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Rickey Henderson is one of the greatest baseball players of all time, unquestionably the greatest leadoff hitter ever, yet the Hall of Fame outfielder is known just as much for Rickey Stories (both fact and fiction) as he is for his on-field dominance. Author Howard Bryant spent five years exploring this complex individual in his 10th book: "Rickey: The Life and Legend of an American Original." We detail the career arc of how the city of Oakland influenced Henderson's early life, how he transformed from a reputation of a selfish star in New York to the most dominant player in baseball in his second stint with the hometown A's, and how he's morphed into a beloved character where the stories are now a charming part of his legacy.  

Minor league baseball is filled with new experimental rules: the strict enforcement of a Pitch Clock, a minimum of two pickoff attempts per at-bat, the Automated Ball Strike (ABS) in the Pacific Coast League, a challenge system of the ABS in the Florida State League, bigger bases, and a ban of the shift (in Low-A, High-A and Double-A). To understand why these rules are being studied, we interviewed former Major League pitcher Joe Martinez, who is now a Senior Director of On-Field Operations for MLB, focusing on experimental rules and equipment changes. We discussed the purpose of the new rules, what the data is showing on the effectiveness (or unintended consequences), what defines a successful new rule, and which rules are most likely to be used in the Major Leagues in the future.    

Suzie Hunter did what a lot of baseball fans dream of doing. She quit her job, and visited every ballpark in Major League Baseball in 2021, despite no guarantee of a job when the ultimate roadtrip ended.   On episode 45 of the Life Around the Seams podcast, we ask Hunter why she did it, if she regrets the decision, the challenge of traveling the country during a pandemic, the necessary precautions to keep herself safe when she was usually alone, her favorite ballparks, souvenirs from each city, plus lessons learned about life and America's Pastime.   This podcast was basically on hiatus in 2021. But it’s a new year, and we re-start the podcast as Suzie Hunter tells us about re-starting her life while driving around the country.

Talking into a microphone on radio comes very easily for Alex Cohen. He's the radio play-by-play announcer for the Iowa Cubs, triple-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. But appearing on camera, along with his girlfriend Tessa, for the reality TV show "House Hunters" on HGTV? That was a much different experience. On Episode 44 of the Life Around the Seams podcast, we shake off the dust after an extended hiatus and return to talk house hunting, minor league baseball, international baseball, and getting ready for the 2021 baseball season with Alex Cohen.

Kalin Boodman is one of the co-founders of Baseballism, a lifestyle company started by four former college baseball teammates that created catchy slogans and has become a must-own for baseball fans. The four friends come from different backgrounds and Boodman's is the most unique as a former military lawyer. We discuss Boodman's multiple tours of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan, jumping out airplanes and landing at 17 mph, returning to his native Oregon to work with his buddies, and how Baseballism grew so quickly. If you own a 6+4+3=2 T-shirt, then you'll love this podcast. If you're a math teacher angered by that T-shirt, you should really listen. Baseball is America's Pastime, and Baseballism is the ultimate American entrepreneurial company. 

Dave Edlund, better known as McCovey Cove Dave on social media, is one of the few people to watch a Major League Baseball game in person in 2020. Of course, Dave is not sitting in the seats watching his beloved San Francisco Giants. He's in a kayak, beyond the right field fence, in the San Francisco Bay, listening to the game on radio and looking up into the sky. On Episode 42 of the Life Around the Seams podcast, Edlund explains life in McCovey Cove for regulars and visitors, when the water is packed and when he's alone, the most memorable "Splash Hit" home runs he's snagged, and how life has never been better for this lifelong Giants fan.

Johnny Doskow returns to the Life Around the Seams podcast to discuss his new book: "GOODNIGHT EM: Baseball and Life Through Haiku."   Doskow is the voice of the Sacramento River Cats, the Triple-A affiliate of the San Francisco Giants. Dosky explained how he always enjoyed writing haiku poems, then used the pandemic to get serious about writing hundreds that could be turned into this book.   I picked out some of my favorites, read them aloud, and then we flapped about some of the details behind each haiku. Just like the book's title, we discuss baseball and life, with a focus on some of Johnny Dee's favorite players and coaches and restaurants from his time working in baseball. 

On Episode 40 of Life Around the Seams, it’s a Father’s Day inspired podcast. We talk fathers and sons, baseball and broadcasting, calls on the air and calls on the phone, with Tim Neverett and his oldest son Matt Neverett.  Tim currently broadcasts Dodgers games on the radio and TV. Before that, he was with the Red Sox and Pirates. Tim worked for nearly a decade in Las Vegas, broadcasting minor league baseball, hockey, basketball, plus UNLV sports and working in talk radio. He's broadcasted multiple Summer and Winter Olympics, and worked in the Denver market as a Rockies pre/postgame host and play-by-play announcer for a variety of sports. Matt graduated from Appalachian State a few years ago. He's worked with the collegiate league Nashua Silver Knights, double-A Birmingham as an assistant, was the lead broadcaster at single-A Bradenton last year, and joined Triple-A Las Vegas (where he was born) in a variety of capacities for 2020.

Dave Raymond was the senior class President at Stanford University and he was homeless. It was by design, somewhat, because it was practical. He was a stand-up comedian on the side. His articles for Forbes magazine are widely cited as bursting the internet bubble in the early 2000s. These days, Dave and his wife are the owner of a nanny and tutoring business. Oh yeah, he's also the TV play-by-play announcer for the Texas Rangers. Raymond's journey is fascinating. He quit his first broadcasting job in the minors before the season began. He was once traded for a blind announcing team. After over a decade in the minors and a few fill-in games in the majors, he finally got his first full-time MLB job with the Houston Astros. Six years later, he was fired and had basically given up on broadcasting. Now he's back in the majors, happier than ever with the Rangers, doing the job he always dreamed. His remarkable story takes awhile to tell properly, but all the twists and turns will make you shake your head in appreciation.

Josh Whetzel has spent 25 years broadcasting baseball games in the minor leagues, from Albany to Kinston to Binghamton and at Triple-A Rochester since 2003. He also calls games for the University of Buffalo men's basketball team and was named Broadcaster of the Year in 2015 by Baseball Digest. And his career was launched due to a serious illness as a teen-ager. On Episode 38 of the Life Around the Seams podcast, Whetzel explains the turn of events that led him from the hospital to Dodger Stadium to a small radio station in Kansas and eventually inside press boxes throughout the country. We also discuss his MLB debut when Mariano Rivera made history, and talk about some of his memories from three decades working in baseball.  

Author Brad Balukjian, a biology instructor by day, came up with an absurdly delightful idea. Buy one pack of baseball cards (he chose 1986 Topps), then track down all the players on those cards, interview them about their life after baseball, and write a book about them. The idea was born in 2014. The roadtrip was in the summer of 2015 and spanned 48 days and 11,341 miles. Then the real work was beginning ... trying to find a publishing house that would publish his book. Balukjian discusses the journey of getting the book published, the theme of vulnerability, plus why some players are willing to discuss their careers and others want to leave it in the past.  

If you were a young baseball player and were told that you would reach the Major Leagues one day -- but you would only play one game, and only one game -- would all the years of playing and sacrificing be worth it? On Episode 36 of the Life Around the Seams podcast, our guest is author Jacob Kornhauser to discuss his latest book, "A Cup of Coffee." Kornhauser identifies 11 players who are just like "Moonlight" Graham from the movie "Field of Dreams." (Graham is a real player, by the way.) Kornhauser's subjects are interesting, and so is Kornhauser for choosing this topic. We discuss similar themes for these 11 players, why their briefest of moments in the majors made it easier to walk away, the teammates who show compassion in helping ensure they get into a game, the managers who are cast as villains, and a lot of brotherly ties ... including how Jacob's younger brother is the editor of this book.