Greg Larson wanted to live the big league dream, but after batting .091 during his senior season, he knew his only way he was getting into a pro clubhouse was if he worked there. Fresh out of college, Larson searched for any opportunity to get his foot in the door. When a spot opened up at baseball's lowest rung with the Baltimore Orioles short season Class-A Aberdeen Ironbirds, Larson jumped at the opportunity. The ensuing two years completely flipped his perception of a professional baseball p...
May 18, 2021
Cody Bellinger , Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder and 2019 National League MVP joined the Baseball Happenings Podcast to discuss his new partnership with Flonase and why the move was in alignment with his personal branding, as he has suffered from allergies his entire career. He also explained what it was like to play through the pandemic, including winning the 2020 World Series and what the Dodgers are looking forward to in defending the title in 2021. Click here to listen to the Cody Bellinger i...
Apr 14, 2021
Cassidy Lichtman, an outside hitter for the newly minted Athletes Unlimited Volleyball league , joined the Baseball Happenings Podcast to discuss all of the exciting developments the league has planned going into its debut season. The former Stanford star explains how significant it is to be part of this pioneering group, the feelings behind having her own official Topps trading card , and the work she's doing to move the game forward with her organization, Progress Through Athletics (P/ATH) . C...
Feb 25, 2021
Emily Kless, Topps Communications Manager, joined the Baseball Happenings Podcast to discuss the 2021 Topps Series 1 Baseball release , as well as the ensuing Virtual Rip Party on February 9, 2021, which features Hall of Famers, celebrities, and the top breakers celebrating Topps' 70th anniversar y . Click here to listen to the interview with Kless on the Baseball Happenings Podcast....
Feb 09, 2021
With the announcement that breakdancing will be an official event in the 2024 Olympics, we sat down with world renown Rocksteady Crew DJ, Skeme Richards to discuss how the news will affect the tightly knit community . As one of the foremost experts on the musical backbone of breakdancing culture, Richards is in high demand to spin at breaking events and competition across the globe. He offers his insight on what the greater public can expect during the Olympics, and why he hopes the IOC will con...
Dec 13, 2020
Gary Vaynerchuk joins Nick Diunte ( @Examinebaseball ) for the Baseball Happenings Podcast to discuss the growing sports card industry, what he would do if he were in charge of Topps, his new VaynerBaseball sports agency, and why he thinks MLB has stunted its own long-term growth . If you enjoyed this interview, we would love if you subscribed to the Baseball Happenings Podcast and leave a comment on this video. We welcome you to join us below on your favorite platform. Instagram: http://www.ins...
Nov 12, 2020
Lauren Taylor, MLB / MLBPA / Baseball Hall of Fame artist joins the Baseball Happenings Podcast to discuss her emerging art career while recovering from a traumatic brain injury and the ensuing depression . Check out her designs at - https://laurentaylorillustrations.com/ Click this link to listen on your favorite platform , or use the player below to stream the interview....
Oct 01, 2020
Rob Friedman, better known to his 240,000-plus Twitter followers as the PitchingNinja , fulfilled every kid's dream when Topps asked him to be a part of their 2020 Allen and Ginter baseball card set . The lawyer-turned-analyst, who created one of the most popular baseball accounts in the Twittersphere, joined the Baseball Happenings Podcast to tell how Topps' rigorous standards for being a part of the set made him feel like a major leaguer. Click here to listen to Friedman on the Baseball Happen...
Sep 16, 2020
Blake Jamieson, Topps Project 2020 artist joins the Baseball Happenings Podcast to discuss how being involved in Project 2020 has allowed him to expand his brand and business faster than he ever imagined . During the 20-minute interview, Jamieson explains how he has seized the opportunity to start multiple businesses, including a new podcast , and establish his CardArt.com website. Use this link , or click the stream below to listen....
Sep 10, 2020
Greg Modica thought his six-year minor league career was over when he tore his rotator cuff in 2006 while pitching for the Long Island Ducks. He spent the next 14 years molding New York City ballplayers to follow his lead on the mound, putting away any dreams he had of returning to the mound. Fast forward to March 2020, with COVID-19 shutting down both New York City and Modica's successful pitching business, he had nothing else to do but train. Two months shy of turning 40, he made a promise to ...
Sep 01, 2020
Rally , the collectibles investment platform, has developed an unique partnership with Topps to produce ten "1st edition" 2020 Topps complete sets to be sold in shares exclusively through Rally's app . Rally's co-founder, Rob Petrozzo, joined the Baseball Happenings Podcast to discuss the details of their partnership, as well as explain exactly how Rally's platform works....
Aug 12, 2020
Three-time Olympic beach volleyball gold medalist Misty May-Treanor is back with the AVP ; however, this time, she's not scooping up shots on the sand, but rather she's calling them from their broadcast booth. May-Treanor joined the Baseball Happenings Podcast to discuss how she's exploring her new role as a commentator for their broadcasts and what she can bring to the table with her decades of experience in the sport....
Jul 29, 2020
Gary Vaynerchuk made another power move in the sports agency world by announcing a partnership with Greg Genske to lead VaynerSports' newly formed VaynerBaseball division . Genske joined the Baseball Happenings Podcast to discuss how he linked up with Gary Vee to bring his talents to VaynerSports to expand their agency's reach into Major League Baseball....
Jul 11, 2020
Bartolo Colón still has hopes of returning to the majors leagues. At 47, and with labor negotiations at a stand still, his chances are as good as Vegas bookmakers trying to set the odds to win the World Series . According to SBD, "The second-tier favorites have generally gotten longer with the MLB planning to play a shortened, 80-game season with an expanded playoff field. Fewer games means greater likelihood for unexpected outcomes." Despite the uncertainty surrounding Colón's return to the fie...
Jun 12, 2020
Jeff Frye was a fan favorite during his eight major league seasons with the Texas Rangers, Boston Red Sox, Colorado Rockies, and Toronto Blue Jays, but little did he expect to gain massive social media fame almost 20 years after he last put on the uniform . After a series of videos where he is spoofing hitting instruction methods he's seen online, including the one below which has received 1.4 million views as of this writing, Frye's "She gone!" has become a cult cry among his fans and retired M...
May 25, 2020
Brad Balukjian, author of The Wax Pack: On The Open Road In Search of Baseball's Afterlife , joined the Baseball Happenings Podcast for a special Q&A interview where readers submitted questions for Balukjian to answer live on-air about his 11,341 mile journey across the country to uncover the afterlives of 14 retired Major League Baseball players. In 2015, I met with Balukjian in Brooklyn while he was in New York to meet with Lee Mazzilli and Doc Gooden for the book . After being rejected by...
May 05, 2020
Bobby Valentine joints the Baseball Happenings Podcast to discuss playing for Bobby Winkles with the California Angels. Winkles, who also managed the Oakland Athletics and won three College World Series championships at Arizona State University, died April 17, 2020 at age 90 . Winkles managed the Angels in 1973, when Valentine suffered his career-altering injury while playing the outfield. Valentine explains how the injury changed both of their career trajectories....
Apr 19, 2020
Queens based artist Sophia Chang joins the Baseball Happenings Podcast to discuss her work on Topps Project 2020. In the interview, she explains what inspired her debut 1992 Bowman Mariano Rivera design, her foray into the baseball card collecting world, and how she's putting a Queens touch on the new cards. - Website - www.esymai.com - Instagram - @esymai...
Apr 16, 2020
Mike Sommer of Wax Pack Hero joins the Baseball Happenings Podcast to discuss how collectors are adapting their purchasing habits due to the coronavirus pandemic . We also take a dive into how the card companies like Topps are reacting with their production plants temporarily shutting down to due to forced work stoppages....
Apr 11, 2020
On the latest Baseball Happenings Podcast , we present an interview with New York Yankees and Team USA catcher Erik Kratz . The 39-year-old MLB veteran discussed how he is dealing with the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics Games postponement as just another speed bump in his well-traveled career....
Mar 29, 2020
On the latest Baseball Happenings Podcast , we present an interview with the recently deceased Ted Lepcio , an infielder who played primarily with the Boston Red Sox in the 1950s. During our conversation from 2017, we discuss Lepcio's relationship with his teammate, Jimmy Piersall , as well as his memories of facing Satchel Paige. Lepcio died December 11th, 2019, in Dedham, Massachusettes. He was 90....
Dec 25, 2019
Emily Waldon , Detroit Tigers and National Prospect writer for The Athletic joins the Baseball Happenings Podcast to discuss Major League Baseball's proposal to contract 42 teams from Minor League Baseball. She shares how the two Detroit Tigers affiliates that Rob Manfred has put on the chopping block have responded to the news. Baseball Happenings Podcast "They're very against it, and they're both fighting to make sure that they don't lose their places," Waldon said. "They're working with Congr...
Dec 14, 2019
Eric Moskowitz, author of the recent Atlantic piece, " How Baseball Cards Got Weird ," joined the Baseball Happenings Podcast to discuss his venture into the new waters of collecting baseball cards online. During the interview, Moskowitz explains how during his research he caught the collecting bug through watching online breaks, and eventually found a community through their chat rooms that has substituted for a lack of local card shops....
Oct 27, 2019
Onyx Authenticated president Lance Fischer joined the Baseball Happenings Podcast to discuss how their company is making an exciting push for collector's in search of baseball's next top prospects . In the 20-minute interview, Fischer explains their careful prospect selection process, why they only use on-card autographs, and their new Unique Baseball Prospects and Legends set done together with the Futera brand. You can click here to listen and subscribe to the Baseball Happenings Podcast on yo...
Sep 01, 2019
On the latest episode of the Baseball Happenings Podcast , author Gaylon White discusses the life and career of former major league catcher Tom Jordan, who died August 26th, 2019 in Roswell, New Mexico . Jordan was just ten days shy of his 100th birthday, and at the time was the oldest living former Major League Baseball player. Jordan played parts of three seasons from 1944-1948 with the Chicago White Sox, Cleveland Indians, and St. Louis Browns. Tom Jordan as a member of the Cleveland Indians ...
Aug 28, 2019
On the latest episode of the Baseball Happenings Podcast , we caught up with Topps Marketing and Communications Manager Susan Lulgjuraj in Brooklyn at the Topps Truck to celebrate National Baseball Card Day. During the interview, we discussed how Topps' baseball card wrapped truck connected with National Baseball Card Day, the return of Bowman Sterling to their release lineup, and how Topps has shared in the positivity of Gary Vaynerchuk's involvement with the collecting hobby. If you enjoyed th...
Aug 12, 2019
Jim Bouton's Ball Four started as a colorful documentary of baseball life, and it turned out to be a legacy journey. With 5 million copies in circulation and multiple editions of the book still in print , Bouton's story will continue to be passed down across generations of baseball fans. Gelf magazine recently had our lead writer Nick Diunte at their Varsity Letters event in New York City to read his favorite passages from Ball Four. Click here to listen to the hilarious passages of Joe Schultz'...
Jul 26, 2019
Mike Oz has a knack for keeping it fresh. Whether he is running his "Old Baseball Cards" show for Yahoo! Sports, organizing the Taco Truck Throwdown, or hosting his radio show on KFRR 104.1 FM, Oz has put quality content at a premium. He joined the Baseball Happenings Podcast to discuss how a kid who collected baseball cards starting in the 1980s finally came to have his own in 2019 Topps Allen and Ginter . Mike Oz 2019 Topps Allen And Ginter / @CardboardIcons An idea that started from looking a...
Jul 17, 2019
