Jack Vita Show: Sports | MLB | Baseball | NFL | College Football | NCAA Basketball | NBA | Faith
Join published journalist and sports reporter Jack Vita each week for an in-depth breakdown of the latest news from the world of sports, featuring thoughtful analysis and exclusive interviews with athletes, coaches, executives and media members. Jack interviews athletes that provide a peak behind the curtain and a look at the daily life of a professional athlete. They also discuss life off-the-field and other various topics, including faith. Prominent guests include Brian Urlacher, Bob Nightengale, Jim Callis and Dan O’Dowd. This is the podcast feed for all sports content on the Jack Vita Show. For Jack’s entertainment and reality TV coverage, subscribe to Jack Vita Show: Entertainment, available wherever podcasts are found.
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Episodes
Monday Apr 25, 2022
Monday Apr 25, 2022
Elise Menaker (@EliseMenaker on Twitter and Instagram) is a reporter, analyst and host on the Big Ten Network as well as the Chicago Cubs' television network, Marquee Sports Network. She played softball professionally in Sweden, is a member of the Cornell Athletics Hall of Fame, and last year made history as a member of the second-ever all-women Major League Baseball broadcast, when she, Melanie Newman and Alanna Rizzo called the Cubs-White Sox game on YouTube last summer. Elise also attended New Trier Township High School in Winnetka, Illinois, the same high school Jack attended! Elise and Jack talk New Trier (which happens to be the high school Mean Girls was based off of), Elise's broadcasting career, women in sports broadcasting, the Cubs' start to their season, the emergence of Seiya Suzuki, Miguel Cabrera getting his 3,000th hit, Albert Pujols' final season, the Mets' impressive start, an ugly scene from Saturday's Yankees-Guardians game, and plenty more baseball along the way!
Thursday Apr 07, 2022
Thursday Apr 07, 2022
We've reached the final leg of our six-part MLB Preview Series! In the final chapter, Jake Paliga and Jack preview the AL Central and share their playoff and World Series picks, as well as their bold predictions for the 2022 season. The Minnesota Twins finished dead last in the Central a year ago. After a very active offseason that brought in Carlos Correa, Sonny Gray, Gary Sanchez and Gio Urshela, will the Twins turn it around in 2022 and go from worst to first (0:00 - 21:40)? The Kansas City Royals haven't put together a winning season since 2015. With top prospect Bobby Witt Jr. opening the season with the Royals' big league club, will Kansas City finally buck that trend (21:40 - 31:55)? The Detroit Tigers also improved their team, adding Javier Baez, Austin Meadows and Eduardo Rodriguez to their promising, young nucleus. Will the Tigers turn a corner in 2022 (31:55 - 43:40)? The Cleveland baseball team enters its first season as the "Guardians"? The Indians won 80 games last year, but didn't do much to improve their lineup. What exactly is the plan in Cleveland, and how will the team perform (43:40 - 1:00:55)? The Chicago White Sox won the AL Central in 2021. Now, with a healthier roster, the Sox look to repeat as division champs and make a move towards an AL pennant. How far will they go in 2022 (1:00:55 - 1:11:20)? Finally, Jake and Jack share their playoff picks, Jack's win total revisions (from earlier in the preview series), Division Series, Championship Series and World Series picks. They also share some other bold predictions along the way. Episode complete with win total projections for each team in the AL Central!
Tuesday Apr 05, 2022
Tuesday Apr 05, 2022
The 2022 NCAA Tournament is over, and with it, we have a champion. The Kansas Jayhawks are world champions for the first time since 2008! Stonehill College assistant basketball coach Jason Karys calls in to the Jack Vita Show from the Final Four in New Orleans, primed to discuss the weekend's games, including Kansas-North Carolina, a Duke-North Carolina game for the ages, the 2022 NCAA Tournament as a whole, One Shining Moment, the Valparaiso basketball alumni competing in The Basketball Tournament, and more!
Tuesday Apr 05, 2022
Tuesday Apr 05, 2022
For our fifth installment of our 2022 MLB Preview Series, former Survivor contestant and baseball coach Albert Destrade (@Zero_Votes on Twitter) returns to the Jack Vita Show to preview the NL West! The Arizona Diamondbacks were the worst team in the National League a season ago. After extending infielder Ketel Marte, what will 2022 look like for them (0:00 - 24:15)? Over the last 15 months, the Colorado Rockies have said goodbye to stars Nolan Arenado and Trevor Story. A few weeks ago, they said hello to Kris Bryant. What should fans expect from Bryant this season, and how will the Rockies perform (24:15 - 46:00)? The San Diego Padres are coming off an extremely disappointing 2021. Picked by many to win the NL West, the Padres finished 79-83, in third place of the division. What needs to happen in order for the Padres to breakthrough and get back to the postseason for the first time in a non-COVID season since 2006 (46:00 - 1:06:35)? The San Francisco Giants greatly exceeded expectations in 2021, winning 107 games, and with it, the NL West crown. After losing Kris Bryant, Kevin Gausman and Buster Posey, how much regression will be see from the Giants, or will the Giants repeat as division champs (1:06:35 - 1:19:15)? The Los Angeles Dodgers are hungry for another World Series, and added the best first baseman on the planet Freddie Freeman to an already potent lineup. How will the Dodgers look in 2022 (1:19:15 - END)? Episode complete with win total projections for each team.
Sunday Apr 03, 2022
Sunday Apr 03, 2022
In the fourth installment of our 2022 MLB Preview Series, Cincinnati Reds fan Ryan Pacatte returns to the show for a comprehensive preview of the NL Central. Had Major League Baseball expanded its postseason to include six playoff teams in each league, the Reds would have made the playoffs in 2021. Over the winter, the Redlegs lost three big bats from their lineup, as Nicholas Castellanos signed with the Phillies, and the Reds traded Jesse Winker and Eugenio Suarez to the Mariners. They also lost pitchers Sonny Gray, Wade Miley, Amir Garrett and Michael Lorenzen. Ryan sets the table for the 2022 Reds, and he and Jack estimate how they might perform in 2022 (0:00 - 28:45). The Pittsburgh Pirates are in full-rebuild mode. What should baseball fans watch for from the Buccos this season (28:45 - 37:25)? The Chicago Cubs are also rebuilding. After gutting the heart of their order last year at the trade deadline, what happens next on the North Side (37:25 - 54:35)? After firing their manager Mike Schildt and ending the 2021 regular season as baseball's hottest team, what's the trajectory for the St. Louis Cardinals entering 2022? And how should Major League Baseball recognize Albert Pujols' final season (54:35 - 1:11:45)? The Milwaukee Brewers won 95 games a season ago; will they repeat as division champions (1:11:45 - END)? Episode complete with win total projections for each team.
Friday Apr 01, 2022
Friday Apr 01, 2022
In the third edition of our 2022 MLB Preview Series, former Philadelphia Phillies second baseman Mickey Morandini and his son Jordan Morandini visit the Jack Vita Show to tackle the NL East. The NL East is consistently the most highly touted National League division, but it has a tendency to underdeliver. Will it truly live up to its billing this year, as the Phillies, Mets and Marlins all look for significant improvement in 2022, and the Braves defend their World Series crown? The Nationals took a big step backwards last year, and appear to be in a rebuild; where will they stand in 2022 (0:00 — 15:25)? After a disappointing 2021 season, the Marlins have a lot of young talent coming up through the pipeline; could they be a sneaky dark horse team (15:25 — 27:30)? After adding Max Scherzer, Chris Bassitt, Mark Canha and Starling Marte, will the Mets *finally* turn a corner this season (27:30 — 41:05)? Mickey and Jordan give a full break down of the Phillies and share why they remain optimistic, despite the club currently being the NL team with the longest postseason drought (41:05 — 1:03:05). Finally, the defending world champions enter 2022 in an interesting spot, having replaced Freddie Freeman with first baseman Matt Olson. How big of an impact will the change make for the Braves, and how will the team perform in what looks to be a highly competitive division, with Marcell Ozuna and Ronald Acuña Jr. returning to the club? Episode complete with win total projections for each club!
Thursday Mar 31, 2022
Thursday Mar 31, 2022
In the second installment of our 2022 MLB Preview Series, Yankees fan Jonathan 'JJ' Jaggard visits the show to put the AL East under the microscope. The AL East was baseball's best division last year, and there's no reason it shouldn't be in 2022. The Yankees and Red Sox shook up their rosters, while the young Rays and Blue Jays are another year older, another year wiser. JJ and Jack take a close look at each team, while providing their win total projections. After signing Trevor Story, how will the Red Sox follow up their 2021 season, in which they got all the way to the ALCS? Why Story at second base instead of Bogaerts (0:00 – 22:15)? The Blue Jays lost the reigning Cy Young Robbie Ray, while trading for all-star third baseman Matt Chapman. With Vladdy Jr., Bo Bichette and Teoscar Hernandez entering their prime, will the Blue Jays reclaim the AL East crown for the first time since 2015 (22:15 – 38:50)? The Baltimore Orioles lost 110 last year. With more young talent joining their big league roster, how many will they lose in 2021, and how far away are they from making a move in this division (38:50 – 55:15)? After parting ways with Gary Sanchez and Gio Urshela and bringing in Isaiah Kiner-Falefa and Josh Donaldson, how might the Yankees improve in 2022 (55:15 – 1:19:55)? Will the Tampa Bay Rays three-peat the AL East (1:19:55 – END)?
Monday Mar 28, 2022
Monday Mar 28, 2022
Lexus Williams is the assistant to the head coach, Leon Rice, at Boise State. He previously played at Boise State and Valparaiso. He's best known for his game-winning half-court shot that he hit at the buzzer at Oregon in 2018, ending the Ducks' 28-game home win-streak. Lexus visits the Jack Vita Show for the first time to recap the second weekend of the 2022 NCAA Tournament's games, talk Boise State's best basketball season in school history, reflect on Valpo basketball memories (and his big shot vs. Oregon), and hype Valparaiso's alumni team in The Basketball Tournament, The Cru, which is hoping to get the call to TBT this summer. Hear Lexus and Jack's thoughts on the best and worst games of the weekend, as well as set the table for the Final Four.