A nickname is earned, not given—and after lighting up radar guns at 104 mph, Jacob Misiorowski’s fastball has certainly earned one. This week, we dive into listener-submitted suggestions and, with help from Jayson and Doug, try to land on the perfect name for The Miz’s electric four-seamer. Then, Dodgers broadcaster and Fox Sports play-by-play voice Joe Davis joins Starkville to talk about the defending champs, calling last season’s World Series, and what makes Shohei Ohtani unlike anyone else. Plus, Strange But True from a wild night in Philadelphia.
Rundown:
0:00 Intro
2:53 A New Nickname for The Miz
13:14 Joe Davis Joins the Show
15:05 Wild Night in Philadelphia
17:50 Broadcasting the Dodgers
19:28 2026 Los Angeles Dodgers
27:30 The Legend of Shohei Ohtani
33:45 Reaction to ABS
35:10 ‘Gibby Meet Freddie’
40:03 Calling Game 7 of 2025 World Series
45:30 Strange But True
Follow Jayson on Bluesky: @jaysonst.bsky.social
Follow Doug on Bluesky: @dougglanville.bsky.social
E-mail: starkville@theathletic.com
Starkville Hotline: (347) 313-8371
Subscribe to The Athletic: theathletic.com/ratesandbarrels
Hosts: Jayson Stark & Doug Glanville
With: Joe Davis
Producer: Jason Potere
Thumbnail Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea/Getty Images (Ohtani), Kirby Lee-Imagn Images (Davis)
JP2021.COM