Almost Cooperstown

Send us a textSteve Phillips has been a radio personality for 20 years starting not long after his time his time as GM for our #mets. Steve brought in Mike Piazza who had the biggest non-playoff home run in Mets history - until this year maybe? Today Steve hosts 'The Leadoff Spot' on Sirius/XM radio weekdays from 7-10AM. Steve also broadcasts some Toronto Blue Jays games and is a regular contributor the #mlbnetwork. We didn't want to ask him about Bobby Bonilla but did finally at the end, and we did not have time to get into the failed deal for A-Rod or the Kenny Rogers meltdown in 1999 so we will have Steve back hopefully very soon! Intro & Outro music this season courtesy of Mercury Maid! Check them out on Spotify or Apple Music!  Please subscribe to our podcast and thanks for listening! If you can give us 4 or 5 star rating that means a lot. And if you have a suggestion for an episode please drop us a line via email at Almostcooperstown@gmail.com.  You can also follow us on X @almostcoop or visit the Almost Cooperstown Facebook page or YouTube channel.  And please tell your friends!www.almostcooperstown.com

Send us a textHow about the #Giants finally getting their man in Willy Adames. But it was a big price to pay. Clay Holmes to the #mets as a starter? Luis Severino to Sacramento is a big deal for the franchise formerly known as the #athletics who seem like they will eventually move to Vegas. Frankie Montas to the Mets was the reason Severino headed west. But still no word on Juan Soto but we think it will happen this week. Classic Era baseball committee came up with Dick Allen and Dave Parker but we thought Luis Tiant might make it and that all 8 candidates were worthy - well at least 7 of them. How about the Golden at-bat? Is this #MLB fan trolling? Commissioner Rob Manfred knew he'd be raked over the coals. But did it anyway. Why? It's a terrible idea and in no way makes #baseball better. HOFer Mickey Mantle is the greatest switch hitter of all time. End of story. HOFer Eddie Murray was the other switch hitter that has 500 career (504) home runs. Switch hitting is happening less frequently as the benefits are more questionable than ever. Intro & Outro music this season courtesy of Mercury Maid! Check them out on Spotify or Apple Music!  Please subscribe to our podcast and thanks for listening! If you can give us 4 or 5 star rating that means a lot. And if you have a suggestion for an episode please drop us a line via email at Almostcooperstown@gmail.com.  You can also follow us on X @almostcoop or visit the Almost Cooperstown Facebook page or YouTube channel.  And please tell your friends. www.almostcooperstown.com

Send us a textHaving worked with HOFer Roland Hemond with the Chicago #whitesox, Dan Evans took on the job of rebuilding the #dodgers in 2001. He was there for four seasons and had a winning season each year before being fired with almost 200 others. The Dodgers went 71-91 the next season and Dan tells us it did not bother him a bit! Dodgers GM from 2001-2004 having a winning record each year, Dan Evans is a baseball lifer with a lot of life left ahead!  We could have talked with Dan for hours and hours! Not being the GM that traded Beltre was very interesting to hear since Dan knew he was watching one of the greats, but others in the Dodger organization did not see it or agree. Dan also was the GM who brought back HOFers Duke Snider, Sandy Koufax, and #dodgers star Maury Wills into the Dodger family. Dan also talked about conversations he had with the teammates of Jackie Robinson and how special it was to know Jackie's widow Rachel. A historian of the game, Dan sees the future at the same time making him one of the most interesting interviews we've ever done on the podcast. We will have him back hopefully very soon as we've much left to discuss! Dan's course for those thinking about being involved for baseball can be found here: https://www.sportsmanagementworldwide.com/users/dan-evansAnd our apologies for the audio difficulties in the podcast. Intro & Outro music this season courtesy of Mercury Maid! Check them out on Spotify or Apple Music!  Please subscribe to our podcast and thanks for listening! If you can give us 4 or 5 star rating that means a lot. And if you have a suggestion for an episode please drop us a line via email at Almostcooperstown@gmail.com.  You can also follow us on X @almostcoop or visit the Almost Cooperstown Facebook page or YouTube channel.  And please tell your friends!www.almostcooperstown.com

Send us a textWhy aren't more teams on #MLB free agent Juan Soto? They make plenty of money but are afraid. Afraid even though they are increasing franchise value and have more revenue streams than ever before. Teams should be spending more on Free Agents. We tell you which ones. Which teams should be spending more period? After Juan Soto signs who will be next?  Pete Alonso? Anthony Santander? Blake Snell and Tommy Edman have already signed w L.A. Dodgers. But are the #Dodgers done? Where are the #Tigers #Royals & #Guardians?  #Phillies #Braves have $ but are holding back! We cover which teams have the highest franchise value and which ones have the highest & lowest payroll obligations over the next few years. Intro & Outro music this season courtesy of Mercury Maid! Check them out on Spotify or Apple Music!  Please subscribe to our podcast and thanks for listening! If you can give us 4 or 5 star rating that means a lot. And if you have a suggestion for an episode please drop us a line via email at Almostcooperstown@gmail.com.  You can also follow us on X @almostcoop or visit the Almost Cooperstown Facebook page or YouTube channel.  And please tell your friends! www.almostcooperstown.com

Send us a text79/113/122 those are the numbers representing the amount of days until pitchers & catchers report, #Dodgers #Cubs opening games in Tokyo March 18, and the REAL opening day on March 27. MVP, Cy Young, Rookie of the Year, and Manager of the Year were all awarded. There were exactly ZERO surprises. Guess that's but it's also kind of boring. News Flash - #Mets Francisco Lindor did not win anything but a silver slugger. Sure he gets paid but what does Lindor have to do to get recognized as one of #Baseball's best? Who will get in on the recently released 2025 HOF ballot? #Mariners Ichiro Suzuki is on the ballot & may be a first ballot HOFer. Should he be unanimous? We give reasons why yes, and why no.  Felix Hernandez & C.C. Sabathia are also on the ballot for the 1st time. Will they get in first time around? How about #Astros #Mets #Phillies Billy Wagner? This is his last time around. Will he get in? Intro & Outro music this season courtesy of Mercury Maid! Check them out on Spotify or Apple Music!  Please subscribe to our podcast and thanks for listening! If you can give us 4 or 5 star rating that means a lot. And if you have a suggestion for an episode please drop us a line via email at Almostcooperstown@gmail.com.  You can also follow us on X @almostcoop or visit the Almost Cooperstown Facebook page or YouTube channel.  And please tell your friends! www.almostcooperstown.com

Send us a textBaseball fans may have heard the story that Stan Musial began his career in baseball as a pitcher/outfielder. A shoulder injury forced him to become a hitter and outfielder full-time for which #MLB is forever grateful. Stan-the-Man had 3,630 hits - the same 1,815 hits at home as he had on the road! He missed only one season due to WWII in 1945 only to return the next year, win the #NLMVP and lead the #Cardinals to their 6th World Series victory in 21 years. Musial played 22 seasons in the Majors and was an All-Star 24 times. That's not a misprint and Gordon and I tell you why. Was he better than the 'Spendid Splinter' Ted Williams? Maybe not as a hitter but he did have more hits in his career. Williams out-homered Stan despite carding 3 fewer seasons. But we highlight the most unusual facet of Musial's career which was his shuttling between the outfield and first base (where he played more than 30% of his games during his illustrious career). Both Musial and Williams started their careers long before Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier in #baseball. Intro & Outro music this season courtesy of Mercury Maid! Check them out on Spotify or Apple Music!  Please subscribe to our podcast and thanks for listening! If you can give us 4 or 5 star rating that means a lot. And if you have a suggestion for an episode please drop us a line via email at Almostcooperstown@gmail.com.  You can also follow us on X @almostcoop or visit the Almost Cooperstown Facebook page or YouTube channel.  And please tell your friends!www.almostcooperstown.com

Send us a textJapanese sensation 23-year-old Roki Sasaki wants to play #MLB. He finally got Chibu to allow him to have that opportunity. Yoshinobu Yamamoto showed the #Dodgers that top-tier NPB pitchers can dominate in the Majors. Gerrit Cole thought about leaving the #Yankees and then thought the better of it. We didn't discuss Shohei Ohtani's surgery but he'll be ready for Opening Day. We discussed the Gold Glove winners who were announced this week. The Classic Baseball committee put out their ballot this year to be voted on by 16 yet unnamed voters. Dick Allen and the late Luis Tiant are our favorites. But there are other worthy candidates including Negro League stars John Donaldson and Vic Willis. And Brooks Robinson won 16 consecutive Gold Gloves. Amazing! Intro & Outro music this season courtesy of Mercury Maid! Check them out on Spotify or Apple Music!  Please subscribe to our podcast and thanks for listening! If you can give us 4 or 5 star rating that means a lot. And if you have a suggestion for an episode please drop us a line via email at Almostcooperstown@gmail.com.  You can also follow us on X @almostcoop or visit the Almost Cooperstown Facebook page or YouTube channel.  And please tell your friends! www.almostcooperstown.com

Send us a textIf you are using Baseball-reference.com or Football or Basketball reference you will be using aspects what Sean Lahman created 30 years ago. Sean is a member of SABR and has generously donated the database to SABR so it's in excellent hands! We asked Sean how to use the database, how much and how long it took to put it all together (Bill James was an inspiration) and ways the average fan can make use of the Lahman Database which can be found at baseball1.com.  We think you'll agree that Sean is engaging and easy to talk with and we had a great time and learned more than a few things and you will too!Intro & Outro music this season courtesy of Mercury Maid! Check them out on Spotify or Apple Music!  Please subscribe to our podcast and thanks for listening! If you can give us 4 or 5 star rating that means a lot. And if you have a suggestion for an episode please drop us a line via email at Almostcooperstown@gmail.com.  You can also follow us on X @almostcoop or visit the Almost Cooperstown Facebook page or YouTube channel.  And please tell your friends!www.almostcooperstown.com

Send us a textNo longer can #dodgers be talked about as not having won a WS in this century in a 162-game season. There are a few players like Max Muncy who remember taking Covid-19 test after winning the 2020 World Series. No parades. No cheering from the fans. The 2024 championship behind a great job of managing by future HOF manager Dave Roberts makes all the noise go away.Was #yankees manager Aaron Boone outmanaged by Roberts? It sure felt that way. UCLA beat USC in this one. Except Gerrit Cole went to UCLA. Yankees did all the little things worse than the Dodgers and that is what it takes to win a World Series. Intro & Outro music this season courtesy of Mercury Maid! Check them out on Spotify or Apple Music!  Please subscribe to our podcast and thanks for listening! If you can give us 4 or 5 star rating that means a lot. And if you have a suggestion for an episode please drop us a line via email at Almostcooperstown@gmail.com.  You can also follow us on X @almostcoop or visit the Almost Cooperstown Facebook page or YouTube channel.  And please tell your friends!www.almostcooperstown.com

Send us a textJust last season the #dbacks came from 2-0 down to beat the #Phillies in the NLCS.  So the #Yankees being down 2-0 is not insurmountable. But their fans are going nuts and negative since presumptive AL MVP Aaron Judge has struck out 6 times in 2 games. How will the Yankee fans greet Judge upon his return to the Bronx? #Dodgers Shohei Ohtani will play in game three and lead off. His subluxation of his left shoulder (partial dislocation) may impact how hard he swings - which in case you have not noticed is VERY hard!  The pitching has been better and Freddie Freeman has been spectacular hitting homers in game one and two the first one being a walk-off grand slam!  The Yankees came from 2-0 down to beat the Dodgers in 1978. The Dodgers returned the favor on the Yankees three years later in 1981. It can be done!  Don't count out the Bronx Bombers just yet.  Gordon and Mark give their reasons why this series is not over. Intro & Outro music this season courtesy of Mercury Maid! Check them out on Spotify or Apple Music!  Please subscribe to our podcast and thanks for listening! If you can give us 4 or 5 star rating that means a lot. And if you have a suggestion for an episode please drop us a line via email at Almostcooperstown@gmail.com.  You can also follow us on X @almostcoop or visit the Almost Cooperstown Facebook page or YouTube channel.  And please tell your friends!www.almostcooperstown.com