Felger and Mazz - Creating False Naratives one day at a time

[Kramerica Industries]

he also wasn't making fun of there broken english.
 
he said "i hope WEEI does those interviews"...he was just pointing out that they were boring to listen to

 

[HomeBrew1901]

Yeah.... So.... I have zero interest in listening to this show tomorrow.

I'm not going to play fan fiction but I don't need to hear Felger gloating or Mazz agreeing with him. The patriots offense didn't play as well as they have been, the Packers played well all around and the defense couldn't stop the Packers when it mattered.

I don't need F&M to tell me any of that.

 

[Smiling Joe Hesketh]

Yeah.... So.... I have zero interest in listening to this show tomorrow.

I'm not going to play fan fiction but I don't need to hear Felger gloating or Mazz agreeing with him. The patriots offense didn't play as well as they have been, the Packers played well all around and the defense couldn't stop the Packers when it mattered.

I don't need F&M to tell me any of that.

 
Wait, I thought you loved these guys?
 
I'm sure they'll paint things in the worst way possible, but that was a game of two excellent, evenly matched teams played in a very difficult venue where the Packers usually put up 50. Holding them to 26 and nearly winning the thing seems admirable to me, but then again I'm not a trolling radio host.

 

[HomeBrew1901]

Yeah, I far from love these guys but I do know their act and find it funny when people listen to them for hours on end and complain about what they are saying, including some guy that never listens to the show but runs here to write fan fiction about what they will say after a win.

It can be a good show, however, after a game like today, there is a better chance that it's going to be a shitshow that's likely going to have people here frothing at the keyboard.

The better team won in a hard game becaise they played better that day. Put them together again in the Super Bowl the Partriots will likely win.

F&M can have an entertaining show... But I also know when not to listen. Tomorrow will be one of those days for me.

 

[PeaceSignMoose]

Probably should have taken HomeBrew's advice.  Felger making it seem like the Patriots blew a golden opportunity since the Packers suck.  

 

[Smiling Joe Hesketh]

Probably should have taken HomeBrew's advice.  Felger making it seem like the Patriots blew a golden opportunity since the Packers suck.  

 
Who's going to believe that? That's weak on Felger's part, he's usually better at trolling. He must be exhausted today.

 

[j-man]

u guys are still the AFC fav  i doubt green bay gets to the super bowl  i am starting to think a NE/SEA super bowl will happen yes denver can run but i very much doubt den can go to ne and win hell i think ne could beat us in denver     

 

[Patriot_Reign]

F&m not get simulcast on csnne today? Patriots wednesday live is on currently

 

[steveluck7]

F&m not get simulcast on csnne today? Patriots wednesday live is on currently

Simulcast ended at 5

 

[Granite Sox]

On Lester...
 
Felger: The whole thing was just a PR campaign... Sox didn't really want Lester and offered him just enough to turn down.
 
Mazz: You give FO too much credit.  Sox blew it... the whole negotiation.  /Rehashes-January-offer-that-is-irrelevant.
 
Caller in 3:00 hour taunted them about their "lies and myth-telling" and had them (somewhat) on the ropes until he made one small factual misstatement (out of about six solid points), and they jumped all over him about being a liar.
 
They are "on message", which is just as disappointing as expected.

 

[Haunted]

Is Lester the new Teixeira?

 

[Darnell's Son]

Is Lester the new Teixeira?

Of course, but now he can harp on the fact the the CUBS, of all teams, outbid the cheap Sox.

 

[54thMA]

On Lester...
 
Felger: The whole thing was just a PR campaign... Sox didn't really want Lester and offered him just enough to turn down.
 
Mazz: You give FO too much credit.  Sox blew it... the whole negotiation.  /Rehashes-January-offer-that-is-irrelevant.
 
Caller in 3:00 hour taunted them about their "lies and myth-telling" and had them (somewhat) on the ropes until he made one small factual misstatement (out of about six solid points), and they jumped all over him about being a liar.
 
They are "on message", which is just as disappointing as expected.

 
I give you credit for lasting into the 3:00 hour, I shut it off after 20 minutes.
 
So predictable from these two, I should have known better.
 

 

[Granite Sox]

I wasn't continuously listening.  Caught the opening barrage, and then was in and out here and there to see if they were keeping it up.
 
Caller was on to something, and Felger/Mazz were taking shots and not really responding, but Beetle went nuts on the guy when he misspoke.
 
Beetle has shocked me with his stupidity today... I typically think of him as tolerable, but he's sounded like a whiny, entitled MFY fan today.  Bizarre.

 

[54thMA]

I wasn't continuously listening.  Caught the opening barrage, and then was in and out here and there to see if they were keeping it up.
 
Caller was on to something, and Felger/Mazz were taking shots and not really responding, but Beetle went nuts on the guy when he misspoke.
 
Beetle has shocked me with his stupidity today... I typically think of him as tolerable, but he's sounded like a whiny, entitled MFY fan today.  Bizarre.

Beetle used to be the ying to the F & M yang, but he's been sucked into their morass of negativity and has gone over to the dark side with no hope of returning.
 
When you're around negativity for 20 hours a week/52 weeks a year, it will eventually rub off.

 

[John Marzano Olympic Hero]

I heard that caller, he was going really well until he forgot that the Giants offered $168M and Beetle jumped all over him. Then Felger and Mazz piled on. Out of nowhere Smerlas and DeOssie tagged in for back-to-back belly-to-belly suplexes on the guy and I think I heard Pete Sheppard call the dude a "gutless puke" all the while Glenn Ordway cackled in the background. 
 
It was like jumping in the way back machine and stopping at 1998. 

 

[HomeBrew1901]

I really can't defend these guys anymore, it used to be a tolerable show where Felger would introduce different viewpoints and you could either agree or disagree but at least they were well thought out and you could at least see the argument that he was trying to make. 
 
Now.... I don't even bother to listen to them on days like this because they've become the "Anti-Big Show" instead of defending the local teams at almost all points, they crap on them. 
 
I think the Sox could have signed Lester and Felger and Mazz would have sounded like Fred this morning (a POV I share) crapping on the team for signing him to too much money that will hamstring him in his later years.

 

[RedOctober3829]

I really can't defend these guys anymore, it used to be a tolerable show where Felger would introduce different viewpoints and you could either agree or disagree but at least they were well thought out and you could at least see the argument that he was trying to make. 
 
Now.... I don't even bother to listen to them on days like this because they've become the "Anti-Big Show" instead of defending the local teams at almost all points, they crap on them. 
 
I think the Sox could have signed Lester and Felger and Mazz would have sounded like Fred this morning (a POV I share) crapping on the team for signing him to too much money that will hamstring him in his later years.

Yesterday, he thought the Sox would sign Lester.  Now today, he shits all over them for not doing it.  It's typical with them.  Most of the time, he predicts that something positive will happen for a Boston team just to set up his takedown of said team.

 

[54thMA]

I really can't defend these guys anymore, it used to be a tolerable show where Felger would introduce different viewpoints and you could either agree or disagree but at least they were well thought out and you could at least see the argument that he was trying to make. 
 
Now.... I don't even bother to listen to them on days like this because they've become the "Anti-Big Show" instead of defending the local teams at almost all points, they crap on them. 
 
I think the Sox could have signed Lester and Felger and Mazz would have sounded like Fred this morning (a POV I share) crapping on the team for signing him to too much money that will hamstring him in his later years.

 
Couldn't agree more. While I fully understand the concept of not being local team "honks" as Felger calls them plays better and gets people torked off to the point where the call to defend the home team or riled up so they rip the home team, their act is getting old, as in really old.
 
And your totally on point; if they had signed him to 6/155, the two of them would be screaming about how they overpaid, how now they are hamstrung and cannot sign other players, they've become the Yankees and will have too many contracts that are going to be poison pills and they are everything Larry said they are not last Spring.
 
You can read these guys from a mile away.
 
Like a comic book.
 

 

[dcmissle]

What did you expect to find today, a dispassionate analytical breakdown? It is what it is. If you search for crap, you'll find it.

 

[HomeBrew1901]

What did you expect to find today, a dispassionate analytical breakdown? It is what it is. If you search for crap, you'll find it.

I didn't listen, but I would have if they show was what it was when it started.  You'd have Mazz spouting off about how the Sox are cheap and it's just like Teixeira and Felger and Beetle would be playing devil's advocate in some way, shape or form not defending the team but discussing the other side. 
 
Basically, like Toucher and Rich have been doing the last 2 days, a show I do listen to just about every morning on my way in.  Kind of scary when T&R have better sports discussions than two professional sports reporters.

 

[Buffalo Head]

What did you expect to find today, a dispassionate analytical breakdown? It is what it is. If you search for crap, you'll find it.

If it was Mike and the Mad Dog, even on their worst day, we'd have gotten a legitimate discussion. It is possible to get it, and this show could have chosen to go that route. But they lost their way about three years ago and it's never coming back.

 

[CantKeepmedown]

Felger on TV last night basically said that he thought it would have been a terrible deal for the Sox and was glad they didn't do it.  But, he was killing BC and the team for their stance of not signing 30yo+ pitchers to long term deals.  "Then why did you offer him 6/$135!!!!"

 

[RedOctober3829]

They are killing this rotation and saying this is what it will be on Opening Day.  Only if they had some assets to trade and some money to spend.  They have none of that, right?
 
Give me a break.

 

[PeaceSignMoose]

This is the moment I officially swore off this program. When discussing the Red Sox, they somehow become trolling parodies of themselves.

 

[RedOctober3829]

They go on and on about how bad this current rotation is for 2 hours then circle around to "Well they could still go out and make other moves and flip Porcello or Miley."
 
No shit.  Really?  They can go out and make more moves?  What a novel concept.

 

[Bob Montgomerys Helmet Hat]

This is the moment I officially swore off this program. When discussing the Red Sox, they somehow become trolling parodies of themselves.

They're no better when they talk about the Bruins.  I used to find them amusing, but I can't watch this.

 

[Salem's Lot]

I'm officially out on this show myself. I turn it on for five minutes and hear the same bullshit about how the Red Sox management is incompetent and the owner is too cheap to pay "horses", then the Bruins management is incompetent and the teams screwed because the owner is too cheap to fire them and give up his guaranteed playoff revenue. Same tired bullshit media arguments that have been thrown around in this town for a hundred years. Just insufferable trolling.

 

[Byrdbrain]

Thirteen minutes, that is how long I lasted today.
I'll make a point to listen when Bedard is on as I really enjoy his takes but other than that I won't go out of my way to listen to them.

 

[rodderick]

It's always the same shit with them. If the Sox/Pats/Bruins don't spend money on the top guys available, they're cheap and aren't willing to do what it takes to win. If they spend money, they are desperate and don't have a plan.

 

[John Marzano Olympic Hero]

The Bruins suck because they pay too much money to their talent and they're complacent.
The Red Sox suck because they don't pay enough to their talent and they're buffoons. 
The Patriots suck because they're cheap skates and if you like them then you're a bobo. 
The Celtics suck because they're in the NBA and aren't from Milwaukee. 

 

[Darnell's Son]

The Bruins suck because they pay too much money to their talent and they're complacent.
The Red Sox suck because they don't pay enough to their talent and they're buffoons. 
The Patriots suck because they're cheap skates and if you like them then you're a bobo. 
The Celtics suck because they're in the NBA and aren't from Milwaukee. 

You're absolutely right, Mike!

 

[PC Drunken Friar]

Yup, I'm out too, save for Bedard on Tuesdays. Last straw was today was that you need an ace to win a championship. Look at Baltimore...a bunch of good pitchers, but no ace(not to mention, is Lester an ace?). They can win, it's not hard to reach the playoffs...but then what, they crap out!

When informed how they beat down Detroit, remember that, Mike? Felger responds, but look at what happened against KC!!! Is that what you want? No chance to win a championship? That's not good enough in this town.

Man, this show really sucks now. I know he's trolling, but it pisses me off to no end to hear him, for a few weeks at a time, when the locals get hot, when he lauds them up, knowing he can tear them down if they fail to meet his championship expectations.

 

[dcmissle]

Well this response may be telling.

The reason I posed the question above is that it occurred to me that arguing against their approach is useless, and to a certain extent counterproductive, because it assumes their relevance. Everyone is probably better off tuning them out entirely, at least until the approach changes.

 

[Marbleheader]

Felger needs something other than a yes man opposite him. If they are as complacent as WEEI was years ago, they'll soon find themselves in a similar situation.

 

[Granite Sox]

Edes' perspective, which is 180 degrees from the chumming that Felger/Mazz/Beetle have been doing:
 
http://espn.go.com/boston/mlb/story/_/id/12018327/boston-red-sox-moves-look-bad-adding-rick-porcello-justin-masterson-wade-miley

 

[Lose Remerswaal]

Talk about an article that is 180 degrees from the words in the link to that article!

 

[timlinin8th]

When informed how they beat down Detroit, remember that, Mike? Felger responds, but look at what happened against KC!!! Is that what you want? No chance to win a championship? That's not good enough in this town.

What's going to make your head explode is that in this thought exercise, they're counting James Shields as KC's "ace", but should the Sox sign him, he's not of true "ace" caliber and the Sox cheaped out letting Lester and Scherzer slip away.

 

[8slim]

I've taken to streaming T&R on my drive to work in CT recently.  So yesterday at work I figured I'd check out the afternoon show too...
 
Good God, what a train wreck.  I made through 6 minutes of them screaming doom and gloom, as if rosters for the entire 2015 season were just set on December 11th.
 
Holy hell it was awful.

 

[southshoresoxfan]

My 2min experience of F and M today was them mocking Brady for his highly detailed nutrition and fitness regimens.

Ripping an athlete for working too hard. Click.

 

[NDame616]

My 2min experience of F and M today was them mocking Brady for his highly detailed nutrition and fitness regimens.

Ripping an athlete for working too hard. Click.

 
Sadly, you missed the other 83 minutes dedicated to the topic........

 

[southshoresoxfan]

Lol wow. Unbelievable

 

[MillarTime]

Heard the Brady segments. Simply unlistenable.

 

[Vandalman]

Apparently, Brady's post-playing goal is to become "a guru."
 
Way to cherry pick from an interview, guys!

 

[BoneForYourJar]

I feel like Mazz, despite his "sidekick" status, has increasingly come to dominate the tone of this show, and it results in this overwhelming sense of intellectual dishonesty. The epitome of this for me is Mazz's notion (all too convenient for his purposes) that the 2013 Sox season was just a complete fluke, a blind stroke of luck, ex nihilo. It doesn't fit his narrative, therefore we are to believe that this season, alone among Red Sox seasons, simply has no explanation. It is beyond human agency, beyond causality itself. In a reversal of roles, Felger seems glad to play along and let such declarations stand.

I'm always pleasantly surprised at how pleasant Felger is when paired up with people other than Mazz - be it Hiolley, Tanguay, Troy Brown, Amonte, etc. He still has that ability to bring that "breath of fresh air" perspective, but (perhaps also because one can see his facial expression on TV) you get the sense he's doing it in a playful spirit, and that he expects to be made fun of by his at times skeptical colleagues.

That enjoyable, even graceful equilibrium is entirely absent from F&M. The show has become a self-defeating contradiction: a pair (or now trio) of self-proclaimed contrarians who are zealous conformists when it comes to each other's views. The air in that room has long ago gone stale.

 

[kolbitr]

I feel like Mazz, despite his "sidekick" status, has increasingly come to dominate the tone of this show, and it results in this overwhelming sense of intellectual dishonesty. The epitome of this for me is Mazz's notion (all too convenient for his purposes) that the 2013 Sox season was just a complete fluke, a blind stroke of luck, ex nihilo. It doesn't fit his narrative, therefore we are to believe that this season, alone among Red Sox seasons, simply has no explanation. It is beyond human agency, beyond causality itself. In a reversal of roles, Felger seems glad to play along and let such declarations stand.

I'm always pleasantly surprised at how pleasant Felger is when paired up with people other than Mazz - be it Hiolley, Tanguay, Troy Brown, Amonte, etc. He still has that ability to bring that "breath of fresh air" perspective, but (perhaps also because one can see his facial expression on TV) you get the sense he's doing it in a playful spirit, and that he expects to be made fun of by his at times skeptical colleagues.

That enjoyable, even graceful equilibrium is entirely absent from F&M. The show has become a self-defeating contradiction: a pair (or now trio) of self-proclaimed contrarians who are zealous conformists when it comes to each other's views. The air in that room has long ago gone stale.

I would echo much of this. Although I have rarely listened to F&M for the past year, given geographical issues, I have listened online at times. Felger is a very gifted radio host, but he needs (deserves?) a better co-host than Mazz. That may never happen, and that's unfortunate, since MF can be, when challenged and provoked, immensely entertaining.
 
I would add that I feel that the ideal radio personality is Felger when speaking about the Bruins----a fan who is alternately thoughtful, prescient, irrational, passionate, and contrarian. Now, die-hard Bs fans may well disagree, and I admit that although I follow the team, and like hockey, the sport is probably third on my list, so I might be misguided. But it is refreshing when a radio jock *cares* and *loves* enough to be a thorn at times, and a cheerer at other times. Because Felger neither cares nor loves any of the other teams in the market, he ought to be paired with someone who does. Mazz seems to be disinterested in all sports...thus the product becomes one-note...and caters to the singular and negative...
 
As i mentioned above, this is too bad, since Felger has earned radio time...he is charismatic, but needs a strong foil.

 

[Mystic Merlin]

I simply don't understand how anyone can listen to Mazz's voice.  It's among the most grating, annoying sounds imaginable.  It's fucking crazy he's on the goddamn radio, where all that matters IS your voice.

 

[54thMA]

I simply don't understand how anyone can listen to Mazz's voice.  It's among the most grating, annoying sounds imaginable.  It's fucking crazy he's on the goddamn radio, where all that matters IS your voice.

 
It's funny that you mention that only because for some reason, when I watch/listen to him on the simulcast, his voice is not that bad, but wow, when I listen on the radio, his voice makes my ears bleed, especially when he gets torked off and goes on a rant.
 

 

 

[Towney007]

Comcast/98.5's bit is to hammer the Red Sox because they don't have their broadcasting rights. It's that simple. Felger and Mazz have sucked for years and the fact that it took people this long to figure it out is almost as bad as listening to anything they've got to say.

Problem with sports talk in this town is that it's stuck in a cycle of boo-bird shock jocks that seem refreshing and entertaining until their brand of shitty-ness gets old and they have to pry two other dullards from some newspaper desk somewhere in the city to replace them. Rinse, wash, repeat. 

 

[steveluck7]

Rinse, wash, repeat.

If you're rinsing first, you'll most certainly have to repeat