Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa grabbed their bats and their Andro and captivated the nation for the entire summer of 1989. This week we cover the race to break Roger Maris’ single season Home Run record of 61, remembering some of the big home runs, the awesome commercials and the staggering numbers they put up. We found yet another Darryl Strawberry rap single from the 80’s not to be missed and we debut our new Wax Pack segment!

Cheese Monger Invitational info - https://www.cheesemongerinvitational.com/

Chocolate Strawberry - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UKH3qchAAec

Quick, name the top 5 rap-based songs performed by baseball players about baseball from the 1980's. Don't worry, we've got you covered. Next, we talk about the brief but dominant career of the troubled Rube Waddell. And finally, nicknames and baseball go hand in hand. We discuss some of the strangest monikers players have gone by and find out the stories behind them. 

Be sure to check out the links below for the full versions of each of the songs discussed in this episode and let us know which one you like best. 

Lenny Randle & Ballplayers - Kingdome - https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=155&v=AtPawvq-0dc

Brett Saberhagen - Ford Truck Rap - https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=12&v=QyVnOBdKw64

The Baseball Boogie Bunch (aka the 1986 Dodgers) - The Baseball Boogie - https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=71&v=XWQ1K4SVbA8

Get Metsmerized - The 1986 Mets - https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=24&v=hpvufrpAhls

The Berenguer Boogie (aka El Gasolino) - Juan Berengeur - https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=319&v=rd0-1PMFfEY

Jeff and Mark discuss the history of Who's On First, Stanley "Frenchy" Bordagaray is the most interesting man in the world but maybe the worst fielder and who would you build a team around? Bobson Dugnutt or Mike Truk? Do you hate the wave like we do? We dive headfirst into the origin of the wave to find out who to blame. This plus much more in the latest installment of Tales From the Dugout! 

We continue our conversation with Trevor from the Hanshin Tigers English News. We get into the differences between baseball in the MLB and the NBP. Defensive shifts, pace of play, stadium and scheduling. Mark took an “easy” baseball quiz. Atleast it was supposed to be easy. Goodbye Basbeall, Fly Away, It Could Be, It Might Be, It Is! What are some of the greatest signature home run calls? We give you ours, but this is the internet, so I’m sure we’re wrong.

Trevor from The Hanshin Tigers English News joins Jeff and Mark to finally set the record straight about the Curse of the Colonel. He also talks about some of the legendary characters from both the Hanshin Tigers and the NPB. Hear the incredible story of one of Japan's iron-men, who played through a broken wrist to keep his consecutive innings played streak alive, even hitting a home run as well as how some former MLB players were thought of after their time in the NPB (hint, Mike Greenwell got lost in translation!). Plus greatest infield arms and the Negro League Museum and Hall of Fame next induction class. 

Hanshin Tigers English News: http://www.thehanshintigers.com/

Hanshin Tigers English News on Twitter: @thehanshintiger

Negro League Museum Hall of Game - https://nlbm.com/hall-of-game/

2019 Snooker Coral Cup - http://www.worldsnooker.com/tickets/2017-ladbrokes-players-championship/

The greatest promoter baseball had ever seen was Bill Veeck. You think you know more than the manager? He invited the White Sox crowd to make all managerial decisions for a game, and the Sox won! If he had his way, the Philadelphia Phillies would have been baseballs first integrated team. The only color Bill saw was green. He might have seen red though after baseball's most infamous promotion, the ill fated Disco Demolition. Cheap tickets, cheaper beer, explosives and plenty of disco records. What could go wrong? We also talk about the greatest World Series moments form the past 30 years, ranked. 

Show Links:

https://www.chicagomag.com/Chicago-Magazine/July-2016/The-Night-Disco-Died/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LZaXq338HN4

This week we talk about some of the greatest ejections in the game, and we don’t even get to Billy Martin or Lou Pinella! Those must be some good ejections to beat those two. We also discuss some of those stories everybody has heard about Babe Ruth. But how many of them are true? Did he really call his shot? Did his home runs really cure an ailing kid? Listen to find out. And what is the best minor league team name?

Jeff and Mark dig into some of the strange phrases that are used in baseball and where they came from. Do you know the difference between a Texas Leaguer and a Baltimore Chop? Also, they look at the history of every baseball fans childhood hobby, baseball cards. Plus a chance to win a Honus Wager 1909 T206 card, valued at over $2 million. Okay, a picture of it, emailed directly to you, fees may apply. And we talk outfield arms. 

Little known fact, baseball players are superstitious. Some might say they are super-superstitious. This week Mark and Jeff explore some of the odd superstitions that players have been bound to hoping for that edge on the field. Some even take place on the field in the middle of play. Hear about the time one team played a joke on Wade Boggs and his rigid pre-game ritual. Did it work? What was Roger Clemens doing with all the IcyHot? We’ll tell you but you might not want to know.

We talk alot about the Negro Leagues on this show, but this week we talk about the man who founded the best known one, Rube Foster. While a great pitcher, he was also a genius who was unfortunately held back because of the color of his skin. We also dive into the history of one of the greatest sports venues in the world, Fenway Park. Or Fenway Pahk if you're listening in the north east. Was the Green Monster always green? Or even a monster? You know the Pesky pole down right, do you know what the left field foul pole is called? Find out!