CATHY WURZER: Okay, we’re going to go from calm to kind of ramp up a bit, because we’re going to be talking about sports. Lots of people are excited about Twins trading this week. Why would that be?
Well, let’s ask our sports experts Wally and Eric. Wally Langfellow is the founder of Minnesota Score magazine and the co-host of the sports talk show 10,000 Takes on radio and television. Eric Nelson is the other 10,000 Takes host and Minnesota Vikings reporter for CBS Sports Radio’s Eye on the NFL. Hey, guys, how are you?
WALLY LANGFELLOW: Good, Cathy. How are you?
ERIC NELSON: Hello, Cathy.
CATHY WURZER: Hello. Hello, gentlemen. I think we should start with the Vikings– why not? So I’m a bit curious about what’s going on with regard to training camp, Mr. Langfellow.
WALLY LANGFELLOW: Well, some injuries earlier this week, really, top of the list. And nothing major… I think the most worrying thing right now is Irv Smith. He had surgery on his wrist. He will be out for the entire pre-season, which, of course, will continue at the start of September.
So he will hopefully be ready for opening day against the Green Bay Packers. But he got out. Dalvin Cook and Alexander Mattison both suffered finger and hand injuries earlier this week. It doesn’t look like either of them are serious. But nevertheless, wounds are wounds. One interesting thing that came out this week – the NFL was rated on the values of each of the teams.
And the Dallas Cowboys franchise is currently valued at $7.64 billion. So Jerry Jones is doing pretty well – $7.64 billion. Minnesota Vikings, 18th on this list. The Cowboys are therefore number one, the Vikings are 18th on the list. And Ziggy’s club is worth $3.72 billion. So I think his investment is paying off.
WALLY LANGFELLOW: I think so. And by the way, the NFL’s first preseason game is tonight… the Hall of Fame Game in Canton, Ohio. Yes, Jacksonville takes on the Raiders tonight.
CATHY WURZER: Speaking of Hall of Famer Eric Nelson, I’ve always loved listening to Vin Scully. He was just such a master broadcaster.
ERIC NELSON: Yes, definitely, Cathy. And before we get into the details, we have to mention that Anthony Barr, four-time Pro Bowl linebacker with the Vikings, is now heading to Dallas to try to boost the value of Team USA. He signed with the Cowboys.
But you’re right about Vin Scully. And I was very lucky as a young kid growing up in Orange County, California, I used to listen to it often. And boy, he paints a picture on the radio. He’s an icon and probably the biggest broadcaster – for 67 years with the Brooklyn and then LA Dodgers.
And we lost Vinny the other day. And the tributes keep pouring in for a universally beloved guy. But what some people may not realize, Cathy, is that Vin Scully also did NFL play-by-play on television for CBS. In fact, he was the broadcaster for the legendary 1977 Mud Bowl playoff game Minnesota Vikings at the LA Rams. It was soggy, it was rain soaked at the old LA Coliseum.
It wasn’t one of those quintessential sunny SoCal days. I was at the game when I was young. And after about a quarter, you couldn’t see the numbers on the shirts. And the Vikings pulled off the upset, one of the biggest playoff wins the Vikings have ever had – 14-7. And Vin Scully, of course, calls the game into the booth.
And since then, I watched it several times on YouTube. And I say to all Viking fans, young or old, listen to Vin Scully call a Minnesota Vikings football game with Chuck Foreman scoring a touchdown and Bob Lee leading the team to a Mud Bowl victory .
CATHY WURZER: It’s classic. It’s classic. Hey, let’s talk Twins while we still have the chance here. We have about four minutes left. Wally, looks like the Twins are in a three-team race now, doesn’t it, in AL Central. What happened there?
WALLY LANGFELLOW: Well, and it’s really been a three-team race for most of the season. But they have taken a few steps and hope to get away from Cleveland and Chicago. They made several moves at the trade deadline, as most people know.
And three of the four guys they picked up were instrumental in their win over the Detroit Tigers yesterday. Michael Fulmer, reliever, came in relief and pitched a scoreless inning. Jorge Lopez, the closest they picked up, came in and closed the game and he got the stoppage.
And Sandy Leon, probably the most misunderstood player in the deal, that they got from Cleveland, a team chasing them, of all things he had two hits and 2 RBIs to help the twins to the win on Detroit yesterday. They have a one-game lead over Cleveland as they head into this weekend series against Toronto. And the Blue Jays are here from tonight.
ERIC NELSON: Yeah, Cathy, and right now the Twins, despite being in first place, are 20th out of 30 MLB teams in attendance. They average just under 22,000 fans per game. That should change from tonight.
Prepare for a Canadian coup. Blue Jay fans will be flocking to Minneapolis from Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Ontario. There are going to be a lot of Labatts and Molson beers consumed in the next few days. Because if you look at Toronto, Cathy, on a map, it’s obviously in the East.
For some of those people in Canada, Minneapolis is the closest chance to seeing their beloved Blue Jays play. And by the way, Toronto is very good. It will be a test for the Twins. There will be plenty of Blue Jay blues in the Twin Cities, probably also at the Mall of America.
CATHY WURZER: I’ve never heard of it. Say, Wally, before you go, since we’re talking about baseball, that’s something we’ve talked about in the past. We reported on the Benin baseball and little league tournament this weekend.
WALLY LANGFELLOW: It’s this weekend. And it’s a project I’ve been involved in for several years now, Cathy. And we are bringing baseball to this small country in West Africa. And this weekend, we’re having a little league wooden bat tournament in Robbinsdale in St. Louis Park that will benefit those kids in Africa.
We use the money to send materials and so on. But all weekend, 38 teams from across the metro area will be in Robbinsdale and St. Louis Park – little league kids. And all the money goes to building baseball in this small West African country. And it’s a very poor nation. I’ve been there several times, it’s really a great project.
CATHY WURZER: And before we go, Eric Nelson, let’s quickly talk about the T-Wolves.
ERIC NELSON: Yes. Obviously they’re not playing now, but they have a young man by the name of Ant – Anthony Edwards – who is gaining momentum as a future star. He’s now in a movie called Hustle.
ERIC NELSON: Him, with Trae Young of the Atlanta Hawks — yes, he’s on the big screen, Anthony Edwards. They’re launching Sprite, which has a new clear plastic bottle that’s good for recycling and stuff. And Ant said in an interview the other day that he wanted to be the new face of the NBA.
And who can say he can’t? He has a megawatt smile that could light up Minneapolis. He definitely connects with the fans. He has incredible potential. And he seems to embrace being in the limelight. So good luck to Ant, one of Minnesota’s young sports stars.
CATHY WURZER: Yes. It’s a star. And you are also stars. Thanks for join us. I hope you are having a good weekend.
WALLY LANGFELLOW: Thank you, Cathy.
CATHY WURZER: See you later. Wally Langfellow is the founder of Minnesota Score magazine, the co-host of the sports talk show 10,000 Takes on radio and television. And Eric Nelson is the other co-host as another host of that 10,000 takes. He is also with CBS Sports Radio’s eye on football.
