Tag Archives: Baltimore Orioles

FORMER MLB PITCHER JOSH TOWERS ON LABOR AGREEMENT, HIS CAREER, STEROIDS ERA

Welcome to The Sports Virus Podcast

Sportscaster Joe Castellano talks to a variety of sports figures from around the country about the latest news. These in-depth conversations take you inside the personalities of the people involved in the sports we love to watch, listen and read about.

Josh Towers pitched for eight seasons in the Major Leagues with the Orioles, Blue Jays and Yankees from 2001-2009. Today he gives his thoughts on the new MLB labor deal and reminisces about his career. We discuss how it works for young players vs. veteran players. Josh also gives his thoughts about how starting pitchers are being developed and we go down memory lane to hear great stories from when he played. Towers has strong opinions about baseball’s steroids era too. Plus, we learn about a wiffle ball league he is involved with that is gaining popularity.

Listen To Josh Towers

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Catch It: 5 Seasons Of Cherished Memories With Joe Altobelli In Rochester, New York

BALL, GLOVEWelcome to CATCH IT! — Joe Castellano’s personal observations about what’s going on in the world of sports outside of The Sports Virus Podcasts

Today the baseball world lost a great man when former World Series winning manager Joe Altobelli passed away at the age of 88.

I had the privilege of spending five seasons working alongside Joe in the radio booth covering the Rochester Red Wings (1998-2002). He was a kind soul with an easy going personality. Everyone loved Alto.

Every night he had great baseball stories to tell, whether it be from winning the 1983 Series with the Baltimore Orioles or from his days managing the San Francisco Giants. I loved to reminisce about my hometown Giants with Joe, asking him what it was like to manage Jack Clark (my favorite player when I was in high school) or about his memories of Mike Ivie’s grand slam against the Dodgers in 1978. He had the Giants in first place for a while that season.

He always told Cal Ripken stories and was proud of playing him every inning of every game during his record playing streak.

Joe could also tell stories about his playing days (I can still hear him describing how he broke his toe nail every season with a foul ball and it would grow back by Christmas) and about the legendary teams he managed in Rochester in the 1970’s. He made Rochester his home and eventually became known as “Mr. Baseball” in Rochester.

He was so passionate about teaching the game. Another source of pride for him was when (as a Cubs coach) he helped develop Mark Grace from an average defensive first baseman to a gold glover.

I learned so much about the game of baseball from Joe. From how a manager should run a pitching staff, to defensive positioning, to lineup strategies, I had a lesson every broadcast and I was soaking it up. Sometimes he would just ask a question like “Would you send the runners here?” That would turn into another teaching moment for me and the listeners.

He was also an expert on how to deal with being in AAA when a Major League career might seem like a pipe dream for a player or even a broadcaster. “Don’t wish your life away” was his mantra. I never forgot that because even though one might wish for the future, the present is what’s important.

It’s a bummer that the Red Wings didn’t win another title with Alto in that booth. We won the Governor’s Cup in 1997, the year before he started broadcasting with me. Then the team fell flat in the years when we were together. But, that doesn’t diminish the joy we had and the cherished memories I have of that special time in my life.

Thanks Joe and rest in peace.

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Artwork courtesy of: Suzie Armagost.

MASN Reporter Roch Kubatko On O’s, Hall Of Fame President Jeff Idelson On Crawford’s 7-Hit Bat

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Welcome to the INSIDE CHINA BASIN Giants Podcast

Updated 3 times a  week on TheSportsVirus.com!

Today we get the scoop on the visiting Orioles with MASN Sports reporter Roch Kubatko,  we chat with National Baseball Hall of Fame President Jeff Idelson and we hear from former Giants Hall all of Fame pitcher Gaylord Perry  who had a statue unveiled at the ballpark on Saturday .

ROCHKUBATKO

The Sports Virus talked to Kubatko about Orioles manager Buck Showalter:

… “Once the best things (the Orioles) have ever done was hiring Buck Showalter. Reversing a losing culture is one of the harding things to do in sports and he had a huge part in that. Really he is the face of the franchise. He hates hearing that, but when you think of the Orioles you think of Buck Showalter in the dugout.”

JEFFIDELSON

The Sports Virus talked to Idelson about Brandon Crawford donating his 7-hit bat to Cooperstown:

… “He wanted to give it up right away, I even asked him today if he wanted it back. He said, ‘No, I’m doing well with the next one.’ It came to Cooperstown a few days (after the 7-hit game).”

GAYLORD STATUE

 

Gaylord Perry tells us about being checked for his famous “Spit Ball”:

… “I started 40 games every year and I probably got checked 30 games each year. They tried to get me and they didn’t get me.”

Listen To Kubatko, Idelson and Perry

Gaylord Perry audio and photo courtesy of Ryan Leong.

Come back MONDAY when San Francisco LHP Matt Moore joins us to talk about his first home start as a Giant that night against the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Check out our other Podcasts all year long. INSIDE CHINA BASIN is also available on ITUNES. PLUS YOU CAN NOW FIND US ON SOUNDCLOUD, PLAYER.FMSTITCHER and our STITCHER WIDGET.

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