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Dr. Stephen W. Dittmore has written a book that needed to be written about Jim "Junior" Gilliam. Gilliam followed HOFer Jackie Robinson through Montreal to Brooklyn and was signed by Branch Rickey. Not quite a HOFer himself, Gilliam was a member of four Dodger World Series winning teams - one in Brooklyn and three in Los Angeles. He played in three different stadiums for the Dodgers.  

Jim did not like being called "Junior" but the nickname stuck around for most of his career.  Dr. Dittmore tells us why as he interviewed many in this extremely well-researched biography.  The conversation flows easily so give us a listen! 

Merry Christmas and Happy Kwanzaa, (and belated Happy Hanukkah) to all our listeners! 

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Closer Robert Suarez goes to Braves who only need to figure out shortstop to be a juggernaut once again.  The Tigers signed future HOFer Kenley Jansen & re-signed Kyle Finnegan. Sure doesn't look like a team about to trade 2 time AL Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal. 

Pete Alonso leaves the Mets and goes to the Orioles!  Wow. Kyle Schwarber goes back where he belongs with the Phillies after toying with the Pirates and Reds. Edwin Diaz also left the Mets to be a Dodger. Oh and the Rangers signed Danny Jansen for 2 years and the Jays added another former Met Tyler Rogers. 

Mark went to his first QBC - Queens Baseball Convention which is a fan event for crazy Met fans. We talked about what it was like, the vibe and feeling in the room after an awful week for the Mets. 

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2nd baseman & one-time NL MVP Jeff Kent got into the Hall-of-Fame which few expected including us. Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens did not get 25% of the votes to return to the Contemporary Era ballot in 2028 and now will have to wait until 2031 for what could be their final chance.  Kent was great and has the most HRs for a 2B in MLB history. Every player who has the most homers at a position is in the HOF except for Albert Pujols at 1B and Barry Bonds in LF. 

The winter meetings are going on right now in Orlando but there were no Sunday night bombshell trades going into the meetings that started Monday the 8th. 

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We began by talking about the best HOFers that did not make the HOF. Not hitting as many home runs hurt the chances of Derek Jeter, Wade Boggs, and Tony Gwynn all of whom did not win an MVP. Manny Ramirez did hit a lot of HRs never won an MVP, but he's also not a HOFer. Mike Piazza never won an MVP finishing second twice. 

Dylan Cease got the big bucks for seven years while Sonny Gray got $41M for one year. Pitchers get paid in different ways but long term deals have been  harder to get for pitchers.  Now Framber Valdez is smiling. 

Nine managers were selected to replace ones not coming back. Warren Schaeffer the latest as he signed on with the #Rockies. Good luck.  We talked about the others who'd already taken the job. 

And then there's the #Mets. We go unit by unit although we did not talk about catcher Francisco Alvarez.  Is there a way for the team to compete for a pennant in 2026?  They have work to do. Will Francisco Lindor be named team captain? Juan Soto does not seem to want the job. Fortunately there is still time pre-season to continue to change the team after trading Brandon Nimmo for Gold Glove 2B Marcus Semien.  Then there's time until the trading deadline too!

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The four that accepted the $22M Qualifying offer from their teams - Gleyber Torres, Shota Imanaga, Trent Grisham, and Brandon Woodruff all made sense for them and their teams. But for #Rangers one-time star Adolis Garcia, he was non-tendered a 2026 contract along with his teammate Jonah Heim. It's a 'what have you done for me lately' league. 

We also talk about who are the MVP candidates aside from Judge and Ohtani who have won seemingly year after year. 

Intro & Outro music this season courtesy of Mercury Maid! Check them out on Spotify or Apple Music!  

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Hot stove season in #MLB is fully in gear but the deals are yet to commence. That will happen and probably in December as the Winter meetings are often the kickoff for wheeling and dealing. We did one minute on every team in Major League Baseball and what they should be doing. What did we say about your favorite team? 

Intro & Outro music this season courtesy of Mercury Maid! Check them out on Spotify or Apple Music!  

Please subscribe to our podcast and thanks for listening! If you can give us 4 or 5 star rating that means a lot. And if you have a suggestion for an episode please drop us a line via email at [email protected].  You can also follow us on X @almostcoop or visit the Almost Cooperstown Facebook page or YouTube channel.  And please tell your friends!

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It's not as if either of us went way far off the limb in our picks. We talked about the Hank Aaron Award for best offensive player and if that impacts the AL MVP race. There's a difference of opinion. Cy Young in the AL was close and the same was true for the NL. #Brewers Pat Murphy won NL Manager of the Year last year.  Could he win it again? #Red Terry Francona is also a candidate. 

What do you think of the Comeback Player of the Year award?  Some more strong opinions and the same is true for Reliever of the Year.  Check out our picks and see if you agree or disagree!

Intro & Outro music this season courtesy of Mercury Maid! Check them out on Spotify or Apple Music!  

Please subscribe to our podcast and thanks for listening! If you can give us 4 or 5 star rating that means a lot. And if you have a suggestion for an episode please drop us a line via email at [email protected].  You can also follow us on X @almostcoop or visit the Almost Cooperstown Facebook page or YouTube channel.  And please tell your friends!

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Since 1973 there gave been 17 seven-game World Series.  None of them had an 18-inning game, a player who got on base 9x in one game, a rookie striking out 12 hitters and a solo extra inning home run for the final runs. #Dodgers #BlueJays will be talked about for a long time. Gordon and Mark talk about each game of the series and answer the question is this the greatest World Series in history? 

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#Bluejays found their groove in Seattle winning the series 4-3 over the #Mariners in 7 interesting and often exciting games. #Dodgers dominated #Brewers who could only muster 4 runs in 4 games. A George Springer dinger made the difference in game 7.  Shohei Ohtani had the greatest single game a player has ever played.  

What were the biggest plays of the LCS?  We talk about which managers got things right and which one got things wrong.

Intro & Outro music this season courtesy of Mercury Maid! Check them out on Spotify or Apple Music!  

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Did you stay up late to watch game one of the ALCS Sunday night the 12th? #Mariners and #BlueJays both entered the American League in 1977. Toronto has won 2 World Series but the Mariners have never won a pennant. Will they get past the Jays who have the home field advantage? We make our points and tell you why one of the teams may win easily!   

Mariners got by the #Tigers winning a 15 inning classic in game 5. George Kirby hopes he never has to face Kerry Carpenter again! But the M's had Leo Rivas and Jorge Polanco to rescue their season although Cal Raleigh did all he could. 

Jays kind of bludgeoned #Yankees who had pitching and fielding issues despite getting a terrific performance from odds-on favorite for ALMVP Aaron Judge.  

#Dodgers vanquished #Phillies. Bryce Harper, Kyle Schwarber and Trea Turner just didn't do enough. Neither team hit all that well and it was defense and coming through in the clutch that led L.A. to the 4-game victory.  Mookie's wheel play in game 2 was amazing and just perfect. Orion Kerkering's brain fart to lose game 5 and the series was unfortunate. We feel bad for him.  

Now Dodgers get the #Brewers who subdued the #Cubs also in 5 games. Brew Crew did the little things a little better and home field meant everything as the home team won every game. 

Will L.A. overcome Brewer mojo? Listen/watch us take that on!  

Intro & Outro music this season courtesy of Mercury Maid! Check them out on Spotify or Apple Music!  

Please subscribe to our podcast and thanks for listening! If you can give us 4 or 5 star rating that means a lot. And if you have a suggestion for an episode please drop us a line via email at [email protected].  You can also follow us on X @almostcoop or visit the Almost Cooperstown Facebook page or YouTube channel.  And please tell your friends!

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