Art Shamsky is best known for being a member of the 1969 New York Mets, who won the World Series. Shamsky played Major League Baseball from 1965 to 1972 for the Cincinnati Reds, Mets, Chicago Cubs, and Oakland Athletics. In 1969, he hit .300 with 14 home runs, the second-highest total on the team. In the post-season, Shamsky hit .538 in both the newly created National League Championship Series and World Series vs. the Baltimore Orioles.

He recently released his third book, “Mets Stories I Only Tell My Friends.” The book offers a behind-the-scenes and first-hand account of that miracle 1969 Mets season. He discusses the leadership of Tom Seaver, the steady hand of manager Gil Hodges, and what it was like to share right field with charismatic Ron Swoboda.

In this episode, Shamsky explains why he wrote this third book. He details how not a day goes by that he isn’t reminded of that championship season. At the end of the episode, he explains why he has known Seth Everett for over twenty years.

Get “Mets Stories I Only Tell My Friends” here: https://tinyurl.com/3puhkrhc

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The 2025 US Open tennis tournament once again had record crowds and is being recapped after the final victories by men’s champion Carlos Alcaraz and women’s champion Aryna Sabalenka. The singles tournament took place over 15 days and featured the world’s best tennis players.

The men’s final was marred by the appearance of Donald Trump in the crowd. The added security led to thousands of fans missing the beginning of the final waiting on lines to get in. The USTA also censored broadcasters from saying much about the President’s presence at Arthur Ashe Stadium.

Russ Thaler is a broadcaster for US Open Radio and TV and is a longtime sportscaster. In this episode, Thaler explains the plight of Americans at this tournament, including Amanda Anisimova of New Jersey reaching her second major final. Thaler also discusses the resurgence of Naomi Osaka and whether anyone can challenge Alcaraz or #1 seed Jannik Sinner for a major title.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

New York Times best-selling author Jane Leavy has written amazing biographies of some of baseball’s all-time iconic players. She’s written books about Sandy Koufax, Mickey Mantle, and the legendary Babe Ruth. When looking for a fourth biography, she found that the sport she had loved and covered for decades had undergone drastic changes. Rather than profile one particular subject, she interviewed countless baseball figures to get to the root of what’s gone wrong in baseball and offer solutions to restore its former glory.

“Make Me Commissioner: I Know What’s Wrong with Baseball and How to Fix It” includes interviews with such baseball luminaries as Joe Torre, Dave Roberts, Jim Palmer, Dusty Baker, and Buck Showalter. She spends equal time discussing what’s right with baseball, and how it illuminates characters, tells stories, and fires up the imagination of those who love it and everyone who could discover it anew.

In this episode, Leavy explains how the genesis of this book came about and who she considered writing a biography on. She also debates the challenges baseball is facing, and offers hope on why the game is still special.

Get Make Me Commissioner here: https://tinyurl.com/mrynz3cw

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.