The Detroit Tigers traded two-time Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal to the Los Angeles Dodgers for a package headlined by prospect Zaire Hope and minor leaguer River Ryan, and Ben Maller is not…
Ben Maller — Podcast Appearances & AI Summaries
Ben Maller has appeared on 121 podcast episodes in our AI-summarized catalog, including The Ben Maller Show. Every appearance below has a free 5-minute AI summary.
What Ben said
“It's a tremendous marketing stunt. I'm jealous. When I first got into radio, one of the things that I was attracted to about radio is everyone used to do these kind of dopey things. It was great.”
— Ben Maller on Clay Travis's WNBA challenge
“If you're Akron, the Akron Zips, you are never going to be Alabama or Notre Dame. So what you need to be is the Savannah Bananas.”
— Ben Maller on the Akron Zips' fan play-calling promotion
“Quantum physics means there are two realities existing at once. On one hand, deGrom absolutely has a full no-trade clause. That is his right. It also looks horrendous. The guy chose comfort over competition.”
— Ben Maller on deGrom's veto
“If you hire Dave Dombrowski and expect him to be conservative with your minor league players, you are a dumbo. The Phillies are trying to win a championship, unlike Jacob deGrom. They are not trying to win a beauty pageant for their minor league system.”
— Ben Maller on the Phillies' deadline approach
“Most modern superstars would rather eat a dish of glass than change positions midseason. If you don't believe me, ask Rafael Devers about that. He had a hissy fit. That's why his ass was traded.”
— Ben Maller on Bryce Harper's team-first move
“The guy's body has more warning labels than a TNT fireworks stand right before the 4th of July.”
— Ben Maller on Adley Rutschman's injury history.
“You can trade within the division. You've just gotta be right, and then it doesn't matter.”
— Ben Maller on the outdated taboo of intra-division trades.
“Stats tell you what has happened, not what's going to happen.”
— Ben Maller on the unpredictability of playoff baseball.
“This is Hall of Fame level spin, spin, spin, spin, spin, spin, spin, the baseball version of listen, my phone auto-corrected my attitude on that text.”
— Ben Maller on Pedro Martinez's defense of Rafael Devers.
“The DeWitt's run the Cardinals like a family hardware store. Bill Jr. hands the keys to his kid, and the customers still can't find where the working power tools are and they don't understand why all of the flowers in the lawn and garden section are dying.”
— Ben Maller on the Cardinals' leadership change.
“It was his version of 'I tried to tell you.' That's what it sounded like. I tried to tell you. You wouldn't listen to me. Tried to tell you. He's like, this is what I dealt with.”
— Ben Maller, on Alex Cora's cryptic post about Rafael Devers.
“Jazz is not just stubborn. He's a full-time employee at the Department of Bad Decisions. The DBD.”
— Ben Maller, on Jazz Chisholm Jr.'s refusal to wear a cup.
Episode appearances
121 On a recent episode of The Fifth Hour, Ben Maller shared a story that began with a listener's innocent question and ended with him crashing headfirst into a wall in his own home. The question,…
"Great Googly Moogly." The NFL is back — kind of. The Hall of Fame game kicked off the exhibition schedule in Canton, Ohio, and with it came the annual overreaction machine. Ben Maller, host of…
Running Backs Get Paid: The NFL's New Short-Term Blueprint The Detroit Lions just handed Jameer Gibbs a three-year, $67.5 million extension with $51.5 million guaranteed, making him the…
Aaron Rodgers held a press conference to insist that public criticism does not bother him. Ben Maller's response: thumbs down. Maller argued that humans are hardwired to seek acceptance, and the…
The NFL Has Finally Stopped Being Stupid About Running Backs The Detroit Lions just made Jameer Gibbs the highest-paid running back in NFL history at $22.5 million per year, and Ben Maller's…
The Race Is On: Otani, the Dodgers' Slide, and Baseball's Tanking Incentive Problem The National League MVP race has tightened dramatically. According to prediction markets, Chicago Cubs…
"Fans of something called the Motor City Cruise... can pay $250 for a chance at blank." The answer, as Ben Maller reveals after a parade of listener guesses (a makeover, a Taco Bell vending…
In the fourth hour of the Ben Maller Show, host Ben Maller takes on three NFL storylines that all revolve around a single question: when a team or coach publicly backs a veteran player, are they…
Best of The Ben Maller Show The National League MVP race has tightened dramatically. According to prediction markets, Chicago Cubs outfielder Pete Crow-Armstrong has leapfrogged Shohei Ohtani as…
Hour 2 – Dirty Money The Atlanta Falcons just made Bijan Robinson the highest-paid running back in NFL history, and Ben Maller is not sure whether to applaud or laugh. The deal: three years, up to…
Hour 3 – A Trip to Rodgers' World Aaron Rodgers did not get punished by the Pittsburgh Steelers after he went on Pat McAfee's show and called Dr. Anthony Fauci "an absolute coward" over his Senate…
Best of The Ben Maller Show The night Ben Maller opened his show, the Chicago Cubs beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 5-1 at Wrigley Field, spoiling Tarik Skubal's much-hyped debut in Dodger Blue.…
Ben Maller opened his show the night of August 5 by watching the much-hyped Dodgers debut of pitcher Tarik Skubal, acquired in a blockbuster trade from Detroit. Skubal delivered a quality start —…
"48 trades in the last 28 hours before the deadline." That was the volume at the 2026 MLB trade deadline, and on the Ben Maller Show, the host spent the hour dissecting three of the biggest…
On the night of the MLB trade deadline, the Texas Rangers had a deal in place to send two-time Cy Young winner Jacob deGrom to the Atlanta Braves. The framework was lined up. All deGrom had to do…
"Some people say it's wrong to be this into sports," the ad says, but for Ben Maller, the trade deadline is a sacred ritual. On this episode of The Ben Maller Show, the host delivers a blistering…
The MLB trade deadline produced a flurry of moves, but the Ben Maller Show spent the fourth hour arguing that most of the big-name acquisitions were overhyped. The dominant theme: teams traded for…
The Tigers Gave Away Their Ace, and Everyone Has an Opinion The 2026 MLB trade deadline produced 48 trades in the final 28 hours before the 6 PM Eastern cutoff, but the deal that still has…
The New York Knicks just won the NBA championship, but Ben Maller is already calling them a one-hit wonder. He compares them to the Baha Men, the band behind "Who Let the Dogs Out" — a song that…
LeBron James Is Leaving the Lakers, and the Reason Is Simpler Than You Think The night LeBron James told the Lakers he was leaving, Ben Maller wasn't surprised. The reason had less to do with…
The Ben Maller Show: Ja Morant to Portland, Jalen Duren's Escape, and the Grizzlies' Reset The NBA transaction season kicked off with a thud, not a bang. After months of trying to unload two-time…
The Detroit Lions released defensive back Terrion Arnold shortly after he posted a $1 million bond in Florida, where he faces multiple felony charges including armed robbery and kidnapping. The…
The NBA's "silly season" is in full swing, and the Ben Maller Show spent a packed episode sorting through a swirl of trade rumors, player grievances, and legal trouble. The dominant theme was the…
The Buffalo Bills are opening a new stadium, and they have decided that O.J. Simpson—the franchise’s greatest running back, a Hall of Famer, and a double murderer—will not be part of the public…
Warriors chasing a nostalgia act, Clippers listening on Kawhi, and Jalen Brown fires back at the nerds The NBA rumor mill is churning at full speed as free agency approaches, and the most…
Ben Maller’s annual golf outing is not a trip to St. Andrews or Augusta National. It is a trip to Holy Moley, a miniature golf course in a cocktail bar where the obstacles are designed by people…
The United States men’s national team had already clinched advancement in the World Cup when they took the field against Turkey. They had won their group. The knockout round was secured. So head…
The Charlotte Hornets traded LaMelo Ball to the Minnesota Timberwolves in a deal that sent Naz Reid and a package of draft picks to Charlotte, and the Lakers are already looking to move on from…
Hour 1 - Micah Nori's Contract The Portland Trail Blazers gave new head coach Micah Nori a one-year guaranteed contract with team options on the second and third years, paying below market base…
The Los Angeles Lakers have decided to make Austin Reaves a foundational piece, signing him to a four-year, $185 million max contract — the richest deal ever given to an undrafted player in NBA…
Baseball Power Hour: Devers, Senga, and the Cardinals' Quiet Decline The Ben Maller Show's "Baseball Power Hour" opened with a pointed question: does Hall of Famer Pedro Martinez's defense of…
The New York Times recently published a lengthy investigation into Diana Russini, a former NFL reporter for the paper, and her relationship with New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel. The…
"Four years, $185 million max contract." That is the number that opens the episode, and it belongs to Austin Reaves, the undrafted guard who just re-signed with the Lakers. The Ben Maller Show…
"Washington is not a franchise that is playing basketball. They're a navigational hazard." That is how Ben Maller greeted the news that AJ Dybantsa had been drafted first overall by the Washington…
Hour 2 - Rafael Devers Apologizes? "Nobody believes any of this," Ben Maller says about Rafael Devers' public apology after the Giants first baseman waved off a pinch runner, covered his face with…
The NFL's Door Slam on Brendan Sorsby and the Falcons' Bet on Kyle Pitts The NFL canceled the 2026 supplemental draft entirely rather than let quarterback Brendan Sorsby enter the league. Sorsby,…
The NBA draft is hours away, but the real fireworks came overnight when the Milwaukee Bucks traded Giannis Antetokounmpo and Bobby Portis to the Miami Heat. The deal, which had been rumored for…
The Minnesota Timberwolves traded Julius Randle and the 28th pick in the NBA draft to the Brooklyn Nets as part of a three-team deal and got back only the 33rd pick. Ben Maller calls it a "pure…
Hour 3 - Mayday! The Ben Maller Show's third hour opens with a coaching carousel bombshell: Dusty May, fresh off winning the 2026 national championship with Michigan, has quit the Wolverines to…
Hour 4 - Stand By Your Man? San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle recently appeared on a Barstool Sports podcast and offered a deceptively polite assessment of his former teammate Brandon…
The Ben Maller Show opened its Monday episode with three distinct storylines that dominated the NFL and golf worlds over Father's Day weekend: a viral video accusing Jets quarterback Geno Smith of…
The Greek Freak Sweepstakes and the UFC's Billion-Dollar Flex The NBA draft is 48 hours away, and according to Ben Maller, the Milwaukee Bucks are no longer managing a superstar — they're…
"Checking account." That was the answer to Ben Maller's riddle of the day: Mark Cuban said that when he ran the Dallas Mavericks, a number of players showed up making $850,000 or more who didn't…
Rafael Devers, the $313 million San Francisco Giants slugger, was pulled for a pinch runner in the ninth inning of a 2-1 loss to the Marlins on Sunday. He responded by wagging his finger at…
In a world where what looks popular online is often anything but, Ben Maller delivers a Saturday sermon on the manufactured nature of digital culture. Drawing from his own experience peeking…
The 2016 Cleveland Cavaliers championship reunion in Europe was missing one key figure: Kyrie Irving. When J.R. Smith was asked about it, he didn't mince words. "He was invited and ghosted us…
Hour 4 - Twin Killing The Minnesota Twins are a bad baseball team that just got worse, and their star outfielder Byron Buxton has made it clear he's not leaving. "I don't give an F," Buxton told…
Myles Garrett is walking a tightrope. Speaking on a podcast with friends and family, the Browns star defensive end addressed the possibility of Aaron Donald coming out of retirement to join the…
The NBA's Offseason Chatter Machine: LeBron, Kevin Love, and the Economics of Winning The NBA rumor mill is in full swing, and Ben Maller is not buying it. On this episode of The Ben Maller Show,…
Hour 3 - Just a Shoe The Ben Maller Show opens its third hour with a monologue about shoes—specifically, the disastrous launch of Caitlin Clark's signature Nike sneaker. But the shoe story is just…
Best of The Ben Maller Show — June 18, 2026 The episode opens with Myles Garrett walking a tightrope. Asked about the possibility of Aaron Donald coming out of retirement to form a super defense…
The Dallas Cowboys' George Pickens showed up to mandatory minicamp, which counts as news in June. Ben Maller is skeptical. Pickens, who skipped voluntary OTAs and was unhappy about the franchise…
Hour 2 - Tuckered Out Kyle Tucker, the Dodgers' $15.5 million-per-year outfielder, is off to a miserable start in Los Angeles. When asked about it, he didn't deflect or get defensive. He said, "It…
Brendan Sorsby, a college quarterback who admitted to placing over 9,000 bets—including wagers on his own team’s games—and was ruled permanently ineligible by the NCAA, had a brief moment of hope…
The Knicks finally won a championship, and according to a media narrative that Ben Maller spends the hour dismantling, the credit goes not to the players or coaching but to a giant glowing orb in…
The UFC’s White House fight card cost over $60 million to produce, making it the most expensive event in the promotion’s history. Dana White has since declared it a “one of one” that will never…
The Ben Maller Show's latest episode is a rapid-fire tour through the most chaotic corners of sports, anchored by a major plot twist in the Brendan Sorsby gambling saga. The quarterback who…
Victor Wembanyama did not shake hands with the Knicks after losing the NBA Finals. He untucked his jersey, marched off the court, and went straight to the locker room. Ben Maller, host of The Ben…
The No-Struggle Bus: Hockey, Soccer, and NFL Drama The Carolina Hurricanes won the Stanley Cup by doing something that should not have worked. They handed the net to a 27-year-old undrafted backup…
The NBA Finals ended over the weekend, and the San Antonio Spurs lost to the New York Knicks in five games. But the result itself is not the story Ben Maller wants to talk about. The story is how…
The San Antonio Spurs had just blown a 29-point lead in the NBA Finals, and Ben Maller was watching the game while eating a burrito he suspected might contain moldy cheese. The burrito won.…
Ben Maller’s dishwasher flooded his kitchen, he burned his finger testing it, and he spent a week hand-washing dishes while waiting for a repairman. That is the literal story of “Lake Maller.” But…
Hour 2 - Early Voting George Kittle, the 49ers tight end, recently called anyone who puts head coach Kyle Shanahan on the hot seat "not the smartest." Ben Maller pushes back: it's uncomfortable…
"18 of the last 29 Cy Young winners and MVPs have had him as clients." That is the statistic Ben Maller drops to explain why Major League Baseball's investigation into Dr. Neil ElAttrache, the…
The Spurs Didn't Lose Because of a Whistle The NBA's last two-minute report for Game 4 of the Finals confirmed what anyone watching already suspected: the referees blew a call. With just over a…
The San Antonio Spurs held a 29-point lead in the third quarter of Game 4 of the NBA Finals. They lost 107-106. "Holy Choke City Batman," Ben Maller opens, and he spends the hour performing a…
The San Antonio Spurs blew a 29-point lead in the NBA Finals, and broadcaster Richard Jefferson used the moment to float a provocative hypothetical: the Golden State Warriors would trade both of…
The Philadelphia Eagles traded wide receiver A.J. Brown to the New England Patriots this offseason, and the fallout has been a slow bleed. Brown recently told reporters that his relationship with…
Victor Wembanyama shoved Jalen Brunson to the floor in Game 3 of the NBA Finals, and the league decided not to upgrade the no-call to a flagrant foul. That decision, and the reasoning behind it,…
The Knicks had not lost in 46 days. They were up 2-0 in the NBA Finals. Fans had the parade route mapped out. Then came Game 3, and Victor Wembanyama woke up: 32 points, eight rebounds, six…
The Chicago Cubs' $175 million free-agent signing Alex Bregman has admitted he has been "terrible" this season, and host Ben Maller is not letting anyone forget it. Bregman, the former Houston…
"Purple praise" is the phrase Ben Maller uses to frame the throughline of this hour: a close reading of what NFL players and coaches really mean when they talk about their quarterbacks. The…
Brandon Aiyuk, the 49ers wide receiver who signed a $120 million extension in 2024, posted a video over the weekend wearing a Washington Commanders hat, comparing himself to a toy the 49ers don't…
The Nerd Turd: Manny Machado vs. Baseball's Analytics Overload The San Diego Padres had just gone 2-11 over their last 13 games, and Manny Machado was hitting .169 — a career low that made him the…
Denzel Ward stood at his own celebrity softball game over the weekend and said he wants to retire a Cleveland Brown. He does not want to be traded, even though the Browns just traded away Miles…
The NBA marketed Victor Wembanyama as a genetically engineered Greek god, the unstoppable force who would take the baton from LeBron and own the league. Two games into the NBA Finals, Ben Maller…
“I'm not gonna tell you. I don't want to see it.” That’s Ben Maller’s immediate response when Mike the Leprechaun—the only human being in history with a Ben Maller tattoo—calls in to host the…
In the sprawling, chaotic ecosystem of the Ben Maller Show, a controversy erupted this week over a listener known as Ferg Dog — a character Maller describes as "harmless in the way a sloth is…
The Bronx Bummer Aaron Judge has been diagnosed with a stress fracture in a rib on his right side, just days after the Yankees said it was a day-to-day injury. The team now says Judge will miss…
The NBA Finals are underway, and the biggest story from Game 1 wasn't the Knicks' 11-0 closing run to erase a 14-point Spurs lead. It was a juvenile fan who ran onto the court with 6:28 left in…
Hour 3 - Kicked Out of Heaven Ben Maller opens the third hour of his overnight show with three distinct sports stories that share a common thread: organizations and players stuck in cycles of…
“Potential means you haven’t done anything. You lose jobs on potential. He got paid on potential. I like production.” That line from Ben Maller captures the throughline of this hour of the Ben…
The New York Yankees have done it again. Aaron Judge, diagnosed with a stress fracture in his right rib, will miss what the team calls “significant time”—likely at least three months, with a…
Hour 1 - Choked Away The San Antonio Spurs held a 14-point lead with 18 minutes to play in Game 1 of the NBA Finals at home. They lost by 10. The Knicks closed the game on an 11-0 run, outscored…
The 49ers' disgruntled wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk has an arrest warrant out for him — not for anything violent, but for a misdemeanor charge of "exhibition of speed" after he posted a video of…
The Air Up There: NBA Politics, NFL Power Plays, and the Art of the Stiff-Arm The NBA Finals are underway, but the most revealing stories in sports this week aren't happening on the court. They're…
The San Antonio Spurs blew a 14-point lead in Game 1 of the 2026 NBA Finals, losing 105-95 to the New York Knicks at home. But the real story, according to Ben Maller, is not the Knicks'…
The Return of the NFL Book'Em: Ben Maller's Offseason Lottery Is Back The Ben Maller Show revived its long-dormant "NFL Book'Em" segment — a lottery-style draft where hosts and callers pick NFL…
The New York Knicks have won eleven straight playoff games, all by double digits, and enter the NBA Finals with the best point differential in postseason history. The San Antonio Spurs have Victor…
Hour 3 - Judge's Chambers The Yankees are telling everyone that Aaron Judge's rib injury is minor, but Ben Maller isn't buying it. Judge has been dealing with what the team initially called…
Hour 4 - Extra Fluff The fourth hour of the Ben Maller Show opens with the fallout from the AJ Brown trade still dominating the NFL conversation, but the tone shifts sharply depending on which…
The biggest story in sports this week is the Los Angeles Rams trading for defensive end Myles Garrett, a move Ben Maller calls "the defining move of the offseason" and one that effectively ends…
Ben Maller was standing outside Bova's Bakery in Boston's North End after midnight, pastry box in hand, when he made the mistake of opening Instagram. Within seconds, Blind Scott—a longtime…
The NFL Schedule Release Is a Glorified Grocery List The NFL has turned basic math into a national holiday. A countdown clock, live TV specials, two-hour pregame shows—all for a calendar. As Ben…
The NBA's No-Call, the Draft Lottery's Flawed Math, and the Rams' PR Crisis Ben Maller opens hour two with three distinct but connected grievances about how professional sports leagues handle…
The Phillies' Turnaround, Cal Raleigh's Crash, and Florida's Subpoena of the NFL The Phillies fired manager Rob Thompson after a 9-19 start—a .321 winning percentage through 28 games—and replaced…
“I can hand on heart say that I haven't missed a single hour.” That’s Terry from England, a listener who found Ben Maller’s show in early 2017 while searching for decent American sports radio…
On this April Saturday edition of The Fifth Hour, Ben Maller opens with a confession: he has mostly stopped cursing on the podcast because recording the show after his overnight radio shift makes…
“They might still be calling us mercenaries, but we’re the hardest playing team in college basketball,” said Michigan’s Yaxel Lendenborg after cutting down the nets. That quote, delivered without…
The Fifth Hour: Maller Kentucky Pizza Ben Maller opens with a confession: adulthood is mostly about collecting things. Not junk in the garage, but people. A plumber guy. A car guy. A tax guy who…
A new photo of New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel and NFL insider Diana Russini has surfaced, this time showing them having beers at a bar in Indianapolis during the Scouting Combine. The…
"There's Got to Be Some Grace for Shohei Ohtani" The Ben Maller Show's second hour on April 10 opened with a three-part rant that connected baseball hypocrisy, Masters merchandise mania, and…
The NFL is facing a two-front legal war that could reshape the league's power structure, while the Lakers are selling fans on a linguistic trick that redefines what "courtside" means. These are…
The NFL insider Diana Russini and New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel were photographed together at a bar in Indianapolis during the scouting combine—a second image released days after the…
The Ben Maller Show: Media Silence, NIL Chaos, and the Vrabel-Russini Saga The internet gumshoes have cracked the case. Patriots coach Mike Vrabel and NFL insider Diana Russini were spotted…
The KO Kid Gets Paid The Pittsburgh Pirates just gave 19-year-old shortstop Connor Griffin a $140 million contract after he'd logged all of five days of major league service time. He's batting…
In a moment of startling candor, Anthony Davis—now a Washington Wizard—admitted on a podcast with Draymond Green that he isn't sure his 2020 NBA championship with the Lakers counts the same as a…
“This is not leadership. This is the earliest ‘not my fault’ monologue by a quarterback in recent NFL history.” That is how Ben Maller opens the fourth hour of his overnight show, zeroing in on…
The NFL media’s blue wall of silence, a $140 million bet on a teenager who has played five major league games, and the quiet resentment of umpires being judged on accuracy: these are the threads…
Stealing the Headlines The New York Post published photographs of New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel and Diana Russini, the Athletic's senior NFL insider, lounging poolside, hugging at…
"F1 Soto, F1 Soto." That rhythmic chant, with the F standing for something other than "fun," echoed through Yankee Stadium during a game against a team that wasn't even the Mets. The target was…
“You don't demand credibility. You demonstrate it on a daily basis. You earn it.” That was Ben Maller’s verdict on the cringiest NBA story of the week: Milwaukee Bucks coach Doc Rivers, whose team…
The NFL Draft's Missing Headliner and Other Offseason Signals Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza, the player expected to be selected first overall by the Las Vegas Raiders, has told the NFL he…
The Tabloid Story That Consumed an Overnight Sports Show The New York Post published photographs of New England Patriots coach Mike Vrabel and Diana Russini, the Athletic's top NFL insider, at a…
Cutting Down the Nets: Michigan's Unlikely Title and the New Reality of College Basketball The championship game that ended the college basketball season was, by nearly every aesthetic measure, a…
Hour 2 - Dipping Your Toes "Nobody, nobody had Michael Malone even interested in the North Carolina job. This was completely off the radar." That's how Ben Maller frames the most surprising…
“We like you, but just not enough to marry you.” That is how Ben Maller sums up the Los Angeles Rams’ apparent shift in strategy regarding wide receiver Puka Nacua. After a breakout rookie season…
"It's Not Like We're Some Kindergarten Sticker Chart Thing" The NFL's offseason is a slow news cycle, but Ben Maller is genuinely baffled by the reaction to one particular story: Lamar Jackson…
The Mercenary Model Wins: Michigan's NIL-Fueled Championship and the New Reality of College Sports The national championship game between Michigan and UConn was, by Ben Maller's description, "a…
“The Lakers had an inferno. It was an arson that took place so good. It was so great.” That is how Ben Maller opened his Monday show, relishing the collapse of the Los Angeles Lakers with a week…
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