This Week in 1920s Baseball

Sweetbread and Bucketfoot are back at it for an off-season look at the goings on in 1923. None other than the most powerful man in sport, one Kenesaw Mountain Landis, visited Pennsylvania in 1923 to talk about the game. The throngs were pretty excited, to say the least. The podsmen also talk about some international […]

Sweetbread and Bucketfoot are back in the building to talk about the 1922 season. It was a battle of the New York squads! Who took home the Series trophy? What was the controversy that plagued game one? Who unexpectedly took the home run crown from Ruth? Why don’t sportswriters pen poems anymore? The podsman talk […]

Hey we’re back at it after a long hiatus, bringing you the hot tea kettle takes on the 1922 MLB season and having lots of digressions along the way. We cover one particularly interesting game in the 1922 season, get you caught up in the standings, and talk about the baseball career of Jim Thorpe. […]

On this week in This Week in 1920s Baseball, Sweetbread and Bucketfoot get ready for the Memorial Day holiday by talking about how it was celebrated 100 years ago in the world of baseball. The holiday was actually known as “Decoration Day” at the time and it was a somber affair in 1921 as several ballplayers […]

This week on This Week in 1920s Baseball, Sweetbread and Bucketfoot cover a wide range of topics: Babe Ruth’s hot start to 1921, the surprising standings at the end of April, the underappreciated Bucky Harris, the curious existence of tie games in baseball, the reason “Home Run” Baker was out of the line-up, early 20th […]

It’s opening day of the 1921 season and Sweetbread and Bucketfoot are here to give you the hot tea kettle takes. Enjoy some fabulous old-time prose from 1920s sportswriter Gordon Mackay to get you pumped for the season then hear about who started off the year with a bang. Babe Ruth! Baby Doll Jacobson! Sad […]

This week on “This Week in 1920s Baseball,” Sweetbread and Bucketfoot talk about the return to baseball of one J. Franklin “Home Run” Baker. It’s one of the most literal of all nicknames and his story is full of both triumph and tragedy. They also talk about what spring training was like in 1921 as […]

This week on “This Week in 1920s Baseball,” Sweetbread and Bucketfoot cover the off-season transactions following the 1920 season, as well as one transaction that didn’t happen. It’s not the hot stove — it’s the era-appropriate “tea kettle take” you’ve been waiting for. Hear about what star is headed to Pittsburgh, who the Yankees added to […]

On this week in “This Week in 1920s Baseball,” Sweetbread and Bucketfoot stumble upon an article about “rowdyism” in the American Association. Those guys got rowdy! This led the podsmen to look into the minor leagues of the 1920s. There were so many great team names: St. Paul Apostles, Longview Cannibals, Toledo Iron Men, New […]

This week on “This Week in 1920s Baseball” Sweetbread and Bucketfoot play a little off-season game where they each research a mystery player then drop some knowledge on one another. It’s not really a game, but it is fun! Who do they choose? How is it that one of the players spawned a forensics mystery? […]

The podsmen are back after a long hiatus to wrap up the year that was, 100 years ago. Who won the 1920 World Series? Did George Sisler end up  hitting .400? What was Josh’s old-timey baseball nickname again? Learn all this and more, on “This Week in 1920s Baseball!”  

This week in This Week in 1920s Baseball, Matt and Josh (aka Sweetbread and Bucketfoot) cover the scandal of all scandals! It was this week (mid-September) of 1920 that the news broke in papers all over the country that the White Sox threw the 1919 World Series. A grand jury was quickly convened in Chicago with subpoenas […]

This week on “This Week in 1920s Baseball,” Josh and Matt talk a bit about the fatal pitch that killed Indians shortstop Ray Chapman. More on that comping soon! They also talk about a strange little story about gamblers who got busted falsifying a report that Babe Ruth and several teammates were hurt or killed […]

This week on “This Week in 1920s Baseball” we are so happy to have a very special guest, Sean Gibson. Sean is the great-grandson of baseball great Josh Gibson and the Executive Director of the Josh Gibson Foundation. Sean came to our attention because he wrote an excellent article advocating that the MVP award be […]

On “This Week in 1920s Baseball” podsmen Matthew and Josh (aka Sweetbread and Bucketfoot) cover the only no-hitter of the 1920 season and take a look at the great Walter Johnson. They also examine the 1920 New York Giants and their remarkable second half. And, yes, they talk about old-timey nicknames a little bit, including […]

On this very special episode of “This Week in 1920s Baseball,” we have a special guest! Meet David Dunlap aka “Specs” aka “Lefty” aka “Lefty D” aka “Sure Shot.” (He has a lot of nicknames.) David joins us to play a quiz show of Bucketfoot’s creation called “Hall or Nothing.” Lefty takes on Sweetbread in […]

After picking their All-Stars for the 1920 season, Sweetbread and Bucketfoot choose their “All-Nickname” team. Call it “NAR” for nickname above replacement. In this mini-episode, they share their favorites like Pickles Dillhoefer, Ping Bodie, Pie Traynor, Slim Love, Possum Whitted, and more. Who has the highest NAR of the year? Of all-time? Tune in to […]

We’ve reached the midpoint of the season! Halfway through this historic year. The MLB All-Star Game didn’t start until 1933, but podsmen Matt and Josh (aka “Sweetbread” and “Bucketfoot”) decided to draft their own squads for an imagined mid-summer classic. There are some names you’d expect like Sisler, Hornsby, and Ruth, but also surprises! Hear […]

Podsmen Matt and Josh look at the money side of baseball, as big a part of the game in 1920 as it is today. They also look at some on-field action, covering an important four-game series between the first place Indians and second place Yankees. Player profiles include “Baby Doll” Jacobson and “Specs” Meadows. All […]

After a cool April to 1920, Babe Ruth is starting to heat up! He hit a bunch of circuit swats in May; reporters and fans alike are getting excited!  Podsmen too. Hear all about Babe’s hot month as well as the other batsmen making noise in the early part of 1920 on “This Week in […]

Podsman Matt and Josh catch up on the standings this week in 1920 and find that a surprising team is leading the National League. They do a team profile of the Pittsburgh Pirates and also find a funny article called “Bingles and Bungles” published in the Philadelphia Evening Public Ledger on May 20, 1920. They also […]

This week, podsman Matt and Josh introduce an exciting new “Sisler Watch” segment to track George Sisler’s attempt to hit .400. They also cover an amazing 26 inning game where both pitchers threw complete games! That’s some epic old-time baseball right there. Also covered are the new rules and changes in statistical record-keeping that MLB […]

It’s time for a very special episode! We came across this great write-up of a game from May 17, 1920. There were rallies and comebacks and fantastic plays. Extra innings galore! Larry Doyle got kicked out for hurling his bat into the ground! A guy smashed a water bottle in the dugout! So we decided […]

BAPL podsmen Matt and Josh offer some corrections and additions on episode five and then get right into the action of the 1920 season. Who is off to a hot start? Who is stuck in the basement? The answer might surprise you! They also highlight some of the great nicknames from the 1920 rosters like […]

On this week in “This Week in 1920s Baseball,” podsmen Matt and Josh celebrate opening day! Well, opening day 1920 anyway. There is no baseball here in 2020 of course, but we can (and do!) look at the opening of the 1920 season. Who are the favorites to win? What teams are likely to stink […]

This week the podsmen field listener questions inspired by the episode about “Gavvy” Cravath. Who was the Chalmers award named after? Why was the Brooklyn team called the “Superbas?” How cool were player-managers? Learn all this and more on This Week in 1920s Baseball!

This week on “This Week in 1920s Baseball,” podsman Josh is flying solo due to social distancing. He’s bringing you a player profile mini-episode, all about Phillies great “Gavvy” Cravath. The podsmen will bring you special episodes like this throughout the year, highlighting individual players, events, debates, or other stuff that catches their fancy. It […]

In this week in 1920s baseball, we look at the formation of the Negro National League (NNL). The great Rube Foster met with all the major players in black baseball on February 13, 1920 in Kansas City. By the end of the meeting the Negro Leagues were born… Well, history isn’t ever quite that simple, […]

BAPL podsmen Matt and Josh bring you a new series: "This Week in 1920s Baseball." They break down the hot takes on the season that was 100 years ago, using the library newspaper archives for research on the games and off-season action as they were reported.