Life Around The Seams Josh Suchon

Steve Physioc recently announced his retirement after a superlative 47-year career of broadcasting Major League Baseball, college football and basketball, local TV sports and many more unique assignments.
Episode 54 of the "Life Around the Seams" podcast might sound a little like an "exit interview" as we follow Physioc's career. It wasn't always smooth. He famously bet on himself at a critical stage in his life, leaving a six-figure job in Cincinnati to move to San Francisco with no guaranteed job. 
Physioc tells an adorable story of how the guy he replaced in Cincinnati introduced him to his future wife; provides lessons to young broadcasters; advice for Jake Eisenberg, who is taking his place with the Royals; working with longtime analyst Rex Hudler for two teams; what he'll miss about working in baseball; and the inspiration for the historical fiction novels he's written. 
 

Jim Rushford is one of the most improbable players to ever reach the major leagues. Undrafted out of college, he played for two independent league teams, took a year off, then played two more years of independent baseball before even reaching affiliated minor league ball.
Along the way, Rushford worked numerous odd jobs, including pizza delivery guy, which is the inspiration for the title of his new book, "The Pizza Guy Delivers."
In Episode 53, Rushford reveals his remarkable journey to the majors, making his MLB debut at Wrigley Field, his first (and only) home run, playing another eight years, and the hilarious story of how met his wife in the dorms at San Diego State University. 

Wynton Bernard is the feel-good story right now in baseball, a guy who spent the last 11 years playing minor league baseball, including two years of independent ball, who made his Major League Debut at age 31 on Friday, August 12, 2022 for the Colorado Rockies. The video of Bernard telling his mother Janet, via FaceTime, that he was going to the major leagues went viral with millions of views in just a few days.
Over the last 16 months, I've been able to watch and describe Bernard play for the Albuquerque Isotopes, get to know him as a person, and we've had a lot of interviews for the pregame show.
For this special episode of the Life Around the Seams podcast, we've compiled those interviews together, along with some highlights from games, and soundbytes from teammates Brandon Gold and Logan Cozart, Isotopes manager Warren Schaeffer, and Rockies front office executives Clint Hurdle and Chris Forbes. 
 

Longtime baseball reporter Jeff Fletcher enjoyed an up-close view of Shohei Ohtani's magical 2021 season, and also the two previous disappointing seasons, that made it all the more remarkable to watch this two-way player perform in ways we've never seen before.
Fletcher just published a new book that details the entire life story of Ohtani, from Japan, to the decision of which team to join in the United States, why comparison to Babe Ruth really aren't very accurate, and how once the well-meaning restrictions were taken off Ohtani, it allowed him to flourish as a hitter and pitcher.
Since we both used to cover baseball in the Bay Area, we also have some fun imagining how long the A's competitive advantage would have lasted if Michael Lewis never wrote "Moneyball" and how the baseball world would be different if Billy Beane took the Red Sox job.

Ken Levine and I worked together for three years on Post Game Dodger Talk, where Vin Scully introduced our show. When I heard that Vin Scully died, I immediately wanted to talk with Ken about his life. Then I realized we should record a podcast so that others can hear our stories and memories.
This is a special episode. No fancy intros. Just straight to the point. Ken and I swapping stories about Scully, the greatest baseball play-by-play announcer of all time. 

Tom Drees pitched three no-hitters in 1989 for Triple-A Vancouver, including back-to-back starts. He pitched three no-hit innings in the Triple-A All-Star Game. He was an integral part of the team that won the Pacific Coast League title. But the Chicago White Sox never called him up to the majors and many believe there was an ulterior motive.
On July 6 of that year, when their paychecks had not arrived, the Vancouver Canadians players staged a walkout and refused to play a game, citing it wasn't the first time checks were late. The story became national news, the White Sox were livid, and the organization took it out on the players the rest of the season.
We reflect on Drees' no-hitters, waiting two more years to finally get called up to the major leagues, and how his teammates set the stage three decades ago for publicizing the inequities for minor league baseball players that exists to this day.