# Starkville | The Voices of Baseball: Tom Hamilton and Len Kasper Join Starkville

An episode of [Rates & Barrels: A show about Baseball](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1486883874), 3 Oct 2026, 48 min.

Audio: https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/6818a1a4eb737caf8ca41879/e/6ac046877e8cd8e67a5c2402/media.mp3

Tom Hamilton and Len Kasper join Starkville! This week, Jayson and Doug sit down with the longtime voices of the Red Sox and White Sox to discuss the matchup between two teams that have taken different paths but built their success the right way. They break down why America needs this series, whether any non-playoff teams could surprise everyone and make the postseason next year, and the emergence of José Ramírez, Chase DeLauter and other young players making their mark. They also discuss the early injury chaos, the contrasting pitching staffs, and the importance of trust when managing new coaches and young players. Plus, Jayson and Doug highlight players who deserve more attention, including Brayan Rocchio, Joey Cantillo, Tristan Peters and Sam Antonacci. And in Strange But True, the guys explore the Pope factor and his unexpected influence on the action in the field. Rundown: 03:36 Am I Wrong? 05:41 Losing Left Handed Leverage 08:35 UP NEXT 09:04 Tom and Len Visit Starkville! 12:04 Why America Needs This Series 19:48 The Game of Predicting Playoffs 24:46 Chase Delauter and Parker Messick 27:11 Crazy First Inning Injuries 28:19 Contrast Between Pitching Staffs 31:15 Role of Trust in the Game 36:37 Players We Should Know Better 42:19 The Pope Factor In This Series 46:21 UP NEXT Follow Jayson on Bluesky: @jaysonst.bsky.social Follow Doug on Bluesky: @dougglanville.bsky.social Follow DVR on Bluesky: @dvr.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: Tony Gwynn Jr. & Mark Grant Producer: Matthew Chilelli Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Shows are listed from Apple Podcasts' charts and directory, and Podcast Index where it is used. Every show and episode belongs to its publisher and plays from the publisher's own feed; this site hosts none of them.