Press Box Chronicles

Today, we're diving into a legendary college football player from the University of South Carolina named Marcus Lattimore, who - 15 years removed from his prime playing days - sees sports for what it is. He's also the only athlete I've ever covered who left his professional playing career to become a poet - and one of the brightest young writers of his generation. Have any guests you want to see o...

Today, we're diving into one of my childhood heroes - my favorite baseball player of all-time: Ken Griffey, Sr. From World Series Champion to forgotten baseball star, he was more than just Ken Griffey, Jr.'s Father - he was a legend of the game. Have any guests you want to see on the show? Have any questions for me? Drop them below and I'll make sure to include them in future episodes.  Follow 'Pr...

Today, we're diving into one of the coolest football players of all-time - no, actually, maybe THE coolest football player of all-time - John Jefferson. The goggles wearing, 1,000-yard receiver may just be the coolest football player I've ever seen in my lifetime - and his downfall and subsequent departure from the NFL is one of the saddest, quickest falls from grace we've ever seen. Have any gues...

Today on a brand new episode of Break Time, we're diving into the most notorious, hilarious, wildest baseball card of all-time. A card that, when I was a kid, you wanted more than a Mike Schmidt rookie, or a Ken Griffey rookie - The Billy Ripken F*** Face card. Have any guests you want to see on the show? Have any questions for me? Drop them below and I'll make sure to include them in future episo...

Today, we're diving into one of the most requested pieces on this channel: The great American hero Joe Delaney. We love tossing the word 'hero' out when speaking about athletes, but there's only a handful who've ever been honored enough to earn that title, and Joe Delaney is one of them. This is his story. We're going on tour! PBC City Series tickets are available here: https://www.3point0labs.io/...

Today, we're diving into Quintin Dailey, the University of San Francisco phenom who's life story is one of the most complicated and tragic, yet horrific and grotesque stories I've ever covered. From severe allegations, to playing alongside Michael Jordan in the National Basketball Association, this is the story of Quintin Dailey. Have any guests you want to see on the show? Have any questions for...

Today, we're diving into a story about a guy who would make Barry Bonds seem like a media darling. A man who makes John Rocker look like - well, John Rocker will always look like a jerk, but you get the point. Today, we're diving into the one and only Dave Kingman, baseball's biggest a**hole. Have any guests you want to see on the show? Have any questions for me? Drop them below and I'll make sure...

Today, we're diving into the incredible, confusing, exciting yet deflating career of Vincent Ferragamo, the LA Rams good-looking, strong-armed, career backup QB, who had one of the most amazing one-year runs by an NFL QB in history, only to end up in the very place he competed to get out of. Have any guests you want to see on the show? Have any questions for me? Drop them below and I'll make sure...

Welcome to our brand new series 'Break Time with Jeff Pearlman,' where history comes alive one rip at a time. Today, we break a 2012 Contenders Panini Box, full of current and future Hall Of Fame players. Let's dive into the stories behind the trading cards we all grew up loving. Head to TSRips.com to get in on all the card breaking action and order your box set today. Follow Tombstone Rips on Soc...

Today, we're going to talk about my favorite NBA expansion team ever. A collection of good to not-so-great players, all buying in to launch the Miami Heat franchise in 1988. Except, they sucked. The 1988 Miami Heat couldn't shoot, couldn't pass, couldn't dribble, and they ended up being on the wrong side of NBA history. Have any guests you want to see on the show? Have any questions for me? Drop t...

Today, we are diving into a story that is maybe my greatest accomplishment as a journalist in my career. It's 1991, and Tupac Shakur has just released his debut album '2pacalypse Now' with his smash hit single 'Brenda's Got A Baby.' It's a song about a young woman who gives birth to a son on the floor of her kitchen, and leaves him in a trash heap. It's a harrowing story that hits deeply for many,...

This it it. The team, the story, the one you've all been asking for. However for this, we're going to focus on one specific instance from the most batshit crazy, insane MLB team of all-time: The 1986 New York Mets. Post NLCS, the Mets are coming off a huge win over the Houston Astros, and heading to the World Series. What happens next is the craziest sh*t you've ever heard. Have any guests you wan...

Today, we're going to discuss one of my favorite baseball players of all time. He was a flash in the pan who was set for a much longer career, but like many athletes, injuries derailed his promising future. Today, we discuss the legend of former Detroit Tigers ace Mark "The Bird" Fidrych. Have any guests you want to see on the show? Have any questions for me? Drop them below and I'll make sure to...

Usually, we do these stories about sports figures past, present and future. But today, we're going to talk about an unsung hero. It's November 2021, and Henry Ruggs III has just got into a terrible car crash, killing Tina Tinter and her dog, Max. But on that night, there was a third person on site: Tony Rodriguez. This is his story. Have any guests you want to see on the show? Have any questions f...

Today, we're going to explore something that's outside our realm of sports stories. It's a story some of you may have heard before, but not like this. This is the story of how Tupac Shakur almost gave up music before even starting, and how touring with Digital Underground led to both tragedy and triumph. If you pre-order my book 'Only God Can Judge Me: The Many Lives Of Tupac Shakur' now and email...

Tragedy in sports is not new. We deal with athletes who are gone too soon, far too often - Thurman Munson, Kobe Bryant, Len Bias - the list goes on and on. But today, we're going to talk about one of the forgotten tragedies in sports history, a guy that was Thurman Munson or Kobe Bryant for an earlier generation, and that's Chicago Cubs 2B Ken Hubbs. Have any guests you want to see on the show? Ha...

*BONUS EPISODE* September 11, 2001 is the worst day of my and many other New Yorkers lives. I've lost my Dad, grandparents, loved ones - it's the worst day. But that day led me to Columbia basketball player Tyler Ugolyn, the Ugolyn family, and a 20+ year friendship that I still hold to this day. Have any guests you want to see on the show? Have any questions for me? Drop them below and I'll make s...

in 2018 I was working on my book Three Ring Circus about the Shaq & Kobe Los Angeles Lakers of the 2000s. In 2001, the Lakers acquired an athletic, scoring shooting guard who was the former No. 5 overall pick in the 1993 NBA draft, but had bounced around the league with multiple teams. This episode is about the enigmatic Isaiah "J.R." Rider. Have any guests you want to see on the show? Have any qu...

Today, we're going to discuss one of the worst decisions of my life. It's 1979, I"m seven years old, I'm sitting at the dinner table with my family, and for some moronic, stupid, idiotic reason, I decided to dedicate my fandom to the good for nothing, sorry, pitiful, New York Jets. Have any guests you want to see on the show? Have any questions for me? Drop them below and I'll make sure to include...

In 1999, a can't miss prospect named Josh Hamilton was drafted No. 1 overall by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. By 2005, he was out of the league. By 2010, he was AL MVP. This is the incredible story of Josh Hamilton's battle with addiction, fame, fortune and failure.  Have any guests you want to see on the show? Have any questions for me? Drop them below and I'll make sure to include them in future epi...

Today, we're going to talk about the most insane, over exaggeration of a sports story-turned-Hollywood-blockbuster of all-time - Moneyball. The year is 2011, and Moneyball, starring Brad Pitt and Jonah Hill, debuts in movie theaters across the country. It's based on the 2002 Oakland Athletics and GM Billy Beane, who introduced analytics into the clubhouse. What happened in the film - and what actu...

Today, we're going to talk about one of my all-time favorite athletes. An athlete that was literally the most insane, batsh*t crazy athlete I've ever covered. An athlete so crazy, he once punched his coach, threatened his team owner, and watched team practice from the sidelines - AFTER being cut. This is the story of Greg Fields.  Have any guests you want to see on the show? Have any questions for...

In 1977, Rick Bell is drafted No. 1 overall out of the University of Southern California by the Tamp Bay Buccaneers. He's a 1,000 yard rusher, with speed, agility, size and strength. By 1984, he was dead. This is one of the most heartbreaking stories I've ever covered. Have any guests you want to see on the show? Have any questions for me? Drop them below and I'll make sure to include them in futu...

Today, we're going to talk about former Denver Broncos, Cleveland Browns and Los Angeles Raiders lineman Lyle Alzado. A man who was once so feared by his peers across the league. A man who swore by hard work and dedication. A man whose years of anabolic steroid abuse he says led to his diagnosis of brain cancer, and ultimate death, at the age of 43. This is his story. Have any guests you want to s...

It's July 29, 1998, and Hall of Fame Dallas Cowboys receiver Michael Irvin is at training camp in Wichita Falls, TX. All is good between Irvin, the Cowboys and the league. Then, he goes in for a haircut. What followed is one of the biggest cover ups not just in Dallas Cowboys history, but in NFL history. Have any guests you want to see on the show? Have any questions for me? Drop them below and I'...