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I did enjoy the reference Saul made when Jeff started casting doubt on the whole burglary plan during the practice run, saying the whole thing sounds crazy: "Do you know what's crazy? A 50-year-old chemistry teacher walks into my office; the guy is so broke he can't pay his mortgage. One year later, he's got a pile of cash as big as a Volkswagen."

That occurred to me, too, and to your point, I found the fly episode just so excruciating that I couldn't help but FF just to get through it already. But I wouldn't be so quick to write this off as a filler episode just yet, because it goes to the heart of a very real issue for Jimmy/Saul/Gene: no matter where in the country he goes, there's the danger that someone will recognize him from his ABQ days. That's something I'd already been wondering whether they would address, and how. "Gene" got away with it this time because the elaborate setup of the store burglary (they called it a "robbery", but it was really a break-in and I didn't see any force or coercion being used) was all designed to checkmate Jeff the cab driver, who'd made him in an earlier episode. Jeff can't narc on "Saul" now, because "Gene" has got him dead to rights on multiple felonies worth decades of time, particularly since Jeff is on mall video in the act. So, I'm thinking the whole idea that "Saul" is always one step from being made again is going to come up at least once more, and who knows, maybe Jeff will come back and have a hand in the series' final resolution, whatever that may be.

We were actually thisclose to pulling off a sweep of the Padres.

Say what you want about the guy—and people do, since he lips off as a pundit on MSNBC—but at least this guy puts his money where his mouth is.

Wait, what just happened! 🤩

I think the reason Alito would be advised to leak the decision is to get it out there so that the initial shock and firestorm about it would get out of the way; they get the two sides shouting at each other about it in order to shift their anger away from the Court and toward the people on the other side; and then by the time the decision actually happens, no one is surprised by it, and the Court does not take all the heat for a shocking surprise decision coming seemingly out of left field. There is value to people’s anger being much more diffused at the hour the decision is actually reported. It’s the same principle as leaking stories about gas going up to $X soon: you get everyone mad about it while prices are low, they run out of steam on complaining about it before it even happens, and then by the time it actually does hit $X, everyone is already used to the idea and have baked it into their budget, and world keep turning.

“Intended” might not be too far off the mark. Having power over life and death and seeing it play out in real time is a hell of an elixir for some.

“Make it Bazooka gum and you got yourself a deal.”

Darn it, Joe, you’re blowing your chance to go to a contender!

At least Skubal won’t get the L. Harold should still buy him a big steak dinner tonight.

Look, I’m glad Miggy’s got his singles stroke back so he can hit near .300 and everything, but man, what a complete liability he is on the bases. Can’t get from first to third on what should have been a double down the line, then gets caught sleepwalking past third base on the fielder’s choice. And since he’s the 800-lb gorilla, no one can say anything to him except, “that’s OK, big fella, you’ll get ‘em next time.”

yeah, I don’t think he’s coming back this year.

Nice catch by Victor to finally end this odyssey of an inning. Can we add the two runs to Harold Castro’s ERA?

Skubal showing some fatigue right here. IMG_8126.MOV

FWIW, Dickerson just now said on the cast that Al of course has to do his due diligence and field offers for Skubal, but Dan doesn’t think he’s gonna move, either.

That’s Al’s M.O., right? When he is comfortable and has leverage, he asks for way too much; and when he’s nervous and up against it, he’ll settle for almost nothing.

I don’t think Skubal’s leaving. I think Al will ask way more than anyone will give him for Skubal.

Not that it matters, because I don’t think Skubal is moving, anyway.

Didn't Chafin want to come to Detroit because it was close to his family's farm in Ohio? That might be the most important thing to him, especially since his career is on the down slope.

If the trade is to help someone else's future, rather than their present, I would think it's going to be something like ... I don't know ... maybe Skubal for Kyle Lewis, straight up. Or maybe a contender with good starting pitching already might take Skubal today for a down-the-list numbered position player prospect who's on the brink, but who's either stalled or blocked.

Al doesn't have to be desperate this time around. JV and JD were gone for nothing at the end of their years, so it was trade-em-or-lose-em. We already have Chafin signed for next year; and Jimenez as a first-year arb reliever won't cost us much even if we keep him. I do agree there is pressure on Al to look busy, meaning, even if trading no one is the right move, and it is one of them, he may trade for trading's sake anyway.

If a team is going to make a trade with the Tigers, they’re going to want to pick up someone reliable who will help them contend now. Who on the Tigers fills that bill? Skubal is a guy with more of a future than a present. He’s also less-than-reliable at the moment, so I don’t see how a team needing a reliable starter will believe they can get anything other than up-and-down starts out of him for the rest of this year. Plus, from our perspective, why trade one guy with more of a future than present for another guy with nothing but future across more or less the same timeframe of control? So I think Skubal stays put. I see no one on the position player side to deal, and besides, aren’t we the team that needs good position players, anyway? So hobbling our current lineup now for merely a chance at an equivalent return for the future is something even Al can’t be so dumb as to do. (I hope?) So don’t worry about us trading Riley, and no one is going to want any of the underperforming everybody else. We have no starting pitching outside of Skubal to deal. That leaves the relief corps. Who among the relievers are candidates who can reliably help a contending team now? Forget any of the young guns like Alex Lange or Will Vest, since they also have more future than present, and teams want present. And no one is going to want MLB-level lottery tickets like Angel de Jesus (#23 Tigers prospect on Pipeline), or recently-gimpy guys like Cisneros or Alexander. Teams are going to be looking for healthy, reliable guys who can help them now, and we’ll be looking to deal from a list of guys who don’t have any real future with us. That leaves these guys as the list of candidates who fill that bill: Andrew Chafin; Joe Jimenez; Michael Fulmer. I think Gregory Soto, who technically has a future since he doesn’t even reach arb until next year, might still be made available during phone conversations, but Al will ask too high a price. So I think Soto stays put. I also don’t think Fulmer is a very attractive piece right now, since he walks too many guys and doesn’t strike out enough guys, his fast pitches are down a tick or two from last year, and worst of all, he is having a poor July. Recency bias and all. So, my guess is that we end up trading Chafin and Jimenez to either one or two teams, and our return will include one overachieving position player we can put into the lineup right now; one stalled minor league position player who was once a numbered prospect but is topped out in the high minors at the moment; and at least two pitching lottery tickets.

Well, that’s pretty much it, isn’t it?

This post, by the way, was predicated on the idea that Soto was done for the night.

Well, that was something even worse I hadn’t even considered.