Fall Classic Rewind

October 3, 1979 @ Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati Ohio The National League rivals are back at it again after the Pirates won in dramatic fashion in game one, thanks in large part to MVP Willie Stargell's 3-run homer in extra innings. This will be another game that will come down to the wire, and like game one, it will be a pitchers' duel. But unlike game one, this is a bit of an unexpected matchu...

October 2, 1979 @ Riverfront Stadium For the fourth time this decade, the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Cincinnati Reds will face off for the National League Pennant. The Reds have had the advantage so far this decade, defeating the Buccos in the previous three series with a combined 9-2 record. Both of these teams have dominated their respective divisions throughout this decade (6th NL east crown fo...

The Angels staved off elimination in walk off fashion in game three, but they have their work cut out for them if they want to force a game five. The Orioles send their number four starter to the hill, but lefty Scott McGregor (13 - 6 3.35 ERA 174 IP) would be a number two on most staffs. The LA born workhorse doesn't have a reputation as a big-game pitcher, but this start would begin a string...

For the first time in their relatively short history, the Angels are hosting a playoff game in Anaheim. The bad news, they are down 2 - 0 int he series against the juggernaut Baltimore Orioles. Facing elimination, they send workhorse lefty Frank Tanana ( 7 - 5 3.89 ERA 90 IP ) to the mound, hoping he will recapture some of his pre-injury glory (averaged 16 - 12 2.86 ERA 259 IP per season over the...

1979 ALCS Game Two After a thrilling walk-off win in game one, the Orioles look to take a commanding 2-0 series lead against the Angels. Baltimore sends their Cy Young winner, lefty Mike Flanagan (23 - 9 3.08 ERA 265 IP), to the mound. He has been a workhorse all season, but has been known to lose it quickly if he really gets in trouble. Opposing him is California righty Dave Frost (16 - 10 3.57 E...

1979 ALCS Game One - 10/3/79 - Memorial Stadium - Baltimore, Maryland California Angels For the first time in their 19 year history, the California Angels (88 - 74) are in the playoffs! The trade for former MVP and seven time batting champ Rod Carew has paid off immediately. The Angels have the league's top offense, lead by an MVP performance by Don Baylor (.296/.371/.530 36 HR 139 RBI 145 OPS...

The two best words in baseball: Game Seven. The A's avoided elimination behind outstanding performances of stars Reggie Jackson and Catfish Hunter, besting fellow future Hall-of-Famer Tom Seaver in game six. For the third time in this series, we will see the matchup between lefties Ken Holtzman (21 - 13 2.97 297 IP) and Jon Matlack (14 - 16 3.20 242 IP). Matlack has been brilliant in the posts...

The series returns to the Oakland Coliseum with the Mets just one win away from their second World Series in franchise history. With their backs against the wall, the A's turn to Jim 'Catfish' Hunter (21 - 4, 3.34 ERA, 256 IP) to stave off elimination. The Mets will look to the Franchise, Tom Seaver (19 - 10, 2.08 ERA, 290 IP), to cap off another terrific season. Unanimous 1973 MVP Reg...

The Mets and A's are all tied up at two games apiece, with one final game at Shea Stadium before the series heads back to Oakland. New York sends veteran lefty Jerry Koosman (14 - 15, 2.84 ERA 263 IP) to the mound, having yet to lose a postseason game in his career (5 GS, 3 - 0, 4.09 ERA 32.2 IP). Oakland manager Dick Williams counters with former Cy Young and MVP Vida Blue (20 - 9, 3.28 263 I...

With Oakland leading New York in this series two games to one, both teams turn to their game one starters. Rising star Jon Matlack (14 - 16 3.20 242 IP) takes the hill for the Mets, having allowed just one earned run in his last four starts, though only sporting a 2-2 record across those games. For the A's it will be veteran workhorse Ken Holtzman (21 - 13 2.97 297 IP), who won game one of the ser...

The series moves to Shea Stadium for a marquee matchup between two future Hall-of-Famers. Tom 'Terrific' Seaver (19 - 10 2.08 290 IP) gets the ball for the Mets, looking to continue his excellent career to this point. Opposing him will be Jim 'Catfish' Hunter (21 - 5 3.34 256 IP), the country boy turned perennial 20 game winner, who is coming off of a series clinching shutout against Baltimore. Be...

The Oakland A's were able to hold on in game one, thanks in large part to a tremendous relief performance from Rollie Fingers. Offense was held to a minimum in that game, but that won't be the case here in game two, despite the matchup between two great lefties. 1971 Cy Young and MVP Vida Blue (20 - 9 3.28 263 IP) gets the ball for the A's. For the Mets it will be reliable lefty Jerry Koosman (14...

After two exciting, 5-game championship series, we are on to the 1973 World Series between the A's and the Mets. These teams took much different paths to get here, but both are on fire heading into the Fall Classic. The Mets won 20 of their final 28 games to end the season, and they upset the highly favored Big Red Machine in the NLCS. The A's cruised to the AL West title, but they had a tough mat...

After splitting the first two games of the series, the A's and O's fly west to Oakland to determine who will represent the American League in the 1973 World Series. In game three, workhorse lefties Mike Cuellar (18 - 13 3.27 267 IP) and Ken Holtzman (21 - 13 2.97 297 IP) face off in an epic pitchers' duel that goes into extra innings. In game four, Jim Palmer (22 - 9 2.40 296 IP) and Vida Blue (20...

We are on to the American League Championship Series between the defending champion Oakland A's (94 - 68) versus Earl Weaver's O's (97 - 65). These teams have been the juggernauts of their respective divisions, each boasting outstanding pitching staffs and strong offenses. Reggie Jackson of Oakland is playing at an MVP level, and he is supported by stars Sal Bando, Joe Rudi, and Bert Campaneris (d...

My dad returns as cohost to discuss the 2023 HOF ballot. We go into our thoughts on the players up for election, who we'd vote for, and what we think will happen tomorrow. Will we nail our prediction like we did for Fred McGriff? Well, we'll have to wait until tomorrow to find. For now, tune in to hear the case for the likes of Scott Rolen, Todd Helton, Bill Wagner, and others. Catch you next time...

With the series tied at a game apiece, we now move to Shea Stadium in Queens for the rest of the NLCS. Despite winning only 82 games to the Reds' 99, the Mets will have a chance to host three games in this short series. And with the series even, that could turn out to be a huge advantage for this scrappy team. Pete Rose has been the spark so far for the Cincinnati, homering off of Tom Seaver late...

We are back after a bit of a hiatus, covering the exciting 1973 postseason. First up is a National League matchup between the Cincinnati Reds (99 - 63) and the New York Mets (82 - 79). Although their respective records might not indicate it, both of these teams had to overcome 10+ game deficits to take their divisions, and neither of them had led their divisions heading into September. Talk about...

With the Winter Meetings starting up this weekend, we will soon find out the fates of the Contemporary Era Committee ballot. I am joined by a special guest (my dad) to discuss the players on the ballot, who we would vote for, and what we expect to happen. All eight of these players have a case for the Hall of Fame, but the voters can choose up to only three. Will anyone make it, or will the commit...

2022 was an up and down season for the Philadelphia Phillies. They got off to a rough start, fired their manager, and then reigning MVP Bryce Harper went out with an injury. They could have wilted, but instead they rose up under new manager Rob Thomson, going 65 - 46 after taking over for Joe Girardi (22 - 29). Still, their improvement only guarantied them a Wild Card showdown with the NL Central...

While the American League playoffs mostly played out as expected, nothing could be further from the truth on the National League side. Three teams won at least 100 games - the Dodgers, Braves, and Mets. None of them reached the NLCS. We'll get to the sixth-seeded Phillies magical run in the next episode, but tune in to today's to revisit the impressive run of the San Diego Padres, who took down tw...

It's been quite a thrilling postseason so far, hasn't it? Over the next few episodes we'll be reacting to this wild and entertaining postseason, which has been filled with incredible game. Take a listen and relive these awesome moments from this year's playoffs, starting with the American League Wild Card and Divisional Series. Central Division Champions the Cleveland Guardians (92 - 70) take on t...

With yet another late-inning, comeback win in Game 5, the Phillies return home to Veterans Stadium just one win away from their first ever World Series. Embattled manager Dallas Green couldn't ask for a better pitcher in Game 6: the best lefty to ever throw a baseball, Steve Carlton (24 - 9 2.34 ERA 304 IP). Slugger Mike Schmidt (game tying run) and ace reliever Tug McGraw (win and 3 scoreless inn...

With the series all knotted up at two games apiece, a pivotal Game 5 matchup will likely determine who wins the 1980 World Series. Both the Phillies and the Royals have held serve at home to this point in the series, and neither wants to be on the brink of elimination when we head back to Philadelphia for Game 6. The starting pitching matchup: KC lefty ace Larry Gura (18 - 10 2.59 ERA 283 IP) vers...

The Royals were able to prevail in extra innings against the Phillies in a back and forth game three, but now they have to try and do it again just about 12 hours later. This Saturday matinee matchup will be crucial in deciding who will control the series. Kansas City, with a chance to even the series at two games apiece, turn to their workhorse, righty Dennis Leonard (20 - 11 3.79 ERA 280 IP), wh...