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PODCAST

Back When There Was Baseball

Step into the golden era of America"s Pastime with "Back When There Was Baseball." Uncover the untold stories, thrilling triumphs, and heart-wrenching trials of the sport"s most iconic figures, spanning from the mid-1960s to the mid-1980s - a transformative era when the baton was gracefully handed from titans like Hank Aaron, Orlando Cepeda, Mickey Mantle, and Willie Mays to the new generation of legends like Johnny Bench, George Brett, Mike Schmidt, and Nolan Ryan. Each episode of "Back When There

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All Episodes

49:04

Back When There Was Baseball: Jack DiLauro

Back When There Was Baseball ·

2023/12/28

Who has the New York Mets' 3rd best ERA with over 50 innings pitched with the club? His name is Jack DiLauro and he joins us this week. Jack was a part of the 1969 "Miracle Mets" pitching staff. He did not pitch in the postseason that year, however his 2.40 ERA helped the Mets get there. Jack only played 2 years in the Majors and was part of an unfortunate situation of being in the Detroit Tiger organization behind their great pitching staff even though he had a great record in their farm

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51:48

Back When There Was Baseball: Frank Carpin

Back When There Was Baseball ·

2023/12/28

Frank Carpin joins us this week. Frank played baseball at Notre Dame and was signed into the New York Yankees organization in 1959. The Yankees were known for their great farm system, but at this time (early 1960s) they stripped their coaches out and moved them up to the Big Leagues. This story is how bad the Yankees farm system became which led to their mediocre performance during the CBS years (1965-1972). Frank was part of that minor league system but overcame it with a solid year with the

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57:25

Back When There Was Baseball: Bobby Bonner

Back When There Was Baseball ·

2023/12/21

This is one of the most inspirational stories you will ever hear. The subject of our podcast today is Bobby Bonner. He was a great prospect for the Orioles, drafted in the 3rd round of the 1976 MLB draft behind Cal Ripken, to replace Mark Belanger at shortstop. Unfortunately, due to an unbelievable set of circumstances and setbacks, Bobby never truly received an opportunity in the Big Leagues. However, God had other plans for Bobby's life, and he followed the Lord's calling. This is a fitting story

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53:02

Back When There Was Baseball: Bump Wills

Back When There Was Baseball ·

2023/12/14

Bump Wills joins us on the podcast this week. Bump is the son of Maury Wills and had a successful career along with his father. Bump signed his MLB contract with the Texas Rangers after playing for Bobby Winkles at Arizona State. After only 2 years in the Minor Leagues, Bump made his MLB debut in 1977 and finished 3rd in the running for Rookie of the Year. He played with the Rangers from 1977-1981, then moved over to the National League for a year with the Chicago Cubs. Bump has some great

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43:56

Back When There Was Baseball: Gary Ryerson

Back When There Was Baseball ·

2023/12/07

There are two MLB pitchers that were inflicted with polio that we know of. We had Rich Hand on this podcast a few weeks ago and now we have the second, Gary Ryerson. Gary talks about pitching with polio and doing so effectively. He was very close to enrolling at Arizona State, but accepted an offer from the San Francisco Giants. Gary pitched in the Majors and Minors from 1966 through 1976. Listen in as he recounts his career and some very interesting stories Back When There Was Baseball.

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52:30

Back When There Was Baseball: 1975 World Series with...

Back When There Was Baseball ·

2023/11/30

What a better way to celebrate baseball than to revisit the 1975 World Series between the Boston Red Sox and the Cincinnati Reds. With us is Pat Darcy. Pat was on the mound when Carlton Fisk hit his infamous home run in Game 6 of this series. Pat shares his memories not only of that game, but of the culmination of the Reds first World Series victory under manager Sparky Anderson. He also discusses what changed the course of direction for the Reds in the regular season that allowed them to win 108

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54:39

Back When There Was Baseball: Jake O'Donnell

Back When There Was Baseball ·

2023/11/23

Who is the only person to officiate All-Star games in both MLB and the NBA? We have him as our guest this week and his name is Jake O'Donnell. Jake is more noted for his outstanding NBA officiating career (1967-1995), but we are talking with Jake about his MLB umpiring career which spanned from 1967-1971. Jake was the second-base umpire in that momentous 1971 All-Star game held at Tiger Stadium in Detroit. He discusses Reggie Jackson's monstrous home run along with being on the field with so many

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45:03

Back When There Was Baseball: Hector Cruz

Back When There Was Baseball ·

2023/11/16

Hector Cruz joins us this week. Hector signed his MLB contract at age 17 in 1970. He came from Arroyo, Puerto Rico along with brothers Jose and Tommy. His career spanned from 1970-1982 along with playing in Japan in 1983. Hector talks about his journey to the U.S. with very little understanding of English. He worked his way to the Big Leagues first appearing in 1973 with the St. Louis Cardinals. Join us Back When There Was Baseball with Hector Cruz as he discusses his career.

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52:07

Back When There Was Baseball: Rich Hand

Back When There Was Baseball ·

2023/11/09

Pitcher Rich Hand is our guest this week. Rich is one of only two pitchers in MLB history that played with polio (Gary Ryerson being the other). You will enjoy Rich's stories about playing for the Alaska Goldpanners with Bob Boone, Dave Kingman, Dan Pastorini (yes, the Houston Oilers quarterback) among many others. Rich had some solid seasons with Cleveland and Texas in the early 1970s. He was one of the few pitchers that seemed to get along with Ted Williams. You will enjoy these stories and many

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46:25

Back When There Was Baseball: Ted Power

Back When There Was Baseball ·

2023/11/02

The time machine travels back to the 1980s to take a look at our guest this week, Ted Power. Ted had an interesting path to the Major Leagues, through amateur baseball and Kansas State University. Ted ended up stuck in the mix with a lot of great young pitchers in the Los Angeles Dodgers organization, but on October 15, 1982 he got his break, being traded to the Cincinnati Reds. His best years were with Cincinnati in 1984 (11 saves) and 1985 (27 saves). He is one of the few pitchers who was able

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49:50

Back When There Was Baseball: Ken Rudolph

Back When There Was Baseball ·

2023/10/31

This week we take a look at another catcher from the late 1960s to the late 1970s. Ken Rudolph is our guest. Ken played in the Majors from 1969-1977 with the Cubs, Giants, Cardinals and Orioles. In this era of baseball, the backup catcher was vitally important. Ken talks about what it was like to play sparingly, keep in shape not only defensively, but also at the plate with the bat. He also talks about some of the managers he played for Back When There Was Baseball, which includes Leo

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01:03:31

Back When There Was Baseball: Paul Hartzell

Back When There Was Baseball ·

2023/10/26

We have a Pennsylvania player today, but not one who played for the Philadelphia Phillies or Pittsburgh Pirates. Paul Hartzell played high school baseball for Central Columbia High School near Bloomsburg, PA, then went on to Lehigh University. Paul made it to the Big Leagues for the 1976 season with the California Angels. He was part of that pitching staff which included Nolan Ryan and Frank Tanana. Paul was a starter and reliever with the Angels from 1976-1978. He then went to the Minnesota Twins

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57:59

Back When There Was Baseball: Balor Moore

Back When There Was Baseball ·

2023/10/18

Balor Moore is our guest this week. Balor started his career on fire with an ERA under 1.00 in his first season in A ball in 1969. He got his first opportunity in the Big Leagues with the Montreal Expos in 1970 and had a really good season in 1972. Unfortunately, Balor gave up Mike Schmidt's (1972) and Mike Tyson's (1973) first home runs. Balor had a thrill of a lifetime when he threw a perfect game in November of 1973 in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Balor is a fascinating story and he is fantastic at

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41:24

Back When There Was Baseball: Buzz Capra

Back When There Was Baseball ·

2023/10/12

Buzz Capra joins us this week on the podcast. Buzz was drafted by the New York Mets in 1969 while leading Illinois State to a Division II National Championship. His career lasted from 1969-1977 and he had a part in some great seasons. Buzz was a member of the New York Mets roster that made it to the 1973 World Series, losing to the Oakland A's in 7 games. He was sold to the Atlanta Braves in March of 1974 and the Braves cashed in as Buzz led MLB with a 2.28 ERA. He started 27 games, finishing

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56:18

Back When There Was Baseball: Len Matuszek

Back When There Was Baseball ·

2023/10/04

If you are a long-time Phillies fan, you will remember our guest this week. Len Matuszek joins us to discuss his career. Rex remembered Len's contributions in the last month of the 1983 season which culminated in a World Series appearance for the Phils. Len also had a solid 1984 season before being shipped to Toronto. He was a rare 2-sport athlete in college (Toledo) and came to the Phillies with high promise, but never was given much of an opportunity. Len discusses his career and how he ended up

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50:06

Back When There Was Baseball: Steve Busby

Back When There Was Baseball ·

2023/09/28

Our guest this week was headed for a stellar career as a pitcher until a torn rotator cuff cost him his career. Do you remember Steve Busby, Kansas City Royals pitcher 1972-1980? Steve talks about his career from high school into his stint at USC during their great days in the late 1960s/early 1970s. He had three very good years in the Majors from 1973-1975, which included two no-hitters. Let's go Back When There Was Baseball this week and let Steve Busby talk about his MLB career and how those

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49:25

Back When There Was Baseball: Tom Griffin

Back When There Was Baseball ·

2023/09/28

It is rare that a player who played in every year during the decade of the 1970s is not recognized by either Rex or Steve, but our guest this week fits into that category. Tom Griffin joins us this week as we delve into his "mysterious" career. When we looked at Tom's stats, we were left scratching our heads as to how a player with this much impact on the game went unrecognized by us. Tom had a career record of 77-94 with an ERA of 4.07. He played for the Houston Astros, San Diego Padres,

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49:11

Back When There Was Baseball: Andy McGaffigan

Back When There Was Baseball ·

2023/09/21

Our guest this week is pitcher Andy McGaffigan. Andy played in the Majors from 1981 through 1991. He has a career record of 38-33 with a respectable ERA of 3.38. Listen in as Andy discusses playing in the Division II World Series, how tough it was to play baseball in Montreal, along with what it was like being a relief pitcher and spot-starter Back When There Was Baseball.

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45:42

Back When There Was Baseball: Ken Tatum

Back When There Was Baseball ·

2023/09/14

Today's guest is Ken Tatum, relief pitcher 1969-1974. Ken played college baseball at Mississippi State and signed with the California Angels after college. The Angels brought him up to the big leagues in 1969 and he responded with a great season. He appeared in 45 games, saving 22 of them with an ERA of 1.36. Ken also finished 4th in the 1969 AL Rookie of the Year balloting. He was having another good season in 1970, when he hit Paul Blair with a pitch that broke Blair's nose and sidelined him for

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55:36

Back When There Was Baseball: Phil Roof

Back When There Was Baseball ·

2023/09/07

Phil Roof joins us on the podcast this week. Phil started his baseball career in 1959 signed by the Milwaukee Braves and lasted through the 1977 season. He played for the Milwaukee Braves, Los Angeles and California Angels, Cleveland Indians, Kansas City and Oakland A's, Milwaukee Brewers, Minnesota Twins, Chicago White Sox and Toronto Blue Jays. Phil caught one of the best pitching staffs in the game's history with Cleveland (Sam McDowell, Luis Tiant and Sonny Siebert to name a few). He also

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