Backwards K Pod

Backwards K Pod Bonus Show #30 going into the 2022 MLB All Star break, Jake Robinson sits down with world renowned baseball artist Graig Kreindler. Thw two discuss juggling kids, marriage, work and baseball. Graig also reveals some of the tricks of his trade, such as the inspiration for any given picture, as well as the timely process it takes for him to complete a mastepiece. A veritable baseball...

In 1912, three magnificent jewel box baseball stadiums come to life. One of those stadiums was the ball yard from yesteryear known as Crosley Field, located in Cincinnati, Ohio. From her innovative drainage system, scoreboard format and lush Kentucky Bluegrass field, Redland Park/Crosley Field would not only set the standard for stadiums of her day, but pass her legacy down to ballparks as templat...

This week's topic is about the amazing path Ron LeFlore took to the Major Leagues, which is unlike any other before or since. After a botched armed robbery in 1970. LeFlore would play the game of baseball for the first time in his life, for the Jackson State Prison baseball team, where he would be discovered by Tigers manager, Billy Martin. Within three years of his release from prison, he would f...

Unless you are a seamhead living under a rock, you have probably seen or at least heard about the Savannah Bananas, turning the baseball universe on it's head, down in Georgia. Attending a Bananas game is tantamount to going to the circus, and a baseball game, or something that closely resembles one, breaks out. From ballplayers playing on stilts, to the Banana Pep Band banging out music in the st...

At elevation levels ranging from 400 too 700 feet and after 31 months of relocating 8 million cubic yards of Earth, 13 million pounds of reinforced steel used and an army of construction men who literally moved mountains to build this modern day marvel of engineering. The third oldest stadium in the majors was born, The legendary ballpark also has a sad and sordid backstory, that saw three Mexican...

This is the story of the two talented baseball playing half brothers. 10 years apart in age, living on two opposite corners of the impoverished Island of Cuba, and their decsions to chase their Major League Baseball dream in the late 1990's. A true rags to riches, terrifying tale, that would have an impact on Cuban ballplayers, seeking the same opportunities, here in the 21st century. #LivanHernan...

During the seasons of of 1982 through 1998, there were only three things that the good citizens of Baltimore could count on. Death, Taxes and Cal Ripken Jr would be in today's lineup. This is the story of the hometown kid, who best exemplified the blue collar roots and work ethic of his city, by just showing up to work and doing your best day in and day out. This is the story of the Iron Man Cal R...

The Braves can lay claim to being the oldest, continuously, playing team in all of American professional sports. This week, Backwards K Pod will be dissecting the rich tradition and history of the defending World Champions. A team who's ancestral lineage dates all the way back to 1871 in Boston, Massachusetts. From their 84 years in Beantown, to their brief but successful stint in Milwaukee, to pl...

Michael Jordan was on top of the world. He was one of the most recognizable athletes on the planet, and arguably the greatest basketball player who ever lived. He had championship rings, two Olympic gold medals, and massive endorsements. After the tragic death of his best friend, his father. Michael suddenly retires from the sport he has dominated for the past nine years, to chase his father's dre...

In 1908, Philadelphia was a two baseball team city. It was not only home to the established Phillies, it was also where the upstart American League team, the Athletics played under the watchful eye of club owner Ben Shibe and his right hand man, Connie Mack. The A's quickly became the team of choice as they almost immediatly found success and pennants in the City of Brotherly Love. Because of the...

Before 2001, there had never been a Japanesse position player make it to Major League Baseball. This is the story about one of the greatest pure hitters the game has ever seen. His rise to and through the majors, is unlike any other story in baseball. The player shrouded in mystique, would open the door for his countrymen proving once and for all, that Japanese players could not only play in Major...

Of all the wacky promotions baseball has used in their storied history to bring fans to the ballpark, Disco Demolition Night will forever live in infamy. The brainchild of Mike Veeck from the White Sox front office and a local Chicago rock and roll disc jockey, would declare war on the popular genre of disco music. For 98 cents and a disco album, fans could get a ticket to watch both games of a Ti...

This week, I dig into the fascinating history of Wrigley Field. From it's birth in 1914, and all of her renovations through the years. One of only two jewel box stadiums left in the major leagues, Wrigley still stands as a testament to the way baseball used to be played. After 108 years of incredible baseball stories, Wrigley in all her magnificence, is poised to shine for yet another century.

**** Spoiler Alert**** This week, we will try something we have never done before at Backwards K Pod, and give a reveiw and the backstory of the 1993 baseball comedy classic. The Sandlot. The coming of age story of young teenage boys in 1962, who together would learn the valuable lessions in life such as S'mores, friendship, kissing a girl and baseball. A podcast chock full of unforgettable scenes...

Before the internet age and 24 hour sports programming, This Week In Baseball was able to bring video, of all the teams in the major leagues, into your local market and on your living room TV. A concept unheard of until then. The creatively, innovative show would also breath life, and ressurect the career of broadcast legend Mel Allen, who was living a sad nomadic baseball life, after his iconic Y...

This week, we take a look at the biggest baseball scandal at the time, since the 1919 World Series fix. Seven of some of the biggest names in baseball, took the stand before a federal grand jury, to expose the incredible network of players using cocaine, as well as the local Pennsylvania baseball fans who would ultimately pay the price, for servicing the player's insatiable appetite for the drug....

This is probably, the craziest baseball stories you have never heard. It's so crazy, that Adam Sandler actually considered doing a movie about it. Former MLB catcher Rick Dempsey, once told a group of us in a bar, the story of how his little league California travel team coach, was robbing banks, to fund the team. All the way to the Pony League World Series in Washington, Pa. Thank the baseball go...

There is no country on the planet that ties their national identity to baseball like the Dominican Republic. How does a country with a population of 10.4 million people, produce 11% of the players in Major League Baseball? This week will examine all things Pelota. Baseball and the Dominican Republic. This their story. #OsvaldoVirgilSr #LIDOM #TigrisDelLicey #LeonesEscogido #EstrellasOrientale #Agu...

With 4 World Series Appearances, 6 NL West Crowns, and two world titles, the Cincinnati Reds dominated 70’s like no other MLB team during the decade. Fueled by the Great Eight lineup which featured the MLB all-time hit king, 3 Hall Of Famers, 6 NL MVP, 4 NL Home Run titles, 3NL batting titles, 25 Gold Gloves and 63 World Series appearances. The Big Red Machine would prove to be one of the most dom...

While Jackie Robinson is rightfully embraced as the man who would smash the color line in 1947, it was Moses Fleetwood Walker who was actually the first black man to play Major League Baseball, a whole 63 years before Jackie would take center stage. In fact, it was due to Walkers participation during that 1884 season, that the powers that be, would establish the racist color line. This is the oft-...

This week we examine, arguably the greatest power pitcher, in the history of Major League Baseball, Mr. Nolan Ryan. For 27 years, the Ryan Express astounded fans and changed the record books forever. #NolanRyan #NewYorkMets #CaliforniaAngels #HoustonAstros #TexasRangers #SandyKoufax #BackwardsKPod #LetsTalkBaseballPodcastNetwork #JakeRobinson

Eddie Feigner is the greatest fast pitch softball pitcher who ever lived. How else can you explain the 8,698 batters he struck out.... while being blindfolded? The King And His Court traveled over 4 million miles, through 100 different countries, challenging any and all takers, to a friendly game of fast pitch softball. The King And his three teammates versus your best nine players. #EddieFeigner...

As the baseball universe holds their collective breath, with the current MLB work stoppage underway. We will examine the 1994 baseball strike that literally killed a major league team. At 74-40 with a 6 1/2 game lead over the mighty Braves, the Montreal Expos were standing on the precipice of greatness. That is, until that disastrous strike, that changed everything..... forever. #MLB #MajorLeagueB...

Here at Backwards K Pod, we not only collect ballplayers and their stories. We also collect milestones, moments, mascots and even stadiums. This week we will begin our collection of stadiums, with the oldest, living, breathing, baseball monument on the planet, Fenway Park. A New England birthright, that has been passed down through the generations, going on 110 years now. #BostonRedSox #MajorLeagu...

In the wake of the devastation, created by the economic collapse of the Great Depression, comes a baseball team that captures the hearts and imagination of the average fan in 1934. A collection of talented but zany characters, known as the Gashouse Gang, that would bully their way to the World Series crown. #StLouisCardinals #GashouseGang #BranchRickey #DizzyDean #DaffyDean #PepperMartin #WildHors...