Episode 362 of Baseball and BBQ features author Kevin Keating, who joins us to talk about his novel Waiting for a Sign and the stories, inspiration, and baseball connections behind the book. We also sit down with Jennifer and Richard Stansbury of TexMo BBQ to hear about their journey as a barbecue competition team, the world of competitive BBQ, and what it takes to cook for the win. Kevin Keating is a lifelong baseball autograph collector, author, and one of the most experienced experts in the sports-autograph world. He began collecting baseball autographs in 1969 at age 10, and by the time he graduated from high school, his collection had grown to more than 10,000 signatures. His passion for collecting eventually became a career: Keating founded Quality Autographs in 1992 and later became a principal autograph authenticator for PSA/DNA. Over the decades, Kevin has met and developed friendships with many of baseball’s legendary figures, turning his remarkable experiences into stories that capture not only the pursuit of an autograph, but the personalities behind the signatures. He is the author of Waiting for a Sign, a two-volume collection of stories from his lifetime of collecting, authenticating, and interacting with baseball and sports personalities. Volume 2 features stories involving figures including Roberto Clemente, Casey Stengel, Warren Spahn, George Brett, Bob Feller, Buck O’Neil, George Sisler, Mark McGwire, and others. Kevin’s expertise extends beyond collecting. He has written extensively about autographs, co-authored The Negro Leagues Autograph Guide, and has been featured as an expert on baseball autographs and authentication. His books offer a unique perspective on baseball history—one built not just from watching the game, but from meeting the people who made it. Jennifer Stansbury and Richard Stansbury join us as they discuss their barbecue team and the successes they have enjoyed. The following is taken from the team's Facebook page, "My style is built on the foundation of Missouri barbecue—balanced flavors, layered seasoning, and a respect for technique—blended with the bold, no-nonsense approach of Texas barbecue, where quality meat and clean execution take center stage." Our show was their first podcast appearance, but based on our discussion and their love and passion for cooking barbecue, it may end up becoming one of many. We recommend you go to Rogue Cookers website, https://roguecookers.com/ for award-winning rubs, Chef Ray Sheehan’s website, https://www.raysheehan.com/ for award-winning saucess, rubs, and cookbooks, Baseball BBQ, https://baseballbbq.com for special grilling tools and accessories, Magnechef https://magnechef.com/ for excellent and unique barbecue gloves, Mantis BBQ, https://mantisbbq.com/ to purchase their outstanding sauces with a portion of the proceeds being donated to the Kidney Project, and for exceptional sauces, Elda's Kitchen https://eldaskitchen.com/ To team up against prostate cancer go to https://fansforthecure.org/ for Fans for the Cure, and to subscribe to Bill Chuck's newsletter, Billy-Ball go to https://billchuck.substack.com/ We conclude the show with the song, Baseball Always Brings You Home from the musician, Dave Dresser and the poet, Shel Krakofsky. If you would like to contact the show, we would love to hear from you. Call the show: (516) 855-8214 Email: baseballandbbq@gmail.com Twitter: @baseballandbbq Instagram: baseballandbarbecue YouTube: baseball and bbq Website: https//baseballandbbq.weebly.com Facebook: baseball and bbq Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
