Hosts Joe Maddon and Tom Verducci dive in with the Yankees changing closers after just 8 innings for Devin Williams. Joe explains the timing and reasoning for making such an early switch. Tom is floored by the start of the Rockies and sees a trend with bad teams getting worse. We switch gears to soccer and a new head coach doing things a bit differently and Joe loves it! What happened in baseball that's more rare than a perfect game? Plus, how long will it take for the Dodgers to get back on track?

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Almost a month into the season, Hosts Joe Maddon and Tom Verducci are in awe of the performance from Aaron Judge. Tom shares some of the early eye-popping numbers from the Yankees. Joe has been shocked by the Cubs offense and praises Kyle Tucker as the reason. Tom highlights Braves' manager Brian Snitker being called out by his own player and Joe reflects on his own experiences to explain how this is handled. Plus, Shohei Ohtani adds another accomplishment to his resume...Father!

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How much can you believe from the baseball being played in April?

Hosts Joe Maddon and Tom Verducci recap The Masters with the 'relief' from Rory McIlroy to finally win the tournament. Joe saw the same relief from the Cubs when they won the World Series, so we look at where Kris Bryant, Anthony Rizzo and Kyle Schwarber are now.

Tom highlights the starts of the Rockies, the Marlins, and the Padres....all with unique stories to tell in April. Plus, Joe talks about managers handling the media and how he spoke at press conferences.

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Hosts Joe Maddon and Tom Verducci prepare for The Masters with a visit from NBC Golf Analyst John Wood. Watching baseball work its way through the 'torpedo' bat, John helps us compare golf's head first dive into technology assisting player performance. We explore how the game has changed through equipment and course construction. Has golf experienced the same increase with injuries that we've seen in baseball? Moving back to the diamond, which team is the 'fastest' team in MLB right now? Tom and Joe wrap up with their predictions for The Masters.

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There's a lot of news for the first week of the season! Joe Maddon and Tom Verducci compare the use of 'torpedo' bats in baseball to a golfer trying different clubs. Joe explains how a batter finds a bat that works for him and how analytics are once again changing the game. Tom notes the rough start for Rafael Devers while Joe offers up some drastic changes to turn things around. Atlanta has also struggled out of the gate and the PED news with Jurickson Profar is an early dagger.

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Joe Maddon and Tom Verducci welcome every team to the 2025 season! What trends are we seeing on the field and could it be affecting the integrity of the game? Tom looks at the changes that teams have made and how it will affect their outcome in 2025. Joe and Tom compare their picks and share which teams they're a bit skeptical of out of the gate. Which teams will make it to the World Series? Plus, we reveal who will win the individual awards when the season is over!

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Joe Maddon and Tom Verducci open the 2025 MLB Season with the Dodgers and Cubs in Tokyo. LA wins both games, but what can be taken from the series? Tom discusses seeing Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Roki Sasaki in action. Joe reveals his approach to opening and planning for a season. How hard is it to shape your roster and tell someone that their MLB dream is over?

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Joe Maddon and Tom Verducci discuss the danger of pitching injuries in Spring Training. The first big news coming with Yankees pitcher Gerrit Cole needing TJ surgery. What other pitching stories have we seen this Spring? Tom shares an idea fom Max Scherzer to try and have pitchers go more often and pitch longer. Why is Barry Bonds talking about Shohei Ohtani? Tom honors a couple baseball legends and looks at the impact they're still having on the game. Plus, we react to Dave Roberts signing his record-setting extension with the Dodgers.

The Book of Joe Podcast is a production of iHeart Radio.

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