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PODCAST

Hooks & Runs

A podcast about baseball, music and culture.

Hooks & Runs is a podcast about baseball, music and culture. Our podcast includes interviews with news makers in the sports and music world plus commentary from the co-hosts on interesting current and historical events. Hooks & Runs releases a new episodes every Thursday (more or less).

sports baseball

All Episodes

58:39

262 - Rube and Bill Foster: Texans in the Hall

Hooks & Runs ·

2025/09/13

Andrew "Rube" and William "Bill" Foster were half-brothers born in Calvert, Texas, 25 years apart. Rube (b. 1879) left home in the late 90s to pitch for barnstorming teams deep into the late teens. He established his name as a top pitcher in the circuit as well as a savvy businessman. In 1920, he organized the Negro National League, the first and leading organized Black baseball league. Bill (b. 1904) left the South in 1918 to look for work and play baseball and after catching on with ...

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54:48

261 - The Bill Bevens Story: As Close as you Can Get

Hooks & Runs ·

2025/09/04

Bill Bevens came within one out of throwing the first World Series no-hitter in Game 4. Also, a look at the pennant and wild card races plus some 1988 Topps baseball cards. Errata: The Giants were 14-14 in August, 9-15 in July. In the second half so far, Texas is 24-19, Seattle is 22-21 and Houston is 20-23. San Diego went 23-43 after the All-Star Break in 2021 and for some reason Craig thinks they collapse like this every year. San Diego was 43-20 in the second half in 2024. Pete Reise...

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44:10

260 - Bo Belinsky: Everything Has a Price w/ David Krell

Hooks & Runs ·

2025/08/30

David Krell is a returning guest and the author of "Bo Belinsky: The Rise, Fall and Rebound of a Playboy Pitcher," (McFarland & Co., 2025) the first full-length biography of Bo Belinsky. David Krell's official website (https://www.davidkrell.com) David Krell's Twitter (https://x.com/davidkrell) Please consider supporting Hooks & Runs by purchasing books, including those featured in this episode (if any were), through our store at Bookshop.org. Here's the link. https://bookshop.o...

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48:43

259 - Texans in the Hall: Eddie Mathews

Hooks & Runs ·

2025/08/23

Eddie Mathews played 17 seasons in the big leagues and is the only player to play for the Braves in Boston, Milwaukee and Atlanta. He hit 512 home runs in his career and was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1978. This week Hooks & Runs continues its series, Texans in the Hall, by looking back at Mathews' career. Also this episode Shohai Ohtani's latest off-the-field skirmish; Mike Trout's decline, Guy Hecker's big day and Hooks & Runs' favorite release for the second quarter 2025. Repre...

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53:57

258 - "I Was a Kid Too Back Then" w/ Rick Wise

Hooks & Runs ·

2025/08/14

Rick Wise pitched 18 seasons in the big league, beginning with is rookie year for the 1964 Philadelphia Phillies. He won 188 games in that span and achieved some notable milestones, including becoming the only pitcher in Major League history to pitch a no-hitter and hit 2 home runs in the same game. Wise was also the winning pitcher in Game 6 of the 1975 World Series - considered by many to be among the greatest World Series games ever played. Rick joins Hooks & Runs this week to reflect ...

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63:51

257 - MLB's Microbet Investigation Snares an All-Star.

Hooks & Runs ·

2025/08/08

Colorado of all teams highlights the week with a wild come-from-behind win at home against Pittsburgh. Hooks & Runs' favorite teams made big splashes at the trade deadline. MLB's microbets investigation snares Cleveland All-Star pitcher Emmanuel Clase - lockers have been cleared out, so this looks serious. Where are they now? Hooks & Runs follows up on the players suspended in last year's gambling scandal. The TV Dolls, Loose Helmet, Ozzy's funeral and "I've Got the Music in Me" close...

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48:58

256 - Southwest Conference Baseball w/ Bo Carter

Hooks & Runs ·

2025/08/01

Bo Carter is the Executive Director for the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association and an inductee into the College Sports Communicators Hall of Fame. He was media relations director for the Southwest Conference (SWC) and Big 12 Conference for a combined 22 years. His essay, "Southwest Conference Baseball HIstory," was appears in The National Pastime: Baseball in Texas and Beyond (Society of American Baseball Research (SABR), 2005). Carter has been a SABR member since 1993. Bo...

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46:27

255 - Major League Baseball Needs to Think Globally

Hooks & Runs ·

2025/07/26

Topics this week: Tampa Bay Rays sale; A Shoeless Joe's Hall of Fame promotion; The All-Star Game; The USA vs. The World; Late Night TV is in trouble; BananaBall may entertain some, but it isn't baseball; Manfred wants a salary cap; MLB's tickets are overpriced for a reason; an Ozzy Osbourne post-mortum; making money while making music. Errata: A Houston business consortium was bidding to buy the St. Louis Cardinals in the early 1950's, not the St. Louis Browns. The National League, not...

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44:42

254 - Frank Robinson is Underrated (Texans in the Hall)

Hooks & Runs ·

2025/07/17

Frank Robinson was born in Beaumont, Texas, raised in Oakland, California, and established himself among baseball's most feared hitter and fierest competitors for over a decade. Robinson had over 2,900 hits, hit 586 home runs and drove in over 1,800 runs over 21 big league seasons that included two part-time years as Cleveland's player-manager. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1982. Links: Frank Robinson's career stats at Retrosheet: https://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/...

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52:31

253 - Microbets, 1980's Baseball Cards, and Fare Thee...

Hooks & Runs ·

2025/07/11

This week on the show, baseball's microbets scandal, another Topps pack - this time from 1986 - and Ozzy's "farewell" concert. See the two Luis Ortiz pitches in question here: Cody Williams, "These are the two pitches that got Luis Ortiz investigated for gambling by MLB," July 3, 2025, Fansided.com (accessed July 9, 2025). https://tinyurl.com/hooks253 Errata: Whitey Herzog was not the Royal's manager in 1983's Pine Tar Game. The team's manager was Dick Howser. Len Dykstra never played for the...

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53:05

252 - Jaws at 50 w/ Cassandra Hager

Hooks & Runs ·

2025/07/04

Film critic Cassandra Hager (Cinefied) joins us this week to reflect on "Jaws," released 50 years ago last month. Cassandra Hager on Cinefied - https://www.cinefied.com/cassandrahager Cassandra Hager on Twitter - https://x.com/TheMovieMermaid Cassangra Hager All Links - https://cassandrahager.carrd.co/ Errata - "Airplane '74" and "Airplane '77"were actually "Airport '75" and "Airport '77." Jacqueline Bisset was in "The Deep," not "Jaws: The Revenge;" something for which I'm sure she's q...

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61:28

251 - Talking Talking Heads w/ Jonathan Gould

Hooks & Runs ·

2025/06/26

Jonathan Gould's latest book is "Burning Down the House: Talking Heads and the New York Scene That Transformed Rock" (Meridian Books 2025). Gould has previously written books about The Beatles and Otis Redding -- his shorter works appear in The New Yorker. Gould is a New York City native; he attended ballgames at The Polo Grounds as a child and is a Mets fan. Jonathan Gould's Website - https://www.jonathangouldauthor.com/ You can support Hooks & Runs by purchasing books, including t...

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55:08

The Clout or an Out Club

Hooks & Runs ·

2025/06/19

Three players in big league history have more than one career home run but no other hits. Two were players that got only a cup of coffee or two in the big leagues; the third, believe it or not, was a pitcher. We have their stories. Plus - the Rafael Devers trade, reflecting on Sly Stone and Brian Wilson, and some 1989 baseball cards. Errata: Nolan Fontana was claimed off waivers by the Angels, not the Dodgers. Andy van Slyke won 5 Gold Glove Awards, not 3. Houston replaced Bill Virdon with Bo...

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49:02

249 - He Went Two for Five the Next Game w/ Beverly...

Hooks & Runs ·

2025/06/13

In April 1950, Jim Martin, a catcher for the West Texas New Mexico League’s Pampa Oilers, was violently struck by lightning during a game in Abilene, Texas. He not only survived the strike but he played the next game, going two for five. This week, Martin's daughter, Beverly Winter-Donaho, joins us to discuss Martin and his time in the minors during the 40s and 50s. In part two, Craig visits PNC Park and what's left of Forbes Field in Pittsburgh. Errata: Joe Nuxhall made his Major League debu...

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54:10

248 - Ernie Banks: Absurdly Simple & Impossibly...

Hooks & Runs ·

2025/06/05

In this episode, we talk with Doug Wilson, author of Let's Play Two: The Legend of Mr. Cub, the Life of Ernie Banks (Rowman & Littlefield, 2019), to explore the life and legacy of one of baseball’s most beloved figures. Doug shares insights into his research process, the hidden layers of Ernie Banks’ personality, and what makes this Hall of Famer’s story still resonate today. From growing up in segregated Dallas, Texas, to becoming a two-time MVP and a beacon of positivity on and off the ...

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41:59

Ep. 47 - They Were All in Love with Songs w/ Tamara...

Hooks & Runs ·

2025/05/20

Craig and Rex are taking a break in May giving them a change to feature some favorite episodes from the archives and you an chance to catch up on other episodes you may have missed or wish to revisit. This episode from the vault features our interview with Tamara Saviano, author, journalist, publicist and Grammy-nominated record producer, and writer and co-director of the documentary "Without Getting Killed or Caught." The documentary tells the story about the life and career of Guy and...

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75:27

133 - We Weren't Rained Out, We Were Rained In w/...

Hooks & Runs ·

2025/05/05

Craig and Rex are taking a break in May giving them a change to feature some favorite episodes from the archives and you an chance to catch up on other episodes you may have missed or wish to revisit. This episode from early 2023 is our interview with Roger Metzger, the Houston Astros' Gold Glove winning shortstop in the 1970s. Hooks & Runs will resume with new episodes on June 5. The show notes for Episode 133 are here: https://www.buzzsprout.com/875794/episodes/11991967 Hook...

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47:59

247 - "A Stranger Among His Own Kind:" Rogers Hornsby...

Hooks & Runs ·

2025/04/27

Rogers Hornsby won seven batting titles, hit .358 in his 23-year Major League career and remains the all-time batting average leader both among right handed hitters and in the National League. He managed the 1926 St. Louis Cardinals to franchise's first World Series title only to be traded two months later in a salary dispute. Hornsby's career and personal life were marked by conflict, antagonism, lawsuits, acrimony and bitterness. But the man could hit. This week we return to our series, Tex...

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55:40

246 - Remembering the St. Louis Browns w/ Ed Wheatley

Hooks & Runs ·

2025/04/17

Ed Wheatley, president of the St. Louis Browns Historical Society, joins us this week to discuss the Browns, an American League team from 1902 to 1953. Wheatley is the co-author of "St. Louis Browns: The Story of a Beloved Team" (Reedy Press 2017), which was selected best book published on baseball in 2017 by Sports Collectors Digest and nominated for the Larry Ritter Award as the best book on baseball published in 2017 by Society for American Baseball Research. Wheatley was also techni...

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54:25

245 - Disco Was Fun! Baseball, Music & Culture in...

Hooks & Runs ·

2025/04/11

David Krell is author of "1978: Baseball and America in the Disco Era," (University of Nebraska Press, 2025). His book explores the wild 1978 major league season with features on the American League East race that went to a 163rd game, iconic players from the era like Pete Rose and Dave Kingman and cultural flashpoints from film, TV and music. In this interview, Krell gives us a glimpse into this tumultuous, pivotal year in American history and culture. SPOILER ALERT: This episode contains a ...

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234 results

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