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Showing posts from September, 2010

Brooklyn's 1955 World Series Hero: Johnny Podres (1953-1969)

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John Joseph Podres was born September 30, 1932 in Witherbee, New York. The left handed pitcher was signed by the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1951 making his MLB debut in 1953 at the age of twenty. He went 9-4 with a 4.23 ERA, and a complete game shutout in his rookie year on a Dodger team that won 105 games. In his first World Series he took a Game #5 loss giving up five runs in only 2.2 innings. It would be the only World Series game he would lose, winning his next four Series decisions over four different Series. He came back to go 11-7 with a 4.27 ERA in 1954, third most wins on the Dodger staff. In 1955 he was 9-10 with a 3.95 ERA, throwing two shutouts & five complete games. He also struck out 114 batters in 151 innings pitched. But it was in October of 1955 that Podres became a Brooklyn Dodger legend & would forever etch himself in baseball history. Post Season: In Game #3 of the 1955 World Series Podres pitched a complete game victory on his 23rd birthday at Ebbetts Fiel

Awesome John Lennon & Bruce Springsteen Box Sets Set For Fall Issue

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In celebration of John Lennon's 70th birthday, EMI Capitol is releasing The John Lennon Signature Box Set . It includes eight digitally remastered Lennon studio albums from Johns original mixes: Plastic Ono Band, Imagine, Some Time In New York City, Mind Games, Walls and Bridges, Rock ‘N’ Roll, Double Fantasy, Double Fantasy Stripped Down, and Milk and Honey . The set has two bonus discs: The Lennon Home Tapes, featuring previously unreleased recordings, with a 60-page hardcover book of photographs, drawings, art collages, & handwritten lyrics.  There is also a 70th Lennon birthday art print & a written essay. There are also two shorter versions of the remastered Lennon music in two different CD versions. One is a four disc set of Lennon solo songs called Gimmie Some Truth & the other is a single CD called Power To the People: the Hits. _________________________________________________ On November 16th Bruce Springsteen's 'The Promise: The Darkness o

Former Italian / American Player: Jim Barbieri (1966)

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James Patrick Barbieri was born on September 15, 1941 in Schenectady, New York. In 1953 he was captain of the Schenectady Little League World Series Championship team. His team was runner up the previous year as well. His team mate on those teams was future Mets coach Billy Connors. When he grew up, the outfielder a contract with the Dodgers in 1960, and played six seasons in the Pacific Coast League for Spokane. In 1966 he was having his best year batting .357 leading the PCL in hitting when the first place Dodgers called him up on the 4th of July. He only played in 39 games that season & his whole MLB career, batting .280 (23-82) with 5 doubles, 3 RBIs & 2 stolen bases. He also made the post season roster and had one World Series at bat going 0-1 against the Orioles. He became the first player ever to play in both the Little League & Major League World Series’. It was a tough Dodger outfield to get into with Tommy Davis, Ron Fairly, Willie Davis, & Lou Jo