On this episode of Two Strike Noise, Jeff and Mark cover recent baseball chatter (Jazz Chisholm borrowing gear, a new baseball rom-com, and the 1986 Wally Joyner knife incident) before welcoming Baseball-Reference’s Adam Darowski for a deep dive on Julio Franco, from his Dominican upbringing and Phillies signing through stints with Cleveland, Texas, the White Sox, and extensive play in Japan, Mexico, Korea, and back in MLB with Atlanta and the Mets, highlighting his longevity, unique batting stance, training regimen, and age-related MLB records. They discuss Franco’s production peaks (including a 1991 AL batting title), his global hit totals and Darowski’s conservative “gap-filling” 4,000-hit-club research projecting Franco past 3,000 MLB hits, plus context from Negro Leagues/Latin American history and Hall of Fame considerations. The episode also closes with a 1987 Topps Wax Pack Heroes card pull and Adam’s Immaculate Grid favorites.

Awesome shot of Julio and other DR players looking fly AF - https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/portrait-of-mlb-shortstops-rafael-santana-julio-franco-news-photo/957081864?adppopup=true

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Support a Great Cause: Don't let your common cards collect dust! Donate them to help spark a child's interest in the game at http://commons4kids.org/.

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On May 17, 1998, David Wells showed up to Yankee Stadium having slept maybe two and a half hours, running on coffee, a single pancake, and whatever was left of Saturday night. He then threw the 15th perfect game in Major League Baseball history in front of 49,820 people who were mostly there for a Beanie Baby. That's the story this week.

We go deep on the whole thing — the legendary SNL after-party that didn't happen, the cast members who swear they were there and provably weren't, the Mandela Effect that turned one hungover pitcher into baseball mythology, and what Wells actually did in the nine years after the game nobody thought he had left in him.

Also in this episode: Rickey Henderson and Jim Rice stop by Letterman to deliver a top 10 list, Steve Garvey turns up as an extra in The Godfather Part II, Wade Boggs earns his nickname on the set of Cheers, and we finally finish that pack of 2003 Topps with Alfonso Soriano, Shawn Green, Al Leiter, and Sean Casey.

Topics include: David Wells perfect game, 1998 New York Yankees, SNL Mandela Effect, Jimmy Fallon David Wells party, Beanie Baby day Yankee Stadium, Chuck Knoblauch throwing yips, Tim McClelland umpire, Don Larsen perfect game, Dock Ellis no-hitter, Dallas Braden perfect game, David Cone knuckleball, Rickey Henderson Hall of Fame, Wade Boggs Cheers, Steve Garvey Godfather, 2003 Topps baseball cards, baseball history podcast, Two Strike Noise

00:00 Open

01:06 Rickey & Rice on Letterman

05:26 Garvey in Godfather

07:18 Boggs on Cheers

10:10 Towel Toss Ejection

12:40 Wells Perfect Game Intro

15:48 Gout and Yankees Context

19:10 The Mystery Party Night

23:28 Hangover to Perfection

30:37 Perfect Game Tension

33:00 Knoblauch Saves It

34:23 Twins Stall Tactics

35:26 Ninth Inning Drama

37:31 Perfect Game Celebration

38:51 Aftermath And Trivia

45:06 SNL Mandela Effect

47:33 Wax Pack Heroes Returns

01:00:50 Final Cards Winner

01:04:11 Wrap Up And Plugs

Connect With Us

YouTube: www.youtube.com/@twostrikenoise

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Email: twostrikenoise@gmail.com

Support a Great Cause: Don't let your common cards collect dust! Donate them to help spark a child's interest in the game at http://commons4kids.org/.

#baseballhistory #mlb #baseball #BaseballCards #TwoStrikeNoise #popculture

The mailbag delivers. Listener emails this week include a baseball honeymoon, a Jeopardy-funded wedding (not a typo), and a fan who shipped over APBA game materials and a stack of 1972 Topps cards. That last one matters by the end of the episode.

In BP, Jeff and Mark work through the week's oddities: batters watching their own strikeout replays in real time, the phrase "circuit clout" making a comeback, Elmo showing up in the Phillies booth alongside John Kruk, Jazz Chisholm wearing Giancarlo Stanton's pants to break a slump, and a genuinely strange roster trivia note involving the Marlins, Cardinals, and Twins.

The main segment is 1988. Specifically, what happens when a pitcher gets so locked in that the league starts to feel likeit's 1968 all over again. Orel Hershiser threw 59 consecutive scoreless innings that year — breaking Don Drysdale's record — and won the Cy Young while doing it. Jeff puts it in context against Bob Gibson's 1968, the last time people seriously asked whether pitchers had broken the sport.

The episode closes with Wax Pack Heroes, using the 1972 Topps cards the listener sent in.

00:00 Cold Open and Welcome 00:18 On Location and Mariners Talk 01:31 Mailbag Honeymoon Baseball Stories 04:15 APBA Surprise and Wax Packs 07:19 BP Big Screens and Circuit Clouts 09:11 Elmo in the Broadcast Booth 10:52 Jazz Chisholm Wears Stantons Pants 13:22 Weird MLB Three Team Trivia 15:01 NCIS New Orleans Baseball Cameos 16:54 Year of the Pitcher Part Deux 44:35 Wax PackHeroes 01:07:10 Thanks Plugs Signoff

Connect With Us YouTube: www.youtube.com/@twostrikenoise Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/twostrikenoise BlueSky: @twostrikenoise.bsky.social Email: twostrikenoise@gmail.com

Support a Great Cause: Don't let your common cards collect dust! Donate them to help spark a child's interest in the game at http://commons4kids.org/.

#baseballhistory #mlb #baseball #Yankees #RedSox #Cal #BaseballCards #TwoStrikeNoise