vegas Golden Knights.NBA Finals (3:10): Stefan and Josh talk to Ethan Strauss of The Athletic about the first two games of the NBA finals.Bryan Colangelo (34:27): Stefan, Josh, and Ethan discuss the fallout from the discovery of Twitter burner accounts that revealed details about inner workings of the Philadelphia 76ers.NHL Finals (54:08): Stefan and Josh talk to ESPN’s Greg Wyshynski about the Stanley Cup finals between the Washington Capitals and Vegas Golden Knights. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin are joined by ESPN’s Kevin Pelton to discuss the fourth straight Cavs-Warriors NBA Finals. NPR’s Gene Demby also joins to talk about the NFL’s anthem policy, and Deadspin’s Laura Wagner comes on for a conversation about her piece “So Who Is Barstool’s PFT Commenter?”Warriors and Cavaliers (2:16): Kevin Pelton explains whether the Houston Rockets and Boston Celtics should’ve stopped shooting 3-pointers, how to predict playoff outcomes when teams don’t try their hardest during the regular season, and what to watch out for in the latest Warriors-Cavs championship series. NFL’s new anthem policy (21:46): Gene Demby talks with Stefan and Josh about the motivation behind the NFL’s new stand-or-else national anthem policy and how the league’s players will respond. PFT Commenter and Barstool Sports (41:32): Deadspin’s Laura Wagner assesses why media outlets haven’t revealed Eric Sollenberger’s identity and how his PFT Commenter character helps make Barstool Sports palatable. Afterballs (60:01):  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin are joined by the Athletic’s Marcus Thompson to discuss the Warriors and Steph Curry. Bloomberg’s Ira Boudway also joins to talk about legalized sports betting, and John Swansburg helps assess Tom Wolfe’s classic piece on NASCAR driver Junior Johnson. Golden State Warriors (4:20): With Steph Curry looking spry and healthy, can anyone stop the NBA’s best team? And what’s the deal with Curry’s mom fining him for cursing? Legalized sports betting (26:15): The Supreme Court’s huge ruling will change how leagues operate and how fans wager. Bloomberg’s Ira Boudway explains the ramifications. Tom Wolfe on Junior Johnson (44:35): Tom Wolfe’s Esquire piece “The Last American Hero Is Junior Johnson. Yes!” is a classic of new journalism. What did Wolfe get right about Johnson and NASCAR and what did he miss? Afterballs (1:11:40):  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices