n the early 1900s Roger Bresnahan was one of MLB's best catchers. He played for the New York Giants (now San Francisco Giants) and later was player-manager for the St. Louis Cardinals. While with the Giants, Bresnahan was beaned. It was a very scary instance in which Bresnahan's last rites were read. However, he survived and came back. He ultimately developed a batting helmet, but never wore it in a game. Another piece of equipment Bresnahan introduced was shin guards. Yes, Roger Bresnahan was n...
May 20, 2025•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 154
Maybelle (May) Blair is a baseball pioneer. In the movie, "A League of Their Own," Madonna's character was named after Maybelle, Mae Morabito. However, the character Madonna played was nothing like the real May. May did not join the AAGPBL (All-America Girls Professional Baseball League) until it was firmly established. But along the way, May certainly made her mark in baseball and softball. She played highly-competitive softball on the west coast, was discovered by a scout looking for great tal...
May 06, 2025•1 hr 6 min•Ep. 153
Digits Dynasty is part of the Sports History Network - The Headquarters For Sports Yesteryear . HIGHLIGHTED SHOW - DIGITS DYNASTY “Digits Dynasty” is an engaging podcast where we debate the greatest athletes to don each uniform number in sports history. Each episode focuses on a specific number, featuring passionate discussions, stats, and anecdotes across all of sports history, that highlight the legends who wore it. From iconic moments to personal stories, we break down the impact these athlet...
Apr 24, 2025•3 min
Going way back in history, sometimes you uncover incredible stories. This is one of them. Long before Louisville Slugger became synonymous with @MLB , baseball players did whatever they could to make their own bats or have someone else make a bat for them. Pete Browning turned to an acquaintance when he failed to get a hit for two straight games. He considered that a slump! So, Browning's acquaintance went to his woodworking shop and crafted Pete a new bat, and it worked. Pete proceeded to end h...
Apr 22, 2025•1 hr 11 min•Ep. 152
In 1924, the Washington Nationals (they were the Nationals, but also referred to as the Senators) won their first-ever World Series. It was a remarkable season for the Nationals. Owner Clark Griffith dismissed manager Donnie Bush just after the 1923 campaign and named Bucky Harris player-manager. It was a huge risk. Harris was only 27 years old and had only played four years in @MLB . How would the veterans on the team respond to taking orders from someone so young? What kind of experience and k...
Apr 08, 2025•1 hr 14 min•Ep. 151
GP Soccer Podcast is part of the Sports History Network - The Headquarters For Sports Yesteryear . HIGHLIGHTED SHOW Giovanni Pacini is a noted expert in the game with significant expertise in the areas of player and coach development. He is a United Soccer Coaches Master Coach, member of its National Staff, and National Goalkeeper Staff. He is a USYS East Region Staff Coach and is the GK Coach at Regis College (MA). Learn more about the show on the Sports History Network....
Mar 30, 2025•2 min
Connie Hawkins, simply stated, was a phenomenal basketball player. Inducted into the Pro Basketball Hall of Fame in 1992, his career was robbed of five years of his NBA career. And not just any five, the first five. Hawkins was a legend on the playground in New York City. Recruited to play college ball at the University of Iowa, he was wrongfully accused of being involved in a point-shaving scandal that ultimately cost him his college career, which then led to him being banned by the NBA. Instea...
Mar 25, 2025•1 hr 14 min•Ep. 150
Jim Gilliam was a terrific infielder for the Brooklyn and Los Angeles Dodgers for 17 years. After starting his career in the Negro Leagues, he followed in the footsteps of his idol, Jackie Robinson. Signed by the Dodgers, like Robinson, he was sent to Montreal to play for the Royals. After a few seasons, he found his way to Brooklyn and was named Rookie of the Year in 1953. Gilliam, a favorite of Dodger manager Walter Alston, was called the ultimate team player. No matter where Alston needed him...
Mar 11, 2025•1 hr 7 min•Ep. 149
Frank Gifford was one of the great football broadcasters. A staple on Monday Night Football with Howard Cosell and Don Meredith, it's fair to say that most people remember Gifford for calling a game. But how many remember him for what he did on the field, or even know that he was one of the best to ever play? As a halfback and flanker, Gifford combined to score 77 touchdowns during his Hall of Fame career with the New York Giants. An all-around star, he also kicked (on occasion), played in the d...
Feb 25, 2025•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 148
Arch Ward was a visionary. Sports editor of the Chicago Tribune during the 30s and 40s, Ward is the founder of several marquee sporting events. He created the MLB (Major League Baseball) All-Star Game, he launched the Chicago Charities College All-Star Game, a series that last 42 years where a team of college all-stars played a "serious" exhibition game against the defending NFL Champion. He also created the AAFC (All-American Football Conference) which challenged the NFL from 1946 to 1949. Thre...
Feb 11, 2025•1 hr 9 min•Ep. 147
The NHL has a catalog of trophies that can rival any of the professional sports leagues from around the world. The MVP Award is called the "Hart Memorial Trophy," the Rookie of the Year Award is called the "Calder Memorial Trophy,", the trophy awarded to the NHL's best defenseman os called the "James Norris Memorial," Trophy. There is even a trophy handed out every year to the NHL's "player adjudged to have exhibited the best type of sportsmanship and gentlemanly conduct with a high standard of ...
Jan 28, 2025•58 min•Ep. 146
George Allen is one of the NFL's legendary coaches. So, to call him a "forgotten hero" is not exactly accurate. Certainly, most avid football fans know about his colorful career as the head coach of the Washington Redskins, and some might even remember him as the head coach of the Los Angeles Rams. But few know the "behind-the-scenes" story of George Allen and his journey to becoming the legend he was. The fact that he actually offered to pay University of Michigan coach Fritz Crisler for the op...
Dec 03, 2024•1 hr 11 min•Ep. 145
In 1930 the NFL moved one of the original franchises from Dayton, Ohio to the borough of Brooklyn, New York and re-branded the "Triangles" to a very familiar name - Dodgers. Yes, that's right. From 1930 through the 1944 NFL season, the NFL placed a team in Brooklyn, Ebbets Field. Looking to capitalize on the same name as their baseball cousins, the Brooklyn FOOTBALL Dodgers had high hopes. In Dayton, the fact is, the community was too small to support an NFL team. The Triangles, as they were kno...
Nov 19, 2024•49 min•Ep. 144
Before there was an NBA, before there was a BAA, professional basketball looked a lot different than it does today. Back in the early 1900s, professional basketball was largely made up of regional leagues spread out across the country. A particular hotbed for these regional leagues was the Northeast. One of the leagues, the NEBL (New England Basketball League), was also one of the more progressive leagues. In fact, it was the first to allow "colored" players and leading the way was Harry "Bucky"...
Nov 05, 2024•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 143
The podcast delves into the remarkable career of Mel Hein, a legendary figure in NFL history known for his exceptional skills as both a center and a linebacker. Celebrated as one of the greatest centers of all time, Hein is the only offensive lineman to ever win the NFL MVP award, a testament to his extraordinary impact on the game. He played 15 years with the New York Giants, earning accolades such as being named to multiple All-Pro teams and being part of the Pro Football Hall of Fame's inaugu...
Oct 22, 2024•1 hr 7 min•Ep. 142
Chuck Foreman was one of the NFL's most feared fullback's of the 1970s. In fact, he might have been the best fullback in the game during those years. Drafted in the 1973 first round by the Minnesota Vikings out of the University of Miami, Foreman was told by Vikings Head Coach Bud Grant that he would be the focal point of the Minnesota offense, but the way they would use him, despite the fact that he would rack up big numbers, he wouldn't get the recognition he deserved. Grant was right. Over th...
Oct 08, 2024•58 min•Ep. 141
In 1946, a new professional football league launched - The All America Football Conference (AAFC) and the strongest team created was the Cleveland Browns. It was filled with superstars and an eventual legend at coach - Paul Brown. In the backfield was another budding superstar, Marion Motley. Standing at 6-foot-1 and weighing 232-pounds was, by today's standards, not exactly HUGE. But, in 1946, 6-foot-1, 232-pounds was very intimidating. Motley steamrolled the opposition during his playing days ...
Sep 24, 2024•58 min•Ep. 140
Fritz Pollard is not a name most football fans are familiar with. Yet, his place in NFL History is about as iconic as any. Pollard is the first African-American to coach and NFL team. To be fair, he was a co-head coach. In 1920, with the Akron Pros of the American Professional Football Association, the APFA, later to re-brand itself as the NFL, Pollard led the Pros to an 8-0-3 season and the APFA Championship. Art Shell, who many consider to be the first, certainly deserves his share of such rec...
Sep 10, 2024•1 hr 6 min•Ep. 139
There was a time when NFL rosters were significantly smaller than they are today. Back in the 1920s, 30s, 40s, 50s, even into the 60s, teams did not carry as many players as they do today. Of course, less players means more playing time - and not just on one side of the line of scrimmage. In fact, most players played on both sides of the line of scrimmage. Not only that, several played on special teams as well. They were on the field for punt coverage, kickoff coverage, punt returns and kickoff ...
Aug 27, 2024•1 hr 9 min•Ep. 138
Ace Parker was a terrific multi-sport star - especially football and baseball. Baseball, though, was his first love and he tried to make it as a Major League Baseball player with the Philadelphia Athletics in 1937 and 1938. However, as good as he was throughout his college career at Duke University and in the minor leagues, he just couldn't crack through only hitting .179 during his two seasons. However, football was another story. Parker was a stud, an eventual Hall of Famer. He played, quarter...
Aug 13, 2024•58 min•Ep. 137
In 1920, the Negro National League started play and the historic Kansas City Monarchs took the field for the first time. Leading the way was a 5-foot-7 two-way ballplayer who was about to embark on a journey that didn't end until 1938 - Bullet Joe Rogan. What no one knew then was that Rogan was going to put up numbers that ultimately led him into the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown. Rogan is considered by many to be one of the top 5 baseball players of all time. In fact, some say he is the ...
Jul 30, 2024•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 136
The name "Wahoo Sam Crawford" might not sound familiar to many Major League Baseball fans. But, it's probably quite familiar to fans of the Detroit Tigers. Wahoo Sam played for the Tigers back in the early 1900s. He was a phenomenally good hitter. In fact, if not for Ty Cobb, one could argue that Wahoo Sam might be the greatest to ever play for the Tigers. He had a career batting average of .309 to go along with a career OPS of .814. He averaged 191 hits a year as well. Not known for blazing spe...
Jul 16, 2024•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 135
Back in the early 1900s, the National League was the only game in town. It was Major League Baseball, thus the name the "Senior Circuit". In 1901, Ban Johnson, and others, joined the game with the American League and it was granted Major League status in 1903. Both leagues operated as separate entities, but met every year in the World Series. In 1913, the Federal League was a minor league, but it wanted to join the party and in 1914 and 1915 it called itself a Major League as well. The Federal L...
Jul 02, 2024•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 134
This Day In Sports History is part of the Sports History Network - The Headquarters For Sports Yesteryear . HIGHLIGHTED SHOW: THIS DAY IN SPORTS HISTORY Relive the greatest moments in sports every day of the year. From the triumphs to the tragedies, the first to do it to the last time it happened, the unbelievable to the strange, This Day in Sports History is a 365-day journey remembering those significant events that made a lasting impact. HOST: STEVE WHITE Steve White has spent most of his lif...
Jun 26, 2024•3 min
Jake Daubert was a star for the Brooklyn Robins and Brooklyn Dodgers during the early 1900s and finished his career with the Cincinnati Reds. He played during baseball's deadball era and was about as good as anyone. His play at first base was second-to-none and, at the plate, you would be hard-pressed to find many who could handle the bat as well as he did. In fact, when Daubert's career came to a tragic end in 1924, not only did he have a career batting average of .303, he was also 7th all-time...
Jun 11, 2024•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 133
The 1955 U.S. Open Golf Championship was supposed to be the crowning achievement to one of the greatest careers in the history of sports. Golf enthusiasts and sports fans all thought the U.S. Open, staged at San Francisco's Olympic Club, was a virtual lock for Ben Hogan to win. In fact, Hogan almost proved everyone to be right. The Hawk calculated what he needed to shoot to win on this "terror" of a course. And, he wasn't that far off. Hogan found himself 5-strokes back after the first round hav...
May 28, 2024•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 132
The name "Shoeless Joe Jackson" is one of the most famous in baseball history. A key figure to the dominant Chicago White Sox of the late 19-teens, Joe led the team to the World Series Championship in 1917 when he hit .304 in the 6-game series. However, we all know the story of what happened next. In 1919, the White Sox threw the Series against the Cincinnati Reds and a year later, despite batting .375 in the series Jackson, along with seven of his teammates, was banned for life. So, every year,...
May 14, 2024•58 min•Ep. 131
Jim Bottomley played for the St. Louis Cardinals from 1922 to 1933. During his 11 years with the Redbirds, Bottomley just might have been the best first baseman in the National League. If he wasn't you'd be hard-pressed to find another first baseman who was better. During that 11 year span, Bottomley hit .325, whacked 181 home runs and knocked in 1,105. In 1928, he won the National League MVP. Four times, he helped the Cardinals win the pennant and in 1926, he helped St. Louis to a magical World...
Apr 30, 2024•1 hr•Ep. 130
Sid Gordon broke into the Majors in 1941 with the New York "baseball" Giants, bounced back-and-forth between the minors, served for two years during World War II and then made it back to the big league club in 1946; and proceeded to put together a terrific career. In fact, from 1948 through 1952 he established himself as one of the game's best by averaging 27 home runs a year, over 97 RBI a year, and during that 5-year span he hit .292 with his high, for that stretch, coming in 1950 when he hit ...
Apr 16, 2024•1 hr 20 min•Ep. 129
He is the only quarterback - ever - to only play for 10 seasons and lead his team into the championship game every year of his career. He won the championship seven (7) times. And, yet, when the discussion about who is the greatest QB of all-time comes up, very few football fans mention the name Otto Graham. He played for the Cleveland Browns when they were "born" as an AAFC (All America Football Conference) team. The Browns, simply stated, were the best team in the league. In fact, Graham led t...
Apr 02, 2024•59 min•Ep. 128
