The NBA, NHL and Major League Baseball are all in various states of uncertainty regarding potential returns to play.

In this week’s “Madden Monday” podcast, Mark Madden and I discuss which league is most likely to return in a form familiar to its viewers.

I say it’s the NBA. That league feels to me like it is the easiest to plug back in and get the players up to speed.

I think the NHL will be sloppy and sluggish, and the goalies will be rusty. I think MLB will see bastardized versions of pitching changes and bench usage that will impact the strategies of games tremendously.

It’ll be like a postseason mentality to regular season games.

Those are my opinions. Listen to what Mark has to say. You can cast your vote here.

We also talk about the Pirates draft and what their approach says about future plans — or lack thereof. Specifically, we analyze why they didn’t take West Allegheny product Austin Hendrick. Mark thinks that could’ve been a mistake. And I wonder if how things ended with Neil Walker factored into that decision.

Mark also discusses the strategy that Kyrie Irving is discussing about NBA players potentially staying off the court in the wake of George Floyd’s death. Mark and I are on the same page as to why that may be counterproductive and why LeBron James’ opinion may weigh heavily into the conversation.

Also get Mark’s feedback on my post about John Harbaugh. I applauded the Baltimore Ravens coach for ripping the NFL’s social distancing measures. But Mark seems to think Harbaugh is just complaining because these details make his job more difficult to manage.

Take a listen and tell us where you fall.

Then we get into the social distancing measures that really matter — the ones that involve Mark when he goes out into the “green phase” to get prime rib.

Listen: Tim Benz and Mark Madden discuss which league is most likely to return in a form familiar to its fans

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