Hang Up and Listen

Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin are joined by the Ringer ’s Kevin Clark to talk about NFL quarterback play and the Root ’s Damon Young discusses Donald Trump’s feud with Lavar Ball. Plus: Slate ’s June Thomas joins for an interview with swimmer Diana Nyad.  Quarterbacks (2:00): Kevin Clark comes on for a conversation about Nathan Peterman’s extraordinarily bad debut as an NFL starter, plus the second...

Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin are joined by Sports Illustrated ’s Grant Wahl to talk about the race for the U.S. Soccer presidency, and Mike Pesca comes on to talk about NFL celebrations, the Miami turnover chain, and inspirational locker room speeches. U.S. Soccer (1:30): SI ’s Grant Wahl talks about the contenders for the top job in U.S. Soccer, why no women are running for the position, and whet...

Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin are joined by Chuck Culpepper to discuss a crazy weekend in college football, by Charles P. Pierce to talk about Tom Brady’s weird diet and workout regimen, and by Greg Wyshynski to assess the Vegas Golden Knights. College Football (1:40): Chuck Culpepper of the Washington Post joins for a conversation about Alabama’s predictable dominance, the Big 12’s high-octane off...

Josh Levin is joined by Ben Lindbergh to discuss the World Series; by Don Van Natta Jr. and Jeremy Stahl to talk about behind-the-scenes machinations in the NFL; and by Alexandra Starr and Christina Cauterucci to examine sexual abuse in sports. World Series (1:39): The Ringer ’s Ben Lindbergh comes on the show for a conversation about the Astros’ 13-12 win over the Dodgers in Game 5 of the World S...

Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin discuss the World Series and Dusty Baker with ESPN’s Howard Bryant. Kevin Arnovitz of ESPN also joins to talk about the Bucks’ Giannis Antetokounmpo, and Alan Siegel helps assess the legacy of the Simpsons’ “Homer at the Bat.” Baseball (1:37): Howard Bryant comes on the show to preview the World Series matchup between the Houston Astros and Los Angeles Dodgers, and to...

Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin discuss Colin Kaepernick’s collusion grievance. They’re also joined by Evan Drellich to talk about Houston Astros star Jose Altuve, and by Caitlin Murray for a conversation about the Portland Thorns women’s soccer team. Kaepernick and collusion (1:50): Stefan and Josh assess whether Kaepernick’s grievance against the NFL has a chance of succeeding and what the quarterb...

In this special emergency episode of Slate ’s sports podcast Hang Up and Listen, Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin discuss the U.S. men’s national team’s disastrous loss to Trinidad and Tobago and what comes next for American soccer. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin discuss Jemele Hill, Jerry Jones, and Donald Trump with the Ringer’s Bryan Curtis. Yahoo’s Jeff Passan also joins to discuss the baseball playoffs, and Roger Bennett of Men in Blazers talks about Iceland’s World Cup dreams. Politics and the NFL (1:10): Bryan Curtis joins for a conversation about ESPN’s suspension of Jemele Hill, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones’ directive tha...

Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin discuss the shifting politics of the NFL protests with Jamil Smith. Bloomberg View’s Joe Nocera also joins to discuss the FBI investigation of NCAA basketball, the Ringer ’s Ben Lindbergh previews the baseball playoffs. NFL protests (2:24): Jamil Smith joins for a conversation about how NFL owners have tried to co-opt players’ protests for racial equality. FBI vs. NCAA...

Stefan Fatsis, Josh Levin and Marcus Thompson of The Athletic discuss the wave of protests against Donald Trump’s remarks about the NFL. Then they talk about Golden State Warriors star Kevin Durant’s recent Twitter snafu and his fragile psyche. And broadcaster and former U.S. soccer player Marcelo Balboa joins for a conversation about hot, new Major League Soccer team Atlanta United FC. NFL protes...

Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin are joined by NPR’s Gene Demby to discuss Jemele Hill and ESPN’s conservative trolls, by HBO’s Eric Raskin to talk about Golovkin-Alvarez, and by Ninja Warrior ’s Josh Levin for a conversation about obstacle course stardom. Jemele Hill (1:28): Gene Demby of NPR’s Code Switch comes on the show to explore why ESPN has become a target in the culture wars and the kinds of...

Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin are joined by the New York Times’ Mark Leibovich to discuss the NFL’s opening weekend, by Racquet’s Caitlin Thompson to assess Sloane Stephens’ U.S. Open win, and by Mike Pesca for a debate about the Red Sox’s sign-stealing. NFL (1:08): Mark Leibovich describes his experiences in New England and Dallas during pro football’s opening week, and whether owners are getting...

Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin are joined by SB Nation ’s Spencer Hall to discuss college football. Aaron Schatz of Football Outsiders also joins to talk about NFL tanking, and Ed Cunningham explains his move to quit his job as a football announcer for ESPN. College football openers (2:14): Spencer Hall talks about Texas A&M’s crushing loss to UCLA, Howard’s exhilarating win over UNLC, and other...

Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin are joined by the Wall Street Journal ’s Jason Gay to discuss  Floyd Mayweather’s win over Conor McGregor, by Ken Rosenthal to talk about the Athletic , and by Robert Lipsyte to assess Clay Travis and ESPN’s supposed liberalism. Mayweather-McGregor (1:30): Jason Gay, who watched the fight while high, explains why fans weren’t unhappy with the experience, and looks at w...

Stefan Fatsis is joined by former NFL player Hamza Abdullah and ESPN’s Howard Bryant to analyze race and sports. ESPN writer Mechelle Voepel and MinnPost.com’s Pat Borzi chat about the WNBA. And director Adam Hootnick discusses his documentary about Texas high-school football, What Carter Lost. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin are joined by Johnette Howard to discuss Ezekiel Elliott’s suspension, tennis writer Ben Rothenberg comes on to talk about Sascha Zverev, and Mike Schur analyzes the Los Angeles Dodgers’ excellence. Ezekiel Elliott (2:16): Johnette Howard joins to review the domestic abuse allegations leveled against the Cowboys running back, if the NFL punishment system worked in this...

Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin are joined by ProPublica ’s David Epstein to discuss Usain Bolt’s loss to Justin Gatlin. The Irish Times ’ Ken Early also talks about Neymar’s record-setting transfer, and Josh and Stefan analyze Colin Kaepernick’s NFL exile. Usain Bolt (1:14): David Epstein joins to dissect Usain Bolt’s final competitive 100-meter race, Justin Gatlin’s surprise win, and how the sport...

Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin are joined by sportswriter Jessica Luther to discuss girls in baseball. Dan Nosowitz also talks about trends in basketball sneakers, and Scrabble champion Will Anderson comes on the show to recount his victory. Girls in Baseball (1:29): Jessica Luther joins to describe her time covering the elite Girls Travel Baseball team, why girls are dissuaded from playing baseball...

Josh Levin and ESPN’s Mina Kimes are joined by Slate ’s Jim Newell to discuss Jordan Spieth’s British Open win. Josh and Mina also dissect Kyrie Irving’s trade drama, and Slate ’s Ben Mathis-Lilley analyzes Hugh Freeze’s ousting as Ole Miss football coach. Jordan Spieth (2:15): Jim Newell joins to talk about how Jordan Spieth avoided a Sunday collapse, how he compares to Tiger Woods, and whether S...

Wimbledon (2:15): Howard Bryant joins to assess Roger Federer’s routine victory, Venus Williams’ recent resurgence, and whether the next generation of tennis stars will ever step up to challenge the sport’s veterans. Record-Setting Rookies (16:04): Sam Miller of ESPN discusses the Los Angeles Dodgers’ Cody Bellinger and the New York Yankees’ Aaron Judge, and whether either of the two players can b...

Josh Levin and Ben Mathis-Lilley are joined by Daniel “Progressive Liberal” Harnsberger to chat about his wrestling persona. The Ringer ’s Bryan Curtis also discusses Jamie Horowitz and Fox Sports, and Nick Greene analyzes NBA free agency. The Progressive Liberal (1:27): Professional wrestler Daniel Harnsberger joins to describe the inspiration behind his character, whether he’s critiquing the Dem...

Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin are joined by former NBA player Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf to discuss his return to basketball in the BigIG3, his protest of the national anthem, and how Tourette's Syndrome affected his career. Golden State Warriors President Rick Welts also comes on the show to discuss being openly gay in the NBA and how the franchise is grappling with its status as the league’s supervillain...

Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin are joined by Joel Anderson of BuzzFeed to discuss the NBA draft. Graphic designer Todd Radom also joins to debate the merits of updating the NBA logo. Finally, they chat about the perils of playing sports while old. NBA Draft (2:00): Assessing the latest news on the pro basketball transaction wire, including the implications of the blockbuster Jimmy Butler trade, whet...

Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin are joined by Kevin Draper to discuss the upcoming Mayweather-McGregor mega-fight. Ben Lindbergh also joins to discuss whether major-league baseballs are juiced. Finally, David Gessner talks about his memoir Ultimate Glory . Mayweather-McGregor (1:28): A conversation with the New York Times’  Kevin Draper about the logistics of the upcoming match-up between boxer Floyd...

Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin are joined by Mike Pesca to discuss the Warriors' NBA Finals win. George Dohrmann also joins to talk about U.S. soccer phenom Christian Pulisic. Plus, an interview with Ice Cube about the documentary Celtics/Lakers: Best of Enemies. NBA Finals (2:06): A conversation with Hang Up alum Mike Pesca about the Golden State Warriors’ NBA title, Kevin Durant's greatness, and w...