Joe Posnanski on BOTNS All-Star Chet Lemon

I'm a happy subscriber to Joe Posnanki's Substack, a prolific showcase for the veteran sportwriter's excellent writing (Just finished his great new book "Why We Love Baseball," too). Often he accepts reader challengers to explore some topic of their choosing. On September 12, he talked about A Batty-nominated athlete: Chet Lemon!

From his Substack on 9/12:

Brilliant reader Michael threw out an interesting challenge — it is to answer this question: Who was a better player, Kirby Puckett or Chet Lemon?

The conceit of the challenge and the analysis is that Puckett is an iconic baseballer of a certain era, while Lemon is just a random 70s/80s guy to many, yet their stats are a lot more similar than you might think when you use advanced numbers. Lemon actually scores higher in both accepted methods of calculating WAR, for example.

Who was the better player? I don’t think the answer matters as much as the question. Chet Lemon is underrated. He was one helluva player, who was not appreciated enough when he played.

I recommend you check out the whole thing, but I enjoy seeing Chet get some love. One thing Joe misses, though, is that great Baseball Bunch appearance Mike and I discuss on the podcast. Surely you have to weight that when comparing a player who was ON the Bunch to a player who was not.

In Memoriam: Vin Scully

Somehow I left Vin Scully out of the top ten list on Sunday, but I intended no slight. I think I planned to do a separate post last week. At this point I don't have a lot to add, but I want to share a clip of one of my all-time favorite TV sports moments, something that still gives me chills:

This clip begins a little too late. My favorite part is not the climactic homer, but actually the build to the at-bat--specifically the very beginning, when Scully says, "And look who's coming up," and then lays out a bit. I was rooting for Oakland in that Series and could not stand that Dodger team. Yet today I appreciate the moment and the spectacle and treasure this as one of baseball's most amazing finales.

One thing that amazes me is that Scully's stint as a national TV voice of the game was basically one decade. In fact, it was less than that. He took over as main man on NBC's Game of the Week in 1983, and the network lost that MLB package after the 1989 season. 

Of course, if you're on this site, you will understand that with my Eighties-centric viewpoint, I always thought of Vin as THE voice of baseball. I grew up on him, and so there you go. Makes sense, right?

R.I.P., Vin Scully!

Welcome back, Major League Baseball!

Ah, Opening Day--what a time for a Pirates fan. By the time I sat down to eat dinner and try to catch up, my team had lost 9-0 and seen its young star 3B leave the game in the first inning after an injury.

Major League baseball has a lot of problems, but I am happy to see it return. During the lockout, I said I was going to post an old commercial or clip each week or so until it was over, and soon after, bam, a labor agreement materialized. You're welcome!

In case you are in the mood to celebrate opening weekend with some baseball on, er, a non-baseball-themed podcast, here are some options:

Willie Stargell and Bob Uecker were featured on the episode of Greatest Sports Legends we talked about.

We wanted to see Ball Four, the short-lived sitcom based on Jim Bouton's iconic memoir...and Mike did!

Last season, we covered The Baseball Bunch with Johnny Bench and guest star Chet Lemon!

And when we talked about Voyagers!, the boys met babe Ruth!

And before we go, how about an old baseball promo:

So get ready to step up to the line, toss that ol' pigskin, and shoot a goal! Baseball is back!

Baseball is still there in the BOTNS era (except for a little while back in 1981)

The MLB lockout is a real downer, but I am looking back to some great old-school footage to remind myself why baseball was my favorite sport back in the day. I will try to post baseball-related clips from our era here every now and then.

First up is one of my favorite commercials ever, a 1980s Starting Lineup commercial that captures some of the elements that make people write (sometimes too) flowery tributes to the game. Summer, nostalgia, grainy footage...Soak it in, folks!

Happy National Play Outside Day (Redux)

 (Note: This was supposed to publish Saturday, November 6, but due to a technical error--I botched it--it ran Wednesday morning. Please accept my apologies and enjoy National Play Outside Day on its true milestone date, now with a bonus embedded commercial.)

Yes, it's National Play Outside Day, which is the first Saturday in November, just in time for...the temperature to start falling dramatically. Well, hey, kids can bundle up, right?

What better way to get pumped up for playing outside than by watching The Baseball Bunch, which you recall we talked about this season.

Could The Baseball Bunch be in line for Batty consideration? Will there be a Batty for Outstanding Demonstration of Outside Play? Stay tuned!

If football is more your thing, how about picking up one of these sweet Nerfs?

AND if you aren't into those sports, why not just pretend it's summer and get this one out of the garage:

This Day in TV History: MLB's strike season of 1981 gets its All-Star game

Labor battles made 1981 one of the most bizarre seasons in Major League Baseball history, one in which playoffs were determined by split-season "winners," and the team with the best overall record didn't even make the postseason. The in-season strike delayed the annual All-Star Game in Cleveland from July 14 to August 9, 1981. NBC had the broadcast with Joe Garagiola and Tony Kubek on the call.

The disastrous 1994 strike and the dread in the air of another work stoppage after this season makes one think of turning the fans away, but in 1981, fans were hungry to get the sport back. This game actually set a new attendance record.

The complete game broadcast is available below and in shorter form elsewhere on YouTube!

If you don't want to watch the entire game, here is something from the "it Was a Different Time" Dept.: Morganna the Kissing Bandit running on the field to nab Len Barker. Check out the reaction of several luminaries in the stands afterwards.

YouTube Spotlight: No, there wasn't a "Johnny Bench Show," unfortunately...right?

When I was collecting clips for this week's Baseball Bunch playlist, I got a big surprise when I saw a video from singer Lyn Christopher's official channel:

Note that the title of the clip says "Johnny Bench Show." What? There WAS a Johnny Bench Show?

Well, no, not quite. Though Bench was on many entertainment programs, including his multiple-episode run on Hee Haw, he never had his own talk show, per se.

Or did he? Christopher herself lists The Johnny Bench Show as one of her appearances when recounting her resume on social media, and makes it distinct from The Mike Douglas Show. Note in the clip below, Johnny refers to "Mike." Yet this doesn't look like the Douglas show.

Was this a pilot or test run that didn't get picked up? I can't find any info on a Johnny Bench Show. Does anyone have any knowledge about this?

Here is a brief bit of the interview they did:

Christopher released one album (self-titled) in 1973 with Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley on backing vocals!

The Baseball Bunch playlist is live!

After hearing us do the podcasting equivalent of throwing around the ol' horsehide for about 40 minutes, continue to enjoy The Baseball Bunch with us by watching our video playlist! In addition to the Chet Lemon episode we discuss (most of it, at least), when you click below you will find commercials, PSAs, talk show appearances, singing, and of course HIJINKS from the San Diego Chicken!

And remember you can visit our official YouTube channel anytime to hear past episodes of the podcasts and specific playlists for each one of them. BOTNS fever--catch it!

Show Notes: Episode 9-6: The Baseball Bunch

 *The Baseball Bunch aired August 1980-Fall 1985 in first-run syndication, then had exposure in reruns. The episode we discuss aired in 1980 or 1981.

*The excellent Sports Illustrated article we reference is right here.

*NBC broadcast the MLB Game of the Week from 1957 to 1989, with exclusive rights from 1966 till it lost the package. Vin Scully and Joe Garagiola became the #1 announce team in 1983. Bob Costas and Tony Kubek were the #2 team in that stretch.

*The first player to get a contract with an annual salary of a million bucks per year is Nolan Ryan, who signed a 4-year contract with the Houston Astros as a free agent after the 1979 season.

*Was baseball best in the 1980s? You tell us!

*Listen to us discuss the Punky Brewster 1984 NLCS episode here.

*To learn more about Chet Lemon, click here.

*Lance Parrish was in Diff'rent Strokes' "Baseball Blues" in season 7. Teammates Alan Trammell and Lou Whitaker were in "A Sense of Debt" from season 4 of Magnum P.I.

*I think Mike thought Kevin McReynolds was the "Peanut" he was remembering, but Jim "Peanut" Davenport was a player, coach, and manager in the San Francisco Giants organization, including in the Eighties.

*The epic Braves-Padres brawl went on and on, and here is the ninth-inning action. We'll put a condensed version in this week's playlist! Here is a contemporary account of the saga from Ron Fimrite.

*Johnny Bench is a two-time MVP, 14-time All-Star, and was a first-year no-brainer entrant into the Hall of Fame in 1989.

*The San Diego Chicken, AKA Ted Giannoulas, returned to the Padres' ballpark in 2019. Here is an article on his origins with the Padres.

*Thanks for listening, and remember, have fun!

Episode 9-6: The Baseball Bunch "Chet Lemon"

Summer in America means baseball, so break out the peanuts and Cracker Jacks. For a few years in the eighties, Major League Baseball made an educational baseball show for kids--The Baseball Bunch. Johnny Bench, the Famous Chicken, the Dugout Wizard, and guest Chet Lemon teach the Bunch about shagging flies, eating right, and more.

Check out this episode!

Tomorrow on Battle of the Network Shows...

 

And now a word from their sponsor: Reggie Jackson is a hot dog!

 I love this 1984 commercial for Wienerschitzel:

Reggie Jackson celebrates National Hot Dog Month (July) with this ad.  Reggie seems on board with everything, and I hope he really did have a good time.  I do find it amusing that the commercial sings about how the chain is more than just hot dogs in Hot Dog Month and then touts a hot dog special at the end.

Is it possible that baseball history has it all wrong and that California Angels Reggie is the best Reggie Jackson, even better than the A's Reggie or the Yankees Reggie?  Sure, his on-field exploits in New York and Oaktown are impressive, but Angels Reggie gives us this singing Reggie, the Jeffersons Reggie, and even The Naked Gun Reggie.

This Day in TV History: The 1970 MLB All-Star Game

On this day in 1970, shiny new Riverfront Stadium (yes, I think there was a time it was shiny and new...much like LOVE aboard the Pacific Princess) in Cincinnati hosted the Major League Baseball All-Star Game. I miss Major League Baseball, but at least we have access to tons of old games on YouTube.

This edition of the annual Midsummer Classic has the distinction of being the first played in prime time on the East Coast--in other words, the first one played at night!  It also contains one of the most memorable moments in ASG and baseball history: Pete Rose bowling over Ray Fosse on this play at the plate:


The above clip uses the radio call from Jim Simpson instead of the NBC TV crew of Curt Gowdy, Tony Kubek, and Mickey Mantle.

CBS countered with Marco the Magnificent (a 1966 Marco Polo movie), a rerun of The Governor and J.J., and a news special about Vietnam, while ABC had reruns: The Mod Squad and Marcus Welby with an encore of The Challenge in between.  The latter is a TV movie that deserves its own post someday because it sounds amazing!

This Day in TV History:The MLB All-Star Game at Dodger Stadium

There will be no All-Star Game in MLB this year, and there may not even be MLB this year, but we have the past! On July 8, 1980, baseball's best assembled at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles for the 51st Major League Baseball All-Star Game. ABC broadcast the event with Keith Jackson, Don Drysdale, Al Michaels, and the immortal Howard Cosell in the booth.

The idea of watching a 40-year-old baseball game may appall some of you, but not me! However, i do recognize that the best part of these old All-Star exhibitions is the player intros.  I loved when MLB started uploading old broadcasts to its official YouTube channel a few months ago, but unfortunately it deleted the best part--the pre-game festivities! And let's not even get into the lack of original commercials.




In this era, the National league was dominant, having won every summer since 1972, and it was talked about as a thing.  Yes, the game didn't "matter," but somehow it mattered.

Oddly, the MLB Vault official channel has only this highlight, with inferior video and the radio call from Vin Scully:



In case you're wondering and don't have time to watch the intros, let me give you the most important info: The defending champion Pittsburgh Pirates are represented in the game by Phil Garner, Dave Parker, Kent Tekulve, and Jim Bibby.

YouTube Spotlight: Big League Chew

Boy, does this 1982 commercial bring back memories. We just added it to last week's In Memoriam playlist to replace a Jim Bouton video that was taken down by THE MAN. Enjoy a look back at Big League Chew.



Bouton put up much of the money for the product after two fellow Portland Mavericks associated created the concept. Big League Chew is still around today.

I was not a huge gum kid, seeing it mostly as an obstacle in the wax pack separating me from my baseball cards, but you got to love Big League Chew. In fact, you have to admire that a product so clealry patterned after something dangerous and illegal (for kids) is so successful. this tobacco imitator broke through in a way candy cigarettes never did, and this kind of marketing had a lot to do with it.

Show Notes: Episode 6-6: Greatest Sports Legends

*Greatest Sports Legends aired in first-run syndication from 1972-, producing 207 episodes. In this week's podcast, we discuss the profiles of Terry Bradshaw (May 1987) and Bob Uecker (July 1985).

*The series featured multiple hosts over the years, including Jayne Kennedy (who hosts the Uecker episode) and George Plimpton, but also jocks (ex- and current) like Tom Seaver and Reggie Jackson.

*Despite what Rick says on the podcast, the New England Patriots have won 6 Super Bowls, with quarterback Tom Brady winning all of them.

*Here's a cool pic from Pinterest of the old Sears catalog NFL merch:

*Terry Bradshaw played QB for the Pittsburgh Steelers from 1970-1983, then entered the Pro Football Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility in 1989. he started his broadcasting career in 1984 as a color commentator on CBS' NFL game coverage, then moved to FOX and became a studio analyst.

*Check out Franco Harris' Immaculate Reception in our YouTube playlist this week!

*Willie Stargell, the "guest host" for the Bradshaw episode, is himself a Hall of Famer, entering the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1988 after a 21-year career with the Pittsburgh Pirates in which he hit 475 home runs.

*Bob "Mr. Baseball" Uecker was a career .200 hitter.

*Mr. Belvedere aired 1985-1990 on ABC. Let us know if you want us to cover it on the podcast!

*There are no plans for a Belvedere revival...none that we know of, anyway.

*Ahmad Rashad is a former NFL Pro Bowl Wide Receiver and sportscaster who was NBC's main sideline reporter during the Michael Jordan years.

6-6: Greatest Sports Legends Terry Bradshaw and Bob Uecker

This week, we look back at an unofficial TV genre, weekend dad TV, the kind of show that might fill the gap between the early game and the late game. Greatest Sports Legends combines interviews and documentary footage to cover the great athletes of the day. In a typical episode, Willie Stargell interviews Terry Bradshaw. Then an atypical episode parodies the show buy focusing on legendary bad player, raconteur, announcer, and actor Bob Uecker.


Check out this episode!

This Day in TV History: Play ball!

On his day in 1939, NBC broadcast the first ever televised baseball game, a match-up between Columbia and Princeton. I believe Bartolo Colon started the game for Columbia.

Yes, this is just  a bit outside our timeframe, so how about we all enjoy this promo from WPIX 11 hyping the Yankees against the Indians. You get to hear the classic theme song and the classic WPIX announcer Ralph Lowenstein:

It's National Babe Ruth Day!

Naturally we at BOTNS consider the definitive screen portrayal of George Herman "Babe" Ruth the one delivered by William Lucking on Voyagers!




We discussed the Babe and the entire episode here.