August 11, 2026 • 29 mins
On this week’s edition of Inside the (Rob) Parker, Rob is joined by 2x World Series champion and 3x National League Manager of the Year Dusty Baker for a lengthy conversation on the invention of the high five, Black players in baseball, the biggest MLB storylines of the year, and much more! Later, author John Cirillo swings by to promote his new book Elvis, Aretha and the Babe: 8/16 — Three Times the Bell Will Toll
Subscribe and download all of the latest Inside the Parker podcasts and follow Rob on Twitter!! #OddCouple
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Listen
Watch
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
From the Berkshars to the sound from wherever you live
in MLB America. This is Inside the Parker. You give
us twenty two minutes and we'll give you the scoop
on major League Baseball. Now, here's Baseball Hall of Fame
voter number fifty six, Rob Parker.
Speaker 2 (00:19):
Come on, I've been covering Major League baseball for almost
forty years now, in New York, in Cincinnati, in Detroit,
in LA.
Speaker 3 (00:29):
I love this game.
Speaker 4 (00:31):
Let's go.
Speaker 2 (00:36):
Welcome into the podcast. I'm your host, Rob Parker. What
a show we have for you today, very special guests,
former big league manager Dusty Baker drops by. We'll dive
into his illustrious career and all the great things that
Dusty is doing right now now that he is no
longer managing.
Speaker 3 (00:55):
Plus, we'll talk.
Speaker 2 (00:57):
With author John Cirillo, who wrote an interesting book that
ties Elvis Presley, Aretha Franklin, and Babe Ruth altogether.
Speaker 3 (01:09):
Let's go.
Speaker 4 (01:11):
Here comes the big Interview. Listen and learn. It's so good.
Speaker 2 (01:17):
Now, let's welcome in former major league manager Dusty Baker
joining us here on Inside the Parker. Who's retired. Now, Dusty,
what's happening? You're looking good? What's up my man?
Speaker 5 (01:28):
Well, thank you man. There's a whole lot less stress
in my life. But you know it's different though. I'm
staying busy, you know, doing a lot of things I have.
I'm doing some part time consulting with the giants, and
you know, you know, following my grandkids around they just left,
and uh and hoping my son, you know, makes it
the big league sometime soon.
Speaker 3 (01:49):
Oh, that would be awesome.
Speaker 2 (01:51):
And let's start with you have a new book out
called Crossroads. Tell us about the book.
Speaker 4 (01:57):
Well, it's it's a book about my life.
Speaker 5 (01:59):
And you know, I wanted to write it before I
passed away, and I didn't want somebody else.
Speaker 4 (02:04):
To write it.
Speaker 5 (02:04):
And uh, you know, I wrote it not only for
a lot of people that that you know, in a
hopeless situation, because you know, we have.
Speaker 4 (02:11):
A lot of uh you know, a lot of stuff going.
Speaker 5 (02:15):
On in our country and in the world, and so
and I also wanted my grandkids to know me.
Speaker 4 (02:20):
Wanted my son and daughter to know me.
Speaker 5 (02:22):
And uh, you know, we we really don't know much
about our parents, only what what our aunties and uncles
tell us. Because our parents, I don't know, watch your parents,
they didn't tell me much about it.
Speaker 3 (02:31):
No, No, I'm went you Justine. I think it's so important.
I have great nephews and I give them information about
who is your uncle? Do you know what I do?
Do you know? Like like I want you to know
what college I went to. I want you to know that.
Speaker 4 (02:45):
I think it's important.
Speaker 5 (02:47):
And the struggles that we went through are no different
than yours, you know, just a different time of day
and so and I talked about, you know, made myself
vulnerable to the world. But that's the only way that
I could, you know, could come across in truth and
as much honor and dignity as I could. And you know,
nobody deserves to know everything about you, but you know
(03:07):
a lot of people deserve and need to hear you
know some things about you, and you know the fact
that you know on a different scale, I don't care
where you are and what you're doing or how successful
you are. It's it's all scaled to problems. We all
got the same problems. I don't care who you are,
and now we're going to deal with the solutions.
Speaker 3 (03:30):
And more people knew.
Speaker 2 (03:31):
And I think when you write a book and you
let you know, you're a little vulnerable and let people
know that all the success you had as a baseball player,
Dusty as as a manager and in.
Speaker 3 (03:44):
Your life that you came from the situations you had
to get out of.
Speaker 2 (03:48):
And other people think they're hopeless, and oh, I can't
pick myself up.
Speaker 3 (03:52):
It's doable.
Speaker 2 (03:53):
And sometimes reading about other people saying how did Dusty
Baker do it? How did he make it? And I
think it's really important, So I'm interested. I can't wait
to read your book. All right, tell me about the
wine to the Baker Family Wine.
Speaker 4 (04:07):
Well, Baker Family Wine is that we started.
Speaker 5 (04:10):
Me and my winemaker you know who I had met
through uh Michael Mandavia. I was on their advisory staff
for a number of years, going to uh lunches and
dinners with Canaan, Daigua and Southern mining spirits and distributors,
and so I said, hey man, you know, let me
try this, and and and the very few uh you know,
African Americans in the industry and in in that business,
(04:33):
and so uh uh you know, we started as a
gentlemanly thing in my backyard, and then we spread to
uh uh San Francisco, and then we came back to
Sacramento and so we have nine varieties called you know,
Baker Family wines and uh even Hank Aaron, you know,
before he passed. He says, hey, man, I want to
(04:55):
be part of your company. I said, no, man, I
don't need that pressure. And he says, I said, hey,
I don't know why I can pay you back. He said, well,
don't worry about it. And he says, you know, pay
back my estate. And he said, but I do want
a bold Cabernet salmong young and he says, I do
mean bold. So I went to my winemaker and I said, hey, man,
Hank wants to be part of our company. And I said,
(05:17):
what do you want to name it? You know, seven
fifty five hammering Hank seven fifty five. So, like I said,
we got nine varietals and it's been fun. I mean,
it's a tough industry right now. All over the world,
you know, less and less people, well especially young people.
Speaker 4 (05:30):
Are drinking wine.
Speaker 5 (05:31):
But you know, I'm glad we didn't get too big
too soon because see a lot of the big boys
are hurting right now.
Speaker 4 (05:37):
And so, you know, win a great position and a
great you know situation.
Speaker 2 (05:42):
Yeah, that sounds great. It's always great. Branch out and
doing stuff. But Dusty, I got to say this as
somebody's covering major League baseball for forty years and being
around and seeing you and what I always thought you
were the coolest baseball player from the risk band to
the toothpick.
Speaker 3 (05:58):
Like I'm just I've always said that about you to other.
Speaker 2 (06:03):
People, like I think he's the coolest baseball player ever.
But let's just talk about you know, your career and
just the situations and circumstances. Obviously with the Atlanta Braves,
you're on Hank, You're on deck when Hank Aaron hits
home run number seven fifteen, you know you're you're credited
with starting to hide five.
Speaker 3 (06:23):
There's so many like moments for you in baseball history.
Speaker 2 (06:28):
And I always think of you as a Dodger even
though you were really a Brave. Do you think of
yourself as a Dodger or a Brave? And I know
you played for a couple other teams as well.
Speaker 5 (06:37):
Well, you know, I can consider myself like I was
born on the Braves, so to speak, in baseball, and
I was eighteen years old, but I came into my
own and I became a man.
Speaker 4 (06:49):
When I got to LA. That's what I think, right.
Speaker 5 (06:51):
And you know when I got to LA you know,
one of the reasons I wanted to leave Atlanta is
because we were losing and I got tired of loose.
And uh you know, coming to La, man, you right
away think about you're gonna be on a winner, and uh,
you know that was the team that I grew up idolzning.
When I was a kid in Riverside. Uh, you know,
(07:12):
Tommy Davis was my hero and I was wearing number
twelve with the Braves. I always had number twelve because
of Tommy Davis.
Speaker 4 (07:19):
Wow and so.
Speaker 5 (07:21):
And then when I met my idol in baseball, because
I had a different idols I had like Elgin.
Speaker 4 (07:26):
Baylor and basketball.
Speaker 5 (07:27):
I had Bob Haysen track, you know, Gail Sayers and football,
but and and baseball it was Tommy Davis. And when
I met him, you know, he was even a better
person after I met him that he was before I
was idolazning.
Speaker 2 (07:43):
I love to hear that because people always say, oh,
you don't want to meet your idols.
Speaker 3 (07:46):
Because you know you're gonna get your heart broken.
Speaker 5 (07:48):
Well there's a couple of times, a couple of times
I got my heartbroken but you know, yeah, yeah, but
not with him.
Speaker 4 (07:54):
I mean he was a.
Speaker 5 (07:55):
Real gentleman and uh, you know he was like, hey, baby,
are you do And every time I see him, you know,
it was it was a terms of endearment that that
you know, he spoke to all of us and I
felt like he was really speaking to me, but he spoke,
you know, he was speaking to all of us.
Speaker 2 (08:11):
I do want to ask you about the being on
deck with Hank Aaron, just knowing the moment and everything,
like what was that feeling?
Speaker 6 (08:19):
Like?
Speaker 2 (08:19):
I mean, obviously it was just that I still get
goosebumps when I see the video, like you were there
kneeling down, you know what I mean, getting ready.
Speaker 5 (08:28):
But you know, like he we're on on deck circle
like we always were. And he told me, he said,
hey man, I'm gonna get this over with right now.
And I said, okay, hey. I mean every time he
tell me he was going to do something, he did it.
And uh it was a cold night and uh, I
mean it was the coldest night that I had seen
in Atlanta since I had been there. And so the
(08:49):
next thing I know, here comes the pitch hits it
out of the park and uh, you know, I could
have been the first one to run up there, but
I didn't want to. I didn't want to take the
spotlight away from hand. And what led up to that
was a whole bunch of pressure and a whole bunch
of times when Hank wasn't happy and and you know,
like he was in the room all time. I mean,
(09:12):
imagine having to hide in your room because Hank had
one room that he slept in and he had another
room that that was registered under and.
Speaker 4 (09:21):
So you know, I was his dummy room.
Speaker 5 (09:24):
And then he had his his his bodyguard, Calvin Wardlowe.
So it was Calvin, Ralph guard, myself and Paul Casanova with.
Speaker 4 (09:33):
Hank almost daily.
Speaker 5 (09:35):
And you know we were kind of charging, making him
laugh or just just making him relax. And you know,
he was a guy that was like my father on
one hand, and he was like my uncle on.
Speaker 4 (09:47):
The other hand.
Speaker 5 (09:47):
You could tell him anything, and uh, you know, he
was good to all of us white black Latin players.
I mean, you know, he was he was an example
of your best player. They also be in your best citizen.
And see, I haven't seen that a whole bunch, you know,
and he was our leader.
Speaker 2 (10:10):
Yeah, that's the impression you get from Hank and just
being well rounded and solid and level and like you say,
treating everybody the same way.
Speaker 3 (10:21):
And now I want to ask you.
Speaker 2 (10:22):
About the Dodgers and the high five, which is incredible
to me because there's a picture of you guys.
Speaker 4 (10:29):
Actually doing it right.
Speaker 2 (10:31):
People credit you, and I'm just forgetting Glenn Burg.
Speaker 3 (10:36):
Glenn Burg the other player.
Speaker 2 (10:38):
Yeah, just that scenario, because I think you had hit
your thirtieth home run?
Speaker 3 (10:42):
Is that what it was?
Speaker 2 (10:43):
And that gave the Dodgers four players with thirty home
runs on the same team, which had never happened, I
don't think. And then you're coming around third base, what
was that? Did you know you had done something different
or no?
Speaker 5 (10:55):
Well, you know what happened was Reggie Smith had his
thirty and Garvey was still playing. He had his thirty,
and Ron Say had his thirty, and so the only
guys that were still playing were Steve Garvey and myself.
And we had a four game series against the Astros
and Reggie Smith told Jr. That I was gonna hit
it off him on Sunday, but he told him this
(11:16):
on Thursday. I like, Reggie, I'm hitting about a buck
fifty off this guy lifetime, and he strikes me out,
you know, two out every three at bats, and and
nobody really struck me out then more than Jr.
Speaker 4 (11:29):
And Man, it came down.
Speaker 5 (11:30):
To that last day, my next to last at bat,
and you know, when he threw it, I hit his
outside fastball and went over to centerfield, left center field fence,
and I knew i'd hit it.
Speaker 4 (11:42):
And I remember seeing Jim Gilliam when I was round
in third base.
Speaker 5 (11:46):
I mean he was, he was as close a coach
to me as I'd ever had, you know before.
Speaker 4 (11:51):
And I came across home plate and Glenn Burke.
Speaker 5 (11:55):
Was was was on deck and Glenn I didn't do it.
Everybody gets me created Glenn did it because Glenn threw
his hand up and then I hit his hand and they.
Speaker 4 (12:05):
Say that was, you know, the start of the high five.
And I really don't know if anybody needs credit for that,
it's Glenn. I was just reciprocating.
Speaker 2 (12:12):
Well, I think I think it's both of you guys,
because because you can't do what you can't do it
by yourself, by yourself, So I think both of you guys.
But I think that's legendary that and people go back
to like it hadn't been done before that, which I
think that's another thing that is so cool.
Speaker 3 (12:28):
Our guess, of course is Dusty Baker. For people don't know,
his first name.
Speaker 4 (12:32):
Is Johnny Johnny b Baker Junior.
Speaker 3 (12:35):
There you go.
Speaker 2 (12:36):
But you know sometimes people got Dusty, they never know
your real first name.
Speaker 5 (12:40):
Well, you know, nobody in my family's ever call me
anything but Dusty. You know, there's only one Johnny, Johnny Bee.
Speaker 4 (12:46):
That's my dad. That's what. Yeah, that's Pops.
Speaker 3 (12:50):
There you go, joining us here on inside the Parker.
Speaker 2 (12:53):
Of course, I do want to talk about obviously you
winning the World Series. Yet you know, you manage six
different team, you finally come back, you take over an
Astros team that was scandal ridden everything, you get it
right and you turn it around and you finally get
that World Series that was just elusive because you won
Manager of the Year three times. You did a lot
(13:15):
as a manager, turned a lot of teams around.
Speaker 3 (13:18):
But just couldn't get over the hum What was that like?
Did you exhale? What was that when you.
Speaker 4 (13:23):
Secured the World Series? Well, well, first though, you know
a lot of people said I turned them around.
Speaker 5 (13:29):
They were good when I got there, but they were
scoring all over the country. I mean, I never heard
team's boos as mightily as they were.
Speaker 4 (13:39):
But what helped was COVID.
Speaker 5 (13:43):
You know, it's hard to imagine that, but the fact
that there was no stands excuse me, no fans in
the stands, right.
Speaker 4 (13:51):
And I mean that made it a lot easier. And
once we came back. Then you saw when we went
to New.
Speaker 5 (13:56):
York and went to LA I mean, I've never heard
of a boot but you know, they're a good bunch
of guys. And and it helped me to the fact
that I wasn't there when all the scandal was going on,
and I told them I didn't have anything to do
with this.
Speaker 4 (14:13):
You know, I'm here.
Speaker 5 (14:14):
New plus plus the Lord to me put me in
that situation because see, I really couldn't get a job
and and and had it not been for that scandal,
then then you know, I've probably never been hired.
Speaker 4 (14:28):
Especially when you're a World Series team, they don't get rid.
Speaker 5 (14:31):
Of their managers and and and as an African American manager,
you don't inherit a good team.
Speaker 4 (14:37):
Most of the time.
Speaker 2 (14:37):
It's always the worst team going vice exactly what And
then you, and then you expected to save them and
they expected to win at all.
Speaker 5 (14:46):
But yeah, it was a huge relief, you know, to win,
especially the fact when I lost in two thousand and two.
Speaker 4 (14:53):
To the Angels.
Speaker 5 (14:54):
You know, back in the day, negative motivation was real.
I don't know how how your parents might have, but
you know, my dad would say, oh, man, you ain't
gonna do that. And I'm like, hey, I'll show you.
You can't use negative motivation now with these kids. But
my dad told me at that time, he goes, Son,
you know when you lost tonight, he goes, Man, I
don't know if you'll ever win one or not. And
(15:15):
that was my motivation, you know, I mean, my dad
had passed, and also my motivation was the fact that
my mom had passed that year and the year before,
Hank Aaron had passed and we lost to the Braves,
and so I was like, okay, Hank, Okay, I know
you're rooting for the Braives on this one in this
world series.
Speaker 4 (15:36):
But the next year, I.
Speaker 5 (15:37):
Said, okay, Hank, they already won One's time for you
to root for me now. And so had I had
a lot of people, a lot of spiritual people, a
lot of things in this country, and a lot of
people told me said, man, we were pulling for you.
And there's something too, that power of positive thinking, especially
by the masses, and I think, you know, people send us,
you know, some good vibes.
Speaker 2 (15:59):
I think that was the case people in baseball. They
wanted to see you win. You deserved it. You put
in your time a legendary figure both as a player
and a manager a long time.
Speaker 3 (16:10):
I'm not too many guys get six teams to manage.
Speaker 5 (16:12):
I mean, well, but you know something, but you know something, right,
people ask me and say, hey, man, you know what's
to feel like they on all these teams.
Speaker 4 (16:21):
Well, I shouldn't have been on all those teams. Should
have been a quarter two right, yes.
Speaker 5 (16:25):
Well three Max, That's what I'm thinking, you know, over
that period of time, because like in Washington, we won
ninety five and ninety seven games and I went to
offer the contract, you know. So it's like when I
saw other guys on last place teams losing and they
were offered extensions and so but that's the way of
the world sometime, and you got to battle through it,
(16:46):
especially when you're you know, when you're a minority manager.
Speaker 4 (16:50):
No doubt.
Speaker 2 (16:50):
Last thing I want to ask you about the WBC
and Nicaraqua. You were the manager there. How did that
come about? How was that Did you enjoy that?
Speaker 4 (16:59):
I enjoyed it a lot, and you know, they needed me.
Speaker 5 (17:02):
Once I got down there, I saw that well, one
of my players, Marvin Bernard, is from Nicaragua, and he
had been working on me for a couple of years about,
you know, helping him down there and managing them. I said, Marvin,
I don't know. And then my friend George Santiago from
New York, you know, from the Bronx.
Speaker 2 (17:20):
Uh.
Speaker 4 (17:21):
You know, he was the general manager down there.
Speaker 5 (17:23):
And so I was like, hey, but I got a
couple of guys that I really know and know well
and uh. And I went to visit to see if
I liked it. First, me and my wife and the people,
I mean, they, you know, they treated us great. And
then I went to Guatemala to watch him in a tournament.
And my sister, who had been a missionary in South
America for twelve years, she, you know, she loved Guatemala.
(17:48):
And I love the food, I love the people. I
mean I ate like a I ate like a pig.
And then and then and then didn't gain a pound
on some of the best beef I ever had in
my life in seafood, and I was like, man, this
is what it's like to you know, to eat without preservatives.
Speaker 3 (18:07):
And all that stuff that we put in our body.
Speaker 4 (18:10):
I'm telling you.
Speaker 5 (18:10):
And I didn't realize it until I went to Nicaragua. Actually,
I'm going back to Nicaragua to help the U twenty
three team in November, and you know.
Speaker 4 (18:19):
They're really really good people.
Speaker 5 (18:21):
Plus, I didn't know how many people of African descent
are in Nicaragua, especially on the on the Caribbean side,
because I studied about you know, Marcus Garvey had been
down down the Nicaragua and Central America. But I learned
a lot, you know, I learned a lot, and I
learned a lot about the history of the people.
Speaker 3 (18:40):
Dusty, tell me why you're involved in playing with.
Speaker 6 (18:43):
Hard Well, you know, I had a stroke thirteen years
ago and I was fortunate enough to have the stroke
while I was in hospital, and so at that point
in time, I was lucky to.
Speaker 4 (18:55):
You know, to really be alive.
Speaker 5 (18:57):
And you know, stroke or heart attacks and are the
leading cause of death in our country. And so you know,
playing with hard I think is necessary that people go
and check their they're bad cholesterol, the l DLC and
you know, especially I don't care how you're feeling, a
lot of times.
Speaker 4 (19:17):
You can feel good, but you're you're a walking time bomb.
Speaker 5 (19:21):
So you know, that's why I'm involved to try to
help people, you know, to help themselves.
Speaker 3 (19:26):
And just tell us more about the program. What should
people do?
Speaker 2 (19:30):
Is it just a matter of you know, making yourself
available to be checked and going to the doctor, going
to get checked out.
Speaker 4 (19:38):
Yeah, you said it right. I mean you got to
go to the doctor.
Speaker 5 (19:42):
And you know, you got to go to the doctor,
you know, have blood tests, uh, and they will tell
you what to do. And and it's a different number
for everybody, you know, there's no set number what they're
bad l d LC is, uh, you know, when you're
about to have a stoker anything like that. It varies
per person and so and it doesn't take anything other
(20:06):
than just going and get it checked. And you know,
there are a lot of people that don't want to
go and get anything checked until it's too late.
Speaker 4 (20:13):
So I'm just trying to help people, you know, to
help themselves.
Speaker 2 (20:17):
And here Dusty thirteen years after your stroke and being
involved and whatnot. How do you feel and do you
feel like you have, you know, your life in check,
because now you're being checked.
Speaker 4 (20:29):
You know what you need to do and what you
need to do to take care of yourself. Do you
find you know, I'm on top of it. And I
and I think back back on my stroke.
Speaker 5 (20:39):
You know, I could have been a person that can't
talk right now or or you know, or couldn't walk,
or didn't see.
Speaker 4 (20:47):
My grandchildren grow up.
Speaker 5 (20:48):
Because my grandchildren are like four and six, and I
think about, you know, not seeing my son play ball.
Speaker 4 (20:55):
You know, there's a lot of.
Speaker 5 (20:56):
Things that I'm grateful for because because you know, my stroke,
like I said, was diagnosed very very early. I was
lucky I was in the hospital when I had my stroke.
Now how many people are in the hospital when they
had the stroke. And I was about to be discharged
to go in Chicago to get on a plane, and
so you know, it's it's it's part of my campaign
(21:18):
to try to help people.
Speaker 4 (21:19):
And you know, I'm I'm urging everybody to.
Speaker 5 (21:23):
Tune into playing with heart dot com to learn some
more dusty very.
Speaker 2 (21:29):
Important information and knowledge for people and appreciate it and
thanks for sharing that with us.
Speaker 4 (21:36):
Thank you. You're welcome again, Dusty Baker.
Speaker 3 (21:40):
We appreciate you again.
Speaker 2 (21:42):
People pick up his book Crossroads, check it out, and
of course check out Baker Family wines. So Dusty Man,
appreciate everything. Thank you for joining us here on the
inside the parker. And you know we run into each
other every so often at the ballpark.
Speaker 4 (21:57):
Yes, we do hope to see you soon.
Speaker 2 (21:59):
Man.
Speaker 4 (21:59):
Thank you all right, bro, thank you.
Speaker 1 (22:02):
When Rob was a newspaper columnist, he lived by this motto,
if I'm writing, I'm ripping. Let's bring in a writer
or broadcaster, old or new.
Speaker 3 (22:12):
Now let's welcome into the podcast.
Speaker 2 (22:14):
He is an author, longtime friend of mine, mister John Sirillo.
Speaker 4 (22:19):
We call him mister C.
Speaker 2 (22:21):
He's written an amazing book, Elvis A, Weetha and the Babe.
Three times the bell would toll, mister C.
Speaker 4 (22:29):
How are you. What's going on, Robbie.
Speaker 1 (22:32):
I'm doing great.
Speaker 7 (22:33):
Thank you so much for having me and look forward
to talking to you.
Speaker 2 (22:38):
Yes, tell us about this book anytime you can put
pair those three together. Elvis a week we got two singers,
but then you got the babe.
Speaker 3 (22:47):
Babe ruth in there. Tell us, how they all collide,
and how this book came together.
Speaker 7 (22:53):
I was in Newport, Rhode Island a number of years
ago and all of the TV, these stations were playing
Elvis songs and talking about it was August sixteenth, and
it was the anniversary of his death. The next year,
(23:13):
I'm in the in my car with my beautiful wife friend.
We're driving to the beach, and the broadcaster says, we
have the radio on Aretha Franklin has just passed away,
and it was August sixteenth. I said, oh my god,
what are the odds of the Queen of Soul and
(23:38):
the King of Rock dying on the same date? Right now?
Speaker 3 (23:42):
It's impos almost impossible, right right.
Speaker 7 (23:45):
So now my curiosity gets peaked and I go on
the internet and I must have just googled, you know,
famous people who have died on August sixteenth, and Babe
Ruth was the first one that came up. I think
it was at that point I said, you know, this
(24:09):
may be a book, and it's materialized, you know, so
many years later. But what had happened. I had most
of the book written, with the research that I did
and interviews that I did. I interviewed Bobby Rush, who
played with Elvis on the same stage. He's still alive.
(24:32):
He's going to be performing in New York August twenty
second week after the death date. But Bobby told me
that on the night of the performance he was going
(24:52):
to go on stage, not the same time as Elvis,
but the same day. And they didn't want a black
man swiveling his hips the way Elvis did. Talk about prejudice, right,
mm hmm. Elvis told told them at the at the theater,
(25:15):
if Bobby doesn't swivel his hips, I don't swivel my hips.
Speaker 4 (25:21):
And that was it.
Speaker 3 (25:22):
He uh.
Speaker 7 (25:24):
They both performed, and Bobby told me I should say,
mister Rush, he's in his mid eighties. The day Elvis died,
he looked in the mirror and he said, I can't
believe the impact that Elvis had on my life because
of what he did on that night. It's a beautiful story.
(25:47):
It is a beautiful story. I guess is John Cirillo.
Speaker 2 (25:51):
He's written a new book, Elvis, Oiretha and the Babe
and Babe Ruth.
Speaker 3 (25:57):
Can we tell me tell me your research.
Speaker 2 (25:59):
On Babe and how he died or the scenario that
played out.
Speaker 7 (26:04):
Yeah, Babe, you know the American icon. One interesting story
a buddy of mine from grammar school, Peter McMahon, was
the longest running detective in New York City at the
time of his retirement. And Peter told me he had
(26:28):
a poster of Babe Ruth that he bought a Yankee
Stadium and he had framed because he was and still
is an avid sports fan, and that poster has hung
in his basement wherever he's moved. And he's also conveyed,
(26:51):
you know, the legacy of Babe Ruth to his kids.
So Peter's kept the he he says, me and the
Babe hanging out together. Pun intended with hanging in the basement.
Speaker 4 (27:07):
Yeah, I know, you're very nice.
Speaker 7 (27:11):
Uh, and.
Speaker 2 (27:13):
Tell us about where people can get the book, Uh,
the other other anecdotes or stories or anybody else who's
I think you interviewed Bob Costas for this as well.
Speaker 7 (27:25):
Yeah, Bob's story is great and he shares it with
with Billy Crystal as well. And I remember I was
Bob's pr guy for a while when he was doing
the NBC Baseball Game of the Week, and he tells
his story that in those days, believe it or not,
(27:45):
you could exit the stadium on the field. That wasn't
the only way to exit, but you could exit on
the field and get to the subway that way. And
when Bobby was with his dad and they get to
(28:07):
the Ruth and Garreth plaques and he thought it was
their graves and he started crying his eyes out.
Speaker 2 (28:19):
Wow, as a kid, you're gonna could have imagined, right.
And we know Bob Coss is the biggest Mickey Mantle
fan ever. Yes, yes, so carries that car. Where can
people get the book is called Elvis, Areta and the.
Speaker 3 (28:36):
Babe by John Cirillo.
Speaker 4 (28:38):
Where can people get the book?
Speaker 7 (28:40):
It's up on Amazon already could order on Amazon. The
hardcover is fifty four dollars, but more reasonably priced is
the soft cover for twenty four ninety nine. And also
I was fortunate to connect with Archway at Simon and Schuster,
which is a great publisher for writers that don't have
(29:07):
agents and want to self publish. So if you go
to Archway Publishing dot com you could also purchase it there.
Speaker 2 (29:18):
Well, good luck and congratulations. I'm looking forward to reading
my copy of Elvis, Oh read and the bay mister.
Speaker 7 (29:26):
C Thank you appreciate you all right, Robie, thank you
so much.
Speaker 2 (29:38):
In the words of New York TV legend the late
Bill Jorgensen, thanking you for your time this time until
next time.
Speaker 3 (29:44):
Rob Parker out.
Speaker 4 (29:46):
He can't get it. This could be an inside the Parker.
Speaker 1 (29:49):
See you next week, same bat time, from same Matt station.
From the Berkshars to the sound from wherever you live
in MLB America. This is Inside the Parker. You give
us twenty two minutes and we'll give you the scoop
on major League Baseball. Now, here's Baseball Hall of Fame
voter number fifty six, Rob Parker.
Speaker 2 (00:19):
Come on, I've been covering Major League baseball for almost
forty years now, in New York, in Cincinnati, in Detroit,
in LA.
Speaker 3 (00:29):
I love this game.
Speaker 4 (00:31):
Let's go.
Speaker 2 (00:36):
Welcome into the podcast. I'm your host, Rob Parker. What
a show we have for you today, very special guests,
former big league manager Dusty Baker drops by. We'll dive
into his illustrious career and all the great things that
Dusty is doing right now now that he is no
longer managing.
Speaker 3 (00:55):
Plus, we'll talk.
Speaker 2 (00:57):
With author John Cirillo, who wrote an interesting book that
ties Elvis Presley, Aretha Franklin, and Babe Ruth altogether.
Speaker 3 (01:09):
Let's go.
Speaker 4 (01:11):
Here comes the big Interview. Listen and learn. It's so good.
Speaker 2 (01:17):
Now, let's welcome in former major league manager Dusty Baker
joining us here on Inside the Parker. Who's retired. Now, Dusty,
what's happening? You're looking good? What's up my man?
Speaker 5 (01:28):
Well, thank you man. There's a whole lot less stress
in my life. But you know it's different though. I'm
staying busy, you know, doing a lot of things I have.
I'm doing some part time consulting with the giants, and
you know, you know, following my grandkids around they just left,
and uh and hoping my son, you know, makes it
the big league sometime soon.
Speaker 3 (01:49):
Oh, that would be awesome.
Speaker 2 (01:51):
And let's start with you have a new book out
called Crossroads. Tell us about the book.
Speaker 4 (01:57):
Well, it's it's a book about my life.
Speaker 5 (01:59):
And you know, I wanted to write it before I
passed away, and I didn't want somebody else.
Speaker 4 (02:04):
To write it.
Speaker 5 (02:04):
And uh, you know, I wrote it not only for
a lot of people that that you know, in a
hopeless situation, because you know, we have.
Speaker 4 (02:11):
A lot of uh you know, a lot of stuff going.
Speaker 5 (02:15):
On in our country and in the world, and so
and I also wanted my grandkids to know me.
Speaker 4 (02:20):
Wanted my son and daughter to know me.
Speaker 5 (02:22):
And uh, you know, we we really don't know much
about our parents, only what what our aunties and uncles
tell us. Because our parents, I don't know, watch your parents,
they didn't tell me much about it.
Speaker 3 (02:31):
No, No, I'm went you Justine. I think it's so important.
I have great nephews and I give them information about
who is your uncle? Do you know what I do?
Do you know? Like like I want you to know
what college I went to. I want you to know that.
Speaker 4 (02:45):
I think it's important.
Speaker 5 (02:47):
And the struggles that we went through are no different
than yours, you know, just a different time of day
and so and I talked about, you know, made myself
vulnerable to the world. But that's the only way that
I could, you know, could come across in truth and
as much honor and dignity as I could. And you know,
nobody deserves to know everything about you, but you know
(03:07):
a lot of people deserve and need to hear you
know some things about you, and you know the fact
that you know on a different scale, I don't care
where you are and what you're doing or how successful
you are. It's it's all scaled to problems. We all
got the same problems. I don't care who you are,
and now we're going to deal with the solutions.
Speaker 3 (03:30):
And more people knew.
Speaker 2 (03:31):
And I think when you write a book and you
let you know, you're a little vulnerable and let people
know that all the success you had as a baseball player,
Dusty as as a manager and in.
Speaker 3 (03:44):
Your life that you came from the situations you had
to get out of.
Speaker 2 (03:48):
And other people think they're hopeless, and oh, I can't
pick myself up.
Speaker 3 (03:52):
It's doable.
Speaker 2 (03:53):
And sometimes reading about other people saying how did Dusty
Baker do it? How did he make it? And I
think it's really important, So I'm interested. I can't wait
to read your book. All right, tell me about the
wine to the Baker Family Wine.
Speaker 4 (04:07):
Well, Baker Family Wine is that we started.
Speaker 5 (04:10):
Me and my winemaker you know who I had met
through uh Michael Mandavia. I was on their advisory staff
for a number of years, going to uh lunches and
dinners with Canaan, Daigua and Southern mining spirits and distributors,
and so I said, hey man, you know, let me
try this, and and and the very few uh you know,
African Americans in the industry and in in that business,
(04:33):
and so uh uh you know, we started as a
gentlemanly thing in my backyard, and then we spread to
uh uh San Francisco, and then we came back to
Sacramento and so we have nine varieties called you know,
Baker Family wines and uh even Hank Aaron, you know,
before he passed. He says, hey, man, I want to
(04:55):
be part of your company. I said, no, man, I
don't need that pressure. And he says, I said, hey,
I don't know why I can pay you back. He said, well,
don't worry about it. And he says, you know, pay
back my estate. And he said, but I do want
a bold Cabernet salmong young and he says, I do
mean bold. So I went to my winemaker and I said, hey, man,
Hank wants to be part of our company. And I said,
(05:17):
what do you want to name it? You know, seven
fifty five hammering Hank seven fifty five. So, like I said,
we got nine varietals and it's been fun. I mean,
it's a tough industry right now. All over the world,
you know, less and less people, well especially young people.
Speaker 4 (05:30):
Are drinking wine.
Speaker 5 (05:31):
But you know, I'm glad we didn't get too big
too soon because see a lot of the big boys
are hurting right now.
Speaker 4 (05:37):
And so, you know, win a great position and a
great you know situation.
Speaker 2 (05:42):
Yeah, that sounds great. It's always great. Branch out and
doing stuff. But Dusty, I got to say this as
somebody's covering major League baseball for forty years and being
around and seeing you and what I always thought you
were the coolest baseball player from the risk band to
the toothpick.
Speaker 3 (05:58):
Like I'm just I've always said that about you to other.
Speaker 2 (06:03):
People, like I think he's the coolest baseball player ever.
But let's just talk about you know, your career and
just the situations and circumstances. Obviously with the Atlanta Braves,
you're on Hank, You're on deck when Hank Aaron hits
home run number seven fifteen, you know you're you're credited
with starting to hide five.
Speaker 3 (06:23):
There's so many like moments for you in baseball history.
Speaker 2 (06:28):
And I always think of you as a Dodger even
though you were really a Brave. Do you think of
yourself as a Dodger or a Brave? And I know
you played for a couple other teams as well.
Speaker 5 (06:37):
Well, you know, I can consider myself like I was
born on the Braves, so to speak, in baseball, and
I was eighteen years old, but I came into my
own and I became a man.
Speaker 4 (06:49):
When I got to LA. That's what I think, right.
Speaker 5 (06:51):
And you know when I got to LA you know,
one of the reasons I wanted to leave Atlanta is
because we were losing and I got tired of loose.
And uh you know, coming to La, man, you right
away think about you're gonna be on a winner, and uh,
you know that was the team that I grew up idolzning.
When I was a kid in Riverside. Uh, you know,
(07:12):
Tommy Davis was my hero and I was wearing number
twelve with the Braves. I always had number twelve because
of Tommy Davis.
Speaker 4 (07:19):
Wow and so.
Speaker 5 (07:21):
And then when I met my idol in baseball, because
I had a different idols I had like Elgin.
Speaker 4 (07:26):
Baylor and basketball.
Speaker 5 (07:27):
I had Bob Haysen track, you know, Gail Sayers and football,
but and and baseball it was Tommy Davis. And when
I met him, you know, he was even a better
person after I met him that he was before I
was idolazning.
Speaker 2 (07:43):
I love to hear that because people always say, oh,
you don't want to meet your idols.
Speaker 3 (07:46):
Because you know you're gonna get your heart broken.
Speaker 5 (07:48):
Well there's a couple of times, a couple of times
I got my heartbroken but you know, yeah, yeah, but
not with him.
Speaker 4 (07:54):
I mean he was a.
Speaker 5 (07:55):
Real gentleman and uh, you know he was like, hey, baby,
are you do And every time I see him, you know,
it was it was a terms of endearment that that
you know, he spoke to all of us and I
felt like he was really speaking to me, but he spoke,
you know, he was speaking to all of us.
Speaker 2 (08:11):
I do want to ask you about the being on
deck with Hank Aaron, just knowing the moment and everything,
like what was that feeling?
Speaker 6 (08:19):
Like?
Speaker 2 (08:19):
I mean, obviously it was just that I still get
goosebumps when I see the video, like you were there
kneeling down, you know what I mean, getting ready.
Speaker 5 (08:28):
But you know, like he we're on on deck circle
like we always were. And he told me, he said,
hey man, I'm gonna get this over with right now.
And I said, okay, hey. I mean every time he
tell me he was going to do something, he did it.
And uh it was a cold night and uh, I
mean it was the coldest night that I had seen
in Atlanta since I had been there. And so the
(08:49):
next thing I know, here comes the pitch hits it
out of the park and uh, you know, I could
have been the first one to run up there, but
I didn't want to. I didn't want to take the
spotlight away from hand. And what led up to that
was a whole bunch of pressure and a whole bunch
of times when Hank wasn't happy and and you know,
like he was in the room all time. I mean,
(09:12):
imagine having to hide in your room because Hank had
one room that he slept in and he had another
room that that was registered under and.
Speaker 4 (09:21):
So you know, I was his dummy room.
Speaker 5 (09:24):
And then he had his his his bodyguard, Calvin Wardlowe.
So it was Calvin, Ralph guard, myself and Paul Casanova with.
Speaker 4 (09:33):
Hank almost daily.
Speaker 5 (09:35):
And you know we were kind of charging, making him
laugh or just just making him relax. And you know,
he was a guy that was like my father on
one hand, and he was like my uncle on.
Speaker 4 (09:47):
The other hand.
Speaker 5 (09:47):
You could tell him anything, and uh, you know, he
was good to all of us white black Latin players.
I mean, you know, he was he was an example
of your best player. They also be in your best citizen.
And see, I haven't seen that a whole bunch, you know,
and he was our leader.
Speaker 2 (10:10):
Yeah, that's the impression you get from Hank and just
being well rounded and solid and level and like you say,
treating everybody the same way.
Speaker 3 (10:21):
And now I want to ask you.
Speaker 2 (10:22):
About the Dodgers and the high five, which is incredible
to me because there's a picture of you guys.
Speaker 4 (10:29):
Actually doing it right.
Speaker 2 (10:31):
People credit you, and I'm just forgetting Glenn Burg.
Speaker 3 (10:36):
Glenn Burg the other player.
Speaker 2 (10:38):
Yeah, just that scenario, because I think you had hit
your thirtieth home run?
Speaker 3 (10:42):
Is that what it was?
Speaker 2 (10:43):
And that gave the Dodgers four players with thirty home
runs on the same team, which had never happened, I
don't think. And then you're coming around third base, what
was that? Did you know you had done something different
or no?
Speaker 5 (10:55):
Well, you know what happened was Reggie Smith had his
thirty and Garvey was still playing. He had his thirty,
and Ron Say had his thirty, and so the only
guys that were still playing were Steve Garvey and myself.
And we had a four game series against the Astros
and Reggie Smith told Jr. That I was gonna hit
it off him on Sunday, but he told him this
(11:16):
on Thursday. I like, Reggie, I'm hitting about a buck
fifty off this guy lifetime, and he strikes me out,
you know, two out every three at bats, and and
nobody really struck me out then more than Jr.
Speaker 4 (11:29):
And Man, it came down.
Speaker 5 (11:30):
To that last day, my next to last at bat,
and you know, when he threw it, I hit his
outside fastball and went over to centerfield, left center field fence,
and I knew i'd hit it.
Speaker 4 (11:42):
And I remember seeing Jim Gilliam when I was round
in third base.
Speaker 5 (11:46):
I mean he was, he was as close a coach
to me as I'd ever had, you know before.
Speaker 4 (11:51):
And I came across home plate and Glenn Burke.
Speaker 5 (11:55):
Was was was on deck and Glenn I didn't do it.
Everybody gets me created Glenn did it because Glenn threw
his hand up and then I hit his hand and they.
Speaker 4 (12:05):
Say that was, you know, the start of the high five.
And I really don't know if anybody needs credit for that,
it's Glenn. I was just reciprocating.
Speaker 2 (12:12):
Well, I think I think it's both of you guys,
because because you can't do what you can't do it
by yourself, by yourself, So I think both of you guys.
But I think that's legendary that and people go back
to like it hadn't been done before that, which I
think that's another thing that is so cool.
Speaker 3 (12:28):
Our guess, of course is Dusty Baker. For people don't know,
his first name.
Speaker 4 (12:32):
Is Johnny Johnny b Baker Junior.
Speaker 3 (12:35):
There you go.
Speaker 2 (12:36):
But you know sometimes people got Dusty, they never know
your real first name.
Speaker 5 (12:40):
Well, you know, nobody in my family's ever call me
anything but Dusty. You know, there's only one Johnny, Johnny Bee.
Speaker 4 (12:46):
That's my dad. That's what. Yeah, that's Pops.
Speaker 3 (12:50):
There you go, joining us here on inside the Parker.
Speaker 2 (12:53):
Of course, I do want to talk about obviously you
winning the World Series. Yet you know, you manage six
different team, you finally come back, you take over an
Astros team that was scandal ridden everything, you get it
right and you turn it around and you finally get
that World Series that was just elusive because you won
Manager of the Year three times. You did a lot
(13:15):
as a manager, turned a lot of teams around.
Speaker 3 (13:18):
But just couldn't get over the hum What was that like?
Did you exhale? What was that when you.
Speaker 4 (13:23):
Secured the World Series? Well, well, first though, you know
a lot of people said I turned them around.
Speaker 5 (13:29):
They were good when I got there, but they were
scoring all over the country. I mean, I never heard
team's boos as mightily as they were.
Speaker 4 (13:39):
But what helped was COVID.
Speaker 5 (13:43):
You know, it's hard to imagine that, but the fact
that there was no stands excuse me, no fans in
the stands, right.
Speaker 4 (13:51):
And I mean that made it a lot easier. And
once we came back. Then you saw when we went
to New.
Speaker 5 (13:56):
York and went to LA I mean, I've never heard
of a boot but you know, they're a good bunch
of guys. And and it helped me to the fact
that I wasn't there when all the scandal was going on,
and I told them I didn't have anything to do
with this.
Speaker 4 (14:13):
You know, I'm here.
Speaker 5 (14:14):
New plus plus the Lord to me put me in
that situation because see, I really couldn't get a job
and and and had it not been for that scandal,
then then you know, I've probably never been hired.
Speaker 4 (14:28):
Especially when you're a World Series team, they don't get rid.
Speaker 5 (14:31):
Of their managers and and and as an African American manager,
you don't inherit a good team.
Speaker 4 (14:37):
Most of the time.
Speaker 2 (14:37):
It's always the worst team going vice exactly what And
then you, and then you expected to save them and
they expected to win at all.
Speaker 5 (14:46):
But yeah, it was a huge relief, you know, to win,
especially the fact when I lost in two thousand and two.
Speaker 4 (14:53):
To the Angels.
Speaker 5 (14:54):
You know, back in the day, negative motivation was real.
I don't know how how your parents might have, but
you know, my dad would say, oh, man, you ain't
gonna do that. And I'm like, hey, I'll show you.
You can't use negative motivation now with these kids. But
my dad told me at that time, he goes, Son,
you know when you lost tonight, he goes, Man, I
don't know if you'll ever win one or not. And
(15:15):
that was my motivation, you know, I mean, my dad
had passed, and also my motivation was the fact that
my mom had passed that year and the year before,
Hank Aaron had passed and we lost to the Braves,
and so I was like, okay, Hank, Okay, I know
you're rooting for the Braives on this one in this
world series.
Speaker 4 (15:36):
But the next year, I.
Speaker 5 (15:37):
Said, okay, Hank, they already won One's time for you
to root for me now. And so had I had
a lot of people, a lot of spiritual people, a
lot of things in this country, and a lot of
people told me said, man, we were pulling for you.
And there's something too, that power of positive thinking, especially
by the masses, and I think, you know, people send us,
you know, some good vibes.
Speaker 2 (15:59):
I think that was the case people in baseball. They
wanted to see you win. You deserved it. You put
in your time a legendary figure both as a player
and a manager a long time.
Speaker 3 (16:10):
I'm not too many guys get six teams to manage.
Speaker 5 (16:12):
I mean, well, but you know something, but you know something, right,
people ask me and say, hey, man, you know what's
to feel like they on all these teams.
Speaker 4 (16:21):
Well, I shouldn't have been on all those teams. Should
have been a quarter two right, yes.
Speaker 5 (16:25):
Well three Max, That's what I'm thinking, you know, over
that period of time, because like in Washington, we won
ninety five and ninety seven games and I went to
offer the contract, you know. So it's like when I
saw other guys on last place teams losing and they
were offered extensions and so but that's the way of
the world sometime, and you got to battle through it,
(16:46):
especially when you're you know, when you're a minority manager.
Speaker 4 (16:50):
No doubt.
Speaker 2 (16:50):
Last thing I want to ask you about the WBC
and Nicaraqua. You were the manager there. How did that
come about? How was that Did you enjoy that?
Speaker 4 (16:59):
I enjoyed it a lot, and you know, they needed me.
Speaker 5 (17:02):
Once I got down there, I saw that well, one
of my players, Marvin Bernard, is from Nicaragua, and he
had been working on me for a couple of years about,
you know, helping him down there and managing them. I said, Marvin,
I don't know. And then my friend George Santiago from
New York, you know, from the Bronx.
Speaker 2 (17:20):
Uh.
Speaker 4 (17:21):
You know, he was the general manager down there.
Speaker 5 (17:23):
And so I was like, hey, but I got a
couple of guys that I really know and know well
and uh. And I went to visit to see if
I liked it. First, me and my wife and the people,
I mean, they, you know, they treated us great. And
then I went to Guatemala to watch him in a tournament.
And my sister, who had been a missionary in South
America for twelve years, she, you know, she loved Guatemala.
(17:48):
And I love the food, I love the people. I
mean I ate like a I ate like a pig.
And then and then and then didn't gain a pound
on some of the best beef I ever had in
my life in seafood, and I was like, man, this
is what it's like to you know, to eat without preservatives.
Speaker 3 (18:07):
And all that stuff that we put in our body.
Speaker 4 (18:10):
I'm telling you.
Speaker 5 (18:10):
And I didn't realize it until I went to Nicaragua. Actually,
I'm going back to Nicaragua to help the U twenty
three team in November, and you know.
Speaker 4 (18:19):
They're really really good people.
Speaker 5 (18:21):
Plus, I didn't know how many people of African descent
are in Nicaragua, especially on the on the Caribbean side,
because I studied about you know, Marcus Garvey had been
down down the Nicaragua and Central America. But I learned
a lot, you know, I learned a lot, and I
learned a lot about the history of the people.
Speaker 3 (18:40):
Dusty, tell me why you're involved in playing with.
Speaker 6 (18:43):
Hard Well, you know, I had a stroke thirteen years
ago and I was fortunate enough to have the stroke
while I was in hospital, and so at that point
in time, I was lucky to.
Speaker 4 (18:55):
You know, to really be alive.
Speaker 5 (18:57):
And you know, stroke or heart attacks and are the
leading cause of death in our country. And so you know,
playing with hard I think is necessary that people go
and check their they're bad cholesterol, the l DLC and
you know, especially I don't care how you're feeling, a
lot of times.
Speaker 4 (19:17):
You can feel good, but you're you're a walking time bomb.
Speaker 5 (19:21):
So you know, that's why I'm involved to try to
help people, you know, to help themselves.
Speaker 3 (19:26):
And just tell us more about the program. What should
people do?
Speaker 2 (19:30):
Is it just a matter of you know, making yourself
available to be checked and going to the doctor, going
to get checked out.
Speaker 4 (19:38):
Yeah, you said it right. I mean you got to
go to the doctor.
Speaker 5 (19:42):
And you know, you got to go to the doctor,
you know, have blood tests, uh, and they will tell
you what to do. And and it's a different number
for everybody, you know, there's no set number what they're
bad l d LC is, uh, you know, when you're
about to have a stoker anything like that. It varies
per person and so and it doesn't take anything other
(20:06):
than just going and get it checked. And you know,
there are a lot of people that don't want to
go and get anything checked until it's too late.
Speaker 4 (20:13):
So I'm just trying to help people, you know, to
help themselves.
Speaker 2 (20:17):
And here Dusty thirteen years after your stroke and being
involved and whatnot. How do you feel and do you
feel like you have, you know, your life in check,
because now you're being checked.
Speaker 4 (20:29):
You know what you need to do and what you
need to do to take care of yourself. Do you
find you know, I'm on top of it. And I
and I think back back on my stroke.
Speaker 5 (20:39):
You know, I could have been a person that can't
talk right now or or you know, or couldn't walk,
or didn't see.
Speaker 4 (20:47):
My grandchildren grow up.
Speaker 5 (20:48):
Because my grandchildren are like four and six, and I
think about, you know, not seeing my son play ball.
Speaker 4 (20:55):
You know, there's a lot of.
Speaker 5 (20:56):
Things that I'm grateful for because because you know, my stroke,
like I said, was diagnosed very very early. I was
lucky I was in the hospital when I had my stroke.
Now how many people are in the hospital when they
had the stroke. And I was about to be discharged
to go in Chicago to get on a plane, and
so you know, it's it's it's part of my campaign
(21:18):
to try to help people.
Speaker 4 (21:19):
And you know, I'm I'm urging everybody to.
Speaker 5 (21:23):
Tune into playing with heart dot com to learn some
more dusty very.
Speaker 2 (21:29):
Important information and knowledge for people and appreciate it and
thanks for sharing that with us.
Speaker 4 (21:36):
Thank you. You're welcome again, Dusty Baker.
Speaker 3 (21:40):
We appreciate you again.
Speaker 2 (21:42):
People pick up his book Crossroads, check it out, and
of course check out Baker Family wines. So Dusty Man,
appreciate everything. Thank you for joining us here on the
inside the parker. And you know we run into each
other every so often at the ballpark.
Speaker 4 (21:57):
Yes, we do hope to see you soon.
Speaker 2 (21:59):
Man.
Speaker 4 (21:59):
Thank you all right, bro, thank you.
Speaker 1 (22:02):
When Rob was a newspaper columnist, he lived by this motto,
if I'm writing, I'm ripping. Let's bring in a writer
or broadcaster, old or new.
Speaker 3 (22:12):
Now let's welcome into the podcast.
Speaker 2 (22:14):
He is an author, longtime friend of mine, mister John Sirillo.
Speaker 4 (22:19):
We call him mister C.
Speaker 2 (22:21):
He's written an amazing book, Elvis A, Weetha and the Babe.
Three times the bell would toll, mister C.
Speaker 4 (22:29):
How are you. What's going on, Robbie.
Speaker 1 (22:32):
I'm doing great.
Speaker 7 (22:33):
Thank you so much for having me and look forward
to talking to you.
Speaker 2 (22:38):
Yes, tell us about this book anytime you can put
pair those three together. Elvis a week we got two singers,
but then you got the babe.
Speaker 3 (22:47):
Babe ruth in there. Tell us, how they all collide,
and how this book came together.
Speaker 7 (22:53):
I was in Newport, Rhode Island a number of years
ago and all of the TV, these stations were playing
Elvis songs and talking about it was August sixteenth, and
it was the anniversary of his death. The next year,
(23:13):
I'm in the in my car with my beautiful wife friend.
We're driving to the beach, and the broadcaster says, we
have the radio on Aretha Franklin has just passed away,
and it was August sixteenth. I said, oh my god,
what are the odds of the Queen of Soul and
(23:38):
the King of Rock dying on the same date? Right now?
Speaker 3 (23:42):
It's impos almost impossible, right right.
Speaker 7 (23:45):
So now my curiosity gets peaked and I go on
the internet and I must have just googled, you know,
famous people who have died on August sixteenth, and Babe
Ruth was the first one that came up. I think
it was at that point I said, you know, this
(24:09):
may be a book, and it's materialized, you know, so
many years later. But what had happened. I had most
of the book written, with the research that I did
and interviews that I did. I interviewed Bobby Rush, who
played with Elvis on the same stage. He's still alive.
(24:32):
He's going to be performing in New York August twenty
second week after the death date. But Bobby told me
that on the night of the performance he was going
(24:52):
to go on stage, not the same time as Elvis,
but the same day. And they didn't want a black
man swiveling his hips the way Elvis did. Talk about prejudice, right,
mm hmm. Elvis told told them at the at the theater,
(25:15):
if Bobby doesn't swivel his hips, I don't swivel my hips.
Speaker 4 (25:21):
And that was it.
Speaker 3 (25:22):
He uh.
Speaker 7 (25:24):
They both performed, and Bobby told me I should say,
mister Rush, he's in his mid eighties. The day Elvis died,
he looked in the mirror and he said, I can't
believe the impact that Elvis had on my life because
of what he did on that night. It's a beautiful story.
(25:47):
It is a beautiful story. I guess is John Cirillo.
Speaker 2 (25:51):
He's written a new book, Elvis, Oiretha and the Babe
and Babe Ruth.
Speaker 3 (25:57):
Can we tell me tell me your research.
Speaker 2 (25:59):
On Babe and how he died or the scenario that
played out.
Speaker 7 (26:04):
Yeah, Babe, you know the American icon. One interesting story
a buddy of mine from grammar school, Peter McMahon, was
the longest running detective in New York City at the
time of his retirement. And Peter told me he had
(26:28):
a poster of Babe Ruth that he bought a Yankee
Stadium and he had framed because he was and still
is an avid sports fan, and that poster has hung
in his basement wherever he's moved. And he's also conveyed,
(26:51):
you know, the legacy of Babe Ruth to his kids.
So Peter's kept the he he says, me and the
Babe hanging out together. Pun intended with hanging in the basement.
Speaker 4 (27:07):
Yeah, I know, you're very nice.
Speaker 7 (27:11):
Uh, and.
Speaker 2 (27:13):
Tell us about where people can get the book, Uh,
the other other anecdotes or stories or anybody else who's
I think you interviewed Bob Costas for this as well.
Speaker 7 (27:25):
Yeah, Bob's story is great and he shares it with
with Billy Crystal as well. And I remember I was
Bob's pr guy for a while when he was doing
the NBC Baseball Game of the Week, and he tells
his story that in those days, believe it or not,
(27:45):
you could exit the stadium on the field. That wasn't
the only way to exit, but you could exit on
the field and get to the subway that way. And
when Bobby was with his dad and they get to
(28:07):
the Ruth and Garreth plaques and he thought it was
their graves and he started crying his eyes out.
Speaker 2 (28:19):
Wow, as a kid, you're gonna could have imagined, right.
And we know Bob Coss is the biggest Mickey Mantle
fan ever. Yes, yes, so carries that car. Where can
people get the book is called Elvis, Areta and the.
Speaker 3 (28:36):
Babe by John Cirillo.
Speaker 4 (28:38):
Where can people get the book?
Speaker 7 (28:40):
It's up on Amazon already could order on Amazon. The
hardcover is fifty four dollars, but more reasonably priced is
the soft cover for twenty four ninety nine. And also
I was fortunate to connect with Archway at Simon and Schuster,
which is a great publisher for writers that don't have
(29:07):
agents and want to self publish. So if you go
to Archway Publishing dot com you could also purchase it there.
Speaker 2 (29:18):
Well, good luck and congratulations. I'm looking forward to reading
my copy of Elvis, Oh read and the bay mister.
Speaker 7 (29:26):
C Thank you appreciate you all right, Robie, thank you
so much.
Speaker 2 (29:38):
In the words of New York TV legend the late
Bill Jorgensen, thanking you for your time this time until
next time.
Speaker 3 (29:44):
Rob Parker out.
Speaker 4 (29:46):
He can't get it. This could be an inside the Parker.
Speaker 1 (29:49):
See you next week, same bat time, from same Matt station.
Hosts And Creators
kelvin washington
Rob Parker
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Betrayal Weekly
Betrayal Weekly is back for a new season. Every Thursday, Betrayal Weekly shares first-hand accounts of broken trust, shocking deceptions, and the trail of destruction they leave behind. Hosted by Andrea Gunning, this weekly ongoing series digs into real-life stories of betrayal and the aftermath. From stories of double lives to dark discoveries, these are cautionary tales and accounts of resilience against all odds. From the producers of the critically acclaimed Betrayal series, Betrayal Weekly drops new episodes every Thursday. If you would like to share your story, you can reach out to the Betrayal Team by emailing them at betrayalpod@gmail.com and follow us on Instagram at @betrayalpod and @glasspodcasts. Please join our Substack for additional exclusive content, curated book recommendations, and community discussions. Sign up FREE by clicking this link Beyond Betrayal Substack. Join our community dedicated to truth, resilience, and healing. Your voice matters! Be a part of our Betrayal journey on Substack.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com