The K.P. Wee Podcast

The greatest coaches are also teachers. And vice versa. That's the bottom line coming out of this fascinating conversation between K.P. Wee and his guest host Stan Markotich on this special episode of The K.P. Wee Podcast. The two veteran educators, authors and friends share thoughts on a range of topics, from K.P.'s latest book project to the gifts and challenges of being a mentor to the mixed messages some young people are receiving today.

You'll hear about the front-lines experiences that K.P., who has worked in education for more than a decade, has had with coaching young people in pursuit of their dreams. He and Stan note some of the trendlines they've observed when it comes to preparedness to meet the wider world. Do students understand the necessary etiquette and protocols for securing a successful interview? Are they being confused by social media and other messages that blur the lines between collaboration and plagiarism, or negativity and discipline?

Above all else, what comes through in this freewheeling exchange is the passion K.P. and Stan share for bringing the best performances out of students – whether in the classroom, on the playing field or in a professional context. K.P. and Stan bring every creative skill available to their motivational tool kits and we get front-row seats to their thoughts on when, whether and how to deploy a whole spectrum of strategies.

Would you like to pre-order "So You Want to Work in Sports: Advice and Insights from Respected Sports Industry Leaders," by K.P. Wee? Just click here.

Click here if you would like to hear previous episodes of The K.P. Wee Podcast.

If you're a fan of this podcast's intro music, please follow Roger Chong: Twitter @chongroger and Instagram @chongroger

KEY TOPICS:

• (2:20): About K.P.'s latest projects (finishing up a final edit on his new book, "So You Want to Work in Sports") and wish lists looking into the future (lots of dream titles and research to do, but that other thing called a "day job" also requires attention).
• (4:54): A little more about "So You Want to Work in Sports: Advice and Insights from Respected Sports Industry Leaders" and its target audience, typically young people who aspire to work in a front-office or extra-athletic capacity of some sort within a sports organization. It provides insights and advice from people whose experience ranges from marketing to broadcasting to the life of a mascot.
• (11:05): K.P. shares his perspectives on teaching and how his work in the classroom has an important mentoring element not dissimilar from that played by coaches on the field.
• (12:60): Student Report Cards: K.P. shares that some of the professionals he speaks with in the industry today find young people who come in for interviews frequently under-prepared or unfamiliar with basic etiquette and protocols.
• (14:39): Stan echoes that he also has noticed changes in students – many of whom are not well-grounded in the basics of courteous behavior in a professional setting.
• (17:40): Having good communications skills is a fundamental grounding that many young people today lack – including grammar, spelling, clarity and punctuality of replies.
• (18:45): The ethical angle: Stan provides a vivid example featuring a student who blew an important interview by demonstrating a lack of self-awareness and respect.
• (21:35): About K.P.'s experience with some students who come in for career coaching only to dismiss advice as to how they might perform optimally on a given screening.
• (25:00): About generalized messages from executives on LinkedIn, urging young people to reframe cheating or plagiarism as "collaboration" skills that are necessary and important. It blurs important ethical lines and standards.
• (26:52): K.P. deconstructs how certain messages given by "heroes" can land in unintended, confusing even harmful ways. (For example, a pro football player who tells elementary school kids not to listen to their teachers because a teacher once predicted his failure.)
• (29:30): About the many shades of coaching – sometimes gentle, sometimes fierce – and why modulating different philosophies best serves development. To be clear: K.P. and Stan aren't talking about abusive behavior. But there are times when choice words and tone can be highly effective.
• (31:28): There is a difference between yelling to humiliate and yelling in a very deliberate challenge to a student or player not giving their maximum effort – to their own detriment.
• (35:40): The incredible rewards that K.P. and Stan experience when they hear years later from mentees thanking them for advice, processes or perspectives that they now recognize as highly meaningful and impactful in their lives.
• (40:00): Stressing content over details (such as precise historical dates) often resonates deeply with students, who feel freed up to get the big-picture lessons and really absorb the context of what they're learning in a more meaningful way that transfers to all of life.
• (43:05): K.P. sums up the big-picture goal that he – and all committed teachers and coaches – hold for young people: They want the lessons they teach to shape lives for the better, far beyond the classroom or playing field.

KEY QUOTES:

• (8:52): "Things change over time … There's new technology and systems and things people do, whether in broadcasting or the front-office or with analytics." (K.P.)

• (16:24): "(Students) might be able to write code, but maybe they're forgetting how to have the interpersonal skill required to work within a team environment." (K.P.)

• (24:25): "There are a lot of (students) who will not do even the minimum to take themselves down a path that could guarantee a lot of success. They just opt to do it their way and have told me so very directly." (Stan)

• (27:30): "We should not let negative people influence us, but not to the extent that some of these experts and athletes are telling people what to do and not to do." (K.P.)

• (28:10): "Once you accept certain values (or lack thereof) you run certain risks and the damage (to society) may be irreparable at least for a generation or so." (Stan)

• (32:50): "I'm a product of many environments in which lots of yelling took place … (but) it was always done in a way that reinforced in my mind that I was not doing what my teachers or coaches knew I could do." (Stan)
• (42:18): "The greatest coaches are also teachers and I think that's really come out in our talk today. It goes the other way, too: The really great teachers are also great coaches." (Stan)

About Guest Host Stan Markotich: Born and raised in Vancouver, Stan completed his undergraduate work at Simon Fraser University in 1985. From there, he went on to receive a master's degree from the University of Victoria. In 1987, he moved to Indiana University, earning his doctoral degree in history under the supervision of Dr. Barbara Jelavich. Upon graduation, Markotich accepted an appointment with Radio Free Europe, serving as Serbian analyst and remaining in Europe for roughly a decade. He is the main author of White Paper of the Independent Media Commission: Media and Democratisation in Bosnia and Hercegovina (2000). Markotich is currently revising a memoir that deals with his years in the Balkans. Now based in Greater Vancouver, he teaches classes at a private school, lectures for Brock House Society, and offers courses on the Balkans through SFU Continuing Education.

About K.P. Wee: K.P. Wee is the author of multiple books and a regular contributor to sports radio programs and websites. In addition to hosting The K.P. Wee Podcast, he also enjoys writing sports and psychological fiction with a twist of romance. He spent a decade working as a program developer and instructor for a private school before joining the Vancouver Canadians baseball club's media relations department.

You can find out more about books by K.P. Wee here.

Follow K.P. Wee:

K.P. @Twitter

Additional episodes of the K.P. Wee Podcast are available here.

If you're a fan of Michael Unger's 1990 Upper Deck baseball card project, then it doesn't get better than this episode of The K.P. Wee Podcast – which features a non-stop stream of sports history, trivia, game deconstructions and remembrances. Enjoy this return visit from a fan favorite known to baseball card collectors through his social media handles udeck1990@Twitter or upperdeck1990@Insta.

Michael and K.P. do a deep dive into some of the exciting (if sometimes forgotten or obscure) players that Michael has been posting about daily as he works his way systematically through each of his 1990 Upper Deck baseball cards. His social media posts have created a community through which he and K.P. initially connected and became friends.

In this episode, the names Albert Belle, Cal Ripken Jr., Fernando Valenzuela, Gary Gaetti, Kent Hrbek, Jose Lind, Dave Smith, among others, are brought up.

Totally Goated Podcast host Brett Hawn, a Rutgers University (New Jersey) journalism student and a huge New York Mets fan, makes a return to The K.P. Wee Podcast for some Major League Baseball chatter. In this episode, recorded on the evening of MLB's Opening Night 2022 on April 7, the two baseball fans discuss what to expect for the new season, with Brett sharing his thoughts on all things Mets and K.P. briefly giving his opinions on the two L.A. teams. They also share a chuckle over a certain NBA team's late-season collapse in the 2021-22 basketball campaign.

Check out Brett's Totally Goated Podcast: https://anchor.fm/totallygoated/

In this episode, K.P. catches up with Vancouver Canadians (MiLB) play-by-play announcer Tyler Zickel to chat about his start in the broadcasting industry, his most memorable announcing moments, and his preparation for the upcoming minor-league baseball season. He also shares some tips for those interested in the profession.

The 2022 season will be Zickel's eighth in baseball. The San Diego native began his journey with the High-A Lake Elsinore (California) Storm before spending three years calling the action for the Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats from 2017 to 2019. The 2020 minor-league season was cancelled because of COVID-19, and the Canadians came calling for Zickel prior to the start of the 2021 season.

The one-time second baseman from Whittier College in Los Angeles will be calling Canadians ballgames from Vancouver for the first time in 2022, even though he's in his second season with the organization. The Canadians played their home games in Hillsboro, Oregon, during the 2021 season because of extended border closures preventing the team to return to Vancouver.

A note about some of the dates mentioned in the conversation: The Canadians' 2022 season is expected to begin on Friday, April 8, when the club is scheduled to play a three-game series in Spokane, Washington, against the Spokane Indians, followed by a six-game set in Pasco, Washington, against the Tri-City Dust Devils. The Canadians' home opener at historic Nat Bailey Stadium is slated for Tuesday, April 19, against the Eugene (Oregon) Emeralds.

The home schedule is subject to COVID-19 restrictions in British Columbia, Canada, but for now the April 19th date will mark baseball's return to Nat Bailey Stadium 963 days after the last game was played at the ballpark on August 30, 2019.

If you're a fan of Michael Unger's 1990 Upper Deck baseball card project, then it doesn't get better than this episode of The K.P. Wee Podcast – which features a non-stop stream of sports history, trivia, game deconstructions and remembrances. Enjoy this return visit from a fan favorite known to baseball card collectors through his social media handles udeck1990@Twitter or upperdeck1990@Insta. Michael and K.P. do a deep dive into some of the exciting (if sometimes forgotten or obscure) players that Michael has been posting about daily as he works his way systematically through each of his 1990 Upper Deck baseball cards. His social media posts have created a community through which he and K.P. initially connected and became friends.

In this episode, K.P. invites Michael to highlight fascinating nuggets about some of the players he has featured and the progress he's making – now halfway through the 800-card set. Among the stories they swap are memorable national championship and World Series appearances plus fun facts about trades and backstories on players like Felix Fernin, Larry Andersen, Lloyd McClendon, Rick Cerone, Jeff Blauser, Craig Lefferts, and many, many more. The histories of some players are vivid and jump to mind instantly and then there are others whose unsung or meandering paths are equally compelling.

If you'd like to jog your memory or pick up some new bits of sports trivia, then join these two educators, Vancouverites, and sports and stats enthusiasts. You'll quickly understand why so many serious baseball card collectors look forward daily to the fascinating profiles Michael posts. Join the #UpperDeck1990 community at either udeck1990@Twitter or upperdeck1990@Insta.

And if you're interested in learning more about two of the online reference sites Michael regularly consults, visit the Society for American Baseball Research or the Baseball Reference website.

Click here if you would like to hear previous episodes of The K.P. Wee Podcast.

If you're a fan of this podcast's intro music, please follow Roger Chong: Twitter @chongroger and Instagram @chongroger

KEY TOPICS:

• (2:10): Michael revisits the story of how he became widely known among baseball card collectors by the handles udeck1990@Twitter or upperdeck1990@Insta.
• (03:57): The fun of "aha" moments: Sometimes Michael posts about a card that unleashes a whole montage of memories, like recently when he posted about Dennis Martinez, who had a perfect game playing for the Montreal Expos against the Dodgers. He was also a key team member with the Baltimore Orioles until a struggle with alcohol took his career off-track. It's a rich narrative and memorable come-back career!
• (07:42): Why Michael has a special fondness for the Montreal Expos logo, with its French flair and associations.
• (10:25): Old disappointments – and grudges – can die hard among sports loyalists. Michael has mostly positive memories, like when the Mets won the World Series in 1986. But he was a young fan and less invested than he was a couple of years later, when the arguably stronger Mets inexplicably went down to the Dodgers in 1988 NLCS. That was a heartbreaker that's still fresh today!
• (12:50): Felix "The Cat" Fermin has been somewhat lost to history, but Michael recently posted about him and what's considered possibly one of the worst trades in baseball history. The Cleveland Indians traded Fermin to the Mariners for Omar Vizquel, which in hindsight was short-sighted and puzzling. By the mid-1990s, with an additional new shortstop named Alex Rodriguez, the Mariners started shopping Fermin around and nearly triggered a cascade of personnel swaps that could have changed the course of multiple teams, and perhaps the future of up-and-coming Yankee shortstop Derek Jeter.
• (19:50): Cleveland Connections: K.P. asks about both Rick Cerone (card #405) and Larry Andersen. Both were with the Indians at various junctures in their careers.
• (21:00): Michael shares tidbits (including some play-by-play World Series history) about Rick Cerone as well as Rich Gedman, both of whom at some point replaced iconic Yankees and Red Sox catchers, respectively. Don't miss the anecdote about how (when the hot 1980s actress/model Bo Derek was unavailable, Rick Cerone became the unlikely spokesmodel for Ten Jeans and a country singer whose fundraiser for earthquake relief in Italy turned into a bit of a fiasco.
• (27:15): K.P. recalls the 1992 Expos, who had two 38-year-old pitchers (Rick Cerone and Gary Carter). Michael explains the push-and-pull somewhat unique to the catcher position, which makes physical demands best suited to younger players but experiential wisdom usually only possessed by older players.
• (29:15): K.P. highlights that Rick Cerone was also part of Blue Jays history at a memorable opening day under snowy conditions in which he was the starting catcher at the team's inaugural game.
• (30:23): All about two-time all-star Jeff Blauser's successful stint with the Atlanta Braves. Michael has noticed that shortstops seem to be "over-valued a bit" in the 1990 Upper Deck, but Blauser was indeed a stand-out for his power hitting.
• (32:53): What happened once Jeff Blauser got to the Chicago Cubs – where he tanked for his last two seasons in the majors before retirement.
• (33:42): K.P. chimes in with thoughts about the 1992 Atlanta Braves when they faced the Toronto Blue Jays, losing four one-run games. How many RBIs did Jeff Blauser have in that series? Yep. Zero. He was among a few underperforming Braves hitters – any one of whom could have changed the outcome of that series.
• (37:42): About Andre Thomas, who in 1988-89 was the main shortstop (along with Jeff Blauser) for the Braves and hit 13 home runs "which back then for a shortstop was a pretty good amount," says Michael. They were offered Barry Bonds and turned it down; then had a handshake deal that fell apart at the last minute when the Pittsburgh Pirates GM refused to let Bonds go.
• (39:53): The story of Greg Maddux, who fully expected to sign with the Yankees but wasn't ultimately invited because of back-office disarray that created an opening for Atlanta to make an offer, which Maddux immediately accepted.
• (41:43): K.P. (who wrote this book about Barry Bonds) recalls the 1992 Pittsburgh-Atlanta trade that didn't come to pass and musings from would-be Braves teammates about the impact the player could have had.(43:00): Recalling the 1992 NLCS series that pitted fields of left-handed and right-handed players in ways that invite speculation!
• (46:38): Lloyd McClendon is among the players Michael has enjoyed writing about recently – including an anecdote about how the player first acquired the nickname "Legendary Lloyd" back in his Little League days in Gary, Indiana. His was the first all-black team ever to make the Little League World Series and McClendon had only five at-bats – all of which were home runs (when the other teams didn't intentionally walk him).
• (49:45): Larry Andersen was the only player on both the 1983 and 1993 Phillies teams but wasn't quite such a figure of esteem in Boston, where his run with the Red Sox was less auspicious. These were pre-wild card days, when the dynamics were different both with regard to trades and in the bullpen come July and August.
• (52:54): Craig Lefferts was a closer for the San Diego Padres in 1991 (in the same bullpen as Larry Andersen, who by then had been traded by Boston). Then in 1992 Randy Myers was brought in as a closer and moved Lefferts – then in his mid-30s – into the starting rotation, where he stepped up.
• (54:08): Michael's tidbits about Craig Lefferts, a versatile player who still holds the record for number of Padres games pitched in a season (83 games in 1986). He's also the last pitcher to hit a walk-off home run, which he did in 1986. Side note: K.P. wrote and asked him for an interview when he was a pitching coach for the Oakland A's minor-league affiliate in Vancouver but never heard back. "I don't hold that against him," jokes K.P.
• (56:10): K.P. and Michael wrap by agreeing to meet up again as the 1990 Upper Deck project progresses to share more tidbits, nuggets and remembrances of seasons – and players – past!

KEY QUOTES:

• (11:28): "When the Dodgers beat the Mets in the NLCS, that was probably my most heartbreaking moment in baseball. For anyone from the '88 Dodgers team, that sticks in the craw a bit." (Michael)

• (28:04): "The thing with catchers is you need to have a veteran presence because they're calling the game for the pitcher … It's also the most grueling position out there. So it's a tradeoff. You want a younger body in there, but you also want to have some experience as well." (Michael)

• (50:31): "Fans forget that in (the 1980s and 1990s) you had to win your division to make the playoffs. There was no wild card." (K.P.)

• (53:23): "(Craig Lefferts in his mid-30s) did pretty well as a starter (for the San Diego Padres) and it just blows me away that you can go from being a closer to a starter that late in your career." (K.P.)

• (54:40): "I notice how much celebrations have changed. Now in sports when something happens – especially something rare or momentous … It doesn't matter what player you are, if you hit a home run, all the players are out there throwing water, ripping off your jersey." (Michael)

Michael Unger's Bio:

In addition to his #upperdeck1990 and #udeck1990 social media following, Michael is also a fan favorite at the H.R. MacMillan Space Centre in Vancouver, where he organizes programs across cultural and scientific disciplines. He's a fixture at Nerd Nite Vancouver, a bar lecture series that offers an alternative to traditional learning environments, and he manages SCI-CATs (a team of science communicators that have created open source teaching modules that span a range of science communication topics). Michael is most passionate about finding new ways to connect with audiences, sharing the diversity of humanity looking into the cosmos with a sense of wonder and curiosity about the universe and our place in it.

Follow Michael Unger @Twitter or @Insta

About K.P. Wee:

K.P. Wee is the author of multiple books and a regular contributor to sports radio programs and websites. In addition to hosting The K.P. Wee Podcast, he also enjoys writing sports and psychological fiction with a twist of romance. He spent a decade working as a program developer and instructor for a private school before joining the Vancouver Canadians baseball club's media relations department.

You can find out more about books by K.P. Wee here.

Follow K.P. Wee:

K.P. @Twitter

Additional episodes of The K.P. Wee Podcast are available here.

This episode of The K.P. Wee Podcast features an author whose last name immediately calls up a colorful baseball dynasty like no other. In her book, "Finley Ball: How Two Baseball Outsiders Turned the Oakland A's into a Dynasty and Changed the Game Forever," Nancy Finley traces the team's journey from perennial loser in Kansas City to World Championship glory days built on strategies and stunts deployed by her father Carl and his cousin Charlie Finley, the franchise's larger-than-life owner.

Nancy shares front-seat recollections about Oakland's unique path to powerhouse heights in the 1970s and the characters who shaped – and transformed – the sport of baseball. Reggie Jackson, Catfish Hunter and Vida Blue are just a few of the legendary names that captured the nation's attention and cemented the Finley family's winning legacy.

Lovingly and diligently researched, this book – the first of what will ultimately be two volumes – tells the story of how Charlie Finley bought the Kansas City A's franchise in 1960, when he was an insurance businessman and pro sports outsider. With a showman's instincts, Charlie brought in his cousin Carl as a hands-on, savvy right-hand man. Together they moved the team from Kansas City to Oakland, pioneering a unique approach to recruiting talent that ultimately netted three straight World Series victories in 1972, 1973 and 1974.

Nancy shares with K.P. details about the collaboration between cousins, her early memories of team life and her hopes that one day both Charlie Finley and her dad, the lesser-known but no-less-pivotal Carl will find their rightful places at the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY.

Click here to purchase either a print or audible version of "Finley Ball: How Two Baseball Outsiders Turned the Oakland A's into a Dynasty and Changed the Game Forever." You can also learn much more about the legendary Oakland Athletics at Nancy's fascinating archival website:

www.oaklandathleticshistory.com.

Click here if you would like to hear previous episodes of the K.P. Wee Podcast

If you're a fan of this podcast's intro music, please follow Roger Chong: Twitter @chongroger and Instagram @chongroger

KEY TOPICS:

• (1:00): K.P. introduces Nancy Finley, niece of legendary Oakland Athletics owner Charlie Finley.

• (3:28): The show starts off with background on Nancy's father Carl, a lesser known but still pivotal figure in the history of the Oakland A's. She shares anecdotes about the relationship between the Finley cousins, whose styles and career paths were a study in contrasts.

• (07:29): About how and when Charlie established the A's in California, where he also had a professional hockey team – a short-lived venture that Carl was not onboard with helping to manage!

• (10:45): Nancy recounts the first time that she heard Reggie Jackson and Vida Blue were joining the A's, back in 1971, a foundational move for what would become a dynasty.

• (11:47): K.P. asks Nancy for her thoughts about a quote from Catfish Hunter, who credited Charlie with being a sports visionary, if also known as a micro-manager.

• (15:40): Nancy shares the story behind what drove her to write "Finley Ball: How Two Baseball Outsiders Turned the Oakland A's into a Dynasty and Changed the Game Forever." (Hint: The record needed to be set straight, thanks to internet misinformation.)

• (17:30): Winnowing down her book was a challenge for Nancy, who ultimately had to cut it by 40 percent. She did copious, diligent research and learned many things she never knew – too much to include it all in a single volume. Stay tuned for Part II!

• (19:35): Nancy offers a peek into where she's heading with the second part of the Athletics' history and path to dynasty.
• (20:53): K.P. footnotes Nancy's reference to Mike Andrews, whose errors in a World Series game were perceived as costing him his job. Nancy fleshes out the backstory.
• (22:00): Growing up with the A's: Nancy could write an entire book dedicated solely to her experiences attending World Series games, including two Game 7s. She was also instrumental in helping out with ticket sales and allotments.
• (26:11): Nancy recalls unsettling times in the mid-1970s, when Charlie was targeted for kidnapping by the Symbionese Liberation Army (the radical underground group that kidnapped Patty Hearst). Fortunately, his peripatetic lifestyle kept him out of reach!
• (26:50): About Alvin Dark, a former professional shortstop who managed Oakland in the mid-1970s (among many other teams over the years).
• (28:00): About perceptions of the A's as an underdog team and other thoughts on play-off and World Series showings.
• (29:37): Nancy recollects the special relationship between her father and Billy Martin, offering a glimpse into his personality and unique managerial style. Charlie was very hands-off, which Nancy believes was due to Carl's firm advice.
• (31:40): The story of how MC Hammer – or Stanley Burrell, as he was known locally in his hometown – came to perform at the Oakland Coliseum at the suggestion of Nancy's dad, who made it happen.
• (35:10): Nancy's father kept her low-visibility during the height of the A's dynasty because kidnapping threats were regularly called into the front office.
• (35:50): About gimmicks, brainstorms and other Charlie Finley innovations.
• (38:55): What Nancy would like readers to take away from "Finley Ball": Fans need to keep perspective, even when their teams are losing. Also, it all depends neither solely on stats nor instincts; it should be a mixture of both.
• (41:00): Nancy shares some history about the Kansas City Athletics' multiple trades to the Yankees in the 1950s.
• (43:05): About the audio version of Nancy's book, which is available along with the hardcover book here. She's also reachable via email through the website https://oaklandathleticshistory.com.
• (45:05): K.P. observes that Carl deserves a spot in the Athletics Hall of Fame, right alongside Charlie, the cousin whose fortunes and storied team Carl was so instrumental in shaping.

KEY QUOTES:

• (04:55): "Charlie bounced all ideas off of Dad. He was on the phone with Dad every morning, early … They would talk about ideas."

• (12:40): "Charlie could just watch a game and know who should be playing what. Yes, people say he micro-managed but at the same time, if you own a team, you want it to win."

• (16:40): "I just feel that if you don't step up and want respect for your family, people will just continue piling it on."

• (18:50): "I don't like name calling. If you're going to say someone is something, then you've got to prove it."

• (25:32): "We had to pay for World Series tickets because it's not like being an owner. It comes out of the Major League."

• (36:45): "I heard someone say that (the A's) 'inflicted' things on people."

• (39:58): "Things need to stay in perspective. Fans need to know that a team is trying its best to win and that that's the goal they all have."

• (44:35): "Dad needs to be inducted (into the Baseball Hall of Fame). Charlie will be, but I want to make sure that dad gets in there too."

About K.P. Wee:

K.P. Wee is the author of multiple books and a regular contributor to sports radio programs and websites. In addition to hosting The K.P. Wee Podcast, he also enjoys writing sports and psychological fiction with a twist of romance. He spent a decade working as a program developer and instructor for a private school before joining the Vancouver Canadians baseball club's media relations department.

You can find out more about books by K.P. Wee here.

Follow K.P. Wee:

K.P. @Twitter

Additional episodes of the K.P. Wee Podcast are available here.

In this episode, the tables are turned when Stan Markotich, former News Director at CJIV Radio, takes over the microphone again to interview our host. Together, they discuss the art of sportswriting.

What happens when you have two super-knowledgeable sports super-fans on one show? Magic! This episode of the K.P. Wee Podcast features the host and his guest swapping stories and stats at a fast and furious rate. Michael Unger, best known to baseball card collectors through the social media handles udeck1990@Twitter or upperdeck1990@Insta, shares the story of how he turned a set of 1990 Upper Deck baseball cards that were gathering dust into a subject of daily fascination for collectors everywhere. Early in 2020, he started posting a daily meditation on each of the cards contained in the collection just for the fun of it, but quickly found a universe of followers eager to join the conversation. Michael's daily social media posts quickly evolved into a community and it was through this online sports ecosystem that K.P. and Michael connected. It turned out that, in addition to sharing a passion for sports and interest in players like John Cangelosi, they were also fellow Canadians enjoying life in Vancouver.

The show features some context for Michael's #UpperDeck1990 project, including his personal motivation and some of the characteristics that distinguished these cards from Topps or any other brand in circulation. Known to many as the go-to company for hockey cards, Upper Deck was granted a license in 1989 by Major League Baseball and quickly set a new standard for premium cards with improved photography, design, card stock quality. The company's 1990 set also included the industry's first randomly inserted personally autographed and numbered cards of sports superstars.

There has been a real renaissance of interest in collecting and trading, which Michael attributes to a mix of interest in pandemic pastimes, new marketing initiatives that have generated fresh new designs and the fact that a generation of 1990s kids have now reached an age where they have a little disposable income to invest in sentimental collectibles. K.P. also elicits a great story about how Upper Deck rode a big wave on the back of Ken Griffey Jr.

Towards the end of the episode, K.P. yields the mic so that Michael can ask a few questions of his own. Their fun conversation reveals not only a little of K.P.'s life story but also what it was about sports that captured his imagination as a somewhat shy young immigrant from Singapore. He never could have imagined that his interest in following players and teams would one day result in personally coming to know and write about some of his favorites. Enjoy this upbeat conversation between two men who share a lot in common. They are both educators, Vancouverites, sports and stats enthusiasts, and members of the #UpperDeck1990 community that Michael has built to the delight of so many fellow baseball card collectors!

To learn more about two of the online reference sites Michael likes to consult, visit the Society for American Baseball Research or the Baseball Reference website.

You can hear previous episodes of the K.P. Wee Podcast here.

If you're a fan of this podcast's intro music, please follow Roger Chong:

Twitter @chongroger and Instagram @chongroger

KEY TOPICS:

• (3:15): K.P. introduces Michael, aka #udeck1990 or upperdeck1990, a fellow sports fan-turned-friend via social media and a shared passion for all things baseball.
• (5:59): Why baseball cards and why the Upper Deck brand in particular? In January 2020, Michael was feeling down and looking for a way to get out of his own head.
• (11:05): The physical cards themselves, in addition to a limited number of Twitter characters, have formed the scaffolding for Michael to do a deep dive on one player, one card, one day at a time. He has been working his way through the entire set of some 800, finding endless stories behind the stats.
• (13:38): Baseball cards have reignited for Michael, who has started collecting/trading them again. He has found not only a meaningful, engrossing pastime but also camaraderie within the online community that has grown up around his Upper Deck project.
• (14:55): Many kids of Michael's era were excited by the monetary value in baseball cards, but at this point the bigger draw is a simple love for the community on Facebook, Insta and Twitter. There's a real buzz these days around collecting cards -- perhaps because of confluence of generational stage of life, pandemic and some exciting new initiatives like the Topps Project70 remix of new designs by well-known artists.
• (16:38): Exactly how big is the universe of card enthusiasts? Michael says it's hard to quantify because of the multiple audience streams, some on social media and others not. Just one group on Facebook has 11,000 members, for example.
• (19:15): Michael returns to what it was that drew him to Upper Deck. Where production values had historically been pretty basic, they were among the early adopters of full-color, high-quality photographs. He gravitates to the clean design and quality.
• (21:06): Upper Deck caught a big break with their first release -- putting all their stock into a rookie by the name of Ken Griffey Jr. Many believe that one card was revolutionary. Upper Deck cards were a little bit more expensive and a little rarer to find and everyone wanted that 1989 Griffey. It's still one of the iconic cards in the industry.
• (24:05): The One: K.P. asks Michael to describe his absolute favorite card ever and gets a reflection on why it is that fans gravitate to particular players (in Michael's case, Darryl Strawberry, a fellow tall/thin guy). Like old friends, our life ups and downs can correspond or sometimes intersect with the fortunes of the players we follow. Today Michael has nearly 200 unique Darryl Strawberry cards, but is still looking for the Holy Grail: 1983 Topps trading card.
• (30:15): The beauty of sports as a diversion from the workaday world – something that both Michael and K.P. appreciate at the end of a long day. Going onto Twitter helped Michael step away from science education and engage in other universes of interest, including baseball cards and beyond. Social media enables all kinds of conversation and cross-cultural learning that he finds exciting and educational.
• (33:33): John Cangelosi became the unlikely connector between Michael and K.P., who has written a book about the player, "John Cangelosi: The Improbable Baseball Journey of the Undersized Kid from Nowhere to World Series Champion." The two found each other through Twitter and learned that they were neighbors.
• (34:35): Michael turns the microphone on K.P., throwing out some interview questions of his own. The two discuss K.P.'s roots in Singapore and how his experience as a shy kid assimilating into a new Canadian life in part fostered a fascination with sports.
• (38:55): K.P. shares memories of the year baseball became his passion (even if he got started mainly because it was fun to root for the contrarian, glass-half-empty teams). It was through sports that a young K.P. cemented schoolyard friendships.
• (42:21): Michael asks K.P. how it was that he made the leap from ardent fan to author. As a kid, he felt most comfortable inside his mind, so writing down thoughts came naturally as a forum for exploring his interest. From there, K.P. developed into an author through initiative and hard work. (Click here to learn more about KP's books.)
• (43:44): K.P. shares the story of how he became preoccupied with Tom Candiotti, whom he perceived as a scapegoat who nonetheless kept showing up and getting the job done. Inspired by his indefatigability, K.P. reached out to Candiotti as a fan and ultimately in 2010 wrote "Tom Candiotti: A Life of Knuckleballs."
• (53:41): One for a trivia buff! Michael asks what's the name of the one pro baseball player who comes alphabetically between Cangelosi and Candiotti? K.P. is officially stumped. The answer? John Caneira. (Learn more about Caneira and all things baseball at Baseball Reference website.)
• (55:43): K.P. and Michael wrap up with a promise to team up again and share more stats, stories, fun – and their shared passion for all things sports and life!

KEY QUOTES:

• (11:34): "I can go on the internet and find out any information I want now, but back in the 80s and 90s you couldn't. Baseball cards were really these nuggets of information to learn about all the players."
• (13:05): "Lo and behold, I've developed friendships online because of this and that's really something surprising. I didn't think that was going to happen. And I've also gotten into collecting cards again!"
• (20:30): "(Upper Deck) put a lot of production into the quality of the cards and a lot of thought into the quality of the photographs."
• (25:27): "When I started going to high school life started to change. It wasn't cool to collect cards anymore. There were other factors at play and life started to change a lot. All of a sudden baseball cards were just for kids; not for me anymore."
• (32:26): "We forget sometimes that we're so close to the United States, which is such a big country with so many different pockets and little areas. It's hard to clump people together and put labels on them, so I find it fun to have (online community) conversations."
• (42:31): "When I was younger I was shy and didn't like to talk. I probably could communicate better by writing down my thoughts … And sports is not a topic where you're going to convince somebody by just telling them something." (K.P.)

Michael Unger's Bio:

In addition to his #upperdeck1990 and #udeck1990 social media following, Michael is also a fan favorite at the H.R. MacMillan Space Centre in Vancouver, where he organizes programs across cultural and scientific disciplines. He's a fixture at Nerd Nite Vancouver, a bar lecture series that offers an alternative to traditional learning environments, and he manages SCI-CATs (a team of science communicators that have created open source teaching modules that span a range of science communication topics). Michael is most passionate about finding new ways to connect with audiences, sharing the diversity of humanity looking into the cosmos with a sense of wonder and curiosity about the universe and our place in it.

Follow Michael Unger @Twitter or @Insta

About K.P. Wee:

K.P. Wee is the author of multiple books and a regular contributor to sports radio programs and websites. In addition to hosting The K.P. Wee Podcast, he also enjoys writing sports and psychological fiction with a twist of romance. He spent a decade working as a program developer and instructor for a private school before joining the Vancouver Canadians baseball club's media relations department.

You can find out more about books by K.P. Wee here.

Follow K.P. Wee:

K.P. @Twitter

Additional episodes of the K.P. Wee Podcast: https://kpwee.libsyn.com

It's World Series time, and to mark the occasion, Stan Markotich makes a return in this episode of The K.P. Wee Podcast to take over the mic and interviews our host. The former News Director at CJIV Radio leads a discussion about K.P.'s 2021 book, The Case for Barry Bonds in the Hall of Fame: The Untold and Forgotten Stories of Baseball's Home Run King. Together, Stan and K.P. rehash some tidbits and anecdotes from the book.

In this episode, sports consultant Jason Takefman chats with K.P. about baseball, in particular the definition of a "successful" season in sports, whether the 2021 Red Sox season was a success, and final thoughts on the 2021 Dodgers-Giants NL Division Series. K.P. also explains why he feels the Diamondbacks are a model franchise and wonders why nobody focuses on the positives the Astros are contributing to the game (with respect to the way the organization takes care of its minor-league players, something pundits are ignoring).