Hang Up and Listen: The Suspension and Disbelief Edition
Slate’s sports podcast on the NFL’s punishment of Ray Rice, the Houston Astros’ treatment of their first-round pick, and women in the Tour de France.
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In this week’s episode of Slate’s sports podcast Hang Up and Listen, Josh Levin, Mike Pesca, and Wall Street Journal columnist Jason Gay discuss NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell’s decision to suspend the Baltimore Ravens’ Ray Rice for just two games, the media reaction to the suspension, and the NFL’s record on domestic violence. They also break down the Houston Astros’ failure to sign first overall pick Brady Aiken, the trickle down effect caused by baseball’s strange draft rules, and the line between a smart front office and Mr. Spock. Finally, they talk about the results of this year’s Tour de France and whether it’s possible for cycling to be completely clean, and they interview Kathryn Bertine about her successful push to get women in the Tour de France.
Here are links to some of the articles and other items mentioned on the show:
- The NFL suspended Baltimore Ravens’ running back Ray Rice for two games for a domestic violence incident caught on tape.
- Rice’s suspension is less than many others, including teammate Will Hill’s suspension for smoking marijuana.
- Ray Rice held a not-very-successful press conference in May.
- Female football writers reacted to the suspension, and in the Washington Post, Cindy Boren suggested that the NFL has a “women problem.”
- Jezebel’s Erin Gloria Ryan argued that the NFL doesn’t care about women and questioned the sincerity of its breast cancer awareness campaign.
- In 2012, Slate’s Justin Peters found that 21 NFL teams had a player with a domestic violence or sexual assault charge on his record.
- Fellow ESPN broadcaster Michelle Beadle criticized Stephen A. Smith for his comments about domestic violence on First Take.
- Stephen A. Smith’s lame apology for saying that women can provoke domestic violence.
- Sports Illustrated’s Ben Reiter described how the Astros failed to sign Brady Aiken—after recently praising the team’s rebuilding strategy.
- Nick J. Faleris gave a detailed breakdown of the Aiken debacle on Baseball Prospectus.
- The Major League Baseball Players Association filed a grievance against the Astros for their handling of negotiations with Aiken and fifth-round pick Jacob Nix.
- Aiken’s and Nix’s college eligibility could be in question because of their relationship with “adviser” Casey Close.
- Bleacher Report’s injury expert Will Carroll looked at Aiken’s UCL condition.
- Grantland’s Zach Lowe explains the unique deal the Oklahoma City Thunder made with first-round pick Josh Huestis.
- Jason Gay said the finish of the Tour de France was “not even riveting-ish.”
- In the Wall Street Journal, Jason wrote about how women got the opportunity to ride a Tour de France stage and about Marianne Vos’ dominance of the sport.
- In the New York Times, Juliet Macur wrote about Kathryn Bertine’s efforts to include women in the Tour de France.
- Bertine’s website and her documentary Half the Road.
Hang Up and Listen’s weekly lucky losers:
Mike’s lucky loser: An episode of Sports Talk Radio Theater 3000.
Jason’s lucky loser: The recipe for more civil discourse in the sports media in two words.
Josh’s lucky loser: How a team based out of a mental hospital became a 19th-century baseball powerhouse.
On this week’s Slate Plus bonus segment, Jason Gay, Josh Levin, and Mike Pesca talked about arm folding and other secrets of the TV trade. Slate Plus members get an ad-free version of this podcast with bonus segments. Visit slate.com/hangupplus and try it free for two weeks.
Podcast production and edit by Mike Vuolo. Links compiled by Chris Laskowski.
You can email us at hangup@slate.com.