Back When There Was Baseball

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 Pittsburgh Pirates in 1965. Frank talks about working through the Yankees system and finally getting his opportunity in the Big Leagues Back When There Was Baseball.

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 for the Christmas season, and we hope these words inspire you as much as they did us.

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 stories to share about his time in the Majors Back When There Was Baseball.

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.

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 games and finally win it all. This is a great interview Back When There Was Baseball.

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 future Hall-of-Famers. Jake also was elected to umpire the 1971 ALCS between the Baltimore Orioles and Oakland A's. Sit back and enjoy the ride Back When There Was Baseball where Jake relives baseball from his umpire's perspective.

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.

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 others when we take a look Back When There Was Baseball with Rich Hand.

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 to start out his career as a relief pitcher, then convert to a starter, then back to a relief pitcher and he was successful at each position. We hope you enjoy this conversation with one of the best pitchers in the 1980s.

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 Durocher.