Baseball from Casual Diehard

Colleen and Chrystal finish the Billy Martin story with the part of his career that people are most familiar with, the managerial years. But don't worry, there's plenty you haven't heard before, because when it came to Billy Martin, there was always another story, and all the stories are good.

Colleen and Chrystal bring you the next installment of their exploration of iconic baseball character Billy Martin, this time exploring more of the 1950s Yankees and Martin’s departure, the end of his playing days with seven teams from 1957-61, and Martin’s entry to the world of scouting and coaching and the birth of Billyball. 

Colleen and Chrystal bring you the story of Billy Martin, a story with so many layers, twists, and turns that this is just Part 1, covering his early years — and that means really early, starting with the tale of his birth at home in 1928, and how he found out his actual name, Alfred Manuel Martin Jr., and his colorful Northern California youth. Once he got into baseball, Martin became one of the game’s most interesting characters. What shaped him into the player and manager he became? Find out as we journey from a kitchen table circumcision to a slaughterhouse job to his first pro contract. 

Chrystal and Colleen bring you the story of Big Sexy, the one and only Bartolo Colón! From Cleveland to Montreal to Chicago to Anaheim to Boston to New York to Oakland to Atlanta to Minnesota to Texas, one of the era’s biggest arms, bodies, and personalities made a name for himself wherever he went. Signed for $3,000 as a Dominican teenager, Colón went from throwing at soup cans to winning a Cy Youg Award and spending more than than two decades in the major leagues, leaving his mark as a cult hero even after his prime years.

Colleen and Chrystal welcome documentary filmmaker and New Yorker Heather Quinlan to talk about the last team to bring a World Series championship to Queens, one of the most colorful squads of all time, the 1986 Mets.

Colleen and Chrystal are back to wade through the swamp of Washington, D.C., and its history of mostly failed attempts to make it in the major leagues, culminating with today's cellar dwellers of the National League East, the team that came as a result of MLB's shenanigans with Montreal (as heard in Dugout of History 14).

Chrystal and Colleen bring you the story of the Montreal Expos, from their beginnings as Canada's first MLB team in the 1969 expansion wave to their demise 20 years ago after a series of unfortunate events including having their best seasons in the shadows of labor disputes, a dream ballpark that never materialized, and some of the worst ownership the sport has ever seen, all with an assist from one of the worst owners in baseball today. No one is free from Jerry's anti-Midas touch.

They're not playing baseball in Paris, but the diamond and the Olympic rings have a rich history. Colleen and Chrystal are here to talk about it!