Hooks & Runs

A podcast about baseball, music and culture.
  • 4.9 (11)
  • BASEBALL
  • UPDATED BIWEEKLY

Hooks & Runs is a podcast about baseball, music and culture. Our podcast includes interviews with news makers in the sports and music world plus commentary from the co-hosts on interesting current and historical events. Hooks & Runs releases a new episodes every Thursday (more or less).

  1. 1D AGO

    287: An Historic 24 Innings in Boston w/ John McMurray plus Blue Dot Fever Hits the Music World

    Our guest for Chapter 1 is John McMurray, chair of the Society for American Baseball Research (SABR)'s Deadball Era Research Committee. His essay, "September 1, 1906: A Pivotal Game Early in the Deadball Era," appeared in the Committee's newsletter, "The Inside Game," earlier this year.  The game between the Philadelphia A's and the home team Boston Americans (now Red Sox) lasted 24 innings with the A's winning 4-1. The game featured many deadball era baseball features including speed, defense, strategy, moving the runners, crowd participation and heroic pitching with each starter pitching complete games in this marathon contest.  McMurray paints a vivid picture of deadball era baseball at the turn of the last century by walking us through this amazing ballgame.  In Chapter 2, Craig and Rex discuss blue dot fever that is causing artists in the pop music business to cancel shows and entire tours this summer. Join the Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) here: https://sabr.org/community This is a cbc.com story on the Live Nation Lawsuit discussed in Chapter Two: https://www.cbc.ca/news/investigates/live-nation-executive-exclusive-9.7191295 Episodes featured: 220 - In an Instant It Was All Gone: The Ray Chapman Story w/ Scott H. Longert; Ep. 72 - Seeing the World Through Baseball w/ Cousin Wolf (Matt Halvorson). Errata: Craig mistakenly referenced the 1915 A's as one of Connie Mack's better teams -- that A's team finished 43-109, following one of Mack's sell-offs. The A's won 4 AL pennants and 3 World Series titles from 1910 to 1914. Vic Willis, a Hall of Famer, lost 29 games pitching for the 51-103 Boston Nationals in 1905, not 26 games. Consider supporting Hooks & Runs by purchasing books, including those featured in this episode (if any were), through our store at Bookshop.org. Here's the link. https://bookshop.org/shop/hooksandruns. Hooks & Runs - https://hooksandruns.buzzsprout.com Email: hooksandruns@protonmail.com Craig on Bluesky (@craigest.bsky.social) Rex (Krazy Karl's Music Emporium) on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/people/Krazy-Karlz-Music-Emporium/100063801500293/ Hosts Emeriti: Andrew Eckhoff on TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@hofffest Eric on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/ichaboderic/ Music: "Warrior of Light" by ikolics (via Premium Beat)    www.premiumbeat.com/artist/ikoliks This podcast and this episode are copyright Craig Estlinbaum, 2026.

    56 min

  2. MAY 12

    286 - The Magical 1926 St. Louis Cardinals w/ Kevin J. Abing

    Author and historian Kevin J. Abing is our guest this week to talk about the 1926 St. Louis Cardinals, on the 100th Anniversary of the team's first World Series championships.  Abing is author of "Baseball Magic and Mayhem in St. Louis: The 1926 Cardinals, World Series Champions" (McFarland Press, 2026). Abing's meticulously researched book tells the story of the Cardinal's rise from National League doormat to dominance and the team's magical 1926 season. Previous episodes discussed are No. 189, "Baseball, Chemical Warfare and the Great War w/ Jim Leeke; and No. 247, "'A Stranger Among His Own Kind," Rogers Hornsby: Texans in the Hall." Abing's book at McFarland Press: https://mcfarlandbooks.com/product/baseball-magic-and-mayhem-in-st-louis/ Consider supporting Hooks & Runs by purchasing books, including those featured in this episode (if any were), through our store at Bookshop.org. Here's the link. https://bookshop.org/shop/hooksandruns. Hooks & Runs - https://hooksandruns.buzzsprout.com Email: hooksandruns@protonmail.com Craig on Bluesky (@craigest.bsky.social) Rex (Krazy Karl's Music Emporium) on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/people/Krazy-Karlz-Music-Emporium/100063801500293/ Hosts Emeriti: Andrew Eckhoff on TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@hofffest Eric on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/ichaboderic/ Music: "Warrior of Light" by ikolics (via Premium Beat)    www.premiumbeat.com/artist/ikoliks This podcast and this episode are copyright Craig Estlinbaum, 2026.

    53 min

  3. MAY 4

    285 - Texans in the Hall: Tris Speaker

    Hooks & Runs returns to weekly episodes with this continuation of our series "Texans in the Hall." This entry examines the career of Tris Speaker, who played 22 years in the Majors hitting .345 with over 3,500 hits and a record 792 career doubles. He also re-wrote the book on how to play center field. Speaker was born and is buried in Hubbard, Texas in Hill County. In part 2, another baseball card draw that includes a should be Hall of Famer and one of baseballs colorful knuckleballers. Consider supporting Hooks & Runs by purchasing books, including those featured in this episode (if any were), through our store at Bookshop.org. Here's the link. https://bookshop.org/shop/hooksandruns. Hooks & Runs - https://hooksandruns.buzzsprout.com Email: hooksandruns@protonmail.com Craig on Bluesky (@craigest.bsky.social) Rex (Krazy Karl's Music Emporium) on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/people/Krazy-Karlz-Music-Emporium/100063801500293/ Hosts Emeriti: Andrew Eckhoff on TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@hofffest Eric on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/ichaboderic/ Music: "Warrior of Light" by ikolics (via Premium Beat)    www.premiumbeat.com/artist/ikoliks This podcast and this episode are copyright Craig Estlinbaum, 2026.

    36 min

  4. APR 29

    Talking Kansas City: Baseball, BBQ and Ballparks w/ Mike Czerniewski

    Mike Czerniewski, host of This Podcast Is ... Uncalled For, joins us this week to talk about Kansas City baseball history - the Monarchs, the A's and the Royals, along with Kansas City BBQ and new digs for the Royals. Check out our episodes 280, "Texans in the Hall: Joe Williams, Andy Cooper and Hilton Smith w/ Thomas Kern," and 262, "Rube and Bill Foster: Texans in the Hall," for stories about players that played for and against the Kansas City Monarchs. This Podcast Is... Uncalled For on Apple Podcasts Consider supporting Hooks & Runs by purchasing books, including those featured in this episode (if any were), through our store at Bookshop.org. Here's the link. https://bookshop.org/shop/hooksandruns. Hooks & Runs - https://hooksandruns.buzzsprout.com Email: hooksandruns@protonmail.com Craig on Bluesky (@craigest.bsky.social) Rex (Krazy Karl's Music Emporium) on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/people/Krazy-Karlz-Music-Emporium/100063801500293/ Hosts Emeriti: Andrew Eckhoff on TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@hofffest Eric on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/ichaboderic/ Music: "Warrior of Light" by ikolics (via Premium Beat)    www.premiumbeat.com/artist/ikoliks This podcast and this episode are copyright Craig Estlinbaum, 2026.

    46 min

  5. APR 13

    Musings from the Bleacher Seats: Ballparks and America's Pastime w/ Seth S. Tannenbaum (283)

    Seth S. Tannenbaum, Ph.D. is assistant professor of sports studies at Manhattanville University and author of Bleacher Seats and Luxury Suites: Democracy and Division at the Twentieth-Century Ballpark (University of Illinois Press 2026).  The book speaks to the fan experience at Major League Baseball games in the twentieth century and examines changing understandings of urban space, inclusion, and democracy in the U.S. Seth Tannenbaum's webpage (with discount code for Bleacher Seats). https://sethtannenbaum.com/research-description/ Consider supporting Hooks & Runs by purchasing books, including those featured in this episode (if any were), through our store at Bookshop.org. Here's the link. https://bookshop.org/shop/hooksandruns. Hooks & Runs - https://hooksandruns.buzzsprout.com Email: hooksandruns@protonmail.com Craig on Bluesky (@craigest.bsky.social) Rex (Krazy Karl's Music Emporium) on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/people/Krazy-Karlz-Music-Emporium/100063801500293/ Hosts Emeriti: Andrew Eckhoff on TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@hofffest Eric on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/ichaboderic/ Music: "Warrior of Light" by ikolics (via Premium Beat)    www.premiumbeat.com/artist/ikoliks This podcast and this episode are copyright Craig Estlinbaum, 2026.

    48 min

  6. MAR 26

    282 - On Baseball's First Superstar w/ Thomas W. Gilbert

    Our guest this episode is Thomas W. Gilbert. His new book, "Death in the Strike Zone: The Mystery of America's First Baseball Hero" (David R. Godine, 2026), is the story of James Creighton, a young pitcher who pitched for amateur clubs in Brooklyn and is credited for inventing modern pitching.  Gilbert's book is not only about Creighton's exploits on the field, but about the life and times of baseball in its earliest years - before the Civil War, before industrialization and before the game was played by professionals.  Creighton died in October 1862 at age 21. Thomas W. Gilbert's website - howbaseballhappened.com. Death in the Strike Zone, publisher's site (https://tinyurl.com/hooks032526) In this episode we mentioned our Episode 238 - Artie Shaw's Nightmare: The Big Band Sound Goes to War w/ Michael Doyle. Consider supporting Hooks & Runs by purchasing books, including those featured in this episode (if any were), through our store at Bookshop.org. Here's the link. https://bookshop.org/shop/hooksandruns. Hooks & Runs - https://hooksandruns.buzzsprout.com Email: hooksandruns@protonmail.com Craig on Bluesky (@craigest.bsky.social) Rex (Krazy Karl's Music Emporium) on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/people/Krazy-Karlz-Music-Emporium/100063801500293/ Hosts Emeriti: Andrew Eckhoff on TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@hofffest Eric on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/ichaboderic/ Music: "Warrior of Light" by ikolics (via Premium Beat)    www.premiumbeat.com/artist/ikoliks This podcast and this episode are copyright Craig Estlinbaum, 2026.

    43 min

  7. MAR 16

    281 - "A Most Dramatic Diamond Struggle"

    On July 10, 1932, after playing 3 double headers in 3 days, Connie Mack's Philadelphia A's faced the Cleveland Indians at Cleveland's League Park. Craziness ensued. The game and players set records that have never been, and are unlikely to be, broken or even approached.  This is the story of that game. We discuss our sources after the outro music. Errata: The opening game at Cleveland Stadium was July 31, 1932, not July 21st. Connie Mack was ejected from one game as manager - September 6, 1895, at the Polo Grounds in New York, while manager for the Pittsburgh Pirates. Consider supporting Hooks & Runs by purchasing books, including those featured in this episode (if any were), through our store at Bookshop.org. Here's the link. https://bookshop.org/shop/hooksandruns. Hooks & Runs - https://hooksandruns.buzzsprout.com Email: hooksandruns@protonmail.com Craig on Bluesky (@craigest.bsky.social) Rex (Krazy Karl's Music Emporium) on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/people/Krazy-Karlz-Music-Emporium/100063801500293/ Hosts Emeriti: Andrew Eckhoff on TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@hofffest Eric on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/ichaboderic/ Music: "Warrior of Light" by ikolics (via Premium Beat)    www.premiumbeat.com/artist/ikoliks This podcast and this episode are copyright Craig Estlinbaum, 2026.

    48 min

  8. MAR 9

    280 - Texans in the Hall: Joe Williams, Andy Cooper and Hilton Smith w/ Thomas Kern

    Pennsylvania native Thomas Kern has been a Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) member for over 40 years and has several biographical essays about Negro League stars during that time. Thomas joins us this episode to resume our series, "Texans in the Hall" to talk about three great Texas-born pitchers - Joe Williams, Andy Cooper and Hilton Smith. Kern introduces us to all three Texans, from their beginnings in rural Texas to the Texas amateur circuit to the Major Leagues in the Negro American or National League in the 1920s, 30s and beyond.  Thomas Kern on SABR - https://sabr.org/authors/thomas-kern/ Joe Williams at Baseball Reference; Andy Cooper at Baseball Reference; Hilton Smith at Baseball Reference. Consider supporting Hooks & Runs by purchasing books, including those featured in this episode (if any were), through our store at Bookshop.org. Here's the link. https://bookshop.org/shop/hooksandruns  Hooks & Runs - https://hooksandruns.buzzsprout.com Email: hooksandruns@protonmail.com Craig on Bluesky (@craigest.bsky.social) Rex (Krazy Karl's Music Emporium) on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/people/Krazy-Karlz-Music-Emporium/100063801500293/ Hosts Emeriti: Andrew Eckhoff on TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@hofffest Eric on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/ichaboderic/ Music: "Warrior of Light" by ikolics (via Premium Beat)    www.premiumbeat.com/artist/ikoliks This podcast and this episode are copyright Craig Estlinbaum, 2026.

    1h 4m
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4.9
out of 5
11 Ratings

About

Hooks & Runs is a podcast about baseball, music and culture. Our podcast includes interviews with news makers in the sports and music world plus commentary from the co-hosts on interesting current and historical events. Hooks & Runs releases a new episodes every Thursday (more or less).

Information

  • Creator
    A podcast about baseball, music and culture.
  • Years Active
    2020 - 2026
  • Episodes
    239
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Craig Estlinbaum
  • Show Website
    Hooks & Runs