# John Smoltz on the Shohei Ohtani & Dalton Rushing Drama + MLB Trade Deadline and more

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/flippin-bats-with-ben-verlander-3663614/john-smoltz-on-the-shohei-ohtani-dalton-rushing-drama-mlb-trade-deadline-and-more
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/flippin-bats-with-ben-verlander-3663614/john-smoltz-on-the-shohei-ohtani-dalton-rushing-drama-mlb-trade-deadline-and-more.md
Podcast: [Flippin' Bats with Ben Verlander](https://stenobird.com/podcast/flippin-bats-with-ben-verlander-3663614)
Published: 2026-06-27T20:43:00+00:00
Episode link: https://pdst.fm/e/pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/RLDER9551118225.mp3
Audio file: https://pdst.fm/e/pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/RLDER9551118225.mp3
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JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/flippin-bats-with-ben-verlander-3663614/episodes/john-smoltz-on-the-shohei-ohtani-dalton-rushing-drama-mlb-trade-deadline-and-more
Duration seconds: 914

## Resource

John Smoltz joins Ben Verlander for another edition of Saturday with Smoltz on Flippin' Bats. This week, they dive into the biggest story in baseball: the on-field miscommunication between Shohei Ohtani and Dodgers rookie catcher Dalton Rushing. Smoltz explains whether he experienced similar situations during his Hall of Fame career, how trust between a pitcher and catcher is built, and why communication is so important at the major league level. The conversation also covers: The Braves' shrinking lead in the NL East Which team John hopes becomes an aggressive buyer at the MLB Trade Deadline An under-the-radar pitcher who has caught his attention this season Plus plenty of baseball insight and stories from one of the game's greatest pitchers. Subscribe to Flippin' Bats for new episodes every week featuring the biggest stories across Major League Baseball. Timestamps: 0:00 Intro 0:48 Braves losing NL East Lead 3:45 Who Needs to Make a Trade 6:53 Ohtani/Rushing Situation 10:11 Underrated Pitcher Appreciation 13:09 Outro Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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## Transcript

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