Eephus and The Southpaw

First introduced in Arlington, Texas, ballpark nachos became a staple of Tex-Mex cuisine around the world. This is their story.

Kenny Lofton was drafted by and came up with the Houston Astros after a University of Arizona career in which he'd recorded just a single at-bat. His career would flourish after getting traded to the Cleveland Indians, where he earned five All-Star selections, three Gold Glove Awards, and an American League pennant. Lofton's dynamic presence on the field and ability to impact games with his speed made him one of the most exciting players of his era.

Grae Kessinger's major league debut was inauspicious enough - 0-for-3 with a strikeout - which made it easy to miss a journey that began three generations prior, in 1942 in Forrest City, Arkansas. Don, Keith, Kevin, and Grae Kessinger are a rare three-generation baseball legacy not just in the big leagues, but at their alma mater, Ole Miss, as well.

Before Zach Greinke took the title, Rube Waddell was widely regarded as the strangest man in baseball history. But as legendary manager Connie Mack once said, he also "had more stuff than any pitcher I ever saw."

Darryl Kile was a three-time All-Star who pitched for the Astros, Rockies, and Cardinals during his 12-year Major League Baseball career. Known for his competitive spirit, solid pitching skills, and good sportsmanship, his untimely death shocked and saddened the baseball community.

Curt Schilling's post-baseball career, as the head of a video game development company, ended disastrously when it filed for bankruptcy not long after releasing its first game. The fallout from that bankruptcy included the state of Rhode Island, which was on the hook for millions of dollars they'd loaned the company, which were never paid back.

Addie "Gentleman Addie" Joss was one of the greatest pitchers of his era when he died of tubercular meningitis at the age of 31. Moved by his death, several players teamed up for the Addie Joss Benefit Game, in his honor, which paved the way for hundreds of charity games that followed.

Curt Flood was played for 15 seasons in the major leagues, but it was his role in challenging baseball's reserve clause in the 1960s where he truly made a name for himself. Flood's refusal to be traded to another team without his consent ultimately led to a landmark Supreme Court case that revolutionized professional sports and paved the way for free agency. This episode will explore Flood's life and legacy, focusing on his impact on the game of baseball and his enduring influence on labor relations in professional sports.

A knuckle-nosed pipe fitter whose face could "hold two days of rain," according to Tommy Lasorda, Hank Bauer was a decorated Marine Corps veteran who signed with the New York Yankees after returning home from World War II.

Casey Stengel called Moe Berg "the strangest man ever to play baseball." From using the pseudonym Runt Wolfe in high school ball to his lengthy post-baseball career as an international spy and man of mystery, Moe Berg lived an absolutely fascinating life.

Francesco Stephano Pezzolo, better known as Ping Bodie, was a staple for the Yankees in the 1910s. He was also something of a practical joker. Sometimes, however, his jokes went too far - such as the time when he challenged Percy the Ostrich to a spaghetti-eating contest, with disastrous results.

In 1985, Sports Illustrated published a fifteen-page article on Mets rookie phenom Sidd Finch. Finch was an unusual player: He had lived in a Tibetan monastery, pitched with one work boot and one bare foot, played the French horn, and could throw a baseball 168mph with pinpoint accuracy. Sounds too good to be true? You may be on to something.

The 1899 Cleveland Spiders are widely regarded as the worst team in the history of baseball, but how bad were they really, and why?

In 1977, the Milwaukee Brewers squared off for one regular season game against the Milwaukee Brewers. The Milwaukee Brewers won. This is the story of that game.

The San Diego Padres drafted Matt LaChappa in the second round of the 1993 MLB Draft. As of November 2022, he is the longest-tenured player in Padres history. This is a touching story of a player who had everything taken away from him, and about a woman - and an organization - stepping up to make sure that he did not fall through the cracks.

A very important part of the game of baseball that very few people ever stop to consider is, well, the baseball itself. Michelle and Anthony do a deep-dive on it and its history in this episode.

When superstar outfielder Dave Winfield signed with the New York Yankees as a free agent, everyone was thrilled - except for the Yankees' owner, George Steinbrenner. Irritated over a disagreement in a contract clause, Steinbrenner held a grudge against Winfield that would ultimately cost him control of the team.

Born and raised in New York City, Anthony Varvaro walked away from a big league career to become a Port Authority policeman. On the 21st anniversary of September 11th, on his way to a memorial to honor the victims, he was killed in a car crash on the New Jersey Turnpike. This is his story.

A five-tool player in the late 19th century, Ed Delahanty was one of baseball's first superstars, and potentially the first to be murdered.

In 2008, three men began a contest designed to find and develop baseball talent from India. The Million Dollar Arm contest ignited the imagination of one of the world's largest countries, but whatever happened to the two men who won?

Major League teams went to great lengths to fill their rosters in the World War II era, including the Cincinnati Reds, who signed a fourteen-year-old junior high school basketball standout named Joe Nuxhall to a contract.

Richard "Rocky" Perone was an Australian baseball player who compiled just two Low-A appearances as a professional, which happened six years apart. And that's not even the most impressive part of his story, since Rocky Perone never actually existed.

The opening day starter in left field for the 1932 New York Giants was a man named Len Koenecke, whose brief baseball career may have been unremarkable if not for the way it ended.

When a team roper named Mason Saunders won a minor rodeo event in Arizona, baseball fans couldn't help but notice that he bore a striking resemblance to one ace National League pitcher.

The All-American Girls Professional Baseball League was a professional women's baseball league founded by Philip K. Wrigley in 1943. Long before it came to fame with the movie 'A League of Their Own,' the league's actual superstars - including Saskatchewan native Helen Nicol - were performing heroic feats all their own. One night, two days after throwing a shutout, Nicol entered a game in relief and threw thirteen scoreless innings, while also driving in the game-winning run. This is her story.

During Spring Training before the 2000 season, six minor leaguers in the Houston Astros system were held up at gunpoint while at the team hotel. It would change each of their lives in different ways.

In the 1980s, a cocaine ring spread through the National League, engulfing stars as big as Keith Hernandez and Tim Raines. That ring began, innocuously enough, with two Pittsburgh Pirates superfans, one of whom used his cover as the Pirate Parrot, the team's first mascot, to traffic drugs into the team clubhouse. This is the story of Kevin Koch and Dale Shiffman, two Keystone State party guys who became immersed in a world of sex, drugs, and sacrifice flies.

In the heat of the first-ever AL Central division race, Cleveland slugger Albert Belle had his bat removed from play and locked in the umpires' room on suspicion of corking. What ensues is one of baseball's all-time great capers.

Welcome to Eephus and the Southpaw, a podcast about baseball by two lifelong fans, who love getting into the small details that make the sport so great.In this episode, Michelle and Anthony discuss their picks for the most overrated player of their lifetimes. WARNING: This episode may get a bit spicy!

Welcome to Eephus and the Southpaw, a podcast about baseball by two lifelong fans, who love getting into the small details that make the sport so great.In this episode, Michelle and Anthony discuss Minor League Baseball, from its humble origins as a loose collection of independent competitors to the American League, all the way to the present day, as the industry figures out its place following a massive shakeup in 2021.

Welcome to Eephus and the Southpaw, a podcast about baseball by two lifelong fans, who love getting into the small details that make the sport so great.In this episode, Michelle and Anthony break down the history of the MLB draft, its evolution over the years, how we got where we're at today, and the possibility of an international draft. 

Welcome to Eephus and the Southpaw, a podcast about baseball by two lifelong fans, who love getting into the small details that make the sport so great. In this episode, Michelle and Anthony introduce themselves and talk about what got them so interested in baseball.