Super-talented sculptor Tom Tsuchiya joins the boys to talk about his gig creating the Hall of Fame plaques, shares his favorite and most difficult creations and explains how it is possible to park a car on the Pete Rose statue outside Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati.
And, yeah, Shawn and Lou do their best to convince Tom to add mustaches to all the plaques in Cooperstown.
On July 24, 1983, MLB Rule 1.10(c) received national attention when Kansas City Royals great George Brett hit a go ahead two-run home run off New York Yankees closer Goose Gossage.
Former big league infielder Greg Pryor was there, had a locker next to Brett and witnessed the aftermath of the "Pine Tar Incident" firsthand.
Newly-minted “Cooperstown Correspondent” (and the show’s first five-time guest!), Jeff Katz joins the boys to talk about the 2019 Hall of Fame Induction ceremony, upcoming elections, how this most recent Hall of Fame Weekend nearly killed him and spending part of his weekend in a funeral home with Jay Jaffe.
Fresh off of celebrating the 40th anniversary of “The Hatching”, Ted Giannoulas (aka The Famous San Diego Chicken) joins the boys to talk about being interviewed by the legendary Ron Burgundy, that time in 1976 when he interrupted Elvis, getting arrested at an Aerosmith concert and whether or not a memoir could be in the works.
From the marketing of its young stars to the failings of its current commissioner, La Vida Baseball’s Ozzie Guillen Jr. joins the boys to talk about the current state of Major League Baseball.
Oh…Ozzie also talks about the ups and downs of his famous father’s managerial career.
#RobManfredHatesBaseball
Patrick “Deep Dish” Bertoletti joins the boys to talk about his time as a competitive eater, gaining 25 pounds during one competition, that time he and four buddies attempted to eat a 40-pound goat to help the Chicago Cubs win the World Series, competing at WingBowl alongside former slugger Matt Stairs and introduces the world to the former Major Leaguer who once set a record by eating a 72-ounce steak.
In the summer of 1979, Ted Giannoulas went from local radio station employee in a chicken suit to global superstar…but it wasn’t without controversy.
How did Giannoulas come to be known as “The Famous Chicken”? Would he ever go high-tech with his costume? And, most important…who would play him in a biochick, er, biopic?
To listen to the entire interview, CLICK HERE.
Muneesh Jain, co-host of the popular Clubhouse Podcast, joins the boys to talk about his favorite (and least favorite) ballparks, reveals his new baseball crush, opens up about the recent changes to baseball and picks a side in the ongoing Madison Bumgarner-Max Muncy debate. Kinda.
Painter and illustrator Graig Kreindler joins the boys to talk about how he got his start as baseball’s foremost portrait artist and why he’s so good, shares what he’d like to paint and what he’s got in the pipeline for Topps and what he’s working on for the Negro Leagues Museum.
Oh…Lou also introduces Graig (and the world!) to the work of Kenneth Gatewood.
Bob Kendrick, president of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, returns (for the fourth time!) to talk to the boys about the “electric” 2019 Hall of Game class and upcoming celebration, lays out the plans for the 100th anniversary of the Negro Leagues and drops some Harlem Globetrotters knowledge.
Lastly, Bob provides an update on when the Buck O’Neil Education and Research Center will be open.
British artist and painter (and Trivial Pursuit answer!) Andy Brown joins the boys to talk about when he got interested in baseball, his desire to visit and paint at all 30 Major League Baseball stadiums and that time he got a letter of approval from the Queen of England.
Emmy Award-winning writer, producer, comedian and actor Robert Wuhl joins the boys to talk about the latest Batman, whether or not we might see “Arli$$” on television again and speculates whether Ichiro or Albert Pujols (or someone else) will be the next unanimous Hall of Famer.
Oh…and Shawn attempts to cast a 12-episode Netflix re-imagining of the iconic film “Bull Durham”.
Emmy-nominated director and producer Mo Marable joins the boys to talk about getting his start behind the camera, how he ended up working on IFC’s “Brockmire” and what it’s like working with Spike Lee, Hank Azaria, Bob Costas, Joe Biden and a slew of others.
Also, Lou introduces the world to the “48-Hour Rule”.
It's been thirty years since "Field of Dreams" was in movie theaters. What was it like to work with Kevin Costner? How hard is it to launch a home run into the cornfield?! Timothy Busfield knows.
Also...some great "Revenge of the Nerds" talk.
Longtime friends and uniform experts Phil Hecken and Todd Radom re-join the boys to break down their favorite teams (more specifically…their logos, jerseys and caps) taking part in this year’s Copa de la Diversión.
Also…what is a bivouac?
Attorney-turned sportswriter-turned radio host-turned Peabody Award winner-turned podcaster Julie DiCaro joins the boys to talk about her deep dive into investigating the murder of James Jordan, father of NBA superstar-turned minor league baseball player-turned NBA superstar Michael Jordan for her new podcast, The Score: Behind the Headlines.
Peter Kerasotis, author of Alou: My Baseball Journey, joins the boys to talk about how he got his start in journalism, the journey that led to him partnering up with former Major League player and manager Felipe Alou to co-write his autobiography, Alou’s relationship with Roberto Clemente and whether or not he believes the “Dominican Jackie Robinson” deserves a spot in Cooperstown.
Jon Shestakofsky, the Vice President of Communications and Education at the National Baseball Hall of Fame, joins the boys to talk about how he went from Single-A ball with the Boston Red Sox to Cooperstown, the generosity of Ichiro Suzuki, why Ralph Carhart’s “Hall Ball” is something special and, of course, the museum’s newest exhibit…Shoebox Treasures.
Oh, Jon also introduces Shawn and Lou to George “Honey Boy” Evans.
Emmy-nominated director Lauren Meyer joins the boys to talk about what all went into the making of her new documentary “The Other Boys of Summer”, why she chose to spend more than a decade tracking down as many living members of the Negro Leagues in order to tell their story and that time she ended up in Mamie “Peanut” Johnson’s living room.
Tampa Bay Rays minor league reliever (and self-proclaimed “bus guy”) Jack Labosky joins the boys to talk about his plan to spend this upcoming season living in a renovated school bus with his girlfriend Madi, explains how he got her to agree to calling the J&M Express home, reflects on his painful time at the plate while with Duke and looks back at how he spent his first Spring Training.
Oh…Jack also gets caught up wondering out loud how a basketball game between three Lous and one Zion Williamson would play out!
Actor, writer, comedian and Little League All-Star(!) Carl Tart joins the boys to talk about his podcast “Carl Alarm”, shares the specifics of his recent appearance on Comedy Central’s “Drunk History” and reveals just how drunk he was, recalls just how much fun it was to write for “Brockmire” and imagines just how far in life an email from Hank Aaron could get him.
Beau and Bryan Abbott, the brothers behind Baseball Card Vandals, join the boys to talk about when (and how) they started defacing their baseball card collection, what their parents think of their favorite pastime, how their new book came to fruition and, of course, that time Lisa Loeb showed up at their job for an impromptu concert.
The founders of The Dock Ellis Foundation, Hjordis and Jasmine Lee Ellis, join the boys to talk about the work they’re doing assisting victims of domestic violence, share what the legendary Major Leaguer was like as a husband and a father, update the status of the proposed Dock Ellis biopic (and who the pitcher would have liked to have played him) and reflect upon Dock’s relationship with his former teammate Roberto Clemente.
Three-time All-Star and current MLB analyst John Kruk joins the boys about to talk about the importance of young women playing baseball, why he took over the head coaching gig for his daughter’s softball team what it was like digging in against Randy Johnson.
Texas Rangers outfielder Delino DeShields joins the boys to talk about being part of an athletic family (his father played Major League Baseball and his sister is in the WNBA), the historic and cultural significance of his tattoos, his desire to get more African-American youth involved in baseball and, lastly, his connection with Sonic the Hedgehog.