Back When There Was Baseball

We take a look back this week into the mid-1970s through the late 1980s with one of the best relief pitchers of that era. Kent "Teke" Tekulve joins us to discuss his career which spanned from 1974-1989. He talks about how he was signed by the Pirates on a somewhat fluke situation. Teke had 3 years where he appeared in 90 games or more, with the final one happening when he was 40 years old as the setup man for Steve Bedrosian which helped Bedrock win the NL Cy Young Award. He was one of the first "submarine" pitchers and you will be hard pressed to find one who pitched better, especially over the length of his career. Enjoy this look Back When There Was Baseball with Kent Tekulve.

We look back to the 1980s this week with our guest Bob Dernier. Bob started in the Phillies organization (1980-1983), then finished his career in Philadelphia (1988-1989). His career took off when he was dealt to the Chicago Cubs (1984-1987) where he was their leadoff man/center fielder. He led off the bottom of the 1st inning of Game 1 in the NL Playoffs (1984) with a home run against the San Diego Padres, to propel the Cubs to victory. As a Phillies fan, Bob was one of my favorite players. I loved his speed, hustle and defensive ability in center field. He also had some years where he flirted with .300 at the plate. Enjoy this interview as Bob shares some great stories Back When There Was Baseball.

We have Barry Foote as our guest on the podcast this week. Barry was signed out of high school in North Carolina by the Montreal Expos. He had the privilege of playing for Gene Mauch while being the Expos starting catcher from 1974-1976. Barry was traded to the Phillies and was part of their NLCS run in 1977-1978. He then became a starter with the Cubs and later played with the Yankees during their post-season run in 1981. Barry discusses his trade to Philadelphia which took him from a starter in Montreal to a back-up-catcher who didn't play much. His career was rejuvenated in Chicago and he started that infamous game against the Phillies in 1979 (a 23-22 loss). He left baseball and started scouting and coaching, which led to his being named Manager of the Year in the Florida State League with the Fort Lauderdale Yankees. Sit back and enjoy this interview with one of my favorite Phillies during that NLCS run in the late 1970s.

We look back to the late 1960s to the early 1970s this week with former MLB pitcher George Culver. George pitched in the Big Leagues from 1966-1974 with many teams and some great pitching staffs. He was part of the great staff in Cleveland in 1967, Cincinnati in 1968/1969 and the Astros in the early 1970s. George had a no-hitter in 1968 against the Phillies when he was with Cincinnati. Take a look Back When There Was Baseball this week with George Culver.

Our guest this week was headed for the MLB Hall of Fame before a tragic injury curtailed his career. Listen as Dickie Thon talks about coming into the Majors with the California Angels before being traded to the Houston Astros. He thrived in Houston before he was hit in the head with a pitch by Mike Torrez on April 8, 1984. Dickie played the rest of his career with impaired vision, which is unreal seeing that he was still very competitive for many years after the injury. Dickie was one of Rex's favorite players to watch and he did not disappoint in this interview.

Our guest this week is former MLB relief pitcher Steve Foucault. Steve is a very interesting subject in the fact that he became a relief pitcher in the Major Leagues but hadn't pitched since his Little League days. Steve also never started a game in his minor or major league career. He played in the Big Leagues from 1973-1978 with the Texas Rangers, Detroit Tigers and Kansas City Royals. Steve has a solid 35-36 career record with a very good 3.21 ERA. We go Back When There Was Baseball this week into the 1970s to review the career of Steve Foucault.

Former MLB pitcher Bill Krueger joins us this week on the podcast. Bill pitched from 1983-1995 with various ball clubs. This tall left-hander has a nice career record of 68-66 with a 4.35 ERA. Bill has a unique story as to how he started his MLB career after playing both basketball and baseball for the University of Portland. Bill went into broadcasting after his MLB career and covers the Seattle Mariners in the studio. Enjoy this look Back When There Was Baseball at the career of Bill Krueger.

We are pleased to have Randy Lerch as our guest this week on the podcast. It is an honor for Rex as he was in the stands on September 30, 1978, when Randy started against the Pittsburgh Pirates in Three Rivers Stadium. Randy not only picked up the win on the mound, but he hit two home runs to lead the Phillies to clinching the N.L. East. He talks about that game along with his trials and tribulations in a career which spanned from 1975-1986. Randy also wrote a book entitled God in the Bullpen which not only reviews his MLB career, but also talks about his alcoholism and overcoming that disease. Sit back and enjoy Randy Lerch Back When There Was Baseball.

Former MLB outfielder Leon Roberts joins us this week. Leon played in the Big Leagues from 1974-1984. He played in two domed stadiums as his home field during his career (The Astrodome in Houston and The Kingdome in Seattle). Leon talks about hitting in those stadiums and how he overcame an eye injury to have a career batting average of .267. He finished 6th in batting in 1978 with the Mariners, hitting .301 with 22 Home Runs and 92 RBIs. Join us Back When There Was Baseball and enjoy Leon Roberts talk about his career.

1979 marks the 45th anniversary of the great game between the Cubs and Phillies. The date was May 17, 1979, the location was Wrigley Field in Chicago, and the wind was blowing out at 17-18 miles/hour. Both starting pitchers (Phillies - Randy Lerch, Cubs - Dennis Lamp) only last 1/3 of an inning and the score was 7-6 after the 1st inning was completed. The teams combined for 50 hits of which 11 were home runs. Our guests are Rawly Eastwick (the game's winning pitcher) and Chris Wheeler (broadcast team) to represent the Phillies, along with Barry Foote (catcher) and Mike Vail (RF) to represent the Cubs. We hope you enjoy this inside look back 45 years ago at this wild and crazy game.