Hang Up and Listen: The Live From Washington, D.C., Edition
Slate’s sports podcast on the rowdy Ryder Cup, geography and sports fandom, and the pressures of kicking in the NFL.
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In this week’s episode of Slate’s sports podcast Hang Up and Listen, Stefan Fatsis, Josh Levin, and Mike Pesca discuss thrilling spectacles in sports, including the pressure-packed Ryder Cup and baseball’s one-game playoffs. They also talk about D.C.’s baseball fever and how fans in different cities root differently. Finally, they are joined by Washington Redskins kicker Billy Cundiff to talk about his game-winning field goal against the Buccaneers and the pressures of kicking in the NFL.
Here are links to some of the articles and other items mentioned on the show:
- The fans were rowdy (and creative) at the Ryder Cup.
- In the New York Times, Christopher Clarey writes about Europe’s thrilling comeback victory.
- Here is an abstract of a study on Ryder Cup lineup optimization.
- ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick discusses pitching strategy for MLB’s one-game playoffs.
- The Nationals’ attendance numbers are mediocre but getting better.
- The New York Times featured two stories from fans of the Washington Senators.
- Chicago Cubs fan and New York Times writer Carl Huse is jumping on the Nationals’ bandwagon.
- Stadium quality matters more than winning when it comes to attendance, according to a study conducted by Kirk Wakefield.
- The fourth time was the charm for Billy Cundiff, who hit a game-winning 41-yard field goal against the Buccaneers.
- Cundiff has used a biofeedback device called the emWave to help him focus during games.
- Stefan wrote three stories about Cundiff’s missed field goal in last year’s AFC championship.
- Stefan discusses whether icing the kicker is effective in a 2008 New York Times article.
Hang Up and Listen’s weekly Karlises:
Mike’s Karlis: “Boston Sucks” chants came before “Yankees Suck” chants.
Stefan’s Karlis: Merv Conn, the Washington Senators accordionist, didn’t know a thing about baseball. Hear him sing “Our Washington Senators.”*
Josh’s Karlis: Relief pitcher Terry Forster created a song and music video titled “Fat Is In” after David Letterman called him “a fat tub of goo.”
Podcast production and edit by Mike Vuolo. Our intern is Eric Goldwein.
You can email us at hangup@slate.com.
The Hang Up and Listen T-shirt, designed by listener Todd Johnson, is now on sale. A shirt can be had for as little as $15.75, and you can choose between two color schemes—the green-and-gold “Oakland” edition or the red “Portland” edition. Support the show by buying both!
Clarification, Oct. 2, 2012: This post originally stated that accordionist Merv Conn sings "The Washington Senators, will win!," which is a lyric from the song called "Our Washington Senators."